Tag: Daddy D’z BBQ Joynt

For Atlanta’s intrepid diners, there’s more to finding hidden gems than veering off the beaten path, though that certainly adds to the intrigue. The challenge is in uncovering food treasures. We set out to find lesser-known destinations, from obscure restaurants and takeout shacks to underground bars, food trucks, and gas station finds.

Atlanta’s beloved barbecue institution, Daddy D’z BBQ Joynt, will close its doors at the end of this month after 35 years of serving smoky, hickory-kissed classics to locals and visitors alike. Known for its iconic pig-on-the-roof and block-letter sign proclaiming, “I’m dyin’ for Daddy D’z the BBQ Joynt,” the restaurant has been a fixture in the Grant Park community since 1993.

The 28-country metro area has at least 350 barbecue eateries—not just stand-alone restaurants, but food trucks and pop-ups and kiosks and lots of places doing things that don't fit the standard definition of Southern barbecue. It isn't just chopped pork anymore.

“Gentrification brings a different level of competition, and typically, the competition has more money behind it than a small, standalone business,” Daddy D'z owner Christianah Coker-Jackson says. “So, they can inundate [would-be diners] with the advertising, the bright lights, the fancy stuff we just don’t have.”