Table Talk: Most Anticipated Fall Restaurant Openings
Sept. 9 — Happy Tuesday, and welcome to the table!
In today’s “Family Meal,” I’m bringing you updates on eight restaurants I’m excited to see open this fall, including restaurants serving Cambodian food, Greek dishes paired with martinis, Neapolitan pizza, and desserts from an award-winning pastry chef.
➕ Plus, for “The Move,” I tell you why you need to check out Yaba’s Bagels in Dunwoody. And Rough Draft Dining Reporter Sarra Sedghi provides you with a recipe for the Trinidadian doubles from Edgewood Avenue Caribbean restaurant Miss Conduck.
Cheers!
🍸 Beth
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The Move: Yaba’s Bagels in Dunwoody
🥯 Lena Abdallah and Ahmed Nashif bet on Atlantans’ affinity for bagels when they opened Yaba’s Bagels this summer in Dunwoody. I grew up in the tri-state region of the Northeast (southern New York, southern Connecticut, and northern New Jersey) where bagels are serious business and rule breakfast, bodega, and neighborhood deli menus. Abdallah’s father once owned bakeries in New York and, through him, she grew up understanding the importance of a good bagel.
Located at Ashford Place, in the former 101 Bagel Cafe space, Yaba’s isn’t your standard New York-style bagel shop. Bagels are infused with spices like za’atar, or come with spread options like labneh drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with za’atar, or tahini and date syrup topped with dates and toasted walnuts. The “water bagels” at Yaba’s take me right back to the deli in my hometown, reminding me that the precisely timed boiling process matters in bringing about the signature textures of a New York-style bagel (crispy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside).
🤩 My love affair with Yaba’s za’atar bagels began in August when I ordered the Levantine ($11), which comes with the aforementioned labneh spread. It continued with my recent bagel sandwich order: the Reuben on a poppyseed bagel ($14) and a turkey and Swiss on a za’atar bagel ($12). The former was stuffed full of savory, hot pastrami, Swiss cheese, and sauerkraut.
While the turkey and Swiss was a stellar sandwich, enhanced by the chosen bagel flavor, I regret not also getting the Reuben on a za’atar bagel. It’s a misstep I won’t repeat on my next visit to Yaba’s.
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Most Anticipated Fall Restaurant Openings
🤩 As we enter the final quarter of 2025, restaurant openings are only ramping up. It’s already been a busy year that saw new spots from twoJames Beard award winners, a soju distillery debut its restaurant incubator, chefs kickingcounter-servicemenus into high gear, and the return of fine dining to the Woodruff Arts Center.
✍️ I’ve spent 2025 tracking a growing list of upcoming restaurants, but the following eight restaurants are the ones I’m most looking forward to opening.
From a trifecta of Lao, Thai, and Khmer food in Chamblee and Greek dishes and cocktails in Midtown to a dessert bar in Poncey-Highland and Neapolitan pizza in Dunwoody, here are the restaurants I’m excited to see open this fall.
🇰🇭 Naga Bistro
Lao, Thai, and Khmer (Cambodian)
2201 Savoy Dr., Chamblee
Anticipated September 2025
The owners of Lao restaurant Snackboxe Bistro in Duluth will open Naga Bistro later this month in Chamblee. Taking over the Wild Ginger Thai Cuisine space on Savoy Drive, Naga Bistro will include a full bar and serve a combination of traditional and fusion Lao, Thai, and Khmer (Cambodian) dishes. While all three cuisines will be served here, Khmer fare takes pride of place at Naga Bistro. (Think prahok ktis, a savory minced pork dip, and kathiew, a Cambodian beef noodle soup with a pork bone broth.)
🇰🇷 Spring 2nd Branch
Korean cuisine and hot pot
113 Church Street, Marietta
Anticipated September 2025
The long-awaited second restaurant from Chef Brian So should open in September, just around the corner from his Michelin-star restaurant Spring in Marietta. Located on Church Street in a newly redeveloped retail strip, also home to Contrast Artisan Ales, Spring 2nd Branch (or Bōm, meaning “springtime”) will serve simmering Korean hot pot, dolsot bibimbap, tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), mandu (dumplings), and other dishes So grew up eating with his family.
