BirthWatch Progress Report Q1 2011

Upcoming Grindhouse Killer Burgers on Piedmont Avenue

During 2010 and already in 2011, we've seen a lot of changes in the Atlanta area in terms of restaurants, retail and hotels, and not all of it has been good. Just this week, news broke that with the Palomar Hotel's sale, Kimpton, the management company of both the hotel itself and the in-house restaurant Pacci, is being replaced, and the hotel will likely be re-flagged and the restaurant re-concepted. There has been some promising news and the list that follows is my now quarterly segment on ToNeTo Atlanta, BirthWatch, meant to catch you up on the progress of new developments...

Sayonara Sony Style Store

Sony Style, the retail division of Japanese electronics manufacturer Sony, will close their store at Lenox Square in the coming weeks. If memory serves, the Lenox location opened in mid 2007. There was talk one would open at Perimeter Mall but that never materialized: the Lenox location was the only Sony Style store to ever open in Atlanta. The store is

Lenox Less LUSH Lately

United Kingdom-based LUSH has closed their store in Lenox Square. Open since 2008, the store was the chain's first in Atlanta, but was soon followed by a shop-in-shop within Lenox's Macy's. Another location opened on the second level of Perimeter Mall, and additional shop-in-shops within Macy's remain open at Cumberland Mall and Town Center, although the Perimeter shop-in-shop closed.

The Lenox location was a LUSH's first in Atlanta when it opened in the summer of 2008, but perhaps the company has made the (smart) decision now, that having multiple stores in malls is a bad idea. Starbucks and Sunglass Hut can do it, but it would seem to be much more difficult for a niche line like LUSH to do the same.

LUSH sells a variety of cosmetics for hair, face and body along with bath and shower products. While many find

Seed Kitchen & Bar Hopes to Take Root in East Cobb

Doug Turbush, who last month left Buckhead Life's Bluepointe restaurant where he was Executive Chef, will soon open a new Farm-to-Table restaurant at Merchants Walk in East Cobb. Originally to be called Heirloom Kitchen & Bar, Turbush opted for a name change to avoid confusion with Heirloom Market BBQ, a new restaurant not far from Cumberland Mall.

Now called Seed Kitchen & Bar, the restaurant will open adjacent to the coming Whole Foods, with both expected to open later this summer. Turbush is a Wisconsin native, but had been with Buckhead Life since 1999. Having started at Nava under Kevin Rathbun, his most recent stint was the aforementioned EC role at Bluepointe. Ian Winslade, with whom he worked at Bluepointe, is now a partner in Buckhead Bottle Bar, and Kevin Rathbun is doing his thing in Inman Park with

Blue Corset Belly Up at Lenox Square

The Blue Corset Co. has closed at Lenox Square. After closing their East Paces Ferry location in summer 2009, they reopened in the Luxury Wing of Lenox Square. From what I'm hearing, Salvatore Ferragamo will relocate there temporarily while their existing space is expanded and remodeled. There is talk that Hermes would then reclaim their space once Ferragamo's buildout is complete, but that not confirmed. Other sources suggested Hermes might be more interested in opening in Phipps but there seems to be more availability in Lenox Square at this point.

The Blue Corset has been on DeathWatch for a while and most recently was given a 30 day life. With their closure last week, they closed within the 30 day window. They may actually have been a "placeholder," as I had previously referred to them. Word is they will soon reopen at 56 East Andrews! Additional recent

Out of Place, Larisa Glazirani Out of Business in Buckhead

Larisa Glazirani, a boutique located in the lobby level of the REALM Condos on Peachtree, has closed. Apparently quite popular in Russia, Glazirani's unique designs never caught on in Atlanta and I'm not sure why she thought they would. Referred to as the "North American Flagship," the "powerhouse"is said to have taken "London, Tokyo and Vienna by storm" The boutique was DeathWatch material basically upon inception, and apparently closed in the past 30-45 days. If a store that no one shopped closed, does it make a noise?

Some information, breaking news and industry scoop is only shared via my Twitter and Facebook accounts so "follow" and "like" me so is not to miss a beat!

Three on the Tree Will Soon Be Three in the ATL

It is with great joy that I report that locally owned Three on The Tree will grow to three locations later this spring. Owned by Fellini's and La Fonda owner Clay Harper, the original location opened last July in a former Taco Bell / Wolf Camera near existing Fellini's and La Fonda locations at the corner of Wieuca and Roswell Roads. In keeping with his growth of La Fonda,

Legoland Bringing its Bricks to Buckhead

Despite SIMON's public relations department having explicitly told me that the planned Legoland at Phipps Plaza was not yet a done deal and my reporting of it would endanger its opening, that appears to be untrue. The deal is done and the ink is dry so here you go...

