A wake-up call of scratch-made biscuits, breads and artisan pizza dough, the sound of cracking eggs and the tantalizing aroma of sizzling fennel sausage draws sleepyheads out of bed and over to Sunday brunch at Rize Artisan Pizza + Salads in Poncey-Highland. Ease into the day sipping French press coffee, mimosas ($5 glass/$20 carafe) or handcrafted white or red sangria ($7 glass/$35 carafe). More challenging decisions involve choosing a frittata ($10) encompassing roasted vegetables or Peppadew and sausage rounded out with dressed greens and a biscuit; poached egg-topped breakfast pizzas ($10) topped with bacon, egg and cheese or carne brasata; or fried egg/kale/arugula plumped breakfast sandwiches ($6) like The Ponce, which adds fennel sausage, roasted red peppers and Asiago, or The Highland sporting roasted tomato, house-made maple bacon and onion jam. Indulge biscuit cravings with a small or large order of hot, fresh-baked biscuits served with fig butter and maple bacon jam ($3/$7). Brunch hours span 11 a.m.-2 p.m. so relax, you can still sleep in, work out, worship or tackle whatever awaits before or after “Rize”-ing. Plus, you can settle the tab from your phone using the Rize app and park for free in the 675 N. Highland parking garage.
Psst. ”Atlanta Eats” is dropping into Rize Artisan Pizza + Salads in Poncey-Highland on Wednesday, Jan. 4 to film an upcoming episode, cueing you to rise to the occasion and drop in for dinner. From 5-7 p.m. that evening, guests will receive a free small plate with the purchase of any entrée. How’s that for a spin on the whole watching TV while eating dinner scenario? Plus, Rize loads its menu with pleasing dishes for a wide range of appetites with signature and custom pizzas ($9.50-$13.50); salads in full and half portions ($7-11); delectable seafood, meaty and vegetable-rich pastas ($10); small plates ($7); and flatbreads ($8). The kids menu offers pizza, pasta and hummus plates that thrill youngsters and include a beverage and scoop of gelato ($7.50). Craft beers, wines by the glass and handcrafted sangrias up the ante for adults while teas, lemonade and craft sodas quench thirsts for guests of all ages.
Rize Artisan Pizza + Salads is ready for diners chomping to expediently place mobile and online orders for the restaurant’s fresh and delicious lunch and dinner options. Ordering is a cinch through the website’s Mobi2Go feature. Select items and quantities from the menu, choose the date and time of pick up at the Poncey-Highland eatery and pay online. Customize orders with a few quick taps or clicks. Love artisanal pizza but prefer gluten-free crusts? Want to swap chicken for shrimp in the seared shrimp pasta? Skip nuts/bacon/cheese/spinach from a favorite dish? Half a salad instead of a full portion? Tap, click, done. Voila! Your meal is ready for pick up when specified and as specified. Sweet. Now let’s eat.
Thin crust cravers can get their lunch or dinner fix at Rize Artisan Pizza + Salads, now open at 675 N. Highland, a mixed-use development in Poncey-Highland. Global and American fare revolves around handcrafted salads and pastas with bold flavors along with gelato and carefully crafted beverages. Small plates ($7) and salads ($11 full/$7 half) include charred cauliflower, charbroiled wings, spice road chicken salad and superfood salad. Signature pizza options ($13.50) include the Waverly with prosciutto, Gorgonzola, fig jam and more and Asian BBQ chicken with charred red onion, green chili sauce, sesame seed, scallion and lime zest. Specialty pizza selections ($12) include the ATL BLT with Beeler’s bacon, baby spinach, fire roasted tomato, charred red onion, shredded mozzarella and Grana Padano and the Delphi topped with roasted artichoke, Kalamata olives, fire roasted tomato, charred red onion, shredded mozzarella, feta, roasted garlic purée and baby kale. Classic choices ($9.50) might be the Margherita or the Bianca. Guests are invited to build their own pizza ($12.50) using four toppings from an extensive list.
Non-traditional pasta ($10) dishes and flatbreads ($8) also are offered, such as fennel sausage and kale orecchiette, pork meatball pesto orecchiette, chicken and pear flatbread and prosciutto and pomegranate flatbread. The 10-and-under set may want to order a cheese or pepperoni pizza, pasta or a hummus and veggie combo with a kid’s beverage and kid’s scoop of Rize’s premium gelato, all for $7.50. Soups ($4.50) and sandwiches ($8) and pick two combos ($10) of flatbread or sandwich and soup or salad grace the lunch menu. A bold beverage selection features wine by the glass ($7), craft beer ($6) and Marbella red and Andalucia white sangrias ($7 glass/$35 carafe) as well as non-alcoholic beverages such as fresh brewed iced tea, fresh lemonade and craft sodas. Rize serves lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday, and the outdoor patio is BeltLine-close. For more information, visit www.rizeartisanpizza.com or follow the restaurant onFacebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Give your LBD and navy blazer a night off. Out-of-fashion Christmas attire is the fashion statement of the evening at the Poncey-Highland Tacky Sweater Block Party on Saturday, December 20. Festivities commence at 8 p.m. in the Highland Ballroom lounge. Merrymakers can then set off to party and enjoy live entertainment at nearby FLIP burger boutique, Sweet Auburn BBQ and Cafe 640. Ticket covers party admission and a drink ticket to redeem at each of the four participating venues. Prizes for the tackiest? You bet, along with bragging rights, if you really want to tout wearing the tackiest sweater in Poncey-Highland. Read the nitty gritty and buy your $25 ticket here.
