A new late-night Thai bar from two of Atlanta's most decorated chefs is quietly taking shape in the basement of a century-old Poncey-Highland building. Some Luck, described as a Thai bar and ballroom with room for 60 people, is listed as coming soon at 644 N. Highland Ave. NE, though an exact opening date has not been revealed.
The project comes from Parnass Savang and Rod Lassiter, the chefs behind Summerhill's celebrated Talat Market, who were named James Beard Award finalists for Best Chef: Southeast in April 2024, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. As reported by WhatNow Atlanta, Some Luck occupies a 4,000-square-foot space and is expected to run from 4 p.m. to midnight, Wednesday through Monday, though full menu and design details remain unclear.
A Second Act For Talat Market's Chefs
Some Luck is billed as a departure from Talat Market's tasting-menu format. The AJC reports the new spot is designed as a casual Thai dive bar built around late-night street food — papaya salad, skewers, hot and sour soups, boat noodles, fried pork ribs, and khao mun gai — drawing on dishes Savang encountered at street stalls during travels in Thailand. That casual, late-night focus is meant to fill a niche Talat Market's fine-dining format doesn't serve.
Co-owner Rod Lassiter said in April that Some Luck intends to stay open until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, with eventual plans to expand to seven-day service and lunch, according to Business Debut. Part of that late-night ambition is aimed squarely at the neighborhood's hospitality workers, with the bar positioned as a reliable drop-in spot after other kitchens and dining rooms close for the night.
Named After An Olympic Champion
The bar's name is a nod to Thai boxer Somluck Kamsing, who won Thailand's first-ever Olympic gold medal in featherweight boxing at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games, per Rough Draft Atlanta. Kamsing became a major national celebrity in Thailand following that win, giving the Poncey-Highland venue a direct thread back to Atlanta's own Olympic history.
Some Luck is set inside the former Highland Ballroom Lounge space at 644 N. Highland Ave. NE, a building originally constructed in 1927 as Wynne's Apartment Hotel before it spent decades operating as the Highland Inn, according to Urbanize Atlanta. Developer Canvas Companies, which purchased the site in 2021, completed a $15 million renovation in early 2024 that turned the historic property into Otto's Apartment Hotel, a 70-unit flexible-living residential and commercial development.
Joining A Growing Restaurant Row
Some Luck won't be alone in the Otto's complex. James Beard Award-winning chef Steven Satterfield opened his wine bar, Madeira Park, in the former cafe space right next door in February 2025, with co-founders Neal McCarthy and sommelier Tim Willard. Earlier this month, Some Luck hosted an a la carte preview takeover at Madeira Park, giving local diners an advance, reservation-only taste of its Thai street food and cocktail program.
Formal notice of the bar's pending opening and alcohol licensing review came through an August filing with Atlanta's Neighborhood Planning Unit N, the municipal body that evaluates land use and liquor license applications before they head to city council, according to the NPU filing cited by WhatNow. Buildout timelines for Some Luck have shifted from initial 2025 estimates into mid- or late 2026, and the exact date it will open its doors is still unknown.
The arrival adds another marquee name to a stretch of North Highland Avenue that has become something of a proving ground for chef-driven concepts, sitting blocks from Manuel's Tavern's 70th anniversary celebration and not far from the patio bar recently launched by chef Joey Ward. Savang and Lassiter's flagship, Talat Market, was also recently mentioned in coverage of Summerhill's Poach Social rebuilding its brunch business after a fire.
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