Of course, by the time you read this, some (many?) of these places could have bitten the dust, such is the state of restaurants' attrition in Atlanta.
Downtown - slim pickins' - except maybe City Grill and Mumbo Jumbo. I love Nikolai's Roof for a "special night out" event, but wouldn't consider it "hot".
Midtown - lots - Eno, Spice, Loca Luna, Tierra, Vortex, Baraonda..
Buckhead - the "new" Buckhead Diner, Oh...Maria!, Antica Posta, Fishbone, Aria, Prime, Fogo de Chao (churrascaria) and of course, Seeger's for the gourmands among us.
Other:
Virginia Highland/Poncey - Wisteria (new), Dish, Babette's, La Tavola, Harvest and
in Northwest Atl (Northside Parkway), the newest of the fine dining scenes, Joel's, from the former chef at the Buckhead Ritz - at a cost of $5,000,000, he sure better hope it's "hot"!