Puma Yu's

This my go to spot whenever I am in Athens at night. Always has the freshest fish! Flavors are always explosive! My Fiancé and I went for the Sam Gribbon benefit dinner and was not disappointed! Brisket was fall apart tender and the chicken was cooked perfectly. Can't wait to go back for an another amazing Chef Pete experience!

Puma Yu's treads a very fine line between comfortable/casual and classy/fancy and I think it actually nails the vibe very well. I don't think you'd look out of place in a T-Shirt and Shorts but can easily come in dressed in a tie and not look out of place. The drink menu is OUTSTANDINGLY huge, it's essentially 4 times larger than the food menu and has some very interesting and unique flavors and picks. The seasonal nature of the menu makes it more difficult to talk on the food as it changes. I will say everything tends to be somewhat spicy, you can ask for things on the side but just BASELINE the way the food is prepared/cooked, it's going to have kick. Parking is very easy, the whole Rivet House complex is very pleasant to get into and out of. So why not 5 stars? I think the food menu is just SMALL, there's not a lot of diversity, you essentially have ONE noodle dish, ONE fish dish, ONE curry. There is often going to be an interesting special like Fried Chicken or Flank Steak and again, I think the food is delicious, but it's nice to have options, especially if you're coming with a larger party. Pictures are from my most recent visit in October 2025.

My spouse and I are never disappointed when we come to Puma Yu’s! They have our favorite espresso martini (and trust me, we have a ranked list), and their desserts always knock it out of the park. All of their cocktails and mocktails are phenomenal, the staff are polite and attentive, the service is good even when they’re busy. This visit we had the shrimp aguachile and the pork belly clay pot noodles and they were sooooo delicious! Hats off to the chefs, wait staff, bartenders, everyone. We love Puma Yu’s!

After my first visit, I wasn’t sure how often I would come back, but I now find myself constantly bringing friends here, so I figured it was finally time to write a review. Food & Drinks: The food is always so good. Lately we keep going back specifically for their small plates. The spring rolls are incredible, and the sauce they come with is honestly heavenly. The pork dumplings are also AMAZING. My friends and I usually stick to sharing the snacks and starters, but their larger plates are just as good. I personally gravitate toward the noodle dishes, and they never disappoint. The cocktails are not only beautiful (served in the cutest fancy little glasses), but they really pack a punch. They also offer non-alcoholic options that I feel like are much more creative than what I usually see elsewhere. Service: Always incredible. Every server we’ve had has been kind, attentive, and extremely helpful whenever we have questions. Atmosphere: The whole place is just a vibe. The colors, lighting, seating, and music make it both relaxing and somehow rejuvenating. If my friends and I are having a bad day, Puma Yu’s is our go-to, and our mood is instantly turned around. 10/10 recommend.

Delicious, unique food and amazing service. Everything was fresh and tasty, and I will definitely be back. Chef deserves all the props. Do try the beef noodle! UPDATED REVIEW:: I went a second time, and the menu is seasonal so it was a new menu. I got a pork noodle for $28. While the portion was large, it was quite greasy and left me feeling heavy. I will come back and try the desserts! The 20% included gratuity tip is also steep as the menu items are already expensive. I'm excited to try thr lunch options as well.

Genuinely our favorite date spot in Athens. It’s a bit pricey, but the quality is worth the price, and it truly feels like a worthwhile experience every time we go! Tabitha is our usual server, and she’s always very friendly and ready with a recommendation. She put us on to their Fried Chicken Wednesdays, which are incredible! And I’m actually salivating thinking about duck dumplings right now. And shrimp tempura. And crab salad. Mmm. Anyways 10/10, and please I beg of you to bring back the pork steak.

One of my favorite things about Puma Yu's is that their menu updates seasonally, so there are always new things to try. The vibe inside very lively and the decor has personality which you don't always find in newer restaurants. The patio is a great space to hang out with friends in Spring/ Summer for libations (note: patio is heated in Winter months). Puma's cocktail program is incredible, and I can always count on a very unique selection of signature cocktails to throw back. Aside from that, they often host live bands, drag shows, community markets, and events benefitting local organizations like Athens Pride & Queer Collective and Habitat for Humanity among others.

