January 2026
Features
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6 experts tell us how you can feel good in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Starting a new year is an opportunity for growth and a reminder to love yourself as you are. To find the balance, we asked some of our favorite wellness experts what they’re doing to feel good this year and how you can do the same—this year and every year.
5 ways to help others feel good in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Here are five ways to help others feel good from helping the unhoused at Hope Atlanta to helping grow food to feed your neighbors at Concrete Jungle.
5 solo dates to take in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Here are five ways to take on this year solo from attending a forest-bathing session at the Chattahoochee Nature Center to going on a self-guided street art tour using the Atlanta Street Art Map.
5 ways to take care of yourself in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Here are five ways to take care of yourself from glowing up with facial acupuncture at Core Acupuncture Health and Wellness to getting fresh air with a hike at Red Top Mountain State Park.
5 ways to treat yourself in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Here are five ways to treat yourself, from a top-of-the-line facial at Artisan Beauté’s Aquagold Fine Touch to tickling your tastebuds with viral Dubai chocolate at Confections Bakery and Cafe.
6 ways to get out of your comfort zone in Atlanta this year
It’s a brand-new year, Atlanta, and we’re leaning into feeling good. Here are six ways to get out of your comfort zone, from meeting new people at Wacky Social Club to reading silently with others at Silent Book Club.
The price of making it: Tom Johnson reflects on power, loss, and what it means to live a meaningful life
An unrelenting drive to succeed took Tom Johnson from Macon to the White House to leading CNN during its glory years. But it also enabled him to avoid focusing on himself. Only in retirement has he found grace and a greater purpose.
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The Connector
Once a crime, now a cornerstone: Inside Georgia’s homeschooling boom
What began in Georgia as a criminal offense for parents teaching their children at home has, over four decades, grown into one of the nation’s largest and most diverse homeschooling ecosystems. Fueled by lenient laws, pandemic disruptions, and new voucher programs, homeschooling in the state now spans forest schools, microschools, hybrids, and tight-knit communities redefining how—and where—children learn.
Mario Guevara reported on immigration. After he was deported, he became the story.
I am the first and only journalist who has been arrested and deported under the Trump administration. But, possibly, I will not be the last. And that worries me. I am still working as a journalist. My plan is to continue reporting on news from around the world. I have already done two international stories. I am a journalist, and I cannot keep quiet.
An Atlanta couple’s app helps parents win the summer camp registration race
When day-camp registration opens in early January, parents must be ready. Stark and Kelly Hayden, parents of two in East Cobb, decided there must be a better way. Their app, Hazel Camps, which the Haydens cocreated in 2024, features more than 200 camps—primarily in metro Atlanta—searchable by theme, location, hours, and camper ages.
While pros head west, this ultramarathoner built his career in Georgia
Most Saturdays, Hans Troyer, a professional ultramarathon runner, does loops of Pine Mountain. He summits 11 times in 4 hours, covering 25 miles and 7,395 vertical feet. His consistent training here has helped him burst onto the running scene. Most pros train in the mountains of California or Colorado, but Hans grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta and found his stride living out of a camper in the Georgia woods.
These Atlanta photo booths print film—not digital—strips in minutes
In the lobby of the Plaza Theatre is an analog photo booth from 1960 that shoots and develops printed photos, not digital, spitting out a strip of four images with the gritty, nostalgic charm of traditional printing. Only 200 of these functional analog photo booths are left in the world. The company Autophoto, founded by Georgia native Bre Conley Saxon, owns 24 operational booths, including three of the four booths in Atlanta.
The Bite
La Bodega Market & Pupuseria brings pupusas and fresh produce to Sylvan Hills
A patio in Sylvan Hills is now home to a colorful market and casual eatery that shines in its simplicity. After years of feeding Georgia State students at their downtown restaurant, Buenos Dias Cafe, Jeannette Flores-Katz and her husband, Ken Katz, opened La Bodega Market & Pupuseria to meet a need they saw for fresh food in the South Atlanta neighborhood.
Review: Nakato’s $2.4 million renovation gives it a fresh revamp to match its fresh menu
For 50 years, Nakato has been more than a fixture on legendary Cheshire Bridge Road. It has been a quiet anchor in the city’s culinary landscape. After a $2.4 million renovation, I wondered if it would change what makes Nakato special. The refresh was more like a respectful polish than a complete redo: brighter, more modern, and more comfortable, yet still completely Nakato at its core.
Atlanta: The plant-based powerhouse of the South
With some 50 fully vegan restaurants and eateries, Atlanta is among the world’s top 10 vegan-friendly cities ranked by the number of plant-based restaurants in relation to the population size. Here, take a look at all the vegan restaurants that make us tick, including Flour + Time, La Semilla, Calaveritas Taqueria Vegana, Harmony Vegetarian, Neek Vegan, and more.
Bey Mediterranean Kitchen + Bar reflects Lebanese culture without the cliches
At Bey, the upbeat music filling the dining room sets a festive tone, even on a Wednesday night. The real celebration, though, begins when the dishes hit the table. Opened just over a year ago in Roswell, Bey stands out for its Lebanese dishes made from scratch by chef and co-owner Marc Mansour.
The Goods
Guilty Party’s selvedge denim is built for stylish utility
In an era of fast fashion, Guilty Party moves slow. Champ Hammett and Heath Ladnier launched the Grant Park boutique in 2023 based on a shared belief that clothes should get better with time. That guiding principle underscores every aspect of the store’s inventory, especially its cornerstone good: selvedge denim, the heavyweight jean fabric largely produced in Japan and long revered in denim cult circles.
A vagabond heart still singing: Kodac Harrison’s journey of enduring
Kodac Harrison is the Renaissance man of Atlanta’s music and poetry scenes. He may be best known for the weekly open mic poetry readings he hosted at Decatur’s Java Monkey coffee shop (now The Reading Room) from 2001 to 2016. Harrison, 76, was a prominent member of many bands who performed for Eddie Owen at the Trackside Tavern and then Eddie’s Attic—including the Indigo Girls, Caroline Aiken, Shawn Mullins, and Michelle Malone.
Miscellaneous
A love letter to Chow Club Atlanta
Chow Club is the best of Atlanta. The monthly pop-up dinner series, cofounded by Amanda Plumb and Yohana Solomon, is a foodie’s paradise, featuring home cooks and professional chefs with international roots. Guests sit at communal tables, arriving as strangers and leaving as friends.
