Equal parts molasses-drawled Southern and au courant, Decatur, Ga., has in the last 20 years recast itself from the sleepy DeKalb County seat catering to commuting government nine-to-fivers to one of the South’s trendsetters. Residents say the township, six miles from Atlanta proper, is where “Mayberry meets Berkeley.” Bordered by Emory University and Agnes Scott College, Decatur is anchored by a late 19th-century courthouse (now the DeKalb History Center) and a leafy square dense with some of the state’s best restaurants, pubs and shops. The walkable downtown hosts more than three dozen festivals a year.

Kimball House

Opened in the fall of 2013 in the old Decatur Depot, this restaurant is furnished in a swirl of leather and marble, encapsulating the town’s spirit: mod meets traditional. Epicures return for the constantly changing menu, the raw bar and for some of the best cocktails in Georgia, like the Kimball House martini (gin, Cocchi Americano, French vermouth and orange bitters).

303 East Howard Avenue; 404-378-3502; kimball-house.com