The Highlander

Throw-​up in my mouth.
No, that’s not the daily special, but it could be.
Have so much potential (and history), but they are riding a wave that crested years ago. Don’t believe the hype, and especially don’t give them your money. Once was a great place, but now is just sad.
Don’t believe this review? Just go in.

Went there the other day and had the Mexicano burger, oh man was it great, the tater tots were awesome, still to chicken to try the ghost pepper wings,

Stopped by with a few friends when we were in town. It’s everything you would expect a dive bar to be. The staff is very friendly and our server was attentive. I had one of the burgers and Mac and cheese as my side. The Mac and cheese was phenomenal but the burger was average. I would definitely come back to this place since I really enjoyed the vibe and most of the plates coming out of the kitchen looked appealing.

My friends like to go here for the crab leg special on Tuesday, however each time we’ve gone there have been issues. The last time I went, I sat at the bar waiting for a friend to arrive. I sat there literally 20 minutes before the male bartender with glasses and long black hair asked if I needed anything. I told him I wanted to order food, he then says «you’ll have to wait I can only do a drink» okay that was fine I ordered a drink and waited for the next bartender to arrive as he was apparently changing shift soon. Well another 15 minutes goes by my friend has arrived and we’re both complaining about ordering some food. Finally he comes back and says what would you like to order… something he should have asked 20 minutes ago. We request crab legs. He goes to the back and comes back and tells us, the special is over we don’t have any more crab legs. I’m clearly pissed because I’m seeing the servers bringing out all these crab legs to other tables and suddenly you’re out! I’m thinking if you had taken my order when I initially asked this wouldn’t have been an issue.
I’ve had similar experiences at this place and I’ve sometimes wondered if it’s a race issue. I’ve come early and sat and I’m told their out. Whenever we go to this place the servers walk pass you like 10 times before finally coming to your table and it’s like they do it because they know management doesn’t care. Mind you we have only gone on Tuesdays. In my opinion this establishment is not professional in the way they handle some patrons. I can only speak from my own personal experience. Some people like the place to each their own, but this place needs better customer service.

Great little dive bar in Midtown. It is what it is… smokey, cold jäger, burgers and a rock and roll attitude. Manbuns need not apply.

Food was gross and service was slow. I got the Chicago french dip with fries. The bread was soggy and everything was cold and old. And the pub filet was flavorless.

I wanted to check out this place because it appeared in Diners, Drive-​Ins and Dives with Guy Fieri. I really liked the laid back atmosphere and the ambiance of the restaurant. I can honestly say that the food was as delicious as I thought it would be. I also liked that late at night they have bingo and you could win little prizes. Another plus is that you can play billiards and arcade games. It’s a great spot to hangout with some friends and kick back.

I would highly recommend that you come and it here. They have several delicious dishes that I would highlight. Tater tots was definitely a delicious one, had eaten like almost a plate of it and still want for more. Pastarella sticks is also a good choice, you will most likely do take-​out after your meal.
Nice place.

The highlander is a dirty dive with all the neccesary elements. Dark and dingy, smoker friendly, fall apart dart boards, loud and obnoxious regulars and bartenders to match. I came here my second weekend in town and my first Sunday on my own, was taken under the wings of a regular for a Sunday Funday and now find myself happily stuck here.
Here what I love about it: It’s simple, straightforward and unapologetic. Sit down, get a drink and a shot and start talking to the person next to you; next thing you know it’ll be 3am. That’s how it goes. I love that I will get laughed at for wandering in on a Sunday and staring at my order of Tater Tots for 3 hours because my stomach is too tender from the night before. I love that you are automatically included in making fun of the C (regular) who got stuck driving a brickhouse of a woman home 20 miles out of the way for attempting to be a nice person.
I love that you can come and watch Mary Poppins at the bar on a Friday night because, yea, it’s an awesome classic movie or equally can catch the New Zealand Horror Movie Deathgasm [renamed Heavy Metal Apocalypse by Walmart in 2016] or the Vampire Mocumentary «What we do in the shadows» [If you have not seen either of these, seriously: this is your next assignment]. That’s the kind of bar this is. I also love that the doorman sits there in a kilt and try to ask me every time if I’ve ever been to Bridgeville outside Pittsburgh in PA. Yes dear… same answer every time. I have to forgive his, this bar can forget what year it is, after all they haven’t updated the homepage of their website in 5 years it seems. It still says it opened in 1992 and is 19 years old. Classic.
Then to the food, I slowly am making my way through the menu, and so far this is what I got: Solid Tots, skip the burgers [fail] and instead get 6 portions of Fritters, and Mac n Cheese and all of the sides and starters for that matter. They have a pretty awesome Monday special for crab legs, apparently, but I work ungodly far away so this will be for another day. I dunno what happened to the burgers though… sigh.
Honestly, gotta love it, gonna love it. Come back often.

