DOWNTOWN ATLANTA AFTER DARK: LATE NIGHT FOOD AT A FOOD HALL OPEN UNTIL 10
Downtown Atlanta has a funny relationship with the evening. The office towers empty out around six, the tourists head back to their hotels after the aquarium, and then a few hours later the whole neighborhood fills right back up for a game or a show. If you are hungry somewhere in the middle of all that, the question is simple: where can you still get a real meal?
At CTR Food Works, the answer runs until 10 PM on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The food hall inside the reimagined former CNN Center at 190 Marietta Street NW has ten chef-driven kitchens, 500 seats, and the largest bar in Georgia in the middle of a 14-story atrium. Here is how to use it after dark.
The hours, straight up
Before anything else, the times:
- Sunday through Wednesday: 11 AM – 9 PM
- Thursday through Saturday: 11 AM – 10 PM
We will be honest about what that means. This is not an after-midnight spot. It is the place for a late dinner, a second round after work that turns into food, or a meal after an afternoon game or an early event. Thursday through Saturday gives you the most room, and that is where most of this guide focuses.
One practical tip: aim to be ordering by about 9 PM on a 10 PM night. That gives the kitchens time to cook and gives you time to actually sit and eat instead of racing the clock.
Why a food hall makes sense at night
Late in the evening, nobody in the group wants the same thing. One person skipped lunch and wants a full plate. Another already ate and wants something small. Someone else is only there for a drink.
A sit-down restaurant makes all of you order off one menu and wait on one kitchen. A food hall lets everyone split up, order from a different counter, and land at the same table a few minutes later. Food comes out fast because you order at the counter, so you are not stuck waiting forty minutes for a table and another forty for entrees.
And with 500 seats, a group that shows up at 8:30 on a Friday can still sit together.
Start at the bar
The CTR Bar sits at the center of the atrium, and it is the largest bar in Georgia. At night it is the obvious meeting point. Tell everyone "the bar," grab a drink, and decide on food once the whole crew is there.
It also takes the pressure off a group that is still trickling in. The first people to arrive get a round going, and nobody has to hold a table or explain anything to a host.
What to eat after dark
Every kitchen in the hall is listed on the Food & Drinks page. These are the orders that suit a late evening best.
For the hungry one. Rivalry Beef puts the Philly cheesesteak and the Chicago Italian beef side by side at one counter. The Italian beef comes stacked high on a toasted bun with hot giardiniera shipped from Chicago, and you pick your level of au jus. Ask for it wet. These are big, messy sandwiches, which is exactly what you want at the end of a long day.
For the comfort order. Patty & Frank's does burgers and hot dogs. The P&F Patty is two beef patties with American cheese, shredded iceberg, red onion, tomato, and Patty Sauce. Add chili fries or onion rings and the night is sorted.
For fried chicken. Southern Belle Chicken Co. is chef Joey Ward's fried chicken counter. Pick sandwich, strips, or salad, then pick a flavor that runs from classic Southern to gochujang hot honey, chili crisp, or Jamaican jerk.
For the group that wants to share. MiMi Taqueria builds tacos to mix and match, from steak asada with avocado and pickled onion to beef cheese birria in a crispy cheese shell with consommé on the side. Order a spread for the table and trade.
For something with heat. The Sparrow cooks Szechuan: dumplings, wok-fired noodles, and small plates made for sharing.
For a lighter plate. Fuzzy's is the seafood raw bar, with oysters, ceviche, and lobster rolls. Oysters and a drink at the bar is a perfectly good late night order on its own.
For a sit-down kind of dinner. Flora D'Italia makes pasta by hand in house and fires Neapolitan-style pizza over wood. A plate of rigatoni or a hot honey pizza works just as well at 9 PM as it does at noon.
For something warm and filling. La Tropical serves Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Latin cooking from Chef Minelly Amador: pressed Cuban sandwiches, mofongo, and ropa vieja.
Save room for something sweet
A late dinner deserves a finish. DessertBox is the bakery counter from chef Steven Ferdinand, working in the French pastry tradition. The Chocolate Trilogy layers chocolate cake with dark, milk, and white chocolate mousse, and a box of macarons travels home easily if you are too full to eat them now.
Morelli's has been making ice cream in Atlanta since 2008, with a flavor board that changes by the day. Salted Caramel is the standing favorite. The counter is cashless, so bring a card or your phone.
Before the game, the show, or the hotel
A downtown Atlanta address is the whole point of eating here at night. State Farm Arena is about a five minute walk, Mercedes-Benz Stadium is roughly ten, and Centennial Olympic Park is about three minutes from the front door.
Before a night event. Most evening games and concerts start around 7:30, so the move is an early dinner: arrive around 5:30, eat at 6, and walk over at 7. Our guides to restaurants near State Farm Arena and eating before a game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium lay out the full timing.
After an afternoon game or an early event. This is where the late hours pay off. A matinee, a daytime game, or a convention session that wraps in the early evening leaves plenty of time to walk over and eat before close.
Staying downtown. If you are in town for a convention or a weekend trip, the hall is a walkable dinner that does not require a car, a reservation, or a group vote on one cuisine. Our guide to things to do in downtown Atlanta covers how to fill the hours before dinner.
Make it a night out
Food is only part of an evening. The bar keeps it social, and the hall hosts its own events too. Check the calendar before you pick a night, since it can turn a plain Thursday into an actual plan.
If you are planning a date, our date night guide walks through a full evening here, from the first drink to dessert for two.
Getting here and getting home
At night, getting home matters as much as getting there. The Center Parking Garage is directly across the street, with the Omni deck and the decks around Centennial Olympic Park as backups on busy event nights.
If you are having a few drinks, skip the car. The CNN Center / GWCC MARTA station is two blocks east, and ride-shares drop at the Marietta Street entrance, which makes for an easy pickup at the end of the night.
Bringing a bigger group
Office happy hours that roll into dinner, birthday nights, team outings after a conference day: groups are what a food hall handles best. For something more organized, the hall books private spaces that scale from a reserved section up to a full buyout. The details are on the Private Events page.
Come by this week
When it is getting late downtown and the group cannot agree on dinner, one bar and ten kitchens settle it. Thursday through Saturday, the hall is open until 10 PM, with 500 seats waiting.
Get hours, parking, and directions, and meet us at the bar.