🖋️ Analog restaurant observations
Thursday, Nov. 12 — Hello, internet friends.
Any journal keepers out there? I’ve started summarizing my restaurant visits in a journal. As a dining reporter, I eat out frequently, and eventually iPhone snapshots begin to run together. This isn’t restaurant criticism but rather notes to myself about a particular meal. Think notes like, “Next time I come here I need to have an emptier stomach,” or “I’m still angry about that sandwich.”
✍️ For me, journaling after each restaurant visit is more of a ritual that reminds me to slow down and appreciate multiple facets of dining, including the environment, standout ingredients or dishes, or even funny bathroom signage. And as Beth and I are finalizing our Best New Restaurants of 2026, this restaurant journal allows me to sit and reflect on restaurants more thoroughly and aids my dining research for stories. BTW, look for the aforementioned Best New Restaurants list to drop Dec. 2.
On to this week’s newsletter, which features several restaurant openings, a Tucker restaurant guide, and a roundup of where to dine out on Thanksgiving Day. Plus, Rough Draft Athens reporter Ansley Kelly shares the story behind Treehouse Kid & Craft and its soft-serve counter.
But before I sign off, give this week’s “Family Meal” a read for a story on Chef’s Tableware and why chefs and folks who entertain love shopping for bespoke dishes here. Plus, a recipe for chocolate-pecan pie and the case for ordering sweet potato cake from Mule Train.
See y’all next week,
🍰 Sarra
🎄 Your family’s holiday fun starts here! Make memories at Light Up Dunwoody with Santa photos, dance and musical performances, crafts, and the spectacular tree and menorah lighting. Don’t miss this beloved tradition on Nov. 15 at Donaldson-Bannister Farm.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
Quick Bites
Openings
🥩 The first Georgia location of steak and seafood restaurant Mastro’s Ocean Club is now open at The CTR in downtown Atlanta.
🇹🇭 The owners behind Talat Market in Summerhill opened Thai bar and restaurant Some Luck below Madeira Park in Poncey-Highland.
☕ A second location of Enid Coffee opened inside the Decatur location of bakery Hell Yeah Gluten Free.
🎵 Coffee shop and listening bar Saint Nobody’s is now open at Atlanta Dairies in the former Cold Brew Bar location.
🥐 Little Tart Bakeshop and Midi sandwich shop are now open in Candler Park.
🇯🇲 Bussin’ Jerk and Min’s Wok are now open at Politan Row at The Forum in Peachtree Corners.Coming attractions
🕹️
Joystick Gamebar’s new location in East Atlanta Village will run a second round of “beta testing” hours on Friday (4 p.m. to midnight), Saturday (1 p.m. to midnight), and Sunday (4 p.m. to midnight). Joystick is waiting on its liquor license but is serving nonalcoholic and THC drinks and snacks.
🍱 Nori Yu Handroll Bar will open in Decatur next month.
👩🏾🍳 “Chopped” champion Nikki Hicks (Nikki’s Kitchen) will open Nikki’s Street Eatery, a fusion street food spot in southwest Atlanta.
🏖️ Ford Fry partnered with The King & Prince Resort and Club on St. Simons Island as part of the resort’s upcoming renovation. Fry will launch four new dining concepts, with the first, DaySailor, opening this month.Community announcement
🦃 Whisk restaurant group is launching an initiative that will provide Thanksgiving and Christmas meals for local families. Whisk Breakfast & Brunch, The Bistro by Whisk, and two Golden Krust locations will provide holiday meals for eight households.Add to your calendar
🎟️ The 48th annual St. Elias Mid-East Festival returns to St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church in Poncey-Highland this weekend. Entrance is free, while food, beverages, and merchandise are available for purchase. This is a cash-free event.
🎄 “All The Joyful Things,” a nostalgic holiday celebration, returns to The Works Nov. 21. In addition to multiple Santa visits and a retro Christmas light installation at The Camp, expect an “Elf” movie night Nov. 28 and reindeer meet-and-greet Dec. 12. Santa photos are $10, with proceeds benefiting Agape Youth and Family Center.
🍑 Georgia Boy will reunite chefs Kevin Gillespie, Joey Ward, and Demetrius Brown for a 14-seat, eight-course Storytellers Dinner Dec. 6. Tickets are $200.
Based on the 1997 animated film! ANASTASIA
SPONSORED BY CITY SPRINGS THEATRE COMPANY
📼 Dust off your childhood VHS and rediscover the beloved fairytale adventure Anastasia, as City Springs Theatre Company brings this new musical adaptation of the beloved 1997 animated movie to the Byers Theatre!
Journey from St. Petersburg to Paris as a seemingly ordinary girl discovers the truth of her mysterious past. Directed by Broadway legend Baayork Lee, Anastasia runs Dec. 11-27 in the Byers Theatre at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center.
Top Stories
10 restaurants to try in Tucker
🍴 People who’ve dined in Tucker are well aware that the city features a strong restaurant scene.
Not only does Tucker include pubs like The Local No. 7 and sandwich and pizza shop Nicky’s Undefeated, it also boasts restaurants serving cuisines from around the world such as Everest Gorkhali Kitchen and Le Nouveau Maquis.
We’ve rounded up 10 restaurants for you to try in Tucker that speak to the city’s growing and diverse dining scene.
⏩ Check out the guide here.
Enjoy a sweet twist at this Athens toy shop
🍦 Longtime Athens toy shop Treehouse Kid & Craft moved into a larger space in 2023, giving owner Kristen Bach the opportunity to bring even more joy to her business. That included launching an in-house soft-serve counter and candy store called Treathouse, which attracts children and adults alike.
The menu offers specialty sundaes, swirls, and combinations, like a rotating soft-serve zodiac series inspired by each astrological sign. The Scorpio sundae features salty black licorice syrup imported from Sweden and homemade black sesame brittle. The S’more, the Merrier is coated in dark chocolate and garnished with toasted marshmallows.
⏩ Read Ansley’s story on Treehouse and Treathouse here.
Atlanta restaurants open on Thanksgiving
🎄 Your family’s holiday fun starts here! Make memories at Light Up Dunwoody with Santa photos, dance and musical performances, crafts, and the spectacular tree and menorah lighting. Don’t miss this beloved tradition on Nov. 15 at Donaldson-Bannister Farm. SPONSOR MESSAGE
At the Market
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMUNITY FARMERS MARKETS
🥒 Rough Draft Atlanta and Community Farmers Markets partner each week to bring you two recipes you can make at home using fresh ingredients from your local farmers market. This week features persimmon oatmeal crumble and ratatouille toast recipes. Check out both here.
That Slaps
🍹 I had a couple of cocktails during a much-needed girls’ night at Jagger Suite in downtown Atlanta last weekend. While both drinks were good, I was especially impressed by the Turn Table Tease, which combined vodka, grapefruit, honey, and rose water.
Rose water is a powerful ingredient that can easily be mishandled. Cooks and bartenders from outside rose water culture (as a Persian, I come from a rose water culture) often use too much, yielding an artificial, soapy taste, or giving people flashbacks to the perfume department. Rose water triumphs with subtlety, and this cocktail had just the right amount.
🌹 But the balance in the Turn Table Tease wasn’t about going easy on the rose water. Jagger Suite’s incorporation of tart grapefruit tempers the strong floral notes of the rose water, creating an astonishingly pleasant cocktail. You get a hint of that rose flavor, mainly as an aftertaste.
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 email me.
🖋️ Today’s Side Dish was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.
