If you’ve spent any time in Buckhead, you know the vibe is usually high-gloss and a little bit stiff. It's all glass towers and luxury cars. But for years, Southern Art restaurant Atlanta acted as this weirdly beautiful anchor inside the InterContinental Hotel. It wasn't just a place to grab a bite before a meeting. Honestly, it was a whole mood. You had these incredible, vibrant folk art pieces lining the walls, and then you had the ham.
Let's talk about that ham.
The Ham Bar was legendary. Not "Instagram legendary," but actually, physically impressive. It showcased the best of regional curing—think Benton’s or Edwards—and it served as a mission statement for the late Chef Art Smith. He wanted to prove that Southern food isn't just a monolith of deep-fried everything. It’s nuanced. It’s salty. It’s aged. It’s actually quite sophisticated when you stop treating it like a fast-food side dish.
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What Happened to Southern Art Restaurant Atlanta?
Things change. Fast.
If you try to book a table at Southern Art today, you’re going to run into a bit of a wall. The restaurant officially transitioned. It’s now The Americano, a massive Italian steakhouse concept by celebrity chef Scott Conant. It’s sleek. It’s modern. It’s got that signature Conant flair. But for those of us who grew up on Art Smith’s fried chicken, the shift feels like the end of a specific era in Atlanta dining.
Why does this matter? Because Southern Art wasn't just a business; it was a pivot point. Before the "farm-to-table" buzzword was slapped onto every menu in the city, Smith was sourcing from regional farmers and bringing a James Beard-winning pedigree to a hotel lobby. It’s hard to overstate how much that changed the expectations for hotel dining in the Southeast. People actually went there to eat, not just because they were staying upstairs.
The Art Smith Legacy in the Lobby
Art Smith is a character. You might know him as Oprah’s former personal chef or from his appearances on Top Chef Masters. He has this way of making food feel like a hug, but a very expensive, well-tailored hug. When he opened Southern Art restaurant Atlanta, he brought a sense of "New South" pride that didn't feel cheesy.
The design was intentional. You had these massive, hand-painted murals on the ceiling and walls that celebrated folk art. It felt like a museum you were allowed to eat in. The juxtaposition of fine crystal and rustic wooden boards for the charcuterie was the whole point. It told the story of a region that was growing up but didn't want to forget where it came from.
The Menu That Defined a Decade
Most people went for the fried chicken. That’s the cliché, right? But the chicken was brined for days. It was crispy in a way that defied physics.
However, the real ones knew about the 12-layer cakes.
Southern cakes are a competitive sport. At Southern Art, they were an architectural feat. You’d see these towering slices of hummingbird cake or red velvet that looked like they belonged in a window display in Savannah. It wasn't just about sugar; it was about the history of the Southern "receipt" (the old-school term for recipe).
- The Ham Bar: This was the soul of the room. A curated selection of domestic hams, sliced paper-thin.
- Shrimp and Grits: They used stone-ground grits that actually tasted like corn, not just bland mush.
- Bourbon Program: The bar was a heavy hitter, leaning into the Kentucky-Georgia connection with pours you couldn't find at the local package store.
The service was also "Southern" in the best way. Not fake-nice. Just genuine. You felt like the staff actually liked the food they were serving, which, let’s be real, is rare in high-end hotel environments.
Why the Transition to The Americano?
Business is business, especially in the 2020s. The hospitality industry took a massive hit, and tastes started shifting toward "Vibe Dining." People wanted high energy, Italian-inspired glamour, and flashy cocktails. The InterContinental Buckhead underwent a massive $20 million renovation to keep up with the new competition down the street.
Enter The Americano.
It’s a different beast entirely. Where Southern Art was warm and rustic-chic, The Americano is moody, dark, and sophisticated. It trades the ham bar for a raw bar. It swaps the fried chicken for tableside pasta and prime steaks. Is it good? Yeah, it’s great. Conant knows what he’s doing. But it serves a different purpose. It’s built for the "see and be seen" crowd that dominates Buckhead’s nightlife today.
