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Category: American (Traditional)
1600 Piedmont AveDaily lunch specials $4.95 with ANY beverage purchase. $5 Texas Ritas all day, every day. $9.95 Salmon Saturdays. Prime Rib all day Sundays.
Mon-Thu. 11:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Fri-Sat. 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
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Cowtipper's has been a stable in the neighborhood for over 15 years. Every time I come in, there's always a surprise, be it the fantastic over-the-top bartender, the pleasant and funny personality of a server, or the eccentric yet warm manager that looks likes Verne Yip. In short, you'll rarely have a dull moment at Cowtipper's.
I usually come on a busy weekend night like on a Friday or a Saturday because that's when most of the fun filled actions are at. I learned to make reservations on those nights because they are always busy on the weekends. The food is good, but I am excited to know that they are coming out with a brand new menu in a month or so. The servers are excellent every time I go there, except for that monkey looking thing named Danny. But, he is funny and cute in his own way so that's all cool.
I also am excited about that the spring is coming because that's when Cowtipper's really shine. Their patio setting overlooks piedmont road with decorative lights with an enormous breathtaking tree living in the middle. Eating there on their lively patio deck on a quiet week night or a busy Saturday night is precious time well spent.
The most fun for me is when my friends and I get to people watch as we sit, eat, and drink. There are so many interesting characters starting from the people who work there to the people who come through there.
I can't wait for spring to come soon enough!
I've lived in Atlanta for a long while now. I can't believe I'd never been here until just recently.
Ok, disclaimer (that I also shared with the manager, Steve, today). I always thought their menu looked good, but that since it's a pretty happening spot with lots of drinks and specials that it wouldn't be appropriate for the kids. Well, I am glad that I was sadly wrong.
Not until seeing their menu online (after seeing them featured on http://Zifty.com) did I realize they had a kids menu. Sweet!
The kids and I have been a hand-full of times and we love this place. We've had the same server (Michael) with awesome service each time we've been. The food has always come out quickly and been really yummy.
Things we've tried so far:
-Chicken Fingers
-Burgers
-Kids Pasta
-Chips w/ Homemade Salsa
-Queso Dip
-Cupcakes
It's all been great. Also, families-here this. Steve and I were talking and he's looking to add a family night to the scene. So, stay tuned.
Best of all, you can sign up for a Metrotainment card. You get points each time you use it at one of their locations. So, it pays to be a loyal regular.
I'm looking forward to being outside on their awesome patio once the weather gets warmer. Also, looking forward to trying one of their dozen burgers that are featured, too.
I've been here on multiple occasions and each time I want it to be something more. I love the location, the patio and loathe the parking. The parking is kind of like the dining experience, you either get something great or you spend your time trying to find something that fits you.
I really keep hoping for a great steak house, but the steak portion of the menu seems to take backseat to the burger menu. Yeah, I know both come from the cow, but doesn't the decor scream steak house? The food seems to be hit or miss, so does the service. The namesake definitely plays in, your experience can "tip" one way or the other.
When it hits it does it great, but when it does not hit, turn to one of the fantastic martini's and bring some company to make the time go by quicker. And ask for some bread to munch, if they have it.
Pricing seems to waffle, high or low as well, you can get a whole plate of nachos as an appetizer for 7 dollars or 2 eggrolls for the same price?! A burger is 6 dollars and the subpar steaks are 20.
Nothing on the menu has a 'superstar' status providing reason to make this a point of destination. You can find better steaks in the chain restaurants ::: shutter::: So, if you want a great local place to hang out, have a few drinks and be a risk taker, stop on by, you might win with a great experience. Or who knows you might lose and leave wanting more
I've been here several times for dinner and for drinks and I'm really surprised by the negative reviews for Cowtippers. I love going here! The food isn't fancy or anything, but it's always been really good, almost comfort food for me. The service is always really good, I don't remember it ever being slow or the staff unfriendly. The drinks are strong and the patio is awesome.
My only complaint is that it's slightly pricey for the portion sizes.
