Georgia Voice 2017 Best of Atlanta winners: Eats

Asian
Little Bangkok
Little Bangkok (littlebangkokatlanta.com) is a Cheshire Bridge staple serving up Thai and Chinese favorites. Daily lunch menus include entrees like chicken lad na with hot-and-sour soup and steamed rice, or Mongolian beef with soup, an egg roll and fried rice. For vegetarian fare, try the Buddha’s Delight — water chestnuts, bamboo, peas, mushroom, cabbage and corn in white sauce.

Coming in second is Japanese sushi favorite Ru San’s (www.rusansatlanta.com), followed by Vietnamese brasserie Le Fat (lefatatl.com) and Rain Thai and Sushi Bar (www.rainatlantaga.com).

Bakery/Sweets
Highland Bakery
LGBT-owned Highland Bakery (highlandbakery.com) is known for its almost too-beautiful-to-eat special occasion cakes. But for the everyday diner, pop in for daily cookies, muffins, pillowy bread and a cuppa … or sit down for a full meal. There’s a whole section of creative eggs benedict for breakfast, and nearly two dozen sandwiches and salads to pick from during your lunch hour.

For more sweet bites, check out European-style second place winner Alon’s Bakery * Market (alons.com) or Asian-inspired third place winner Sweet Hut Bakery & Café (www.sweethutbakery.com).

Bar Food
Woofs
Atlanta’s gay sports bar (woofsatlanta.com) has 27 televisions and countless menu options to make your game taste better. Bites include a selection of wings; baskets of chicken, fish, shrimp or all of the above; and pub-favorite burgers and sandwiches to pair with domestics. For lighter fare, there are salads and plenty of “first inning” apps to share.

Still hungry? Second place for best bar food went to Burkhart’s (burkharts.com), home to the bacon steakburger, and third place goes to My Sister’s Room (www.mysistersroom.com), famous for its wings and buffalo-battered cauliflower.

Breakfast
Flying Biscuit Cafe
For more than 20 years, the purple and orange exterior of Flying Biscuit locations (www.flyingbiscuit.com) have been landmarks, and the breakfasts cooked up inside are favorites of natives and tourists alike. Start the morning off with “Heavenly French toast” or a full breakfast of eggs, sausage, carbs and a side of creamy dreamy grits, moon dusted potatoes or fresh fruit.

Your fellow readers also recommend second breakfast be held at either Home Grown (www.homegrownga.com) or Radial Cafe (radialcafe.com), which took second and third in this category, respectively.

Cheap Eats
Eats
Get a lot of food for not a lot of money at Eats (www.eatsonponce.net). This cafeteria-style restaurant serves up Southern style meat-and-threes, or just vegetables if you’d prefer, and it’s known for its jerk chicken. Sunday through Thursday you can order turkey meatloaf, and Fridays are reserved for tilapia. There are also build-your-own pasta bowls, homemade brownies and beer.

Got a few dollars left to spend? Delia’s Chicken Sausage Stand (thesausagestand.com) came in second, and gusto! (whatsyourgusto.com) in third.

Coffeehouse
Ansley Starbucks
The Ansley-area Starbucks, otherwise known as store No. 232 (www.starbucks.com), is a LGBT fan favorite for both its well-known drinkables and edibles and its atmosphere. Comfy chairs, plenty of table seating and patio space welcome folks every day, and there’s free Google wi-fi if you need to work through your coffee break.

Locally owned Octane (www.octanecoffee.com) takes second place, and Café JAYA (www.cafejaya.com) in Stone Mountain is your third-favorite coffeehouse in the metro.

Farm to Table
Radial Cafe
Radial (www.radialcafe.com) is a LGBT-owned restaurant that turns farm-fresh ingredients into breakfast, lunch and (on the weekends) supper. Breakfast options include a veg-friendly grain bowl of quinoa, faro, kale, sweet potatoes and mushrooms, as well as the Radial bagel topped with local sunflower sprouts. For lunch, try the blackened Georgia trout or a local lettuce salad topped with grilled chicken or fish.

Continue the farm-to-fork tour at second-place Bantam + Biddy (www.bantamandbiddy.com) and third-place Miller Union (www.millerunion.com).

Italian
Campagnolo Restaurant + Bar
The name may mean “peasant,” but Campagnolo’s rustic menu and extensive selection of cocktails and wine will leave you full as a royal (www.campagnoloatl.com). Begin the evening with a formaggio (cheese) plate and roasted beet salad, followed by the classic cioppino stew of fish, calamari, shellfish and white wine broth. Finish the night with espresso-tinged tiramisu or a pear tart with cinnamon butter.

