The October Hit List: Delbar Old Milton, Brush Sushi, Humble Pie, and More

Everyone talks about Georgia Boy. Yeah, we know it’s extraordinary – it might just be the worst-kept secret in the city. But let’s back up for a minute and talk about the beauty that is Southern Belle, the host restaurant that undeservedly gets overshadowed by her fancier brother.

As intimate as a seat in Georgia Boy is, Southern Belle is a more private experience with its traditional table setup and a more manageable à la carte service (as opposed to Georgia Boy’s 15 courses!). All dishes emphasize seasonality and local sourcing, as well as chef Joey Ward’s signature topsy-turvy Alice in Wonderland culinary flair.

Simple menu descriptions, just changed up for fall, belie the unexpected ways dishes are prepared. Would you ever guess that Vietnamese-Style Chicken & Waffles means a peanut waffle, lime butter, nuoc cham caramel, and chile-peanut brittle? Or that a roasted pumpkin bisque would incorporate sunchokes and coffee? To help gather your wits, every course is narrated by whichever staff member presents it; this team effort is part of the chef’s “All for One” approach, a foundational concept in his work toward equitable wages — which is also why it remains tipless, with tips factored into menu pricing.

This OTP offshoot of one of Atlanta’s most treasured Persian and Middle Eastern restaurants has fast become an Instagram darling. Its flower-strewn entrance has been all over Atlantan feeds, but more importantly, its food has been feeding Atlantans happy to head north for ample parking and even more space to spread out with a social group.

Fill up the tank, and gather ‘round for unique small plates like roasted duck leg with Iranian plums, dill labneh to which you can add lamb and za’taar, and muhammara. Sop it up with included fresh-baked taftoun bread, but maybe save some for the lamb shank stew. But if lamb is your thing, make it the thing. The roughly six-pound slow-braised leg of lamb is a statement piece for your table. On the other hand, if you’d prefer a smaller format, good news on this note: there are plenty of greens and grain bowls, many of which can be made gluten-free. And lunch service has just launched.

Some of the hottest seats in the city reflect how the omakase experience have blown up across the U.S. And, inland as we are, Atlanta’s has shown up for it in full force. Starting just last month, the recently reincarnated Brush Sushi opened up seats on Resy for the 17-seat omakase room in their new digs in Buckhead Village. A private nook in an otherwise sprawling venue, double the size of their original Decatur location (now the more casual Cuddlefish) James Beard Award-nominated chef Jason Liang is focusing on dry-aging techniques for those courses.

That’s not the only option for curated courses, though – chef’s choice sashimi, nigiri, and tuna tastings are available, as well as chirashi boxes. But if you’d rather do the driving, steer toward the binchōtan charcoal-grilled selections like Miyazaki A5 wagyu spinalis with a garlic butter shoyu or hamachi kama glazed with chili miso, cilantro salsa, and ponzu daikon oroshi. And save room for dessert, because pastry master chef Ching Yao Wang is also a key part of this venture and makes her mark with a fresh spins like a local fig and honey mascarpone roll cake, and daifuku mochi treats in flavors like a marriage of matcha and mango. Finish with an unhurried tea service for a full journey.

If you thought James Beard-nominated talent was a wee bit out of your budget, here’s good news: Lazy Betty’s Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips’ accessible pizza project Humble Pie.( And we mean accessible in more ways than one; it was just certified Sensory Inclusive by KultureCity.) And it’s a good thing that this airy dining room, vibrant with pops of color, is mostly relaxed, because the food here has no chill.

This is a dine-in, fork-and-knife, wash-it-down-with-a-craft-cocktail kind of pizza joint. Its pies are made with locally milled grains for a house blend that includes superfine 00 flour. It’s then brought to life with a sourdough starter. What you get are blistered pies cooked in a visible custom oven, in combos like a truly fantastic street corn with lime crema, cilantro, and jalapenos, loaded baked potato, and a hearty Carnivore with braised local short rib, pepperoni, bacon, and mozzarella on red sauce.

And don’t sleep on the appetizers. The crispy crab hush puppies are great; and the roasted broccolini with Calabrian chili is an ideal way to get some greens in. Pastry chef Carelys Vazquez is baking here, too, so dessert is worthwhile.

Here’s a deux-fer for you: a double act by Ford Fry and Rocket Farm Restaurants in the former JCT Kitchen & Bar at Westside Provisions District, both of which will have strong French accents. The first of the duo to open last month, Little Sparrow, is named after singer Edith Piaf, lover of Marcel Cerdan, for whom Fry’s Marcel is named after. Here, you’ll fine tonnes of pommes, be they frite with aioli, béarnaise, or with raclette service, or aligot with infinitely stretchy cheese whipped into them. French bistro classics — think onion soup gratinee, halibut pot au feu — lead a menu that finishes with tableside-prepared cherries jubilee.

Bar Blanc upstairs is its quick follow-up, offering indoor, outdoor, and lounge seating and an appealing $49.50 prix fixe menu that starts with a levain starter baguette, a house salad, and steak with even more frites – this time, they’re unlimited. Rotating lagers and ales on draft, classic cocktails, and an a la carte dessert menu to be savored to the sound of French hip-hop and indie Americana tracks that help transform the too-cool setting into a scene.

