There's a new window cut into the storefront at the west end of the 1600 block of McLendon Avenue. It's a sidewalk takeout window for soft serve, set into fresh paint under overhead lighting that went up this month. When Urbanize Atlanta checked in on October 21, it described the renovations and tenant changes on this historic retail row as almost finished.
The row sits on the south side of McLendon, across from Candler Park Market and Gigi's Italian Kitchen & Restaurant. For about thirty years it had one anchor that drew people from across town. That anchor has been replaced by several smaller businesses, and nearly all of them come from close by: a spa owner whose shop is three blocks away, a bakery that already runs three intown locations, and an Atlanta writing nonprofit that finally has a room of its own.
| Storefront | What was there | What's there now | Status in late October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| West end, next to La Fonda Latina | Dr. Bombay's Underwater Tea Party | Midi | In buildout, fall debut expected |
| Former bridal boutique, 1643 McLendon | Kelly's Closet | Little Tart Bakeshop | In buildout, fall debut expected |
| Part of the original Flying Biscuit space, 1653 McLendon Unit C | Flying Biscuit Café | Lostintheletters | Open since 2025 |
| Corner at Clifton Road | Corner storefront next to the old Biscuit space | Lucille's | Open since summer 2026 |
| Toward the eastern corner | n/a | Kelly's Closet, relocated within the building | Open |
The anchor moved out for parking and a patio
Flying Biscuit Café opened on McLendon Avenue in 1993. Delia Champion and Michelle Speert founded it there before it grew into a franchise. In 2024 the original location moved to the former Lazy Betty space on DeKalb Avenue, as Rough Draft Atlanta reported, and the menu and staff stayed the same. Co-owner Joseph Hsiao told the AJC that after about thirty years in the same building, it was time for a newer space with better parking and a patio.
Those were things the McLendon building couldn't offer. The old storefronts stayed as they were, so the businesses that moved in are ones that fit them. Dr. Bombay's moved to Grant Park. Kelly's Closet gave up its bridal storefront and reopened in another space toward the building's eastern corner. Since then, the one big Biscuit space has been split among smaller tenants.
The new tenants already had ties nearby
Lostintheletters took part of the original Flying Biscuit space. It's an Atlanta writing studio and nonprofit, and it opened a brick-and-mortar home there in 2025. Axios Atlanta reported in July 2025 that the group was renovating the space with a late-summer opening planned. By October, Atlanta Magazine was covering its debut. Before that, the organization had spent years hosting events at other venues, including Art Papers, Atlanta Contemporary and the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia.
Lucille's is next door to the east, on the corner of Clifton Road and McLendon. It opened this summer. Its owner, Kristen Eber, founded The Rosefinch Spa in 2016, three blocks away. According to Rough Draft Atlanta, she grew up intown and worked in Candler Park at the Flying Biscuit, Mooncake boutique and Salon Red. In April, Urbanize Atlanta described the shop's merchandise as a curated mix of home décor, candles, books, jewelry and accessories. Rough Draft reports that Clay Harper and Mike Nelson own the block, and Eber described how she got the space this way:
"[Clay and Mike] are really dedicated to revitalizing Candler Park. They made me a really good offer to take this space because they believed in my vision."
Little Tart Bakeshop is at the west end. The Candler Park shop will be its fourth location, after Grant Park, Summerhill and Krog Street Market. So the block's next pastry counter comes from a bakery that already operates a few neighborhoods over, not from a newcomer trying out the market.
Every one of these operators was either already working nearby or already serving intown customers. The owners lease the space and the reputation, and the nearby connection comes with the tenant.
What you can walk to on the block this week
Here's what's open on and across from the row as of this week, with hours where the business publishes them:
- Lostintheletters, 1653 McLendon Ave. NE, Unit C. The bookstore and reading lounge are open Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 7 p.m. They sell a curated selection of fiction, poetry and nonfiction by authors from past Lostintheletters programs, and you can bring your own book or borrow one from the lounge library. The writing studio is open to members on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and the group plans quarterly workshops, live readings and pop-up events.
- Lucille's, at the Clifton Road corner. It's a gift shop focused on local and regional vendors, and Rough Draft Atlanta reports that its fragrances, incense and candles are all non-toxic.
- Candler Park Market, across the street. Hours are Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Gigi's Italian Kitchen & Restaurant, 1660 McLendon Ave. NE. It started as a pop-up in the Gato space and became permanent there, as Atlanta Magazine covered. The Infatuation describes a small menu that changes often, with seasonal pasta, vegetables, wine and tiramisu, and notes it had grown to two dining rooms by 2025.
- La Fonda Latina, at the west end of the row, next door to the Midi space.
The Lostintheletters schedule shows how the row works now. The bookstore is open two afternoons a week, and the members' studio uses the space on three other days.
The west end is the last piece
The new takeout window belongs to Midi, the last storefront to open. Sarah O'Brien, who owns Little Tart, is leading it. Midi will serve fresh bread from the bakeshop next door, sandwiches, salads, small bites, classic cocktails, curated wines and ice cream. Hoodline reports that Midi and Little Tart will share a kitchen and restrooms but keep separate menus. Midi takes over the old Dr. Bombay's space, and Little Tart takes the former Kelly's Closet bridal storefront.
The soft serve has its own backstory. In August 2025, O'Brien told the AJC that the Candler Park concept would serve soft-serve ice cream but would not be another Big Softie outpost, as Urbanize Atlanta reported this spring. On Midi's own site, the team says it joked about opening a sandwich shop for two years and decided, the first time it walked into the Candler Park space, that it wanted "to bring another corner of Paris to Atlanta." The site still reads "Coming Fall 2026" and lists no hours.
As of Urbanize Atlanta's October 21 report, neither business had set an opening date. The owners said they were "counting down the days" to the fall debut they've predicted for months, and Midi was hiring for a long list of open jobs. That forecast goes back to May, when What Now Atlanta and Rough Draft both said the two would open this fall. Midi's Instagram has posted previews of vintage arched doorways and a tiled mosaic at the front door. When Midi opens, the last vacant storefront from the Flying Biscuit era will be filled.
If you want a say in what comes next on McLendon, the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization's next monthly meetings are November 16 and December 21, both from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Old Stone Church, 470 Candler Park Drive NE, with a Zoom option.
When a whole retail row on your street fills back in, it's worth knowing how that shows up in what nearby homes are worth. If you live within walking distance of McLendon and want to see what that looks like for your home, Roots Real Estate can put together a block-by-block read. Get your custom market plan.
