To an outsider, Atlanta probably has the same image Houston does: Thriving, multi-cultural, business-oriented. Southern, yes. Oddball, no.

But like Houston, Atlanta is more than meets the eye. While there are enough hotel bars and steakhouses and restaurants owned by rappers to keep you busy, here's a guide to the greatest places not on any concierge's radar.

- Ever since the Kogi BBQ trucks went viral in Los Angeles (and earned chef Roy Choi a Best New Chef nod from Food & Wine), Korean-Mexican Fusion has been all the rage. (You can check out the genre locally at Fusion Taco Truck.) In Atlanta, it's brought Hankook Taqueria to prominence. Situated in an unassuming industrial park on the Northwest side, customers line up for Korean BBQ tacos, burritos, and a range of street snacks.

The beef and chicken tacos are contenders, marinated in spicy Korean barbecue sauce and topped with lettuce, green onion, green cabbage, soy sesame vinaigrette, cilantro, lime and jack cheese, but the fish (panko-crusted tilapia) and crispy fried shrimp versions have a hoisin tartar sauce that puts them ahead of the rest.

The best part? They'll set you back just $2.25 each. The pulled-pork sliders were a bit disappointing, but sesame fries are amazing. And those in the know order the bibim-bop: a platter of beef, vegetables, and a fried egg with pepper sauce on top of kimchee fried rice.

- On Thursdays, the Buckhead location of Atlanta staple Fellini's Pizza becomes an eclectic hangout, with a mixture of biker dudes and soccer moms. The pizza, available by the slice, is tasty, if not mindblowing, but here it's more about the beers on tap (Yuengling!) and the crowd.

- It's almost a crime to hit Atlanta without a visit to The Varsity, the drive-in that's been serving up hot dogs, burgers and onion rings since 1928. The downtown location is the world's largest diner, holding 600 cars and 800 people inside, and on Georgia Tech game days over 30,000 people are served. But newbies beware — Varsity his its own lingo that's best learned before you step up and hear "What'll ya have?"

-10 High is where karaoke and live music meet on Mondays and Fridays, when band Metalsome Inc. backs up amateurs ready to sing along to Guns N Roses, Aerosmith, Blondie, The Doors and 150 more rock classics. Sign up for the whole night happens at 9:30 p.m. sharp, and the wait to perform can be epic — though bribery is effective for impatient rockers. Even if you aren't hitting the mike, the energy here is contagious and the performances are always a surprise.

- And it wouldn't be a true trip to Atlanta without a visit to Clermont Lounge, Atlanta's most famous — or infamous — place to get a drink. A basement dive, Clermont is where Atlanta's strippers come to retire. At least, if you call this retirement. If you're easily offended, stay home: Boobs and more are still on display, with some bartenders known to crush beer cans with them and others just game to put on a show. If your mouth falls open in (horrified) amazement, you've gotten the full Clermont experience.