The List: Gio's Lemon Chicken
I am always a little suspicious of restaurants that try to be all things to all people. If you're serving BBQ, don't throw in fajitas for good measure. If you're a burger joint, I really don't want fish from your kitchen. Know your strengths and leverage them to the hilt!
Gio's Chicken Amalfitano does exactly that. Gio is all about Southern Italian fare, especially chicken. However, they don't just do "chicken" but Amalfi style chicken. This distinction means the chicken is heavy on citrus, garlic and oregano.
Sign. Me. Up.
Most people know their first restaurant, Antico Pizza, but you may not be familiar with Gio's latest venture in bringing Atlanta show-stopping chicken. I gushed about the Chicken Soup a couple of weeks ago, and this week Billy and I finally went back and had the chicken which is the ORIGINATION of the soup.
Such a happy place! While Gio's serves the chicken a few ways and also has a handful of pasta, don't expect a Maggiano's level of variety. Gio's sticks to the family favorite recipes.
Love how you can see in the oh-so-spotless kitchen!Every meal is served with a small green salad dressed with a tangy lemon vinaigrette. Scrumptious. I jumped right in and forgot to take a picture! Still, the main event is the Lemon Chicken from The List.
The chicken is gorgeous.And the flavor matches the eye appeal. Billy doesn't dig lemon as much as I do, so he's a harder sell. Still, the secret to Gio's success is making it with JUST enough lemon to be flavorful, but not so much as to make it overpowering.
LOVED it!
Rumors are the orange version is also solid, but much more subtle than the lemon. (Which means I'll stick with this bad boy!)
In the back of the restaurant is a Caffe Gio known for it's salted caramel gelato.
I couldn't have imagined a better end to the meal.You should also know that Gio's sells the chicken "to go" in a family-size meal, so if you're driving through downtown, pick some up! I couldn't resist buying another portion of soup!Have I mentioned how much I love this soup?
Just want to make sure I'm clear...