Bon Ton

"Head to Bon Ton just to crack open crab legs with your teeth under the glow of a sign that says “Fancy Service.” Their reliably good food and effortless ability to straddle the lines of casual and cool are why this Cajun-Vietnamese restaurant fills up with a crowd with mixed post-dinner agendas. Think Fox Theatre-goers prying out buttery charbroiled oysters, party groups who want a solid fried fish platter before heading upstairs to dance at the Waiting Room, and us with zero social plans. But we’re here in our sweats and an old T-shirt huddled into one of the comfy wooden booths because we have every intention of sloppily drinking the broth from our seafood boil. It’s that good. " - jacinta howard, juli horsford, nina reeder

"Bon Ton on Myrtle Street is an ultra casual Cajun-Vietnamese bar and restaurant with a glow-up Instagram filter. This is a spot to feel comfortable getting down and dirty, cracking crab legs with your teeth, and eating broth-soaked potatoes with bare hands. But then you'll peep the "Fancy Service" neon sign that casts a rosy hue over the whole restaurant and wonder if you missed a memo. Especially since the Posh and Becks look-alikes next to you happen to be sipping sazeracs and eating charbroiled oysters with miniature forks. But then you'll opt to hold the bowl to your mouth and chug down the remaining seafood boil broth, and somehow that feels just right too." - nina reeder, juli horsford, demarco williams, jacinta howard

"When we’re ready to laissez les bon temps rouler and all that, we head to Bon Ton in Midtown, where we can crack open crab legs with our teeth under the glow of a sign that says “Fancy Service.” Under that neon pink light, the casual Cajun-Vietnamese restaurant sets the scene for an enjoyable date night with shared charbroiled oysters and sazeracs. Friend groups can gather in comfortable wood-panel booths and throw back rummy hurricanes, fried fish baskets and seafood boils (we don’t judge anyone for drinking the boil broth because it’s that good). All these good times should be credited to the tasty food because no matter your mood or who you’re with, you’ll find something, from cauliflower banh mi to étouffée, to enjoy." - nina reeder, juli horsford, demarco williams

"Bon Ton is an ultra casual Cajun-Vietnamese bar and restaurant with a glow-up Instagram filter. This is a spot to feel comfortable getting down and dirty, cracking crab legs with your teeth, and eating broth-soaked potatoes with bare hands. But then you'll peep the "Fancy Service" neon sign that casts a rosy hue over the whole restaurant and wonder if you missed a memo. Especially since the Posh and Becks look-alikes next to you happen to be sipping sazeracs and eating charbroiled oysters with miniature forks. But then you'll opt to hold the bowl to your mouth and chug down the remaining seafood boil broth, and somehow that feels just right too. photo credit: Cameren Rogers photo credit: Cameren Rogers photo credit: Cameren Rogers photo credit: Cameren Rogers" - Nina Reeder

"Bon Ton offers riffs on Viet-Cajun dishes, including Cajun crawfish boils, a banh mi with blackened catfish or fried shrimp, and a spicy jicama and papaya salad, which pairs nicely with the hot sticky fried chicken nuggets. Owned by the team behind the Lawrence, the bar is well known in Atlanta for its stellar cocktails. A perennial favorite on the menu is the frozen Vietnamese Irish Coffee made with Jameson Irish whiskey, coffee brandy, chicory, sweetened condensed milk, cream, and hints of nutmeg." - Beth McKibben