Buckhead Diner   

Billing itself as "the ritziest diner in the country," this energetic, award-winning restaurant is a longtime favorite on the Buckhead scene. Part of the Buckhead Life Restaurant group, the Buckhead Diner underwent a major, 17- day renovation in September, replacing the entire kitchen, shining and shellacking all the wood surfaces, adding a fresh coat of paint, and installing new floors, carpets, lights, chairs and tabletops. The menu was also redesigned quite a bit under the leadership of new executive chef Kevin Rathburn, formerly of Buckhead Life's Nava restaurant. Nearly 80 percent of the appetizers and entrees are new, with favorites like the Georgia sea scallops, grilled salmon over leek grits and Chilean steamed sea bass proving favorites with regulars and newcomers alike. Whatever you do, don't leave without trying their trademark White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie, which was selected the country's best dessert by the James Beard Foundation. -- Bret Love