This Week
in Gwinnett.
Table of Contents
Hey neighbor,
Today is a special day, it’s my wife and I’s 14th Anniversary! Yay to us. So happy living life with her and my four boys, our friends, and new friends I make from this newsletter.
As of now, everything we do has been covered out of pocket, and if you care about how I survive, you’re more than welcome to buy me a coffee =)
On that happy note…
I sat down inside Brightside Cafe in Buford last week with Jennifer and Carrie — the two women behind it — and I walked out of that conversation a little changed. (More on that below.)
That episode reminded me of something I keep forgetting: Gwinnett is full of these little, ordinary, miracle-shaped places. You don't have to drive into Atlanta to find magic. It's tucked into a coffee shop on West Main. It's a chalk artist working on a sidewalk in Duluth. It's a farmers market opening back up for the season. It's a Friday-night movie under the stars on the courthouse lawn.
This week's got a little of all of it. Let's get into it. 👇
— Gus
This Week in Gwinnett
May 12 – 17, 2026
Duluth Spring Arts Festival
Saturday & Sunday, May 16–17 | Sat 10 AM – 5 PM, Sun 11 AM – 5 PM | Duluth Town Center | FREE
This is the one I'd circle on the calendar this weekend. The Duluth Spring Arts Festival takes over Town Green with 86+ painters, photographers, sculptors, glass artists, metalworkers, and jewelers — plus food, music, and a Town Green full of families wandering, sipping coffee, and discovering art they actually want to take home. The kind of weekend that makes you remember why downtown Duluth is one of the best little squares in the metro.
🏷️ Great for: Family Outings | Date Night | Free / Under $20
FOODEESFEST Lawrenceville
Friday, May 15 | 1:00 PM onward | Sugarloaf Mills, Lawrenceville
40+ food trucks, craft vendors, and the kind of "we ate too much and it was worth it" Friday afternoon you'll talk about for weeks. Bring the family, bring an appetite, bring cash for the kettle corn at the end. This is exactly the type of low-key event Gwinnett does really well.
🏷️ Great for: Family Outings | Kids | Free / Under $20
Suwanee Farmers Market
Saturday, May 16 | 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Town Center Park, Suwanee | FREE
One of my favorite Saturday rituals in all of Gwinnett. The market just kicked off the 2026 season last weekend and this Saturday is the second weekend in. Local growers, fresh flowers, bread, honey, breakfast burritos, kids running around the Town Center fountain — it's the most Gwinnett thing you can do before noon. Get there by 9 if you want first pick on the good stuff.
🏷️ Great for: Family Outings | Seniors | Free / Under $20
Lawrenceville Movie Club — Dr. Dolittle
Friday, May 15 | 6:00 – 10:00 PM | Lawrenceville Lawn | FREE
The family-friendly summer movie series is back on the Lawn. This week it's Dr. Dolittle. Bring blankets, lawn chairs, a cooler, and the kids. Easiest, cheapest, sweetest Friday night you can put together in this county.
🏷️ Great for: Family Outings | Kids | Free / Under $20
Light Lawrenceville Blue — National Police Week
Friday, May 15 (all day) | Downtown Lawrenceville
A community-wide initiative to support National Police Week and our local first responders. If you see a Lawrenceville officer this week, say thanks. If you've got blue lights at home, turn them on. Small gestures, big meaning.
🏷️ Great for: Community | All Age
💛 IN CASE YOU MISSED LAST WEEK'S EPISODE
Brightside Cafe — The Conversation That Wrecked Me (In the Best Way)
I sat down inside Brightside Cafe in Downtown Buford with Jennifer and Carrie — the two women behind it — and walked out of that conversation a little different than I walked in.
If you missed the episode, here are three moments I can't stop thinking about:
🚴 The Ryan Story — A 21-year-old riding his bike through Buford, kept getting turned away because people didn't understand him. Jennifer literally chased him down Main Street to land him a job at Off the Rails. He's now been featured on Star 94 and Atlanta Live News. I cheered out loud watching this back.
💛 Kayla's "I'm Proud of Myself" Moment — A new hire flipped out on her first rush, then came back to the counter and said five words that brought her dad to tears. This is what Brightside is really about.
🏪 The B.E.A.N. Vision — Brightside isn't just a cafe. They're launching the Brightside Empowerability Network, a four-week course teaching local businesses how to hire adults with special abilities. This is bigger than coffee.
My call to action this week — and I mean it: Go to Brightside. Order a coffee. Meet the team. A $6 cup here doesn't just buy you a latte — it employs someone in our community who wants to work, wants to belong, and is becoming who they were made to be.
📍 554 W Main St NE, Buford, GA 30518
🕐 Tue–Fri 7 AM – 4 PM • Sat 8 AM – 2 PM
From the county.
GOOD NEWS FROM THE COUNTY
Gwinnett is having a moment again.
🌿 The Suwanee Farmers Market is officially back for the 2026 season — and the energy at the opener last weekend was electric. New vendors, returning favorites, and the kind of community gathering that makes you proud to live where you live. Set the Saturday alarm, friends.
