West Elm to Furnish Buckhead With New Store

Furniture and home decor retailer west elm plans to open what will be its fourth Atlanta area store, and fifth overall store in Georgia, next year in Buckhead.  The approximately 12,000 square foot store will open at The Shops Around Lenox, adjacent to Lenox Square on Around Lenox Drive.  Permits filed recently with the City of Atlanta confirm that the retailer will open in place of women's boutique Tootsies, which as ToNeTo Atlanta first reported earlier this month, will be downsizing and relocating to Buckhead Exchange.

[UPDATE] PizzaFire Extinguished in TOWN Brookhaven, Amore Cucina Coming Soon

PizzaFire has closed in TOWN Brookhaven.  The quick serve pizza restaurant was the first Atlanta area location of the Medina, Ohio based franchise.  PizzaFire in TOWN Brookhaven opened this past June in place of Treza, a similar quick serve pizza eatery.  At the time of the opening, there were plans for at least one other PizzaFire, a corporately owned location in Roswell.  That Roswell location never opened and it was later removed from the "coming soon" page on the restaurant's website.  

[EXCLUSIVE] Sarah Donuts Destined for Decatur in 2018

Sarah Donuts will open their first ever ITP location early next year at North Decatur Plaza.  The donut shop will open in place of Little Caesars Pizza, which closed earlier this year in the center.  The space is 1,500 square feet and is situated between Finders Keepers consignment boutique and BullGogi, a Korean and poke eatery.   

Bits & Bites

In early August, ToNeTo Atlanta was first to announce that Draper James planned to open its fourth overall store in Buckhead and we can now confirm that the boutique quietly opened this past Thursday.  Joining existing locations in Nashville, Dallas and Lexington, the boutique from actress Reese Witherspoon opened in the Shops Around Lenox in a space previously occupied by fab'rik.  Former C. Wonder president Andrea Hyde, who had been CEO of Draper James since its inception, left the company in September, but her C. Wonder-like merchandise and southern-a-fied C. Wonder design is in evidence in the Buckhead outpost.  

LIDL Looking For Lots of Lots in Local Communities

European grocer Lidl appears to be moving forward with at least three Atlanta area stores.  Lidl, pronounced "Leedle," will open new locations in Marietta (Austell), Mableton and Snellville next year, according to planning documents obtained by ToNeTo Atlanta.  All three stores were previously approved by their respective jurisdictions.   

Atlanta area Lidl stores should look like this 

[VIDEO] One Night In Buckhead

With all the changes going on in Atlanta - new developments, store closures, restaurant closures, Dome implosions etc. - ToNeTo Atlanta wanted to take a moment to share a cool Atlanta throwback video we discovered.

Titled "One Night in Buckhead," the video was apparently shot in 1985 and features "Biff & The Buckwads" performing a parody of the 1984 song "One Night in Bangkok" by English actor and singer Murray Head.  

Bonus Bits & Bites

Metro Atlanta's second Blaze Pizza is expected to open  December 2 at Akers Mill Square near Cumberland Mall.  The quick serve pizza eatery replaced Atlanta-based Uncle Maddio's Pizza in the endcap space in the popular center.  The first Atlanta area Blaze opened this past September near Emory University in Emory Commons shopping center at the corner of Clairmont and North Decatur Roads.  A third Blaze Pizza is slated to open next year in Fuqua Development's new Northside Drive & 17th Street project behind IKEA.  Sources indicate the local franchise group is actively seeking additional Atlanta area locations but not additional leases have been signed.    

Blaze Pizza as seen last late last month

Culver's Coming to Even More Communities

Culver's, the Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin-based quick-serve burger restaurant which entered the Georgia market last year, has plans to open at least six more locations in the coming months, as it continues to expand across the state.  The new restaurants are planned for Kennesaw, Johns Creek/Suwanee, Braselton, Gainesville, Pooler and Savannah.   

[UPDATE] A Progress Report on Atlanta Area Chick-fil-A Restaurants

Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A is actively engaged in opening a number of new locations and the rebuilding of older locations around the metro area.  As ToNeTo Atlanta previously reported, Chick-fil-A locations in Sandy Springs on Roswell Road and on North Druid Hills Road were demolished and are currenty being rebuilt. 

Progress this week at the Chick-fil-A on North Druid Hills Road

Bits & Bites

Vietnamese eatery Pho Dai Loi plans to open a new location in Chastain Square in north Buckhead.  Pho Dai Loi will open in place of failed "better burger" joint Burger 21 which closed this past June after less than two years in business.  This will be Pho Dai Loi's fourth restaurant overall, joining existing locations on Jonesboro Road in Forest Park, Buford Highway in Chamblee and on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth.   