The drinks were to tiniest I've ever had in a restaurant. One had an ice cube that was giant, so that there was maybe 2 oz of fluid in the small glass, that was the $10 non alcoholic drink. I saw others get different sized glasses, but ours were thimble sized and not even full????? The soup was thin broth containing very little coconut and chock full of noodles, a few mushrooms and well, not interesting and bland. The catfish was lovely, but $32 and one piece of fish and sauce and nothing else...the dessert was 6 frozen blackberries under the 2 tablespoons of custard the lime whipped cream was fun and salty, but we came home hungry and made snacks. The cost: $123.00

Came back for another experience at puma Yu's. Once again I am happily surprised at their ever-changing menu and their courteous and fun staff. The ambience is always wonderful and I'm always reminded of the lovely atmosphere of the bar/restaurant. Whether I'm just getting a drink or going for nice dinner, I know that my time will always be well spent at this establishment! Thanks for the meal and great time!

This was disappointing and not sure what tastebuds the other reviewers have because it was some of the worst food we've eaten. My entire table was sorely disappointed with their meals. Everyone of the meals was overpowered with too much saltiness and spice (and I'm not talking about hot spicy because we can tolerate that just finds, but I'm referring to the ingredients overpowered the dish that you couldn't savor the the flavors well) Not worth it for the price and the quality of the food and the how much food you get for the price. I do give them good ambiance. It's a nicely well-decorated place but don't let the pretty decor fool you. Not worth the money and you'll leave hungry and disappointed.

Athens needed a place like this! The cocktails are unique and well balanced. Each dish was full of authentic Southeast Asian flavors that I have not been able to find anywhere else in Athens. The service was friendly and attentive, and the AC was pumping cool enough to get a soup. I got the shrimp noodle soup which had huge prawn-like, peeled shrimp and fresh herbs. The broth was incredibly flavorful! I love that they kept the shrimp heads in the bowl. Don't be afraid to suck out the extra flavor from the shrimp heads! I had a taste of my husband's duck noodles and wow you cannot go wrong with that dish. It has everything! Rich meaty duck, fresh crisp bok choy, spicy sambal. The dining room is small but welcoming. I'd say reservations are recommended. They also have a nice outdoor patio for the days that aren't oppressively hot. Puma Yu's will always be a stop whenever I visit the Athens area.

Wonderful ambience and rightfully rated Athen's best Asian restaurant for 2024. The peach and squash salad caused an interesting tingling/numbing feeling in your mouth because the beet consumé contains Szechuan peppers

Had a wonderful lunch. I had shrimp pad Thai, my wife had a stir fry tofu. The flavors were amazing. By far the best Asian style food in Athens. Lunch apparently used to be counter service, but now it is full service. Their lunch menu had several more items than the online menu has. I had been hesitant to eat here because of the limited online menu, but I'm more than glad I did. Very small seating area inside, but we arrived before noon on a Thursday and had a table with no wait. The cocktail menu looked interesting but we didn't order one as it was lunch. Definitely plan going back for dinner.

The food is really good but automatic 20% gratuity on a two top when the service wasn't all that is wild.

I have tried every veggie option on Puma Yu's menu. The fried eggplant is awesome, and the smoked chili dip is addictive. The sour curry and laab mushrooms are okay. If you eat meat, the whole fish is the way to go. They make really good cocktails, especially the Persephone and Charming Beauty. The decor is ulta-chic, and they have a killer, covered outdoor patio. The service doesn't miss a beat.

We went to Puma Yu's for a second time so I thought I would write a review. Arrived and it was a slow night. Had good service. Our waitress was attentive but not overbearing. The dishes were good but tended to be on the small side. Best was eggplant in a Asian sauce. Well prepared and sliced to allow the flavors to penetrate. The dumplings had good flavor but the dish was tiny. 3 small dumplings....just not worth it imo. The wings were fine. Nothing to write home about. The last time the best part of the meal was the whole fish. This time it was good until we got to the upper portion and realized it had not been cleaned. Guts and all were still there....... Overall it was a fine experience but slightly overpriced. Looked at my wife on the way out and asked what her opinion was and she said we probably will not be back.