This place sucks
What sucks the most about this place is not the service but the lack of service. Once we just got up and walked after being ignored for 15 minutes. We took my cousins boy here once when his band was playing next door and that was cool but the other times the lack of service and attitude have been a major problem. The manager, if thats what he was, was the worst.
I have been wondering about this place for at least 8 years. I finally ate there on Sunday. Their menu items have clever names like: "Black & Bleu Boy" and "Sloppy Jose". I also loved their "Anyway You Want It" Burger (Build-Your-Own). Everything seemed really promising at first.
The waitress (her name was Haze or Hayes...I'm not sure of the spelling) seemed like she was going to be really great, but after our food arrived (minus the sauce that she had personally recommended that I get on the side) she was nowhere to be found for at least 10 minutes, then when she reappeared, I spent 10 minutes trying to get her attention. My burger was lukewarm by the time someone brought the sauce to me. My experience was pretty disappointing.
For some reason, I REALLY want to like this place. I am definitely going to give it another try & hope my next experience is better.
No matter how many times I try this, they just never improve. I really want to like this place, but consistantly, the food is mediocre and over-priced. It has such potential, but year after year, they just change the menu (which you can't read with the lighting), and the food is awful.
I used to complain about the service, but that actually has gotten better. I like an attentive server (gay or not) who is not overbearing. I've had good service there. But the food....yawn!
My veggie burger was actually pretty tasty, once I put a bit of ranch dressing on it and got rid of the bun. The spinach dip was awesome, with a great kick/spice to it.
But the real draw? A $5 house margarita that is not only tasty but incredibly strong and a great patio. If you know me at all, or read any of my reviews, you know that a great margarita and a patio voids any other negatives at a place.
I don't remember the other bartender's name, but Buffy made me feel right at home and welcome the second I walked in the door and sat down at the bar, where I was waiting on the rest of my party to arrive. She is a great bartender and makes a mean margarita.
This is one of those places that I really want to like because it seems like it could be awesome. Also, I like supporting gay businesses.
I can remember coming here years ago when the patio wasn't quite as glamorous and you could get a thick pork chop with a delicious loaded baked potato. Yummmmmm!
Now the pork chop comes with some kind of glaze that made me so nauseous I threw it up immediately. Neat story, huh?
I think the people that are giving this a bad review are probably the same people that burn food they cook at home but they eat it! I dont think cowtippers is great but it has been pretty consistant every time I go there. I guess i am one of those people who likes to see the glass half full rather than half empty!
I live down the road from this crapshoot and since it always seemed packed I figured I'd give it a try. I count on my gay friends for knowing fashion, food, and night scenes. That said, Cowtippers is a blemish to gay people's reputation for having good taste. My food tasted like it was from McDonald's, service was slow and subpar. It would be a great location, if a good restaurant was here, but somehow this place seems to have a strong foundation in Midtown. It always seems crowded, and I've yet to figure out why. I have a hard time believing there are genuine fans of this restaurant. If you are gay, you should be extra vocal in hating on Cowtippers.
Boo this place.
I ate here on Friday with the ever popular LaurenS. The patio was awesome despite the HEAT and the margaritas were STRONG. The waitress was super nice and efficient and the food was pretty decent too. We started with the spinach dip (yum) and then I had the steak kabobs (also yum). My only complaint is that the green beans were a little crunchy for my taste. There were 4 of us at dinner that night and the waitress did not complain about splitting up the tab and even split the appetizer 4 ways without asking. I definitely think the outside patio (and the company of course) was what made my dinner so enjoyable and I will definitely be there again... hopefully soon. If I can ever make it ITP again..
The service is pretty bad when there's no wait for a table and yet you have to ask three times in order to get some ketchup to go with the fries that both of us had on our plates.
It bothers me that it would cost so little to keep bottles of ketchup on the tables, or even bring some immediately along with any meal including fries, and yet we had to keep asking for some. It's not like there was even a wait for a table!
I did love the Greek tacos, whatever they're called, with mushrooms instead of meat -- but over $10? Compared to the burgers, that's a little expensive.
Not much for vegetarians, but it ain't called lettuce-tippers.
