One of the many lists I keep is one of new restaurants to try around Atlanta. Last weekend, I was in search of somewhere lowkey and casual for our Friday night dinner. I asked for suggestions from friends, and one friend in particular (thanks Rach!) really came through with a list she’s created of pretty much all the restaurants worth trying in the city. We decided on the Wrecking Bar Brewpub over in the Little 5 Points area. Craig loves trying new beer, and I’m a sucker for good fries, which I was told were one of their popular appetizers.

The building is a little inconspicuous — it is a 20th-century Victorian house that has been many things in past lives, including a church and antiques store. The top of the building is an event space (it was being used for a rehearsal dinner that evening), and the bottom portion around back  is the restaurant. It’s very cave-like inside… dark and cool with walls made from rocks.

We grabbed a high boy table in the bar area. Being a brewpub, they offer tons of beers (with some pretty funny names) brewed in-house, which made for a very hard decision for Craig. I can’t remember the name of his first beer, but it was some sort of Stout infused with Ameretto. It’s a good thing he got the small portion, as it was rich enough to be a dessert drink. I stuck with red wine. 

Craig’s last drink was the Border Patrol American Strong Ale, which I surprisingly thought was delicious, given that I’m not a big beer fan. It was dark with a sort of chocolatey aftertaste. 

My favorite menu item we had was the appetizer of Wreck Fries. I’ve heard the Beer & Cheese Soup is really tasty, too… next time. They were piping hot and accompanied by 4 dipping sauces — homemade green goddess, spicy mustard, cheese sauce, and ketchup. We devoured them in about 5 minutes. 

For dinner, I chose the Pulled Pork Sammy with Kale Slaw and Mac n Cheese. Craig thought it was fine (nothing amazing), but I really liked it. The mac n cheese was not what you’d expect with BBQ — it was not super creamy, but it tasted fresh and homemade. The kale slaw was interesting — sort of sweet. Craig got the burger with grits (too many fries with our appetizer). This time, I thought the burger was fine (nothing amazing), but he really liked it. Guess we each did a good job choosing our own meals. 

I really enjoyed our little date night to the Wrecking Bar — so much so, that we’re bringing my dad back this Sunday because he’s crazy about hot french fries… I think theirs will be right up his alley.