When dining out in East Cobb, start with these four restaurants

East Cobb has become known in its own right for the restaurant scene in the past few years. No longer do suburbanites have to make the drive downtown to enjoy a nice meal.

Seed Kitchen and Bar/Stem Wine Bar

Chef Doug Turbush took Northsiders to new gastronomic levels when he opened Seed Kitchen and Bar in 2011, with dishes such as roasted butternut squash soup and soy-glazed beef shortribs. The restaurant has a clean, white-space design creating a light energy and modernity. In 2013, Turbush opened Stem, a European-inspired wine bar that reflects the cozy, small tapas bars he enjoys during trips to Spain and features old-world wines. "Before we opened, it was chain city, and now you're seeing a surge of independent operators and chefs, which is wonderful to see," Turbush says. The former executive chef of Bluepointe restaurant says he moved to East Cobb from Wisconsin in 2000, before the birth of his son, for its good school system. He saw an opportunity for an excellent restaurant location along the Johnson Ferry Road corridor when Merchants Walk was going through renovation and Whole Foods announced plans to move in. Turbush plans to open a modern fish house and oyster bar called Drift in February at The Avenue East Cobb. 1311 Johnson Ferry Road. 678-214-6888. eatatseed.com, stemwinebar.com