Georgia may grow more blueberries than peaches these days, but nobody is rushing to rename Peachtree Street. The peach still belongs to us. It’s on our license plates, in our cocktails and all over Atlanta restaurant menus for a few glorious months every summer.

Though National Peach Day is today, peach season is already winding down. Here’s where you can still find some of Atlanta’s best peach dishes and desserts, plus a few recipes for putting those peaches on your counter to work.

Learn how to pick a ripe Georgia peach

A peach’s red blush may be pretty, but it isn’t the best way to judge ripeness. Tyler Wainwright of Lane Southern Orchards told the AJC to look at the fruit’s background color near the stem. Yellow is fine, but dark green can mean the peach was picked too early.

A ripe peach should also have a little give without feeling mushy. If it’s still hard, let it soften on the counter or outside in the shade, never in direct sun. Refrigerate it once ripe to buy yourself a little more time.

Read an expert’s advice for choosing the perfect Georgia peach.

Turn ripe peaches into peach curd

Peach curd is what happens when peaches get the lemon-curd treatment. Eggs and butter turn peach puree into a silky spread that lands somewhere between a custard and a jam.

Our easy peach curd recipe includes 12 ways to use it. Spoon it over ice cream, spread it on biscuits, layer it into a cake or serve it with pork or grilled chicken.

Roast the peaches that refuse to ripen

Those stubbornly firm peaches on your counter are not a lost cause. They’re actually better for roasting because they soften in the oven without turning to mush.

This 30-minute pork tenderloin with roasted peaches balances the fruit with sherry vinegar and fresh tarragon. It’s a quick dinner and a good use for peaches that aren’t ready to eat over the sink.

🍑 Read more: Find more ways to celebrate the end of Georgia’s peach season.

Upper West Market is an indoor farmers market that opened in August in Atlanta’s Underwood Hills neighborhood with a variety of vendors offering fresh produce, local meat, pantry goods and homeware.

Ben Hautt, the developer and creator of the market, set out to repurpose this 1970s-era chicken processing plant into a bustling center of community and local goods, something styled after Pike Place Market in Seattle, he said.

The project took longer, and required much more work, than Hautt anticipated, he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. But almost two years since it was first announced, it held a grand opening earlier this month with a starting lineup of local businesses and rotating farm stands.

Hautt previously worked on several other Atlanta developments, including Star Provisions and Lee + White. In 2024, he started his own company, Robles Partners, to embark on his vision of an indoor, year-round farmers market.

“I think to be a global city, you have to have a central market for people to come to,” Hautt said.

The Georgia Peach Truck is one of the vendors at Upper West Market. It serves fresh produce and locally-made pantry goods. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

What is the Upper West Market?

Upper West Market is a year-round, indoor farmers market and event space, Hautt said. It’s open daily and houses rotating farm stands as well as permanent local businesses selling anything from chocolate to produce to meat.

The vendor makeup is meant to satisfy a local’s everyday needs while also offering a space for tourists and visitors to gain a sense of Georgia’s agricultural and culinary riches.

“One thing we kept telling ourselves is like, all right, I’m gonna have company over for dinner. How do I shop with that in mind, and what would I possibly need?” he said.

In addition to the permanent vendors located around the cavernous building, there is a kids’ reading corner with colorful seats and story times, multiple areas with cafe-style seating and, in the coming weeks, Hop City will open an attached cocktail and wine bar and Island Seafood will open a fresh oyster bar.

Some vendors offer premade meals and food items, but since Upper West Market is categorized as a grocery store, there is no hot food prepared on site, Hautt said. But attached to the building in a separate hallway, Bacchanalia chef Anne Quatrano has opened an all-day breakfast and lunch restaurant named Summerland where guests can enjoy full meals, baked goods and coffee.

Mikel Harris, the owner of homeware shop Pantry by Mikel, said the project interested him because it offers customers a place to consistently find the local produce and artisans they might typically seek out at temporary farmers markets.

“But I think the point of having it not only year-round but every day is really to provide the access,” Harris said. “I think this provides a space where you can come any time of the week and be able to get those ingredients.”

One of the vendors at Upper West Market is White Oak Pastures, a Georgia-based farm that sells cuts of meat and animal products. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

What can you find at Upper West Market?

There are 19 businesses currently open or opening soon at Upper West Market:

