5 Little Secrets About Atlanta’s Food and Wine Scene
- Marla
- Aug 5
- 3 min read
Atlanta, Georgia may be best known for foods like barbeque and fried chicken, but in actuality it has a vibrant food and wine scene, with both tradition and innovation, tried-and-true staples and international diversity. We did our research before we went and were still surprised at what the city had to offer.
These five little secrets about Atlanta’s food and wine scene will help you get much more out of your visit.
1. Take Advantage of Breakfast
Some places emphasize breakfast more than others; let’s put Atlanta in that category, where breakfast is big. Quite a number of spots serve only breakfast or breakfast/lunch.
One such restaurant that we stumbled upon was Thumbs Up Diner, a funky bit of Southern comfort with delicious food, such as sassy scramble, smoked chicken legs and waffles, and low country heap. Its headquarters location, which is a little hole in the wall, is within walking distance of the Martin Luther King historic district. “Big” here doesn’t just mean popular; the menu is pages long, and the portions gigantic. The grits! The biscuits! The housemade blueberry jam!
2. Check Out the Food Halls
Atlanta has a number of food courts that are not only good tourist attractions but also great hangouts. Ponce City Market may be the most well-known, but if you’re in the historic Beltline neighborhood we suggest you stop by Krog Street Market, which boasts several James Beard award winners, such as Little Tart Bakery, Jai Ho Indian Kitchen, and Soul: Food and Culture. Actor/filmmaker Tyler Perry had a hand in revitalizing the market and the surrounding area.
We enjoyed our time in the market so much that after we finished a guided tour through the neighborhood we returned to check out the Hop City Beer and Wine Bar.
3. Try Peaches in a New Way
Georgia is known for its peaches, and you should indulge when they're in season. But you don’t have to stick with peach cobbler, peach glazed fish, or a plain peach, all of which are common.
For example, Revolution Doughnuts, a tiny spot in Inman Park, inserts peach slices inside its handcrafted doughnuts, sort of like a sandwich. The result: incredible.
4. Have Some Fun with Your Food
There are a lot of fine restaurants in Atlanta, and had I been there longer I would have gone to at least one.
But I wanted to experience something different. We found it at Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint, right in downtown Atlanta, which combines great Southern-style food with live music and dancing. The place is a homage to the juke joints of years ago where people flocked to black-owned nightclubs to socialize and listen to some of the entertainers that would perform there, such as B.B. King, James Brown, Ray Charles, and Otis Redding. Plus, I had some of the best jambalaya pasta I have ever tasted.
5. Venture Out to North Georgia Wine Country
The state of Georgia may be better known for Moonshine and Bourbon, but only 80 minutes north of Atlanta is a thriving wine region near the Blue Ridge Mountains, known as North Georgia Wine Country. Georgia was a big wine producer before Prohibition, which decimated the industry until it was resurrected in the 1980s, There are now almost 40 wineries there, growing about 500 grape varieties. We enjoyed a great day trip to North Georgia Wine Country with Cana Wine Tours, which offers both small group and private experiences.
Most of the wineries in North Georgia are small and family-owned. Many of them produce sweet wine, which we were told is because Georgians, particularly those from South Georgia, prefer sweet drinks (think sweet tea).
However, we were pleasantly surprised to find that many of the wineries also produce dry and sparkling wines, and offer both options in their tasting menus. I’d particularly recommend Serenity Cellars, with terrific Tuscan-inspired wine, and The Cottage Vineyard and Winery, which has both good wine and pretty views of the mountains.
I hope that these five little secrets about Atlanta’s Food and Wine Scene augment your next visit there.
What other secrets do you know about Atlanta or any other place? Please share! We’re at info@winewithourfamily.com.
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