Homegrown breakfast eatery The Flying Biscuit was bought by Raving Brands, the company that owns Moe’s and Doc Green’s, and will be expanded into a chain with at least 100 locations. My first instinct was R.I.P. Flying Biscuit, but then Amber said, “maybe it’s a good thing. ’cause I gotta say, that midtown location was pretty shabby the last few times I went there.” And she’s right. Still, I always feel a pang of sadness when something local and unique gets watered down for mass consumption. Thoughts?
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If the Flying Biscuit’s food will be sinking to the level of mediocrity (and I’m being generous here) of Moe’s, Mama Fu’s or Doc Green’s, then it is truly a sad development.
Never liked the place that much anyway. I lived around the corner from the Candler Park location - they weren’t very good neighbors, food was just OK, and lines were ridiculous.
Good riddance.
Yeah . . .if you told me the Doc Chey’s guys bought FB, I’d be stoked. As it is . . .enh. Moe’s isn’t all that impressive. But I like their guacamole.
Well, being a franchise isn’t automatically a bad thing. There are plenty of local franchises that are good - the fact that they are able to open more than one location means their business is doing well. I know you love you some Fellini’s, for example.
I thought Raving Brand’s was a locally-based deal but a visit to their web site has me confused.
I wish Willy’s would have bought Flying Biscuit. Raving Brands is a recipe for cheap, contrived, blandness. Mama Fu’s is an unbridled culinary atrocity. I’ll probably patronize Flying Biscuit about the same now, which is never.
Amber, I’m quite sure Raving Brands is local to some extent. My company used to work with one of their lighting designers. I think the corporate offices are somewhere else, but their design/build folks are here - something like that.
I knew PJ’s Coffee from living in New Orleans. I’m not that impressed with the change of character they’ve engineered in that once-homegrown chain.
Why all the hate for Raving Brands? Moe’s can be hit or miss, but Doc Green’s is one of my favorite restaurants in Atlanta. It’s very rare to be able to get (somewhat) healthy food that’s fast, tasty, and filling. (I sound like a commercial, don’t I?) I’m not one to vary a good thing once I find something I like, which means if I don’t bring my lunch w/ me to work, chances are very, very good that I’ll be eating at Doc Green’s.
Hey — if you want local flavor and damned good eats, there’s always Thumbs Up on Edgewood …
Nikki:
Irony alert: the Moe’s guys are the Doc Chey’s guys. =)
I loved the Flying Biscuit. It was my chance to break bread with a bunch of leftys wearing t-shirts with left-wing messages. You can’t do that very much anymore. I’ll miss it when it goes mainstream.
The thing about Moes or Doc Greens is that they’re fast food counter-service restaurants. Flying Biscuit is not. But I can see the transition working. I mean, the FB recipe book is in bookstores. Why not try to translate some southern kitchen charm into a fast food restaurant? What I don’t see working is a retooled FB in the city of Atlanta. Not when people can still go to (or recently remember) the originals. Export FastFood-Flying Biscuit to another city.
Still - 100 in 2 years? Wow.
Ria’s Bluebird on Memorial is the best place in Atlanta for breakfast, especially if you have tattoos.
I never would have guessed the Moe’s and Doc Chey’s were by the same brand. A) DC’s is far less franchised than Moe’s; B) DC’s is WAY BETTER than Moe’s, in every way; C) Mama Fu’s is an atrocity. Having never been to Doc Green’s, I can’t comment.
ARBY,
There’s still West Egg! And Radial!
Nikki:
I totally goofed — I was thinking ‘Mama Fu’s’ even when I read ‘Doc Chey’s.’ And yes, Mama Fu’s bites the big one — even though I don’t consider Doc Chey’s all that. Give me Penny’s Noodles any day.
[What would you put on the chances, by the way, of the Raving Brands people making Doc Chey's an offer before opening their own noodle shop, considering the similar styling of the names?]