5 stars for the food, 5 stars for the waitstaff. Location is a little wonky, and the food was unexpectedly good the look of the place. I got a southern something burger which had pimento cheese and slaw, and cane with some killer tots. Guys. It was one of the best burgers I’ve had in Atlanta, end of story. Walking in I thought it was a little sketch. Walking out, I loved it. Looks can be deceiving. Give the place a try!

The atmosphere is really cool with the art on the walls and the music playing. I had the Cuban burger which was amazing. The burger was seasoned well and all the toppings went together so well. I would definitely return and try it when they were busier.

We decided to go to the Highlander because I had a craving for tater tots (as per usual), and because this place was ranked highly on a list of the best tater tots in the city. And wowee, the tater tots here did *not* disappoint! I ordered them with the cheese, bacon, jalapeños, and onions — I highly recommend this combo. Though technically listed as an appetizer, the tater tot order is large enough to have as a meal for one — or to split as a starter amongst a few people.
A couple additional notes:
— the parking is sparse (especially on weekend nights) so be prepared to circle the lot a few times
— there’s a patio area, where it’s nice to sit and eat/​drink when it’s warm outside

Parking: 3 there’s a lot of cafes, theater and hobby lobby so parking is limited
Customer service: 2 our server never came to the table after our food came out, the cook took care of us more than our own waiter. He would come to our area and never even come to or stop at our table. It was horrible to say the least.
Food: 4 we went on Tuesday for $ 24.95 AYCE Crab Legs … there wasn’t much seasoning but the cook brought us extra Old Bay seasoning. He also kept checking in to see if we needed more crab legs, seasoning, butter or drinks. He even had small talk and made a bad experience better.
Ambience: 4 We sat on the patio due to not wanting to be inside it was dark, smokey and non inviting
Must be 21 and older to enter.

The food is greasy and disgusting.
And the place smells like cigarettes. Like, terribly.

2.5 stars is appropriate, 3 is too generous.
The vibe is way too hip for me, good thing everybody was very friendly.
Pasta-​rella Sticks (mozzarella sticks wrapped in pasta and deep-​fried, served with marinara) I’m glad to have tried them because of their notoriety but they were simply too much. 5 pieces is too many for a party of 2, share with the table next to you if you want to try them.
Chicharrones were fine, not unique. Same with the Philly sandwich and tots. So many reviews go on and on about the tator tots. Sure it is unique for a restaurant to have them but they were literally plain ‘ol frozen tator tots. Sonic’s tots are better.
White Veggie Chili (beans, roasted corn, loblano peppers, tomatillo) was dee-​licious and spicy. The requested sour cream was a welcome sight.
Crab cakes were gigantic and pretty tasty. Worth noting because the menu does not indicate, they are made from shredded crab not lump.
** The cigarette smoke was absolutely atrocious. **

The biggest downside to The Highlander is how smoky it is. Gone are my days where I can stand the cigarette haze lingering in the air. Not to mention, it worms it’s way into your clothes rendering them un-​wearable until the next wash cycle.
With that being said, I will mostly likely still continue to dine here. The food is just pretty freakin’ good. Not just for bar food, for food food. I came here with two Highlander veterans. Apparently, it’s been around for years. This visit was supposed to be all about the chili, but I couldn’t help but order a sandwich to go with my chili. I settled upon the «ghost pepper grilled cheese.» I’ve never had anything with ghost pepper in it, but it’s that spicy that kind of creeps up on you. I might be too much of a spice-​wimp, but I could only eat half the grilled cheese before I had to tap out. My tater tots were good, but there’s nothing incredibly special about tots.
Both of my dining companions opted for the jerk chili, whereas I tried the white bean chili. It’s pretty good and a little peppery. I’ll have to try to jerk chili next time since that’s why Guy keeps raving about. Not that I take too much dining advice from Guy Fieri who only talks in alliterations.
The table shared corn fritters — REALLY good, coming from a girl who doesn’t care too much for cornbread-​like things, and a fried chicken, fried pickle appetizer. Both looked to be a bit over-​fried, but still tasty nonetheless.
I’ve also tried to the pasta-​rella sticks. This is pretty much mozzarella sticks on a different level and definitely delicious.

