clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile
Masa fried chicken with sprigs of green and purple basil and parsley from Palo Santo in Atlanta.
Masa fried chicken.
The Cocktail Shaker

Filed under:

Palo Santo Is Where Mexican, Japanese, and Southern Flavors Merge on Atlanta’s Westside

Take a look inside and at the menu for Palo Santo, opening September 23 on West Marietta Street

Chef Santiago Gomez opens his Mexican supper club and rooftop lounge Palo Santo Friday, September 23, adjacent to the King Plow Arts Center on West Marietta Street. And it’s where Mexican, Japanese, and Southern flavors and dishes merge together on the menu.

Spread out over two levels, the first floor features a dimly lit dining room and bar seating 86 people, with food prepared over wood or charcoal and served family style. The bar centers heavily on mezcal and tequila cocktails as well as natural wine. On the second floor, a rooftop bar and lounge seats an additional 86 people and includes a separate menu of Mexican-Japanese dishes.

Santiago Gomez wearing a green t-shirt and white apron, standing with his arms crossed.
Santiago Gomez.
Toan

A native of Mexico City, Gomez worked for nearly two decades at notable restaurants around south Florida, including famed Japanese-Peruvian restaurant Nobu and for chefs like Daniel Boulud. His love for cooking with heirloom and local produce and ingredients began as a child while working with his grandfather harvesting avocados in Uruapan, Michoacan. Gomez moved from Miami to Atlanta last year and says he saw an opportunity to create his own niche within the city’s dining scene.

Palo Santo offers a blend of Mexican and Japanese dishes made with ingredients, produce, and proteins from Georgia farms and food purveyors. “When I talk about Georgia ingredients, we’re not just referring to what people immediately think of, like peaches,” says Gomez. “We’re focused on all ingredients grown in Georgia, such as mushrooms.”

The tetela on the menu (masa shaped like a triangle), for example, uses heirloom corn from Mexico and is filled with locally grown mushrooms. It’s served with mole and Georgia peaches. The wagyu tartare features eggplant from a local farm whipped up into a tatemada (fire-roasted salsa).

Other ingredients like corn, beans, chiles, and cacao come from small farms throughout Mexico via heirloom crop supplier Tamoa.

Hamachi tostada atop a stone bowl from Palo Santo in Atlanta.
Hamachi tostada.
The Cocktail Shaker
Ora king salmon tiradito from Palo Santo in Atlanta.
Ora king salmon tiradito.
The Cocktail Shaker
A round wooden dining table filled with Mexican dishes like masa fried chicken, hamachi tostado, and seafood paella at Palo Santo in Atlanta. The Cocktail Shaker

Beyond the family-style menu served in the main dining, there’s also the option to order a “playful” tasting menu created exclusively by Gomez from a counter overlooking the kitchen. Only four seats are available on select nights at $120 per person. It includes beverage pairings. Reservations should launch within a few weeks. The 10-seat chefs table offers a private dining experience and a family-style menu created specifically for the group.

A staircase leads up to the rooftop lounge, which is reserved for people 25 years and up and features retractable glass windows and a canopied terrace with views of the city. Expect a pared-down menu of Japanese-Mexican snacks and shared plates here, like nori tacos, tostadas, crudos, and oysters.

“Taco options include salmon with hoja santa truffle creme and wagyu asada with bone marrow and black garlic morita aioli, among others,” says Gomez. “Tostadas will include hamachi with hoja santa mayo, uni, and yuzukosho and toro with aguachile sauce and caviar.”

Look for desserts like vanilla cajeta miso soft serve ice cream and mezcal and tequila cocktails, sake, and a tight selection of wines from the rooftop bar.

The dimly lit dining room and bar inside Palo Santo Mexican restaurant in Atlanta. Votive candles are lit on each table and the backbar is backlit. The Cocktail Shaker
The Cocktail Shaker
Tepache milk punch with mezcal, tepache, pineapple, lime, and whole milk clarification from Palo Santo in Atlanta.
Tepache milk punch with mezcal, tepache, pineapple, lime, and whole milk clarification.
The Cocktail Shaker
Santo Carajillo.
Santo Carajillo with Licor 43, banana du brésil, and espresso.
The Cocktail Shaker

“I saw a great opportunity for modern Mexican cuisine in this amazing and fast-growing city,” Gomez says. “The restaurant scene is great, but there’s always room for new concepts and cuisines as the city continues to grow.”

Check out the menu for Palo Santo below:

955 West Marietta Street, Atlanta. botanicohospitality.com.

Restaurant: Tuesday - Saturday, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Rooftop (ages 25+): Tuesday and Wednesday, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Thursday - Saturday, 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Atlanta Restaurant Closings

Four Atlanta Restaurants Closed in May

Atlanta Restaurant Openings

The Much Anticipated Opening of Summerhill’s Newest Restaurant Is Just Around the Corner

Atlanta Restaurant Closings

Ford Fry Is Closing King and Duke in Buckhead This Month

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the Eater Atlanta newsletter

The freshest news from the local food world