Omnivore - The rising cost of Atlanta restaurant parking

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As someone who visits a lot of restaurants, it is easy to spot trends — especially annoying ones like the increasingly abysmal state of restaurant parking in Atlanta.

When it comes to patronizing any business in this city, parking can be a huge attractor or, as is the case with restaurants, an even bigger detractor. A restaurant’s parking situation so dramatically affects where I eat, it’s hard to imagine how places without parking survive.

Don’t get me wrong, there are a few exceptions. Some restaurants are worth the hassle. For example, at Kimball House in downtown Decatur and Heirloom Market BBQ in Smyrna, parking is certainly a pain, but it’s not an outright deterrent. But If you aren’t one of the select few restaurants people will do anything to eat at and you have bad parking, you’re going to lose business.

The answer for many restaurants is to offer valet parking, which is becoming equally problematic in this town. There are plenty of places where valet is helpful, necessary even, like when the restaurant is located in a tricky traffic area or there is no dedicated parking. Mandatory valet service, however, just feels wrong.

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I asked restaurateur Ford Fry why he charges customers for valet service at some of his restaurants (King and Duke, St. Cecilia, and the Optimist). Fry said he hates making people pay. “But for the most part in Buckhead,” Fry said via text message, “the property owners charge for spaces in their garages. Valet actually makes it less expensive to park than self-parking.”

I used to eat at Café Agora in Buckhead all of the time, but don't go as much now that they have mandatory valet. I get why they need valet because they have such a tiny parking lot, but I regularly pass Agora by simply because eating there means having to deal with valet. It is a hassle no matter how much I like a restaurant and even more of a deterrent if a restaurant makes me to pay for it.

Are complimentary valet’s days numbered in Atlanta? I see more and more restaurants starting to charge for the service, which amounts to diners being asked to cough up a few bucks upon arrival and then tip on top of that after the meal. If I’m already planning to spend good money at a restaurant, it feels petty and presumptuous to be hit up for cash on the way in and on the way out.

In the end, Atlanta is a driving city. Parking here is maddening and expensive for everybody. Of course business owners need to make a living and do things that make good business sense. But when it comes to providing something as basic as free parking at a restaurant, at some point, doesn’t asking customers to shoulder the expense become a bad business strategy?