Hungry or thirsty? There are plenty of events to check out and new restaurants to try this week in metro Atlanta.
<<Your complete guide to barbecue in metro Atlanta
Do this on Friday
Meet Leslie Lennox, founder of artisan sauce company Hope’s Gardens at one of several Atlanta stops on her “PESTO: The Modern Mother Sauce” book tour. Events, which run from Aug. 15-18, include author demos, book signings and demonstrations of Lennox’s variations on pesto and inventive pesto-based dishes at places including Holeman & Finch Public House and The Cook’s Warehouse. Read more here.
Try something new for lunch at Agency Restaurant & Bar at Phipps Plaza, which launches its new weekday lunch menu this week. Options include a variety of starters, salads, bowls, sandwiches and plates such as a peach caprese salad with arugula, country ham, pecans and sherry vinaigrette; quinoa bowl with edamame, arugula, broccoli, pickled peppers, sweet potato hummus and cranberry-pecan spread; and a shrimp spaghetti with roasted tomato, sofrito and basil. Read more here.
On the other side of town? Check out lunch at SweetWater Brewery’s Taproom, which recently launched lunch hours. Enjoy a 420-inspired menu during the week in addition to the Taproom’s regular weekend hours. New hours are Wednesdays through Saturdays 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. and Sundays 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Read more here.
This year marks the third annual U.S. CoffeeChamps Preliminaries, and East Pole Coffee Co. will be hosting the Barista & Brewers Cup from August 15-17. The shop will be open as usual, and the competition will be free for attendees to watch. Read more here.
Drink to the weekend with the new craft cocktail menu at The Bar on Level 73 at The Sun Dial Restaurant, Bar & View. The drinks, inspired by head bartender Lerone McDonald’s Jamaican heritage, include the Woodford Smoked Old Fashioned, made with Woodford bourbon, agave nectar, Havana hide bitters, luxardo cherry and an orange infused ice block. Guests choose from six different wood chips/planks to smoke their glass. Read more here.
Want a taste of the coast in downtown Atlanta? Take a look at Trederick’s near Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Read our review here.
Do this on Saturday
Join Souper Jenny and Souper Farm for its Dinner on the Farm, featuring dishes such as grilled flank steak with chimichurri, Georgia shrimp ajillo and Mexican street corn salad. Tickets also include welcome cocktails, a tour of the farm non-alcoholic drinks. Read more here.
Try a little of everything at Taste of Johns Creek, featuring food from more 20 local restaurants, plus an art walk, live music and entertainment and kids activities. Read more here.
Try a fish fry without the fish at Grass VBQ Joint’s Vegan Fish Fry from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Global Grub Collective in East Atlanta. A percentage of the proceeds will go to support Full Circle Farm Sanctuary. Read more here.
Bring your favorite furry friend to Bulla Gastrobar’s Puppy Brunch from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The Spanish restaurant will provide dog treats, water bowls and bandanas for four-legged guests, as well as $5 red sangrias and its regular brunch menu for humans. Read more here.
Get a taste of Vietnam with a touch of France at the newly-opened Le Colonial in Buckhead. Take a first look here.
Want to scratch your nostalgia itch? Try the patty melt at 9 Mile Station on the roof of Ponce City Market. Read more here.
Do this on Sunday
Taqueria del Sol, Fox Bros Bar-B-Q, and Home Team BBQ of Charleston are teaming up to bring the Hatch Chile Fest to Atlanta from 4-8 p.m., while raising funds for Hogs For The Cause. The one-day, block party style festival will take place at the West Midtown location of Taqueria del Sol and will feature food stations with Hatch-inspired dishes from participating restaurants, Hatch-inspired cocktails, local beer from Creature Comforts and live music. Beverages are sold separately. Read more here.
Watchman’s Seafood & Spirits in Krog Street Market, which normally offers an oyster happy house from 5-7p.m. weekdays, is launching its Sunday happy hour this week from 3-6 p.m. Look for discounted oysters and drink specials including $8 mojitos and daiquiris. Read more here.
Join Table & Main in Roswell from 5–9 p.m. Aug. 18 for a summer luau to celebrate its eighth anniversary. For $32.50 per person, enjoy a drink and buffet featuring a Creature Comforts’ Hawaiian Whole Hog and an array of luau-inspired dishes, including Pineapple Teriyaki Smoked Chicken, Coconut Milk Rice, Pineapple Salad, Green Papaya Slaw and more. Options at the outside bar include cocktails, wine and Variant Brewing beer. A steel drum band will also perform live. Read more here.
Enjoy the weather at Haven’s Havenly Blues, Bourbon & BBQ Patio Party from 6-10 p.m. on Haven’s patio. Tickets include unlimited food including pork sliders, ribs, barbecue chicken, brisket and sausage with baked beans, mac & cheese, cole slaw, potato salad and roasted corn, unlimited drinks and live music. Read more here.
