Whether you have tickets to the matches or not, there are plenty of ways to bask in World Cup excitement in Atlanta without touching a soccer ball or setting foot inside Atlanta Stadium. Pay respect to some of the nations playing in Atlanta this summer by supporting local restaurants serving dishes representing a few of these countries or their nearby neighbors.
From Haitian fare to Uzbeki cuisine, these Atlanta restaurants offer a taste of the World Cup.
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Czechia
Baltic Deli
Roswell
Sadly, metro Atlanta’s Czech offerings pale in comparison to states like Texas. Your best bet is an adjacent Central or Eastern European restaurant or pop-up (paywall). For example, try Baltic Deli in Roswell. It sells regional ingredients in its market and serves snacks and dishes leaning more eastward, while still hitting comparable Central European flavor and ingredient notes. Baltic Deli also excels at schnitzels, pierogi, and soups.
Halfway Crooks Beer
Summerhill
While Czechian cuisine isn’t widely available in metro Atlanta, you can find local iterations of its brewed counterpart at brewery’s like Halfway Crooks Beer in Summerhill. The rotating draft selection regularly features Czech-style pilsners and lagers. You can also enjoy a Southern-Belgium food menu while watching the World Cup on the TVs in the taproom, on the rooftop patio, or on the big screen in the beer garden.
West Africa
Ike’s Cafe & Grill
Norcross, Marietta, West End (to-go only)
Metro Atlanta features several restaurants representing West African nations. This includes Ike’s Cafe and Grill, which has locations in Norcross, Marietta, and a to-go spot in the West End. The restaurant’s specialities include Ghanaian jollof rice (and its spicier Nigerian cousin), as well as plantain fufu, puff-puff (known as mikaté in Central African countries like DR Congo), and West African vegetable soups.
Le Nouveau Maquis
Stone Mountain, Tucker
With locations in Stone Mountain and Tucker, this cozy West African restaurant is a popular spot for dishes like jollof, peanut soup, suya, and chofi (turkey tail). As an added bonus during the World Cup, both locations will screen matches and offer food specials during the watch parties.
Related stories:
• West African restaurant Ike’s Cafe & Grill preparing for World Cup crowds
• World Cup Recipe: West African puff-puff from Ike’s Café & Grill
Haiti
Zeke’s Kitchen & Bar
Smyrna
Run by a Haitian-American blended family, Zeke’s in Smyrna blends Haitian and American fusion cuisine. Think dishes like djon djon bowls with roasted chicken, plantain tacos, and rasta pasta. Don’t skip ordering a cocktail here from the fully stocked rum bar.
Marie’s Kitchen
Marietta
Good food is worth the wait. Such is the case at Marie’s Kitchen, which specializes in Haitian and Creole cuisine. Get your fill of classic dishes like soup joumou, fritay pwason (fried snapper served with fried plantains, sweet potatoes, and yams), and patties. Make sure to come early to partake in Marie’s signature dishes, including fried goat.
Morocco
Marrakech Express
Smyrna
Moroccan restaurant Marrakech Express started as a pop-up and quickly gained a following via Atlanta’s farmers market circuit. The restaurant specializes in traditional Moroccan cooking. The owners even import spices directly from Morocco, and make their own chermoula (zesty, herbal relish/marinade). While you should absolutely order the denjal (eggplant stew), garbanzo dwaz (chickpea stew), and chicken or lamb tanjiya, Marrakech Express also serves other regional dishes, including shawarma and falafel.
South Africa
Daily Chew
Morningside-Lenox Park
Julia Kesler-Imerman’s restaurant leans into her South African and Jewish heritages. Considered a local restaurant darling, Daily Chew serves everything from lemony, house-made labneh to boerewors sausage pitas to latke stacks accompanied by garlic labneh, scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, and a cucumber-pickled-onion salad. For the World Cup, expect a special South African menu to pair with matches during the restaurant’s watch parties. Grab a seat in the cafe or on the covered patio.
The Whelan
Blandtown
Looking for heartier South African fare, closer to what you’d find on a Durban dive’s late-night menu? Check out The Whelan, a Blandtown neighborhood pub that offers South African bar staples like peri-peri wings, a boerewors sandwich made with beef and pork sausage, and a chicken, potato, and red pepper curry served with rice and plantains. Make sure to order the Cape Dutch pudding served with cream. It’s an homage to a recipe by owner Jason Da Luz’s mother.
Related stories:
• World Cup recipe: South African peri-peri chicken wings from Daily Chew
• World Cup recipe: Spanish chicken Basquaise from Cooks & Soldiers
Spain
Cooks & Soldiers
Howell Mill Road/Westside
Named for a San Sebastian summer festival, Cooks & Soldiers has become a staple in Atlanta for Basque cuisine. Don’t pass up the selection of pintxos, the Basque equivalent to tapas. Try the Caña de Cabra (a plate honoring the Spanish goat cheese), the bikini (Iberian ham grilled cheese with black truffles), or gambas (Argentine shrimp with leek crema, fennel en escabeche, ajo refrito, and sourdough). The bar’s seasonal takes on Spanish G&Ts are some of the best in the metro.
Fogon and Lions
Alpharetta
If you’re looking for a top-notch grilled meat situation, visit Fogon and Lions in downtown Alpharetta. You can’t go wrong with the skirt steak and chimichurri here, or the short rib flatbread. But if you really want to go all out, order the suckling pig feast. You’ll need to reserve it 72 hours in advance. Stop by during happy hour for $9 sangria and $8 bar bites, such as fire-roasted olives and peppers, chicken croquetas, and chips with chorizo, queso, and salsa.
Uzbekistan
Laghman Express
Alpharetta
Based in New York City, Laghman Express opened in Alpharetta in 2025, bringing metro Atlanta Uzbeki and Ugyhur cuisine. This restaurant merges mainland East and West Asian dishes, transforming it all into aromatically rich comfort food. Hand-pulled noodles (laghman) and manty (beef dumplings), both Central Asian staples especially shine at Laghman Express, but don’t pass up on ordering meatier options like lamb shank soup, kebabs, and spicy stir-fried lamb.
Beth McKibben contributed to this guide.