Panera Bread to Rise in Chamblee Parking Lot

Panera Bread is proposing a new restaurant in Chamblee.  The approximately 4,300 square foot bakery & cafe would open in an outparcel of the existing Lowe's Home Improvement on Peachtree Boulevard, across from the new Whole Foods Market-anchored Peachtree Station center.  Panera Bread would join Zaxby's, which opened in an outparcel of the home improvement store in 2012.  

Typical Panera Bread drive-thru restaurant 

Simon Says Bye to Belk, Konnichiwa to Nobu Hotel and Restaurant

Belk confirmed yesterday that it will close its store in Buckhead's Phipps Plaza in 2018.  The three level, 170,000 square foot store opened in 2006, following the company's acquisition of Parisian, which had occupied the space previously. In 2007, the company designated the store a "flagship," a term reserved for only a handful of Belk stores that meet certain square footage and sales metrics.  

Wendy's Plans to Relocate Duluth Restaurant to Prime Pleasant Hill Parcel

Last month ToNeTo Atlanta exclusively reported on the plans of Meritage Hospitality Group to renovate, rebuild and replace a number of Atlanta area Wendy's restaurants.  ToNeTo Atlanta can now confirm that Meritage plans to relocate their existing Duluth area restaurant. 

The current Wendy's in Duluth

Bits & Bites

Popular Sandy Springs game bar Battle & Brew is staying open after all.  After shocking fans last month with news that they were closing, the owners of Battle & Brew found a new buyer who they are confident will continue to run they business as they have.  The bar, located in the Parkside Shops shopping center on Roswell Road in Sandy Springs, should reopen "soon."  The owners posted the following message to their Facebook page earlier this week: "Battle & Brew has been purchased by a new owner. We will re-open soon. More details to follow as we have them. Until then please be patient with us and follow our social media for updates."

[NEWSFLASH] Mattress Firm May Have too Many Stores, Alleges Real Estate Team Misled Company

There might be some truth to the notion that there are too many Mattress Firm stores.  Houston, Texas-based Mattress Firm filed a lawsuit October 30th in Harris County, Texas District Court alleging that its Atlanta based master broker Alex Deitch was at the center of a “massive, multi-year fraud, bribery, and kickback scheme" that also involved senior real estate executives at the bedding retailer.  The lawsuit claims Deitch worked alongside top Mattress Firm real estate executives Bruce Levy and Ryan Vinson (among the 17 defendants named in the case) to defraud the retailer out of potentially millions of dollars.  "The bribery, kickback, and fraud scheme was a pay to play loop where each played a distinct and necessary role" according to the lawsuit.

Dueling Mattress Firm stores from Curbed Atlanta 

Uncle Maddio's Pizza is Dunzo in Dunwoody

Uncle Maddio's Pizza at Perimeter Village shopping center in Dunwoody has closed. The QSR pizza restaurant which opened in 2012, occupied a portion of what was for many years a Borders Books & Music store.  The nearly 3,000 square foot space had been marketed by property owner Weingarten Realty for the past few months, even as the restaurant continued to operate.  Its closure comes as little surprise, and hopefully means that a replacement tenant has been found.  

[NEWSFLASH] Antico Pizza Quietly Closes Miami Outpost, Plans to Reopen Elsewhere

Giovanni Di Palma quietly has closed his short-lived South Beach restaurant.  The restaurant, which debuted this past December to substantial fanfare, served menu highlights from Antico Pizza Napoletana, Gio’s Chicken, Bar Amalfi, and Caffè Antico under one roof in what Di Palma called the "centro storico." Signage at the restaurant indicates that it closed for "holiday" from September 4-11, with plans to reopen on the 12th, but it never did.  Even more strange, the sign announcing the holiday reads "SPACCA NAPOLI PIZZERIA."  

Sharetea Looking for its Share of Atlanta Tea Business

Tea franchise Sharetea is coming soon to metro Atlanta.  Signage announcing the upcoming opening of the Taipei, Taiwan-based business went up recently at the Hammond Springs shopping center near the corner of Hammond Drive and Roswell Road in Sandy Springs.  

[EXCLUSIVE] Carvana Eyeing Midtown Atlanta for Vending Machine

Plans were filed with the City of Atlanta earlier this summer to demolish two existing structures near 16th and Fowler Streets.   ToNeTo Atlanta has now confirmed that a self- storage facility and Carvana will open in their place. The property is located near Atlantic Station and within view of I-75/I-85. 

