December 2023
Features
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Best of Atlanta 2023: Readers’ Choice
We asked our readers to nominate their favorites in dozens of categories. Here are more than 200 winners who received the most votes.
Best of Atlanta 2023: Buy
Our 2023 Best of Atlanta picks for things you can buy—here’s where you’ll find new clothes, cool books, jewelry, home decor, gifts, and more.
Best of Atlanta 2023: Do
Our 2023 Best of Atlanta picks for things to do—here’s where you can play games, enjoy the arts, catch a show, play mini golf, workout, and more.
Best of Atlanta 2023: Drink
Our 2023 Best of Atlanta picks for all things beverage-related—here’s where you’ll find great cocktails, coffee, tea, wine, bitters, and more.
Best of Atlanta 2023: Eat
Our 2023 Best of Atlanta picks for all things food-related—here’s where you’ll find great sushi, sandwiches, bread, vegan dishes, soul food, steak, desserts, and more.
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The Connector
Behind the scenes with the historic Morehouse College Glee Club
Members of the Morehouse College Glee Club nearly collide with each other rushing into place for 4 p.m. rehearsal. Students open their binders of sheet music, and those who can’t find today’s first song look over their neighbors’ shoulders. Their director, Dr. David Morrow, takes his station in front, and everyone stands tall. Morrow’s baton sets the tempo as he shouts, “Ready, and go!”
How Alliance Theatre costumers dress Tiny Tim
After 34 years of staging A Christmas Carol, Alliance Theatre’s production department has the show down to a science. “It’s like the train that we always know where it’s going,” says Laury Conley, director of costumes and wardrobe. “If it ever goes off the tracks, we know how to get right back.”
What’s the state of book bans in Georgia schools?
Challenges to school library books aren’t new, but in recent years they’ve become a flash point in the larger battle over how we tell the story of America, particularly to children. So far, So far, Georgia’s seen fewer book bans than some other states like Florida and Texas, but we’ve seen plenty of controversy over who reads what. Here’s the latest in the fight over books in Georgia schools.
Emory ethnobotanist Cassandra Quave travels the globe searching for plants with the power to heal
Cassandra Quave, an associate professor of dermatology at Emory University School of Medicine, researches plants that have been used by traditional healers and are known to have therapeutic properties. More than 34,000 medicinal plants have been used throughout history, and each contains thousands of different molecules. Her lab works to identify which molecules—or combinations of molecules—provide the benefit.
Is the Atlanta accent vanishing? Not exactly.
It is easy to spot, the old Atlanta accent. Bird becomes bud in a drawl as unhurried as Sunday brunch at the Colonnade. Because of several factors here—the Olympics, the tech boom, the rise of the entertainment industry—Atlanta’s population has exploded, bringing a heady mix of other languages and dialects to the civic conversation. Has this influx, by process of dilution, killed that identifiable accent? Not yet. Here’s why.
The Bite
Things We Like: Colette Bread & Bakeshop
Led by Sarah Dodge—formerly with 8Arm and owner of pop-up/subscription service Bread is Good—Colette opened in late July with limited operating hours. Dodge tried to launch quietly, but on day one, the line stretched down the block. She had 110 orders in an hour and a half.
The verdict on 3 new Atlanta restaurants: Brush Sushi, Java Saga, and Verdure
A calming respite in Buckhead Village, Taiwanese fried chicken in Doraville, and a blend of Western and African flavors in Midtown.
What do Atlanta Ballet dancers eat?
Most professional athletes adhere to strict meal plans. NBA and NFL players rely on chefs and meal coaches who guide their day-to-day nutrition. Ballet is one of the most athletic art forms, yet even the most prestigious dance programs don’t employ personal chefs.
The best places to eat and drink in Athens
Our restaurant critic Christiane Lauterbach gives a salute to our neighboring city, listing the best restaurants, bars, and coffee shops in Athens, Georgia.
The Goods
How the Atlanta Ballet is working to become more diverse
Seven months into his tenure as executive director of Atlanta Ballet, Tom West saw a line item on the pay scale that didn’t seem right. Dancers entering the company under its apprentice program were paid less than $500 a week. Company leaders noted that apprenticeships are standard practice in the field. But the low-paying program was one of several barriers faced by young dancers from historically underrepresented communities—the very dancers Atlanta Ballet has struggled to attract. Atlanta’s population is close to 50 percent Black, and until recently, Atlanta Ballet’s roster had only a token few Black artists.
Room Envy: A soft and serene home office
Keeping it simple but elegant, interior designer Shawn Amtower relied on two winning surfaces for this soft and serene office: white oak and gold/brass tone.
An Atlanta entrepreneur founded a company that will deliver you a petite citrus tree
Danny Trejo grew up on an 80-acre Florida nursery and grove, where citrus was all he knew. He also knew it wasn’t what he wanted to do with his life. Instead, he went into insurance and moved to New York City. But, one day in 2015, he was walking along a sidewalk in the Flower District and spotted citrus plants from his father’s farm. “I couldn’t believe the markup!” he says.
Miscellaneous
A love letter to Atlanta’s airport art
I had tried every trick in the book: chewing gum, yawning, gulping water, even pinching my nose and exhaling. Nope. My left ear stayed resolutely unpopped, leaving me even more disoriented than I already was after my late-night flight from Buffalo to Atlanta. Even hearing the flight attendant announce the word deplane couldn’t cheer me […]
