Aria, McKendrick’s name new pastry chefs; more from Atlanta’s restaurant scene

This week in the Atlanta restaurant scene, a local meat market won a big prize, two women were hired to prominent pastry chef roles, a handful of restaurants announced openings and more.

New pastry chefs join venerable restaurants

Two well-established restaurants announced new talent joining their kitchens this week.

Pastry chef Elissa Hayward was hired at Aria, which has revamped much of its top food and beverage staff in the past year. Hayward will reunite with a fellow Lazy Betty alumnus in executive chef Austin Goetzman, according to a news release.

“Elissa’s approach immediately stood out to us,” Aria owner Andres Loaiza said in a news statement. “She understands the entire kitchen, not just one part of it, and that comes through in the way she thinks about dessert. She has a strong technical foundation, but she also brings curiosity and personality to what she creates. We’re excited to give her the room to explore that at Aria.”

Aria also recently hired Eric Simpkins as its bar lead and Princeton Saunders as lead sommelier and assistant manager. The Buckhead fine dining restaurant’s menu has slowly transformed this year as Loaiza solidified his new staff.

McKendrick’s Steak House continues to transform its staff, as well; the more than 30-year-old Dunwoody establishment brought in the experienced Lauren Holte as its new executive pastry chef, representatives announced this week.

Holte came to McKendrick’s from Union Hill Grill in Canton, and she brings with her nearly 20 years of experience in big kitchens around metro Atlanta and North Carolina. This hiring is also a reunion, of sorts: She is married to executive chef Brandon Holte, who took over the McKendrick’s kitchen in July. The couple have worked together in prior kitchens and ran a bakeshop together in Asheville.

“There’s a real craft to bread and pastry, and it’s a joy to land somewhere that treats it that way instead of as an afterthought,” Lauren Holte said. “McKendrick’s has been doing things right for 30 years, and you feel that the minute you walk in. Getting to build a program inside that, and to work alongside Branden again after all the kitchens we’ve shared, is rare.”

Aria, 490 E. Paces Ferry Road NE, Atlanta. 404-233-7673, aria-atl.com

McKendrick’s Steak House, 4505 Ashford Dunwoody Road, Atlanta. 770-512-8888, mckendricks.com

More big awards for the metro Atlanta food scene

Although plenty of metro-area restaurants celebrated their recognition at the 2026 Michelin Guide this week, a couple of other major awards were handed out at the state level.

On Thursday, longtime business partners Wayne Saxe and Howard Aaron, the team behind Goldbergs Fine Foods, were honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Georgia Restaurant Association, the organization announced. They will be recognized at the GRACE — Georgia Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence — Awards gala Dec. 7. The pair purchased Goldberg & Son in 1992 and slowly grew the business in the multifaceted, multilocation chain well-known around Atlanta today.

On Friday, Rusty Bowers of Pine Street Market won an award backed by some serious cheddar, according to a news release.

The Avondale Estates market won the Georgia Peanut Product Innovation Award at the Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie, an honor accompanied by a $10,000 check. Bowers’ product was Georgia peanut potlikker sausage, made with local chicken, peanuts and collard greens. The sausage was chosen thanks to its creativity and exceptional flavor, the announcement said.

“Peanuts are like the essence of Georgia to me,” Bowers said in a statement. “I’ve visited the farms and the shelling facilities and know how important peanuts are to our state. I really want to create a salute to Georgia agriculture … which is why I chose a chicken sausage with peanuts, collard greens and herbs. I felt like I was telling a Georgia story.”

The prize-winning sausage is available at Pine Street Market, where a package of four costs $12.

Goldbergs Fine Foods, multiple locations. goldbergsfinefoods.com

Pine Street Market, 4 Pine St., Avondale Estates. 404-296-9672, pinestreetmarket.com

New restaurant openings and announcements

El Valle opened a second metro-area location, in Brookhaven, on Tuesday, the restaurant announced on social media. The modern Mexican restaurant from chef Luis Damian is in the Solis Dresden Village development alongside Confab Kitchen & Bar and Mirae.

1350 Dresden Drive NE, Atlanta. 404-905-7050, elvalleatl.com

Harvest & Grace Cafe will open at Trilith in Fayetteville next month, the restaurant recently shared on Instagram.

210 Trilith Parkway, Fayetteville. harvestgracecafe.com

Milk & Maple, the first fully kosher coffee shop on the Atlanta Beltline, will open in the Old Fourth Ward on Nov. 1, according to a news release. The coffee shop is inside Chabad Intown.

730 Ponce de Leon Place NE, Atlanta. milkandmaplecoffeehouse.com

Taqueria Lobito is now open in the former Yumbii space in the Midtown Promenade development just steps off the Beltline’s Eastside Trail. The new taqueria opened Oct. 6, according to its Instagram.

931 Monroe Drive NE, Atlanta. 404-254-1104, taquerialobito.com

Lucy’s Market, the popular Buckhead store known for gourmet food, wine and decor, has completed its move to a larger, freestanding space near the intersection of Piedmont and Lenox roads, the business announced on social media. The market had been in the Andrews Square development since opening in 2009.

3402 Piedmont Road NE, Atlanta. 404-869-9222, lucysmarket.com