• Development / Events

    Thousands Attend Inaugural PowerRising18 Summit In Atlanta
    atlantafi-com-staff February 26, 2018
    2 Min Read

    On Sunday, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms welcomed over 400 attendees of the Power Rising 18 Summit to the City of Atlanta. “Your voices are being heard and your power is being felt across this city,” said.

    More than 1,000 women attended the three-day inaugural event, which was held at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in downtown Atlanta. They listened to workshops, seminars and daily speeches about knowing your worth, affirmations on success and how to empower themselves.

    Some heavy-hitters in many industries were in attendance, including TV personality Star Jones, LaToia Jones, director of Strategic Partnerships and Community Engagement for Hustle, former Democratic National Committee COO Minyon Moore and Nakisha Lewis, founder of the social justice organization, SheWoke.org.

    Karen Finney, a political strategist and former spokeswoman for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, said planning the conference was event “a labor of love.”

    “It’s a real testament to how black women can come together,” she told NBC News. “There are a whole range of issues — health care, access to capital — that impact black women that either aren’t being discussed, or are sublimated to a larger conversation. We want to strategize and create an actionable agenda that people can take back to their communities.”

    The summit grew out of a brainstorm from some women of color in Congress.

    Leah Daughtry, an evangelist who was also a lead organizer of Power Rising, told the crowd that the summit came together because of their faith. “All we had was an idea, no money,” she said at Sunday’s closing session, according to the Washington Post. “Those of you who are here are the brave ones. The ones who said, ‘We don’t know who the speakers are. We don’t know what time it starts. All we know is, it’s in Atlanta, and it’s going to be some black women, so we’re going!’ I appreciate you,” she tearfully added.

    Comments Off on Thousands Attend Inaugural PowerRising18 Summit In Atlanta
  • Atlanta / Entertainment / TV

    ‘Atlanta FX’ Returns Thursday And We Can’t Wait
    atlantafi-com-staff February 26, 2018
    2 Min Read

    The second season of “Atlanta FX” will premiere at 10 .m. Thursday, March 1, 2018, bringing Donald Glover, Lakeith Stanfield and Bryan Tyree Henry back to the small screen for an encore.

    Also back are Earnest (Earn) Marks and Vanessa (Van) Keifer, who have a child together on the show but are one of those couples that aren’t together but continue to see each other.

    “At FX, they didn’t get Earn and Van at all,” Glover told The New Yorker. “I said, ‘This is every one of my aunts—you have a kid with a guy, he’s around, you’re still attracted to him.’ Poor people can’t afford to go to therapy.”

    The show promises to have the same fierceness, the same pop as the first season.

    Glover, who as auteur of “Atlanta FX” is simultaneously recording another album as Childish Gambino and shooting a new “Star Wars” movie, feels that his TV show should be funny, but for the right reasons.

    “I don’t even want them laughing if they’re laughing at the caged animal in the zoo,” he told the New Yorker. “I want them to really experience racism, to really feel what it’s like to be black in America. People come to ‘Atlanta’ for the strip clubs and the music and the cool talking, but the eat-your-vegetables part is that the characters aren’t smoking weed all the time because it’s cool but because they have P.T.S.D.—every black person does. It’s scary to be at the bottom, yelling up out of the hole, and all they shout down is ‘Keep digging! We’ll reach God soon!’ ”

    Such insight is why we can’t wait for Thursday night on the FX channel.

    Comments Off on ‘Atlanta FX’ Returns Thursday And We Can’t Wait
  • Atlanta / Food & Drink / Restaurants / Things To Do

    The Best Brunch Restaurants In Atlanta
    craigsotherlistyahoo-com February 26, 2018
    2 Min Read

    Brunch has always been one of the most satisfying meals of the week. For some reason that we have not been able to demystify, brunch is nearly always associated with Sundays. Why?

    Surely you should be able to enjoy poached eggs and coffee at 2 p.m. on any day of the week. Anyhoo, speaking of Sundays, Atlanta has some pretty righteous brunch spots.

    Here are five of the best brunch joints in the ATL.

