Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
Southern-style collard greens slow-braised with smoked pork (ham hock, turkey wing or bacon), onion, garlic, vinegar and red-pepper flakes. The defining Atlanta soul-food vegetable.
Collard greens were brought to the American South by enslaved West Africans, who adapted the West African leaf-vegetable tradition (egusi, kontomire) to the European Brassica varieties grown in the Carolinas and Georgia. The slow-braise with smoked pork and the resulting 'pot liquor' became the canonical Southern preparation. Busy Bee Cafe (open since 1947), Paschal's and Mary Mac's Tea Room serve the reference Atlanta versions. The dish is the heart of every soul-food meat-and-three plate.
4 editor picks for Collard greens in Atlanta, ranked by editorial score. All Atlanta signature dishes · Collard greens across every city.
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.
OrderFried chicken with two sides; the oxtails on lunch special when available.
TipCash and card. Lunch and early dinner only Tuesday to Sunday; line forms before noon weekends.
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 $$.
OrderFried chicken plate with collard greens, mac and cheese, candied yams.
TipThe current Castleberry Hill location since 2002 expanded with a banquet space; the original Hunter Street site is preserved at Clark Atlanta.
Mary Mac's Tea Room in Atlanta opened 1945 and runs Southern Sunday dinner classics in a four-dining-room compound on Ponce de Leon, with the same recipes.
OrderPot likker with a side of cornbread, then fried chicken with three sides.
TipOrder the pot likker as a starter; it comes free with cornbread. No reservations Monday through Thursday lunch; OpenTable for dinner and weekends.
This Is It Southern Kitchen in Cascade and West End, Atlanta runs takeaway-counter soul food: fried chicken, ribs, wings and Southern sides since 1985.
OrderWings and ribs
TipDrive-through and walk-up. The whole wings with a side of mac are the move. Multiple locations across Atlanta.
Collard greens makes more sense with someone from Atlanta explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
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