Bits & Bites

New locations of Fresh To Order, Another Broken Egg Cafe and Fuzzy's Tacos are all coming to Sugarloaf Centre at Satellite Boulevard and Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth.  The Duluth restaurants will mark the ninth, sixth and second locations of the respective chains in metro Atlanta.  The new restaurants join Marlow's Tavern and Firehouse Subs as dining options in the development.  The new restaurants will be part of a new outparcel, which is currently under construction beside the existing restaurants. 

Carriage Cleaners and Lush Nail Bar are the first two tenants to be named as joining Publix Supermarket in the new Moores Mill shopping center.  A number of spaces remain available and one can hope property owner Edens has more exciting tenants lined up than these two and a possible Mattress Firm. 

The newest Atlanta area location of Newk's Eatery opened this past Monday at Kennesaw Marketplace in Kennesaw.

Kitchen Six in Oak Grove plans to open for dinner service next Tuesday, December 27th.  

The Men's Parlor at IQ opened this past Monday at Inman Quarter in Inman Park.  

Army Surplus Sales, a downtown Atlanta mainstay for 60 years, was expected to close yesterday.  After seeing "high demand," the store announced it will remain open through the 23rd (Friday) from noon until 3pm.  Nearly everything in the store is 40% off.  Store ownership noted that retail just ain't what it used to be, in general, but especially in downtown Atlanta.  No word on what might replace them in the space, which was previously a sewing machine factory and a car showroom. 

American Signature Furniture plans to open next month in the old Sports Authority space in Mansell Crossing on North Point Parkway in Alpharetta.  Adjacent to the Sports Authority space, REI opened in a former OfficeMax last year.  The Alpharetta location of American Signature Furniture will mark the chain's eighth store in metro Atlanta.  Despite the popularity of Avalon, a mixed-use, outdoor lifestyle center nearby, the North Point retail and restaurant district have performed better and remained more relevant than many expected.  

Publix at Atlanta and Spring Roads in Smyrna is now open.  The store at nearby Cobb Center has closed.  

Arden's Garden plans to open a new location on Stone Mountain Highway (US 78) early next year.  The shop will open in place of a former InstaLoan in a multi-suite outparcel in front of Lowe's Home Improvement.  The Lilburn location will mark the chain's 15th location.  

Midtown's Establishment is offering Atlantans what some might consider a once in a lifetime New Year's Eve celebration: A Pappy Van Winkle Party.  The bar and restaurant, which last year moved from Buckhead to Midtown's Colony Square, will host a limited number of patrons for a four course meal complete with 10 and 12 year old Pappy Van Winkle.  The meal, limited to 100 (about 50 remain available), is priced at $175 per person.  In addition to one ounce pours of 10 and 12 year Pappy, guests will be served Copper & Thief Bourbon, a barreled wine.  Having amassed what owner Brandon Lewis considers the largest Pappy Van Winkle assortment in the southeast, Establishment will also offer pours of 15, 20 and 23 Pappy Van Winkle à la carte.  

JAB Holding Co., a European investment firm that has in recent years acquired a number of breakfast-centric businesses, could be looking to add another.  The company already owns Caribou Coffee, Einstein Noah Restaurant Group, Stumptown Coffee Roasters, Intelligentsia Coffee, Keurig Green Mountain, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., Jacobs Douwe Egberts and Peet’s Coffee & Tea, among others. However, industry experts speculate that they could target Dunkin' Donuts next.  Dunkin' Donuts and its sister brand Baskin-Robbins would not come cheap with early estimates indicating a possible deal would be in the $9 Billion neighborhood (inclusive of $2.4 billion in long term Dunkin' debt).  Dunkin' operates nearly 20,000 locations and if purchased, would further JAB's efforts to create a formidable challenger to Starbucks.