    The Southern Gentleman: The Shops Buckhead Atlanta 3035 Peachtree Rd NE
    Ste A 208 Atlanta, GA 30305

    This Buckhead gem is fashionably decorated and located, making it a tourist favorite. Featuring such hits as the shrimp and grits and Monte Cristo brunch joint, you don’t want to sleep on this restaurant. In three short years, it has become one of Buckhead’s best. A Yelper says this: ““It’s owned by the same group that recently opened Gypsy Kitchen in the new Buckhead Atlanta shopping district.”

    Sun In My Belly 2161 College Ave NE Atlanta, GA 30317

     

    A Yelper says: ““We’re ready to go back for dinner asap–if you love this place for brunch/lunch, give dinner a whirl.”

    Buttermilk Kitchen 4225 Roswell Rd NE Atlanta, GA 30342 Buckhead

    A Yelper says: ““We had French toast, an omelettes, eggs ried hard, the pimento cheese grits and their exclusive Tennessee smoked bacon…yum!”

    Whiskey Bird 1409 N Highland Ave NE Atlanta, GA 30306 Morningside / Lenox Park

    A Yelper says: “Whiskey Bird is super cool inside, imagine concrete floors, light wood tables, and almost-Scandinavian-meets-Japanese decor.  We were a little early for our reservation on a Saturday night, but the place wasn’t crowded at all, so they seated us right away.  Immediately, I looked over the drink list (lots of whiskey options, naturally) and the rose sake sangria caught my eye!  It was really tasty, light in alcohol but still high in flavor, and a really unusual sangria, in the best way.  My dude had the Whiskey Bird sour to start, which was tasty.”

    West Egg Cafe 1100 Howell Mill Rd NW Atlanta, GA 30318 Westside / Home Park

    A Yelper says: ““When I want breakfast/brunch it’s most likely a West Egg craving.The Georgia Benedictis my thing but everything I’ve had here is great.”

     

    Comments Off on The Best Brunch Restaurants In Atlanta
  • Atlanta / Business / Food & Drink / Restaurants / Things To Do

    These 4 Atlanta Restaurants Just Got AAA’s ‘4 Diamond’ Rating
    atlantafi-com-staff February 23, 2018
    2 Min Read

    AAA has unveiled its list of restaurants that have earned the AAA Five Diamond Rating over the last year. The vaunted designation qualifies the eateries for the prestigious Five Diamond Restaurants list.

    Atlanta, home to some pretty swanky spots that have opened over the past five years, has only four restaurants to make the list. But given that some major cities have none, we’ll take the quartet.

    “Five Diamond restaurants have evolved over the years to meet the changing expectations of restaurant enthusiasts who are increasingly sophisticated about cuisine,” said Michael Petrone, director, AAA Inspections & Diamond Ratings.

    Here are metro Atlanta’s 10 restaurants (out of nearly 700) that have earned the four diamond designation:

    The restaurants signal the very best in culinary arts as well as top-notch service and atmosphere.

    Petrone added: “Guests want to learn about cooking techniques, ingredient sourcing and the latest trends. They are looking for a wide-ranging dining experience that includes being educated and entertained. No longer does world-class necessarily mean formal attire and opulent surroundings. And that’s where AAA’s Diamond Ratings can help guide the discerning diner.”

    Comments Off on These 4 Atlanta Restaurants Just Got AAA’s ‘4 Diamond’ Rating
  • Atlanta is a 5G city
    Atlanta / Business / Development

    Atlanta Named One Of 3 5G Cities By AT&T
    atlantafi-com-staff February 23, 2018
    2 Min Read

    AT&T has started bringing out its 5G network in earnest. As it promised, it has began to roll out its platform this year. That means Atlanta is a 5G city.

    The company recently announced that Atlanta, Waco and Dallas will all get mobile 5G by the end of 2018. Twelve cities are slated to get the technology, which is expected to exponentially speed up internet access for the region.

    “Our mobile 5G deployments this year will be based on 3GPP standards. We will use mmWave to provide mobile 5G first, and then deploy the technology on additional spectrum bands,” an AT&T spokesperson said. “Also, note that the equipment that we are deploying today in our LTE network is 5G capable. So the work that we are doing now prepares us to seamlessly migrate to standards-based 5G.”

    AT&T’s 5G is not going to be 5G technically (more like 4.5G). In the beginning. top speeds are expected to be around 400 Mbps, which is about 40 times faster than a standard data connection.

