Bits & Bites

Hancock Fabrics at Buckhead Crossing 

Following a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, Hancock Fabrics is closing all of its stores nationwide.  Among the closures locally are stores at Northlake Festival in Tucker and Buckhead Crossing in Buckhead.   The Northlake store opened last year when it had to vacate Suburban Plaza. Liquidation sales are expected to continue for the next ten weeks.  

Brahmin at Lenox Square is currently closed for renovations.  The handbag & accessories store, located on the main mall level, near Bloomingdale's, will reportedly reopen Tuesday, April 12th.  

A new freestanding Panda Express is planned for Brampton Avenue at Fair Road in Statesboro.  The 2,570 square foot restaurant will have both indoor and outdoor seating and should open early this fall.  The restaurant is adjacent to an existing McDonald's.  

Pauley's Crepe Bar is planning to open its new West Midtown location this Saturday April 9th.   The eatery, with an original location in Athens, will serve lunch and dinner, beer, wine and cocktails.  Plans call for the bar at Pauley's to stay open late.  Located in the ground floor of the 935M apartments on Marietta Street, Pauley's joins nearby establishments Delia's Chicken Sausage Stand and Amélie's French Bakery in offering late night options for area residents.  

A new Chick-fil-A is one step closer to fruition in historic Marietta.  The new 5,000 square foot restaurant is proposed for 44 Mill Street, where currently The Herb Shop by the Square operates.  The Herb Shop's owner Eli English has been serving the Marietta area for thirteen years, supplying high quality natural products and specialized spa services. The Herb Shop will be demolished, but only when Chick-fil-A is ready to build.  The subject property is located just off the square and beyond the train tracks, at the corner of Denmead and Mill Streets.  Both the entrance and exit of the restaurant will be on Denmead Street.  The restaurant's design "will complement the historic features of the area."  Similar to other newly built Chick-fil-As, the Marietta location will feature a dual approach, single pick-up drive-through.  The restaurant  will provide indoor seating for 135 and a large outdoor covered seating area for additional diners.  If all goes well, the new Chick-fil-A could open by late next year. Marietta Daily Journal has additional details on the plans.  

As I mentioned previously, Tuesday Morning has now made their move in Cobb county.  The off-price retailer has relocated its Smyrna/Vinings store from Cumberland Crossing on Cumberland Boulevard to Parkway Pointe on Cobb Parkway.  

PacSun (Pacific Sunwear) is expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, possibly as soon as this evening.   Reports indicate the Anaheim, California-based retailer hopes to reorganize and avoid a complete liquidation.  The surf-centric retailer operates about 600 locations nationwide including eleven in Georgia.  The chain's Georgia locations are all OTP in such malls as Town Center at Cobb in Kennesaw, Mall of Georgia in Buford and North Point Mall in Alpharetta.  

Tampa, Florida-based Little Greek Fresh Grill has opened their first Georgia franchise in Kennesaw.  The restaurant, located at 745 Chastain Road (Madison Place), is located within the same center as Uncle Maddio's, Starbucks, Cook Out, Marlow's Tavern and others. The fast casual Greek eatery opens in a space previously home to Chilitos, a Mexican restaurant.  My friends at Scoop OTP checked it out shortly after opening and had nothing but good things to say. The restaurant's menu looks fairly typical for the cuisine with classics like gyros, pitas, falafel and assorted salads.  Side items like dolmades (grape leaves) and spanakopita (spinach & cheese pie) are also offered.   Franchisees Rob Wolfenden and Cliff Longshore have reportedly purchased the rights to develop the Atlanta market and plan to open many more stores starting in Alpharetta and "the Buckhead area."  Currently, the company has 26 locations throughout Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky and Texas.