Belgian$$decaturMon 16:30-23:30, Tue-Thu 11:30-23:30, Fri-Sat 11:30-00:30, Sun 11:30-23:30
Brick Store Pub in Decatur Square, Atlanta opened 1997 with a Belgian beer focus and pub menu. The upstairs Belgian Bar runs the rare brews.
Signature: Belgian moules frites, Burger, Beer cheese fondue
Order: Moules frites in Belgian saison, with a Cantillon or Dupont on tap.
Tip: Upstairs Belgian Bar runs rare Belgian beers; downstairs is the casual pub. Reservations on the front bar only.
American Gastropub$$$decaturMon 17:00-00:00, Tue-Thu 11:30-00:00, Fri-Sat 11:30-02:00, Sun 11:30-00:00
Leon's Full Service in Decatur, Atlanta opened 2010 inside a converted gas station with a pommes frites bar, a serious cocktail programme and an American.
Signature: Pommes frites, Burger, Cocktail program
Order: Pommes frites with three dipping sauces; the burger; a snappy classic cocktail.
Tip: The patio sits on Ponce de Leon. Reservations on Resy; the bar takes walk-ins with the full menu.
American$$west-midtownMon 11:30-14:00, Mon 17:30-22:00, Tue 11:30-14:00, Tue 17:30-22:00, Wed 11:30-14:00, Wed 17:30-22:00, Thu 11:30-14:00, Thu 17:30-22:00, Fri 11:30-14:00, Fri-Sat 17:30-22:30
Chef Todd Ginsberg's West Midtown room in Atlanta runs the city's most-debated burger: the double-stack with American cheese on a Martin's potato bun.
Signature: Stack burger, Beet salad
Order: The Bocado Stack Burger.
Tip: Reservations on Resy. Closed Sundays. Patio sits on Howell Mill.
Soul food$$old-fourth-wardMon-Tue 08:00-15:00, Thu-Sun 08:00-15:00
Ria Pell's Memorial Drive diner in Old Fourth Ward, Atlanta opened 2000 across from Oakland Cemetery with the city's cult buttermilk pancakes and Southern.
Signature: Buttermilk pancakes, Shrimp and grits
Order: Buttermilk pancakes with a side of bacon, then shrimp and grits the second visit.
Tip: No reservations; line forms by 09:00 on weekends. Walking distance from Oakland Cemetery and Cabbagetown.
Southern Diner$$reynoldstownDaily 08:00-14:00
Home Grown on Memorial Drive in Reynoldstown, Atlanta runs a Southern diner with the cult Comfy Chicken Biscuit and country-fried steak since 2011.
Signature: Comfy chicken biscuit, Country fried steak
Order: The Comfy Chicken Biscuit (fried chicken on a biscuit with sausage gravy).
Tip: No reservations; the line builds by 09:30 weekends. Cash and card.
Seafood$$morningsideDaily 08:00-21:00
Shaun Doty's rotisserie chicken counter in Morningside, Atlanta runs free-range and antibiotic-free birds with seasonal vegetable sides since 2012.
Signature: Rotisserie chicken, Roasted vegetables
Order: A quarter rotisserie chicken with two seasonal vegetable sides.
Tip: Counter ordering. The chicken-pot-pie at lunch is the under-the-radar pick. Family takeaway packs feed four.