I don't often write reviews except when I am either really impressed or really disappointed. I am impressed! The way this place finds the absolute right combination and amount of spices to compliment the dishes is exceptional. I can't wait to go back to try more. We were served several items and each was special and exceeded my expectation.

Was excited to try this Thai place but was disappointed. Sat outside and our server was a guy with a cut off tee shirt and we were now eye level with his belly hair. Should have left then. Asked for a hot tea but they don't serve any tea so ordered hot coffee but it was lukewarm and the creme was spoiled. Ordered 2 different entrees - lunch menu is limited, and asked that the spice level be lowered. Got the entrees and it looked like a whole bottle of chili flakes had been dumped on top. The server said the chef was Thai and so "it is what it is"!!! What we could eat wasn't very good. The pork was very tough. Don't like the added gratuity even tho I always do at least 20%. Why can't they just have a no tip policy and add the tip into the menu price.

Some of the worst service we've ever experienced. Tabitha spoke to us when we sat and then waited 20 minutes to return to ask what kind of wine we'd like. While the restaurant was not overly busy, Tabitha was able to give all her other tables ample attention except for ours. We waited an additional 25 minutes just to place our food orders, while our server whisked back and forth to every table but ours, even taking breaks to chat with coworkers. On top of this, it's like she didn't even want us to order anything. Having worked in the service industry for years myself, following up on drink refills when a dish is brought out or glasses are empty is pretty customary. We ended up having to ask the host for a water refill because she was having a social hour at the bar instead. Service aside the food was mediocre. Eggplant was bland and under seasoned, pork belly was a similar situation and borderline inedible, and the curry dishes had obnoxiously large chunks of daikon that added little but texture and took away from the main focus of the dish. All dishes quite overpriced as well for the quality. We do not plan on returning.

So we ate half of the fish before I remembered to take a pic. The Red Snapper is a whole fried fish and that is their signature dish. We came during Restaurant Week for Athens so got it at a deal in a multiple course dinner. Puma makes incredible sauces and I was basically eating the sauces raw. My only qualm is that it's expensive for what the restaurant is and where it's located in small town Georgia.

I drove from Atlanta to come here for brunch on my birthday and everything we had was DELICIOUS. The congee and the pork floss bun were to die for. The place is cute and colorful and so is the staff!!! I could not recommend Puma Yu's any more! Thanks y'all!

My husband and I are here for restaurant week and we're excited to try some new dishes. The restaurant is so cute and has a great ambiance and the servers were great. I got the smoked chili dip, squash and peach salad, and mushroom noodles. I wasn't crazy about the salad or the chili dip but I really enjoyed the mushroom pasta. The gluten free options are pretty limited if you have celiac but all of the pasta dishes are made with rice noodles.

The food is good but the fact that they have all new staff every time we go is a little off-putting. Tonight the waiter had the audacity to tell us that the 20% charge automatically added to the check was for the kitchen staff...meaning we were to add another 20% for himself? This is getting a little out of hand,,,,

Drinks are immaculate, phenomenal, and make everything I'm about to complain about worth it. Food is dope, I wish the price matched portion size. Service is bad. So disappointing. I've tried going probably a half dozen times since they've opened and have left with the same disappointment every time. Feels like servers are untrained or simply don't care. They are missing out on opportunities to upsell, never checking in on if we want second rounds, leaving us with empty glasses, and not nailing timing for firing dishes. This most recent visit we didn't get silverware until well after our second dish came out. Anyways. Great drinks, good food, bad service.

Ally and Pete are soo awesome and so is Puma Yu's!

