American Food and Beverage Abruptly Closes in Buckhead

American Food and Beverage, the Fort Worth, Texas-based restaurant in the Buckhead Atlanta development, has closed its doors. Officials for the development announced the news Thursday, saying they were informed of the decision by the restaurant's parent company. Jeremy Miller, creator of Miller's Artisan Sodas and previously of Bluepointe, STK, and Napa Valley's The French Laundry, was running the kitchen as executive chef.

Thank you to all staff and people who made @AmericanFoodBev happen! Sadly, it's come to an end! Come by and give me a hug.

— Jeremy Miller (@JeremymillerATL) January 14, 2016

"The Shops Buckhead Atlanta is disappointed that Raised Palate is closing American Food & Beverage but understand that a change in corporate strategy is the reason for the decision," Buckhead Atlanta general manager Michael Diamantides said in a prepared statement. "The Shops Buckhead Atlanta has received numerous inquiries about available restaurant space in the project, and we do not anticipate difficulty in re-leasing the space to complement the highly productive, specially curated restaurants on property including Le Bilboquet, Southern Gentleman, Gypsy Kitchen, Doraku, Qing Mu, Dolce Italian, Corso Coffee, and American Cut Steak — scheduled to open in June 2016."

Raised Palate Restaurants has decided to scrap the nationwide American Food and Beverage brand and focus on its operations in Texas.

"Though we certainly regret the closing of American Food and Beverage, we look forward to continuing our relationship with Oliver McMillan as we plan to focus our combined efforts on a different brand concept in the Texas markets," Raised Palate executive officer of talent and operations Christine Magrann said.

American Food and Beverage opened just short of a year ago, and it received generally positive reviews from diners and critics.

While Diamantides confidently touts his roster of restaurants and the forthcoming American Cut, originally scheduled to open last year and backed by celebrity chef Marc Forgione, the development has gone through some growing pains. A lien was recently placed against LDV Hospitality, the company that operates American Cut, Corso Coffee, and Dolce Italian, and construction stopped on the steakhouse because some workers were missing pay.

However, LDV blamed the delay on a different issue: the lack of buzz surrounding Buckhead Atlanta. Representation for the company said it was "simply planning to open American Cut when the time is right, which will be after there's more growth and excitement at the center."