The Report
This venue is VRV (Venue Report Verified), we have personally visited this venue.
Welcome to midtown Atlanta, where seafood is king and nautical décor is queen. The princes and princesses are the sea faring travelers, and the court jester’s that one guy who’s always trying to buy everybody drinks at the bar. We love that guy. This restaurant celebrates the nautical lifestyleto perfection, while still providing you with the full Atlanta experience. At Lure (a fabulous name to top it off), you’ll get to experience not only some of Atlanta’s finest seafood cuisines, but do so in the pleasure of a beautifully driftwood-laden environment that bridges the gap of luxury and a thematic dining milieu. Just wait until you plunge your tridents into the coastal delights.
As the creative folks behind Lure say, "it's time to get hooked"
The Scoop
Because it is a restaurant and not a hotel, we’ll focus on the kind of dining experience you and your fellow maties or…seamen can expect at Lure.
THE DISH: The maximum guest capacity fares around 170 guests if you opt for a restaurant buyout. The private dining room holds up to 55 guests. The patio space venue, where you’ll be able to gaze off into the horizon and pretend that you are watching seagulls fly by, is able to hold up to 60 people. There are options for semi-private dining, too. That way, you won’t have to be an enclave and can enjoy the rest of the ambiance.
Coming from a 10 year event planning background I think Lure would be perfect for rehearsal dinners, welcome receptions, post-wedding brunches, birthdays, showers, you get where this is going. To boot, it's both casual and contemporary and pricing on their private dining menus are attractive. You can get a Three Course brunch or lunch starting at $30 or dinner private dining menus starting as low as $50/guest for an appetizer, entree and dessert.
Lure, Atlanta says it best "our restaurant can accommodate a variety of different private and group dining scenarios—lunch, brunch, dinner or cocktails; formal or casual" and "our dining room, full of wood-heavy nautical décor, feels like an adventure trip in the dark, cozy cabin of a weathered whaler. And while the menu delivers a strong sampling of classic American seafood, Lure also ventures out into foreign waters, with a keen eye on the Mediterranean, Indian Ocean, and Asia. Our menu excels in simple yet modern flavors like salty fried calamari and flaky fish and chips covered in a flavorful sourdough batter. Our tender steamed Calendar Island mussels demanded additional bread to soak up the last drops of their citrusy beer and crème fraîche broth."
Bonus
One feature I really like here is the stylized utensils and dishes they use to serve you. The alcohol, for example, comes in large vintage punch bowls. These punch bowls serve from 6 to 8 people. That’s a whole lot of drinking, folks. Again, coming from a long standing event background, I can only imagine how handy these punch bowls would be for a private event. I can visualize the long wood feasting tables lit with a ton of candles, and a punch bowl set in the middle of each one. Talk about a great way for your guests to get to know one another! The décor, as I said is very nautical, and features lots of reclaimed wood from all around the world. I’m not sure whether they import wood or they have their very own beaver task force. I’m banking on the latter, and couldn't love the ambiance more.
STYLE FOR YOUR SETTING
Set the tone for the maritime fete to come with these nautical invitations via Oh So Beautiful Paper. The tables don't need much more than candles, candles everywhere. But I think these brass hourglass/compasses would add a nice touch. Last, you definitely need to add a cheeky nod to a sailor on your table top. In keeping with the vintage touches of the restaurant setting, we love this vintage cross stitch sailorhanging.
Inside Scoop
There is a 200 year old anchor from Boston Harbor featured right at the entrance. The history’s pretty interesting, too, and the local merchants would probably tear your ear off just to give them a listen. Some of the décor features WWII spotlights and bomber shells used as lighting fixtures. I highly recommend the grilled octopus and pork lettuce wrap with vermicelli and Vietnamese sauce. The oysters are fresh and sweet and the peekytoe crab dip is delicious for an appetizer to share as well as the steak tartare with its grilled eggplant purée, seaweed tapenade and rice crackers, though it's not seafood but stands on its own well! Another thing I really loved at Lure,is that they don't come and ask if you want flat or sparkling or tap water (thus charging you some absorbitant fee for water) but instead they filter the water and you can choose from flat or sparkling water, or both. Even cooler is that it's served in a really awesome, large glass bottle!Highlight Reel
Contemporary seafood menu fused with Mediterranean, Indian Ocean, & Asian accents.
Oysters are fresh and sweet.
Large capacity space for both large and intimate affairs
Nautical décor that features actual WWII memorabilia installments
Large patio is another venue space option
Quirky and fun utensils like the vintage punch bowls that serves 2-8
Nautical décor that features actual WWII memorabilia installments
The grilled octopus & pork lettuce wrap! Mmmmm, mmmm good.
The peekytoe crab dip is a perfect appetizer to share (along with giant alcohol filled punch bowl of course)
Around Town
Tour Sweetwater Brewery for craft beer. Tastings of 6 beers and a souvenir pint glass, for 2 hours and only $10! (Photo via With a Southern Twist)
See a performance at the Fox Theatre, one of very few vintage movie palaces in the US, and it is on the National Historic Register. (Photo: Gabrielle Smith)
A must do while here is to visit the Margaret Mitchell House. A turn of the century Tudor revival building where Margaret Mitchell lived and wrote Gone with the Wind!!
Venue Photos (Images 1-7) provided by Lure: Andrew Thomas Lee Photography; Images 8 - 15 taken by our Venue Reporter Carolyn.
