Atlanta Restaurants Where Your Favorite Movies and TV Shows Were Filmed

Move over, Hollywood. Atlanta’s film scene is bigger than ever and it’s here to stay.

From The Walking Dead to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to A Madea Homecoming, more productions than ever are making movie and TV magic right in our backyard, thanks to production companies like Tyler Perry Studios and Trilith taking advantage of tax incentive breaks, not to mention a wide variety of settings and backdrops.

Many of these projects, however, hide the identity of Atlanta. Several of these, especially those in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, even try to pass off Atlanta as other major cities, like New York, Chicago, or some other miscellaneous urban locale.

So it bears wondering: which projects are actually filmed in Atlanta, and where in Atlanta do they film? It can be nearly impossible to try to point out our city based on what you see on the screen, like when the former downtown parking lot The Gulch was dressed up as a Nigerian market in Captain America: Civil War. Some restaurants even get completely reconfigured to fit different stories and eras.

Fortunately, there are folks who keep track of this info. As I embarked on assembling this robust list, the Georgia Film Office immediately responded to my inquiry by sending me an incredibly extensive list of these restaurants and the movies and TV shows that were filmed there.

And now, here are just a few of the restaurants where your favorite films and shows were filmed.

Three men in conversation in a restaurant, standing in front of a waitress taking orders — “Baby Driver” in Bacchanalia | Photo Credit: “Baby Driver”

Bacchanalia

Baby Driver was the first time I can remember a movie unapologetically taking place in Atlanta. The characters speed down the Buford-Spring Connector, deliver for Goodfellas Pizza, and most notably, eat at James Beard Award-winning Bacchanalia, which the main character calls the “finest wining and dining of all the wining and dining.” It’s hard to beat that endorsement. On top of this, when he’s in the restaurant he sees Atlanta musical legends Killer Mike and Big Boi (let’s all just ignore Kevin Spacey standing between them).

Chops Lobster Bar

Chops has been a star of the Atlanta dining scene for years, with a classic steakhouse feel and fantastic food to boot. It’s a popular date night spot as well as a filming location, where the following have set up shop:

MacGyver
Dynasty
Halt/Catch Fire
Queen America
Star
Genius: Aretha
Cobra Kai S4
Ozark S4

A hostess leading a man and a woman from a host stand with a menu — “Identity Thief” in Colonnade Restaurant | Photo Credit: “Identity Thief”

The Colonnade

The Colonnade is one of the oldest restaurants in this city. It first opened in 1927 on the corner of Lindbergh and Piedmont before moving to its current location on Cheshire Bridge in 1962. While nearly a century has passed, customers are enjoying those same chicken livers and southern fried chicken that their great grandparents enjoyed. This timeless vibe lends itself well to being the setting for multiple films and TV shows. The above example is Identity Thief starring Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman (between this and Ozark, he clearly can’t get enough of Atlanta!). Here are a few others:

Halt/Catch Fire
A Walk in the Woods
American Made
Lodge 49
The Mule
The Front Runner
Candy
Wolf Pack

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Homegrown

Homegrown is one of the most beloved restaurants in all of Atlanta. It has an old-school southern feel yet is infused with a sense of modernity thanks to displays of local art that are constantly being sold and replaced, a unique way of staying connected with the Reynoldstown neighborhood and beyond. When Clint Eastwood started filming his film Richard Jewell, about the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, he naturally scouted out restaurants in Atlanta. Homegrown fit that bill for this and a few other projects:

Drumline: A New Beat
Only
P-Valley
Jerry & Marge Go Large
Tell Me Lies

J.R. Crickets

Where else would a show called Atlanta be filmed than its namesake city? In this scene from the second episode of Donald Glover’s hit show, the rapidly-ascending rapper Paper Boi orders lemon pepper wings from J.R. Cricket’s, but…could it be…? The cook, in a demonstration of real recognizing real, adds buffalo sauce to the wings, creating the earth-shattering phenomenon of “lemon pepper wet”.

Kevin Rathbun Steak

Kevin Rathbun Steak, overlooking the Beltline, not only has a phenomenal menu but also a sexy aesthetic and other quirks that appeal to a film or TV show. Here are some projects that have taken advantage of this one-of-a-kind steakhouse:

MacGyver
Step Up High Water
Monarch

Landmark Diner

The Landmark Diner is indeed an Atlanta landmark. While the original Buckhead restaurant opened in 1994, the second location downtown on Luckie Street opened in 2003, and that’s clearly the more inspiring location for production location scouts. Here are some projects that have filmed there:

The Banker
Superintelligence
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Long Slow Exhale
Ozark S4
Harold/Purple Crayon

Le Fat

Le Fat marries the comfortable with the classy in this Vietnamese spot. It served as the setting for a scene in Like a Boss as well as:

Brockmire
She-Hulk

Manuel’s Tavern

It’s hard to tell our city’s culinary story without mentioning Manuel’s Tavern, “Atlanta’s Quintessential Neighborhood Bar”. Since opening its doors in 1956, not much has changed about the hospitality or the decor. So when it came time to film 1970s-set Anchorman 2, it was a natural fit. Owner Brian Maloof even overheard a member of the crew say it’s nice that they don’t need to change much for the 1970s setting of the movie. He joked, “I am not sure how to take that.” Other projects filmed at Manuel’s Tavern include:

The Front Runner
The Outsider
Single Drunk Female

A man sitting alone at a table in a large circular dining room with windows along the curved wall — “Prisoners” in The Original Pancake House in Stone Mountain, GA | Photo Credit: “Prisoners”

Original Pancake House

This breakfast joint has dozens of locations all across the country, with several in Georgia, but the Stone Mountain location is a popular filming spot. For the intense thriller Prisoners, it was converted to a Chinese restaurant for Jake Gyllenhaal’s character to do some brooding. A few other projects filmed here include:

Watsons Go to Birmingham
Hot Summer Nights
Fantasy Football

A group eating in a diner with the words "Midtown Atlanta" written in the center — “Ozark” in The Silver Skillet | Photo Credit: Explore Georgia

Silver Skillet

The Silver Skillet is one of those diners you walk into and immediately know that little to nothing has changed since it first opened in 1956. This old-school aesthetic is partially why it’s been featured in countless period piece movies and TV shows like Ozark and:

Anchorman 2
Remember the Titans
First Man
A Meyers Christmas
Taken 3
The Gifted
The Frontrunner

Trader Vic’s

Sitting in the heart of downtown on the lower level of the Hilton Atlanta lies a tropical paradise. Here are a few projects that took advantage of this unique feel:

Anchorman 2
Jacob’s Ladder
The Front Runner
Loki

Wood’s Chapel BBQ

From the Rye Restaurants team (The General Muir, Fred’s Meat & Bread, etc.) comes a top-notch BBQ joint named after a church that sprung up shortly after the Civil War to serve the Summerhill community. The vibes here perfectly combine the rustic feel you’re looking for in a BBQ spot and the trendy tinge that embodies Summerhill. This balance lends itself well toward a movie or TV show setting, such as:

Shazam: Fury of the Gods
Tell Me Lies