The bar at Tio Lucho’s, one of Atlanta’s most vibrant restaurants. Photo courtesy of Tio Lucho’s

How to Spend a Perfect 72 Hours Eating Your Way Through Atlanta

By Su-Jit Lin May 12, 2025

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport may not be the biggest airport in the world, but we’re pretty proud of its status as the busiest, with 105 million travelers passing through in 2023. Sure, some are just en route elsewhere, but if that’s all they’re doing, they’re doing it wrong.

With so many flights routing through ATL, it’s easy enough to plan out a long layover of … say, 72 hours? Which is just enough meals to give you a literal taste of why you should come back for a lengthier play.

Plan to arrive Thursday night and stay through Sunday for a quick weekend getaway (pro tip: we have thoughts on hotels for a perfect home base) to discover why nearly 63,000 people relocated to Atlanta just last year. Between our wealth of green spaces; our historical significance to American civil rights; the diversity of our culinary scene; access to the unexpected, like exceptional seafood; and all of the amenities of a big city with a lower cost of dining out than other notable hubs, we hold it down in terms of great dining. (If you need more inspo, our Atlanta Hit List is an always-on resource for terrific choices.)

And we’ve planned a perfect three-day jaunt to prove our point.

Su-Jit Lin is a rehabilitated New Yorker, former New Orleanian, and current Atlantan, in addition to being a travel, food, and lifestyle writer. She has contributed to EatingWell, HuffPost, Epicurious, The Takeout, Eater, The Kitchn, VinePair, Thrillist, Food & Wine, Serious Eats, Southern Living, and more. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.

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Photo courtesy of Ryokou

Ryokou Adair Park

Land in Atlanta, On to Japan

If you’re already in a travel state of mind, what’s another continent? Head to Japan immediately by way of Atlanta’s most unique and latest omakase concept, Ryokou. (Pro tip: choose the 8 or 8:30 p.m. seating if you’re getting in late) The brainchild of Leonard Yu and a follow-up to his Michelin-starred Omakase Table, this pan-Japan journey led by chef Paul Gutting takes guests through a leisurely journey of the country’s prefectures, featuring rare cuts and ingredients, location-specific techniques, dry-aged fish (a technique learned from Jason Liang of Atlanta’s revered Brush Sushi), and impeccably paired, unusual sakes. So sit back and savor the moment — y’all made it to the A.

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Bomb Biscuit Co. Old Fourth Ward

Fuel Up for Friday on the Beltline

With a busy day of outdoor adventure ahead, starting at Erika Council’s nationally acclaimed brunch spot is the move. Experience some of the recipes from her cookbook, “Still We Rise,” and understand how a humble-seeming menu has earned a spot among lists of the country’s 50 best restaurants. Try a black pepper bacon biscuit by itself, go for the original Buttermilk topped with Glori-Fried Chicken, or Atlanta’s favorite chicken flavor, lemon pepper. Sated and caffeinated, jump onto the Beltline Eastside Trail heading toward the Historic Fourth Ward Skatepark. (Snap pics of the art installations along the path – many are temporary.)

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Tio Lucho's Poncey-Highland

Tio Lucho's dish — Photo courtesy of Tio Lucho’s

Freedom Park & Peruvian

If you’ve meandered all the way to the other side of the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Freedom Park, the largest linear park in Atlanta, congratulations — you more than deserve what’s next. At Tio Lucho’s, James Beard Award semifinalist Arnaldo Castillo cooks up his sense of home: everything he grew up with in Lima and Piura, Peru; the techniques and flavors of the American South; and influences from his partnership with Atlanta heavyweight Howard Hsu of Sweet Auburn Barbecue. The hamachi tiradito with coconut-tamarind leche de tigre and salad with quinoa, apples, and aji dulce are refreshing choices best washed down with any of their signature sours, especially the passionfruit.

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