Casa Balam
Mexican restaurant · Decatur
201 W Ponce de Leon Ave, Decatur, GA 30030
Highlights
Upscale Mexican fare with unique cocktails, family-style platters
Upscale Mexican fare with unique cocktails, family-style platters
"Once you mention the spacious, upbeat dining room and the spice-packed shareable Mexican dishes, Decatur’s Casa Balam becomes an agreeable solution when your friends are spending more time debating where to eat than it would take to actually eat. It’s not your average margarita night with the gang. This restaurant processes their own corn in-house for tortilla dishes, excels at fish, like tacos de pescado with crackly breading over flaky flounder, and makes really great cocktails (like the sweet, electric blue El Azul mezcal cocktail). You can also order family-style with half or whole portions of beef birria." - nina reeder, juli horsford, jacinta howard
"Decatur's Casa Balam usually has a crowd on weekends, when it's best (but not necessary) to have a reservation for this upscale Mexican restaurant. But during the week, walk-ins are the norm. Enough people are forking through plates of flaky, miso-marinated sea bass to prevent that awkward too-quiet ambiance when things are sparse. Even if you come with a crew (your starting friends lineup and maybe a few subs), you’ll still be able to walk right in for a table in the chic dining room. Share some platters of citrusy ceviche, but hog the fried fish tacos to yourself. And don’t forget to try mezcal-heavy cocktails like the bright blue El Azul." - juli horsford, nina reeder, jacinta howard
"A recently established Atlanta-area spot that was named a semifinalist for the James Beard Award's Best New Restaurant category." - Henna Bakshi
"Mexican restaurant Casa Balam hits a lot of high notes—and not just because of the upbeat music bouncing off the sun-baked stone walls. Their spacious dining room often means you can walk right in without a wait, especially on weekdays. And if group ordering starts getting tricky, point your crew toward shareable dishes like beef birria with chiles and citrusy ceviche platters. Plus, the food and drinks are fantastic, like the velvety Bee Word with coconut milk, sweet pollen, and tequila." - juli horsford, jacinta howard, nina reeder
"At Casa Balam, well-garnished cocktails and pretty spirit-free beverages make their way to tables, creating a domino effect of "I'll have what they're having." And that's a game you can play here since everything shaken, stirred, or muddled behind the bar will be good. And the extensive wine list at this Decatur Mexican spot includes non-alcoholic reds and whites that deliver all the flavor without the likelihood you’ll talk louder and louder after each glass." - jacinta howard, juli horsford, nina reeder
