Sweet Auburn Curb Market still anchors the historic Black business district. Pittypat's Porch, Mary Mac's nearby and downtown hotel kitchens fill the rest.
Paschal's in Atlanta has served soul food since 1947, when brothers Robert and James Paschal opened on Hunter Street. Located in Downtown. Priced at $$.
Signature: Fried chicken, Collard greens, Peach cobbler
Order: Fried chicken plate with collard greens, mac and cheese, candied yams.
Tip: The current Castleberry Hill location since 2002 expanded with a banquet space; the original Hunter Street site is preserved at Clark Atlanta.
Busy Bee Cafe in Atlanta opened 1947 on MLK Drive and won the James Beard America's Classics Award in 2022 for its decades of soul food service near the AUC.
Signature: Fried chicken, Oxtails, Collard greens
Order: Fried chicken with two sides; the oxtails on lunch special when available.
Tip: Cash and card. Lunch and early dinner only Tuesday to Sunday; line forms before noon weekends.
Reuben's Deli on Broad Street in downtown Atlanta has run a NY-style counter since 1986: pastrami reubens, the Atlanta Dog with chili and slaw.
Try: Atlanta dog and pastrami reuben
Tip: Yell your order from the doorway; only eight tables. Closed Sunday. The pastrami reuben is the first-timer order; ask staff about the secret-menu Old Tuesday.
Atlanta Breakfast Club on Ivan Allen Jr Boulevard in downtown Atlanta runs all-day Southern breakfast: crispy chicken biscuits, chicken and waffles.
Try: Crispy chicken biscuits and chicken and waffles
Tip: No reservations; the line builds before 09:00 weekends but moves fast. The crispy chicken biscuits with grape jelly are the canonical first order.
Sweet Auburn Curb Market in downtown Atlanta has run since 1918 in the historic Auburn Avenue Black business district. Open mon-sat 08:00-20:00.
Tip: Closed Sundays. Bell Street Burritos, Grindhouse Killer Burgers and Miss D's New Orleans Pralines anchor the food court inside.
Unexpected Atlanta runs a biscuit class inside Sweet Auburn Curb Market with vendor tastings: a two-hour Southern primer plus history.
Tip: Indoor and climate-controlled inside the market. Good rainy-day backup; come hungry, the vendor tastings are generous.
MJQ Concourse is the underground Atlanta dance club that has run since 1994, recently relocated into the Underground Atlanta complex with two rooms, a patio and house, techno and hip-hop selectors.
Tip: Open Wednesday through Saturday 23:00-04:00. MJQ Wednesdays remains the longest-running Wednesday dance party in the city; line forms before midnight.
Future Atlanta is the 14,000 square foot two-story LGBTQ dance club inside Underground Atlanta with a main dance floor, drag cabaret stage and outdoor patio for weekend international DJ bookings.
Tip: Weekends bring touring DJs and Fantasy Girls Drag Cabaret. Tickets via the venue site; the patio is the easier entry point on busy nights.
The Tabernacle in a 1911 former Baptist church on Luckie Street is the 2,600 capacity Live Nation room that hosts rock, hip-hop, indie and comedy across three balconied levels in downtown Atlanta.
Tip: Floor general admission, balcony seated. Doors usually 19:00 with openers at 20:00; arrive early for the rail and watch the stained glass.
SkyLounge atop the Glenn Hotel in the Centennial Park District is the downtown rooftop with a covered indoor bar, an outdoor terrace and views over Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the Atlanta skyline.
Tip: Cover applies after 19:00. Walk-up only, first-come seating. Weeknights are calmer; weekends pack at sunset.
Polaris is the 1967 rotating blue-dome lounge atop the Hyatt Regency that completes a full turn every 45 minutes, 312 feet above Peachtree Street with shared plates, cocktails and the original UFO silhouette.
Tip: Reserve via OpenTable for the dining room; the lounge takes walk-ins. The full rotation runs 45 minutes; sunset is the table to ask for.
Red Phone Booth in the Dailey's building downtown is the 1920s prohibition cocktail and cigar lounge entered through a restored red British K6 phone box. The nightly secret code unlocks the door.
Tip: Find the nightly code on the venue site or social; dial inside the phone booth to enter. Smart casual dress, cigar lounge in the back.