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Brush Sushi reopens in a larger space and with a more focused menu at Buckhead Village.
Jamestown Properties

The 14 Hottest New Restaurants Around Atlanta, September 2023

From Oaxacan fare and the return of two popular restaurants to a chef incubator space and breezy new Beltline restaurant serving seafood dishes and frozen drinks

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Brush Sushi reopens in a larger space and with a more focused menu at Buckhead Village.
| Jamestown Properties

New restaurants debut on the dining scene every month, both inside and outside the perimeter, but some establishments hit the ground running right out of the gate and stand out above the rest. These are the new restaurants generating serious buzz at the moment among avid Atlanta diners. While the Eater 38 highlights Atlanta restaurant institutions, old standbys, and neighborhood essentials, this map spotlights the new places people are flocking to right now. Here are the new restaurants and pop-ups to check out this month around Atlanta.

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La Panarda

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After closing Serenidad in Cascade Heights earlier this year, chef Deborah VanTrece (Twisted Soul Cookhouse and PoursOreatha’s at the Point) quickly replaced it with celebratory Italian restaurant La Panarda, where feasting and sharing are paramount. Here, VanTrece offers her signature Southern twists on classic Italian dishes, including oysters arancini with a pink peppercorn remoulade, marinated seafood salad with cornbread biscotti, and eggplant and fried green tomato parmesan with lemon ricotta drizzled in aged balsamic dressing. An ossobucco lamb shank sits atop polenta with a wild mushroom and spring pea compote and the Berkshire smoked pork cheek carbonara is tossed in black ink pasta. Dessert includes panettone bread pudding and Georgia peach crostata with mascarpone whip. La Panarda is a family affair, too, with VanTrece’s daughter Kursten Berry leading the bar as beverage director and wife Lorraine Lane overseeing the wine for the restaurant. Reservations encouraged.

Berkshire smoked pork cheek carbonara with black in pasta from La Panarda in Atlanta. Josh Swinney

Gezzo's Coastal Cantina

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Backed by Sweet Auburn BBQ owners Anita and Howard Hsu, Gezzo’s Cantina is an extension of the siblings’ McDonough and Locust Grove West Coast burrito joints of the same name, but with an expanded menu featuring more seafood and coastal dishes from Mexico and countries around Latin America. Taking over the former Juniper Cafe space at Westside Village, look for dishes like ceviche, a coconut curry rice bowl, Baja chicken egg rolls, tempura fish tacos, and overstuffed burritos. A partnership between the Hsus and La Michoacana sees Mexican-style ice cream, sundaes, and mangonadas served from a takeout window on the covered patio and a walk-up window on the side of the building. Among the desserts served at Gezzo’s are a four-layer coconut cake, tres leches, and churro bread pudding. The restaurant also features a breezeway tiki bar complete with swing beds and lounge areas for late-night hangouts. Expect tropical drinks such as a peach paloma and habanero margarita, an orange creamsicle mojito, and a classic Mai Tai.

Gezzo’s Coastal Cantina

Tyde Tate Kitchen

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The opening of TydeTate Kitchen this spring marked two big milestones: it’s the first full-service restaurant for the Chattahoochee Food Works stall and the first restaurant to open along this revitalized stretch of Mitchell Street in a block of century-old storefronts. Owners and siblings Sai Untachantr and Bank Bhamaraniyama use many family recipes to create the dishes for TydeTate Kitchen, including the basil chicken, chicken curry puffs, crispy basil tofu, ka nom jeeb, and pad Thai. Look for the menu to continue to expand, offering more soups, street foods like chicken satay and cho muang, and papaya salad. Sip on cocktails like the Red Cheeks made with vodka, lychee, elderflower, and tajin and the Passion Fizz mixed with rum and passionfruit nectar. People attending concerts or games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium nearby can easily walk to the restaurant via the Nelson Street pedestrian bridge.

