[ALERT] Salted Melon to Bring All-Day Healthy Eats to Buckhead Village in 2026

A Charlotte-based restaurant called Salted Melon will enter the Atlanta market in early 2026 with a location in Buckhead Village.  The new eatery is opening in Andrews Square (56 East Andrews Drive) and will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner fare all day, every day.  

Salted Melon interior courtesy The Plaid Penguin

Founded in 2022, the Charlotte-based concept has quickly grown to three locations in South End, Eastover, and at Phillips Place near SouthPark, which opened this past June.  The expansion into Atlanta is part of the growing concept's effort to scale the healthy eatery.  

The Buckhead Village location measures 2,740 square feet and opens in place of Isla & Co., an Australian-inspired and Brooklyn-based restaurant that closed in the space early 2024 after about a year in business.  Before Isla & Co., the space was home to SAMA, a beloved vegetarian-friendly eatery, of which Salted Melon is a more comparable replacement.  

The restaurant will offer seating for 55 guests and an additional 16 on the outdoor patio.  The original location in Charlotte's South End offers seated dinner and brunch service as well as a market, but the subsequent two Charlotte units as well as the Buckhead location, are counter service only without the market offering.  

When we inquired as to the rationale for the eatery's name, we were told:  "When you put salt on a melon it enhances the flavor, takes things up a notch. That's what a visit to Salted Melon does for your day. Plus the flavors on their menu are fresh and fun–just like salted melon."  

Salted Melon is the sibling concept of longtime Charlotte business Reid's Fine Foods, which first opened in 1928.  Tom Coker bought Reid's in 2010, with his son Thomas Coker later joining the business.  Thomas Coker, who will turn 32 in October, created Salted Melon in 2022.  

The Cokers previously expanded the Reid's business to downtown Greenville, South Carolina with a location that opened in October 2020.  The lease for the space was signed pre-pandemic, and ultimately the business never caught on and closed in December 2023.  

Salted Melon seems especially well-suited for Buckhead Village and will offer the community menu items similar to places like Flower Child and Original ChopShop.  Most entrees start at about ten bucks and top out at $17.  The menu also includes assorted teas, coffees, and smoothies.   

“We’re thrilled to bring ‘everyday gourmet’ to Buckhead,” said Thomas Coker, owner. “Atlanta is a dynamic Southern city that has been on our radar for growth opportunities and we believe Andrews Square is the perfect location for our first expansion outside of Charlotte," Thomas Coker added.  

Have you been to Salted Melon?  What is your favorite healthy eatery in metro Atlanta?  If Salted Melon continues to expand in metro Atlanta, where else would you like to see them open?  

Please share your thoughts below.