Todd English Tavern has closed at Live! at the Battery Atlanta. The restaurant, which opened last April,was a partnership between Baltimore-based The Cordish Companies and celebrity chef Todd English. A pre-recorded message at Sports & Social informs would-be patrons that Todd English Tavern is "no longer open" and that it is now part of Sports & Social. Sources close to the restaurant indicate that it actually closed before the Atlanta Braves home opener on March 29th. The restaurant's last Yelp review was received on March 14 and responded to on March 19 with no mention of the closure.
There is no question that Sports & Social was more popular than Todd English Tavern, so choosing to expand the sports bar concept into the space previously occupied by the upscale eatery makes a lot of sense, but is still sad to see. As we reported last year, Todd English, who calls New York City home today, grew up in Sandy Springs and actually was in the stands for Hank Aaron's record breaking 715th homer at Fulton County Stadium in 1974.
The inclusion of the "chef driven" Todd English Tavern in the Live! venue was reportedly a mandate of Cordish by the Braves Development Company (BDC). A source close to the development tells ToNeTo Atlanta that officials with BDC likely would have "signed off" on the closure/conversion.
Limited work was done to the Todd English Tavern space to blend it with Sports & Social as the space is being largely used as overflow seating and as a "lounge" of sorts, according to a source at the restaurant.
The closure of Todd English Tavern leaves The Battery Atlanta with three upscale chef-driven restaurants: C. Ellet's from Chef Linton and Gina Hopkins of Resurgens Hospitality Group, Achie's, from chef Hugh Acheson in the Omni Hotel and the newly opened Garden & Gun Club.
Are you surprised that Todd English Tavern closed and no one noticed? What is your favorite restaurant at The Battery Atlanta? What restaurant opening at The Battery would make you go more often? ... Will the Braves go ALL THE WAY!?
Please share your thoughts below