Call 404-355-2252 for more info.

There’s something to scream about in EAV, and for once (at least not this very moment), it’s not the rising rents. In case you’ve forgotten, Banshee is the O.G. endeavor by executive chef-owner Nolan Wynn that earned him a James Beard semifinalist nod when it opened in 2018. His more recent opening, Bona Fide Deluxe, a notable newcomer, has popped his name – and that of his business partners – back in the spotlight. But let’s not forget to pay homage to the things that came first.

This casual New American spot is still serving lively and inventive dishes with plentiful shouts to regional cuisine. As in, arancini made with collard greens, and spaghetti alla chitarra using a sorghum-cured yolk to enrich chanterrels. Don’t count on any particular dish to be omnipresent, due to a menu designed around seasonal ingredients. Except for the fry bread — yes, the one with the famous pepperoni butter.

Pro tip: You’ll have to wait until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays for Screamin’ Weenies, a hot dog stand featuring Fripper’s. The good news? Once they’re open, they stay that way until 2 a.m.

Very often, what makes a meal an “experience” is buttoned up service and dressing up for dates. In this case, dinner’s the show at this 23-year-old mainstay, and all the dining room is an ornate, over-the-top stage.

Showmanship continues with tableside presentations, done with aplomb. The gueridon cart with Parmiggano Reggiano sliced straight off the wheel is where many start, and a chilled limoncello pour can wrap things up toward the end. In other cases, specials like an outstanding, outsized bone-in filet mignon are a marquee act in and of itself. Reserve your table for prime time and you might find the exuberance reaching a crescendo as the music blasts and the legendary owner, Mama Gale, starts doling out themed party favors, like witch’s hats guests end up wearing through their last bite of a great tiramisu.

Call 404-600-2176 for reservations.

Pop a collar and pop a seat for a golf club experience without ever having to swing one. Don’t overlook this restaurant that does the same for the Bobby Jones Golf Course on Tanyard Creek. It’s open to the public by reservation, and with limited semi-private seating in the dining room and patio, it’s an outing you’ll want to plan for. Luckily, complimentary parking on the golf course parking deck makes it easy to find a spot for your car.

Even so, a rideshare might be a good call – Boone’s has been lauded for its wine list, and offers  a wide variety by the glass, plus and craft beer on tap. They go with a menu by executive chef Jason Stern that highlights local, seasonal ingredients: Anson Mills grits to go with salmon and broccolini, rice grits risotto with baby shrimp and pickled jalapenos for the Atlantic scallops. Before that, start with house pimento cheese fritters with red pepper jam.

Best of all, eating well does good here. This restaurant is actually operated by the Bobby Jones Golf Course Foundation, which creates programming designed to grow the game with a special focus on juniors and adaptive golfers. Your meal here goes toward the 2,000 junior golfers hosted by their programs, on a course that’s open to anyone.

His pop-ups are settling down as the mysterious coordinator extraordinaire known Sam Flemming, founder of Punk Foodie, closes on a permanent space at Ponce City Market. That’s not to say the concept is staying still. This food stall in the Central Food Hall is actually serving as a restaurant and chef accelerator designed to amplify the talent of underground, independent, and culturally diverse cooks in our fair city. And of those, there are plenty – the schedule of one- to two-month residencies is already chock-full, and that’s not even including the monthly brunch rotation and themed collaboration dinners on Mondays.

The stall’s opening act stars Jess Kim and Jun Park as they present Ganji for Korean-inspired American fast fusion. The first month also featured an appearance by “Bosnian-ish” Krupana; American jerk and barbecue from Jimmie’s Jerk Chicken and Taiwanese-American Mighty Hans, fresh off a second collaboration with Humble Pie. That collab spirit of pop-ups is going to be further nurtured, as every Monday will have a special theme, from dumplings of the world to a hot-dog night starring Fripper’s (a bonus alternative to the aforementioned Screamin’ Weenies) as this accelerator picks up speed.

Learn more at www.punkfoodie.com

Quite a change-up from the iconic The General Muir, casual West Egg Café, and other Rye Restaurants holdings, this Italian red sauce joint by Beard-nominated chef Todd Ginsberg quickly calls to mind the grandiose space and glitz of Las Vegas and the dishes and brash swag of New York City Italian spots. But would you expect anything less at a hotel like the Thompson Atlanta Buckhead, where this restaurant anchors the ground floor dining options?

Arrive before your appointed Resy hour to have a drink at the hotel’s lobby bar, a library-like setting where (as her Instagram implies), the hotel’s Head of Beverage Thandi Walton personally pours. Transition over to the floor-to-ceiling windowed dining room to finish your cocktail with a refreshing salad of marinated beets, feta, blood orange and pistachios. The lasagna – served as a crispy-edged roll-up in a portion fit for two – is the next move. Also try the generously portioned chicken marsala. And land gracefully with a New York cheesecake, an ode of sorts to red-sauce culture in the Big Apple.