🎭 Aurora Theatre is closing its 30th season with In the Heights — the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical voted by audiences as Aurora's favorite show in their history. It opens May 28 and runs through June 21. Tickets are already moving — grab them now if you want a good seat.
DATE NIGHT IN GWINNETT
Two spots worth booking this week — both verified, both easy on the wallet.
📍 LAWRENCEVILLE
🍔 McCray's Tavern on the Square
100 N Perry St, Lawrenceville, GA 30046 | (770) 407-6754
If you want a real Lawrenceville Square date night without the fine-dining price tag, McCray's is the move. It's a neighborhood gastro pub with a gorgeous rooftop patio overlooking the historic square — steaks, pasta, big sandwiches, craft cocktails, and live music Friday and Saturday nights. Casual enough for a Tuesday, special enough for a Saturday.
Park on the square, walk around downtown, grab a rooftop table around sunset, stay for the live music. That's a complete date night for under what you'd spend on dinner alone uptown.
Hours: Mon–Wed 11 AM – 11 PM | Thu 11 AM – 12 AM | Fri–Sat 11 AM – 1 AM | Sun 11 AM – 11 PM
🏷️ $$ | Date Night | Live Music | Rooftop Vibes
📍 SUWANEE
🥩 Bottles & Bones
400 Buford Hwy, Suwanee, GA 30024 | (678) 804-9447
Suwanee's modern American chophouse and quietly the anniversary spot in our part of the county. The Josper-oven steaks are the headline (look it up — it's basically a fire-breathing oven from Spain), but the pasta and seafood hold their own. The lounge has live piano on weekends and a $9 happy hour Monday–Thursday from 4–7 PM if you want to dip your toe in without committing to the full dinner.
Dinner Hours: Mon–Thu 4:30–9 PM | Fri–Sat 4:30–10 PM | Sun 4–9 PM
🏷️ $$$ | Date Night | Anniversaries | Live Piano
The "text this to your spouse" section.
WORTH KNOWING THIS WEEK
☕ Brightside Cafe in Buford is open Sat 8 AM–2 PM if you missed last week's spotlight — every drink supports adults with special abilities.
🎤 Slow Pour Brewing's Friday Karaoke (5/1) — easiest free Friday night in town. Check their calendar before you go.
🛒 Suwanee Farmers Market opens Saturday, May 9 — set the calendar reminder now. Best Saturday morning ritual in the county.
🚗 Lawrenceville construction note: Downtown traffic patterns shift slightly Friday for DTL CON-Quest setup. Park behind the courthouse if Clayton St is busy.
📱 We're posting daily on Instagram — @gwinnettbest. Reels from events, hidden gems, and stuff that doesn't fit the email. Hit follow and say hi.
GUS' PICK OF THE WEEK
One place this week that deserves more love…
☕ Rushing Trading Company — Sugar Hill
5029 W Broad St NE, Sugar Hill, GA 30518 | (678) 288-9808
I keep telling people this — if you live south of 985 and haven't made the drive to Rushing, you're missing one of the most special coffee experiences in the whole county.
It's part coffee shop, part gathering place, part neighborhood event space. They roast their own beans, the food menu actually goes deep (full breakfast, lunch, charcuterie boards), and at night they pull out wine, beer, cocktails, live music, trivia, and family game nights. It's the kind of spot that becomes your spot the second you walk in.
Hours: Mon–Fri 8 AM – 2 PM | Sat 8 AM – 3 PM | Sun 9 AM – 3 PM (extended hours for special events — check their calendar)
🏷️ $ | Slow Morning | Date-Night-Lite | Hidden Gem
BEFORE YOU GO — A QUICK PERSONAL NOTE
Okay friends, I've got some news to share.
This Thursday I'm hopping on a plane to Africa for the next two weeks — I'll be on the road with Nick Vujicic capturing social media, content, and the kind of stories that don't happen in a Zoom call. (For those new here — Nick is a world-renowned speaker, author, and someone I have the deep honor of partnering with.)
A few fun things about this trip:
🌎 This is the 6th continent I'll have set foot on. (Only Antarctica left — and I'm taking applications for a sponsor.)
🗺️ It's also the 34th country I'll have visited. I never imagined a kid like me would get to say that.
📸 I'll be capturing everything in real time on Instagram — so if you've ever wanted a behind-the-scenes window into the work, this is the trip to follow along.
Don't worry — the newsletter doesn't stop. Gwinnett Best is still going out every week. I've got the next two issues covered with the world’s best intern (my lovely wife), and there might even be a special "from-the-road" dispatch or two if the wifi cooperates.
Got questions about the trip, the work with Nick, or just want to say hi? Hit reply to this email. I read every single one — even from 8,000 miles away. ✈️
Two things to do before I take off:
📸 Follow @gwinnettbest on Instagram — that's where the real-time stuff will live.
🎥 Subscribe to the Gwinnett Best YouTube channel — new episodes drop weekly, including the Brightside one above.
See you out there (and from over there),
Gus
P.S. — If you've never been to the Duluth Arts Festival or the Suwanee Farmers Market — let this be the weekend. They're both free. They're both perfect. And you'll come home glad you went.
