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Diesel Filling Station, the longtime Virginia-Highland watering hole (870 North Highland Avenue) that closed at the end of 2021, has been sold. After opening in 2008 and operating successfully for more than a decade, Diesel was listed for sale by owner Justin Haynie in September 2021. The Shumacher Group, Inc. and Steve Josovitz represented the seller in the transaction which reportedly closed Monday, January 31.
Bonefish Grill, an upscale seafood restaurant, has closed its location in Johns Creek. The restaurant, located in Addison Place Shops at 11705 Jones Bridge Road, closed as of this past Monday, January 24. The restaurant was located in the same center as popular local breakfast joint Hen Mother Cookhouse as well as CVS Pharmacy.
Stop us if you've heard this before. The owner of North DeKalb Mall wants to replace the aging suburban shopping center with a large, mixed-use destination. It may sound familiar but it's EDENS, the real estate firm that purchased North DeKalb Mall this past September, that is now pitching a redevelopment plan that sounds a good bit like the most recent plan pitched by former owner Sterling Organization in 2018.
Macy's plans to open a third Market by Macy's concept store in metro Atlanta. On the heels of last fall's openings in Snellville and McDonough, a new Market by Macy's will join Johns Creek Town Center in Suwanee. Macy's joins existing anchors Kohl's, Sprout's Farmers Market, Michael's and Lowe's in the power center at the corner of McGinnis Ferry and Medlock Bridge Roads (SR 141).
Life Time, Inc., the Chanhassen, Minnesota-based operator of upscale athletic clubs, plans to bring their co-working concept "Life Time Work" to metro Atlanta this year. The business, launched in 2018 to complement the fitness facility's primary attraction, claims to be "the first and only coworking concept that combines exceptional spaces with a world-class health club experience." Life Time Work locations are typically located in, adjacent to, or near new or existing Life Time facilities.
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| Interior of a typical Life Time Work |
Draper James, the women's boutique in Buckhead founded by actress, producer, and entrepreneur Reese Witherspoon, has closed. The store, located in the Shops Around Lenox, across from Lenox Square, opened in November 2017, and reportedly closed at the end of 2021, according to a store employee at the brand's Nashville flagship. The store's closure leaves a 2,150 square foot space available in a center that in recent years has become a popular destination for growing brands to enter the Atlanta market.
Effin Egg, a new breakfast eatery, plans to enter the Atlanta market. Pushed from an intended September 2021 opening, Effin Egg's Atlanta debut is now planned for mid-February in Decatur, where the eatery will open in the Shops at The Artisan at the corner of West Ponce de Leon Avenue and Commerce Drive. The quick serve restaurant will occupy suite C, an 1,185 square foot space previously home to Smoothie King, and before that, The Chocolate Bar. (The 4,235 square foot former Ted's Montana Grill next door remains vacant.)
Off-price retailer Marshalls is on the move in East Cobb. According to newly updated site plans for Merchants Walk (1289 Johnson Ferry Road), Marshalls will occupy approximately two thirds of the former Stein Mart store which closed in 2020 when the Jacksonville, Florida-based company filed for bankruptcy and subsequently closed all of its stores. An existing store about four miles away in the Marshalls at Eastlake shopping center, would "move" to Merchants Walk later this fall, according to source at the retailer.
A new restaurant called Mai Kitchen is slated to open in March in Virginia Highland. The restaurant, which replaces Genki Noodle and Sushi (1040 North Highland Avenue), is being opened by Alex Kinjo, who over the years has opened more than a half dozen Asian restaurants around metro Atlanta including MF Sushi, NAM and Sakura Ramen Bar, among others. Genki, which closed in 2020, had been in business for about a decade. When Genki opened in 2011, it replaced longtime neighborhood favorite Everybody's Pizza, which had been a Virginia Highland mainstay for two decades.
More than a year after we first heard that Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar was planning to open a third Atlanta location, new signage confirms it. A new Lazy Dog will be built at the corner of Haynes Bridge Road and North Point Parkway, just off exit 9 of GA 400 near North Point Mall in Alpharetta. The new Lazy Dog joins an existing Atlanta area location that opened during the summer of 2019 on Peachtree Parkway in Peachtree Corners, and a second location that is slated to open in February in an outparcel of Perimeter Mall in Dunwoody.
