We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: Krog Street Market, Avalon and other mega-developments have changed the city.

These new arrivals have done more to kick-start Atlanta’s restaurant culture than anything since the Olympics.

There may be details that throw you off, such as the canned music emanating from the bushes at Avalon or the crowds that can make getting a lunch sandwich an ordeal at Krog. But, whenever you have a lot of ambitious restaurants close together, you have the opportunity for a tremendous crawl.

Park your car, and the progressive dinner is on.

Is the quoted wait time 90 minutes at the El Felix in Avalon? Don’t be discouraged, because you’ll love your puffy tacos and steak fajitas at Ford Fry’s new Tex-Mex destination. So, walk over to the cozy bar at Oak Steakhouse and treat yourself to an oyster Rockefeller or two and a terrific house Manhattan.

Maybe you’re angling for a nearly identical table at the El Felix’s intown sister, Superica, in Krog Street Market. Follow the Beltline to Ladybird Grove and Mess Hall, which looks like the mess hall in a summer camp and has a patio so inviting you might never want to leave.

Even our well-established mini-city, Atlantic Station, has some fresh flavors on the dining front. Chef Todd Richards brings an only-in-Atlanta combination of barbecue and fresh oysters to the Pig and the Pearl. Ron Eyester of Rosebud has recently opened his version of a New York City diner and called it, yes, Diner. Hey, truth in advertising. I’ll have a tuna melt.

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