By the time the fellas and I arrived in Atlanta from Miami, it was almost 10:30 PM. We were tired, starved, and lucky that Fat Matt’s Rib Shack (1811 Piedmont Rd NE) was open until 11:30 PM.
As an added plus, it’s right around the corner from where we were staying. Fat Matt’s also features live Blues every night, but we were just a little late to catch it; the band was packing its gear as we were ordering.


On the sandwich side, I had the option of either a rib or chopped pork sandwich. There was also 1/2 or full slab of ribs, 1/2 or 1/4 chicken, or chicken & rib combo on the menu. I listened to my stomach, and it directed me to eat a chopped pork sandwich AND a chicken & rib Combo.
I never even tasted the sides I chose, mac & cheese & coleslaw. Brunswick Stew, a stocky vegetable & bean-rich type of soup, rounded out the meal.

The guys got ribs and tore right through them. I never used the housemade BBQ sauce, but it was prevalent in my chopped pork sandwich.
It had some heat on the tail end of each bite, which made it that much better.

I’m going to make the case that if you check out Fat Matt’s Rib Shack, you at least get a 1/4 chicken or Bird, as they call it. It was moist and smokey, aka it was right on point.
The plan was to hit up Fat Matt’s Rib Shack one more time on our last day in Atlanta; unfortunately, it never happened.