Had dinner for the first time on Sunday. Wanted to try Puma yu's since the chef had been nominated for Best Chef in the Southeast by the James Beard Foundation. Made an early reservation since we knew it was very limited seating. Arrived a little early before opening but a server offered us seats at the bar so we could peruse the menu until they opened which was nice. It's a very small space with bar seating on one side and banquet seating along the wall. There's also an outdoor covered patio with overhead heaters. He took our orders for cocktails after graciously answering several of our questions about ingredients. The cocktail menu is unique and exotic. Everything we ordered was exceptional! We were seated promptly and ordered wine with dinner. The wine list is very limited and we thought that they waned to feature the cocktails. The menu is pared down to what they believe they can do best and we prefer that in a restaurant. The four of us started with a crudite with a dipping sauce to share that was wonderful! A very different experience! Our entrees were delicious. The best was a vegetarian dish with mushrooms that our friend had! Wish I could describe the other dishes but they escape my memory. Food was wonderful! Service was excellent! Noise level was a 10 - much too loud! Price $$$$ Comfort level was a 6 because of the bustle in the small dining room and the unpadded seats. All in all a great introduction but don't know when we'll return.

Made a reservation for 8:00pm indoor seating, got there at 7:45 and knew we were a bit early so didn't mind waiting. We were asked if we wanted to sit outside since there were tables out but it was too cold and we declined. We didn't end up sitting at our table until 8:35 pm, and received no apology for the extremely late seating. Once we were sat our server barely spoke to us. We ordered the wings as an appetizer and got the wrong food and had to wait extra long for our correct appetizer. Once we got the wings they were good and we ordered our main courses which were also good, but nothing special after waiting 50 minutes for our table with a server who spoke to us about 3 times in total. Overall the service was pretty bad and the food was good but nothing that really stood out. Was really excited about this place and left very disappointed.

Wonderful staff and super yummy food! You can tell everyone who works there loves to be there which is super important as someone who has worked in the service industry for years.

Looking for something very different in Athens? Then try Puma Yu. Wonderful Thai fusion loaded with great taste. Interesting cocktails, attentive service and nice vibe. Very limited indoor seating but has a great patio with heat lamps if needed. Tonight was our first visit but certainly not our last. Very enjoyable evening. Chef is a James Beard winner and I concur.

Great atmosphere and employees! My friend and I decided to make a reservation for the Tamez bbq and puma yu's event. We hadn't tried either one so we thought it would be a great way to try both at the same time! Overall we had a good experience but we were very disappointed with the price. We did not feel the dish matched the price. I've worked in the restaurant industry for over 5 years and know fully well the dish could have been elevated to meet the price without compromising a profit. The ramen was $25 plus automatic gratuity which came out to $32 total. In what world is it okay to pay $32 for a small bowl of ramen.. The rib was really good but $25 ??? And I don't really care if "inflation" was the cause of it. I know how much eggs cost in bulk. A simple boiled egg would have been a great addition. The ramen had noodles, a rib, green onions and a chili oil. That's it. We're not in Atlanta and even then I don't think ramen costs that much over there..

The ambiance was so cozy and cool. I loved the lighting and the decor. Our server was really friendly and they gave us some free food bc they asked us to scooch our table over. The food was really yummy- gave 4 stars instead of 5 because the price point was really high, and I'm not sure the food or drinks were that level good for that price (in my opinion). If the food was cheaper I'd give it a 5 star immediately!

Puma Yu's is special. The food is thoughtfully created with such intense & delicious flavors. Every bite leaves me with a smile on my face (and me saying WOW). Not only are the food and drinks on point- the staff is so pleasant and I know they care so much about creating a quality experience for whoever walks in. Thank you Puma Yu's

Everything here is perfection. The atmosphere is impeccable. The staff are kind and knowledgeable. The food is superb. Ally and Pete are artists, and their menues are fine works of art.

Incredible food and fantastic service! Molly is a delightful server with great recommendations! Beautiful decor and wonderful drinks! One of my favorite places in Athens.

Best meal I ever had. The fish, the noodles, the wine, the cocktails, the ambience. If you ever need to celebrate good news (or soften the bad!), this is the place to do it.