The Ultimate Georgia Dining Guide 2026

Best Chef: Mia Orino

Kamayan ATL, Atlanta

Chef Mia Orino and her husband, Carlo Gan, started Kamayan as a pop-up, hosting feasts around Atlanta. The name is a homage to a traditional Filipino meal served atop banana leaves. Now guests can get their favorite Filipino bites, like sizzling sisig (served in a piping hot skillet) and vegetable lumpia, at Orino’s petite restaurant that brings the warmth of the Philippines to Doraville with bamboo furniture and vibrant art. When Orino isn’t cooking at Kamayan, she’s prepping meals for the community and supporting her favorite locally owned businesses.

Mia Orino’s Recommendations:

Breakfast: Home Grown

This is one of the first places Carlo took me when I moved to Atlanta. I love everything on the menu there, especially the grits, the biscuits, and of course, the chicken. 

Lunch: Chai Pani

It has to be Chai Pani’s lunch buffet. I go for the comforting dishes and there’s a familiarity to it every week. There’s also unlimited chai—I think I abuse [it], but for me it’s just very comforting.

Dinner: Best BBQ

This Chinese restaurant is our neighbor, and they were recently added to the MICHELIN Guide. We sneak out and bring our staff the food and everybody loves it. 

Drinks: Madeira Park

I don’t drink much anymore, but when I do, it’s on a date night. We love Madeira Park, in Poncey-Highland, and the wines they serve there. 

Best Beverage Pro: Kirk Gibson

Lucky Star, Atlanta

The beverage director of Lucky Star and self-proclaimed “food and beverage dork” takes a mad scientist approach to his drinks, always seeking the coolest ways—like clarifying pectin in a centrifuge—to maximize a drink’s potential. He also tries to use as many locally grown and foraged ingredients as he can.

Kirk Gibson’s Current Favorites:

GEORGIA PRODUCT

I love Minhwa Spirits, a soju distillery in Doraville. I’m also proud of the yuzu we get from Franklin Farms in Statesboro. We use every part of it, like making oleo saccharum from the peel.

BEVERAGE TREND

I like how a lot of bartenders have incorporated more savory elements into cock- tails. We have a carrot and mezcal drink on the menu, and we’re trying to make caramelized onions work in a cocktail, possibly a gibson. It opens up a whole world of ingredients most people had not thought of previously as belonging in a cocktail.

DRINK SOMEWHERE ELSE

My go-to classic order is a bijou, equal parts gin, sweet vermouth, and green chartreuse, with a dash of orange bitters. It’s a really lovely, complex herbaceous drink anywhere, but I es- pecially get one at Kimball House. 

The Best of Georgia

Best New Restaurant: Ryokoi, Atlanta

Ryokou, brainchild of sushi chef Leonard Yu, opened in December 2024, bringing a different type of omakase restaurant to Atlanta’s Adair Park. The name means “trip” in Japanese, and that’s how the experience feels: an artful multicourse tour of Japan’s varied regions. The standout bite isn’t even fish—it’s a delicate mushroom capellini with miso and truffles.

Best Oysters: Sea Wolf, Tybee Island

Sea Wolf looks like your typical beach town dive, but it’s also where the locals go for an excellent selection of oysters. You’ll find a well-curated list of fresh bivalves, but most importantly they have locally produced Tybee Island oysters known for their full briny flavor. Pair them with a painkiller. 

Best Music and Milkshake Combo: The Rookery, Macon

Opened in 1976, The Rookery hosted early gigs for Widespread Panic and has been a celebrity-spotting hub in the years since. The main attraction? Their decadent burgers—like the James Brown with blue cheese and sautéed onions—and milkshakes, like the Jimmy Carter topped with bacon.

Best Seasonally Topped Pizzas: Fortify Pi, Clayton

Fortify Pi, located on Clayton’s Main Street, excels in a creative range of pizzas (though the classic pepperoni is pretty great, too). Rotating throughout the year, they highlight locally grown ingredients, like summer’s ratatouille pie with eggplant, grilled zucchini, and fresh mozzarella. 

Best Over-the-Top Cakes: The Boll Weevil Cafe and Sweetery, Augusta

The Boll Weevil, housed in a historic building near the Augusta River, serves café fare, but it’s the cakes that command attention. Sold by the slice, they’re mile-high and indulgent, from turtle crunch (with cheesecake and chocolate fudge) to canary lemon layered with bright lemon custard and lemon frosting. llivan opened this refined American tavern in the old steam laundry at the bucolic University of the South to create a place where students, faculty, tourists, and locals all want to eat.

Best Culinary Hotel: Municipal Grand, Savannah

Municipal Grand would be worth a visit for its prime Abercorn Street address and chic mid-century modern interiors alone. But the Death & Co.-backed property goes further, delivering killer cocktails and shareable plates at Municipal Bar and the rooftop pool. Come for dinner or happy hour, but don’t miss the hash browns with caviar. 

Best Art Fix: Elise, Atlanta

It’s hard not to feel inspired while dining at Elise, with its location at the Woodruff Arts Center, home of the High Museum of Art. Records spin at the bar, rich jewel tones fill the white canvas designed by architect Renzo Piano, and chef Craig Richards’ dishes—like cold- smoked oysters—engage all the senses. 

Most Creative Pastries: Flora and Fauna, Savannah

Annie Coleman faced high expectations when Flora and Fauna opened in the former Back in the Day bakery space. One bite of her pumpkin spice cheesecake monkey bread or soft, buttery biscuits shows she’s honoring the legacy while carving out a deliciously distinct identity. 

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