• Xocolatl: An Atlanta-based, small-batch chocolate company.
• Tiendita: A retail business from the team behind Poncey-Highland restaurant El Ponce, offering women- and Latin-owned brands with gifts, glassware, specialty snack foods and cookbooks. On weekends, it offers premade breakfast burritos and tamales from El Ponce as well as fresh Molino tortillas.
• White Oak Pastures: This family-run, regenerative farm based in Bluffton, Georgia, has a variety of fresh cuts of meat for sale.
• Garnish & Gather: A local meal kit business selling prepackaged meals, pantry goods and produce.
• Dips Kitchen: This stand offers a selection of dips like artichoke and burrata and hot “fried” chicken, as well as dip accouterments.
• Pantry by Mikel: Find artisan pantry supplies, tableware and other kitchen products.
• Ginger Yums: A company selling tea blends and fresh-pressed juice.
• Georgia Peach Truck: A mix of seasonal, Georgia-grown produce and pantry goods.
• Pet Wants: Pet food, treats and pet supplies.
• Noble Honey Company: Local and flavored honey.
• Prana Kitchens: Handmade spice blends rooted in Ayurvedic philosophy.
• 68th & Monroe: A skincare company offering natural products with an emphasis on local sourcing.
• Bellwood Coffee cart: An Atlanta-based cafe and roaster with beans, drip coffee and latte drinks.
• Honeysuckle Gelato: A local gelato company offering pints, gelato sandwiches and other treats.
• Woodland Wellness: Food and wellness-focused products like herbal elixirs, blends, tinctures, bone broths and ghee with an emphasis on Ayurvedic philosophy.
• Le Kiosque by Le Jardin Francais: A flower shop offering bouquets and plant items.

People shop at Upper West Market in Atlanta on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

The following vendors are set to open within a matter of weeks, Hautt said:

• The Boiler Room by Hop City: A bar operated by Hop City that will specialize in wine and cocktails will be tucked away in a room adjacent to the main market. It will also run a kiosk to buy beer and wine.
• Island Seafood ATL: A fresh seafood market with fish and shellfish available for purchase as well as a raw oyster bar.
• Bodyrok: A Pilates-style exercise studio.

Upper West Market will also feature a collection of co-op stands that provide space for local growers and businesses to rent by the day. When Hautt started reaching out to Georgia growers about selling their produce seven days a week, the common response was that most businesses didn’t have enough product or enough staff to set up every day.

As a solution, Hautt made the co-op stands operate on a booking system that allows growers to reserve space on a daily basis. For example, on a recent weekday, one of the co-op spaces was occupied by Cultured Traditions, a small-batch fermented foods business.

“We’re getting a mix of all the really, really small farms that really can’t sustain a seven-day-a-week type of operation,” he said.

Where can you eat at Upper West Market?

While the market vendors can’t prepare food on site, visitors can grab coffee from Bellwood’s stand, bottled juices from Ginger Yums, some prepared foods from Tiendita and Garnish & Gather and snacks from Dips Kitchen and other vendors offering packaged food.

For a full meal, Summerland is Quatrano’s all-day breakfast and lunch restaurant.

The menu from Quatrano and executive chef Faye Poon highlights seasonal ingredients with offerings like cottage cheese pancakes with blueberry compote and crème fraîche; an English muffin with herb cream cheese, smoked salmon, pickled spinach, an egg and hollandaise; the Ploughman’s Lunch with rosemary ham, cheddar cheese, cornichon pickles, a soft-boiled farm egg and sourdough; and a chicken schnitzel with summer minestrone and herb butter.

Anne Quatrano's new restaurant, Summerland Cafe, will also sell baked goods at Upper West Market. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

For sweet selections, find a Georgia peanut and popcorn sundae and the Eton mess, a classic British dessert with meringue, berries and Chantilly cream.

A beverage menu includes wine, beer, cocktails, coffee, tea and juices.

Where to park at Upper West Market

There are two parking options at Upper West Market. Visitors can pay to park in the large main lot, or they can find free street parking in the surrounding area.

Paid parking has been a contentious point in Atlanta in the past, especially on the Westside.

Hautt said the intention of paid parking is to keep rent costs for vendors low — either equal to or less than the cost of setting up at other Atlanta-area farmers markets.

“We offer all the vendors subsidized rent, and then the way the property pays its mortgage and the like is through the parking,” he said.

His hope is that it will act as a “cascading effect” where the vendors don’t have to price their products as high since their rental costs are more affordable.

Upper West Market includes a variety of local vendors as well as cafe-style seating. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

The first 15 minutes of parking is free, then the charges start at $2.95 for one hour and can range up to $10.45 for four hours.

Hautt said the model should be successful if Upper West Market attracts traffic similar to other grocery stores in the area. He estimated that the nearby Publix on Collier Road sees 30,000-40,000 visitors each month.

Rosa Thurnher, the owner of El Ponce and Tiendita, said the lower rent costs at Upper West Market created a lower barrier to entry, which is hard to find in Atlanta.

For Tiendita, customers who spend $25 or more at the business will be offered validation for one hour of free parking, Thurnher said, which is their way of encouraging folks to shop with them.

“I do think the model is with great intention,” Thurnher said.

Before the trip begins, you will be asked to buckle your “meat” belt.

This is not the first hot dog pun you will hear while aboard the 27-foot-long Wienermobile, nor will it be the last. The women in the driver’s seat and riding shotgun have been in a bun on the open road for two months now. That’s a lot of time to mustard up some one-liners, and they serve them freely.

Atlanta traffic is, famously, some of the wurst. Congestion is at record levels and, since the pandemic, it’s no longer confined to the morning and evening rush hours.