Shrimp pad thai garnished with peanuts, bean sprouts, basil, and a lime wedge from TydeTate Thai Kitchen in Atlanta. TydeTate Kitchen

Southern National

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The opening of Southern National is a homecoming for owners chef Duane Nutter and Reggie Washington, who worked together for years at One Flew South at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, before departing the city in 2016. They would go on to open Southern National in Mobile, Alabama, (Washington’s hometown) but hinted at a return to Atlanta. The partners officially closed the Mobile location in 2022 to relocate the restaurant to Summerhill. Food leans into Nutter’s travels in the Northwest, Kentucky, and Louisiana, where he was born, as well as the South and Atlanta. The menu features a few of the Mobile location’s most popular dishes, like the mussels and collard greens, along with several new dishes such as herb butter broiled red fish over smoked turkey smothered green beans and field peas and Creole-cured salmon and potato blini. Look for Nutter to bring his signature sense of humor to the menu, too, in desserts like peanut butter panna cotta topped with chunks of Nutter Butter cookies. Nutter and Washington reunited with two longtime friends and former colleagues in Southern National, partnering with Ticonderoga Club owners and critically acclaimed bartenders Greg Best and Paul Calvert, who developed the cocktail program for the restaurant. Reservations encouraged.

Southern National

Brush Sushi

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Critically acclaimed restaurant Brush Sushi reopened in the former American Cut space at Buckhead Village in August, after closing last year in Decatur ahead of a planned relocation to a larger space. Unlike in Decatur, which included several izakaya-style dishes, the Buckhead location centers on a la carte sushi and prix fixe sushi options, along with grilled dishes cooked over Binchotan charcoal. The modern, elegant design in Buckhead is set off by large wooden panels featuring intricate carvings of hinoki (a Japanese cypress tree), with a private dining room offering more intimate omakase tastings led by chef and owner Jason Liang. Look for both classic and original cocktails from the bar, an expanded Japanese whisky selection, and a broader focus on sake in Buckhead. Open for lunch and dinner. Reservations encouraged.

Jamestown Properties

B.O.T (Bar of Thailand)

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Bar of Thailand (BOT) opened on Piedmont Avenue at Azure on the Park this spring, the same building as Triple Jay’s Pizza, and it’s bringing Midtown a Thai restaurant the neighborhood desperately needed. Backed by Adidsara Weerasin, co-owner of critically acclaimed restaurants Yao in Dunwoody and Tum Pok Pok in Chamblee, look for dishes like wagyu beef larb, dumplings stuffed with minced chicken and shrimp, pad thai and pad see-ew, and a smoked duck panang curry that’s pure comfort in a bowl served with a side of fragrant jasmine rice. Folks might also find fried rice here tossed with jumbo lump crab meat and a trio of grilled marinated chicken tacos dressed with cilantro, onions, tomatoes, and a sweet plum sauce. Refresh the palate with mango or green tea ice cream during dessert or cool down on a hot day with Thai ice tea. Expect cocktails similar to those found at Tum Pok Pok and Yao using fresh fruits and herbs and Thai ingredients.

Mama kee mao stir-fry noodle with jumbo shrimp and mussels from B.O.T (Bar of Thailand) in Midtown Atlanta. B.O.T (Bar of Thailand)

Yeppa & Co.

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The owners of Storico Fresco and Forza Storico opened this lively Italian restaurant at Buckhead Village in February where fans of Formula One can converge on race days and focaccia pizzas, crispy polenta fries, tagliatelle tossed in meaty ragu, and skewers of grilled shrimp and branzino are standouts on the menu. Named for an Italian verbal exclamation expressing joy and excitement, Yeppa and Co. is a multi-faceted Italian restaurant dedicated to high-energy vibes and dishes from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. There’s even a separate Formula One-themed cocktail bar called Dryver Bar located beyond the dining room. Yeppa and Co. is definitely built around fun, and perfect for groups to gather for a meal of multiple dishes easily shared with rounds of cocktails, including takes on the spritz, negroni, and espresso martini. The restaurant gets busier and buzzier as the night progresses, especially on weekends. Those looking for a quieter dining experience will find it on the covered patio and during lunch. Reservations encouraged for dinner.

Calcio e pepe from Yeppa and Co. in Atlanta. Yeppa and Co.