The owners of From The Earth Brewing in Roswell announced shortly after the first of the year that they plan to open a new steakhouse later this year. Bask Steakhouse will be located in a roughly 2,400 square foot space next door to From The Earth Brewing and could open as soon as May, if things go as planned and supply chain issues don't cause too many problems. Although esteemed chef Kevin Rathbun is involved in From The Earth, he is not expected to be part of Bask, given its proximity to Kaiser's Chophouse in Sandy Springs of which he's also a part.
Patel Brothers, an Indian oriented grocery store and market, plans to open its third Atlanta area location. The new store, which will be located not far from Town Center at Cobb in Kennesaw, will backfill a large building that was years ago home to Rec Warehouse, a retailer of pools and billiards. The building (2646 George Busbee Parkway) is about 22,000 square feet and was as of 2019 slated to become a new location of locally owned Souq International Markets, a Middle East-focused grocer, but those plans never came to fruition.
Floor & Decor (NYSE: FND) plans to open one of its new Design Studio stores at Tower Walk (3365 Piedmont Road) in Buckhead. The new 12,358 square foot studio replaces Brazilian steakhouse Chama Gaucha which closed temporarily, and later permanently, in 2020. Permits recently filed with the City of Atlanta estimate the company will spend $1 million converting the former restaurant space.
The Chick-fil-A at Dalton Mall (fka Walnut Square Mall) in Dalton is adding a first of its kind drive-thru to the exterior of the mall building. Chick-fil-A is one of the longest running, continuously operating tenants of the mall, having first opened in 1980. Under the stewardship of owner/operator Brett Lewis, the restaurant completed an extensive renovation last year, closing in late July and reopening in November. During the down time, patrons were served via a Chick-fil-A "mobile kitchen" in a mall outparcel.
On the heels of news that luxury timepiece retailer Tourneau plans to close its Lenox Square outpost comes news that Williams-Sonoma will also close its store at the Buckhead mall later this month. According to a store employee, the store is scheduled to close January 23, with select in-store merchandise, including food items, furniture, as well as open box cookware, electrics and cutlery, being offered at 20% to 50% off. The more than 8,200 square foot store is located on the mall's second level, not far from Bloomingdale's.
After nearly three decades in business, the owners of Annie's Thai Castle quietly closed the beloved eatery at the end of 2021. Reportedly there was no notice given to patrons in advance of the closure, but signage in the restaurant's window confirms it with the restaurant also already marked "permanently closed" on Google. Annie Lai and her husband Samson opened the restaurant at 3195 Roswell Road in Buckhead Village in 1993 with the eatery quickly becoming a local favorite for its authentic Thai fare.
Luxury timepiece retailer Tourneau will close its Lenox Square boutique this weekend after more than two decades at the Buckhead mall. The roughly 2,150 square foot store is located in an incredibly desirable space in the middle of the mall's first floor. The retailer made no formal announcement regarding its decision to close but store employees at the boutique said that increased competition and the rise in crime in and around the mall were contributing factors.
In August, ToNeTo Atlanta exclusively broke the news that Whataburger's metro Atlanta debut would be in Kennesaw. In October, we shared the news that the company also had sites in Cumming and Woodstock identified for new restaurants. On December 23, we shared news that Whataburger had a site in Buford in development. Now, we are pleased to confirm another site the chain has in its Atlanta-area pipeline.
The last remaining Atlanta area franchise of Tom & Chee has closed. Located at the intersection of Barrett Parkway and Cobb Parkway in Barrett Crossing shopping center, Tom & Chee Kennesaw opened in April 2014 and closed quietly at the end of 2021. News of the restaurant's closure caught many in the shopping center off guard, including several employees of junior anchor Bargain Hunt, where at least one employee had just days ago enjoyed a meal from the restaurant and had no idea they'd be closing.
ToNeTo Atlanta has learned that home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond plans to close two Atlanta area stores in the coming weeks. Liquidation signage is now visible at Bed Bath & Beyond stores in Dunwoody and East Cobb, where all merchandise is being offered at 20 percent off with no coupon needed or being accepted. Both stores are slated to close no later than February 28.