But traffic does not bother Carly Bowden, one of a dozen newly cooked college graduates hired to spend a year evangelizing the gospel according to Oscar Mayer.

Bowden, who goes by Corn Dog Carly, relishes it. When traffic has slowed to a crawl, the spectacle of a giant frankfurter is entertaining. She likes watching people’s reactions.

“It’s hard not to smile when you see a hot dog on wheels,” Bowden says.

Hotdoggers Carly Bowden, left, and Evie Serda, center, greet the public after the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile toured the area, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026, in Atlanta. ("Jumbo Dog" Jason Getz/AJC)

Indeed, it is hard not to be mesmerized.

People gawk, transfixed. When it was parked on a side street behind the High Museum to pick up this reporter and two other journalists, one passerby saw the open gull-wing door and walked inside without an invitation, as if in a trance. She didn’t say a word, just stared wide-eyed at the ketchup-red carpet with a tuft of yellow “mustard” and the sky-blue ceiling painted with white clouds.

It’s OK to be awed. More people have gone to outer space than driven the Wienermobile, which is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. Six hot rod dogs make up the fleet today, including a weenie with the license plate WNR MBLE that travels the southeast and is in Atlanta this week.

“We’re lucky dogs,” Bowden says.

When the door is closed, Bowden dims the lights and pulls up a map on her phone from the passenger seat. Her co-pilot, “Grill Ready” Evie Serda fires up the engine, a Chevrolet V-8 on a front-sitting chassis, and pulls into traffic after a glance at the side view mirrors.

Within minutes, the dog is cruising south down Peachtree Street.

Driving the Wienermobile takes practice. The crew trains at Hot Dog High weeks before they earn a title they’ll hold lifetime bragging rights to: “Hotdogger.” They’re also christened with a hot dog name, an honor they, in turn, pass on to all visitors. On this trip, Sara Kraut, Jumbo Dog Jason and All-Beef Abbey are on board.

During training, retired police officers grill the drivers and put them through the paces. Like any classic driver’s education course, instruction starts in the classroom. They learn about the dog’s turn radius (wide) and what to expect when braking and accelerating. Then, the students graduate to Penske box trucks.

Like the Wienermobile, a Penske doesn’t have rearview mirrors. It gets the Hotdoggers in the habit of relying on their side mirrors. They practice in parking lots decked out with obstacle courses, including one that simulates driving through the Lincoln Tunnel. At 8 feet wide, the Wienermobile clears the tunnel’s 8-foot-6-inch maximum — barely, with the length of one real hot dog to spare.

A final test is driving forward and back in the shape of a tightly drawn star, smaller than your average Midtown intersection.

“This has made me such a better driver,” Serda says.

(Photo Illustration: AJC Source: Getty, MARTA)

On the 10th Street overpass, she flicks on the turn signal, readying to go left on the Downtown Connector. They get a few honks and Bowden waves back to the cars idling at a red light. Waving to other drivers has become such an ingrained habit over the two months they’ve been on the road that Serda confesses she caught herself waving from an Uber recently.

The dog queues in the on-ramp, then merges like any other vehicle. Drivers generally give them a wide berth, and traffic on the connector is light at the moment.

“That wasn’t too bad,” Serda says.

The Hotdoggers are paired so that one person can always serve as a navigator and an extra set of eyes. Bowden tells Serda to roll into the far right-hand lane and take the exit to John Lewis Freedom Parkway.

As she pulls to the intersection at Boulevard, the map changes directions at the last second. Bowden redirects her. This happens often. Depending on the city, or whether they’re using Google or Apple maps, they have to pivot frequently.

“We’re always making sure we’re giving extra time for our big dog to get places,” Bowden says.

Serda gets a loud honk when she turns onto North Avenue. She honks back.

Then the giant dog passes a Waymo. They’ve encountered the driverless cars here and in Nashville, Tennessee, always without incident. If the Waymo is delighted to see the Wienermobile, it doesn’t react.

After turning right, back onto Peachtree Street, the Wienermobile slows. There are more vehicles on the road, more pedestrians lining the sidewalks, their phones in the air to photograph the big dog on wheels. Bowden points out construction workers to avoid on one side of the street.

This dog gets good mileage, similar to an SUV, Bowden says. It runs on high-octane mustard. (OK, that’s not true; it runs on regular gasoline.)

The hardest part of driving this behemoth?

Frankly, a struggle common to any Atlanta driver: Parking.

They typically look for wide-open spaces where they can take a couple of spaces. They scope out event locations in advance to figure out where to park the bun.

But Serda parallel parked it the other day for the first time, with Bowden outside the vehicle guiding her in the spot.

“It was beautiful,” Serda said. “We got a lot of compliments on it.”

Where to see the Wienermobile

• Aug. 20: 4-8 p.m. at Red’s Beer Garden, 1328 Boulevard SE, Atlanta.
• Aug. 21: 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Kroger, 4085 Mundy Mill Road, Oakwood.
• Aug. 23: 1-4 p.m. at the Farmers Market at the Battery, 800 Battery Ave. SE, Atlanta.