Grab a Bite Between the Beats

Festival season is here and the Shaky’s are in full bloom. Atlanta will kick off May with the annual Shaky Knees Music Festival and follow that up with its younger, dubstep sibling Shaky Beats Music Festival. Seeing that Atlanta is gearing up for a busy festival season, it’s time to start considering where you will fuel your body to make it through the back-to-back weekends of non-stop dancing. We recommend the following restaurants and on-site food vendors based on their distance from the venue and average food or drink cost.

F.R.O.G.S. - 3.4 : F.R.O.G.S. is a Tex-Mex Cantina with a quirky, colorful design located in the Midtown Promenade at 931 Monroe Drive in Atlanta, Georgia right next to Piedmont Park. This restaurant is about a twenty minute walk or a ten minute Uber away from Central Park. F.R.O.G.S boasts an extensive margarita menu with several options available by the pitcher if you’re looking for a place to share drinks with your friends. The average price for cocktails are $8, but don’t let that turn you away. They often run drink specials throughout the weekend on shots and various beers. The average for an entrée runs around $10. If you happen to check them out, try the potachos. They are tater tot nachos loaded down with chicken, beef, veggies and guacamole. We promise you won’t be disappointed.

Ponce City Market- 3.3 : Ponce City Market is an off-site marketplace located at Ponce City Market, Atlanta, Georgia. They boast an extensive food hall which they deem the “culinary central for the south”. Inside the food hall you can find food to make everyone in your friend group happy. Batter Cookie Dough Counter offers edible cookie dough, Bellina Alimentari offers gourmet Italian cuisine, Botiwalla provides Indian Street Foods, Collier Candy Company is an old fashioned candy shop, and Farm to Ladle is a European Café and Farm stand. Ponce City Market is only a fifteen minute walk from Central Park or a five minute Uber ride and the average meal for one person inside the food hall will run you about $10. Ponce City Market’s full food hall offerings can be found here and it is definitely the place to go if you’ve got an indecisive group of friends.

King of Pops - 3.2 : King of Pops is an Atlanta based Popsicle company founded by a couple brothers with a used pushcart and a couple thousand dollars. The brothers set out to make amazingly, good popsicles with the best ingredients and creative flavor combinations. They sling their pops from carts at festivals, parks, and community events all over the South. They will be on-site of both Shaky festivals slinging their delicious ice pops from their carts for about $5 a pop. It’s definitely a tasty, quick way to cool off between sets on-site at the festival.

Caroll Street Cafe- 3.0 : Caroll Street Café is an eclectic bohemian café located at 208 Caroll Street SE, Atlanta, Georgia. Caroll Street Café is situated in Cabbage Town and has a Mediterranean American Fusion menu to match its bohemian vibe. Though dinner for two can get a little pricey at this relaxed café, the dessert and drink menu at this spot are unmatched. Caroll Street Café has a variety of beers, cocktails, and wines available as well as fresh desserts that are first come, first served. The sought after B-52 Cheesecake is definitely all it is cracked up to be and it comes to no surprise they sell out of it very often. Dinner for two with cocktails can run you upwards of $75, but just grabbing drinks and dessert won’t bust your bank account. The average cost for two people to have drinks and a dessert is about $20 to $25. If you’re looking for a place to grab a quiet drink and snack on something sweet, this is definitely a must see spot in Atlanta.

Varuni Napoli - 3.0 : Varuni Napoli has two locations in Atlanta, Georgia. One location can be found inside Krog Street Market at 101 Krog Street NE and another at 1540 Monroe Drive NE. If you have an indecisive group of friends and you would like a quick slice of pie, Krog Street Market hosts a handful of restaurants and stores. Krog Street Market is similar to Ponce City Market, just smaller. If you’re looking to sit down and grab a nice handcrafted cocktail with a delicious Neapolitan style pizza, then you should definitely check out the Monroe location. Varuni Napoli makes their dough fresh daily with Doppio Zero Flour , uses San Marzano Tomatoes for their sauce, and also uses Mozzarella di Bufala to top their pizzas. Their pies are baked in one of their two wood fired pizza ovens. Varuni’s cocktail menu has an average price of about $8 and their average pizza runs about $20, but the prices do vary depending on your toppings. The price of their pie is worth it. Also, if you happen to pop in ,grab a Cannoli, they're made fresh there every day. Varuni Napoli is definitely the #1 place to get pizza in Midtown Atlanta.

Chocolate Chip Cannoli from Varuni Napoli in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia.

Atlanta Burger Truck - 3.0 : Atlanta Burger Truck has been an onsite vendor for Shaky Beats Festival in the past, and attendees are hoping they will be onsite again this year. Atlanta Burger Truck boats a menu of all-natural burgers and homemade sides. Atlanta Burger Truck uses Brasstown beef, which is an Angus beef that is local to the area. Their burgers are flame grilled and served on sesame Kaiser Buns. Their menu boasts names that are local to the area as well such as The Decatur, The Buckhead, and Little 5. If you have a chance to catch Atlanta Burger Truck, try the Little 5. They top the ½ pound Angus patty with pimento cheese and Applewood smoked bacon. The average price for a burger will run about $10. It’s a festival burger that can’t be beat.

The Pup Truck - 3.0 : The Pup Truck is an Atlanta based food truck that makes an appearance at most festivals in the Atlanta area. The Pup Truck offers a wide variety of hot dogs with quirky names from the Schnauzer to the Chihuahua. They buy locally made dogs and make their own cheese sauces, and it definitely makes for a dog that can’t be beat. You can easily eat off $10 at this truck and walk away with a gourmet hot dog, a drink and some chips. If you’re looking for a place to grab some good food and save a few bucks, The Pup Truck is the place to be.

Nectar - 2.8 : Nectar is an Atlanta based all natural, health-centric restaurant. They have a couple locations between Georgia Tech, Piedmont Park and also one in Decatur, but they will be stopping by Shaky Knees and Shaky Beats with their food trucks. Their food trucks have been elected one of the healthiest food trucks in America by Huffington Post. They offer a wide variety of Panini’s, including breakfast Panini’s, and their main focus is Juice and Smoothies. The average smoothie costs about $6 and the average Panini is about $8. If you’re trying to stay on the festival grounds and grab something healthy, you should check out Nectar