“Buckhead isn’t what it used to be.” That could be the tagline for Atlanta’s best-known neighborhood, where politicians, rappers, blue-bloods, and the nouveau riche (and oh yeah, the governor) mingle with apartment dwellers, the cash-poor, and the entirely normal people; where fine international dining meets light-beer pub crawls; where Atlanta’s whitebread history of private schools and gated mansions are inextricably linked to (and incredibly removed from) the city’s African-American and urban fabric. In the mid-20th century, Buckhead was a rustic, white, middle-class bastion of high-school hoo-rahs and church Sundays. By the turn of the millennium, it was known internationally as the site of a double murder outside of a nightclub after the Super Bowl. Locally, it has long served as a derisive moniker for anyone who seemed too materialistic or entitled: “She’s very Buckhead, yes?” Today, the old commercial center—the Buckhead Triangle at Peachtree, Paces Ferry, and Roswell—is a redesigned, high-end shopping district. But some of the best places of Buckhead’s history still remain the same.
The best bakery for power players and hoi polloi alike.
If you see someone crying in Henri’s, don’t worry—it’s just another nostalgic southerner who used to come to the place with their parents when they were but a tot, and now the memories of shortbread with pink frosting are flooding back. Amping up the area with award-winning baked goods since before Buckhead was Buckhead, pretty much, Henri’s also has a gut-buster deli and a significant lunch crowd. While there, play the old Henri’s game, “How Many Local Politicians/'Power Players' Can You Spot?” They also have a Sandy Springs store. Don’t go there. Why in the world would you go there? Look for the classic “Henri’s” sign on Irby; it’s all you need.
