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East Lake restaurant Lake and Oak Neighborhood Barbecue closed Thursday after two years on Hosea L. Williams Drive. The restaurant is listed as “permanently closed” on Google and a statement from chef Joshua Lee posted to the East Lake Neighbors Facebook page, shared with Eater by a source, confirms the closure. Lake and Oak’s website also lists the restaurant as closed.
While a reason for the closure isn’t specified, Lee indicates in the post that he and Soulful Company Restaurant Group co-owner chef Todd Richards plan to move forward with the location at Lee and White in West End and speaks of updates on new upcoming restaurants in Atlanta. They continue to cater from their pop-up kitchen.
Lee and Richards first opened Lake and Oak in 2020, taking over the former Greater Good BBQ space in East Lake, across from the emerging Hosea + 2nd development (Perc Coffee, Poor Hendrix, Salaryman).
Lake and Oak pays homage to “classic BBQ techniques,” Richards told Eater at the time of the opening, smoking meats over a combination of charcoal and white oak and pecan woods and serving sides of smoked mac and cheese and collard green fried rice. The latter is a signature dish from Richards in his cookbook Soul: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes.
Last May, Lee and Richards announced plans to open a second location of Lake and Oak at the Lee and White complex in West End. The Soulful Company Restaurant Group also owns soul food stall Soul: Food and Culture at Krog Street Market, which replaced Richards’ Southern Fried in 2021.
In June, Richards and Jackmont Hospitality Group opened a location of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport restaurant One Flew South on the Eastside Beltline trail. Richards is the culinary director for Jackmont Hospitality. Located next door to Shake Shack, One Flew South took over the former Hazel Jane’s wine bar, a space previously earmarked for Richards and Lee’s Japanese soul food restaurant Kuro.
Eater reached out to Lee and Richards for further details on the closure in East Lake and future plans for Lake and Oak. Check back for updates.
