13 Fall Restaurant Openings in Atlanta to Get Excited About
Put these on your calendar.
As a kid, fall’s arrival meant it was time for a new school year. Well, we’re grown ups now, but it can still signal new beginnings and exciting changes—like the openings of restaurants. We’re still in a pandemic, however, so there are some things to note before you go all out with reservations. Indoor dining has been back for quite some time, but many restaurants are implementing policies to check diners’ vaccine cards, and the city of Atlanta has a mask ordinance. Still, it's an exciting time to welcome these new restaurants into the fold. Here are 13 new restaurants to visit as soon as they open their doors.
Virginia-Highland
Opening date: August
At long last, Academy Coffee has a new home. The coffee shop won over caffeine fiends at Irwin Street Market but closed up shop at the beginning of the pandemic. Now you’ll find them in the new Kinship Butcher Sundry. Founder Connan Moody fuses his background in coffee brewing and cocktail making to craft beverages that are a little more interesting than the usual latte (like The Stuntman, an iced latte with Guinness and Jameson syrups).
Upper Westside
Opening date: August
Imagine the things you love about Fox Bros.—delicious barbecue, for starters—and add a beautiful new space and lots of parking. That’s Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q on the Upper Westside in a nutshell. You’ll find it at The Works, across from The Camp, a one-acre park.
Westside
Opening date: October
Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips of Lazy Betty are headed across town to open Juniper Cafe. A departure from their upscale current situation, Juniper will be an all-day cafe that specializes in Vietnamese specialties. Expect pho, banh mi, and house-made pastries.
Capella Cheese
Armour Yards
Opening date: November
Cheese? Please! You’ll find plenty of it in Capella Cheese when they open their doors in November. The shop will have about 250 varieties of cheese available as well as snack boxes and other speciality food items. The space will also have three specially cooled and humidity-controlled rooms for storing cheese.
Buckhead
Opening date: September
Popular Midtown spot Five Church is opening a second location in Buckhead. Classic dishes will be on the menu as well as newcomers from chef Mark Alba.
Chamblee
Opening date: August
Surin Techarukpong, owner of Surin of Thailand in Virginia-Highland brought another tasty Thai option to the people of Chamblee. Standouts on the menu include the drunken noodles, shrimp cake, and yellow curry.
Decatur
Opening date: August
This is really more of a reopening than an opening. But Decatur mainstay Chai Pani closed its dining room doors in March 2020 and hasn’t reopened them until now. It’s back and with an entirely new menu featuring dishes from the Deccan Plateau of India. Gone are the favorite dishes like kale pakora and okra fries—but you’ll fall in love with treats like Surti locho, a dish made of yellow lentils in a grit-like texture topped with green chutney, in no time.
The Usual
Buckhead
Opening date: October
Nick Leahy of Nick’s Westside (and formerly of Saltyard) has plans to open the Usual in October. Located on the ground floor of the Arya apartment building, the interior of the restaurant will pay homage to the eponymous character from Game of Thrones. The menu will offer casual yet elevated pub grub like cacio e pepe tater tots, house-made chicken tenders, and plenty of sandwiches.
Buckhead
Opening date: December
The second outpost of Recess will be a more streamlined version of the original. The concept is still health-focused with lunch and dinner menus offering plenty of salads and grain bowls. Hits from the original location in Krog Street Market will be on the menu, too, like the Super Bowl with coconut brown rice, red quinoa, sweet potato, kale, pickled beets, chickpeas, dried mango, and dates.
Duluth
Opening date: September
Thip Athakhanh introduced Atlantans to Laotian food three years ago in Doraville. Athakhanh she’s opening another location in Duluth that allows her to serve more of her beloved dishes as well as gives her space to produce packaged foods like banana chips. She’ll also get to highlight Lao barbecue and street snacks.
Decatur
Opening date: September
Glide Pizza took a piece of our hearts during the worst of the pandemic, so it’s great to see them opening a second location. This time they’re headed to Decatur where they’ll set up shop within Inner Voice Brewing. True to Glide’s ethos, they’ll have a walk-up window at the brewery where imbibers and people generally craving pizza can pop by.
Buckhead
Opening date: September
Popular Morningside bakery Alon’s will open its third outpost, this time at Phipps Plaza. This location will have the usual Alon’s mainstays like pastries, bread, and sandwiches. It will also have a large outdoor patio in case you’re in no rush to get back into Buckhead traffic.
West Midtown
Opening date: October
What started as a takeout omakase pop-up within Cooks & Soldiers has evolved into a standalone restaurant. Sushi chef Jordan Trent Harris will offer a reservation-only omakase experience in an intimate dining room with interiors designed by Elizabeth Ingram.