New Hope PA New Hope, Pennsylvania, USA Great things about New Hope PA: sense of civic pride, sense of history, cultural institutions, Thu, 20-09-2007 08:59 -0500
Guide to the Best of Savannah GA Savannah, Georgia, USA Our guide features the best restaurants, shops and bed and breakfast inns in this charming Thu, 27-09-2007 17:09 -0500
Top Ten Places in Bucks County for Weddings , Pennsylvania, USA Our top 10 list includes what we think are the best places to hold extravagant fairytale weddings in Sat, 22-03-2008 13:21 -0500
Restaurant Reviews . Canoe in Atlanta GA Atlanta, Georgia, USA Canoe grabbed our attention even before we got to town. As we were planning our Atlanta vacation Wed, 12-03-2008 19:01 -0500
Cape May NJ Cape May, New Jersey, USA The Best of Cape May New Jersey is profiled on this page. We feature our favorite bed and breakfast Thu, 27-09-2007 16:29 -0500
Guide to and Best of Lambertville NJ Lambertville, New Jersey, USA Lambertville, a small town on the Delaware River, is a short walk across the bridge from New Hope Thu, 27-09-2007 08:01 -0500
A New Jersey Wine Festival Frenchtown, New Jersey, USA Wine and Art Weekend is a festival that celebrates fine wine and fine art in the charming little New Sun, 06-04-2008 13:54 -0500
Atlanta's Most Popular Attractions Atlanta, Georgia, USA There are hundreds of things to do, sights to see and places to go when you visit Atlanta, so Thu, 13-03-2008 10:56 -0500
New Restaurant Reviews New Hope, Pennsylvania, USA In a new feature on their website, Primetime A & E Magazine is now featuring restaurant reviews Fri, 18-07-2008 12:23 -0500
Colossal Yard Sale! Kintnersville, Pennsylvania, USA Estate Auction leftovers: something for everyone in your family! Saturday, July 26 8am-4pm. RAIN or Wed, 16-07-2008 18:12 -0500
Grand Opening in Frenchtown Frenchtown, New Jersey, USA Roomor Has It that R00M will be celebrating it’s Grand Opening & 1st Artist Reception
Sat, 12-07-2008 17:43 -0500
Abundance at Room in Frenchtown Frenchtown, New Jersey, USA I met Elena Stokes, the owner of a new shop in Frenchtown, one night last week on the way to dinner. Sat, 28-06-2008 18:30 -0500
Yard Sale 6/28-29/2008 Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania, USA Yard Sale from 9 am to 2pm, Sat. and Sunday
Fri, 27-06-2008 20:52 -0500
Bucks County's Best Bargains . Rouget in Newtown Newtown, Pennsylvania, USA Rouget is our latest discovery. There are few restaurants in the world where our first visit was so Wed, 28-05-2008 08:55 -0500
Raven . New Hope . Closed New Hope, Pennsylvania, USA The Raven, a New Hope tradition has been closed and the owners have bought the hotel down the street Tue, 20-05-2008 11:12 -0500
I G A . Frenchtown NJ . Grocery Store Frenchtown, New Jersey, USA This grocery store has been in town for decades and it is an important part of our community. This Sat, 17-05-2008 07:03 -0500
Meil's by far has the best comfort food within a 35 mile radius. Dreamy potato pancakes (latke’s) with sour cream & homemade chunky applesauce, wonderful eggs benedict w/ham + oh that Hollandaise, freshly squeezed OJ, desserts that are bountiful & oh so yummy, sweet potato fries, homemade marshmallows, meatloaf & mashed potatoes & their Thanksgiving standard year round turkey & the fixin's - can't be beat. Come early on the weekends – lines get quite long because the secret is out! Stockton is a charming river town to stroll through & be sure to visit Sue Roseman’s Riverbank Arts gallery across the street from Meil’s if the wait is long.... >>more
A response to Frenchtowner.com member Mark Giordano: Frenchtowner.com updated our website this year ... >>more
Room at 12 Restaurant . Room Restaurant at Hotel Twelve
Room Restaurant or as it is sometimes referred to "Room at Twelve Centennial Park" is a modern steakhouse/sushi bar located in an upscale downtown neighborhood that is seeing a tremendous amount of high-rise office and condominium development.
Our first day in Atlanta was a bitterly cold, blustery day in January with winds topping out at 35 miles per hour. When we arrived at the airport, it felt more like Alaska than Atlanta. We got into our shuttle bus as quickly as we could and zoomed to our hotel downtown. When we arrived, we were properly frozen and didn't want to even consider going back outside. We decided to have a quick bite to eat downstairs in the lobby at a restaurant called “Room”.
We started with martinis* that were as visually stunning as martinis can be. The Cucumber Mintini pictured above is a good example; it was brilliant green with a sugared rim and floating mint leaf. The Carrot Gingertini was just as outrageous; shockingly orange with a carrot stick and lemon peel topper. Our light lunch was refreshing and restorative. We had a steak and mushroom soup with delicious big chunks of meat and vegetables that felt like a hearty country soup that your Grandma could have made. Our sushi was also beautifully done. The dessert however, stole the show. The pistachio crème brûlée was to die for. The color was a marvelous rich green. The texture was creamy. The taste was sweet, nutty and unforgettable. It was the best dessert that we had the entire time we were on vacation.
The design of Room at Hotel Twelve, Centennial Park is striking. You just don't get more fashionable than this. This sleek modern design is bound to set the trend for hotel and restaurant design in Atlanta for years to come.
