Overall rating:
The glare from the glass at the Pinnacle Building in Buckhead is almost blinding as I leave my car with the valet and head for the revolving-door entrance. Inside, down a set of stairs, a man in gray leather and a sprayed-on tan searches the restaurant's bar. Women are coupled together in twos and threes, drinking martinis that are as much a fashion statement as they are a cocktail; businessmen order vodka tonics and melt into the crowd.
Is this a flashback to 1999? Are we stuck inside a Prince video?
No, this is Bluepointe, the restaurant that put the "buck" into the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group. It opened in December 1998 at the height of fascination with Asian crossover cooking. Ten years later, this kind of fusion is as bad a word in the restaurant industry as trans fats (okay, the latter is two words).
In February 2001, then-dining critic John Kessler called the restaurant a "stunning newcomer" but noted that it couldn't handle the crowds. Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown were regulars; Merrill Lynch execs crowded the formal dining room with parties of 20. The valet wait was 10 deep.
Ten years later, the sweeping, 26-foot-tall space feels dated. The carpet gives a frayed and worn report. And the mammoth, curvy, bright-red monolith sculpture separating the two dining areas looks like a misplaced playground fixture. Designed by Bill Johnson of the Johnson Studio, Bluepointe, like an aging Hollywood starlet, is in bad need of a facelift.
So it is the menu, a sophisticated amalgam of Asian glory, that has kept Bluepointe on everyone's radar. Originally conceived by chef Ian Winslade (now down the street at Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Market), it manages to fuse Thai with Chinese and Japanese influences while maintaining a decidedly '90s attitude. Oversized white porcelain touts lots of flourish, such as tiny cubes of gelled pineapple atop a divine smoother-than-butter pate de foie gras.
It's the kind of highly orchestrated finesse that went out with MTV and Napster, but it still works seamlessly because executive chef Doug Turbush employs classic technique with flavor combinations that wow — his talents rival that of Pano Karatassos Jr., the founder's son and Kyma chef, doing with Asian what Karatassos does with Greek. Turbush was with Bluepointe's original kitchen team and was also executive chef at Nava before taking the helm of Bluepointe's kitchen in 2004.
Sushi, maki and raw bar selections are formidable, but can't compare with the selections of appetizers Turbush creates: kurobuta pork potstickers are perfect pillows of sesame-and-soy-laced flavor; Kobe beef is buttery-textured fun, cooked at the table on a hot stone, ishiyaki style with salt and lime.
Desserts are the prettiest of all: gorgeous palm sugar panna cotta, smoother than silk, with a wonton cookie base and coconut-kaffir sorbet; light chiffon-style cheesecake with hints of lemon.
Age becomes Bluepointe. Settling into middle age, the focus is less flash and more flavor.
BLUEPOINTE
Food: Modern, eclectic mix of Asian, with emphasis on Thai and Chinese cuisine
Service: Formal, polite, professional and efficient
Price range: $$$
Credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diner's Club, Discover
Hours of operation: Lunch: Mondays-Fridays, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.;
Dinner: Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 5:30-11 p.m.,; Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 5:30-midnight; Sundays, 5:30-10 p.m.
Best dishes: Appetizers of pork potstickers, Kobe beef ishiyaki, foie gras brulee, kampachi, sorbets and cheesecake
Vegetarian selections: Pad Thai, salads
Children: Lunch or early evening
Parking: Complimentary valet
Reservations: Yes
Wheelchair access: Yes
Smoking: No
Noise level: High
Patio: No
Takeout: Yes
Address, telephone: 3544 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, 404-237-9070
Web site: www.buckheadrestaurants.com
KEY TO AJC RATINGS
Outstanding:
Sets the standard for fine dining in the region.
Excellent:
One of the best in the Atlanta area.
Very good:
Merits a drive if you're looking for this kind of dining.
Good:
A worthy addition to its neighborhood, but food may be hit or miss.
Fair:
The food is more miss than hit.
Restaurants that do not meet these criteria may be rated
Poor
.
Pricing code:
$$$$$ means more than $75; $$$$ means $75 and less; $$$ means $50 and less; $$ means $25 and less; $ means $15 and less. (The price code represents a meal for one that includes appetizer, entree and dessert without including tax, tip and cocktails.)
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