Dunwoody is well-known for Perimeter Mall and the many restaurants surrounding it.
But when Imani Rahman saw a mention of the Rediscover Dunwoody Trolley Tour on social media, she and her mother, Laura, decided it was a good opportunity to learn what else the city they live in has to offer.
The Rahmans, who have been residents of Dunwoody since the early 2000s, said so much about the city has changed over the past two decades.
“I want to see all the new places, all the new food,” Imani Rahman said recently before the trolley departed from the Discover Dunwoody office. And, she added, it would help with her job at Element Atlanta Perimeter Center hotel.
Credit: Natrice Miller
Credit: Natrice Miller
The monthly trolley tour is free and usually runs on the second Thursday of the month, except for September when it will be on a Wednesday. Anyone 21 and older can sign up to be considered for the tour, but Discover Dunwoody, the city’s tourism and marketing arm, originally launched it in early 2024 as a resource for hoteliers.
Discover Dunwoody’s role is to “get heads in beds,” said Emily Ensor-Allen, operations and marketing manager. The organization works to attract more people to the city’s restaurants, attractions and hotels, so the tours were begun as a way to educate front-line hoteliers on “what’s in their backyard that they can recommend to guests,” she said.
But as the 25-seat trolley travels around town, Ensor-Allen said, members of the community ask about it, so Discover Dunwoody took that as a sign that the tours should be opened to the general public.
Each three-hour tour visits districts around Dunwoody, located just outside the Perimeter in DeKalb County, including the Village, Creative Alley, Georgetown, Ashford Lane, High Street, Jett Ferry and Dunwoody Parks and Recreation. The districts and vendors at which the trolley stops vary from tour to tour, showcasing a variety of cuisines and attractions. “We want to get exposure for all of Dunwoody,” Ensor-Allen said.
Participants on the February tour included city employees, hoteliers, caterers and a construction project manager. Jennifer Boettcher, city of Dunwoody communications director, took her place at the front of the bus to lead her first trolley tour.
Credit: Natrice Miller
Credit: Natrice Miller
On the February trip, the trolley started at the Village, a retail development located in the heart of Dunwoody. It features a collection of restaurants from David Abes that includes Message in a Bottle, Morty’s Meat & Supply, Bar {n} Booze {n} Bites and Mediterranean food truck Yoffi.
When the trolley arrived in the Village, Abes enthusiastically told the group how he turned the space into what he called “Funwoody,” and he talked about some upcoming events and told them about each restaurant. To round out the visit, he brought the group into Message in a Bottle, where a spread of shrimp, crudités and barbecue sliders had been prepared.
Abes said he appreciates the trolley because it lets people who have never been to the area know about his restaurants.
Credit: Natrice Miller
Credit: Natrice Miller
The next stop was a former Dunwoody elementary school that was closed and became Spruill Center for the Arts, Dunwoody Library and Stage Door Theatre. On this day, attendees filed into the theater, where artistic director Justin Ball explained Stage Door’s background, mission and upcoming shows. He talked about the challenges local theaters face and ways for volunteers to get involved.
Between stops, Boettcher quizzed the group on trivia about the previous neighborhood and vendors, with Discover Dunwoody swag as the prizes.
The third district was Georgetown, a shopping center off Chamblee Dunwoody Road that houses several restaurants, including Goldbergs Fine Foods, Milano Pizza & Subs, the forthcoming Mexican eatery Wa’haka and the day’s highlight, Farm Burger, where the group tasted ice cream samples from the Morelli’s ice cream bar and a Farm Burger slider.
As he finished up his slider, Victor Ojeda, a Dunwoody resident and construction project manager, said he decided to take the trolley tour to find new places to bring his family when they visit from Venezuela. He was excited to show them “Funwoody” in particular — “I didn’t know that we had that area in Dunwoody,” he said.
Credit: Natrice Miller
Credit: Natrice Miller
Next, the trolley stopped at Ashford Lane for a visit to Politan Row food hall. A spread of dishes from several of the stalls — including Delilah’s Everyday Soul, Bussin’ Jerk and Master Pho — was set up at a table near the back, and trolley participants snacked on the food while learning about Politan Row’s offerings.
The trolley then stopped at High Street, a mixed-use development at Perimeter Center Parkway and Hammond Drive, near the border with Sandy Springs. Phase 1 of the 36-acre development is nearly complete, Ensor-Allen said, and over the next few years two more phases will take shape.
The group walked to Agave Bandido, part of a Miami-based Mexican restaurant chain, where they were met with margarita tasters and had a chance to explore the tiki-inspired speakeasy upstairs.
Afterward, the final stop was Puttshack, where attendees walked around High Street’s neon-lit golf course that opened last year.
Credit: Natrice Miller
Credit: Natrice Miller
As the trolley tour came to an end, attendees showed Ensor-Allen the photos they’d taken at various tour stops and got a Discover Dunwoody T-shirt.
The Rahmans considered it a successful day. Laura Rahman said she wasn’t expecting to see “all the nooks and crannies” of Dunwoody.
“I’ve literally gone up and down these streets so many times,” she said, but the tour showed her many different things “that I didn’t know was here; this lets you know that you really need to discover where you live, because there’ll be times where you think you know, and you don’t.”
IF YOU GO
Rediscover Dunwoody Trolley Tour. 1:30-4:30 p.m. March 13. Free. Sign up at discoverdunwoody.com/rediscover-trolley-tour
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