Highly Anticipated Restaurant Openings This Spring Around Atlanta
There are many restaurants opening in and around Atlanta this Spring. Here are several we are waiting on with bated breath.
Highly Anticipated Restaurant Openings This Spring Around Atlanta
Terry Koval of The Deer and the Dove is opening a wine bar with a dry-aged fish program, NFA Burger is expanding to Alpharetta and Truist Park, and Nick Leahy is debuting a new burger joint and steakhouse.
Fawn Wine and Amaro Bar by Terry and Jenn Koval
James Beard Award-winning chef Terry Koval of The Deer and The Dove and his wife Jenn are opening a wine bar in downtown Decatur on March 19. This follows the city’s ever-expanding wine scene, with the opening of Steven Satterfield’s Madeira Park and several private wine clubs recently.
Fawn will seat 35 people and will be walk-in only. The Amaro program will feature lesser-known labels, and the wine list will carry bottles produced from volcanic terroir. Matt Watkins, behind the beverage program at The Deer and The Dove, will also create the drinks program here.
Sharable small and larger plates will include dry-aged charcoal-grilled market fish, wild shrimp poached in cardamom caviar butter, and island clams with tuna. A small chef’s bar will be reserved for a tasting menu experience. Fawn will be open Wednesday through Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m.
NFA Burger’s full-service restaurant
One of Atlanta’s most popular burger joints, NFA Burger by Billy Kramer, will now have a second location — this time, a full restaurant — in Alpharetta’s Avalon shopping center this Spring. He has also announced a food stall soon to open at the Atlanta Braves’ Truist Park. The smash burger has been sold at a Dunwoody Chevron gas station since 2019 in a 100-square-foot space after launching as a pop-up.
Nick Leahy to open Smash, Burgers by Vice, and Vice Steak Bar
Longtime Atlanta chef and restaurateur Nick Leahy is set to open two restaurants: a burger joint called Smash, Burgers by Vice, and a steakhouse named Vice Steak Bar in Milton this Spring.
After closing Nick’s Westside, Leahy partnered on the butcher shop Vice Kitchen in Johns Creek. All under the Vice Hospitality Group umbrella, Smash, Burgers by Vice is expected to open this March at 3100 Heritage Walk, in the former Community Burger space. Vice Steak Bar, located next to Smash, Burgers by Vice, is slated to open in May.
Poco Loco chef Nick Melvin to open breakfast taco place Communidad
Poco Loco chef Nick Melvin is opening Communidad Taqueria — an all-day cafe set to open this March in the former Highland Bakery space. The cheekily misspelled name is a reference to the word “comunidad,” which means “community” in Spanish.
Open from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., the restaurant will offer a laid-back dining experience. A mural by Taylor W. Rushing adds a vibrant touch to the dining room, where guests can also pick up market items like salsas and salads. Signature menu items include tacos with house-made corn tortillas filled with brisket barbacoa, guacamole, cabbage salad, re-fried black beans, and pico de gallo. Other staples include queso, chilaquiles, and house-made tortilla chips. In the mornings, breakfast tacos and drip coffee are on standby. Find more details here.
Steak & Grace
Atlanta restaurateur Barry Mills, behind FLIP Burger Boutique, HD1, and Big B’s Fish Joint, is opening a laid-back steakhouse, Steak & Grace, on Friday, March 14, at 1317 Dunwoody Village Pkwy in Dunwoody Village.
Executive chef Conor O’Reilly, formerly with Fifth Group Restaurants, will lead the kitchen with a focus on seasonal ingredients, including gluten-free, keto, and dairy-free options. Expect dishes like beef tartare, roasted squash soup, dry-aged steak burger, hanger steak, Korean-style glazed short rib, and Wagyu New York strip. Desserts will include Meyer lemon tart with toasted marshmallows and mint or an eclair with pastry cream, dark chocolate ganache, and Marcona almonds.
The restaurant will be open from 4 to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Thursday, and 4 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday.
Outfield Market food hall at Truist Park
Truist Park, home to the Atlanta Braves, will be able to offer even more dining options in the upcoming season with the opening of a new food hall named the Outfield Market. The hall will feature eight food stalls with local vendors. The Braves have not announced any of the contracted restaurants yet, but past partners in the stadium included H&F Burger, Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q, and Athens-based Terrapin Beer Co.
The Outfield Market will open on the right field concourse, across from the Bullpen Lounge. In addition to the food stalls, there will be opportunities to buy team merch and watch large LED boards to stay in touch with the game. The food hall will open ahead of the April 4 opener.
