Spicewalla opens at Ponce City Market and more dining news from the week

Spice shop Spicewalla is now open in Ponce City Market’s Central Food Hall. The stall comes from James Beard-nominated chef Meherwan Irani, who also owns Botiwalla and Nani’s Piri Piri Chicken in Ponce City Market and Chai Pani in Decatur.

The spice shop will offer its full line of 250+ individual spices, blends, product collaborations, cookbook bundles, home goods and pantry goods from fellow Asian American and Pacific Islander makers.

The 250-square-foot retail space, located across from Umbrella Bar between JJ’s Flower Shop and Vietvana, is open 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays and noon-8 p.m. Sundays.

Central Food Hall is in the middle of a major expansion, with the recent opening of Nani’s Piri Piri Chicken, Vietvana, Umbrella Bar and Atrium, and several other concepts set to open soon including Bibi.

The expansion, which adds more than 5,000 square feet, was announced in late 2020, with plans to add a four-story office building, additional shopping and dining space surrounding an outdoor courtyard and 400 units of what developer Jamestown described as “hospitality living.”

The existing development includes offices — more than 5,200 people work at Ponce City Market — and residential units in addition to dining and shopping.

Existing Ponce City Market food and beverage concepts include Sweetgreen, Bar Vegan, and Eleven TLC as well as longer-term tenants like H&F Burger, Biltong Bar and Ton Ton.

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Longtime Atlanta chef Shaun Doty has plans to open Wurst at 863 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reports. Doty, who owns the Federal Burger stall in the Politan Row at Colony Square food hall, previously owned Midtown restaurant The Federal and several other metro Atlanta restaurants.

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UK-based ramen eatery Wagama opened its first Georgia location on June 21 in the Star Metals District development at 1050 Howell Mill Road in Atlanta. The restaurant is currently open for takeout and delivery only, with dine-in service to be offered soon.

Other confirmed Star Metals food and beverage tenants include Sushi Hayakawa, Prevail Roasters coffee shop and roastery, SMR Tap beer and wine bar and dart bar and restaurant Flight Club.

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College Park restaurant Virgil’s Gullah Kitchen is now open for takeout and delivery at its second location at 822 Marietta St. NW in West Midtown. Dine-in service will be available soon.

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Ice cream shop Where’s the Scoop, located at 985 Monroe Drive in Midtown, has been purchased by Rachel Kitchens, who will rebrand the shop as Highland Dreamery with her own recipes. Steve Josovitz of the Shumacher Group, Inc. represented the seller.

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Prime Cigar Bar and Restaurant will open next year at 1035 Peachtree St. NE, What Now Atlanta reports.

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Nick Panter has been named executive chef at the Cobb Galleria Centre and Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Panter joined the culinary team in 2015 as chef de cuisine and has also worked as sous chef and executive sous chef.