"Best food f---ing ever. The end.…
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Every time my boyfriend and I have driven to IKEA (which, as new Atlantans, we have done quite a bit in the last four months), we have passed by Cowtippers and simultaneously expressed how we very much need to eat there. A honky tonk themed steak house with cute patio seating? Definitely someplace we needed to try.
Tonight we finally had our dinner there. And it was fantastic.
Since it's November and gettin' a lil' chilly, we sat inside, and much to my delight, they have gigantic booths! (I love big booths and I cannot lie...) And although this might be off-putting to the more refined among us... the entire place smelled like bacon... which is pretty much the perfect atmosphere in which I would like to eat my burger and fries. I was slightly skeptical about the skinniness of the fries when my meal arrived, but they were deliciously but not overpoweringly seasoned, and my burger patty was thick and tasty.
The service. Wow. Our wonderfully metrosexual server was completely unexpectedly but adorably obsequious and extremely friendly. Drinks were quickly obtained, requested bread was brought out, entree advice was competently offered, my boyfriend was given the opportunity to check how his steak was cooked, the owner stopped by to say hello, and the dessert menu was offered at just the right time. We had been seeing mutant brownie sundaes being delivered throughout dinner, but when we learned that there were cupcakes on the menu, we couldn't resist. And they were absolutely delicious. OMG. Cupcakes. With Halloween-themed frosting. OMG.
So yes, Cowtippers was five star worthy, hands down. Who doesn't need a little bit of supergay burger place in one's life?
im not surprised by all the bad reviews since it seems likely that as a legitimate, pro-gay fine and socializing establishment it's strictly b-list. but if you have kids, it's a dream come true. i take my kids there for lunch on the weekends or early weekday dinner. maybe they should start promoting themselves as a gay-friendly family joint.
i admit, the food isn't amazing or anything, but my kids LOVE it. they get crayons and coloring books and a cupcake at the end of the meal. The patio is pleasant and there is always someone checking on us or anticipating my children's needs for extra whatever. Even my 7 year-old daughter said, 'wow, they have great service here.'
i get the boos on cowtippers, but if you have kids, go. it's one of our go-to spots.
The only thing worst than the food is the service. Aparrently the only seasoning available is salt. The menu is pedestrian and poorly executed. The servers are much more worried about talking to each other or planning their evening or ANYTHING BUT SERVING YOU. I don't care how cute you are, you still "work" in a "restaurant". To quote Shirley Q Liqour (and you know this goes on a lot there), "Vomick."
Para mis amigos hispaniohablantes: no me gusta.
I had a very different experience from the one and two-star reviewers, but I ate here at lunchtime when it was slower.
I ordered an iced tea (enormous!) and the NY steak medium rare with a side of sauteed mushrooms. The steak arrived cooked and seasoned well, and the mushrooms were delicate and marinated. My guest had the ribeye, which was even better than the pricier NY steak, IMO.
I was satisfied and would go back, but apparently your mileage may vary.
Two Words: Drag Queens.
Who said Backstreet's was dead...
Menu is meh...Smith's is around the corner.
The coolest thing about Cowtippers is that they hosted the benefit event for CARE that we attended tonight. It sort of goes downhill from there. I will concede that their drinks are good and reasonably priced, but I'm not so sure that I would ever want to eat here again.
Granted, it's sort of unfair to judge a restaurant based on their special events menu, but I sort of feel like in this situation since we weren't a huge group and they still had a fair number of regular patrons that it isn't unfair to judge -- hell, if they are making 15 of the same dish, it should be good, right?
The evening started off promising with appetizers in the bar area -- bacon-wrapped scallops and beef-on-a-stick. The beef was quite tasty, though they should have precooked the bacon a little before wrapping the scallops -- I would have liked it better if the bacon was a little crispier.
The $6 martinis are a clear asset -- I had a lemon drop (I guess I'm on a limoncello kick...see my recent review of Shaun's) and the Boy had an "espresso martini." How an espresso martini differs from a Black Russian is still a mystery to me since vodka and coffee liqueur comprise both, but for $6, I ain't gonna argue.
Another pair of martinis see us to our seats, and we order. There is an awkward moment when the server brings the Boy a white zinfandel in lieu of the (red) zin he ordered, but the server had no problem when he sent it back and other than that the service was fine, especially for a party of 50 whose gratuity was already included in the bill.