Can You Still Find That Southern Art Vibe?
If you're mourning the loss of Southern Art restaurant Atlanta, you aren't totally out of luck. Art Smith still has his fingerprints across the country.
- Homecomin' at Disney Springs: If you’re in Orlando, this is basically the spiritual successor. It has the same DNA—the moonshine, the fried chicken, the heavy focus on Florida/Georgia agriculture.
- Blue Plate in Chicago: Another Smith staple that carries that same warmth.
- The Southside Revival: In Atlanta itself, places like Miller Union or Revival in Decatur carry that torch of elevated, historically-conscious Southern food. They don't have the "Southern Art" name, but they share the soul.
Honestly, the loss of Southern Art was part of a larger trend of Atlanta "cleaning up" its image. We’re seeing more national brands and celebrity-backed steakhouse concepts moving in. It makes the city feel more international, sure. But you lose those specific, local textures that made the dining scene weird and wonderful in the first place.
The Cultural Impact of the Space
We have to acknowledge the art. It’s in the name, after all.
The restaurant featured works by local artists that highlighted the "Art" in Southern Art. It was a gallery. This wasn't corporate art bought by the pallet. It was curated to tell a story of the rural South. When you look at the evolution of the space into The Americano, the art has changed to reflect a more global, contemporary aesthetic. It’s beautiful, but the specific "place-ness" of the original design is gone.
The restaurant served as a bridge. It bridged the gap between the old-school Atlanta elite who wanted their biscuits and the new, transient business traveler who wanted a craft cocktail. It was one of the few places where you’d see a family celebrating a graduation next to a CEO closing a deal, both of them happily tearing into a basket of cornbread.
Essential Takeaways for Atlanta Foodies
If you’re looking for a similar experience today, you have to look a bit harder. The "Hotel Restaurant" is having a moment in Atlanta right now, with spots like Dirty Rascal or By George taking over historic spaces.
But Southern Art restaurant Atlanta was a specific moment in time.
It proved that Southern food deserved a seat at the table of fine dining without having to put on a tuxedo. It celebrated the "low-country" and the "up-country" simultaneously. While the physical space has moved on to a new chapter, the influence it had on the Buckhead dining scene remains. It paved the way for the high-end, chef-driven concepts that now define the neighborhood.
How to Navigate the Current Scene
If you're visiting the InterContinental now, go for the steak at The Americano. It's world-class. But if you’re chasing the ghost of Art Smith’s kitchen, here’s how to spend your weekend in Atlanta:
- Breakfast at Silver Skillet: It’s raw, it’s real, and it’s been there forever. It’s the antithesis of Buckhead glitz.
- Lunch at Mary Mac’s Tea Room: If you want the history without the InterContinental price tag, this is your spot.
- Dinner at Miller Union: For that elevated, seasonal Southern approach that Southern Art helped pioneer.
Atlanta's food scene is a moving target. It’s always evolving, always rebranding. Southern Art was a pillar for a long time, and while the name is off the door, the standard it set for hospitality and regional pride is still the benchmark for anyone trying to cook in this city.
The real lesson? Don't skip the ham bar if you ever find one again. Those traditions are becoming rarer by the year, and they're worth preserving. Whether it's through Art Smith's remaining ventures or the new wave of Southern chefs, the demand for authentic, high-quality Southern flavors isn't going anywhere. It’s just wearing a different outfit these days.
Actionable Next Steps:
To experience the true legacy of Art Smith's "Southern Art" style, book a table at Chef Art Smith's Homecomin' in Orlando or visit Revival in Decatur, GA, for a modern take on family-style Southern heritage dining. If you're staying in Buckhead, visit The Americano to see how the space has been reimagined for the modern era, but don't expect the biscuits—go for the Pasta Al Pomodoro instead.