Jennifer Zyman Gives Craft Izakaya Three Stars

Creative Loafing's Jennifer Zyman reviews Craft Izakaya, awarding the Krog Street Market Japanese restaurant a "very good" rating of three out of five stars. Zyman says it offers some of the best Japanese food in Atlanta:

Craft is a casual place that never fails to make me feel happy and relaxed. It doesn't take itself too seriously and it fills a void for intown Japanese. Depending on which path you take, your check can climb, but it is easy to spend less and feel satisfied with a couple of dishes, a little nigiri, and a pint of beer. Given a menu that seems almost too generic at first glance, it is easy to pass Craft off as just another intown Japanese restaurant with OK drinks, appealing to the California roll-loving masses. But if you know where to look and what to order, you'll find a passionate and innovative chef with commitment to his work and some of the best Japanese food - with a little Korean wink - our city has to offer.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's John Kessler gives Cooks & Soldiers a "very good" rating of two out of four stars, calling the Westside restaurant another success for the Castellucci Hospitality Group:

But, if I may say, such is the Castellucci experience. The flavors might pile up and topple over, but there will be something for everyone. They want you to walk out of the restaurant happy, and whatever ups and downs you may encounter with your food, you will.

Kessler also reviews Oak Steakhouse, the second outpost for the Charleston-based restaurant in Avalon. Awarding it a "good" rating of one out of four stars, he says the steaks are sensational, but the price tag is jarring:

Oak Steakhouse is the kind of place where a nice enough glass of wine will set you back $15. Add in $10 for those vegetables and $72 for that steak and, well, you get the point. Proceed without caution, and you might just have a great meal.

THE ELSEWHERE AND THE BLOGS: Eat It, Atlanta is a fan of the Shan City crawfish at Gu's Bistro. ATL Food Snob finds pretty good Thai food at L'Thai Organic Cuisine & Wine Bar. Weekend Eats ATL says Shake Shack is really good, but doesn't get the restaurant's hype. Hot Dish Review enjoys the brunch bites at Ladybird Grove & Mess Hall, but not as much as the atmosphere and service. Fried Chicken Lips doesn't like Twin Smokers BBQ, but says it will do well with the tourists. Friday Date Night thinks On The Bayou provides quality, authentic Cajun cuisine. Marie, Let's Eat is wowed by the chili at Guston's Grille. Burgers, Barbecue and Everything Else plans on returning to Cooks & Soldiers.