On a recent trip to the Georgia Aquarium, we decided to try out the Luckie Food Lounge, just north of the aquarium at the corner of Luckie Street and Ivan Allen Junior Boulevard, across the street from the aquarium parking deck.
From outside, you get a unique vibe of the restaurant, an Asian fusion feel to the landscaping and a real contemporary feel due to the architecture of the building. Upon entering, the shere size of the place is amazing and you can see that while it does have the appearance of a chic nightspot, it’s going to equally be loved by kids.
When you walk in the front door, you immediately notice the large aquarium tank and the kids are pulled to it like a magnet. Luckie also features two other large aquariums and it’s clear that they didn’t one to be outdone by their neighbors. Their intimate aquariums don’t have to serve the masses like the Georgia Aquarium and feature very exotic sea life that you won’t find next door.
If possible, get one of the booths at the front of the restaurant to really enjoy the aquarium or sit in the sushi bar in the back, which is home to the other large tanks. Luckie definitely plays off the aquarium theme with plasma TVs everywhere portraying ocean life, including in the bathrooms.
Showing that this isn’t just a cool place to get a drink after work, Luckie has a great children’s menu. The kids can see their menu using a ViewFinder. I haven’t seen one of these for years and found it to be a neat differentiator and a fave of the kids. For the rest of us older folks, we get a traditional menu (oh well).
One thing I will tell you is that Luckie does not fall short. Many restaurants have a great ambience, but the food lacks and some don’t worry about the ambience because they know their food kicks butt. But at Luckie, they wanted both.
My kids selected the cheeseburger and the macaroni and cheese from their ViewFinders, then quickly turned their attention back to the aquarium located by their seat. The colletion of exotic fish is simply amazing.
My better half went for the fish tacos, which consisted of grilled Chilean sea bass, a jicama poblano slaw, tomatoes, sour cream, avocados and cilantro rice. It was quite tasty, but could use a little more zip to it. I decided to try out their shrimp and grits. That’s right, my continuing quest to find the world’s best shrimp and grits.
Their shrimp and grits are served with a mound of cheddar grits in the middle of the bowl and surrounded by shrimp, Shitake mushrooms, bacon, scallions, tomatoes and a lemon butter sauce. From the menu, I was hoping for something a little different. My two faves to date have been South City Kitchen’s cream-based shrimp and grits and Goldfish’s tomato-based shrimp and grits (why they switched to a cream-based I’ll never understand).
I was hoping that this was a little different. And wow, it was. It was not as heavy as the typical cream-based shrimp and grits and the unique ingredients create a fabulous taste explosion. The replacement of the typical Andouille sausage with bacon added a different spin on the traditional recipe. The lemon-butter sauce pulled the flavors together and made the dish a sheer delight and firmly places Luckie on the top of my list for shrimp and grits.
Finally, we decided to check out their dessert menu and opted to go see firsthand their large selection of homemade cakes and pies. We settle for two to share at the table. The Twelve Layer Chocolate Cake and the Lemon Raspberry White Chocolate Cake. The two provided a nice variety and were finished in a flash.
So the next time you head down to the Georgia Aquarium, stop by Luckie Food Lounge for lunch or dinner, you won’t be disappointed.