Long Snake Wine Bar

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After taking over the kitchen at Whoopsie’s on Wednesday nights for three months, the forthcoming wine bar from former 8ARM beverage director Josh Fryer landed a longterm residency in the Georgia Beer Garden space. Named for the PJ Harvey song “Long Snake Moan”, Fryer brings together his love of music, natural wine, and food in dishes like grilled quail with a muscadine-sage gastrique, smashed summer salad dressed with orange blossom vinaigrette, and whole roasted Virginia croaker served with a creamy watercress salad. Look for desserts like lavender cheese pie. With good tunes spinning on the turntable, dishes packed with flavor and fresh, local ingredients, and a solid bottle list boasting funky finds, Long Snake has already become a go-to for Atlanta wine lovers. Thursday - Saturday, 6 p.m. to 12 a.m. Snack menu available in the garden. Dinner menu only available in the dining room and at the bar.

Chow a la Carte at Uptown Kitchen

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The team behind underground supper club Chow Club Atlanta recently launched a year-long chefs residency at the new Uptown Test Kitchen incubator space in Buckhead. Called Chow a la Carte, expect seven house chefs each week, along with guest chefs on the weekends, serving food from countries like Nigeria, Colombia, Ethiopia, and the Philippines. Chow a la Carte also offers traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremonies and hosts monthly Chow Club Atlanta dinners, cooking classes, and grab-and-go meals at Uptown Test Kitchen. Open for lunch and dinner, Friday - Sunday. Menus and chefs rotate every two weeks.

Uptown Atlanta

The Wurst Beer Hall

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Located in a former Moe’s Southwest Grill, the Wurst Beer Hall is a refreshing addition to the restaurant and bar scene along Ponce. Backed by longtime Atlanta chef and owner of Bantam and Biddy, Shaun Doty, the Wurst is where people can indulge in sampler platters of Patak sausages and sauerkraut, giant Bavarian pretzels served with brown ale mustard, and entrees of currywurst, smoked Patak pork chops, and chicken schnitzel. Fans of Ayinger beers will find the brewery’s Bavarian pilsner and Brau-Weisse on draft here, along with local and other imported beers, which can come served by the pint or liter. Inside offers seating at high-top tables and the bar, with additional seating on a front deck facing Ponce and behind the building at picnic tables. The Wurst Beer Hall also resides next door to Doty’s new sandwich shop, aptly named Best Sandwich Shop. Head in for bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches and hash browns in the morning, followed by cold and hot subs in the afternoon, like the Enzo with city ham, spicy soppressata, and mortadella and the chicken parmesan dressed with San Marzano tomato meat sauce and Cappella mozzarella.

The Patak sausage sampler platter at the Wurst Beer Hall in Atlanta. Beth McKibben

Breaker Breaker

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Backed by the team behind Grindhouse Killer Burgers, think of Breaker Breaker as a trailside respite, where people pull up on foot or by bike for drinks and a grouper sandwich or fried fish basket before continuing on their way along the Eastside Beltline. Like the beach bars and seafood shacks dotting the Gulf and East coasts, the breezy design maximizes outdoor dining space, while also retaining some original items from the old Stein Steel plant that once resided on the property. Chef Maximilian Hines, formerly of the Lawrence and founder of supper club Stolen Goods, leads the kitchen and carries the coastal theme through on the menu. Look for everything from a blackened grouper sandwich and Gulf fish ceviche to a Cajun shrimp boil and fried vegan calamari. The latter is one of Hines’s signature dishes, which sees hearts of palm shaped like rings of calamari and fried enoki mushrooms meant to resemble tentacles. Expect cocktails like the Lot Lizard spritz with limoncello muddled with basil topped with sparkling wine and soda or a frozen take on the Mexican dessert mangonada called Mucho Nada with mango vodka, mango puree, chamoy, and a tajin rim. Order a banana ice cream sandwich for the road.

Baskets of Gulf fish ceviche, blackened grouper sandwich and fries, fried fish and fries, blackened shrimp salad, and vegan calamari with mushrooms from Breaker Breaker in Atlanta. Ryan Fleisher

This Chamblee restaurant pays tribute to the vast variety of dishes and regional cuisines found throughout Oaxaca. And it’s doing serious justice to the foods from this southwestern Mexican state through its use of core ingredients like chiles, corn, cheese, and beans and cooking techniques incorporating smoke, moles, and fresh masas made from ground corn for the tortillas, tamals, tlayudas, and gorditas. Kick off a meal with a trio of salsas, the tetela de pato (duck confit and Oaxaca cheese), or the fresh and zesty hamachi tostada topped with black garlic aioli and salsa macha. Next, order a steak or seasonal vegetable tlayuda (Think Mexican-style pizza on a crisy tortilla to share.) The flor de calabaza (squash blossom quesadilla) stuffed with Oaxaca cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and roasted onions is not to be missed. Fish lovers should order the whole wood-fired branzino spiced with black garlic. Don’t skip dessert at Oaxaca, especially the corn husk mousse with meringue. Mezcal and other agave-based cocktails, Mexican wines, and beers are available from the bar. Grab a seat in the dining room flooded with natural light or on the lively covered patio and tuck in for a transportive meal.

