Daniel B.
Yelp
Can't believe it's taken me almost 25 years to visit the Old Vinings Inn. I attended a large group (18-person) dinner here and enjoyed it. The food, drink, and service were good to great. This is a classic Southern restaurant that's been around since 1990. In metro Atlanta, where restaurants constantly come and go, Old Vinings Inn has been a fixture. I'd always known this to be that old white house with live music and from this visit, I learned that the food, drink, and service here are solid too.
There's live music (and sometimes, comedy) every Thursday-Saturday night in the attic bar. Tickets are $5 per person. I'd call them at 770-438-2282 for bar reservations and more info. You can view which artists they have booked on the calendar here: https://oldviningsinn.net/atlanta-vinings-old-vinings-inn-live-music
To book reservations for the dining room or patio, use OpenTable. When you reserve using OpenTable, you earn dining points which can be used to redeem restaurant discounts, Amazon gift cards, hotel stays, and magazine subscriptions.
The restaurant has a free dedicated parking lot, but space is limited to about 20 spaces or so. The setback (clearance) between the building/entrance and Paces Mill Road is tight.
The building has been around since the 1880s. It's been an apartment house, gas station, general store, and post office. Many parts of the structure, inside and out, still look old, but it's got a rustic charm to it. The dining rooms are understated and refined. There are nice traditional elements like the fireplace in the lobby. The low-ceiling attic bar has a more casual atmosphere. In general, I thought this was a great spot for our group and it looked like it would work equally as well for a romantic date night (intimate, artificially-candlelit, white tablecloth).
When I entered the restaurant, none other than owner Lee Schulman opened the door and welcomed me in. What better way to enter the Old Vinings Inn than that? I recognized Lee from his 2017 appearance on the local TV show Atlanta Eats as well as from the restaurant's website where I browsed the menu beforehand. Lee told me he bought this place about 10 years ago. I asked him if it had actually ever been an inn and he said no. I guess it's just in the name.
One of my buddies had been here before Lee took over and he told me that he thought the place was outdated. I believe several renovations have been made since Lee became the owner. I know the private room we dined in had been renovated at some point relatively recently. Also, I've known two couples who dined on the patio here during and since the pandemic. Both couples told me they enjoyed everything, from the food to the atmosphere.
One of my coworkers organized this dinner. It was done family style, which I liked. The ambiance was cozy and homey. The menu was mostly preset. The only decisions we had to make were individual drink and entree orders. The entire drink menu, with cocktails and wines by the glass and bottle, was available to us. The food menu was custom-made and had a special message at the top congratulating our other coworker on his retirement (this was his retirement dinner). I thought that was a nice touch by the restaurant.
Here's what we had:
Appetizers (served family style)
* Dip Duo - pimento cheese and spinach-artichoke-sun dried tomato dips, sea salt-herbed olive oil flatbreads
* Southern Fry Baskets - calamari, shrimp, hush puppies, pickled veggies, remoulade, jezebel sauce
Salad
* Artisan Greens - seasonal vegetables, champagne vinaigrette, crispy chickpeas
Entrees (we each got to pick one)
* Seared Atlantic Salmon - lemon-basil compound butter
* Coleman All-Natural Buttermilk Fried Chicken Breast - thyme gravy
* Grilled Bistro Steak - rosemary-black garlic demi glace
* Vegetable Pasta - herbed fresh local spaghetti, seasonal vegetables, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, Parmesan
Accoutrements (sides, served family style)
* Whipped Potatoes
* Crispy Brussels Sprouts
* Mac & Cheese
* Pot Likker Collards with Smoky Bacon
Desserts (served family style)
* Warm Fruit Cobbler - crunchy granola topping, vanilla ice cream
* Flourless Chocolate Torte - blood orange coulis, hazelnuts, candied ginger
Overall, I've got to say I was pleasantly surprised by the food. Everything was delicious. For all these years, I had no idea this quality of Southern food was right here in Vinings. Admittedly, places like the now-shuttered Paces & Vine in nearby Vinings Jubilee overshadowed Old Vinings Inn for me. Thinking more widely around Atlanta, South City Kitchen comes to mind. However, where I think Old Vinings Inn shines is in the type of Southern food they serve. It's simple and traditional. They stick to tried-and-true classics and I thought they executed every one of our dishes well.
My drink, a Jamaican Old Fashioned, made with Jamaican rum, pineapple amaro, demerara, allspice bitters, and Luxardo cherry, was quite tasty. I recommend it.
Service was terrific.