Antiguo Lobo, a Mexican restraurant and tequila bar from restaurateur Jesús Oñate Jr., is now open in Chamblee.
Meaning “old wolf” in Spanish, Antiguo Lobo is located at 5370 Peachtree Road and pays homage to Jesús Oñate Jr.’s father, Jesús Oñate Sr., who came to the United States from his hometown Jose de La Paz – a small village in the state of Jalisco in Mexico – in 1971. He opened his first metro Atlanta restaurant in Chamblee, eventually owning five locations of Monterrey restaurant, El Sombrero, the Lazy Donkey and eight El Ranchero restaurants throughout Georgia before he died in 2018.
Jesús Jr. started managing Monterrey #2 in Smyrna when he was 20.
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Antiguo Lobo is Jesús Jr.’s fourth restaurant, along with Zapata in Norcross, Taqueria on Broad in Atlanta’s Five Points neighborhood and Monterrey of Marietta.
The restaurant offers multi-regional Mexican food alongside an agave-based beverage program for lunch and dinner Tuesdays-Sundays.
The menu blend’s Mexican cuisine inspired by the food Jesus Jr. grew up eating with dishes he discovered throughout years visiting and eating in the country, with many ingredients sourced locally.
The restaurant’s signature dish, Molcajete El Monstruo, will be served in a volcanic rock mortar -- ‘molcajete’ in Spanish -- and offer a choice of steak, grilled chicken or shrimp, green onion, grilled queso fresco, tomato, nopal cactus, tomatillo cream salsa, rice and beans.
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Other menu items include enchiladas verdes with tinga, tomatillo cream, rice, refried black beans, crema and cotija and pollo al mole with mole poblano, rice, refried black beans, toasted sesame seeds and cotija and a variety of small plates, salads, soups, nachos, burritos and tacos.
A certified master mezcalier, Oñate will oversee the beverage program, which will focus on agave-based spirits and cocktails made using infused tequila and mezcal. House-made margaritas will be made with fresh juices and agave nectars.
Located in a building that was formerly a vintage antique store, the restaurant’s design will mirror the Mexican restaurants where Oñate grew up working. The interior features “a black distressed tin ceiling, exposed brick walls and concrete floors,” according to a press release.
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A mural dedicated to Jesús Sr. will feature images from his life, including a 1977 Pontiac Can-Am, the first car he bought in the United States. Other design elements include booths, sarape accents and a vintage bar. The 1,265 square-foot dining room and bar will seat approximately 60 people at full capacity, along with a large patio at the front of the building.
Antiguo Lobo is Jesús Jr.’s fourth restaurant, along with Zapata in Norcross, Taqueria on Broad in Atlanta’s Five Points neighborhood and Monterrey of Marietta.
Antiguo Lobo is open 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays, 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Fridays, noon-10:30 p.m. Saturdays and noon-9 p.m. Sundays. Though the restaurant is dine-in only for now, delivery and takeout options will be added soon.
5370 Peachtree Road, Chamblee. antiguolobo.com/
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