Gino’s NY Pizza Bar on Cheshire Bridge was your second-favorite Italian locale, followed by Valenza Italian (valenzarestaurant.com) in Brookhaven.

Local Chef
Kevin Gillespie
Chef Kevin Gillespie (www.chefkevingillespie.com) is known around the country for being on the cooking show “Top Chef,” but around these parts he’s known as the brains behind Gunshow and Revival. Gillespie has been nominated for several James Beard awards. His most recent cookbook, “Pure Pork Awesomeness,” is everything y’all need to know about this Atlanta native’s favorite protein.

Lesbian chef Deborah VanTrece, owner of Twisted Soul (www.deborahvantrece.com) took second place, and Chef Ford Fry (www.fordfry.com), whose restaurants grace a number of areas in the metro, took third.

Mexican
Las Margaritas Latin Restaurant
Las Margaritas (lasmargaritasmidtown.com) touts itself as a trip to Latin America without needing a passport. Favorites from around this region grace the menu, including Colombian-style hotdogs and burgers, Cuban sandwiches, Argentinian steak tacos and Mexican mole chicken. There’s also Spanish paella for added flair.

Superica (www.superica.com) in Buckhead and Krog Street Market took second place, and Señor Patrón in Midtown (www.senorpatronatl.com) rounded out the category.

New Restaurant
Old Lady Gang
The name for this new restaurant (oldladygang.com) came from three women — the original “old lady gang” — who heavily inspired the culinary talent of co-owner Kandi Burruss-Tucker. Its Southern-inspired dishes include chicken and French toast, fried catfish strips and peach cobbler. OLG also mixes up quite the cocktail menu.

Your other favorite new restaurants are Poor Hendrix (www.poorhendrix.com) in second place, and Scout (scoutoakhurst.com) in Decatur’s Oakhurst Village in third.

Patio/Deck
Cowtippers Steaks & Spirits
LGBT-owned Cowtippers (cowtippersatlanta.com) is known for a few things ‘round these parts: its cowboy-themed décor and menu, its selection of 100 tequilas and, obviously, its patio down Piedmont Road. Enjoy the summer sun, some armadillo eggs (fried stuffed jalapeños) and a signature Texas margarita all at once.

For more outdoor seating, check out second-place winner Henry’s Midtown Tavern (www.henrysatl.com) or third-place ROXX Tavern on Cheshire Bridge.

Romantic
Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours
Owned by this year’s second-place best Atlanta chef Deborah VanTrece, Twisted Soul (www.twistedsoulcookhouseandpours.com) opened its doors late last year with a mission to elevate the dining experience. Its intimate setting in West Midtown is perfect for date nights, where you two can enjoy duck breast with red beans and rice, or moonshine pound cake with lavender whipped cream. Spice things up with an aphrodisiac watermelon moonshine cocktail made by VanTrece’s wife.

Il Localino (illocalino.com) is Atlanta’s second-favorite romantic spot, followed by Bar Margot at the Four Seasons Hotel (barmargoatl.com).

Sunday Brunch
ROXX Tavern
You can have breakfast every day, but for the best Sunday brunch, LGBT-owned ROXX is the place to be. Brunch options include omelets, homemade sausage gravy, eggs benedict and — just in case Saturday night was a little hard on your liver — the “hangover helper” scramble of eggs, veggies, cheese and salsa.

Don’t forget to visit the other two of our top three best Sunday brunch places, Murphy’s (www.murphys-atlanta-restaurant.com) and Venkman’s (venkmans.com).

Takeout
Chin Chin
Chin Chin on Howell Mill Road (atlchinchin.com) serves up both Chinese and Japanese cuisine for you to take home. Steamed “spa cuisine,” various egg foo young, Beijing duck, bean curd, sashimi bowls, maki and sushi rolls barely scrape the surface of the seemingly endless menu.

Give second-place Green Ginger (www.greengingerdecatur.com) or third-place Chico & Chang (www.chicochangatlanta.com) a call, too.

Vegetarian
Cafe Sunflower
Vegan and vegetarian-friendly Cafe Sunflower (www.cafesunflower.com) has two locations, one in the Buckhead area and one in Sandy Springs. In Buckhead, starters include fried avocado tacos and veggie Asian dumplings; there’s a BBQ seitan sandwich for lunch; and handmade squash and tofu ravioli atdinner. The Sandy Springs menu offers 100 percent vegan options of some of the Buckhead favorites, as well as dishes like quinoa paella and baked samosas.

Vegan restaurant Herban Fix (herbanfix.com) takes second place, and vegetarian Go Vinda’s Cafe (www.govindascafeatl.com) nabs third in this category.