    No word yet on when exactly the cities will get 5G.

    Comments Off on Atlanta Named One Of 3 5G Cities By AT&T
  • Atlanta / Business

    Saturday: Pretty Brown Girls Come To Party
    atlantafi-com-staff February 23, 2018
    1 Min Read

    The International Pretty Brown Girl Day Vision Board Party takes place Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018.

    This is what it says on the group’s website:

    International Pretty Brown Girl Day embodies the mission of celebrating and uplifting girls of color by creating a day of solidarity on the 4th Saturday in February each year. Annually, we choose a theme that supports the learning and empowerment of our pretty brown girls across the globe.

    We’re excited to announce our 7th Annual International Pretty Brown Girl Day on Saturday, February 24, 2018! Our theme is “Envision Your Future, Manifest Your Purpose”, as we seek to encourage girls to “Dream Big” by visualizing their success while exploring the process of Envisioning Success.

    This year’s Pretty Brown Girl Day will be a day of encouraging girls across the country to nurture a generous heart, courage of mind, a boldness of spirit and of course to Dream BIG! We’re calling for 1,000 girls nationwide to join us by hosting a Pretty Brown Girl “Vision Board Party”!

    Comments Off on Saturday: Pretty Brown Girls Come To Party
  • Marriott Marquis Begins Renovation On Sear Restaurant In Downtown Atlanta
    Business

    Sear Restaurant Reopens In Atlanta’s Marriott Marquis
    cj-johnson-2 February 22, 2018
    3 Min Read

    The Marriott Marquis’ in-house restaurant Sear reopened in late December 2018 after undergoing major renovations. Now with a spruced up menu, Sear is ready to draw back the curtains.

    Sear is basically a new Atlanta restaurant now, with a freshly reimagined decor, color scheme and more for restaurant lovers in downtown Atlanta.

    First Look: Sear Restaurant completes renovation

    “We’re thrilled with the results of the renovation,” said General Manager Erica Qualls-Battey. “The attention to detail and uniqueness of the space will truly change the landscape of Downtown’s dining scene. We’ve created a destination within a destination, where diners can get a delicious meal and be conveniently located in the heart of Atlanta.”

    The team behind the redo is Interior designer, HeCho Inc., which was enlisted to create a majestic dining atmosphere inspired by the style of legendary Atlanta Marriott Marquis architect John Portman.

    The Marriott hopes that a well-needed face-lift, including an interior redesign and menu refresh, will increase restaurant patrons and continue to be a dining option in downtown Atlanta.

    Sear Restaurant In Marriott Marquis Gets Face-lift

    “Sear has been a stronghold in the Atlanta community for quite some time,” Qualls-Battey said in a written statement. “We feel this renovation parallels the resurgence of the culinary scene in Midtown, Downtown and surrounding neighborhoods as the city of Atlanta continues to position itself as a cutting edge culinary destination. Our talented culinarians deserve a look that matches their talent.”

    The refurbished eatery features an open floor plan, a private waiting area

    with nearby bar and local-centric iconography. Local artist Lynx Nguyen was commissioned to craft artwork for the restaurant’s back wall, creating a rustic yet modern look.

    What’s on the menu at Sear Restaurant in Atlanta?

    Guests can enjoy unique offerings such as breakfast, a brunch buffet, lunch and an exquisite dinner menu.

    Dishes such as Butter Basted Cauliflower Steak, Braised Pork Chops, Dry-aged Steak and Seared Scallops, Sear will carry over 25 bourbons, hand-crafted cocktails and a variety of wines.

    See Sear’s full menu here.

    Private dining rooms were also re-designed with space options for 25 to 85 or 100 guests.

    Marriott Marquis Begins Renovation On Sear Restaurant In Downtown Atlanta

    “I am really excited about the energy the chefs have put into the new menu,” hotel manager George Reed was quoted as saying. “And the new selection of craft cocktails will enhance our lounge-like offerings; further solidifying Atlanta Marriott Marquis as a great gathering place.”

    A further perk at Sear: Diners who come for the restaurant get complimentary parking.

