Food

I’m all for prolonging celebrations. Buckhead Diner turned 30 last November, but is still offering a Thirty for 30 special, a three-course dinner for $30.

Have a budding chef? Help them whip up tasty food during a cooking class at Maggiano’s Little Italy. Our class, led by Executive Chef Thomas Wenning, started with a kid-friendly buffet featuring pasta Alfredo, chicken fingers and freshly baked bread.

The newest restaurant to the Buckhead food scene, Mission + Market, is now open! Have you checked it out? Chef Ian Winslade’s West Coast-inspired eatery draws inspiration from global influences across the world. You’ll find items like seared steelhead trout with pea scented rice grits and wild mushroom polenta with bone marrow beef jus on the spring menu. Our mouths are watering.

Luckily, I have zero allergies or food restrictions. But I would still buy treats from MadeGood. Their granola bars and vanilla crispy squares have none of the eight most common allergens. They are organic and contain the nutrients of a full serving of vegetables.

Enjoy live music and a three-course meal at Watershed for Easter Sunday Jazz Brunch. Fleming’s also has a three-course menu for brunch, including one for children.

Sampling dishes and learning from the best chefs and mixologists in the South – no wonder it’s my favorite festival of the year. Tickets go on sale Friday, March 16, for the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, which takes place May 31 to June 3.

Bagels, pastries, buns – you name it, people are crazy for the baked goods from H&F Bread Co. Soon there will be more to love as it completes an expansion, adding 16,000 square feet to its 50,000-square-foot facility on the Westside.

Nights at The Battery Atlanta will get even livelier with the opening of Punch Bowl Social at the end of the month. This new 25,000-square-foot entertainment destination includes a bar with craft beverages and a restaurant with dishes from Chef Hugh Acheson of Empire State South. Between bites and sips, try your hand at games that include shuffleboard, skeeball, ping pong, bowling and video games.

Take a break from shopping and enjoy an adult beverage with your meal in Lenox Square’s Fashion Cafe Food Court. Peachtree Pint recently opened as a draft beer dispensary, taking advantage of the food court becoming an open container area.

It’s not every restaurant that features food from a family farm. Jamie Durrence grew up on the farm in Glennville, Georgia, that supplies Angus beef served in the hamburgers at Public Kitchen & Bar where he is managing partner. Other menu items include lamb lollipops, Savannah shrimp and grits, tuna nicoise, cioppino and yellowfin tuna.

One of the best things to happen to the Atlanta restaurant scene is the increasing number of outdoor dining spaces. The patio at Bulla Gastrobar in Midtown is perfect for enjoying Spanish tapas-style menu items in nice weather.

Whether your brunch tastes are for avocado toast and the always-yummy chicken and waffles, or you prefer something a bit spicier, Babalu Tapas & Tacos in Midtown has you covered with a new $10 brunch menu.

The puffy, warm garlic naan was the best I’ve ever had. And my lamb in ginger yogurt garlic sauce was flavorful and tender, while my friend loved her vegan dish with a variety of vegetables in a curry sauce. We both loved the perfectly prepared paneer samosas.

Saltyard has been my go-to for its cozy atmosphere and great happy hours. So I was excited to hear Chef Nick Leahy is opening two more restaurants in Stockyards in West Midtown at the end of the year.

When it comes to giving gifts, you always hear it’s the thought that counts. But, we think it’s the taste that counts!

One of the tastiest traditions of Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) is king cake, a sweet confectionery sprinkled with purple, green and gold sugar. Often compared to a brioche, king cakes have a tiny plastic doll (some say representing baby Jesus) hidden inside; whoever gets that piece of cake throws the next party!

It’s a law, right? You have to eat chili during the Super Bowl. Maybe you’re culinarily challenged or just pressed for time, so it’s takeout for you. No judgment if you throw it in a slow cooker and claim it’s an old family recipe.

As a kid, my favorite part of making cookies was eating the raw dough straight from the bowl – no oven needed. Imagine my excitement when I discovered Batter Cookie Dough Counter, the city’s first edible cookie dough shop.

Genuine Pizza recently opened in Phipps Plaza serving classics in addition to items like short rib, rock shrimp and slow-roasted pork pizzas.

My husband is on a search for the best ceviche in Atlanta. We found an excellent version at bartaco recently while perusing the “not taco” section of the menu.

One glance at Food 101’s menu and you know that GM and Chef Ron Eyester prioritizes “delicious” above “nutritious.” The breakfast bruschetta arrives as crispy toast buckling under a tower of eggs, bacon and goat cheese. The fried cheese grits are like edible cholesterol baseballs. Those are just the starters.

When my husband started traveling last year, I began the hunt for healthy options for take-out. I’ve got my standbys now, with the kebabs at Zoes Kitchen and burrito bowls at Chipotle (hold the sour cream and guac). And there’s always the yummy soups and prepared dinners at Souper Jenny’s.

Having just returned from a 42-day odyssey in Asia, I was craving something distinctly American: rich, heavy and paired with something patriotic. Taco Mac delivered.

One of my favorite gifts to give (and receive!) is a restaurant gift card. During the holidays, several restaurants offer a $20 bonus gift card if you buy one for $100.

My children were small, my workload was large, surpassed only by my stress level at the thought of cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Then I heard Murphy’s had a to-go dinner. Brushing aside guilty feelings, I made the call the next morning. Instantly my stress level dropped.

I finally made it to breakfast at Flying Biscuit Cafe down the street, and the grits made with white cheddar cheese and plenty of butter wowed me. (Fun fact: Grits are the official state prepared food of Georgia.)

Many view dining out as the perfect opportunity to disconnect from technology for an hour or two, but at Midtown’s newest restaurant, you’ll be encouraged to do just the opposite.

This week’s best buzz comes from Empire State South.

What can “guac” your world more than the idea of not having to cook may be the idea of ditching the kitchen to embrace your inner foodie by dining out during Sandy Spring’s upcoming Restaurant Week, Nov 4-10.

This week’s best buzz is the tropical Mai-Tai from Trader Vic’s. Vic, a master mixologist, created the drink in 1944 and it has since become the most popular rum drink in the world. Its name, which means “out of this world” is the perfect fit because upon the first sip, you will feel like you are relaxing in tropical paradise. Get out and try this one or make your own tropical paradise at home!