Riley Shifts to Kaleidoscope Bistro & Pub In Brookhaven

According to sources within Buckhead Life, Restaurant Group, Executive Chef Joey Riley will soon leave the Buckhead Diner, having held that position since 2006. He will be opening his own eatery in Brookhaven. Though neither his departure nor his successor have been made official, I'm told Chef Phil, formerly of Pano's & Paul's, will take the helm as Executive Chef. Buckhead Diner has a knack for training great chefs, many of whom have gone on to open their own eateries. Most notably,

Planet Smoothie (Buckhead) Adding Fro-Yo, Becomes Planet Living

Planet Smoothie at the Peach shopping center at 2900 Peachtree Road, is scheduled to re-open this morning as "Planet Living" by Planet Smoothie. This location in particular has been through a number of re-conceptions over the years. At times under corporate control, other times operated by an independent franchisee, this location is one of the oldest in the chain. Started by Martin Sprock in 1995, the chain became part of Innovative Brands, the holding company for several Raving Brands concepts. In January 2009, Planet Smoothie and sister concept Shane's Rib Shack were sold to Edmonds Capital LLC, and are operated

The Dish On Davio's From My Trip To Boston

Last week in Boston I had the pleasure of sitting down with Steve DiFillippo, owner of Davio's Northern Italian Steakhouse. Unfamiliar with the description "Northern Italian Steakhouse", DiFillippo explained that in essence he has two restaurant in one, traditional Northern Italian cuisine and a steakhouse. Additionally, Mr. DiFillippo informed me that the name Davio's has little relevance to him, that he in fact purchased the restaurant and has since expanded to it what it is today. The restaurant opened in 1977 on Newbury Street in the now trendy Back Bay district. In 1985, at the ripe old age of 24, DiFillippo purchased the restaurant, keeping the name but revamping the menu and redesigning the two-story eatery. Successful and small for its popularity, Davio's relocated to

NEWSFLASH: American Cafe Was OPEN Until This Monday At Phipps

Silver Spoon's The American Cafe closed at Phipps Plaza Monday afternoon. According to an employee of a neighboring business, restaurant employees came in for work Monday afternoon but were turned away and informed the restaurant was closed permanently. While it's amazing the restaurant lasted this long, it's always a shame to see places close, giving employees no advance warning notice of the closure. Maryville, Tennessee-based Specialty Restaurant Group operates nearly a dozen restaurants across several southern states under the names The American Cafe and Silver Spoons Cafe and in the case of the Phipps Plaza location, a variation of the two. Early on, the chain was known as Mozzarella's The American Cafe but the Mozzarella's was dropped last decade. At one point, there were also locations at Perimeter Mall in Dunwoody and Town Center Mall in Kennesaw, but both of those closed years ago.

I'm Seeing Double Again: Planet Smoothie & Auntie Anne's Multiplying

Already with a location on the lower level near Bloomingdale's, a second co-branded Planet Smoothie and Auntie Anne's Pretzels will open on the main level of Lenox Square in the recently closed Mr. Pretzels. Somehow this wing of the mall (where the Delta ticket office was for many years) has always had some sort of pretzel company. In the current T-Mobile there was once a Pretzel Time and until recently, the upcoming Planet Smoothie / Auntie Anne's combo was a Mr. Pretzels. The first location near Bloomingdale's opened as a Planet Smoothie / Nestle Toll House Cafe but the latter was dropped shortly after opening.