A.M. ATL: 🍴 Michelin Guide, Part Deux

Morning, y’all! Welcome back. Expect high temperatures in the lower 70s today.

• Former President Donald Trump returns to Atlanta today, fresh off a Madison Square Garden rally that featured crude and racist insults.
• Tonight’s event is at 6 o’clock at Georgia Tech, so get ready for another interesting evening commute.

More election coverage shortly, plus the scoop on that big flowery skull on the Beltline, a fun weekend at One Musicfest and the Falcons’ clutch win over the Buccaneers.

But first: a fine dining refresh.

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STAR POWER

Ready to feel fancy again, friends?

Tonight’s the night the folks from Michelin (those vaunted French experts in both fine dining and … tires) announce who made the cut for their second-ever guide to Atlanta restaurants.

Let’s talk about it!

The basics: Find a more thorough explainer here, but essentially: Michelin decided to launch its first Atlanta edition last year, deploying inspectors across the city before giving five different restaurants a vaunted star.

• Atlas, Bacchanalia, Hayakawa, Lazy Betty and Mujō filled out the roster.

Many more eateries earned a “recommended” rating, “Bib Gourmand” recognition for “great quality food at good prices” and other honors.

This time around: Ligaya Figueras, the AJC’s senior food and dining editor, figures we may see two new restaurants earn stars tonight. Some members of last year’s class are angling for additional stars, too.

• The “recommended” group could grow as well. Ligaya felt a few “longtime restaurateur-chefs who laid the groundwork for today’s scene” got overlooked in 2023.

You down with OTP? Last year’s guide focused exclusively on restaurants in Atlanta proper. We don’t know who will make the cut — but inspectors did journey across the metro area this time around.

Go burbs!

Vibe check: Has this whole thing changed the city’s dining scene yet? Not quite, but we’re headed that way.

• Officials with the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau told Ligaya their aim is to “elevate the perception of Atlanta as a high-caliber dining city so as to attract conventions and events.”

Changing outside perceptions is slow work, of course. But the AJC and UATL’s Mike Jordan, who’s on tap to emcee tonight’s invitation-only ceremony, sees some of that bubbling up already.

“It does seem that not just chefs and owners but diners are more open to realizing Atlanta is great and has potential for more greatness,” he told me.

• Some of that’s just “flexing,” he said — which is fair! And fun!

And part of the process, too. You can’t be it until you believe it.

Which local restaurants deserve some love this year? Shoot your suggestions tyler.estep@ajc.com — then make sure you’re signed up for the AJC’s weekly food and dining newsletter!

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THE WEEK AHEAD

Workers move a sign before a rally host by former President Donald Trump in Cobb County last week.

💻 Today: Window shopping begins at GeorgiaAccess.gov, the new state-run site for Affordable Care Act insurance plans.

• The Hawks, who dropped their first game of the young season last night, host Washington (7:30 p.m. on FanDuel Sports Southeast).

📝 Tuesday: The deadline for special counsel Jack Smith to respond to Trump’s rebuttal on immunity, as it pertains to his federal election interference case.

🏀 Wednesday: The Hawks travel to Washington, D.C., to complete their home-and-home series with the Wizards (7 p.m. on FanDuel Sports Southeast).

🎃 Thursday: Halloween, baby! And Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, too!

• Plus: The Native American Festival and Pow Wow starts at Stone Mountain Park.

📆 Friday: The last day of early voting ahead of the Nov. 5 election. No more weekend opportunities!

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CAMPAIGN LIFE

Doug Emhoff grabs four cheese and two pepperoni pizzas at Triple Jay's Pizza Bar in Midtown.

The Kamala Harris campaign (including second gentleman Doug Emhoff) spent the weekend rallying Clayton County voters and folks at Morehouse-Spelman homecoming. The message?

“We’re nine days out and this is not only the most important election of our lifetimes,” Emhoff said Sunday in Jonesboro. “This is the most important election for the history of our nation.”

• Any demographic group could sway a tight race in Georgia
• State senate candidates spar over campaign mailers

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C’MON, KIDS!

Citing a new report from the News Literacy Project, AJC education columnist Maureen Downey writes that teens are in desperate need of guidance on how to suss out fact from fiction on platforms like TikTok.

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CREATIVE CREEPINESS

A man walks by an art installation of a giant skull made of flowers along the Beltline's Eastside Trail.

If you’ve been on the Beltline’s Eastside Trail lately, you’ve probably seen it: a 400-pound skull sculpture covered in artificial flowers found wafting around graveyards.

The creators say it’s not meant to be morbid — more about people “thinking about the memory of the folks that they loved and lost.”

• Not spooky enough for ya? Join AJC reporter Danielle Charbonneau for a journey behind the scenes at Netherworld, where the scares amount to a whole lot more than a “haunted house.”

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TAKING THE LEAD

Late missed field goal and Kyle Pitts’ near touchdown-costing gaffe aside, the Falcons soared to the top of the NFC South standings with a 31-26 road win over the Buccaneers.

“We’ll take it, and we will build from here,” quarterback Kirk Cousins said. The Cowboys come calling on Sunday.

• Jackets: After another disappointing loss, Tech football is very much looking forward to its bye week.
• Kennesaw State: The school hosted an emotional celebration of life service for former basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who died unexpectedly last week. Photos here.

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ATL ON STAGE

Rapper Latto, an Atlanta native, closed out Saturday night at One Musicfest.

One Musicfest pleased hip-hop and R&B fans at Atlanta’s Central Park all weekend long, last-minute Cardi B cancellation or not.

• Check out our recaps (and photo galleries!) from Day 1 and Day 2.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

» Savannah’s Forsyth Park, long on history, faces debate about future