Bar Rentals & Bartender Staffing in Johns Creek, GA

A new wave of dining is heading to Johns Creek.

STIR, the elevated yet approachable cocktail bar and scratch kitchen from Chattanooga, is officially set to open its first Georgia location at Medley, the $560 million mixed-use development by Toro Development Company. The announcement was made in a press release Wednesday.

The 6,000-square-foot restaurant will anchor the project’s vibrant central plaza and is scheduled to open during Medley’s grand debut on October 29, 2026. STIR will also introduce a standalone concept next door called Tonic House, a 1,000-square-foot satellite cocktail bar that opens directly onto the plaza for a walk-up experience.

Known for its fresh oyster bar, hand-crafted cocktails, and weekend brunch menu, STIR has built a loyal following across the Southeast. Signature offerings include hand-carved ice from 300-pound blocks frozen and shaped in-house, house-made syrups and bitters, and a robust liquor program featuring more than 300 selections.

“As we expand STIR across the Southeast, finding locations that align with our hospitality-driven ethos is key,” said Allen Corey, founder of SquareOne Holdings, which owns and operates STIR. “Medley stood out for its thoughtful, community-centered approach, making it the perfect home for our first Georgia location.”

Brunch lovers can expect modern takes on classic dishes, including a mason jar mimosa and house-made Bloody Marys, served on an expansive patio with al fresco seating and open-air design.

Tonic House, STIR’s adjacent concept, will offer a focused cocktail menu built around the namesake mixer, continuing the brand’s commitment to craft, connection, and innovation.

STIR and Tonic House join an already stacked first-to-market lineup at Medley that includes Sephora, Playa Bowls, Five Daughters Bakery, Fadó Irish Pub, and more. Toro Development Company’s “Third Place” strategy is focused on creating everyday gathering spaces designed to foster community connection through active, pedestrian-friendly environments.

“We always envisioned enlivening Medley’s Plaza with chef-driven, highly activated concepts,” said Kimberly Goetz, Vice President of Leasing at TDC. “STIR and Tonic House perfectly represent the kind of experience-driven hospitality that will bring people together and keep them coming back.”

Medley will ultimately feature 200,000 square feet of retail and dining, 900 residences, lifestyle office space, and a 25,000-square-foot central plaza hosting more than 200 events annually.

The development broke ground in January 2025 and is being positioned as a major new community hub for Johns Creek.

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JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — The Johns Creek City Council discussed a bond referendum that would help finance a proposed $60 million performing arts center promoted as a cultural and recreational game-changer.

The council took no vote on the measure at its April 28 meeting.

Mayor John Bradberry proposed a funding plan that would include $20 million from the city’s cash reserves, $12 million from the Georgia Municipal Assocation’s Brick and Mortar loan program and $28 million from a voter-approved bond.

While no specific location has been decided for the arts center, it could be sited near the city’s walkable Town Center on Medlock Bridge Road to complement amenities planned there. Within the Town Center, construction is underway for the mega mixed-use Medley project and The Boardwalk recreational and event space.

Together, the projects could create a vibrant recreational destination for residents, Bradberry said.

“That is going to create a really special environment and hopefully some great traditions,” he said.

The City Council previously reviewed a cost estimate and conceptual site plan for the performing arts center. The conceptual plan calls for an 800-seat performance hall, lobby, back-of-house stage and multipurpose room with a $60-million price tag. An optional space for art classrooms would cost another $11 million.

During discussion of the matter, council members debated how the project might be funded and implications of asking for a bond on the November ballot.

Johns Creek residents are assessed a maintenance and operations property tax rate at 3.646 mills, the lowest among north Fulton County cities. In Alpharetta, the rate is 5.750 mills, and in Roswell, the rate is 4.949 mills. In Milton, the rate stands at 4.389 mills.

Implications to homeowners varies, however, because each city has its own homestead exemption, which affects how much residents pay in property taxes.

One mill generates $1 for every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value, which by state law, is 40 percent of a property’s real – or fair market – value. A home that is worth $100,000 on the market would have a taxable value of $40,000, and a levy of 1 mill would cost the homeowner $40 in taxes.

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With a $30-million bond, Johns Creek residents could see their millage rate rise by about 0.3 mills, still lower than the rate approved by the council in 2022, Councilwoman Erin Elwood said.

“I just want to keep in perspective the city has done really big projects, really great projects that are investments,” Elwood said. “We can sharpen our pencils and make it happen, and we will have the most … fantastic town center in North Fulton.”

The city anticipates a $3 million surplus at the end of this fiscal year that includes about $2.3 million initially earmarked for a rebuild of Fire Station 63.

Cash on hand reserves, not including the emergency and cash flow stabilization funds, are about $19 million.

Councilman Larry DiBiase said he would like the council to consider pushing a bond referendum to May 2025 or 2026 to allow additional time for community engagement and to explore additional funding options. Allowing more time would promote transparency and give the council a better idea about the community’s priorities, he said.

