ATLANTA — East Lake’s newest BBQ restaurant, Lake & Oak Neighborhood BBQ, opened its doors two weeks ago on the Fourth of July weekend. If their slogan, ‘Welcome to BBQ Heaven,’ is any indication, these award-winning chefs pride themselves on bringing authentic BBQ to the Eastside.
The name of the stylish new eatery which is an abbreviation for its location sits between the East Lake and Oakhurst neighborhoods in southeast Atlanta. Lake & Oak Neighborhood BBQ is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday every week according to its website.
The owners, Chefs Todd Richards & Joshua Lee opened the restaurant earlier this month as their first joint venture. The award-winning pair have over 40+ years of combined experience in the hospitality industry.
Lake & Oak’s menu promises a true, Southern BBQ experience with over 60+ lbs of beef brisket cooked daily.
“Honestly the community has been great. We have no complaints. It feels really great to originally come from East Atlanta and be able to put a brick and mortar (business) back in my neighborhood where I grew up,” Chef Josh tells My East Atlanta News.
Opening their restaurant during the pandemic hasn’t been easy but business for the new establishment has been quite steady due in no small part to their ‘Black Chef Series’ initiative.
Only in their second week, the ‘Black Chef Series’ was created as a way to highlight Black chefs and encourage patronage of Black-owned businesses throughout Atlanta and nationwide.
Orders for the featured chefs are limited to online only. Pre-orders start on Tuesdays at 10 am and end on Fridays at 8 am. Orders are available for pick-up only on Saturdays.
Erika Council, owner, and operator of Bomb Biscuits Atlanta was the featured chef for this weekend’s pop-up series. Orders for her handmade biscuits were sold out in 24 hrs!
“I've just been raised around black entrepreneurs in the restaurant industry my whole life,” Erika tells My East Atlanta News about the ‘Black Chef Series’ and when asked about the future of public support of Black businesses. “I hope it continues even after things go back to normal. I hope people continue to support Black businesses."
Lake & Oak Neighborhood BBQ is open Friday through Sunday from 11 am to 8 pm and Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm.
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