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Room's Fast Facts:
BYOB: No Hotel Valet Parking Alfresco Dining Credit Cards OK Dinner Appetizers: $7.00 to $12.00 Dinner Soups: $7.00 to $8.00 Dinner Salads: $9.00 to $10.00 Dinner Entrees: $10.00 to $39.00 Serving B'fast: Daily 7:30 till 10:30 Serving Lunch: Daily 11:30 till 2:30 Serving Brunch: Weekends 10:30 till 2:30 Serving Dinner: Nightly 5:30 till 10:00 or later (call for details) Our 2 course meal for 2: $96.84 (with 2 cocktails, 1 dessert)
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Room is One of Atlanta’s Best Modern Restaurants, One of Atlanta’s Best Modern Bars and The Best Modern Restaurant Design in Atlanta. The Pistachio Crème Brule is our nominee for The Best Dessert in Atlanta for 2008.
*Note*=========== The martinis were incredibly beautiful but disappointing in terms of taste. We are used to real fruit and vegetable martinis and that is what we were expecting. What we got instead were martinis made with sweet liqueurs and artificial flavors. For instance, a fine cucumber martini can be made with the pulp of fresh cucumbers and your favorite vodka or gin. We first tasted one like this at a small bistro in New Orleans in 2005, and we have been making them this way ever since. Room’s version with the Bolivian coca leaf liqueur, and mint drizzle should have been even more exotic and wonderful than ours, but sadly it wasn’t. All of the complexity of the drink was drowned out by the overwhelming presence of sugar. The Carrot Gingertini similarly promised to be just as wild a taste sensation; with its carrot juice, Polish potato vodka, and ginger. Unfortunately, this one was also killed with sweetness.
================================== Story and Image Tags: Atlanta, Atlanta’s Best Restaurants, Room @12, Room at Twelve, Room Restaurant at Hotel 12, Hotel Twelve, 12 hotel, Concentric Restaurants, Concentrics Restaurants, Great Restaurants Downtown Atlanta, Great Modern Restaurants in Downtown Atlanta, modern, modern, modern bar, martinis, cocktails, great Atlanta design, sushi, Room Café, Room at 12 Centennial Park, great restaurant design, bar
I just wanted to say that i apologize for taking that review personally. I work extremely hard on my beverage program and do everything i can to keep the quality of my drinks to the highest level. The syrups that we are talking about are just flavored simple syrups made with fresh and dried herbs.
Simple syrup in necessary for seamless blending of flavors. I work very hard to make sure that my bartenders are not over sweeting the drinks. I guess the idea of using a "syrup" leaves one thinking that its being used to make a drink "sweet" but its really used to bring the main flavor profile together with a secondary flavor profile. Sometimes, a sharpness develops in the drink that the perfect amount of sweetness can fix. Every once and a while... egg whites are used to smooth out harsh flavors as well. There are many tricks in the arsenal of a great mixologist.
I have no doubt in my mind that you have been all over the world and have tasted hundreds of cocktails. Your opinion is a valid one from the perspective of the guest. You know what is good and what is bad when it comes to cocktails. I appreciate your opinion and review. If i had one request... it is for you to be my guest at ROOM and allow me to prepare for you... the finest martinis Atlanta has ever tasted.
2)
Frenchtowner (04-12-2008)
Dear Steven/TheCocktailChef, You stated that I "have no idea what you talking about when it comes to my cocktails". That is absolutely true. I am not an expert on "your cocktails". I am however quite a picky connoisseur of “my cocktails” and of martinis in general, having consumed thousands of them over the decades [yes, I am dating myself here, and admitting to being a lush at times]. I will also say that I am not a fan of sweet cocktails and martinis and it seems that your concoction was meant to be a sweet one otherwise you would not be bothering with making your own herb syrups, therefore I might not be the most objective judge of your work.
I do think that my review was quite fair with you and your cocktails. I stated quite clearly that they were “as visually stunning as martinis can be”. I have no regrets for having one of your creations and I have no regrets for not being one of your biggest fans either.
Also, I wanted to state that I did not recommend that anyone use nasty cheap Vodka. I simply stated that a person can make a marvelous cucumber martini with fresh cucumber pulp and their favorite vodka or gin. When I said this, I did misspeak however. The cucumber creation that I am referring to was actually a Cucumber Cosmo that we had in New Orleans and not a Cucumber Martini.
Peace.
3)
TheCocktailChef (04-08-2008)
oh yeah.... the cucumber martini has a SALT rim not a SUGAR rim. Get it... salt on a cucumber. Makes more sense... doesn't it.
Please get i right if you are going to bash my cocktails.
S
4)
TheCocktailChef (04-08-2008)
My name is Steven Kowalczuk and I am the designer of the ROOM cocktails. I've read the review and i from my professional opinion... you have no idea what you talking about when it comes to my cocktails. Granted... we had just opened the restaurant and the bartenders were still learning. It is quite possible that they might have made the cucumber martini and the carrot martini a little too sweet.
As far as not using fresh ingredients... WRONG! We spend hours a day making garnishes, herb syrups, fresh veggie/fruit juices, and learning how to blend all the high quality ingredients perfectly.
When you speak of the cucumber martini being made with gin or vodka... you should first know that i won the Ketel One best Bartender competition 2005 with a vodka version of that drink... and i also won the Tanqueray Most Wanted Bartender in Atlanta 2005 with a gin version of the cucumber martini... so you should stop to think for a moment and realize that maybe... just maybe... i wanted to make it with such and exotic liqueur instead of the basic and common vodka or gin.
I am THE COCKTAIL CHEF... Atlanta's premier mixologist and if Atlantians want great cocktails, they know just where to look. www.roomattelve.com
