Metro Atlanta seems to have had a case of new-chain-restaurant fever in recent weeks. Symptoms include swelling crowds, slowness of traffic and overeating.
The hot spots have been Conyers, Dunwoody and the area west of Midtown, where the first metro locations of Dave’s Hot Chicken, Nando’s Peri-Peri Chicken and Torchy’s Tacos have opened, respectively.
Dave’s, Nando’s and Torchy’s are very different restaurants, but each has an enthusiastic fan base and they’re all pulling in huge crowds.
Dining at any of these three new restaurants involves some inconvenience, but all of them have a certain appeal. Here’s a look at each one to help you decide which might be worth a visit.
Dave’s Hot Chicken
Thanks to an association with Atlanta singer Usher and a wild, heavily hyped opening event that featured an 800-drone light show, the crowds here are intense. When we visited early on a Sunday evening, the drive-through line stretched down a long driveway and onto Old Salem Road in Conyers. The cars of dine-in customers packed the parking lot and overflowed to the gas station next door.
Dave’s is located in a former 2,000-square-foot Krystal, and the dining room was just as jammed as the drive-through. Although the employees were impressively calm and composed, the kitchen clearly was overwhelmed and could not keep up with the volume of orders, even with online ordering turned off. Between standing in line and waiting for our order to be served, our experience lasted about two hours.
The saving grace at Dave’s was the tiny menu, mostly featuring variations on chicken tenders and french fries. The chicken comes in seven levels of heat, from no spice to reaper, and the restaurant offers kale slaw and mac and cheese as the only sides other than fries. It’s easy to pump out tons of food when the menu is this simple.
The sides were nothing to write home about, but the chicken was special. Both the nuggets and tenders had a beautifully fried exterior — crunchy and uniform — and a juicy interior. In the tradition of real Nashville-style hot chicken, the dry spice mixture embedded itself into the breading, adding flavor without compromising the crisp fried texture.
After trying the chain’s namesake dish, it’s easy to see why Dave’s Hot Chicken has such a following. Whether it’s worth a two-hour wait is a personal decision.
1447 Ga. 138 SE, Conyers. Hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays, 11 a.m.-midnight Fridays-Saturdays. 470-207-1404, daveshotchicken.com
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Nando’s Peri-Peri Chicken
Parking at Nando’s, located in Dunwoody’s new High Street, is much easier, even if the crowds remain heavy. This Southern African chicken chain, wildly popular in the UK and Australia, is one of the few restaurants open in the mixed-use development, and signage directs customers from the free parking deck to the second-floor restaurant.
Expect to wait for a seat, even though the restaurant has a large footprint and meals progress quickly thanks to an order-as-you-go service style. The ordering is a bit atypical — you can order online from your seat or visit a counter. The lack of tableside service can lead to some miscommunication; in our case, the kitchen was out of chips (aka french fries), but no one mentioned that to us. Instead, we ended up ordering a tasty sweet potato dish.
The flavors at Nando’s are intense, which I would consider a good thing in a world with plenty of bland food.
But people who are spice-intolerant should beware: Every piece of chicken at Nando’s is marinated in a peri-peri sauce that contains the spicy African bird’s-eye chile, so even the plain chicken can sting a sensitive palate. However, as a spicy food lover, I found even the hot peri-peri sauce pleasant. There’s heat at first, but it gives way quickly to rich flavor, with plenty of savory garlic, fresh herbs and fruitiness from the peppers.
120 High St., Dunwoody. Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. 678-935-5580, nandosperiperi.com
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Torchy’s Tacos
Navigating the Star Metals parking deck is the most confusing part of visiting Torchy’s Tacos on Howell Mill Road, but the restaurant will validate parking for up to two hours.
Torchy’s is the most straightforward of the three new chain outlets. The Austin, Texas-based taco chain sticks closely to its college town roots. Customers walk in, wait in line to order at a counter and a server delivers their meal. There’s also a full bar, and diners can place orders directly with the bartenders if they get a seat.
Torchy’s serves a variety of tacos and other dishes with slightly salacious, conversation-starting names; for example, the trio of dips is called a Threesome, and they offer one taco called the Democrat and one called the Republican. Both are tasty.
With interesting flavor combinations and generous portions, along with hangover-friendly breakfast items offered all day, it’s easy to see how Torchy’s has inspired such a following in college towns and beyond.
1055 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. Hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Fridays, 9 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturdays, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Sundays. 404-618-0476, torchystacos.com
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