The grills will soon go cold at several iconic Atlanta hotspots over the next few weeks.
The owner of Daddy D’z BBQ Joynt in downtown Atlanta says the landlord plans on selling the building, as the cost of doing business has soared.
Other Atlanta restaurants announcing closures include Agave, Eats on Ponce, Dantanna’s in Buckhead, and Alma Cocina’s Buckhead location.
This past Saturday, Dantanna’s in Buckhead closed after two decades.
On December 20, Alma Cocina’s Buckhead location will close their doors.
Eats on Ponce closed on Oct. 18.
Daddy D’z will close at the end of the month after a 35-year run at the intersection of MLK and Memorial Drive, but the owner hopes to eventually re-open at a new location.
Up the road from Daddy D’z, Agave in Cabbagetown says its last day will be January 31.
The family that owns Agave cited the “current economic climate and unsustainable conditions.”
Christianah Coker-Jackson, who has owned Daddy D’z for the last eight years, said the landlord who owns the building is looking to sell.
But she also points out running a restaurant has gotten much harder.
“It’s bittersweet. I’m heartbroken,” Christianah Coker-Jackson, owner of Daddy D’z said. “We do see that the prices have increased. We do see that inflation has affected everything.”
Reshma Shah, a marketing professor at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, said small restaurants face an uphill battle with inflation sending costs up.
“You’ve got restaurants with labor costs going up, rent costs going up, food costs, of course, going up,” Reshma Shah, Emory marketing professor, said. “And the last thing you want to do is cut quality.”
She said patrons are also tightening their belts this holiday season.
“Consumers are really having to make a decision between do we want to go out? Do we want to buy presents?” Shah said.
Daddy D’z is in negotiations to open a new location, but nothing is final.
“I’m sad. Now I have to find someone else to go with mom. And to get some good barbecue!” Bertitta Marshall, Daddy D’z regular, said. “Where can you find that type of interaction, a family atmosphere that’s welcoming?”
The last day of business in the current building will be New Year’s Eve.
“They always say when God closes one door, he opens up the ceiling. So I’m just waiting for my celing” Coker-Jackson said.
