The National

We went early at 5 pm and ordered 3 appetizers and dessert. Even when we left and the place was filling up it was still easy to carry on conversation with low volume music and muted conversations. Very pleasant atmosphere. Now for the food! Amazing is only word. Mushroom soup is fresh and very rich. Thick bacon was delicious and we put slices on our pizza (small flat bread!).

We were in town for a wedding. There were four of us. The space is amazing. It's an old 1950s Plymouth dealership with big bay doors that open up. The weather was beautiful and the bay doors were all open. The atmosphere is really cool.

But...the food was not good at all. Three of us had soup and salad. Both were flavorless. The tomato soup was watery and the salad barely had any dressing. Very disappointing.

The service was really good. The server was attentive and very nice. The thing though that made us mad more than the food is you had to wear a mask while ordering at the table. I understand a mask while being taken to your seat, but to have to wear a mask while ordering your main entrée is insane. You didn't have to wear one while ordering drinks or appetizers. How does that make sense??

We are in Athens all the time for GA games, but will not be back due to the ridiculous mask rules!

Loved the food, ambience, and service! We had the hummus, trout, and I had the Portuguese tarts. My colleague had the flourless choc cake and loved it as well!

The chef really knows how to combine various flavors into one amazing dish after another. I had the tumeric tonic to drink, which was very tasty and unique. Then I had the Rosalyn Carter cheese ring, and it was fantastic! The sweet, sharp, nutty, and onion flavors just came together so well. Then I had the power lunch and it was such a wonderful combination of flavors, textures, and temperatures. I don't normally get dessert but everything was so good, I decided to give it a try. GET THE PEACH BASQUE CAKE!!! The texture of the cake was fabulous. Not too light, not to dry. Just the right crust and taste. The flavors of the peaches, vanilla gelato, and almonds were fantastic together. Very enjoyable and memorable experience!

While the meals remain very good, do not order bread! Not only is it extremely overpriced, it tastes as it has been kept in a freezer. To make matters worst, it appears they add salt to the butter that accompanies it. Too bad, prior to the pandemic, their bread was excellent.

It's always a pleasure to dine here. In my top three Athens area restaurants.

Top 3 worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. Will not be going back and certainly do not recommend, not sure I understand the hype. Waited 1 and 15 mins for our entrees that were subpar at best, no one in my party was satisfied. Our waitress disappeared in that time so I asked another waiter to check in which I got a awkward stare and a rude “Bye!” in response. Started so promising with appetizers minus a small wait, but alas, was horrid otherwise. Horrible experience.

I moved out of Athens years ago, but I'm lucky enough to come back to the National twice a year or so. This place is an institution. Beautiful, inspired, responsibly sourced food prepped by passionate, brilliant folks. Erin and her team are hospitality pros. It's hard to find a place that I feel so at home away from home

Above average food, except for the "Portugese Tarts" which are nothing like the real thing and quite disappointing. Service was good if not outstanding and, finally, our wine was served way too warm. If you call youself fine dining learn something about proper temperatures for wine service.

Really enjoy this small, quaint restaurant. Most recently I loved their California Chardonnay and extremely yummy patatas bravas. Everything was great.