🍸 Buddy Buddy
Greek comfort food and cocktails
931 Monroe Dr., Midtown
Anticipated end of September 2025
Veteran Atlanta bartender Nick Chaivarlis will open Buddy Buddy by the end of September in the former Tapa Tapa space at Midtown Promenade. Expect martinis served three ways, along with other classic and original cocktails incorporating wash techniques, infused base spirits, and house-made syrups and cordials. Food will merge Greek street food with the homestyle dishes Chaivarlis grew up eating, including avgolemono (lemon chicken soup), yemista (stuffed peppers), and a roast lamb entree spiced with garlic, aleppo, and oregano chermoula served with Greek lemon potatoes, fried couscous pearls, and a feta beet salad.
🍰 Bar Ana
Desserts and cocktails
939 Ponce de Leon Ave., Poncey-Highland
Anticipated October 2025
James Beard-nominated pastry chef Claudia Martinez and El Ponce owner Rosa Thurnher will open Bar Ana in October, a dessert and cocktail bar taking over the former El Bar space beneath El Ponce. By day, Bar Ana will act as a coffee shop run by Ivan Solis of Recuerdos Cafe. At night, the space transforms into a cocktail bar serving sophisticated desserts. Look for a dessert tasting menu, too, consisting of a rotating collection of signature desserts and pastries from Martinez.
🍕 Varuni Napoli
Neapolitan pizza
High Street, Dunwoody
Anticipated by the end of 2025
There’s a glut of great pizza joints in Metro Atlanta serving a variety of styles, including Neapolitan. But few pizzerias centered on Neapolitan-style pies measure up to those served at Varuni Napoli. Having grown up in Naples, owner Luca Varuni knows the right ingredients matter for proper Neapolitan pizza. Every year, he travels back to Naples for San Marzano tomato harvesting season, spending time there sourcing ingredients that meet his exacting standards to keep his two in-town pizzerias supplied for months. A third location of Varuni Napoli will open by the end of 2025 at the High Street development in Dunwoody, becoming the first location of the popular pizzeria outside the Perimeter.
🍳 Sugar Loaf
Ethiopian-Albanian, breakfast and lunch, pastries, coffee
780 Memorial Dr., Reynoldstown
Anticipated by the end of 2025
Nebi and Lindsay Berhane describe Sugar Loaf as “Southern-inspired” and “globally influenced,” with food and flavors tapping into their Ethiopian and Albanian heritages. Later this year, the couple will transform their farmers market stall into a permanent restaurant in Reynoldstown, serving breakfast and lunch, including Sugar Loaf’s sought-after biscuits, like the tasso ham and cheese on an Ethiopian-spiced dabo biscuit. An expanded menu will also feature caramel-topped “sticky buna” infused with Ethiopian coffee, Liege waffles, Ethiopian lentil salads, Oklahoma-style fried onion smashburgers, and a zesty Albanian chicken sandwich.
🇹🇭 Some Luck
Thai street food, cocktails
644 North Highland Ave., Poncey-Highland
Anticipated by the end of 2025
Chefs Parnass Savang and Rod Lassiter, owners of Summerhill Thai restaurant Talat Market, will open Thai bar Some Luck this fall in Poncey-Highland. Taking over the Highland Ballroom Lounge, next door to Steven Satterfield’s Madeira Park, Some Luck will serve a decidedly Thai-focused menu featuring bar snacks, noodle soups, wings, and late-night food inspired by dishes found at street stalls throughout Thailand. Expect quick-fired, stirred cocktails mixed with Thai ingredients and base spirits like rum, along with pitchers of ice-cold Singha beer and local beers on draft.
🚀 Bottle Rocket
Sushi, burgers, and cocktails, neighborhood bar
231 Mitchell St., South Downtown
Anticipated by end of 2025
Castleberry Hill neighborhood staple and game day favorite Bottle Rocket will pull up stakes for nearby South Downtown this fall. Located between Tyde Tate Thai Kitchen and Spiller Park Coffee, Bottle Rocket will reside on the ground floor of a renovated early 20th-century storefront on Historic Hotel Row. Known for its eclectic menu of sushi, burgers, and cocktails, the move to South Downtown will increase seating capacity at Bottle Rocket, allow for a better bar layout, and see the menu expand to include lunch and weekend brunch.
Trinidadian Doubles Recipe From Miss Conduck
🇹🇹 This week, we’re sharing Miss Conduck’s Trinidadian doubles recipe.
