Innumerable names and faces deserve credit for keeping Atlanta well fed and for keeping this city on the national culinary radar year after year. Yet, there are select folk in the midst of pivotal moments.

Those having breakout years include entrepreneurs with dining concepts that resonate with the times. They are chefs who have been given (no, earned) keys to the kitchen and are demonstrating that they are up to the challenge. In the beverage world, we’ve got our eyes on a bartender giving cerebral thought toward cocktails and a brewer doing the same with beer.

Meet the up-and-comers who are shaking up Atlanta’s food and drink scene right now in the link below.

About the Author

Keep Reading

Powerball play slips are seen Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. “If you ain’t in it, you can’t win it,” says 70-year-old Larry Moore. (George Walker IV/AP)

Credit: AP

Featured

An aerial view captures a large area under construction for a new data center campus on Thursday, May 29, 2025. Developed by QTS, the data center campus near Fayetteville is one of the largest under construction in Georgia. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez