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By Henri Hollis
Food & Dining Reporter
Hi, food friends,
The fall is typically a very busy time in the food world, especially in the South. Lots of local produce is hitting its peak, restaurant patios become bearable again as temperatures drop and endless recipes are needed for tailgates, dinner parties, friendsgiving gatherings and Thanksgiving proper. Then, there’s the food festivals.
The season kicks off this week with the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, which will feature plenty of our own senior editor Monti Carlo, who is serving as one of the host chefs. She will introduce and host AFWF’s first event called The Atlanta Standard: Thursday Tasting Tents presented by Goya Foods.
The next few months will also see the return of Smorgasburg Atlanta, the Westside Fall Beer & Bourbon Fest, Gluten Freedom Fest ATL, Taste of Atlanta, Cabbagetown Chomp and Stomp, the Atlanta Chili Cookoff and a wide range of county fairs across the state.
Every food festival is different, with its own strategies for how much to charge and what to include in a ticket. It made me curious — what is your favorite food festival, even if it’s not in Atlanta? What makes you more likely to pay for a ticket, and what makes a ticket feel worth it? If you’ve never been to a food festival — what’s kept you away?
I’d love to hear your answers and, as always, feel free to drop me a line. Or say hi if you see any of the AJC Food team at an event this season!
You can reach out to me directly at henri.hollis@ajc.com with tips, thoughts or questions for the AJC’s food and dining team.
FEATURED STORY
Atlanta’s best fried chicken? It’s a tie.
Daniela Cintron, editor at Discover Atlanta, center, reacts as she tastes a piece of fried chicken alongside Justin Brown, ATL50 expert panelist, during a contest to find Atlanta's best fried chicken, held on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, at the AJC office in Midtown. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)
Who has the best fried chicken in Atlanta? We started with 12 semifinalists, asked Atlanta to help us narrow the field and brought the reader favorites to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s offices for a blind taste test with local food experts and journalists.
We cast a wide net because Atlanta’s love of fried chicken isn’t limited to the iconic Southern style. Our contenders included Korean, Thai and Peruvian fried chicken alongside soul food institutions, Southern restaurants and Publix. Yes, Publix. Leaving it out of a fried chicken conversation felt … dishonest.
Five restaurants survived the reader vote, and five chickens were ordered. But only four chickens made it to the judging table. We’ll get to that in a minute.
How did we choose Atlanta’s best fried chicken?
We built our original list using restaurant reviews, reader recommendations and our own experience eating around Atlanta. Because our taste tests happen during business hours at the AJC’s Midtown office, restaurants also had to be open during our tasting window and available for pickup or delivery inside the Perimeter.
Our 12 semifinalists were bb.q Chicken, Buttermilk Kitchen, CM Chicken, Harold’s Chicken & Ice Bar, K & K Soul Food, Las Brasas, Mary Mac’s Tea Room, Pelicana Chicken, Pink Lotus Thai Restaurant, Publix, South City Kitchen and The Busy Bee.
Then we put the list on Instagram and asked readers to vote. They chose bb.q Chicken, Pelicana Chicken, Pink Lotus Thai Restaurant, Publix and The Busy Bee for the final round.
It was a wonderfully weird final five, and we couldn’t have been happier about it. Chicken can cross more than one type of road on its way to crispy perfection. For our taste test, we had Southern, Korean and Thai styles.
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10 Georgia county and state fairs to check out this fall
Fairs come alive at night with the glow of rides. (Courtesy of North Georgia State Fair)
Fall fairs are a staple of the season, bringing thrilling midway rides, decadent fried foods, animals and competitions as people come together for some old-fashioned fun. These fairs stay fresh by offering additional activities to complement the tried-and-true, such as haunted attractions, new rides, a rodeo or quirky contests (keep an eye out for the best mullet).
Even with newer forms of entertainment available, fairs continue to thrive, and some are more popular than ever. That’s the case with the Georgia National Fair, held each fall in Perry.
“Last year was our most attended fair in history — we had over 612,000 attendees last year,” Erin B. Flournoy, marketing director of the Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
She sees the long-term popularity of fairs continuing, pointing out that some have been around for 100 years.
“It’s like a staple for each area. It brings people together,” she said. “People come here with their family and their friends and they’re making memories for a lifetime.”
To take part in the fun, make a trip to some of the following fall fairs in Georgia. And before you go, check out each fair’s website for special deals. Many have discounts for certain groups of people, such as first responders or seniors, as well as for particular days or hours.
Chattahoochee Mountain Fair
With new rides from Lisko Family Amusements, freestyle motocross shows and rodeo nights, the Chattahoochee Mountain Fair in Clarkesville has plenty to offer. Some fun competitions are also scheduled, including a mullet competition, hog calling contest, watermelon eating contest and a diaper dash.
Friday, Sept. 11-Saturday, Sept. 19. Admission $6.49-$21.94 (on rodeo nights), discounts for children. 4235 Toccoa Highway, Clarkesville. 706-969-1866. chattahoocheemountainfair.org.
Livestock exhibitions are a staple of fall fairs. (Courtesy of Georgia National Fair)
Northwest Georgia Regional Fair
The Northwest Georgia Regional Fair returns to Calhoun with a parade, agriculture-themed golf, a bubble factory show, the All American Animal Farm and nightly bands, shows and performances.
Friday, Sept. 11-Saturday, Sept. 19. 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 12 parade. $8 admission, free for children under 5. Unlimited ride specials nightly. Cherokee Capital Fairgrounds, 1060 Liberty Road SW, Calhoun. northwestgeorgiaregionalfair.com.