The salads were relatively meager, though I did appreciate that the server got my dressing on the side correct. The entrees came relatively quickly (and, perhaps, a little too quickly for those running their yaps like me.) I had the ribeye, which was well cooked, but not a great cut. It came with veggies that tasted like they were drenched in butter. I love butter, of course, but it was excessive. Dining companions in ear's reach had the pork tenderloin, which came with less-than-stellar mashed sweet potatoes and looked a little dry, BBQ salmon, which was supposed to come with a choice of side, but actually didn't (they all came with the buttery veggies), and the chicken alfredo pasta which I feel confident was nothing to write home about.
One companion requested (and received) some bread as he was dissatisfied with the lack of carbs on his plate. I found this a bit odd as well. What kind of steak place doesn't automatically send out potatoes as well? Weird.
The downhill experience bottomed out with dessert. We had an array of mini-desserts, and it seemed that every plate was a little different, each with three mini treats. I traded for a red velvet cupcake and also sampled carrot cake and fudge brownie. Only the carrot cake was worthy of paying someone else for. The others were dry and not worth a second bite.
The servers were great, but the experience...not so much. Admittedly, I haven't been here before (likely because I'm not a gay man), but I'm not feeling positive about the prospect of returning. Perhaps someday under different circumstances I'll give you another chance, Cowtippers... your wait staff earned it, at least.
The staff here is uber-friendly and so is this restaurant's vibe.
(If you are not gay friendly, stay home.)
My party and I had a good time and our meal came relatively quickly. I got a $6 pomegranate martini. It was very juicy--I could have a two more but I retrained myself.
The food was so-so. Don't get the veggie burger. It is the garden variety frozen burger that you've got at home. But I ate it all. My boyfriend got the meatloaf. I have to say--it looked pretty good. and I, A. Don't eat beef and B. Hated meatloaf even in my beaf-eating life. He thought it was pretty delicious. Much better, he said, than his 'homemade' meatloaf. Cousin got a taco salad. Very good looking with a nice greasy shell.
All in all, I'd say this is a wonderful place to get drunk and have fun, though not the place to try when you are looking for culinary excellence.
I have been to cowtippers a half dozen times over the past year and half. This is a gay friendly eatery. I am not gay, but do go with my gay friends here from time to time. The times I have been there the service was very good and the waiters were very nice. I love sitting outside when its nice out. The food is pretty good. I really recommend the spiniach dip.
I will admit it- I am a fan of Cowtippers. I eat there more often than I would like to admit. The service is usually good, their burgers and salads are excellent, and they score extra points for their drinks. I wish their menu was a little more extensive, but it's going strong for well over a decade, so I guess if it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's an especially fun venue for group outings and birthdays. They accommodate large groups very well.
Inconsistent food is the trademark for this spot. They often are out of staples that a restaurant shouldn't be out of with Kroger and Publix less than a quarter mile away.
The person delivering the food may be the rudest restaurant worker in town. Don't bother complaining: the manager always takes up for him.
There are three bright spots: Service by either Mark Allen or Ricky, the $6 martinis and the patio. I suggest going for drinks and appetizer, sit on the patio and enjoy.
Yes, there are gays. It's midtown. YAY!
Cowtippers has seen its competitors gain serious ground and surpass when it comes to food quality and service. These guys are getting lapped which is unfortunate because they have been a stalwart on the burger and steak scene. Comparable to Longhorn in that it is hit and miss.
Cowtipper's is pretty decent. They have a huge patio, but not a lot to choose from as far as food goes. There are your standard burgers, bbq, and some entrees and salads. I had the chicken fingers, and they were pretty good. Large portions, too.
For some reason, though, I came out of there smelling like barbeque sauce. Note: I sat outside and did not have anything bbq-related to eat. Interesting...
Ick.
The only redeeming feature is the patio.. and if you are drunk you can stomach the food..
Slow service..
Awful.