“I want this project, but I don’t want it if it’s going to burden the citizens enormously,” DiBiase said.

Elwood said even with a November referendum the city would have opportunities to change course if circumstances change. The city would be under no obligation to immediately seek a bond if one is approved, she said.

“None of these dollars are going to be spent for years,” she said.

Mayor Bradberry said he is wary of attempts to stall the project, reminding the council they had previously supported the center. With the bond, the city would be able to comfortably pay for the project, he said.

“We are talking about values,” Bradberry said. “Are we putting something at a priority that we said we were going to put as a priority.”

General stores, or country stores, were an integral part of our region’s history. Back in pioneer times most towns had at least one general store. They served as the chief supplier of necessities and as social centers.

Here is a local sample of general stores:

In downtown Alpharetta, Manning Mercantile general store burned down in 1902. It was rebuilt with brick circa 1910 and eventually had a second floor added. Today, the building houses Mercantile Social, a popular bar and restaurant.

Charlie Haygood opened a general store in 1902 on Bethany Way in Milton. The building has disintegrated over the years. Owners David and Stacy Jackson report that the bricks are falling off the remaining walls and that if a lawnmower accidentally strikes one, the brick will turn to dust. The Jacksons are maintaining the remaining walls as long as possible as a tribute to times gone by.

The Pearson’s General Store on Hopewell Road in Milton was owned and operated by Clarence and Mary Pearson. They sold a bit of everything, including kerosene for lamps, gas for cars, clothes, food, seed, salt fish and ever popular Moon Pies. They extended credit to anyone who needed it. The property was sold circa 2015, and the store was demolished.

The Green Store at Autrey Mill

A rare gem of a general store has been preserved and can be visited at the Heritage Village at Autrey Mill, a 46-acre nature preserve off Old Alabama Road in Johns Creek.

The store was built by George Washington Green, Jr. (1858-1956) and his sons in 1922 on land that George and his wife Lona Kemp (1866-1942) bought in 1911 or 1912. The property included a residence and several tenant farmer houses dating back to the 1800s.

Green farmed 44 acres of vegetables, corn and oats and had a few cows. He built a large barn to house seven mules used by his family and his tenant farmers. He had barns for cattle and hogs. He and Lona had five sons and three daughters.

The general store was located across the road from his house. It did not have a formal sign, only a tin Coca-Cola sign hanging by the door. When customers wanted some provisions, they would bang on the sign and wait for George to appear. The store featured an ice box run by kerosene that was always full of Coca Cola, Red Rock Cola and Dr Pepper. The store served the public until 1958.

Green was entrepreneurial. In addition to the general store and his tenant farmers, he grew sorghum cane and made syrup which he sold in his store. George had bees and sold honey in the store. He made wine which he sold and had a blacksmith shop and a dairy. He bought a machine that removed short fibers from cotton seeds and rented it to other farmers. Seeds with short fibers, or lint, still attached after ginning did not flow well through planting machines leading to irregular distribution of seeds. This led to time-consuming manual transplanting of shoots.

Green was one of the first people in the area to have electric power on his farm long before it came to rural Georgia. He installed a Delco-Light system to provide limited current for his home and store in the 1930s. Most farmers who had generators installed them in small clapboard buildings about 8 feet square with concrete floors and no windows. A generator that ran on kerosene was hooked up to two rows of glass jars containing acid that acted as storage batteries. The few original Delco Houses that exist today, such as the one at Autrey Mill, are of considerable historic importance.

The store is one of eight historic buildings, a heritage garden, butterfly garden and numerous animals at Autrey Mill. The store is open to the public at certain times and provides a fascinating glimpse into the past. It is operated by docents Mary Jo Malowney and Janice Millner-Lock and a host of volunteers. Among the objects that were in the store when it was acquired by Autrey Mill are a collection of hand-made quilts with backing made of newspapers from the 1920s, numerous ledgers from 1922 to 1953 with names and purchases of customers and those who bartered farm products for “store-bought” goods, and some 600 letters from Eli Pat McGee to Callie Green, daughter of George Green. The letters began in 1944 and contain many historical references of interest today, such as buying a car when new cars were rare after World War ll, salaries and other descriptions of life in the 1940s.

The shelves of the store are full of products that came with the store, some made by companies that still exist and others by companies long gone.

In 1988, the City of Atlanta – Fulton County Water Resources Commission acquired the property from a developer and the non-profit Autrey Mill Nature Preserve was created under the leadership of Judy Webb and others. Fulton County gained sole ownership of the property in 1993. In 2006 Lynne Riley, at the time a member of the Fulton County Commission, wanted to preserve the property. She led the effort to gain the support of County Commissioners to sell the property to the newly formed city of Johns Creek at the very reasonable price of $100 per acre.

Today the property is owned by the City of Johns Creek and Autrey Mill is managed by the non-profit organization. Judy Webb was instrumental in the many negotiations that took place that led to the move of the general store to Autrey Mill.

For information about Autrey Mill and hours when the store is open, call 678-366-3511.