Reviews (100)
One of my favorite places to eat lunch!
✅ Food: Their menu changes frequently and on that day it was filled with all fancy-sounding dishes. The food was great and well-presented. I have to emphasize that the food was five stars! The two stars were taken out because of the service and atmosphere. See below. 🙁 Yet there were a couple of downsides. The service was really slow, and it kinda put a damper on the whole experience. It felt like we were waiting forever for our food to arrive (30 minutes+). Besides, the place was incredibly noisy. There were so many people talking loudly, and it made it difficult to have a conversation without practically shouting. It was a bit frustrating, especially since we were expecting top-notch experience at a fine dining restaurant. 📌 Overall: the food was amazing, but the slow service and loud environment definitely took away from the experience. It's a shame because it had so much potential to be a perfect dining spot.
Terrible experience! My one year anniversary was celebrated here and it was a disaster. The menu lacks flavor, and the waitress wasn't attentive at all. My salad came out with little to no dressing on it and by the time she came back with the dressing my boyfriend's meal was finished and I asked for the check at that point.... never got the check from the waitress. Instead had to ask the lovely hostess to bring it to us, which she did right away with no problems. The only complement I have is the Sweet Dreams gin drink was very tasty, but not worth 13 bucks for it came in the smallest cocktail glass made.
This place has probably the best food I've ever eaten in Athens. Aside from it being a tad too loud at times, it's positively amazing
A gem of a find. Very good food and drinks!
WOW. My fiancée and I celebrated our two year anniversary here and it exceeded our expectations. If you enjoy mediterranean style food this place is legit. Their house olives were very tasty, the stuffed dates had the perfect pop of manchego, the cheese plate was scrumptious and the patatas bravas were some of the best I have ever had. The pork chop was huge and very tasty. The Mahi was unique and tasted very fresh and vivacious. Their menu is constantly changing and updating which I love. I feel awful because I don't remember our servers name but he was a tall blonde gentleman and was wonderful. He explained their house cocktails in exquisite detail and was very knowledgeable of the whole menu. On top of that he comped our crème brûlée (which was incredible with the candied orange). We eat out a lot. This place got our attention, the service, the atmosphere, the freshness of the food and the attention to detail all lead to an incredible experience. We will be sure to visit again. 5/5
Fantastic meal and great cocktails.
Good food but nothing outstanding. Limited Mediterranean dishes. Pork chop and flounder were cooked well but the dishes fell flat with soggy potato skins and odd pork rinds on top. Service was great but the kitchen put food out in a leisurely pace.
The National in Athens was a great spot to enjoy a fun dinner with friends that provided dishes which were more inventive and exciting than most in the area. The menu is mediterranean biased and arranged in smaller but sharable dishes. Even with this the the restaurant strives to source local ingredients. This desire and intimate atmosphere give a local cafe feel that can easily serve as a date or relaxing night out which is very different than most in Athens. I appreciated the attention to highlighting some hard to find ingredients and overall the night was a pleasant one. If in town they are worth while seeking out a reservation!
Overall pretty good. Kinda on the pricey side, but you get a lot of food for what you pay for so it's worth it if you look at it from that perspective. The biggest surprise from the menu was definitely the Stuffed Medjool Dates. I didn't expect it to be as good as it was. The restaurant is advertised as having "Mediterranean-style dished created with seasonal, southern influences". However, I would argue that these dishes are far more southern then they are Mediterranean. This is by no means a bad thing if that is your desire you will not be disappointed! However, for me personally, I would have preferred a menu more on the Mediterranean side.
Did the online take-out and upon arriving to pick It up I noticed the place was packed. My food was still finished on time and handed to me hot. Will eat from there again!
Delicious food, nice drink selection, excellent service, and nice environment.. wish the outdoor tables were slightly larger, but the staff handled the placement of items very well.
The cuisine is simply extraordinary and the service superb. The chefs transform ordinary foods--in this case mahi, squid, and kale--and prepare them in indescribably creative and delicious ways. The sauvignon blanc and the dessert tarts were exquisite. And the total bill for the two of us (we did share the entree) was barely over $100. The perfect 18th anniversary dinner celebration. ❤️
Really great Mediterranean restaurant in Athens in Georgia. All foods are delicious and atmosphere is cheerful.
Went for a date. Had to leave early but everything was wonderful until I left. Desserts looked amazing! Will be back to try sometime soon I hope.
The National is awesome. Beautiful space, great service, local ingredients. It is not at all expensive for the quality of food you get there. The bar is adorable and a great place for a quick snack. Go to The National!
My spouse and I love the national for any ocassion. The staff is always friendly and knowledgeable of the menu. We were there in February and my favorite part of the menu was the Spring Chicken with vegetables. Every bite tasted exquisite! Love the wine and cocktail menu. Small building, small bar, but feels very cozy.
We don't eat gluten and enjoyed our meal here! There was thoughtful exchanges to make our meal safe for us to enjoy and it was really delicious! They even have gluten-free flatbread for the hummus plate and to replace their baguettes. Thanks The National!!
Our party of 4 ate dinner here & all of us got sick. My husband became nauseated even before we left & we thought it was a virus or something else but that night all 4 ended up with intestinal issues - some more violent than others. 🤮 We wouldn’t wish this on anyone. I don’t think we’ll be going back anytime soon - if ever.
Great ambiance, particularly because the restaurant is so clean and stylish in blue and white. The lunch is great and I appreciate that their cocktails have so many handcrafted ingredients. I like the dinner less than the lunch. I often find the cuts of meat to be inconsistent in portion size. I had been served miniature pieces of salmon and far too thick pork chops. Overall I love the restaurant but prefer to go for lunch or drinks.