Friends and fans of The Lawrence, a Midtown favorite for more than a decade, were surprised when owners Darren Carr and Eric Simpkins posted an announcement on the restaurant website: “Our last day of service will be Monday, January 30.
“We will be offering a new cocktail menu of the staff’s drinks of choice,” they added, softening the blow. “To honor the people who have enjoyed serving our local community.”
They’ve also assured the community that they are working on a new restaurant concept that will open at the same location, one that will reflect the changes that have taken place in Midtown over the past 10 years.
“Midtown is such a different neighborhood now from what it was when The Lawrence opened over a decade ago,” Carr told Beth McKibben at Eater Atlanta. “It’s much more walkable and neighborhood driven, especially this side of Peachtree.”
When What Now Atlanta reached out for details, Carr declined to comment. When pressed, he added, “I don’t want to put the wrong information out there.” When asked again, he replied, “Can we say it’s a banana split restaurant? Bananas eight different ways?”
It will probably not be a banana split restaurant. But that’s the closest we’re going to get to a scoop today.
The duo isn’t going to get any downtime while The Lawrence is transformed. Bon Ton, the Vietnamese-Cajun fusion seafood restaurant that they opened in 2017, is going strong.
They’ve also replaced Top Flr in the space above Bon Ton with a new cocktail bar, the Waiting Room, “embracing ’70s vibes full-on with red shag carpet and DayGlo lighting,” according to Carly Cooper of Atlanta Magazine. It opens very soon, which will make it the perfect place to have a drink and wait for news about what’s next at The Lawrence.