Ok I should probably not be reviewing this place but its been almost 3 years since I have worked here so I think its ok. If not I will gladly take this down. I came to Atlanta from Los Angeles in July of 2006 for a big change in my life. I got a job here the day after I arrived. I thought it was a great place, steaks, burgers and queers. I worked with a group of characters that I still love and miss. Most have left but a few Ive seen around. Anyways thats not important for this review. My latest experiance was good attentive service, even when the rain started to come down they let us move inside. Our food was kinda slow to come. Within 5 mins of things "why is our food taking so long"it arrived. It easily at other places could have been another 15. I ordered the ribeye which is usually a big hit or a minor miss. This time a minor miss I asked for medium rare and most of it was. I had to spit into my napkin the inedible parts or hard fat. My baked potato was shaped like a softball and the butter was frozen solid (the potato was not hot enough to melt it quickly) but other then that fine. I like this place I really do its just usually a hit or miss when it comes to food and a lot less to service. I say take a chance on it. If anything atleast its not overpriced.
Meh... Went here for lunch today because I had a coupon. Burger was good, but not great, and the quality and flavor of meat was lacking. Service was better than other reviews report, but again, not outstanding.
I want to write something good on here because my friends always want to hang out here so let me say this ... go here to sit on the patio... go here to drink ... go here and try the chips and salsa but DON'T GO HERE and expect a good steak dinner. Plus, ordering chips and drinks means you will get good service. If you try and order a meal, it normally takes forever and a steak at Cowtippers is what I envision chewing on a leather shoe is like.
Go to hang with friends and drink. That is a safe bet.
For some reason, I find myself dining at Cowtippers once every 6 months or so. I'm not sure why I return because honestly, the food at one of those large steakhouse chains is much better than the food you get at Cowtippers. Two meals ago at Cowtippers, the food was actually decent and I was hopeful that this most recent trip would be decent too. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I ordered my steak medium-rare but when it got to me it was medium (maybe because our server was chit-chatting with some boys instead of running our food and it sat too long under the "lights"). My dining partner received her meal and they took mine away. We both thought that since it was cooked improperly, I'd get the re-cook ASAP. Well, that was certainly not the case!!! It took just as long as our food took the first time and the server actually told us that they wanted to get other food out first before re-cooking mine even though my dining partner already had her food. When they finally brought the food out to me, it was again more medium than medium rare but I decided to suck it up and deal since it had taken so long. The most amazing part of the meal for me was that when my food was brought out by the manager after being re-cooked, the manager not once apologized or even acknowledge that the food was not cooked to my specifications the first time around. I did get a free glass of wine out of it, but only after my dining partner mentioned to the manager that it took an extreme amount of time to get my food back and she had to sit there and wait.
So, in summary, this is supposed to be steak house but for some reason, no one in the kitchen knows how to cook a steak the way you order it. How hard is it to cook a steak medium rare? Apparently, it's impossible if you cook at Cowtippers. Service at Cowtippers is also inconsistent. Sometimes it's good and sometimes it's horrendous. All I can say is good luck.
If you dare venture to Cowtippers (don't go for a good meal), there are 2 good things about this place: 1. they are gay friendly. (As Kisha S. said, "If you are not gay friendly, stay home.") 2. their patio is nice.
If you want a burger, and want to eat it somewhere gay and gay friendly, this is your place. LARGE patio. Great burgers and steaks. Nachos are awesome. Lots of different people, and it will fill up fast on warm days. Decent prices and reasonably priced drinks. $5 martinis! Yeah, just go already.
We went last night - we were driving around Midtown - not really sure what we wanted. My friend suggested Cowtippers - I told him I hadn't been in over a year - and that my last experience there was pretty grim. We were drawn in by the patio and the atmosphere. We showed up around 9pm and things were moderately busy (about half the patio tables full). We waited 5 min for someone to acknowledge us (not sure if there was a host of not). After we were seated, we were ignored for another 15 minutes until a manager asked if we had been helped - then he assigned us a waitress. My diet coke came out flat - and looked more like tea. The food was just as I had remembered - sub par. Its less like Steakhouse food - and more like cheap bar food. I cant see myself going back for ATLEAST another year.
Mediocre food with wait staff with a poor attitude.
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