In addition to our normal news coverage, What Now Atlanta is tracking ways Atlanta’s businesses are adapting to the novel coronavirus and the challenges it brings to brick-and-mortars.
The economic fallout from having to close down for nearly a month under Georgia’s “shelter-in-place” order in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 has proven to be financially unsustainable for many restaurants, even with aid from the Federal government, including the Paycheck Protection Program.
As a result, several restaurants have made the difficult decision to permanently shutter, and won’t ever reopen.
And while these restaurants have been allowed to start serving out of dining rooms as of Monday, April 27 as ordered by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, many were and are hesitant to do so with mounting concerns for the safety of customers and employees alike; not to mention a daunting 39 guidelines that must be implemented to reopen.
This regularly updated list, with the most recently-surfaced closures at the top, is a final farewell to those fallen restaurants. Please email us here if you know of a closure.
ADDED August 10, 2020
Sweet Auburn Seafood
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED July 22, 2020
Pita Grille
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Gio’s Chicken – The Battery Atlanta
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Highland Bakery – Decatur
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Genki Noodles and Sushi – Virginia-Highland
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED June 28, 2020
Noble Fin
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Amelie’s French Bakery
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Dantanna’s
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Mother
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED June 18, 2020
Zinburger – Lenox Square, Dunwoody
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED June 7, 2020
Ted’s Montana Grill – Cumberland, Decatur
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED June 7, 2020
Tap & Six
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED MAY 26, 2020
Ebrik Coffee Room Downtown
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED MAY 19, 2020
The Canteen
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Simon’s Restaurant
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED MAY 18, 2020
Public School 404
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
C&S Seafood and Oyster Bar, Roswell
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
ADDED MAY 13, 2020
Lucky’s Burger and Brew, Emory Village
Read What Now Atlanta’s coverage here.
Anne and Bill’s
“I am saddened to say that Anne and Bill’s will no longer continue to be open…our sales have dropped so low that we can not continue to operate…we have been so blessed and I know there is a reason for everything and I can’t see it right now but I’m sure one day I will understand…we love all of our customers and if I could find a way I would surely do it…46 years in business says it all…this virus has taken everything I have worked so hard to hold on to…God has a plan and all I can do is trust him. I love you all and thank you for so many years of success…Please pray for me…I can’t even find the words to explain what we have been through…please pray for all of my employees as we take this step…”
ADDED MAY 12, 2020
“Cafe Sunflower has been my family’s livelihood for over the past two decades. My parents, Lin and Edward, started their careers in the restaurant business in the mid-70s after immigrating to the U.S. from Taiwan. After working in my uncle’s restaurants, they struck out on their own. Cafe Sunflower was born in 1994. The community didn’t know what to make of a vegetarian restaurant then. We had a few initial customers, and some customers saw our Asian faces and made assumptions about the food and never tried it. It was through sheer luck and enormous amounts of grit that Cafe Sunflower began receiving recognition in Sandy Springs. Being voted Best Vegetarian and eventually Best Vegan was a nice pat on the back for the effort my parents and our staff put into the restaurant. But even better was seeing a community of customers grow along with our business, all sharing in a passion for tasty vegan cuisine. (We see some of you three times a week!) It was through that support that my parents were able to employ a staff of nearly 30 and put three kids through college. Operating a restaurant is a 24-7 job. Things are constantly needing to be fixed, vendors can’t come through with produce, burglaries happen. Through all of these things and more, Lin and Edward were able to sustain not only one but two vegan restaurants in Atlanta. Then came 2020. We were into our busiest season when the pandemic hit. As with so many others, our business was mostly obliterated. Difficult choices were made. Employees—some who had been with us for decades—had to be laid off. Now comes the hardest choice in these bleak times: we can only save one restaurant. Today, it is with great sadness and difficulty that I let you know that our Sandy Springs restaurant will be closed permanently. I know many of you have had special moments there, because we celebrated them with you: first dates, engagements, birthday parties, baby showers, and wedding receptions. We have been so deeply honored to be a part of the Sandy Springs community for these past 25 years, and it is beyond difficult for us to say goodbye. There is a lot of uncertainty ahead, but we are still fighting! All of our energy is now going into our Buckhead location, and with that, I ask that our beloved Sandy Springs community continue to support us there in any way that you can. We want to thank you again for all that you’ve done for our family, and for the families of our staff.”
