Monday 14th of February 2011 01:06:35 PM

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5 Seasons was my initial god-send when I came out to Atlanta: a brewpub right next to where I work. Alpharetta's horrendous traffic saw away with that dream of spending many evenings here though, so I haven't really spent all that much time here.
Expensive is what's going on here, but that's relatively characteristic of North Fulton in general, so I can't really hold it against them. And that applies to both beer and food. The beer runs anywhere from $5-9 on draft, and the food generally starts at about $15.
I've only had their food in the way of their "small plates," which is separate but seemingly equal from an appetizer. Those small plates go 1/2 price 5-6pm on weekdays. They change out a lot too and, if that interests you, be sure to ask for their specials menu, because there are two more on there and they seem reluctant to tell people about those.
They also do "cask parties" at 5:55pm on Thursdays (the 5th day of the week). Cute. I went once and was served a hot (seriously, it was the temperature of coffee) glass of their stout, which I had actually had before (although on CO2), so I was disappointed a little. I'm sure you can guess its price.
I got a little frustrated with them recently because, with such a small production (in Georgia, if you sell on the premises, you cannot distribute, so they don't even send it to their other location) I expected a heavy rotation. But, after a few tries, I kept getting the same beers until there were just three taps, so I gave up for a while. What I've had has been very good though.
Being Alpharetta on the edge of Johns Creek, the crowd is generally pretty stuffy. I've been irked at times with people sitting at the bar drinking wine when the bar was full (if you're going to drink wine at a brewpub, fine, but get the hell away from the bar). Honestly, the wine selection sucks, but it's amazing how much of it they sell. There's also a surprising number of well-dressed drunks you encounter here (like falling over drunk), which I guess is just another fixture of the neighborhood.
My other annoyance is the amount of kids this place gets. I don't know what the deal is with people in this area on bringing kids to bars, but the Taco Macs around here are the same way. Sundays sees more of them because they have some sort of kids special.
The building itself is just strange. I mean, that's all there is to say here. It's like someone plopped your uncle's weekend mountain cabin in a cookie-cutter office park.
If you go, go on a weekend. They open at noon on Sunday and that's when it's least crowded. Weekdays it'll take you three times longer to reach it than you would think because of the traffic on Old Milton, which is jammed from GA 400 to I-85 (i.e. - its full length).
For service, a lot of the staff seem, to me at least, like the surly sort you get at a dive bar. If you sit over by the server station on the far end of the bar, you also get to hear their conversations about relationship, pregnancy and family dramas. Regulars seem to know this because those are the last seats to go. The bartenders also tend to be perpetually upset about something.
The other location (West End; the Prado has become "Lucky Devil") has a more interesting tap selection with double the number, and has a better atmosphere. It's also in a better neighborhood. Prices are about the same there though.

Friday 19th of December 2008 05:51:40 PM

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Like the Silver Springs (Prado) this one has an all wood interior. However, the inside of this place is less intimate and cozy, more like a giant feed hall. It gets noisy very easily and it can be drafty. There is an upstairs area, however I don't know if that's for private events or overflow.

The bar seemed rather large with plenty of seats. There were four TVs against the bar wall, each playing a different channel (mostly sports).

There were four taps available on the menu, but it seemed like there was more at the bar. They also have vintage beers available. Their beer is pretty good, and I had a great Pale Ale. The price of the beer seemed reasonable. There is also liquor and wine available.

The food at the location is great, however it's somewhat expensive ($15-$25). It's worth the price though - you get what you pay for.

I like the Prado location better, but this one is fine if it's the closer location. I'd say the beer is about the same at both locations, as well as the food. I just don't like the interior as much.

Thursday 28th of February 2008 11:34:55 PM

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Excellent brewpub, focusing mainly on ales (unlike the Sandy Spring location), especially American style ales. Excellent bottled barleywine when available! The restaurant is above and beyond what you'd expect from a brewpub, all organic fresh ingredients. That however comes with a price tag to0 great to be a weekly or even monthly thing for me. They do real ale casks every thursday. $4-5 pints, $20+ entrees. Well worth a visit!!! If visiting Atlanta and only going one place for beer, this'd be it!