👀 More restaurant openings!
Thursday, Aug. 27 — Hello, internet friends.
Like everyone else, I am saddened by Dolly Parton’s passing. My former Eater colleague, Amy McCarthy, wrote this great piece for Ravenous about Parton’s favorite foods. Honor Dolly’s legacy by donating to her Imagination Library, helping someone in need, or making one of her Duncan Hines box mix collaboration treats.
🍕 In this week’s Quick Bites, get updates on restaurant openings in East Atlanta Village, Summerhill, Southwest Atlanta, Ponce City Market, Reynoldstown, and Marietta, along with an upcoming restaurant announced for Decatur. We’ve also rounded up some dining events to attend, including a wine tasting in the Old Fourth Ward, a fall gardening workshop in Ellenwood, and We Love Buford Highway’s annual FEAST benefit.
Be sure to read this week’s “Family Meal” for my story on how Fulton and DeKalb County schools handle feeding thousands of kids daily, Beth’s review of a can’t-miss Iraqi spot in Clarkston, and Dunwoody restaurant The Hampton Social’s lobster roll recipe.
See y’all next week,
🍰 Sarra
Quick Bites
Openings
🍕 Spina Pizza will open at Atlanta Dairies today after multiple delays caused its debut next door to Small Fry to continue getting pushed back. Open Tuesday-Friday at 4 p.m., Saturday at noon, and Sunday at 1 p.m.
🍣 Sushi stall NoriFish and ramen stall Okiboru will open in the food hall at Ponce City Market on Aug. 28. NoriFish and Okiboru replace Ton Ton Ramen Bar and Miso Ko at the market.
☕ BOSK Coffee Wine and Tapas, owned by siblings Nako and Narie Roberson, will open in Southwest Atlanta on Aug. 28, with a ribbon cutting featuring Mayor Andre Dickens at 2:30 p.m.
🍷 Sagra, an Italian wine bar, will open in East Atlanta Village next week, the owners told Rough Draft.
🍔 Smileys Burger Club (pictured) will open in the old How Crispy location on Sept. 1, as first reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (paywall). The burger joint, which opened across from Kimball House in Decatur two years ago, will apply for a liquor license next year. How Crispy closed in May after four years along Georgia Avenue in Summerhill. Partner Greg Best (Ticonderoga Club) told Rough Draft at the time that lease negotiations between the restaurant and its landlord broke down after both parties were unable to agree on extended lease terms.
🇲🇽 A new location of Mexican restaurant El Jalisco is now open at Marietta Square Market, serving its full menu during lunch and dinner, along with margaritas, beer, and daily drink specials.
Closing
😢 It appears that Casa Balam in downtown Decatur closed over the summer. Mister Burger will take over the space on West Ponce.
Coming attraction
🗓️ Chef Demetrius Brown’s restaurant Heritage is now taking reservations. It appears the highly anticipated restaurant will open in late September and offer dinner service Tuesdays through Saturdays.
Community announcements
🍜 LBU Saigon on Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road announced the restaurant will increase some menu prices to accommodate rising ingredient costs.
🥩 McKendrick’s Steak House in Dunwoody will launch an updated lunch and dinner menu under new executive chef Branden Holte. The new menu emphasizes local farms and food producers like The Horti-Culture, Joyce Farms, and Linz.
🔪 The Buckhead Business Association is currently seeking applicants for the 21st annual Taste of Buckhead event on Oct. 23 at the Grand Hyatt. Interested restaurants should fill out the form here.
🥯 Emerald City Bagels qualified for BagelUp’s annual New York BagelFest on Nov. 15 at Citi Field, home to the New York Mets. The shop will compete against 25 other bagel spots from five countries for awards like Best Bagel, Schmear of the Year, and People’s Choice.
Add to your calendar
🍴 We Love Buford Highway’s FEAST benefit returns Aug. 28 at Spring Hall, from 6 to 10 p.m. This year’s benefit will focus on South Asian cuisine, highlighting local restaurants offering Indian, Bangladeshi, and Pakistani dishes. Proceeds will go to support programs and outreach events at We Love Buford Highway. Tickets start at $135.
🍷 Did you know that Old Fourth Ward hair salon and wine shop Colmado hosts weekly tastings? Stop by on Thursdays, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., for Taste Makers, which highlights small-batch, low-intervention wines by women winemakers for just $10. RSVP here.
🍸 Glenwood Park cocktail bar Vesper will celebrate six years on Sept. 3. Starting at 5 p.m., expect complimentary welcome drinks, a DJ, and samples from cannabis beverage company Nine Dot.
🎈Postern Coffee inside Minhwa Spirits in Doraville will celebrate its second birthday on Sept. 20, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The free event will feature a night market with food vendors like Leftie Lee’s and Manalo’s Bakery, along with a raffle and merch.
🥕 UGA Extension’s Fulton Fresh Mobile Market will return for a three-week cycle, Sept. 15 through Oct. 1. Catch the market Tuesdays at 3646 Hogan Road at 1 p.m., Wednesdays at William Walker Recreation Center at 11 a.m., and Thursdays at St. Stephen Missionary Baptist Church at 1 p.m. Registration is not required. Arrive within the first 10 minutes after opening to receive a free bag of local produce.
🥬 Atlanta Harvest and UGA Extension will host a fall gardening workshop on Oct. 11, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 3529 Anvil Block Road in Ellenwood. The event will focus on collards and cool-weather crops. Tickets are available for $12.
A recipe for food security
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Top Stories
Ruby Chow’s is coming to the Westside
🥟 Old Fourth Ward Asian fusion restaurant Ruby Chow’s will open a second location just off the Westside Beltline next summer. You can expect a larger space, an expanded bar program, and a dedicated area for private events and chef’s table dinners.
⏩ Read more about Ruby Chow’s here.
Mary’s withstands the test of time as a queer nightlife staple in EAV
🏳️🌈 In 1998, heading to East Atlanta Village (EAV) meant finding takeout lunch counter Hungry Rush-In located at 1287 Glenwood Ave. The queer-owned restaurant was only open for about a year before the owners pivoted and transformed the space into Mary’s, EAV’s first gay bar.
⏩ Read this story from Georgia Voice on the iconic Atlanta bar.
Sozou opens at Spring Quarter
🍣 Chef Fuyuhiko Ito opened the last of his three restaurants at the Spring Quarter development in Midtown, taking over a ground-floor space at the Ten Twenty Spring office tower. Called Sozou, the Japanese restaurant includes a sushi bar and robatayaki dishes cooked over binchotan charcoal on a robata grill.
That Slaps
🇯🇵 Consider this a push to snag a Ticket to Tokyo sando at Common Coffee & Cocktails or the Dunwoody Homeowners Association Farmers Market (DHA).
I recently tried the tuna sando while visiting Common Coffee & Cocktails in Doraville and was equally impressed by the flavors of both the pillowy milk bread and the tuna salad.
🥚 Ticket to Tokyo makes savory and sweet sandos, including a slow-braised beef version and mixed fruit with matcha cream. I’m hoping to try the egg salad and strawberry matcha cream sando the next time I’m at Common. These sandos sell out quickly, so follow Ticket to Tokyo on Instagram to keep up with when these Japanese sandwiches are restocked.
We’re always looking for recipes to highlight on Rough Draft. If you have a favorite dish from a restaurant you want the recipe for, please send me an email to sarra@roughdraftatlanta.com.