Invented in the 1930s, the street food, which consists of curried chickpeas spread over a piece of fried bara (flatbread), topped with another fried bara to make a sandwich, is credited to a street vendor named Emamool “Mamudeen” Deen. “Over time, [his] customers began asking for a ‘double’ portion of the bread and the name stuck,” said Miss Conduck chef and co-owner Emily James.
💯 Doubles are thoroughly embedded in Trinidadian culture. “You’ll find them on busy street corners in the early morning, at school gates, after late nights (hang outs), and everywhere in between,” James said. “You can’t have a Trinidadian restaurant and not have doubles.”
🌱 And, like many other traditional Trinidadian and Caribbean dishes (think lentils, chickpeas, pumpkin, callaloo, plantains, and coconuts), doubles are plant-based.
Shop at a Caribbean, Indian, or international market to source ingredients, especially for spices like turmeric, cumin, and curry powder. Don’t worry about making your double appear perfect — the messier, the better, she said.
👉 Pro tip: James recommends making the chutney up to a day in advance. When you’re ready to make your doubles, start with the chana. “Soaking and boiling dry chickpeas takes a while, but it makes a huge difference in texture and flavor,” she said.
Yield: 8 to 10 doubles
Total Time: 2.5 to 3 hours, including soaking and rising time
🛒 Ingredients
Bara (fried flatbread)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- Pinch of turmeric
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup warm water (plus more as needed)
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil (for dough)
- Neutral oil for frying, such as canola or vegetable
Curried Chana
- 1 cup dried chickpeas (chana)
- Water (for soaking and cooking)
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp ginger, minced
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- Salt to taste
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
Quick Tamarind Chutney (optional)
- 1/4 cup tamarind paste
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 cup warm water
- Dash of salt, cumin and black pepper
Toppings (optional)
- Tamarind chutney: Store-bought or homemade (see below)
- Spicy pepper sauce: Scotch bonnet or habanero-based
- Cucumber chutney: Grated cucumber, lime juice, garlic, cilantro, salt
- Add protein (optional): Jerk mushrooms, curried shrimp, or BBQ chicken
🥣 Directions
Prepare the Chutney (optional)
- Whisk together in a small pot, bring to a simmer, stir until thickened, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Cool before serving, or refrigerate in an airtight container.
Make the Chana
- Rinse dried chickpeas thoroughly. Soak overnight in 3 to 4 cups of water, or use the quick soak method (boil for 5 minutes, then soak 1 hour). To save time, you can also use low-sodium canned chickpeas.
- Drain and rinse soaked or canned chickpeas. Boil in fresh water until chickpeas are soft, but not mushy, about 45 to 60 minutes, depending on chickpea size. Add salt during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Drain and set aside.
Make the Curry
- In a medium saucepan, heat oil and sauté onions, garlic, and ginger until soft, about 3 minutes. Add curry powder, turmeric, and cumin. Stir constantly for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add cooked chickpeas and about 1 cup of water. Simmer uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes, adding water as needed to reach your desired consistency. Mash some chickpeas with the back of a spoon for texture.
- Season with salt and chopped cilantro to taste.
Make the Bara
- Mix flour, turmeric, yeast, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Gradually pour in warm water and 1 Tbsp of oil. Mix and knead by hand or with a dough hook until soft, slightly sticky dough forms.
- Cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour until doubled in size. Dough should feel pillowy soft.
- Punch down dough and divide into 8 to 10 balls. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes, then gently flatten each ball into a 4-inch circle. Do not press dough too hard or over-flour.
- Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Oil should be hot, but not smoking. Fry one at a time for about 20 to 30 seconds per side until puffed and golden. Drain on paper towels.
🍽️ Assemble
Eat warm, folded in your hands with a napkin.
Place bara flatbread on a plate and spoon a generous scoop of curried chana in the center.
Add toppings (chutney, spicy pepper sauce, and protein, for example) and top with a second piece of bara, making a sandwich.
🏀 Atlanta Hawks Forkside Seats at State Farm Arena! One night only—ATL’s hottest new restaurants, Chef G. Garvin family-style dinner, VIP package perks, and behind-the-scenes access. All in support of Giving Kitchen and helping food service workers. Join us on Sept. 28. SPONSOR MESSAGE
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