Area restaurants featured in Georgia Eats Top 100

The Georgia Department of Economic Development’s Tourism Division has released the 2018 state culinary guide, Georgia Eats. The fourth annual digest-sized guide features the wildly popular “100 Plates Locals Love” list, as well as 10 flavor tours that showcase inspiring dining options, a gallery of the state’s most Instagrammable foods, unique festivals, delectable recipes from a few of Georgia’s celebrated chefs and more.

Georgia Eats was initially published in conjunction with the “Year of Culinary” campaign in 2015. The enthusiastic response from visitors led tourism officials to continue publishing it annually. Georgia Eats has become one of the state’s most popular marketing pieces with a print circulation of 187,000 and 62,000 unique page views via ExploreGeorgia.org.

With diverse and flavorful crops, farm-to-table dining, food festivals, cooking schools, award-winning wineries, agritourism trails, talented local chefs, u-pick farms, and much more, Georgia continues to emerge as a leading culinary destination in the South.

Since the inaugural issue of Georgia Eats, Georgia Tourism has designated the “100 Plates Locals Love” as a way to provide visitors with locally sourced suggestions. Nominations from around the state are gathered via ExploreGeorgia.org and evaluated by a panel of judges who curate the list down to the final designees. The list has been likened to recommendations that Georgians would share with family and friends, and it has received rave reviews from visitors as well as restaurant owners. View the full “100 Plates Locals Love” list online at ExploreGeoriga.org.

This year’s list features two local favorites.

The first one is 83° West New Orleans Seafood Grill. The restaurant was recommended by Tammy T, who wrote, “The best grits I have ever eaten – creamy and flavorful, topped with cheese, tomatoes, and green onions. Seasoned to perfection. A gem in hiding.”

Hartwell’s Rolling Chefs also received mention as well. Karen B. talked about the mobile restaurant’s parmesan chicken, saying, “The tenderness of the chicken and the crunchy parmesan crust goes well with the asiago cream sauce. Rolling Chefs has the best cream sauce in Hartwell!”

The Georgia Eats culinary guide is available at the state’s 12 Visitor Information Centers across the state and on the state’s consumer tourism website ExploreGeorgia.org. To learn more about Georgia’s rich culinary experiences through videos, tours and more, visit ExploreGeorgia.org/dining. Share your favorite food finds using #GeorgiaEats.