Gwinnett County Fair
Enjoy fair activities including Patriot Games laser tag, the King BMX stunt show and the magic of Kristen Johnson (“Lady Houdini”).
Thursday, Sept. 17-Sunday, Sept. 27. Admission $5-$10, children 5 and under free with paid adult. Unlimited ride wristbands $20-$35, plus price of admission. 2405 Sugarloaf Parkway, Lawrenceville. 770-963-6522. gwinnettcountyfair.com.
North Georgia State Fair
The North Georgia State Fair has 90 years of history in Marietta, and this year’s edition has more than 40 rides, including a permanent mega slide, cable lift and roller coaster on the fairgrounds. New rides this year include Horror Hotel, Flying Cows, Aero Max, Krazy Cars and a carousel. Other entertainment includes the Zerbini Family Circus and the FireGuy show.
Thursday, Sept. 24-Sunday, Oct. 4. Admission $10-$15, discounts for youth and seniors. Pay-one-price ride special $25-$35. Jim R. Miller Park, 1345 Al Bishop Drive, Marietta. 770-423-1330. northgeorgiastatefair.com.
Kiwanis Coweta County Fair
See animals including reptiles, birds and a camel at the Georgia Untamed Zoo, and enjoy entertainment from a comedy juggler and more at this Newnan fair.
Thursday, Sept. 24-Sunday, Oct. 4. Admission $10, free for children 5 and under. Mega Passes $30 (good for admission and unlimited rides) advance purchase, ride armbands $30-$35. 275 Pine Road, Newnan. 770-254-2620. cowetacountyfair.net.
Nightly entertainment is offered at Georgia fall fairs, along with midway rides and plenty of other fun. (Courtesy of Georgia National Fair)
Georgia State Fair
See macaws and have your photo taken with a Capuchin monkey, be amazed at a Wall of Death motorcycle stunt show, enjoy a show with aerial acts and performing dogs, take a helicopter flight and more at the Georgia State Fair in Hampton.
The Coosa Valley Fair brings a Pirates of the Colombian Caribbean aerial high wire show with swords, action and acrobats as well as a Jurassic Kingdom dinosaur show and Camp Carousel petting zoo.
Tuesday, Oct. 6-Saturday, Oct. 10. Admission $10, free for children under 6. Unlimited ride armbands $38-$42. 1400 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Rome. 706-291-9951. coosavalleyfair.com.
Georgia National Fair
The Perry fair offers plenty of fun including free concerts with artists such as Lonestar, Hanson and Jesse McCartney, and a nightly fireworks show.
Thursday, Oct. 8-Sunday, Oct. 18. Admission $10-$20, $4-$5 children age 3-10, free for ages 2 and under. Mega Pass (includes unlimited rides plus admission) $40 in advance, also available at the fair. Ride armband $30-$35 (not available on Saturdays or the first Sunday). 401 Larry Walker Parkway, Perry. 478-987-3247. georgianationalfair.com.
The Ready Go Dog Show brings high-energy tricks and amazing catches to the North Georgia State Fair. (Courtesy of North Georgia State Fair)
Cumming Country Fair & Festival
Daily attractions include a dog show with diving dogs and world champion Frisbee dogs, a chain saw carver, a high-dive show, the North Georgia Petting Zoo and the Four Scythes Haunted Attraction with new scares this year. The Haunted Attraction costs an additional $20.
Thursday, Oct. 8-Sunday, Oct. 18. Admission $8.43-$10, free for children 10 and under. Pay-one-price ride special $25-$35. Cumming Fairgrounds, 235 Castleberry Road, Cumming. 770-781-3491. cummingfair.net/cumming-country-fair-festival-3.
Elberton 12 County Fair
Featuring an all-new midway with rides from Dreamland Amusements, the Elberton 12 County Fair also includes the Tiger Encounter, Circus Murcia, Halloween magic show and the Voice of the 12 County Fair finals.
Thursday, Oct. 22-Sunday, Nov. 1. Unlimited ride wristband $26.25-$32. 425 N. Oliver St., Elberton. 706-283-3401. elbertonfair.com.
Upcoming Events
Sep 11-Sep 13
Atlanta Food & Wine Festival
Mercedes-Benz Stadium - Home Depot Backyard
This year's Atlanta Food & Wine Festival is centered around the theme, "The City is the Story," according to a news release. The hosts will include the AJC's senior editor of food and dining, Monti Carlo, who will open the festival Thursday with the Atlanta Standard kickoff event, featuring live entertainment, tasting tents and beverages. Throughout the rest of the weekend, well-known chefs including Andrew Zimmern, Shawn Osbey, Ford Fry, Kardea Brown and Kelli Potter will host their own tasting tents with dedicated tasting stations, and more than 200 chefs will be handing out food. Tickets start at $125 per person.
Sep 11
Atlanta Home Show
Cobb Convention Center (Cobb Galleria Centre)
Thinking about a home project? The Atlanta Home Show brings local experts together to answer the questions online research can't. PBS stars Bridget Lancaster and Julia Collin Davison of "America's Test Kitchen From Cook's Illustrated" will share behind-the-scenes kitchen secrets, favorite recipes and cooking tips. Visitors can also take advantage of free admission Friday, complimentary flu shots from Kroger and a kid entrepreneurs market.
Sep 13
Shop Local, Savor the Season: Farmers Market Series Returns to The Battery Atlanta
The Battery Atlanta
Spend a Sunday shopping local at The Battery Atlanta's popular Farmers Market series. The open-air market features fresh produce, handcrafted goods and specialty vendors from across the region. Visitors can also enjoy a petting zoo, browse the Bark Market with their pets and catch Atlanta Braves away games on the big screen. The free event returns on select Sundays through Sept. 27.
