clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Eastside Beltline Wine Bar and Bottle Shop Hazel Jane’s Closes This Saturday

Located next door to Kevin Gillespie’s Cold Beer on the trail, the bar was named for Hazel Jane Raines — the first Georgia woman to receive her pilot’s license

Hazel Jane’s wine bar and wine shop opened last October along the Eastside Beltline
Edge on the Beltline

Eastside Beltline wine bar and bottle shop Hazel Jane’s closes this Saturday, September 5, after less than a year. Beverage director Melissa Davis (Staplehouse) posted the news to Instagram and confirmed the closure to Eater Atlanta via text message early Monday afternoon. It appears the closure is due to financial troubles stemming from the ongoing health crisis.

Located next door to Kevin Gillespie’s Cold Beer on the trail, the bar was named for Hazel Jane Raines — the first Georgia woman to receive her pilot’s license. Raines was a ferry pilot for the British Royal Air Force and a WASP (Woman Airforce Service Pilot) during World War II.

Hazel Jane’s ceased dine-in and patio service in late March and has been operating as takeout only alongside its small wine shop.

In its short time on the Atlanta drinks scene, Davis and her knowledgable crew behind the bar at the Revelator Coffee-backed Hazel Jane’s built up a regular following of wine enthusiasts who came to partake in the nearly 150 wines by the glass, complemented by small plates from chef Brad Morris (Ticonderoga Club, Empire State South).

The lengthy wine list ranged from dusty, old world reds and whites, to skin contacts, sparkling wines, and hard-to-find bottles, along with vermouths and fortified wine selections. Much like a wine shop tracks customer purchases, wines sipped at Hazel Jane’s were tracked via a “passport” for patrons to refer back to on future visits.

“Hazel Jane’s had absolutely been building momentum before the pandemic hit, but the reality is that there’s no way to run a wine bar if we can’t safely let people inside. HJ was built as a gathering spot,” Revelator president Josh Owen told Eater. “It only worked if people could gather. There was never going to be a way to make the economics work only doing takeout and retail wine.”

Earlier in August, Scott and Bruce Bogartz closed their eponymous restaurant in Sandy Springs after less than two years stating they simply “ran out of runway” there. The owner of Sweet Auburn Seafood announced he was closing the popular Southern seafood restaurant on Auburn Avenue due to the financial losses caused by the pandemic and recent “violence in the area.” Third Street Goods and adjoining cocktail bar Cardinal closed August 15 at the Beacon complex in Grant Park. Owner and bartender Kathryn DiMenichi never reopened Cardinal after closing the bar in mid-March.

Update, September 2, 9:20 a.m.: This story has been updated with comments from Revelator president Josh Owen.

Staplehouse

541 Edgewood Avenue Southeast, , GA 30312 (404) 524-5005 Visit Website

Ticonderoga Club

99 Krog Street Northeast, , GA 30307 (404) 458-4534 Visit Website

Cold Beer

670 DeKalb Avenue Northeast, , GA 30312 (404) 254-1032 Visit Website

Third Street Goods

1039 Grant Street Southeast, , GA 30315 (470) 419-5839 Visit Website

Hazel Jane's

670 DeKalb Avenue Northeast, , GA 30312 (404) 317-3780 Visit Website

Empire State South

999 Peachtree Street Northeast, , GA 30309 (404) 541-1105 Visit Website

Sweet Auburn Seafood

171 Auburn Avenue Northeast, , GA 30303 (678) 974-5019 Visit Website

Cardinal

1039 Grant Street Southeast, , GA 30315 (470) 419-5839 Visit Website

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the Eater Atlanta newsletter

The freshest news from the local food world