It’s a new year, and a new opportunity to explore Atlanta’s expanding dining scene. More than 150 restaurants opened in metro Atlanta in 2021, and 2022 is on track to welcome a bevy of new food and beverage concepts. Here are 10 spots set to open this year that we’re particularly excited about.
Atrium. Restaurateur Tal Baum is adding to her portfolio of restaurants twice in 2022, with the coastally inspired Carmel in the Buckhead Village development and Atrium in Ponce City Market (where she already operates Bellina Alimentari). Set to debut this winter, Atrium will serve seasonally driven, veggie-focused appetizers, crudo, light pastas and larger entrees in a fun space highlighted by florals and tropical leaves.
675 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE, Atlanta. atriumatl.com/
Bryan Furman BBQ. Acclaimed pitmaster Bryan Furman is back with his eponymous restaurant, set to open this winter in Atlanta’s Riverside neighborhood. The menu will feature the signature meats — whole hog, brisket, ribs and chicken — along with sides like Carolina hash with rice and desserts like banana pudding that could be found on the menu at Furman’s previous Riverside restaurant, B’s Cracklin’ BBQ, plus some new additions.
2102 Bolton Road, Atlanta. instagram.com/bryanfurmanbbq/
Casa Robles. Chef and El Salvador native Laura Orellana will bring a menu of Spanish tapas with Latin American influences to this Roswell eatery, set to open this spring. Expect to find a variety of traditional Spanish tapas, as well as tacos and pupusas, plus a wine list with a heavy South American focus and a cocktail list that will lean on rum, tequila and mezcal. Casa Robles comes from RO Hospitality, the restaurant group behind Roswell’s Table & Main and Osteria Mattone and Coalition Food and Beverage in Alpharetta.
45 Oak St., Roswell. casaroblesroswell.com/
Credit: Matthew Coughlin
Credit: Matthew Coughlin
Unnamed Duane Nutter restaurant. Duane Nutter has done big things since leaving Atlanta — and acclaimed Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport restaurant One Flew South — several years ago to open Southern National in Mobile, Alabama. The restaurant was recently recognized by The New York Times, and Nutter was named a James Beard Award semifinalist for best regional chef. Now, Nutter is returning to Atlanta, along with restaurateur Reggie Washington, to open an as-yet-unnamed restaurant in the booming Summerhill neighborhood (other concepts set to open in the area by the end of the year include How Crispy Express, Redacted, D Boca N Boca and Press Start). Details are scarce for now, but expect to find a restaurant that’s “upscale but a place where everybody’s welcome,” according to Washington.
72 Georgia Ave., Atlanta.
Unnamed concept from the El Tesoro team. Few details have been released for the as-yet-unnamed concept coming to Oakhurst this spring from Alan Raines, the owner of popular Edgewood taco shop El Tesoro, and Samantha Eaves. Expect to see a menu of mezcal drinks and dishes from El Tesoro kitchen manager/chef Hugo Suastegui’s hometown of Acapulco, Mexico, in the former Lawrence’s Cafe space.
910 College Ave., Decatur.
Humble Pie. Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips of Inman Park fine dining restaurant Lazy Betty and the new Vietnamese eatery Juniper Cafe have done a lot of pivoting since the beginning of the pandemic. Their forthcoming concept, Humble Pie, is yet another departure from the norm for the pair. Set to open this spring in West Midtown’s Interlock development, Humble Pie will serve pizzas with dough using grains milled from DaySpring Farms outside of Athens, plus entrees like pot pie, a burger and a roasted cauliflower steak, and pie for dessert. Wash everything down with a cocktail, biodynamic beer or local beer from the restaurant’s beverage list. Also headed to the Interlock in the coming months are Pour Taproom, Rooftop LOA, Kinjo Room and La Lau.
1115 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. humblepieatl.com/
La Semilla. Restaurant industry veterans Reid Trapani and Sophia Marchese have developed a following since launching their plant-based Latin American pop-up Happy Seed in 2018. The pair is planning to go brick-and-mortar this spring in Reynoldstown with La Semilla, which will feature Happy Seed items as well as more vegan dishes made with locally sourced ingredients. A covered patio will offer the perfect setting for sipping on selections from the eatery’s planned cocktail list.
780 Memorial Drive, Atlanta. lasemilla.kitchen/
Leftie Lee’s. If you’ve never had the good fortune of trying one of chef Vivian Lee’s milk bread pastries at one of her Foodcation Forever pop-ups, you’re in for a treat in 2022 when she opens her first brick-and-mortar. Located in the Avondale Estates mixed-use development Olive and Pine, Leftie Lee’s will serve up pastries and baked goods, as well as breakfast and lunch sandwiches constructed on house-made breads. Expect to wrap your hands around gems like a mojo roasted pork sammie with fried yucca and cabbage slaw. The space will also serve as an incubator for up-and-coming chefs to serve their food.
6 Olive St., Avondale Estates. instagram.com/leftielees/?hl=en
Credit: Wendell Brock
Credit: Wendell Brock
Mujo. What started as a pop-up inside West Midtown restaurant Cooks & Soldiers in May 2020 is set to become its own restaurant located in a space neighboring its original home early in 2022. New York City sushi chef J. Trent Harris, who helped launch Mujo, will oversee the restaurant’s two-tiered menu of edomae sushi in addition to kappo-style hot and cold dishes. The space, designed by Elizabeth Ingram Studio, will include a six-seat bar for drinks and a 15-seat sushi bar.
691 14th St., Atlanta. mujoatl.com/
SGC Chicken and Seafood. Smith’s Gourmet Creations has developed a following over the years for its Creole-inspired Southern dishes via its catering business and food truck. Now, chef Antoine Smith is bringing dishes including garlic butter crab fries, fried lobster mac and cheese and Cajun butter salmon rolls to a brick-and-mortar slated to open in March. A few months after SGC Chicken and Seafood is up and running, expect to see the food truck rolling through metro Atlanta once again.
3886 Broad St., Powder Springs. smithsgourmetcreations.com/
Sign up for the AJC Food and Dining Newsletter
Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook, following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter and @ajcdining on Instagram.
About the Author
