This holiday season it’s time to come together with friends and family and celebrate. And what better way to do that than sharing a meal together?  Or, better yet, let someone else fix it for us. With that in mind our Idea Specialists® at Belmont Park Bridge are sharing 5 of our favorite restaurants in the area and we think you’re gonna love this! Get your taste buds ready because here comes delicious!

1.      Sink your teeth into steak—Pampas Steak

Pampas Steakhouse is just six minutes away from our luxury apartment community on State Bridge Road in John’s Creek, Georgia, but their food makes you feel like you’ve walked into South America! Why? Because this place focuses on fabulous. Here that means Argentinian-style cuisine with different cuts and varieties of steaks that you don’t find at other steakhouses, that’s why.

Want wine with that? Be our guest since the Pampas Steakhouse wine list is pretty extensive and has received a few great awards from cool people in the know at Wine Spectator, Open Table, and Zagat, among others. This awesome restaurant was named #1 Steakhouse in Georgia by Open Table diners in 2014 if that’s not enough, they’re on Zagat’s list for Best Service, Best Décor, Best Steakhouse, and Restaurants with the Best Food in Atlanta. But we already knew that. Now, you do too!

Our favorite pick from this mouthwatering place is the bone-in steak, “The Brick” Filet, prepared the traditional Argentinian way over oak, a woodfire grill and a bank of hot coals.  Start with some Bangs Island Mussels made with smoked ham, shallots, garlic, cream and add a great glass of cabernet like their Duckhorn Paraduux. We’d recommend a vegetable to go with all this, but why?

2.      What’s not to love about pasta? Pasta Vino in Alpharetta

OK, now that we have beef out of the way, who can forget about our other favorite food group—pasta? Not us, for sure. That’s why we love, love, love Pasta Vino. It’s only about a mile and a half from Belmont Park Bridge, so we love to pop over for a quick meal like their $10 Lunch Specials that include a house or Caesar salad, and your selection of 10 different pastas.

Our favorites are Rigatoni Bolognese, Chicken Parmigiana served with spaghetti, and their Sausage & Pepper Arrabiatta. Add their complimentary wi-fi and you’ve got a great excuse to schedule a working lunch or just quickly catch up on Instagram!

But we would be doing you a disservice if we filed to mention another great feature that we love at Pasta Vino and that’s their $5 Grey Goose martinis every Wednesday! Perfectly chilled and served to your taste, yum, yum! Pair that with grilled Grouper Florentino and you’ve got a meal to ensure some seriously happy, satisfied vibes!

3.      Authentic Indian Cuisine—Madras Chettinaad

If you are looking for something a bit more spicy, you can’t go wrong sampling the amazing flavors and textures created at Madras Chettinaad. Head down Old Milton Parkway, and in four minutes—give or take, you’ll be pulling up to the Alpharetta Common Shopping Center (next to Publix)  where you can enjoy their superbly spiced and seasoned dishes featuring the flavor profiles of South India.

You can choose from seafood, chicken and lamb dishes, or savor their vegetarian curries and dosais. Oh, their dosais! Nom, nom, friends!

Madras Chettinaad combines oil and spices like cinnamon, bay leaves, cardamom; green and red chilies to add to the taste and aroma in these delicacies. Plus, their weekend lunch buffet is also a huge hit. One TripAdvisor reviewer shared that the  “Must have is the goat biryani and malai kofta with butter naan.”

That just sounds good just thinking about it, but our all-time favorite is the Lamb Chettinaad which has lamb meat pieces cooked in Vindaloo gravy.

4.      It’s always a party at Caribbean Fiesta

Heading back over the ocean a little closer to home in terms of distance, is Caribbean Fiesta, featuring a wide assortment of beverages you might order at the beach!

Of course, their authentically prepared food is the top draw with dishes we love like conch fritters, Caribbean chicken and shrimp, and their vegetarian dishes like Channa (chickpeas) Vegetable Roti. Hey, we told you it was authentic! Try it for yourself and tell us what you think.

5.      Breakfast, brunch, can you say yesssss? First Watch

Of course, no list would be complete without a great breakfast place! After all, it’s our favorite meal of the day. Well our favorite FIRST meal of the day. And, we love that we are literally just a stone’s throw (or 1.3 miles if you are driving) from one of the best breakfast spots in Alpharetta, Georgia.

First Watch is so wonderful we don’t event know where to start. Yes, we do—bacon! A bacon order comes with four slices of signature hardwood smoked bacon baked with brown sugar, black pepper, cayenne and a maple syrup drizzle. Two, please.

Pair that with their Carnitas breakfast burrito and Holey Donuts for dessert (yes, you CAN have dessert at breakfast, see?). These are fabulous cinnamon sugar-dusted cake donut holes with chocolate sauce, mixed berry compote and vanilla crème anglaise for dipping. Totally and perfectly healthy in our book.

Literally, there are so many fabulous restaurant choices like these and others right around the corner from where you live. Furthermore, if you don’t live here yet, give the team at Belmont Park Bridge a call at 770-664-6502 or stop in today for your own personal tour of our spacious apartment homes. We’re conveniently located just a mile and a half from the GA 400 / Old Milton Parkway interchange, a picturesque suburban retreat at the epicenter of North Fulton’s prestigious business corridor.