Business & Tech

Café at Pharr and Yumbii to Open Restaurants at Atlantic Station

Local favorites join forces for summer pop-up concept

Café at Pharr and Yumbii are taking to a new trend that is feeding America's appetite for pop-up restaurants.

Café at Pharr, an Atlanta-based sandwich and salad restaurant and Yumbii, Atlanta’s first food truck, jumped at the opportunity to open Atlantic Station’s first pop-up eatery in a 2,500-square-foot space formally occupied by The Grape on the corner of 19th Street and West District Avenue.

Last month, chefs and restaurateurs were invited to submit applications for the pop-up space, which offers patio dining, a full kitchen, seating and tabletop place settings. The Café at Pharr/Yumbi lease is reportedly for 60 days with an early June date targeted for opening.

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“As Atlanta’s No. 1 food truck, it was a no brainer for us to take the Yumbii concept to a brick and mortar pop-up,” said Josh Chudnovsky, Café at Pharr and Yumbii partner, in a release. “It also makes sense to bring to Atlantic Station one of Atlanta’s longest running and most popular cafés.”

The locally based sister restaurants will open the one-of-a-kind joint concept in time for guests attending the BB&T Atlanta Open July 14-22 to enjoy. The Atlanta Tennis Championships event is expected to bring tens of thousands of fans to Atlantic Station.

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“Pop-ups are a way for restaurants to test concepts and expand brands to new neighborhoods,” said Liz Gillespie, director of marketing for Atlantic Station, in a statement. “For guests, pop-ups mean access to an unexpected dining experience at affordable prices as well as the thrill of taking part in something fleeting.”

Atlantic Station already has a following among the pop-up foodie crowd. The property hosts Food Truck Fridays with different trucks each week during lunchtime, as well as live music. On Sundays, The Atlanta Nosh brings up to 100 vendors to Atlantic Station to sell food from every corner of the earth.

The pop-up restaurant is just one part of a major remerchandising strategy that North American Properties (NAP) began more than a year ago after purchasing Atlantic Station. NAP set about to bring more locally based restaurants and retailers, as well as first-to-Georgia locations, to the property.

“Today’s announcement progresses Atlantic Station’s transformation into the place that Midtown wants,” said Gillespie.  “Cafe at Pharr’s chicken salad and its almost-cult-like following paired with Yumbii, the most well-known food tuck in Atlanta, will create an intown dining experience Midtowners crave.”


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