Atlanta’s iconic three-stage music venue the Masquerade opened its doors to Altar on March 20, the fourth room and first expansion of the Heaven, Hell and Purgatory venues since the business opened 35 years ago. 

Altar is the “smallest and most intimate” of the four venues, housing 250 people in a moody room themed to the name. It’s slightly smaller than Purgatory, which has a 300-person capacity. Altar also has a walk-up food ordering window available to anybody in the Kenny’s Alley area of Underground Atlanta. 

The venue kicked off with a soft opening and concert from Anthony Green, as well as a tarot card reading and photo booths. Crowds gathered at the food window to order snacks and meals before the show and the meet and greet. 

Masquerade’s newest room is in full swing, but the independent venue only started the expansion late last year. General manager Greg Green said the team found out the space would be available at the end of the year. They decided to take advantage and open a new space. 

A couple factors played into the decision, though, Green said. 

“One of the things that our venue space and the Kenny’s Alley area of Underground Atlanta has been lacking was something not just good to eat, but eat at all,” Green said. 

The menu, created by Jessica Hare, focuses on vegan options like vegan queso, falafel wraps and buffalo cauliflower alongside more traditional hot dogs and burgers. For Green, it solves the problem of a lack of food choices within walking distance of the venue.

The other factor was the sheer volume of shows Masquerade puts on. Last year, Green estimated they put on about 125 shows in venues outside of their own location. 

“Having a fourth stage offered us an opportunity to bring a portion of those back under our…