{Photograph} by Martha Williams
Atlanta is a steakhouse city. It has loads of them—between 100 and 150, relying on the way you outline steakhouses and Atlanta. Because of this, such eating places discover differentiating themselves difficult, and newcomer Il Premio faces that impediment head-on. Few steakhouses are close to its location on the newly minted Forth Resort within the Outdated Fourth Ward close to Ponce Metropolis Market, so it has a right away edge.
Il Premio, whose identify interprets to “prize,” attracts its inspiration from the Palio di Siena, Italy’s most well-known horse race within the Tuscan city of Siena. The partitions of the ground-floor restaurant, lined in thoughtfully curated equestrian-themed artwork, and the wealthy materials, corresponding to mustard velvet seating, make the house seem like a swanky Italian polo membership. Its menu can also be Italian-leaning, and you’ll anticipate finding sections for crudi and secondi. Chef John Adamson beforehand led kitchens on the health-forward True Meals Kitchen and steakhouses Marcel and American Minimize (the latter closed in 2022).
“We are attempting to distinguish,” Adamson mentioned over the cellphone. “Lots of the steakhouses are usually not tremendous seasonal or pushed by the produce side of it, in order that’s one thing that we’re attempting to include, as a result of what do you consider Italian meals? Every little thing is seasonal and hyperlocal.”
Adamson additionally took inspiration from Italy when he designed the menu sections. “It was exhausting incorporating all of those steakhouse features with Italian as a result of we nonetheless needed a tremendous pasta program,” the chef mentioned. “I didn’t wish to be a seafood tower–sort steakhouse. Should you eat the seafood tower, you’re in all probability not gonna have room to benefit from the pasta. Every little thing is form of in-built a manner that you could take pleasure in one thing from each part.”
So, as an alternative of a calming seafood tower, Adamson options crudi: contemporary starters centered round uncooked fish. Considered one of my favorites was a swirl of impeccable Mediterranean sea bass embellished with cucumber slices, a pop of brightness from Finger Lime pearls (the citrus fruit has an inside like caviar), and a whisper of brine from its actual caviar crown.
The meat tartare is likely one of the most elegant steak tartare preparations I’ve just lately encountered. Its mixture of mustard dressing and the umami of black (aged) garlic is a powerhouse on the palate, and its treasured plating resembling a flower was virtually too fairly to interrupt aside.
The 2 salads on the menu are a contemporary and vibrant cease earlier than indulging within the pasta and meat. My one criticism is that the quantity of radicchio within the restaurant’s namesake salad wanted tempering as its bitterness overwhelmed the stability on the plate. The identical could possibly be mentioned for sides that confirmed promise however had far too many flavors and elements that overwhelmed my style buds or didn’t come collectively, such because the eggplant, which felt too rustic and sloppy. Sides, notably, are the Achilles’ heel for a lot of Atlanta steakhouses. I counsel any steakhouse to favor simplicity over innovation and use fewer elements. There may be nothing flawed with a well-executed baked potato or sauteed spinach.
{Photograph} by Martha Williams
Because the restaurant is Italian-inspired, the pasta program options handmade variations of traditional dishes. Adamson’s takes on tagliolini with ragu Bolognese and bucatini all’Amatriciana are faultless in execution, completely balancing indulgence and opulence. The pasta dishes, flavorful and wealthy, are a pleasant course to share on the best way to the primary occasion: the steak.
The menu has a scrumptious filet and New York strip, and lots of show-off orders. For bigger events, one such showstopper is the 41-ounce bistecca alla Fiorentina, a porterhouse steak that grew to become well-liked in Florence. It is likely one of the most costly cuts on the menu and top-of-the-line to eat. The bone-in steak was cooked to our specified medium uncommon, offered fantastically sliced on a slicing board, and imbued with smokiness.
The open kitchen, with its spectacular wood-fired grill and adjustable grates, is a focus. This grill offers the extraordinary flavors and char that give the steaks at Il Premio their signature style. It’s additionally enjoyable to look at the cooks and cooks at work.
The bomboloni, an Italian-style doughnut stuffed with a vanilla bean Chantilly cream, is an ideal end to the meal. Heat and light-weight, it isn’t overly candy however offers the tiniest candy indulgence after a wealthy meal. Get to the restaurant early to drink on the lodge’s rooftop terrace, Moonlight, which has jaw-dropping, expansive views of Atlanta.
Or you may cozy up within the restaurant’s bar, the place wealthy tapestries and materials make for a comforting house. I used to be particularly enchanted with the Il Premio martini service, which arrives with the rest of the olive oil–washed (infused) Belvedere vodka, Fords gin, Acqua Di Cedro, and dry vermouth in a small, chilled sidecar glass.
What makes me wish to return to Il Premio, apart from its meals high quality, is the service. My first go to of many to the restaurant was unintended once I determined to slide in after a close-by occasion the place they served extra booze than meals. Despite the fact that it was Il Premio’s opening night time, the hospitality was a number of the greatest I’ve skilled in Atlanta in 20 years. Service is the very first thing I point out every time I discuss concerning the restaurant.
Adamson and the higher-ups took a visit to New York final April for inspiration. “I in all probability ate at 20 eating places in three days. It was like breakfast, lunch, second lunch, dinner, second dinner,” Adamson mentioned. “We compiled notes on 20 of these eating places, after which we went across the metropolis right here and did the identical.” In different phrases, they did their analysis, and that additionally extends to pricing.
For a high-priced steakhouse, Il Premio’s pricing is aggressive. Adamson says they audited native steakhouse costs earlier than opening and selected costs to offer the very best worth whereas sustaining high quality. You may ball out if you wish to, as there are three kinds of caviar on the menu. However it’s additionally straightforward to share a number of programs right here and be satiated with out taking out a second mortgage. I can’t all the time say this for the remainder of the steakhouses on this city. Il Premio affords a definite twist from the American or French-leaning steakhouses we’ve come to know and love. It’s a prize, certainly.
This text seems in our March 2025 situation.
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