“Ooh, nicely, they ain’t by no means gonna win. They made God mad.”
I bought a style of that distinctly Atlantan verve earlier than I’d barely left Hartsfield-Jackson airport. As we handed the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, my exasperated Uber driver Chandra identified that, to construct the 71,000-seat sports activities and live performance venue, the builders razed not solely Mount Vernon Baptist Church but additionally Friendship Baptist Church, the birthplace of two historic Black schools, Spelman and Morehouse. She was satisfied that the Atlanta Braves baseball crew was cursed attributable to their Poltergeist-like denigration of those historic grounds.
“Mmmm-hmmm,” she shook her head as we left the gargantuan constructing in our rear view.
All through its historical past, Atlanta has been a fiery Civil Warfare battleground, the house of Martin Luther King, Jr., and a wellspring for R&B, hip-hop and lure music. A stalwart of Black tradition, town has additionally been a longtime haven for the LGBTQIA+ group.
Greater than all of that, this Southern city is a distillation of America’s previous — the nice, the unhealthy, and the ugly — and a glimpse into its numerous and dynamic future.
Sleep in Southern Fashion
I used to be in Atlanta for the annual Shaky Knees music pageant and located myself for the weekend at the Glenn Resort downtown. The Classical Revival constructing that pre-dates the Civil Warfare was miraculously spared throughout Basic Sherman’s 1864 March to the Sea, which burned practically your entire metropolis to the bottom. (Little shock that it landed a spot on the Nationwide Register of Historic Locations.) Thirty-nine lion sculptures grace the outside cornice, and the inside design playfully employs the lion theme, from quirky foyer work to in-room wallpaper patterns.
Over within the Previous Fourth Ward neighborhood, the Wylie Resort constructing from 1929 was well-known for housing Atlanta’s first drag membership, Mrs. P’s Tea Room, within the Nineteen Sixties. The membership is lengthy gone, however Mrs. P’s Bar and Kitchen presents on-site eating and pays homage to the venue’s previous — by title, no less than. (For those who’re on the hunt for drag, Mary’s in East Atlanta presents the all-Black drag present NeonBLK on the second Thursday of each month.)
For those who’re feeling fancy, Nobu Resort Atlanta opened in 2022 in Buckhead, the neighborhood about quarter-hour from downtown. Designed by The Rockwell Group, the property has 152 visitor rooms, a rooftop swimming pool, and, in fact, a Nobu restaurant. Bonus: The resort’s non-public driver and Porsche will take visitors wherever inside a three-mile radius.
Past Georgia Peaches
Atlanta nonetheless reigns supreme for its native peaches and peanuts, however it’s undoubtedly a worldwide meals metropolis — and a very good one at that.
Charmain “Sugar” Ware is the chief pastry chef of Tiny Lou’s, a French restaurant tucked inside Clermont Resort within the Poncey-Highland neighborhood. Having lived within the metropolis for greater than 25 years, Sugar understands its essence. When creating her desserts, she explains, “I all the time need to implement the South and what town stands for.” Whereas there could also be a European air to the restaurant, a down-home heat endures.
“That’s what the South supplies,” she says. “It all the time looks like grandma’s kitchen. It all the time looks like dwelling.”
For extra southern grandma inspiration, cease by BlaqHaus ATL, a family-owned soul meals restaurant and cocktail bar with drinks like Peach Perfectionist and Southern Sangria. Mom’s Greatest is a stellar fried chicken-and-fries spot opening this season. (I bought a style of their 14-spice fried hen at a pop-up this spring and would fly again to Atlanta only for one other serving to.)
In Midtown, Drawbar is a capacious bar and restaurant inside Bellyard resort. They sling serviceable twists on previous Southern favorites like fried inexperienced tomato caprese and fried catfish and collard greens. A kaleidoscopic mural by Lacey Longino brightens Drawbar’s outside courtyard seating.
You should definitely stroll The BeltLine, the redevelopment challenge that may ultimately join 45 in-town neighborhoods by way of a 22-mile loop of trails, streetcars, and parks. Alongside the Eastside Path, you’ll discover Ranger Station. Billed as a “hidden cocktail bar,” it was certainly so hidden I virtually gave up in search of it one evening — till a similarly-lost couple adopted their buddy’s live-texting instructions to guide us all there. After a variety of circling in the dead of night, we discovered this charming, campground-inspired cocktail lounge up an unsuspecting flight of stairs.
On the opposite facet of the kitschy-hip spectrum is Simply Across the Nook, a no-frills greasy spoon downtown. The morning I visited, I practically needed to shout my breakfast order over the gospel music (an extremely catchy “I Consider (Island Medley)” by Jonathan Nelson). A handwritten signal taped to the menu above the counter learn: “Costs have modified!!! Menu is for info solely.” It sports activities a retro crimson and white tile ground, a lunch counter with swivel chairs, and charcoal sketches of Black icons (from Bob Marley to Frederick Douglass) tacked up on the Coca-Cola fountain.
You possibly can proceed studying about Black leaders — and in addition work off breakfast — driving with CivilBikes, an unbiased, culturally-focused bike tour operator. Their mission is to indicate vacationers the Atlanta “heroes we didn’t develop up with however ought to have.” Their family-friendly excursions concentrate on town’s legacy of resistance and rebel.
With fewer than 500,000 residents, Atlanta is a serious American metropolis with small-town allure. Its previous makes its current singular, and at this time’s locals are crafting an thrilling future.
“I do know some areas on this metropolis are just a little sketch,” Chef Sugar admits. “However step off the overwhelmed path just a little bit.”
She’s proper: The rewards are wealthy.
The article initially appeared in Fathom and was frivolously edited for timeliness and readability.