ADDED MAY 11, 2020
Sweet Tomatoes (all locations)
“To our valued guests, as you may have heard, we are unable to re-open our 97 Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes restaurants due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The outpouring of love on social media has been overwhelming and we are so grateful to all of the sweet memories you have shared with us. We would like to thank our 4,400 team members for their dedication and love they have shown to our local communities. We will miss you tremendously and wish you all the best.”
Duke’s Bar & Grill
“Unfortunately, we are closing permanently,” Co-Owner Lauren Carroll Hogan, wrote on the restaurant’s Facebook page recently responding to a rumor that Duke’s wouldn’t be reopening. “We sure will miss our guests.”
Big Pie In The Sky Pizzeria, Roswell
“Writing this post to share an update about the Roswell location with everyone. It is with much sadness that we are closing down the Roswell store. We had around an 80% drop in Revenue the last weeks in March and couldn’t afford to keep staff in the store so we decided to temporarily close. Now that this economic shut down has continued for so long, we are simply unable to reopen moving forward. We are thankful that our Kennesaw location was able to sustain decent business and even hire some of the Roswell staff during all this and is still going strong! We truly enjoyed serving the Roswell community for the last 6 years and hate that it is ending like this. We appreciate so much all of our customers and all the memories from our time at the Roswell location. Please come and visit us in Kennesaw if you can and hopefully we can reopen another location in the area in the near future. Please email [email protected] with any questions. Thanks, and we hope to see you all again soon!“
Greater Good BBQ, Tucker
“Sadly we have closed [Greater Good BBQ] Tucker permanently. After trying to stay open for to-go only unsuccessfully, we informed the landlord that we were unable to pay rent until we could get reopened. We were told that that was not an option. In this difficult time, we were forced to move on and reassess our business moving forward. In the meantime, our Roswell Rd location is healthy and thriving.“
ADDED MAY 9, 2020
Panahar Bangladeshi Cuisine
“Thank You Atlanta for wonderful 20 years you helped us stay in business. As of now, Panahar will be permanently closed. We had the same chef/owner since the year 2000, and we would like to thank him for his dedication and all of our staff throughout the years. We had numerous repeating guests, guests that came and celebrated for their birthdays, anniversaries, special occasions, dates, and any other nights. Our highlights years were from 2004-2014, it was super busy, we were featured in Food Network, AJC Newspaper, and other articles. Overall, Thank you, everyone, that supported the restaurant from the 20-year span. We greatly appreciate the memories you spent with us, Atlanta…and our guests that came all around the world for the last 20 years. Thank you.”
Blaxican
“Que Pasa Y’all, unfortunately, we have to permanently close our Peachtree Corners restaurant. The facts are even after loans and fundraisers we don’t have the financial reserves to stay open after being closed for 3 months, and not knowing how long it will be for things to return to normal. We are still able to operate our food truck and will be doing neighborhood events and private catering. Email [email protected] for more info.Thanks for the memories, love, and support.”
The Georgian Club
“It is with great sadness to inform you all that after 38 years in business, The Georgian Club will not reopen. There are numerous factors that have gone into this decision, but in the end, the impact from the coronavirus, both now and in the future, necessitates the permanent closing of the club. We can’t thank our members and friends enough for the support that has been provided. The Georgian Club has been an important thread in the fabric of our community, and we are incredibly sad to see it close. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach Matthew Goldwait at [email protected].”