There are a few reasons to come to The Highlander. One, you want to play games. Highlander has bar touch-​games (Megatouch, etc) while most other bars have gotten rid of theirs. They even have two!
They also have pool tables, Big Buck Hunter, Golden Tee, air hockey, etc. We always have fun playing games and drinking here.
Another reason you might come here is because you’re a smoker. Even though I don’t smoke, since there are so few smoking bars left in Atlanta, people here all almost constantly smoking. Sometimes it’s bearable, sometimes not.
Or maybe you have tattoos and like to wear leather. You’ll fit right in here.
The Highlander, always a good time.

As I mentioned to my dining companions, it’s been about a hundred years since I’ve been to the Highlander. Seems like it, anyway.
Jerk chili is their claim to fame and it’s really good. A bowl will be a good start on a meal, but you can get a cup, too. Not particularly spicy.
Fried chicken/​pickle appetizer is also good. Maybe the chicken was a bit dry. but there’s plenty of dunking to be had, so no worries there.
Corn fritters very good. They changed the dipping sauce from a remoulade to something with sriracha. I was looking forward to the remoulade — seems everyone is using srisacha. Still, very tasty.
Decent beer list. Three Taverns IPA for me, served in a PBR glass.
Somewhat smokey and pretty loud. Really loud.

What a DIVE… literally. This restaurant is tucked away in a strip mall next to restaurant after restaurant after restaurant… and Trader Joes. I ALMOST resolved to eat elsewhere after searching for this restaurant but the umbrella tables caught my eye!
Okay, so I’m dressed in a business suit after working in court all morning. After opening the front door which is slammed full of various «bumper stickers» promoting bands, awareness, political views, feelings about every issue under the sun, I walked into a dark, dank, «bar» that happens to serve food. Seriously, it’s been a long time since I’ve walked into an establishment like this… HOWEVER, Unilocal reviewers gave this place high praise AND Diners DriveIns and Dives stopped by and filmed a show at this site. OF COURSE I had to eat here.
Oddly enough, my first comment is the fact that the bathroom was clean. I’m shocked by this. I’m not sure why, but I was pleasantly surprised and grateful.
The menu was ridiculously WOW! I didn’t know whether to get the Braised Beef Ribs, The Chicken Pot Pie, Unlimited King Crab legs, Mussels, Flatbread Pizza, and the list goes on and on. I grabbed the HOMEMADE Crab Cakes and SHUT THE FRONT DOOR they were so delicious! Homemade, flavorful, scrumptious, take my sweet time to save every bit YUMMY! I could do without the horseradish based crab cake «sauce». It was a bit too strong in the horseradish department.
The Crab Cakes entrée came with roasted beets and an arugula salad with a balsamic vinegar dressing. Both of these items were just, well, there. The beets were too oily, which was a bummer. I will try to make these at home, however, because I loved the idea. They also needed some sort of seasoning… salt maybe… during the cooking process. The arugula salad was OVER dressed and tasteless. Arugula has a strong taste that it doesn’t need a lot of dressing. I ate two bites and left it on my plate and I NEVER leave salad on my plate… ever.
The Highlander’s sweet tea and unsweet tea were both freshly made. Even though the beverage was brought to me warm, I knew it was fresh and honestly, most places have «old» tea. Truly freshing that this dive bar takes as much care with their tea as they do with their alcoholic beverages. I appreciated attention to details.
My server, a Rocker, was also a ROCK STAR server! Attentive.
Definitely will go back. This WHOLE MENU begs me to return.

Great place to grab a burger and fries and any other American style food. Nice size bar and awesome art work on the walls. Mine included. :) the Swiss and mushroom burger is great I sub it with chicken.