Welcome to DiningOut’s Plate Full of News, your weekly serving of Atlanta’s restaurant, bar, and culinary happenings. From buzzy openings and chef moves to can’t-miss events, menu debuts, and industry news, here’s everything you need to know about the city’s dining scene this week.
Minwah Spirits poured its last round in Doraville over brunch on Sunday, November 1, closing out its taproom ahead of a move to West Midtown, where the new space is slated to open in early 2027. Postern Coffee, which had been sharing the Doraville property, is taking over the full space.
Milk & Maple Coffeehouse celebrated its grand opening on Sunday, November 1, at 730 Ponce de Leon Place NE, right along the Beltline’s Eastside Trail just north of Ponce City Market. Owned and operated by Chabad Intown, the shop bills itself as the Beltline’s first fully kosher coffeehouse, with its whole menu certified by the Atlanta Kashruth Commission. The drink to try is the house salted maple latte, served hot or iced, alongside espresso drinks, matcha, and chai, plus a roomy patio for trail-side people-watching. It’s open Sunday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Holiday flavors land at Atlanta-area Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams scoop shops on Wednesday, November 4, and this year’s headliner is a newcomer: Sticky Toffee Pudding, which folds chunks of brown sugar cake and ribbons of buttery toffee sauce into a vanilla-date custard, a frozen riff on the English classic. It’s joined by five returning seasonal favorites: White Chocolate Peppermint, Pistachio Macaron, whiskey-spiked Boozy Eggnog, Cranberry Panettone with Chocolate Sprinkles, and Black Tie Tiramisu.
O by Brush is teaming up with IWA Sake for a one-night omakase on Wednesday, November 4, at 6 p.m. Chef Jason Liang will serve 18 guests a multi-course menu of dry-aged seafood and Edomae-inspired dishes, each paired with an IWA release poured at its own temperature and in its own vessel. Seats are $450 per person, with optional add-ons from salmon roe sushi ($10) to an A5 Wagyu ribeye ($85). Reservations are available on OpenTable.
Mastro’s Ocean Club opens Friday, November 6, in The CTR, the former CNN Center Downtown, marking the upscale steak and seafood brand’s first location in Georgia. Expect USDA Prime steaks, raw bar towers, sushi, and handcrafted cocktails, with live music nightly and the signature warm butter cake for dessert. Reservations are available through the Mastro’s website.
Chomp & Stomp, Cabbagetown’s annual chili and bluegrass festival, returns for its 23rd year on Friday, November 6, with an 8 to 10 p.m. kickoff in Cabbagetown Park. The main event follows on Saturday, November 7, opening at 11 a.m. with a chili cook-off starting at 12:30 p.m., live music on six stages until 6 p.m., and an artist market. Tasting spoons are $12 in advance at Little’s Food Store, Mikkelson’s Market, Sweet Cheats, and Emerald City Bagels Beltline, or $18 at the festival, with proceeds benefiting the Cabbagetown Initiative.
Cask ale gets its moment on Saturday, November 7, when SweetWater Brewing Company hosts the return of Brew Your Cask Off at its Ottley Drive brewery. From 3 to 6 p.m., the 21-and-up festival pours samples from more than 30 one-off casks made by local breweries and restaurants, so expect plenty of sips you won’t find on any other tap list. Each $30 ticket includes a souvenir tasting glass. Live music and local vendors round out the afternoon. Grab tickets and preview the lineup on Eventbrite.
Fifty years after a Napa cabernet bested the top Bordeaux at the 1976 Judgment of Paris, Waldorf Astoria Atlanta Buckhead is marking the anniversary with a one-night Stag’s Leap Wine Dinner on Thursday, November 12. Executive chef Todd Richards has built a five-course menu around the winery’s pours, which include the Karia Chardonnay and the S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon, a bottling drawn from some of the estate’s oldest vines. Dinner starts at 6 p.m. and costs $235 per person. Book through OpenTable.
More than 40 chilis will be up for tasting at the Atlanta Chili Cook Off, returning to Dunwoody’s Brook Run Park on Saturday, November 14, from noon to 4 p.m. Amateur cooks, restaurants and caterers will battle for $5,000 in cash and prizes, and attendees get a say through the People’s Choice vote. General admission ($25, rising to $30 on November 10) and VIP tickets ($50, rising to $60) are on sale through BigTickets, and kids 12 and under get in free.
Pitmaster Bryan Furman, the name behind the late, much-missed B’s Cracklin’ Barbecue, is back in Atlanta and firing up the smokers at Owens & Co. in Smyrna/Mableton, where he joins founder and pitmaster Robert Owens. Furman is bringing a few of his signatures along, including his peach mustard sauce, South Carolina-style hash and rice, and a sharing-size half turkey. One change for regulars: brisket and short rib are now pre-order only, with orders taken on Thursdays.
Sunday brunch at Kitty Dare in Inman Park has a new menu with a stronger Mediterranean accent, served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Look for Koo Koo Sabzi, a Persian herb-and-egg dish, alongside shrimp shakshuka, Tunisian eggplant with fried eggs, a mezze board with barbari bread, and orange-cardamom French toast. Sundays also feature four $12 cocktails made with Sarti Rosa, a rosy Italian aperitivo, including a spritz and a Negroni riff. Reserve at kittydare.com.
Buckhead restaurant Atlanta Fish Market is throwing its first-ever Oyster Fest on Saturday, November 14, from 2 to 7 p.m. The $69 ticket covers more than 20 seafood stations serving oysters raw, fried, roasted, and Rockefeller-style, plus extras like lobster rolls and shrimp po’boys, along with live music and DJ sets. Cocktails are sold separately, and a vendor raffle raises money for Giving Kitchen, which supports food service workers in crisis. The event happens rain or shine; tickets are on OpenTable.