A Carvana Vending Machine

Farrell's to Team Up With Sweet Pete's in Atlanta Return

A beloved ice cream chain and restaurant will be returning to the Atlanta area early next year after an approximately 30 year absence.  Farrell’s Restaurant and Ice Cream Parlour will be opening at the Battery Atlanta this February, sharing space with Sweet Pete’s, a gourmet candy shop.  The two businesses will share a roughly 10,000 square foot space adjacent to Wahlburger's and across from CRU, a wine bar and restaurant in The Battery Atlanta at SunTrust Park. 

Farrell's employees deliver "The Zoo," a popular sundae

[UPDATE] The Whitley Accepting Reservations Starting February 1, 2018

The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead will officially cease to exist as of November 30.  The hotel, the longest continuously operating The Ritz-Carlton in the company, is being deflagged in favor of "The Whitley," an unbranded boutique hotel under Starwood's "The Luxury Collection" umbrella.  

The Whitley's exterior as seen on its website

[RETRACTION] Olive Bistro at TOWN Brookhaven

This past Monday, ToNeTo Atlanta reported that Olive Bistro had closed its TOWN Brookhaven location.  While that is true, the use of the phrase "belly up" in our headline was inaccurate and misleading, as the restaurant, as reported, was unable to come to terms on a new lease, rather than it going "belly up." 

[EXCLUSIVE] Walmart Walks Away From Another Atlanta Area Neighborhood Market Store

Walmart plans to close its Walmart Neighborhood Market store at Blackwell Square Shopping Center in East Cobb December 4.  The approximately 41,000 square foot store opened in March 2013, and was one of a number of Neighborhood Market locations that Walmart opened in the area.  

Several More Sears and Kmarts Soon Will Shutter

Sears Holdings announced another round of store closures yesterday.  The closures, which will affect 45 Kmart stores and 18 Sears stores nationwide, will occur in late January 2018.  In Georgia, a total of five stores are to close.

[EXCLUSIVE] BrickTop's Bows Out at Buckhead's Terminus

BrickTop's restaurant at Terminus in Buckhead will close December 31, according to multiple sources close to the restaurant.  Opened in late 2007, BrickTop's at Terminus was one of the first expansion markets in which the Nashville-based chain opened. BrickTop's at Terminus was likely at the end of what was a ten year lease.  Sources indicate that talks had been underway for the past few months for the restaurant to sign a new lease, but terms were never agreed upon and BrickTop's reportedly elected to walk away.  

[Sound The Alarm] Poke City Planned for Former Firehouse Subs in Buckhead

Poke City Hawaiian Bowl plans to open in the former Firehouse Subs in The Shops of Buckhead.  As ToNeTo Atlanta previously reported, Firehouse abruptly closed its roughly 1,500 square foot sub shop at the Peachtree Road strip center last month.  This will mark Poke City's third overall location.  

Bits & Bites

Select Shades recently opened their second ever store, this at the new Tanger Outlets in Fort Worth, Texas.  The Atlanta-based sunglass retailer debuted their concept at Inman Park's Inman Quarter this past February, and plans to open a second Atlanta area store early next year at The Battery Atlanta, adjacent to SunTrust Park in Cobb county.  

[UPDATE] "Southern Inspired" Eatery Coming to Vacant Brookhaven Space

Steve Josovitz of The Shumacher Group yesterday leased the short-lived Fiorello's Italian Bistro in Brookhaven. Fiorello's opened late this past March, in place of Brookhaven Provisons, but basically "failed to launch," closing about 50 days later, in mid May.  

Atlanta Company A Casualty of Amazon's Whole Foods Market Acquisition?

AtlantaFresh Artisan Creamery dropped a bombshell Monday when it announced that its products have been dropped from all Whole Foods Market stores nationwide, effective immediately.  The company, based in Norcross, had for years developed a close relationship with Whole Foods, going as far as to create brand extensions and develop new products specifically for the organic grocer. 

Amazon Bringing its Books Business to Buckhead

Amazon is bringing their Amazon Books retail concept to Atlanta next year.  The store, which will be located in Buckhead's Lenox Square, will be located on the mall's main level near its Peachtree Road-facing entrance.  A Mercedes-Benz holiday pop-up store currently occupies the space in which Amazon will eventually open.  ToNeTo Atlanta has thus far been unable to confirm the exact duration of the Mercedes-Benz shop, but sources say it is expected to be open through Christmas.  

Amazon Books at University Village in Seattle

[EXCLUSIVE] Micro Food Hall "Crafthall Kitchen" to Debut in Sandy Springs in 2018

A new "micro food hall" is coming soon to Sandy Springs.  Crafthall Kitchen, as the collective concept is known, will be located in Perimeter Center West, which is anchored by REI and Goodwill and already home to such eateries as la Madeleine, Honey Baked Ham and Zoës Kitchen.