Want Fido to get in on the fun? Grab your four-legged friend and head to Chido & Padre’s in Buckhead for a Bark & Brunch on Sundays. From 11 a.m.-4 p.m., the restaurant will give one free appetizer to diners bringing their pups to brunch on the patio. Read more here.
With bread and cheese, what else do you need? Check out these five spots to get a global spin on cheese and bread in metro Atlanta, including gougeres from Little Tart Bakeshop and Stracciatella from No. 246.
Looking ahead...
Join Marlow’s Tavern in Duluth Aug. 19 for a four-course dinner paired with brews from Athens-based Terrapin Beer Company. Menu highlights include lemon basil shrimp salad served with Recreation Ale Session IPA and Caribbean-spiced pork tenderloin, confetti rice, maduros fritos and pineapple-papaya chipotle glaze paired with Panama Krunkles Pineapple-Papaya IPA. The 7 p.m. dinner costs $40 per person; call 770-622-2033 for reservations.
Sweet Auburn Barbecue is teaming up with Oregon daily co-op Tillamook Aug. 22 for Tillamook Presents: A Celebration of Pimento Cheese. A roster of some of Atlanta’s top chefs will serve up a dish featuring the southern staple, including Joey Ward and Spencer Gomez of Southern Belle; Ford Fry of Superica, King + Duke and several others; and Howard and Anita Hsu or Sweet Auburn BBQ, with Miles MacQuarrie of Kimball House severing as guest bartender. Tickets are $25 and include pimento cheese-inspired bites from all chefs; barbecue and sides from Sweet Auburn Barbecue; Tillamook ice cream; three drink tickets for beer, wine and specialty cocktails; and a live performance by Ruby Velle & Trio. All proceeds will be donated to the Betty Hsu Cancer Fund and the Get Comfortable Fund from Creature Comforts Brewing Co. Read more here.
Nola Creations will present Taste of the Quarter Pop Up at JR Crickets in McDonough on Aug. 22, featuring a five-course dinner from Food Network’s Season 10 “Great Food Truck Race” winner Chef Darrell. Read more here.
Join Slow Food Atlanta and Peachtree Road Farmers Market for the 13th annual Slow Food Atlanta Ice Cream Social from 1-2:30 p.m. Aug. 24 inside Child Hall at The Cathedral of St. Philip. This year’s theme, Farmers + Chefs = Better Together, will celebrate ingredients sourced from local farmers and purveyors. Vote on your favorite ice cream flavor created by local chefs and amateurs. Advanced tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children 5 and older and include an all-access pass to samples. Kids 4 and under are free. Read more here.
Atomic Entertainment will host Filipino pop-up Kamayan Atlanta Aug. 24 at the Pratt Pullman District site, the first event being held to show off the restoration and development project. In addition to the dinner, guests will be able to tour the yard publicly and view the buildings. A portion of the sales go to the Georgia Veteran’s Day Association. Tickets, which are $75, can be purchased at kamayanatl.com/
Enjoy food and drink specials at Midtown bars and restaurants when you attend the Atlanta Tacos & Margs Crawl on Aug. 24. Participating venues include City Tap Atlanta, Takorea, Medici and more. Tickets start at $19.99. Read more here.
Tickets are on sale for the Springer Mountain Farms Southern Wing Showdown on Aug. 25, featuring takes on wings from 30 top chefs from Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Two ticket options – General Admission and VIP First Taster – offer attendees all-you-can-eat wings, side dishes, wine, beer and cocktails, plus live music. Read more here.
Chef Deborah VanTreece will partner with Ben & Jerry’s for Dessert’d on Aug. 29 at Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours, featuring chef-inspired plant based bites, cocktails and non-dairy frozen desserts. This event will take place at Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours in two sessions (5:30-7PM and 8-9:30PM) on Thursday, 8/29. The Atlanta event will feature an unveiling of a one-night-only dessert made with Ben & Jerry’s ice cream made in partnership with VanTreece. Proceeds will go to Atlanta’s Patchwork City Farms and the Southeastern African American Farmers’ Organic Network. Read more here.
City Winery celebrates black-owned wineries, breweries and distilleries from 2-5 p.m. on Aug. 31 during An Afternoon with Black Beverage Artisans. Sampling from companies such as Brown Estate Wines, Mouton Noir Wine, McBride Sisters Wine, Uncle Nearest Whiskey, Khonso Brewing and Atlanta’s Down Home Brewing. Sommeliers will be on hand to guide the experience. Guests will enjoy music courtesy of a DJ until 6 p.m., when Wine Down Weekends (free live music) begins on the patio. Read more here.
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