Crime Causes Botanico Relocation From Buckhead: Owners

ATLANTA — The popular Buckhead eatery Botanico Kitchen and Bar will soon be moving to another part of town because of the increase in crime, its owners said last week.

A message posted on Instagram last month touted a “Big Announcement” and and said Feb. 21 would be the last day the Mexican restaurant would be open at its 310 Pharr Road location.

Following that, messaging plastered across the home page of its Website announced the closure was due to “some recent issues over the last couple months, the increase in criminal activity nearby and concerns about the safety and experience of our customers and employees.”

A recent spike in violent crime in Buckhead has led to outcries from businesses and residents in the affluent Atlanta shopping and residential district, leading business and community leaders to demand greater policing from City officials, devise their own security plans and even explore seceding from the city.

A shooting outside the restaurant the night of Jan. 3, that left three people injured at the corner of Pharr Road and North Fulton Drive, may have been the final straw.

No one from Botanico could be reached Monday for comment.

The website listed the eatery as “temporarily closed," and said, “The Botanico Group will be relocating to a new venue."

Go to Botanico’s Website for more information about the restaurant’s reopening.