Java Saga

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Java Saga is back open, having relocated from Presidential Parkway to the former Master Bakery space on Buford Highway in Doraville. And owner Alvin Sun hasn’t skipped a beat at this new location, serving his signature Taiwanese-style hot chicken sandwiches, wings, and nuggets in four levels of heat: lifeline (mild), crypto (hot and numbing), octane (very hot), and predator. Sandwiches come topped with Java Lava Saga sauce and sweet pickles served on brown sugar milk toast. New dishes include the diggity dang bing — a Taiwanese breakfast crepe with cheese and eggs — and a croissant stuffed with sweet egg salad. Pair Sun’s hot chicken with a mango smoothie to curb the heat or one of the shop’s coffee or tea drinks.

Leftie Lee’s

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Baker Vivian Lee describes Leftie Lee’s as “equal parts pastry shop and sandwich shop” akin to the many Asian bakeries found along the Buford Highway corridor. But regulars to this Olive and Pine stall already know Leftie Lee’s is so much more than that, showcasing Lee’s fierce love for sandwiches and flavors that pack a serious punch. Expect a tight list of sandwiches each day, including open-faced sandwiches like egg toast topped with scrambled eggs, American cheese, and kimchi during breakfast and the Italian bologna at lunch made with mortadella, provolone, and caperberries on freshly baked focaccia or the Korean braised beef garnished with shaved scallions and perilla ranch served on milk bread. The delectable chicken salad sandwich contains a mixture styled after the flavors of Moroccan tagine. In addition to sandwiches, look for fresh pastries and baked goods for which Lee is known, like croissants, yuzu and black sesame blondies, and pecan praline bars, and a weekend brunch serving French toast and an egg melt on house-made pumpernickel bread. Leftie Lee’s begins hosting evening chef pop-ups in July.

Korean braised beef garnished with shaved scallions and perilla ranch served on milk bread from Leftie Lee’s in Avondale Estates. Winnie Nguyen

La Panarda

After closing Serenidad in Cascade Heights earlier this year, chef Deborah VanTrece (Twisted Soul Cookhouse and PoursOreatha’s at the Point) quickly replaced it with celebratory Italian restaurant La Panarda, where feasting and sharing are paramount. Here, VanTrece offers her signature Southern twists on classic Italian dishes, including oysters arancini with a pink peppercorn remoulade, marinated seafood salad with cornbread biscotti, and eggplant and fried green tomato parmesan with lemon ricotta drizzled in aged balsamic dressing. An ossobucco lamb shank sits atop polenta with a wild mushroom and spring pea compote and the Berkshire smoked pork cheek carbonara is tossed in black ink pasta. Dessert includes panettone bread pudding and Georgia peach crostata with mascarpone whip. La Panarda is a family affair, too, with VanTrece’s daughter Kursten Berry leading the bar as beverage director and wife Lorraine Lane overseeing the wine for the restaurant. Reservations encouraged.

Berkshire smoked pork cheek carbonara with black in pasta from La Panarda in Atlanta. Josh Swinney

Gezzo's Coastal Cantina

Backed by Sweet Auburn BBQ owners Anita and Howard Hsu, Gezzo’s Cantina is an extension of the siblings’ McDonough and Locust Grove West Coast burrito joints of the same name, but with an expanded menu featuring more seafood and coastal dishes from Mexico and countries around Latin America. Taking over the former Juniper Cafe space at Westside Village, look for dishes like ceviche, a coconut curry rice bowl, Baja chicken egg rolls, tempura fish tacos, and overstuffed burritos. A partnership between the Hsus and La Michoacana sees Mexican-style ice cream, sundaes, and mangonadas served from a takeout window on the covered patio and a walk-up window on the side of the building. Among the desserts served at Gezzo’s are a four-layer coconut cake, tres leches, and churro bread pudding. The restaurant also features a breezeway tiki bar complete with swing beds and lounge areas for late-night hangouts. Expect tropical drinks such as a peach paloma and habanero margarita, an orange creamsicle mojito, and a classic Mai Tai.

