South Downtown's Saturday Market Went Quiet. Its Storefronts Didn't.
Smorgasburg Atlanta canceled its Oct. 3 market and every market left on its 2026 calendar, closing the season earlier than planned. Rough Draft Atlanta reports the food festival should return in 2027. For about a year, that Saturday market was the easiest reason to spend an afternoon in South Downtown. Now the reason is the row of restaurants, coffee counters and shops that opened on Mitchell and Broad streets between spring 2025 and this fall. Each keeps its own hours, and many of them do most of their business before dark.
So a South Downtown Saturday this fall starts earlier than the old market did, and it centers on a small lawn the market never used.
Smorgasburg set up in the parking lot on Forsyth Street at Trinity Avenue every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. It had food stalls, a bar, artists and entertainment. When Rough Draft announced the launch in 2025, the plan was to run year-round.
The market was a one-stop format. You parked, walked the stalls and left. Without it, the weekend crowd has to find its way to the storefronts, and the 2026 openings were planned for exactly that kind of visit.
Founders Green is a half-acre lawn built on what used to be a parking lot. Broad Street BBQ anchors one end and El Tesoro's covered patio sits at the other, according to downtownATL's coverage of the June opening wave. Both restaurants opened in June 2026, during the stretch when the district raced to be ready for World Cup crowds.
Broad Street BBQ, at 96 Broad St. SW, comes from Sam Pinner and Jason Furst, the pair behind Sammy's in Adair Park. It's open daily. El Tesoro is a taqueria at 171 Mitchell St. SW, confirmed on its own South Downtown page. It serves Guerrero-style tacos and tamales and runs a Sunday brunch buffet.
The lawn has also become an event space. On Friday, Oct. 30, Screen on The Green shows the 1984 Ghostbusters at Founders Green. In August, Urbanize Atlanta reported that the fall plans for the green included sports viewing, live music, movies and yoga.
The developer is open about where things stand. SoDo ATL bought the project from Newport RE in 2023, and in August its CEO, Jon Birdsong, said the company was wrapping up the first phase. In August, April Stammel, who runs SoDo ATL's marketing and engagement, told Rough Draft Atlanta:
"We still have a lot of work to do. It is not yet a 24/7, thriving neighborhood, but we know that. We know it's going to take time, and we are committed."
You can see that in the posted hours. Each business keeps its own schedule, and the best visits follow them.
| When | Where | Listed hours or format |
|---|---|---|
| Early weekday morning | Dough in the Box, 239 Mitchell St. | Tuesday through Friday 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Weekend morning | Dough in the Box, 239 Mitchell St. | Saturday and Sunday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Weekday lunch | Mule Train, 87 Broad St. SW | Wednesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. |
| Weekend afternoon into evening | Mule Train, 87 Broad St. SW | Lunch noon to 3, happy hour 3 to 5, dinner 5 to 8 |
| Sunday | El Tesoro, 171 Mitchell St. SW | Brunch buffet and a covered patio |
| Any day | Broad Street BBQ, 96 Broad St. SW | Open daily |
| Late night | Bottle Rocket, 231 Mitchell St. SW | Open until 2 a.m. |
Dough in the Box's 6 a.m. start and Bottle Rocket's 2 a.m. close bracket the day. Most of the activity falls in between, and the restaurants with the most to say are busiest at midday. Hours change, especially at newer places, so check the business's own page before you go.
Mule Train opened to the public Sept. 30. It's the first restaurant from Mike and Shyretha Sheats, who spent years running The Plate Sale pop-up before taking the space on Broad Street. Rough Draft Atlanta reports that the couple knew the neighborhood from Shyretha's time at Georgia State, and that the name comes from a gathering spot Mike's family had in Oglethorpe County.
The dining room seats 40. Atlanta Magazine describes lunch as a five-item "power lunch" with a protein, a vegetable, a salad and dessert. The menu changes every four to six weeks, and dishes come out in courses for the table to share. The opening menu included candy roaster squash with habanada and marigold, and aged pork with wisteria and okra. Shyretha runs the bar, which pours cocktails in full and tasting sizes, keeps six to eight bottles of wine on the list, and carries local beers in large-format bottles.
Its weekend schedule shows the new South Downtown Saturday better than anything else on the block. Lunch, happy hour and an early dinner run back to back from noon to 8 p.m. That covers much of the window Smorgasburg used to fill, all at one table on Broad Street. downtownATL lists reservations through Resy.
The market let you walk without a plan. The closest thing to that now is a short stretch of Mitchell Street where shops and restaurants sit nearly door to door. Starting from the lower numbers:
Two more stops sit a few blocks off that line. KMM & Co., a maker of handmade leather goods, celebrated its grand opening at 87 Peachtree St. in late May. Brewhouse Cafe, the soccer pub that opened its second location in the district, is on Broad Street near Mule Train.
A loop works well at midday. Get coffee or a doughnut at the top of the block, browse records and books, eat lunch at Mule Train or on the El Tesoro patio, then stay through the afternoon on Founders Green.
The district's daytime schedule is about to get busier. Ida's Kitchen Counter, a counter-service spot from Todd Ginsberg and Josh Kim at 185 Mitchell St. SW, was scheduled to open Oct. 19, according to Rough Draft Atlanta. The original 2025 plan called for breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., with bagels, sandwiches, salads, coffee and sourdough doughnuts. That's another business built around the morning and midday. Check Ida's own channels for current hours before you go.
Estrellita, the Filipino restaurant moving from Grant Park to 115 Broad St. SW, is on Rough Draft's list of upcoming downtown openings for late 2026. When it opens, Broad Street will have two chef-driven dining rooms on the same stretch.
If you're thinking about intown Atlanta's newer corners as places to live, I'm happy to talk through how blocks like South Downtown fit with the rest of the city. Let's Connect with Jonathan Leach.
Work with Jonathan Leach, an advocate who understands luxury, culture, and strategy, and is committed to protecting your goals from the first showing to closing.