Chef Craig Richards, a co-owner of Michelin-recognized Italian restaurant Lyla Lila in Midtown, will open his second restaurant just down the street at the Woodruff Arts Center next spring.
Taking over the former Table 1280 space across from the High Museum on the Woodruff Arts Center campus, Elise will feature a menu melding French and Italian dishes, including the hand-made pastas for which Richards has become known at Lyla Lila. The restaurant’s name nods to one of Beethoven’s most famous piano compositions, “Für Elise”.
The Woodruff Arts Center closed Table 1280 in 2022 after 17 years, transforming the more formal restaurant into Twelve Eighty Lounge offering bar service and light bites throughout the day.
Richards has been scouting locations to open another restaurant for months. He connected with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra CFO Susan Ambo earlier this year and fondly recalled his dining experiences at Table 1280. Richards said he was drawn to the light-filled space, floor-to-ceiling windows, and minimalist design by Italian architect Renzo Piano.
The space allows Atlanta-based firm Smith Hanes Studio to not only honor Piano’s design but also work with artists Ellsworth Kelly and James Turrell, who play with juxtapositions between light and color in their pieces and art installations. The design calls for warm and cool tones, including deep reds and green accents, lacquered woods, and mirrored elements. Smith Hanes Studio plans to expand the bar and seating inside and outside Elise.
As for food, expect both an a la carte menu and a tasting menu option with four to five hand-made pastas, along with seasonal vegetables and raw and cooked seafood dishes. The bar will serve classic cocktails and Old World French and Italian wines by the bottle and glass.
Elise will initially open for dinner, Tuesday through Sunday, with lunch service following a few weeks later.
Related Link: Woodruff Arts Center kicks off $67M campaign to modernize space, increase access to children
A $67 million makeover of the Woodruff Arts Center campus on Peachtree includes modernizing and activating the front facade of the original Memorial Arts building, between the Alliance Theatre and High Museum of Art. Signage for Elise will be visible from Peachtree Street and the restaurant will provide valet parking from that location.
Richards and Streck opened Lyla Lila at the end of 2019 on the ground floor of the Lilli Midtown apartment building, one block north of the Fox Theatre on Peachtree Street. The restaurant’s menu centers on fresh-made pastas and wood-fired dishes. Richards learned his pasta-making skills from his mentor, Italian chef and restaurateur Lidia Bastianich.
In 2023, Michelin recognized Lyla Lila in its inaugural dining guide to Atlanta, listing it as one of 30 recommended restaurants in the city.
Elise will open in spring 2025 at the Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree Street, Midtown.
