Northern China Eatery’s New Location Doubles as an Art Gallery
Bright pink lotus flowers sway on the walls, ponds dimple as orange, black, and white koi fish move in waves, and moody cranes watch from the tree tops.
“Successful businesses need to think about and invest a lot in their visual representation. After all, before anyone smells, touches, or hears anything, they see it.”
Henna Bakshi is the former Regional and Audience Editor at Eater and an award-winning food and wine journalist with a WSET (Wine and Spirits Education Trust) Level 3 degree. She oversees coverage in Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Nashville, and the Carolinas.
The art flows from the main dining room and into the selfie-worthy bathrooms and onto the ceiling. Blooms, who owns Blooms Emporium Atlanta in Ponce City Market, says he draws his inspiration from “traditional Asian arts and contemporary arts alike, including scroll paintings, tattoos, fashion, street art, and movies.” The 2-D scenes are lit with sunset-like lighting, hidden behind wood carvings that resemble mountains. The bar anchors the room, set in black and white marble, tying the room together in color and texture.
The motif of the lush outdoors in the art is also carried through the walk-up window from the BeltLine where diners can pull up a seat right from the trail. Northern China Eatery is known on Buford Highway for its dumplings, hot and frozen to-go, among its other popular Chinese dishes. Look for soup, steamed, and boiled dumplings (pork and fennel are standouts for $14), buns, plenty of noodles and fried rice, and the crowd-favorite eggplant in garlic sauce ($16). But with a table full of sweet and spicy grub, be sure to look up.
“One piece of art can transform the entire experience of the room,” says Blooms. “Successful businesses need to think about and invest a lot in their visual representation. After all, before anyone smells, touches, or hears anything, they see it.”
Blooms’ signature art can be seen at Minhwa Spirits, the Sparrow, Rebel Teahouse, Sweet Auburn BBQ, and Sozou — a Japanese restaurant opening in Midtown this fall. His large landscapes and vivid florals are a sight to take in, especially when paired with a side of dumplings.
