Slutty Vegan Reopens in Westview with New Look

Serviceberries+Bacon Blueberry Pancakes+Barbecue

May 29 — For today’s Side Dish, we’re offering two recipes, including one for bacon blueberry pancakes using fresh blueberries from the farmers market. And read Sarra’s feature story on serviceberry season and the annual foraging festival in Atlanta, inspired by the North American berry tree.

➕ Plus, we have stories on a new barbecue restaurant from the owners of Sammy’s sandwich shop opening in South Downtown ahead of the World Cup next year, along with a brief history of the spicy Mexican condiment chamoy.

🍽️ As always, read the latest roundup of Atlanta dining news, including four restaurant openings in Grant Park, Buckhead, Sandy Springs, and Smyrna, and three upcoming openings at the Brickworks on Marietta Street, the Eastside Beltline, and in Buckhead. We also tell you where to find a $5 giant slice of pepperoni pizza while strolling the Eastside Beltline. No need to hop off the trail.

In case you missed it in your inbox on Tuesday evening, here’s a link to the latest edition of “Family Meal.” It features two stories from Beth’s SCAD journalism mentees on the loss of DaVinci’s Pizza in Midtown and where the city’s college kids dine near campus.

Cheers from the Rough Draft dining team!

🍸 Beth and 🍰 Sarra

🫒 Sip, savor, and celebrate at Food That Rocks on June 5! Enjoy unlimited tastings, drinks, live music, and more – all supporting local organizations. Join the party at City Springs in Sandy Springs! Grab your tickets now! SPONSOR MESSAGE

Have You Heard?

‼️ Restaurant updates

It appears Chef Nick Melvin and his crew are preparing to open the doors to Communidad Taqueria in the coming days. Melvin and baker Teresa Finney have been leading staff training this week and teasing out some of the dishes people can expect on the menu – including the guacamole cobb salad, fried black bean and egg, pollo asado, and brisket mole tacos.

Starting June 10, Japanese restaurant Nakato will close for in-person dining until mid-September while the dining rooms undergo renovations. Once completed, Nakato will feature a new hibachi dining room, a lounge, and a spruced-up entrance and streetscaping. Nakato will still be available for takeout and delivery.

🍕 $5 giant slice on the Beltline

A new pizza window opened on the Eastside Beltline earlier this month, serving $5 giant slices of cheese or pepperoni pizza and Italian ices. You can find The Secret Slice across from Patagonia’s courtyard, right before you hit Irwin Street.

🫐 Do this tonight

A Sip of Paradise garden in East Atlanta will mark the end of serviceberry season today with a free tasting event at EAV Farmers Market, from 4 p.m.-8 p.m. Expect serviceberry-infused cocktails and dishes, along with serviceberry trees for sale. Consider this a little preview of the main event – the annual Serviceberry Fest takes place on Tues., June 3 at Avize on Brady Avenue.

🤗 Now open

After relocating to Grant Park earlier this month, baker Erika Council will reopen her popular Michelin Bib Gourmand breakfast restaurant Bomb Biscuit tomorrow morning, taking over the former Woodward & Park space at Larkin on Memorial. Look for a limited menu of biscuit sandwiches, chicken and waffles, and cinnamon rolls during the first few weeks, with an expanded menu coming over the next several months. Open Wednesday-Sunday, Bomb Biscuit features indoor and outdoor seating and a dedicated takeout area.

Uno Más Taqueria, from the owners of Westside Motor Lounge, is now open at the One Alliance Center in Buckhead, near Little Alley Steakhouse. The all-day restaurant and bar is currently open weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Take a look at the menu here.

A location of Dave’s Hot Chicken opens tomorrow on Roswell Road in Sandy Springs.

Top Chef Fabio Viviani will open dessert restaurant JARS on West Village Parkway in Smyrna on Friday. Expect soft serve, pies like banana cream, red velvet cheesecake, and Viviani’s popular tiramisu all served in jars, along with milkshakes. Check out the menu here.

👉 Coming attractions

A location of brunch restaurant and juice bar Toastique will open in the former Theory space at the Brickworks this fall. Toastique includes a location on West Peachtree in Midtown.

The restaurant group behind The Ivy and Family Dog in Atlanta and Little Betty in Birmingham plans to open Luella steakhouse in Buckhead later this year. The steakhouse, named for the owners’ daughters, will take over the former Ivy space on Roswell Road. Luella will eventually include a private cocktail club.

Speaking of pizza on the Beltline, Pizza Dynamo will open beside Pour Taproom on the Eastside Trail in the coming weeks. Neighboring pizzeria Nina & Rafi closed in April and will be replaced this summer by Eclipse di Luna.

Sip, savor, and celebrate!

SPONSORED BY FOOD THAT ROCKS

🫒 Join us on Thurs., June 5 for Food That Rocks, a tasting event presented by Taste of Atlanta, celebrating Sandy Springs’ diverse restaurant scene. This one-of-a-kind food festival brings incredible energy outdoors at City Springs where you’ll sip, savor, and celebrate the community’s vibrant culinary scene.

Get unlimited tastes from 20+ of Sandy Springs’ best restaurants and bakeries, and more than a dozen wine, beer, and cocktail tastings. The evening also includes live music from Java Monkey and CJ and the Doughboys, and Chef Chats & mixology demos on the Publix Cooking Stage.

🎉 Food That Rocks is a “Party with a Purpose” in partnership with Second Helpings Atlanta.

🎟️ Get your tickets today

What the heck is a serviceberry?

🫐 Local foragers know that the last stretch of spring is the serviceberry’s time to shine. The North American native plant’s harvesting season is reaching its tail end. Atlanta foragers, chefs, and bartenders will mark the end of the season with the fourth annual Serviceberry Fest on Tuesday, June 3, in the courtyard of Chef Karl Gorline’s restaurant Avize on Brady Avenue.

But what the heck is a serviceberry?

Serviceberries grow from small flowering trees and are native to North America. In Georgia, serviceberry trees typically reach 20 to 30 feet in height. Serviceberry flowers are usually white or very light pink, have a delicate appearance, and emerge in the early spring around the same time as dogwoods. Eventually, dark purple berries grow and cluster together. And although serviceberries closely resemble blueberries, they have a mellower and more distinct flavor.

Food fact: Chamoy with a recipe

🍹 Frutas locas (pictured), a zesty Mexican fruit snack, is especially popular during the summer as many key ingredients – like stone fruits, melons, and cucumbers – peak this time of year. But you can’t mention frutas locas without the street snack’s spicy topping: chamoy.

Chamoy is a Mexican condiment made with fruit (apricots, prunes, mangoes, or plums), lime juice, and dried chiles. The result is a harmonious blend of sweet and tart flavors with a nice dose of heat. While it’s popular in frutas locas, it’s also used as a dip for fruits and vegetables like jicama, a flavoring agent in savory dishes, and as a coating for candy. Chamoy is also used in tandem with a chili-lime powder like Tajin.

At the Market + Two Recipes

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMUNITY FARMERS MARKETS

🫐 Every week, Rough Draft Atlanta and Community Farmers Markets partner to give you two unique recipes you can make using ingredients from your local farmers market. Today, we’ve got two very different offerings – one for baconblueberry pancakes, and one for lentil fritters. Check them out here.

🖋️ Today’s Side Dish was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.

🍖 Barbecue in South Downtown!