Best Restaurant for Late-Night Dining

Midtown’s BON TON is as seat-of-the-pants as a restaurant gets. The mode here is house party, and the décor is pure kitsch in the retro den of fictional founder Hoa Nguyen and his most interesting mashup of Louisiana-meets-Vietnam cookery. A cheeky neon sign reads “Fancy Service” as fried baskets of seafood, boiled peanuts and banh mi sandwiches roll through the dining room until 2 a.m. Maybe Prince comes through the speakers, maybe Otis Redding. All music pairs well with their frozen versions of Pimm’s Cups and Vietnamese Irish coffee, served in color-changing plastic vessels, of course. Though the Bon Ton family tragically lost their head bartender, the talented Patrick Kuhen, late last month in a road accident, they celebrated his life in true Nola fashion: with a second line led by a brass band through the streets of Midtown. 674 Myrtle St. N.E. 404-996-6177. www.bontonatl.com. less...

Buford Highway has long been a bastion for fantastic Asian cuisine, but one of its most recent arrivals takes the scene to new heights. Uber-modern Malaysian food hall-style eatery FOOD TERMINAL has been racking up accolades ever since chef Amy Wong and partner Howard Ewe of bakery mini-chain Sweet Hut opened doors this past spring. And when you have the munchies, there’s really no better spot to make your feasting fantasies come to life (trust us). The glossy, magazine-style menu boasts 50 pages of pan-Asian food options, from unctuous bone marrow ramen to barbecue pork noodles to a sizzling skillet of tomato-braised, Spam-studded rice covered in melty cheese that puts whatever brand of delivery chain pizza you ordered in college to shame. There are pictures of every item and a convenient menu form to fill out that cuts down on anxiety-inducing human contact, plus cold and creamy Thai tea for your dry mouth. Oh happy daze. 5000 Buford Highway, Chamblee. 678-353-6110. www.foodterminal.com. less...

It doesn’t open until 10 p.m. And even then, if you’re there before midnight, well, you’re not part of the in-crowd. But this is no nightclub. It’s a late-night restaurant/bar within a not-so-late-night restaurant in a (relatively) quiet corner of EAV. This is Octopus Bar. It’s the kind of place David Chang and Sean Brock would go to pound beers and down oysters and platefuls of salt and pepper shrimp (with a TV crew in tow) before (or maybe after) hitting the Clermont Lounge. Octopus Bar is dark and rough around the edges, and the food from chef Angus Brown is like a loud, quick, Southern-fried, alcohol-soaked romp across Asia. In addition to the oysters and succulent head-on (eat-the-whole-thing) shrimp, the menu is always peppered with things like uni and quail eggs and kimchi. The ultimate late-night bite, though, is Octopus Bar’s lobster roll (with tomalley mayo). It’s enough to make you want to eat after midnight every night. less...

Conveniently located just up the road from Edgewood Avenue’s nightlife row, the late-night ramen at Miso Izakaya provides everything your inebriated heart ... well, guts ... could desire. Served only after 10 p.m., Miso’s ramen offers a broth milky with porcine goodness, a generous strip of crispy, melty pork belly, an egg with a runny center, just enough crinkly, chewy noodles, and somewhat odd but somehow perfect pops of sweet corn kernels. The warm, steaming elixir just begs for you to stick your drunken face in it and slurp away. For dessert, we recommend one of Miso’s sticky/sweet/salty crispy duck buns, also served as part of the limited late-night menu. Noodles, broth, crispy duck, two aspirin, a glass of water and you’ll be spry as a bunny in the morning. 619 Edgewood Ave. 678-701-0128. misoizakaya.com. less...

Finding something to eat in the wee hours of the morning can be a tough task if greasy spoons aren’t your thing. But Buford Highway has plenty of ethnic options serving food designed to soak up for a belly full of alcohol. TAQUERIA EL REY DEL TACO is one of the best taquerias in Atlanta that just so happens to be open daily from 10 to 5 a.m. Handmade tortillas, an abundance of taco fillings, large seafood cocktails and some stellar salsa with serious kick are just as good at 4 in the morning as they are at lunchtime. And the occasional group of rowdy Latina drag queens only adds to the already colorful scenery. 5288 Buford Highway, Doraville. 770-986-0032. less...