The Latest Stories on How the Pandemic Is Impacting the Atlanta Dining Scene

Tracking the Atlanta restaurant, service industry workers, and government policy stories during the COVID-19 pandemic

Contributors: Eater Atlanta Staff

Eater Atlanta continues to cover how restaurants, bars, and area food businesses are tackling the extraordinary service and financial challenges caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Capacity limits at Georgia restaurants were lifted in June 2020, and bars are currently allowed up to 50 people, or 35 percent total capacity. Most restaurants throughout Atlanta now offer robust takeout options on menus, in addition to socially-distant patio and dining room service. Atlanta’s pop-up scene continues to innovate and thrive, with restaurants and bars across town playing host to roving chefs, bakers, bartenders, and coffee shops on patios and in parking lots. Sadly, for some restaurant and bar owners, the devastating loss of revenue since the health crisis began last March left them no choice but to close their businesses permanently.

Check out the latest stories below. New stories added periodically.

174 Total Updates Since
Mar 10, 2020, 6:41pm EDT

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October 8, 2020
French Restaurant Aix Is Closing to Become a Neighborhood Spot Called Nick’s Westside

By Beth McKibben
1 comment / new

Chef Nick Leahy is closing Aix and Tin Tin on Brady Avenue and transforming the restaurant and wine bar into a casual neighborhood spot — take a look at the menu

1 comment / new
October 1, 2020
Bennett’s Market Hopes Its New Bespoke Picnic Feasts Help Sustain Business Through the Winter

By Beth McKibben
1 comment / new

Victoria Bennett and Claire Pearson are banking on bespoke picnic baskets and Atlanta’s mild fall weather to help sustain Bennett’s Market and Deli through what looks to be a slow winter

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September 22, 2020
The North Georgia State Fair Serves Up Carnival Food Via a Drive-Thru This Year

By Beth McKibben

For the next two weekends, people can partake in carnival food like funnel cakes, fried Oreos, and corn dogs via a drive-thru event called Taste of the Fair
September 18, 2020
The Pandemic Shifts Priorities for Community Supported Brewery Elsewhere Brewing in Grant Park

By Beth McKibben

Sam and Sara Kazmer wanted to create a drinking hall and beer garden with a cafe vibe around a brewery, but those plans shifted as the pandemic began in March
September 16, 2020
A Marietta Couple Transforms a 1920s Gas Station Into a Socially Distant Cocktail Bar

By Beth McKibben

Ted and Lara Ferreira opened the Third Door and hope to tap into the days of Prohibition-era speakeasies, while providing a safe space for drinks off Marietta Square
September 15, 2020
Campy Edgewood Avenue Bar ‘Church’ Reopens After an Expansion Tripled the Kitsch

By Robbie Medwed@rjmedwed
Beth McKibben contributed to this story

With a fresh coat of paint and red choir robes lining the windows, Sister Louisa’s Church now features three bars, a large patio, and a brand new kitchen
September 9, 2020
6 Atlanta Restaurant Reopenings to Know About This Week

By Eater Staff

From beer gardens and covered patios, to to-go windows and limited dining room service
September 8, 2020
Westside ‘Blade Runner’ Bar Little Trouble and Bao Pop-Up Mushi Ni Return Tonight

By Beth McKibben

Baos, tempura-fried Oreos, and lobster rangoon return to Westside Provisions District, as Little Trouble shifts to a Japanese-style record bar
September 4, 2020
Black Restaurant Week Kicks Off Today in Atlanta With More Than 50 Restaurants

By Beth McKibben

More than 50 area restaurants are participating in this year’s week-long event, including Lake and Oak Barbecue, APT 4B, TasteBuddz ATL, and the Atlanta Food Truck Park
September 1, 2020
Poncey-Highland Bar the Righteous Room Reopens for Outdoor Drinking and Dining

By Beth McKibben

When Poncey-Highland bar the Righteous Room reopens after a five-month closure on September 2, it will be without the option to drink or dine inside
August 24, 2020
South African-Inspired Restaurant 10 Degrees South Reopens After a Five-Month Closure

By Beth McKibben

Buckhead restaurant 10 Degrees South reopens with a new look on Roswell Road
August 21, 2020
The To-Go Window Is Having a Serious Moment at Atlanta Restaurants

By Beth McKibben
Photography by Ryan Fleisher

To-go windows could be a permanent, post-pandemic addition to many Atlanta restaurants and bars
August 17, 2020
Local Mask Mandates Are Now Allowed In Georgia, But There’s a Catch

By Beth McKibben

Private businesses and restaurants can opt out of enforcing a local mandate
August 12, 2020
Where to Order Takeout, Delivery, and Local Supplies Around Atlanta

By Eater Staff

A guide to obtaining food, by neighborhood
August 12, 2020
These Atlanta Restaurants Have Chosen to Close Following Employees Testing Positive for COVID-19

By Eater Staff

A running list of Atlanta-area restaurants shutting down, testing employees for COVID-19, receiving a thorough cleaning, and reopening for business
August 11, 2020
This Year’s Atlanta Food and Wine Festival Goes Virtual in September

By Beth McKibben

The annual festival kicks off September 10 and includes 13 chef-led classes via Zoom, along with 14 socially distanced food events
August 7, 2020
A Timeline of Georgia’s Rollercoaster Restaurant Reopening

By Beth McKibben

From dining room shutdowns and overnight pivots to takeout to restaurant reopenings and mask mandates, so much has gone down in 2020
August 1, 2020
Food-Related Nonprofit and Charitable Organizations to Donate to Around Atlanta

By Beth McKibben

From Meals on Wheels and food banks, to restaurants feeding communities in need and a mobile farmers market
July 29, 2020
Southern Restaurant Institution the Colonnade Reopens Friday For Fried Chicken and Takeout

By Jennifer Zyman

The Colonnade reopens for dine-in service and curbside takeout July 31, after a four-month closure brought on by the pandemic
July 28, 2020
City of Atlanta Alcohol License Review Board Holds Its First Meeting Since February

By Beth McKibben

The list of restaurant-related applications up for consideration on Thursday’s agenda is lengthy
July 21, 2020
Restaurant and Concert Venue City Winery Closes Temporarily at Ponce City Market

By Beth McKibben

Along with Atlanta, locations in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Boston also closed temporarily
July 16, 2020
The Governor’s Refusal to Relinquish Control to Local Officials Hurts Georgia’s Restaurants

By Beth McKibben

Gov. Brian Kemp’s emergency powers during the health crisis prevent local governments from enacting more severe COVID-19 measures and puts restaurants and employees at risk
July 13, 2020
Gio’s Chicken Siciliana Closes at the Battery in Cobb County

By Beth McKibben

Antico pizza owner Giovanni Di Palma cites the uncertainty of Braves baseball season and COVID-19 dining restrictions as reasons for the closure
July 9, 2020
The Varsity Suspends Service at Its Famous Drive-In Due to COVID-19

By Beth McKibben

After temporarily closing due to COVID-19, the Varsity reopens July 10 but without its famous drive-in featuring its equally famous carhops
July 9, 2020
With COVID-19 Cases Surging, Two Atlanta Restaurants Shift How the Dining Rooms Operate

By Beth McKibben

Dine-in service at Forza Storico and Storico Fresco is shifting again to better protect employees and patrons

The Latest Stories on How the Pandemic Is Impacting the Atlanta Dining Scene

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