Quick Bites: Updates on Staplehouse and Krog Street Market, Sprinkles Cupcakes opens, and more
Atlanta restaurant news roundup
- Photo courtesy of Sprinkles Cupcakes
- Sprinkles Cupcakes opens today at Lenox Square
Beverly Hills-based Sprinkles Cupcakes, billed as the world's first cupcake bakery, debuts its Atlanta outpost today at Lenox Square mall. The sweet shop's arrival comes after a long wait, but finally grants Atlantans more than two dozen varieties of cupcakes, cookies, ice cream sandwiches, sugary shakes, doggie cupcakes, and a 24-hour ATM for the signature treats.
After a couple of false starts, Shaun Doty and Lance Gummere have unveiled the second location of Bantam & Biddy, their fast-casual chicken restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. The new addition, located at 1050 Crescent Ave., opened on Tuesday and features roasted chicken, seasonal vegetables, a full breakfast menu, and Batdorf & Bronson coffee.
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Less than two weeks after the passing of chef Ryan Hidinger, his wife, Jennifer, has signed a lease on the building at 541 Edgewood Ave. to house Staplehouse, the supper club-turned-brick-and-mortar restaurant that's been in the works since 2009. Ryan Smith, an alum of Empire State South, will serve as executive chef when Staplehouse opens, likely later this year.
The freshest intel on Krog Street Market confirms that its newest tenants will be a Spice Road Chicken stall from Asha Gomez, the second Atlanta location of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, and a new outpost for Little Tart Bake Shop that will now feature a full-service coffee bar. Other eateries slated to open in the development later this year include Gu's Dumplings, Fred's Meat & Bread (from the team behind the General Muir), chef Eli Kirshtein's American brasserie the Luminary, Grand Champion BBQ, Pannus Bakery, the Spotted Trotter's full-service restaurant, Cockentrice, and Ford Fry's new Tex-Mex concept, Superica.
It seems Sotto Sotto and Fritti owner Riccardo Ullio is trying his hand at yet another metro-area restaurant. After three failed concepts in Midtown - Cuerno, Lupe (plus its adjacent bar, Beleza), and one that stuck around, Escorpion - the chef/restaurateur is returning to what he does best: Italian. Ullio plans to open his next eatery, Novo Pizza, in Dunwoody soon. The sophisticated spot - slated to open at 5592 Chamblee Dunwoody Road - will be something of a fusion of his successful Sotto Sotto and Fritti concepts, says Tomorrow's News Today, serving up Neapolitan-style pizzas, fresh pastas, and an upscale, Enomatic wine system to boot.
Chef David Sweeney - of Dynamic Dish and the Bakery at Cakes & Ale fame - has resurfaced in Old Fourth Ward. Sweeney has descended on his old stomping grounds to cook Wednesday-night bar bites at the Sound Table featuring Mediterranean, Eastern, and Arabic influences. Could the well-remembered chef be making a comeback? Only time will tell.
Rumors that Yeah! Burger will open a sister concept on the Westside in 2014 are swirling, according to Curbed (H/T to Eater). Erik Maier's farm-fresh fast food restaurant, now counting two locations in town, will spawn a healthful anchor eatery at Westbridge Partners' promising new development at 1071 Howell Mill Road, which will also pave the way for several additional culinary outposts. Details as they arise.
The folks behind farmers market standard La Calavera Bakery will open their planned retail outpost in March at 747 East College Ave., Eater reveals. Husband-and-wife proprietors Eric Arillo and Dale Ralston are known for producing old-fashioned breads and pastries with Mexican influences and Old World grains.
The Westside's popular West Egg Cafe temporarily closed on Jan. 8, after a pipe burst in the building the night before, flooding the restaurant with half a foot of water. Two weeks later, owners Jennifer and Ben Johnson have resumed serving the full gamut of their breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner favorites at 1100 Howell Mill Road.
Grant Park favorite Mi Barrio (571 Memorial Drive) closed in early December for its annual winter vacation, but is now back up and running for the new year. The eatery is beloved for its authentic fare and family-centric operating style, much akin to Mexican home cooking - but in the heart of Atlanta.
Moe's & Joe's, which we noted last week would be expanding into the recently shuttered Cavern space next door at 1035 N. Highland Ave., is also going smoke-free. The 67-year-old dive bar has long been a fixture in the Virginia-Highland scene, but recently came under new management that is propelling the significant changes.
Hugh Acheson's latest, Cinco y Diez, has officially opened in Athens. The modern Mexican eatery opened in the former location of Acheson's 5&10 restaurant at 1073 S. Milledge Ave., appointing former Farm 225 chef Whitney Otawka and Last Resort Grill founder Melissa Clegg to the helm. The unconventional eatery combines Latin flavors with farm-to-table ingredients, inspired partly by ventures to Oaxaca, Eater reports. Ceviche, caramelized cauliflower, Mexican fried chicken, and Anson Mills horchata are among the menu offerings.