Alright, I came to this place last night because a mate of mine talked it up as her favorite bar in Atlanta. My best mate and I arrived here around 1 AM after going to both the Wrecking Bar Brewpub and The Southern Gentleman earlier. I kept hearing that non-smokers like myself sit outdoors to avoid smelling like smoke; so naturally I did that. But before doing that, I had to check what the inside was like.
The layout of the place is pretty small, you have intimate 2 seater tables and standard L shaped bar. Ambience wise, the lighting is dimmed (as befits a local style dive) and the decor features an ever-changing artwork.
I didn't order the food, since I came from two restaurants prior. However, I did order a whiskey; standard Laphroaig for me and my mate. The bartender wasn't too bad, she actually is the saving grace of the place. But if you read my reviews before, I am a very fond of my whiskey; and to me a weak whiskey selection is going to get you a demerit. Compared to the restaurants I listed before, it's serviceable for the general populace not for a connoisseur.
What I absolutely cannot stand (besides the smoke), is a place that does business with a white supremacist. All it took was me going outside, sitting at one of their long tables and suddenly I was roped into a conversation with a coked-out white supremacist and his 'buddy'. What started as a conversation about the gentrification of Old 4th and Ponce quickly morphed into talking about where I went to Uni, how much I spend on drinking Scotch, and how my mate and I would build a Nuclear power plant. It was clear that I was not only more educated, but a lot more patient with my assessment of people. That's when he lost it and accused me of being a liar, I don't take assassinations to my character lightly; even my best mate felt perturbed by that accusation. When one of the servers came out and heard about our conversation, nothing was really done. I mean you have a far-right d-bag proudly boasting about how he regularly gets cocaine, how my ethnicity is inferior to his, and stated that if we were both caught; me with an open drink of Scotch and him blatantly doing coke in front of a cop he wouldn't be in trouble based on the sole reason that he is white. I mean who does that?
This is weird considering that the Righteous is one of the places that is so LGBT friendly (they even have a gender neutral bathroom), do business with this sorry excuse of a human being. It's sad that this kind of stuff is tolerated in one of the most vibrant corners of Atlanta, I only hope that the staff does better vetting who comes through those doors. Simple solution, the 'No Idiot' rule at the Vortex.
Here are my last few sentences about this place. Expect hipsters, lots of them. It's a true dive bar, drinks are cheap and the food looks hearty. The smokiness is not for me (I like it in my whiskey, just not in my lungs). Would I go back to this place? very low probability, but it has taught me to stick to upscale bars. Anyway, if you want a place better that's comparable but better go the Local right down the street. read more