Gezzo’s Coastal Cantina

Tyde Tate Kitchen

The opening of TydeTate Kitchen this spring marked two big milestones: it’s the first full-service restaurant for the Chattahoochee Food Works stall and the first restaurant to open along this revitalized stretch of Mitchell Street in a block of century-old storefronts. Owners and siblings Sai Untachantr and Bank Bhamaraniyama use many family recipes to create the dishes for TydeTate Kitchen, including the basil chicken, chicken curry puffs, crispy basil tofu, ka nom jeeb, and pad Thai. Look for the menu to continue to expand, offering more soups, street foods like chicken satay and cho muang, and papaya salad. Sip on cocktails like the Red Cheeks made with vodka, lychee, elderflower, and tajin and the Passion Fizz mixed with rum and passionfruit nectar. People attending concerts or games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium nearby can easily walk to the restaurant via the Nelson Street pedestrian bridge.

Shrimp pad thai garnished with peanuts, bean sprouts, basil, and a lime wedge from TydeTate Thai Kitchen in Atlanta. TydeTate Kitchen

Southern National

The opening of Southern National is a homecoming for owners chef Duane Nutter and Reggie Washington, who worked together for years at One Flew South at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, before departing the city in 2016. They would go on to open Southern National in Mobile, Alabama, (Washington’s hometown) but hinted at a return to Atlanta. The partners officially closed the Mobile location in 2022 to relocate the restaurant to Summerhill. Food leans into Nutter’s travels in the Northwest, Kentucky, and Louisiana, where he was born, as well as the South and Atlanta. The menu features a few of the Mobile location’s most popular dishes, like the mussels and collard greens, along with several new dishes such as herb butter broiled red fish over smoked turkey smothered green beans and field peas and Creole-cured salmon and potato blini. Look for Nutter to bring his signature sense of humor to the menu, too, in desserts like peanut butter panna cotta topped with chunks of Nutter Butter cookies. Nutter and Washington reunited with two longtime friends and former colleagues in Southern National, partnering with Ticonderoga Club owners and critically acclaimed bartenders Greg Best and Paul Calvert, who developed the cocktail program for the restaurant. Reservations encouraged.

Southern National

Brush Sushi

Critically acclaimed restaurant Brush Sushi reopened in the former American Cut space at Buckhead Village in August, after closing last year in Decatur ahead of a planned relocation to a larger space. Unlike in Decatur, which included several izakaya-style dishes, the Buckhead location centers on a la carte sushi and prix fixe sushi options, along with grilled dishes cooked over Binchotan charcoal. The modern, elegant design in Buckhead is set off by large wooden panels featuring intricate carvings of hinoki (a Japanese cypress tree), with a private dining room offering more intimate omakase tastings led by chef and owner Jason Liang. Look for both classic and original cocktails from the bar, an expanded Japanese whisky selection, and a broader focus on sake in Buckhead. Open for lunch and dinner. Reservations encouraged.

Jamestown Properties

B.O.T (Bar of Thailand)

Bar of Thailand (BOT) opened on Piedmont Avenue at Azure on the Park this spring, the same building as Triple Jay’s Pizza, and it’s bringing Midtown a Thai restaurant the neighborhood desperately needed. Backed by Adidsara Weerasin, co-owner of critically acclaimed restaurants Yao in Dunwoody and Tum Pok Pok in Chamblee, look for dishes like wagyu beef larb, dumplings stuffed with minced chicken and shrimp, pad thai and pad see-ew, and a smoked duck panang curry that’s pure comfort in a bowl served with a side of fragrant jasmine rice. Folks might also find fried rice here tossed with jumbo lump crab meat and a trio of grilled marinated chicken tacos dressed with cilantro, onions, tomatoes, and a sweet plum sauce. Refresh the palate with mango or green tea ice cream during dessert or cool down on a hot day with Thai ice tea. Expect cocktails similar to those found at Tum Pok Pok and Yao using fresh fruits and herbs and Thai ingredients.