Oh, good. I feel less crazy now. I was like, “Wow, I must be not only OTP, I must be outta the loop . . ” Anyway. I love Doc Chey’s. I love their bigass bowls of miso and chicken soup. But for noodles, Thomas really loves Noodle, but we’ve been there only once since he worked in midtown.
Moe’s rocks my face off– JC all the way makes my day– and the Biscuit ain’t bad. The lines are always long and parking is a pain. Maybe Raving Brands will bring some new ideas to the table and make FB even better.
I have eaten there several times, and every time, it was mediocre at best. I guess it is good that Moe’s bought it then, because that describes them exactly; mediocre at best.
I kind of felt like the Biscuit has always been over-rated. It got mainstream quite some time ago - this just kind of seals the deal.
Amber - I actually sent an email to some friends suggesting alternatives to the Biscuit, including the West Egg and the Radial. Also, for anyone living near downtown or who goes to GSU, the Landmark on Luckie St. is pretty good, too.
When I first moved to Atlanta (7 years ago), the Flying Biscuit was really something special. My partner, BJ, and I loved going there for dinner or lunch. They had the best home-made raspberry lemonade. As time has gone on, though, they have gotten a lot more mass-produced and bland. The lemonade went away and was replaced by some coke-brand product. The food got less complicated and more bland. We at there the other night (after not having been in 6 months or so), and it was just “eh.”
I think that the Raving Brands chains are pretty interesting. The guy who started the company lives in Atlanta, and their prototype restaurants are all here. They’re franchises, though, so they can pop up anywhere in the country. I think most tend to be in the Southeast. What I think is so funny is how these brands are total rip offs of other one or two-off Atlanta Restaurants:
I think he does a fairly good job at ripping off already successful businesses and comodifying them, though. I also like that the Raving Brands CEO always has vegetarian options and thinks about vegetarians in the cooking processes.
There was an article about the chains a year or two ago in some local paper…maybe Creative Loafing.
Isn’t Willy’s a chain, too? I could’ve sworn I’ve seen it somewhere else.
Despite most peoples instinctive first impression, I think the purchase of Flying Biscuits by Raving Brands is actually a darn good thing.
I mean, Im not trying to save the world by eating at Flying Biscuits or anything, but it is something special. Delia, the lady who started the restaurant said that it would help her realize her dream of making it available to more people nation-wide.
I mean, imagine for once, people all over the country will be able to enjoy healthy food made fresh with lots of vegan, vegetarian options, and healthy meat options.
Dont forget, there are NO FREEZERS at Moe’s, everything is made fresh daily and then whatever is in excess is discarded at the end of the day. I really think that a chain could run a place like this very effictively, and stay true to the principles.
I mean, yall act like this is some indie band you found out about on your own and now youre upset because lots of people are starting to notice them and like them.
Maybe you feel like it looses a bit of authenticity, but I dont think so. Shane’s Rib Shack is also owned by Raving Brands and they make sure that Shane is the driving force behind the chain and they have stayed true to Big Dad’s recipes and all that.
I think it’s a good thing because I like those biscuits so much and I feel good that maybe people in Arizona or Kansas may be able to taste something really authentic from the South, straight from ATL.
Yes. . . I’m a biscuit eater, wont you join me?
Adam,
Be careful who you refer to as “y’all” in the “y’all act like this is some kind of indie band…” schtick. I think this is most likely a good thing, too, and I know a few other people here feel the same.
Enh. I think the term is “skeptical.”
I am looking into opening a Doc Greens out west… I would appreciate all comments please… THank you!
I have to chime in and say that someone is totally ripping off already existing restaurants that, in my opinion, are still far better than their ripoff (e.g., Moe’s sucks compared to Willy’s, which has been around since the early/mid 90’s. Moe’s just came out in 2000).
I’ve been going to Willy’s since their first restaurant on Roswell Rd. I’m glad they have locations all over GA now since I live too far from there. But you won’t catch me in a Moe’s ever. And their commercial surpases cheesy! It kills me to hear it. blech! ;(