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| The Sun Dial Restaurant by Suzanne Wright Completely transfixed, my friend and I watched a steady parade of tanned, well-coiffed, nubile young ladies wearing skintight dresses in sherbet colors or sleek black descend the staircase. The occasional young woman in a flounced gown, like the ballerina on top of music boxes, walked by, tugging her considerably less poised date behind her. It was prom night at Sun Dial Restaurant. It’s been years since I have visited the restaurant, which is perched on the top of the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel, the city’s only round building, smack in the middle of downtown Atlanta. Once we entered the lobby, we ascended in a scenic glass elevator that sped us straight to the top of the structure, 73 stories in the sky. A piped-in recording quickly told us facts about the building. Once seated, my friend and I suddenly heard a cork popping. The prom goers were enjoying sparkling cider. I spied another couple, in their mid ‘50s, clearly celebrating an anniversary: A big vase of roses adorned the table, and champagne sat in a silver bucket. All ages come to the Sun Dial; it is practically a rite of passage for Atlantans. Many of the staffers were young, but there were veterans, too, like our server, the ebullient Ann, who’s been at the Sun Dial since 1984. In fact, she was trained by a colleague who’s been here since it opened. She handled the prom goers deftly, steering them toward menu items and validating their choices with good humor. The Sun Dial specializes in dry aged prime beef and seafood. After our bread service, which featured herbed butter, we ordered our starters: oysters Sun Dial and a salad. The panko-crusted oysters were massive beauties atop a bed of fried spinach, served in the shell with a light Hollandaise sauce. They were briny and beautifully presented on a plate heaped with rock salt — terrific. A salad of tomato slices, white onions and blue cheese dressed with balsamic vinaigrette was fine. Watercress is the omnipresent accompaniment on the plates. Next we ordered the 12 oz filet, which was perfectly cooked to order, and the roasted, bone-in prime rib. The filet was tender, if not the most flavorful rendition I’ve eaten; my juicy prime rib was fattier than I like. Ann recommended the Parmesan-crusted lobster tail. I’m a lobster purist, but the Wall Street Journal raved about this dish. We preferred the white cheddar cheese mashed potatoes to the salt-crusted baked potato, which was a bit withered upon arrival. The finale? Delicious white chocolate banana pudding with caramel sauce, served piping hot. Open since February 1976, it’s billed the “tallest hotel in the western hemisphere” at 723 feet above Spring Street. The tri-level complex revolves 360 degrees once every hour and features more than 230,000 square feet of glass, allowing views from every room. An enduring Atlanta landmark, more than a million people from around the world visit the Sun Dial annually, making it one of the city’s top tourist attractions. It is open for lunch, dinner and drinks seven days a week. It is always astounding to see this view of Atlanta on a clear day: Stone Mountain, the many treetops, Centennial Park, Buckhead, Midtown, maybe even your own home. Telescopes are available to bring distinct sites into better focus. The Sun Dial is an absolutely de rigueur experience for visiting friends and family. This view doesn’t come cheap. Dinner at the Sun Dial is very pricey and will easily set you back as much as it would to dine at any of the city’s finest steakhouses. Don’t want to eat? You can have a drink (wines are $9 and up by the glass) or a specialty drink (that comes in a souvenir glass) such as a Peachy Keen, Atlanta Hurricane or Blue Atlantan. I’m not sure how many rotations we made that evening, as the day hued into night, the city’s lights glittering. I also know that my prom spent at Steak n’ Ale many years ago, didn’t bear much resemblance (nor did I) to that night’s revelers. No matter, we all had a great time high up in the clouds. The Sun Dial is located at 210 Peachtree Street, atop the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel. Their phone number is (404)589-7506. |
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| From top: Potato crusted halibut; Seared salmon; Iceburg salad; Cheescake Tower. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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