US Cafe, Buckhead
Dear Loyal US Cafe Guests, unfortunately, due to the current situation, we have made the difficult decision to close our Buckhead location indefinitely. This was a very tough decision to make as it impacts our guests and our team members – one of which has been with us since we opened back in 2010! We want to thank our team who have been passionate about serving our guests. We will miss seeing you and exchanging stories. While we are a restaurant, we consider all of our guests and team family. It has been an awesome 10 years and we’ve appreciated the opportunity to serve and meet our guests who discovered us for the first time as well as our Smyrna guests who frequented this location. We will miss all of you. That being said, both our Smyrna locations are open regular hours to serve you. Any rewards points or gift cards will be honored in Smyrna. Currently, due to local ordinance, we do not allow dine-in service, but our online, call-in, and to-go options are still available. Please go to www.uscafe.net for more details. During this time, we need your support more than ever. Thanks again to our Buckhead guests for the memories. Please see us if you venture outside the perimeter. For our Smyrna guests, we look forward to seeing you soon! We need you more than ever!
Grant Henry, the owner of the neighboring CHURCH bar, has acquired the space and on June 1, 2020, will reopen both Church and the shuttered Corner Tavern as “MEGA CHURCH.”
“It is time to say goodbye. Grateful for an amazing 30 years. Grateful for the best customer-friends. Grateful for years of loyal employees. Grateful for our vendors. Grateful for everyone that joined with us to create a special place for the community to come together and celebrate life!”
[Editor’s note: The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is rapidly evolving as is its effect on Atlanta, and the City’s businesses and its residents. Click here for What Now Atlanta’s ongoing coverage of the crisis. For guidance and updates on the pandemic, please visit the C.D.C. website.]
20 Responses
So disturbing to see our small businesses making the hard decision to close permanently.
Small businesses were the backbone of America, and the big corporations have just eaten them up– now we have a pandemic that further escalates that.
Dine-in restaurants can’t subsist on take-out and/or a 50% cut in dining capacity– plus 39 other requirements.
Sadly, I’m certain more closures are to come…
I am in complete agreement, add to that the heartless attitudes I have witnessed from our fellow citizens calling for boycotting restaurants that try to open and follow the guidelines just saddens me.
I live in Midtown and see people crowding restaurant patios and the park every day. I don’t see people protesting that, I see people protesting them opening a Dollar General because they wanted Becky’s Birkin Botique instead, even though a small business couldn’t afford to rent the space. A big part of Midtown’s problem starts with rents being too high because of all the money laundering, its not as extreme as San Francisco but something like 400 restaurants closed there in 2019, before the pandemic. Everyone is paying too much rent, and we send the problem welfare checks. Supply side economics, what fun.
Georgia Grille had been planning to close l-o-n-g before COVID-19 came onto the scene. I was told this by the owner back in late-2019. JSYK.
Hahaha it’s just like the major leftist publications calling everything a covid19 death even though the situation will have been someone skydiving without a parachute.
Those doggone leftists keeping Merica from being great again!
The Corner Tavern is mislabeled as Edgewood. This location is actually in O4W.
Umm
It’s on Edgewood, the street, not the neighborhood.
It’s on Edgewood
Believe the Folks restaurant chain is gone. Tucker location for sale at any rate. Not sure on Woodstock or Hiram.
All of Folks has closed, sadly.
Folks in Marietta closed before covid 19 was even an issue.
Hope that Golden Corrals & Fried Tomato Buffets reopen soon.
Buffets will definitely be a thing of the past unless they get very creative. I am not touching another spoon that someone else just touched to serve themselves, sorry.
No one that is interested in their health was eating at buffets before. I’m sure it’ll be the same going forward…
This is such a sad article to have to re-read with each update. I hate it for the folks having to make the decisions to close up shop for good.
The Georgian Club is the one that strikes me … kinda viewed that as an ‘esablishment’
Add Cacao Cafe in Va-Hi to the list…
Tassa Roti Shop (Alpharetta location) is permanently closed, per the website:
https://tassarotishop.com/menu/alpharetta/
Sent comment awhile back regarding closing of Churchill’s in Buckhead and now the Your Pie store as well…