Mama kee mao stir-fry noodle with jumbo shrimp and mussels from B.O.T (Bar of Thailand) in Midtown Atlanta. B.O.T (Bar of Thailand)

Yeppa & Co.

The owners of Storico Fresco and Forza Storico opened this lively Italian restaurant at Buckhead Village in February where fans of Formula One can converge on race days and focaccia pizzas, crispy polenta fries, tagliatelle tossed in meaty ragu, and skewers of grilled shrimp and branzino are standouts on the menu. Named for an Italian verbal exclamation expressing joy and excitement, Yeppa and Co. is a multi-faceted Italian restaurant dedicated to high-energy vibes and dishes from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. There’s even a separate Formula One-themed cocktail bar called Dryver Bar located beyond the dining room. Yeppa and Co. is definitely built around fun, and perfect for groups to gather for a meal of multiple dishes easily shared with rounds of cocktails, including takes on the spritz, negroni, and espresso martini. The restaurant gets busier and buzzier as the night progresses, especially on weekends. Those looking for a quieter dining experience will find it on the covered patio and during lunch. Reservations encouraged for dinner.

Calcio e pepe from Yeppa and Co. in Atlanta. Yeppa and Co.

Long Snake Wine Bar

After taking over the kitchen at Whoopsie’s on Wednesday nights for three months, the forthcoming wine bar from former 8ARM beverage director Josh Fryer landed a longterm residency in the Georgia Beer Garden space. Named for the PJ Harvey song “Long Snake Moan”, Fryer brings together his love of music, natural wine, and food in dishes like grilled quail with a muscadine-sage gastrique, smashed summer salad dressed with orange blossom vinaigrette, and whole roasted Virginia croaker served with a creamy watercress salad. Look for desserts like lavender cheese pie. With good tunes spinning on the turntable, dishes packed with flavor and fresh, local ingredients, and a solid bottle list boasting funky finds, Long Snake has already become a go-to for Atlanta wine lovers. Thursday - Saturday, 6 p.m. to 12 a.m. Snack menu available in the garden. Dinner menu only available in the dining room and at the bar.

Chow a la Carte at Uptown Kitchen

The team behind underground supper club Chow Club Atlanta recently launched a year-long chefs residency at the new Uptown Test Kitchen incubator space in Buckhead. Called Chow a la Carte, expect seven house chefs each week, along with guest chefs on the weekends, serving food from countries like Nigeria, Colombia, Ethiopia, and the Philippines. Chow a la Carte also offers traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremonies and hosts monthly Chow Club Atlanta dinners, cooking classes, and grab-and-go meals at Uptown Test Kitchen. Open for lunch and dinner, Friday - Sunday. Menus and chefs rotate every two weeks.

Uptown Atlanta

The Wurst Beer Hall

Located in a former Moe’s Southwest Grill, the Wurst Beer Hall is a refreshing addition to the restaurant and bar scene along Ponce. Backed by longtime Atlanta chef and owner of Bantam and Biddy, Shaun Doty, the Wurst is where people can indulge in sampler platters of Patak sausages and sauerkraut, giant Bavarian pretzels served with brown ale mustard, and entrees of currywurst, smoked Patak pork chops, and chicken schnitzel. Fans of Ayinger beers will find the brewery’s Bavarian pilsner and Brau-Weisse on draft here, along with local and other imported beers, which can come served by the pint or liter. Inside offers seating at high-top tables and the bar, with additional seating on a front deck facing Ponce and behind the building at picnic tables. The Wurst Beer Hall also resides next door to Doty’s new sandwich shop, aptly named Best Sandwich Shop. Head in for bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches and hash browns in the morning, followed by cold and hot subs in the afternoon, like the Enzo with city ham, spicy soppressata, and mortadella and the chicken parmesan dressed with San Marzano tomato meat sauce and Cappella mozzarella.