Mystery Atlanta Area Opening Clue # 1

Yesterday I said I would have a major announcement, and I do, but have decided to let you, my readers, have some fun while trying to guess the new opening. We did something similar to this last summer for the upcoming Zaxby's on Roswell Road (Zaxby's corporate now tells me it will open mid-summer) and overall, readers seemed to enjoy it. The planned opening has been on the horizon but its location caught me off guard. New clues (sans photos that would give too much away) will be revealed each day this week and the opening will be revealed Friday morning!

Small in number but large in size,

When I'm open, you won't believe your eyes.

Looked all over and decided on this space,

It seems the move will cause some to displace.

Some information, breaking news and industry scoop is only shared via my Twitter and Facebook accounts so "follow" and "like" me so is not to miss a beat!

Fatburger's Presence in Atlanta Grows Thin

Fatburger's original Atlanta location has closed. Having opened in a former KFC within Buckhead Crossing in 2005, the restaurant closed sometime during the first week of February. The fact that its closure went unnoticed is a testament to how poorly it was doing. The restaurant's closure was confirmed by its sister location on Windy Hill as no indication of the closure could be found on site. My apologies for excluding it from the most recent DeathWatch as it was rightfully suggested this past

Stir Crazy Added to the Mix at TOWN Brookhaven

Chicago-based Stir Crazy will open its first Atlanta area location later this year. Scheduled to open later this summer within TOWN Brookhaven, Stir Crazy is presumably the replacement for The Real Chow Baby which was previously announced to have signed for space in the project, but has since pulled out. While not the same concept, Stir Crazy does feature a a circular grill where patrons may view their meals being prepared. Having attended school in Boca Raton for a time, I visited their location at

New Chiefs Take Over Cheyenne Grille

Not even a year after Metrotainment sold their Cheyenne Grille at Peachtree Battle to a group of investors, the restaurant has been sold yet again! Sold days ago the restaurant is now closed for minor remodeling. The new owners plan to keep the name but revamp the menu, hopefully having everything complete in time to re-open for March Madness. With the restaurant having been in

Craft's Closure Ignites the Restaurant Rumor Mill

In December, news broke that Tom Colicchio would close his Craft and Craftbar restaurants after dinner service on Valentine's Day. (Amazingly with neither restaurant listed on the Craft website nor OpenTable, a hotel representative informed me the restaurant decided to close this past weekend.) When the closure was announced, the official story was that he was unable to work out a new agreement with the new property owners after

KO'd at Lindbergh, Urban Flats Reopening?

Urban Flats, a concept from Orlando, Florida that once had 2 area locations, has now found someone to re-open one of the shuttered locations. Currently the chain has seven units in its home state of Florida, and an additional location in Nashville. In 2007, a local franchisee opened the first Urban Flats in the Atlanta market at The Avenue Webb Gin. The same franchisee added a second location at Lindbergh's City Center in late 2008. While both seemed to do well at first, it became apparent that the Lindbergh

AllSaints Spitalfields Looking to Grow in Atlanta

London-based AllSaints Spitalfields is looking to grow its presence in Atlanta. The brand has been around since the early 90s in London, when it was wholesaled to department stores like Harrod's and Barney's New York. The chain opened its first standalone boutique on Carnaby Street in London in 1997. The chain now has over 70 retail locations in Europe and the U.S. having opened a flagship location in New York's SoHo neighborhood this past spring.

The chain opened a "shop in shop" boutique at Bloomingdale's flagship at 59th and Lexington Avenue, and the concept proved successful. Last summer, the concept store was brought to 13 additional Bloomingdale's locations including

Farm Burger Raising the "Steaks" With Planned Buckhead Location

Farm Burger, which opened in Decatur last April, is now preparing to expand in Atlanta and beyond. Frequenting the restaurant, I have heard a number of potential cities of interest including Roswell and Buckhead, and also Charleston, SC and Charlotte, NC. The only location I've been able to confirm is the potential Buckhead site.

While a deal is still in the works, George Frangos and his team hope to open their Buckhead outpost in the former Atlanta Bread Co. space at Tower Walk on Piedmont. The Atlanta Bread closed last summer and