     Read more: Atlanta OKs controversial redevelopment project The Gulch

    These Atlanta restaurants are for sale

    Comments Off on Sear Restaurant Reopens In Atlanta’s Marriott Marquis
  • Atlanta / Business

    King Of Pops Looks To Hire For Spring And Summer
    atlantafi-com-staff February 22, 2018
    1 Min Read

    One of the city’s preeminent treats company’s is looking to hire a few good employees. King of Pops wants help for the spring and summer, the shop says.

    This is what the job listing says: We are looking for highly enthusiastic, self-reliant and thoughtful individuals to be a part of our slinger team. Slingers sell pops out of our signature carts at a variety of events and spots across the city, so we’re looking for fun people that like to seek out customer engagement (rather than avoid it). Ability to work independently and problem-solve in a variety of circumstances is key, and a fun-loving attitude and friendliness are musts.

    The company says no prior experience or education is required. Compensation: $9-10/hr (+ tips).

    Comments Off on King Of Pops Looks To Hire For Spring And Summer
  • Business / Development

    Lofts Coming To ‘The Gulch’ In Downtown Atlanta
    atlantafi-com-staff February 22, 2018
    1 Min Read

    Paperwork recently filed with the city of Atlanta shows that a new project is planned for the old Norfolk Southern building overlooking “The Gulch,” the multi-acre site under Philips Arena.

    Two structures on the site will be transformed into nearly 250 one- and two-bedroom residential units, according to Curbed Atlanta. The plan also includes retail space, 90 studios, 108 one-bedroom units, and 48 two-bedroom units.

    The company that initiated the filing is CIM, according to news reports. Much has been made about viable land in downtown Atlanta that would be suitable for Amazon’s second world headquarters. The Gulch is a prime parcel, although CIM reportedly says their plans are independent of Amazon’s.

    Atlanta joins cities such as Austin, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Nashville, Toronto and Washington, D.C. on the Seattle company’s shortlist for #H2Q, which is slated to be announced sometime later this year.

     

     

     

    Comments Off on Lofts Coming To ‘The Gulch’ In Downtown Atlanta
  • Casting Calls / Entertainment

    Oprah’s ‘Love Is…’ Is Casting In Atlanta For Restaurant Patrons
    atlantafi-com-staff February 22, 2018
    2 Min Read

    Oprah Winfrey’s new show “Love Is” is looking to hire extras for a restaurant scene, AtlantaFi has learned. The show is centered around couples and what they’ve learned about each other and how they’ve stayed together.

    Those hired will work Tuesday, February 27th in Atlanta, Georgia.

    More: Oprah’s ‘Love Is’ Seeks Camera Operators

    According to the casting call from project casting: The series centers around the love story between a modern-day power couple. In the world of Black Hollywood, they navigate a complex set of social codes, and this series will explore it all, from the good to the bad and to the ‘90s when the love story began.

    Weaver will play Nuri, a bubbly personality with big dreams who is struggling to make a name for herself as a sitcom staff writer while struggling an assortment of romances that only leave her party fulfilled. After she meets Yasir, himself unemployed and barely holding onto his dreams, Nuri changes all her opinions about what she expects from a man because she’s just found the one who is perfect for her.

    Yasir is an aspiring writer-director who is down to his last two unemployment checks and lives (unhappily) with his on-again/off-again ex. But after meeting the stunning Nuri, Yasir finds a reason to alter his life and the drive to access his potential.

    To audition for a role in the new TV series, check out the casting call breakdown below.

    Oprah’s Love Is Casting Call

    ***LOVE IS_***
    **MUST BE REGISTERED WITH CENTRAL CASTING**
    Work date: Tuesday Feb. 27th.
    Location: Pinewood Studios (Fayetteville)
    Pay rate: $88 /10 hrs

    RESTAURANT PATRONS: African American looking males and females, who look in the mid 20’s to early 50’s age range, 1990’s looks and hairstyles. No visible tattoos.

    If you fit the description above, and you are available to work on 2/27 please send an e-mail with your name, phone number, and recent photo to LoveIs@centralcasting.com. Please use subject line “PATRONS”. MUST be registered with Central Casting. Thank You!

    Comments Off on Oprah’s ‘Love Is…’ Is Casting In Atlanta For Restaurant Patrons