Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia has purchased Eno, a restaurant and wine bar in Midtown Atlanta.

“I am a big fan of dining in different restaurants and also a big fan of Italian cuisine and I had a good opportunity and decided to buy Eno,” Mr. Pachulia told GlobalAtlanta in an e-mail interview from his home country, the Republic of Georgia, where he is spending part of the off season.

Mr. Pachulia plans to offer products from the Republic of Georgia in the restaurant's wine and cheese shop.

“Georgian wine is really delicious and a good product,” he said. “People really love it all over the world. Georgia is a wine country so we will definitely put it in the store.”

Eno, located at 800 Peachtree St., was opened seven years ago by Doug Strickland and includes a 95-seat restaurant, 30-seat wine bar with wrap-around sidewalk cafe in addition to the wine and cheese shop, according to the restaurant’s Website.

“I won't be working there but I have a team that is experienced and that I trust,” Mr. Pachulia said.

The Atlanta law firm Hall Booth Smith & Slover P.C closed the sale for Mr. Pachulia. John E. Hall Jr., a partner in the firm, is expected to soon be officially named the new honorary consul in the Southeast U.S. for the Republic of Georgia.

The 25-year-old Pachulia, who stands at 6-feet, 11-inches tall, last month signed a new contract with the Hawks, landing a four-year, $19 million deal.

“I really like Atlanta and me and my family feel very good living there so I definitely think it is my home,” said Mr. Pachulia.

Mr. Pachulia is on the host committee for a Sept. 19 fundraiser in Atlanta that will raise money for humanitarian aid in the Republic of Georgia, including those citizens displaced in fighting last August between Georgian and Russian troops.

Georgian First Lady Sandra Saakashvili is scheduled to attend the fundraiser, said Mr. Hall. The event will feature authentic Georgian food.

Although Mr. Pachulia purchased an existing restaurant with a European Mediterranean menu, he sees a gap in Atlanta’s dining choices. There are no Georgian restaurants here. "That might be a good idea to open a Georgian restaurant,” he said.

In an interview with GlobalAtlanta last February, Mr. Pachulia said, “Probably the best place for Georgian food is my house. Especially when my mom is here.”

He began playing professional basketball at age 14 in Istanbul, Turkey, and was signed by the Hawks four years ago. Mr. Pachulia normally has time to return to his home country only in the summers when basketball season is over.

Last August, he had to watch helplessly in the United States as his family members back in the Republic of Georgia experienced an invasion by Russian troops. The conflict centered on two disputed regions, South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

“I was scared, I did not want this to happen,” said Mr. Pachulia. “My mom was there. Every hour I was calling her to make sure she was OK. It’s your mom, you know, and she is there by herself. When I can’t help her personally, when I’m so far from my country, it was a tough situation for me. ”

Most of the fighting was over in a week and Mr. Pachulia’s relatives were not injured. Yet he worries about the future of his country. Georgia gained its independence after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 but relations with Russia have been tense since then.

“It’s really a good culture, really interesting culture,” Mr. Pachulia said of his home country. “My country has been in bad times since I remember, since I was born. I want to see Georgia happy.”

For more information on Eno, click here.  

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