Courtesy of Eat Here Brands
Jackson, Mississippi-based Babalu Tacos and Tapas hopes to open their first Atlanta location in the 33 Peachtree Place development in Midtown by the end of the year. Eat Here Brands president Bill Latham says they signed the lease this morning.
The restaurant, which serves small plates like shrimp and grits, braised beef short rib, tamales, and tacos, has been on opening rampage, expanding throughout the Southeast. In addition to their four current locations, the company is opening outposts in Charlotte, Chapel Hill, and Lexington in the coming year. Latham wants the Midtown location to be unique to Atlanta. “All our locations are different. They have some aspects of Babalu in each one, but we don’t have a package,” he says.
Latham also wants the restaurant’s menu to reflect Atlanta’s local ingredients. While the menu at each location has similar items, they have been adapted to fit the local culinary scene. “The executive chefs in our restaurants have a pretty-good bit of flexibility,” he says. “We are very focused on going to local vendors for our products.”
While the company does not yet have a candidate to run the kitchen, Latham hopes to begin the search soon.