The Patak sausage sampler platter at the Wurst Beer Hall in Atlanta. Beth McKibben

Breaker Breaker

Backed by the team behind Grindhouse Killer Burgers, think of Breaker Breaker as a trailside respite, where people pull up on foot or by bike for drinks and a grouper sandwich or fried fish basket before continuing on their way along the Eastside Beltline. Like the beach bars and seafood shacks dotting the Gulf and East coasts, the breezy design maximizes outdoor dining space, while also retaining some original items from the old Stein Steel plant that once resided on the property. Chef Maximilian Hines, formerly of the Lawrence and founder of supper club Stolen Goods, leads the kitchen and carries the coastal theme through on the menu. Look for everything from a blackened grouper sandwich and Gulf fish ceviche to a Cajun shrimp boil and fried vegan calamari. The latter is one of Hines’s signature dishes, which sees hearts of palm shaped like rings of calamari and fried enoki mushrooms meant to resemble tentacles. Expect cocktails like the Lot Lizard spritz with limoncello muddled with basil topped with sparkling wine and soda or a frozen take on the Mexican dessert mangonada called Mucho Nada with mango vodka, mango puree, chamoy, and a tajin rim. Order a banana ice cream sandwich for the road.

Baskets of Gulf fish ceviche, blackened grouper sandwich and fries, fried fish and fries, blackened shrimp salad, and vegan calamari with mushrooms from Breaker Breaker in Atlanta. Ryan Fleisher

Oaxaca

This Chamblee restaurant pays tribute to the vast variety of dishes and regional cuisines found throughout Oaxaca. And it’s doing serious justice to the foods from this southwestern Mexican state through its use of core ingredients like chiles, corn, cheese, and beans and cooking techniques incorporating smoke, moles, and fresh masas made from ground corn for the tortillas, tamals, tlayudas, and gorditas. Kick off a meal with a trio of salsas, the tetela de pato (duck confit and Oaxaca cheese), or the fresh and zesty hamachi tostada topped with black garlic aioli and salsa macha. Next, order a steak or seasonal vegetable tlayuda (Think Mexican-style pizza on a crisy tortilla to share.) The flor de calabaza (squash blossom quesadilla) stuffed with Oaxaca cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and roasted onions is not to be missed. Fish lovers should order the whole wood-fired branzino spiced with black garlic. Don’t skip dessert at Oaxaca, especially the corn husk mousse with meringue. Mezcal and other agave-based cocktails, Mexican wines, and beers are available from the bar. Grab a seat in the dining room flooded with natural light or on the lively covered patio and tuck in for a transportive meal.

Java Saga

Java Saga is back open, having relocated from Presidential Parkway to the former Master Bakery space on Buford Highway in Doraville. And owner Alvin Sun hasn’t skipped a beat at this new location, serving his signature Taiwanese-style hot chicken sandwiches, wings, and nuggets in four levels of heat: lifeline (mild), crypto (hot and numbing), octane (very hot), and predator. Sandwiches come topped with Java Lava Saga sauce and sweet pickles served on brown sugar milk toast. New dishes include the diggity dang bing — a Taiwanese breakfast crepe with cheese and eggs — and a croissant stuffed with sweet egg salad. Pair Sun’s hot chicken with a mango smoothie to curb the heat or one of the shop’s coffee or tea drinks.

Leftie Lee’s

Baker Vivian Lee describes Leftie Lee’s as “equal parts pastry shop and sandwich shop” akin to the many Asian bakeries found along the Buford Highway corridor. But regulars to this Olive and Pine stall already know Leftie Lee’s is so much more than that, showcasing Lee’s fierce love for sandwiches and flavors that pack a serious punch. Expect a tight list of sandwiches each day, including open-faced sandwiches like egg toast topped with scrambled eggs, American cheese, and kimchi during breakfast and the Italian bologna at lunch made with mortadella, provolone, and caperberries on freshly baked focaccia or the Korean braised beef garnished with shaved scallions and perilla ranch served on milk bread. The delectable chicken salad sandwich contains a mixture styled after the flavors of Moroccan tagine. In addition to sandwiches, look for fresh pastries and baked goods for which Lee is known, like croissants, yuzu and black sesame blondies, and pecan praline bars, and a weekend brunch serving French toast and an egg melt on house-made pumpernickel bread. Leftie Lee’s begins hosting evening chef pop-ups in July.

Korean braised beef garnished with shaved scallions and perilla ranch served on milk bread from Leftie Lee’s in Avondale Estates. Winnie Nguyen

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