Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Tin Lizzy's Slides Into Mall of Georgia

Tin Lizzy's is opening a  new location at Mall of Georgia

Atlanta-based Tin Lizzy's Cantina will open what be its sixth location later this year in Buford at the Mall of Georgia. Tin Lizzy's will open in place of Fuego Mexican Cantina, which closed this past Sunday.  Fuego was not an original tenant at the mall, having replaced Max Lager's.  Restaurateur Alan LeBlanc opened his second Max Lager's with the rest of the mall in 1999.  Max Lager's closed in 2001 and was replaced soon after by Fuego. 

Luckily for Atlanta, LeBlanc was not deterred by his OTP troubles and went on to open the wildly popular White Oak Kitchen & Cocktails in downtown Atlanta in 2011.

The Tin Lizzy's restaurant space is located in what's known as "The Village," an area adjacent to the mall's food court, but with no structural connection to the mall itself.  The Village is also home to P.F. Chang's, Barnes & Noble and assorted other smaller retailers.  The Village originally housed an F.A.O. Schwarz, VANS skate park, and Willy's Mexicana Grill

Local restaurants have found limited success at Mall of Georgia where Willy's Mexicana Grill closed, one of only two closures ever by company owner Willy Bitter.  Crescent Moon also closed at the mall, albeit not in The Village, but in the mall itself.  The former Crescent Moon reopened late last year as The Real Chow Baby - New American Stir Fry.  

Tin Lizzy's is a casual taqueria known as much for their tacos as for their wide variety of alcoholic libations.  Known for "non authentic" Southwest cuisine, the food menu consists of a variety of tacos, skillets, quesadillas and nachos.  Most main menu items start around three bucks and go up to about ten bucks, so overall, a rather economical dining option.  Personally, I favor their Super Greek and Fiesta Chicken tacos. 

I don't know the cost related to its removal but I'd guess if feasible, Tin Lizzy's would remove the large outdoor beer silo (left from Max Lager's) that has been illuminated and painted by Fuego. 

Tin Lizzy's original location is located in Buckhead at the corner of Roswell and Piedmont Roads. Tin Lizzy's Grant Park opened in early 2009, taking the place of Six Feet Under which has recently relocated. Tin Lizzy's midtown opened in early 2010 in place of another Fuego Spanish Grill (no known relation to Fuego Mexican Grill.)  Last year, Tin Lizzy's went OTP for the first time, opening on the ground level of the SunTrust Building, across the street from Perimeter Mall. Earlier this year, Tin Lizzy's opened at Emory Point, a new project on Clifton Road, across the street from the CDC.

A Tin Lizzy's source tells me the Mall of Georgia location should open by the end of the year.
Sources say this may be one of the last Tin Lizzy's to open in Georgia as the company is turning its focus to growth outside the Peach State.  Fellow small, but growing Georgia-based eateries like Taqueria del Sol, Farm Burger and Taco Mac have all expanded outside of Georgia in recent years. 

Do you think Tin Lizzy's will replicate their intown success in Buford?  Where should Tin Lizzy's open next?  What is your favorite Mall of Georgia area restaurant? 

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Tin Lizzy's will be opening in Kennesaw next week. It's located on Chastain Road next to Ruth's Chris.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...