Keoni and Bonnie

Our friends, Amy and Sherrie told us about this festival in Grant Park.  I’ve been working so many weekends so I was happy to find out about this and actually be able to go.  This is the 8th year and what a fun festival with lots of art, food and drinks.  They also had a special event called Corks and Forks that cost $35.00 in advance  and $45.00 at the door.  It included wine tasting and  food pairings from upscale restaurants around Atlanta.  We didn’t partake this year but we may next time. 

We had lots of fun walking around ,people watching, listening to music and laughing with friends!

Lordy, Lordy, Tammy just turned 40!  She wanted to celebrate her big day with lots of friends and chose just the right party for a summer day in Atlanta.

We started off at Sweetwater Brewery in Atlanta.  They open at 2:30 pm and for $8.00 you get 8 tickets for tastes of their local brew.  This also includes a tour of the facility.  I was not going to do the tour but it was so freaking hot in that place that I chose to so I could cool off!  It was interesting and the beer is very good.  I wouldn’t mind going back on a less crowded day. 

Next we took the party to Cantina Taqueria and Tequila Bar in Buckhead on the corner of Peachtree and Piedmont.  Keoni and I were the first ones to arrive and ordered some drinks at the bar.  I had a nice malbec that was reasonably priced and Keoni was happy that they had Bacarid Gold!  I really liked the menu because they have lots of  vegetarian selections that sounded delish!  I had spinach enchiladas with cotija cheese, cream roasted peppers and rojo salsa.  They tasted very healthy, they use fresh spinach and they ween’t overly cheesy.  Keoni had a couple of tacos at $3.00 each, one was called the “Trailer Park” with fried chicken, cheese sauce lettuce and pico.  the other was “The Double D” (not sure why it was called that)  with applewood smoked bacon, lettuce and jack cheese.  He loved them and where else can you eat dinner for $6.oo in Buckhead?   Don’t ask how much the alcohol was!  They do have half price bottles of wine on Monday.

A good time was had by all.  Tammy, Chad and some more continued the night at Buckhead Saloon and did a little dancing.  I was ready for bed at 9pm.  Tammy and Chad stayed at a nice hotel in Atlanta with their dog, Chloe and spent the day in Midtown and Piedmont Park.  I think Tammy is ready for the next decade!

Well, I haven’t blogged in so long!  I’ve just been lazy.  I have been resinspired by some new layovers for me.  In 11 years of flying, I’ve never had a long layover in Portland (PWM).  I’ve been excited about it because Tammy was there recently and knew I would enjoy it.

Our hotel is just a few blocks from the harbor where there are lots of little shops,boutiques, restaurants and bars and not a chain in sight!  I started walking around 0930 in the morning so businesses were not quite open.  I just enjoyed the glorious temperature somewhere in the 70’s!  I found the place that I wanted to eat that Tammy had mentioned to me (Ya’ll know my friend, Tammy, don’t ya?)  Anyway, it’s called “The Olive Cafe” and it’s mediterranean food, of course.  I chose fish tacos because I wanted some good seafood and they were delish!  They came with sweet potato fries and a little ramekin of homemade salsa and you could choose between blackened or pan-seared.  I chose blackened, at the server’s suggestion.  She told me the restaurant has been opened about a year and a half and everthing is made from scratch there.   There was another place called “”The Farmer’s Table”  that looked interesting with local and organic foods.

Now, I’m really excited about this store that I found!  It’s called LeRoux Kitchen and they have all kinds of cookware, specialty  foods and wine.  They also have locally produced olive oils and vinegars that you can taste!  My favorite was Summer Peach White Balsamic that can be added to salads, vegetables or used as a topping on apples,peaches or pears.  I also chose the Dark Chocolate Balsamic which can be added to sweet or savory dishes.  It can be used in a mole sauce for chicken or pork.  I also bought a Spanish Castile olive oil and some Maine sea salt.  I was a kid in a candy store!

I also found a nice consignment store on Exchange Street called “Second Time Around”.  It was very nicely organized and lots of merchandise but I  didn’t see anything this time that I needed.  I would go back, though.

What a nice treat in the middle of the summer to be in a city that’s not 100 degrees.  Hope I get this trip again!

To celebate my friend, Lee’s, birthday we went to Relish in historic Roswell.  It is Southern cuisine with flare.  Lee says it’s a favorite of Alton Brown’s (from The Food Network).  To be sure, it is a very lively place even on a Wednesday night or maybe the wine tasting brought people out.  We had a “groupon” coupon for $50.00 that Lee paid $25.00 for and it included the tastings.  There were 7 wines to taste, 3 white and 4 red.  I was not really impressed with any of them.  Next time I would just order from the wine list.

We ordered 2 appetizers (we had to get our check to $50.00!)  Lee ordered fried green tomatoes with fresh mozzarella, tomato jam and a balsalmic glaze and  they were delicious and a huge portion.  I ordered butterbean hummus with fried tortilla chips and it was good but not as good as the tomatoes.

For our entrees, Lee ordered the bacon wrapped mountain trout served on top of a sweet potato hash with fresh green beans.  It looked wonderful!  I had the grilled grouper sandwich with creole remoulade, spicy slaw, tomatoes, onion and pickles. It was really good!  Some say you should end this meal with the Krisy Kreme Bread Pudding but we had no room! 

I did like this place and would like to go back and enjoy the patio when the weather is nice.

Well, it’s been two weekends of festival going.  Last weekend  was Dogwood and Sweetwater and this weekend was Inman Park, Taste of Marietta and Jonquil.  Inman Park is my favorite for art and people watching because of the eclectic parade of anybody that wants to “parade around”.  Taste of Marietta is another favorite because I get my food fix on!  Unfortunately, it rained “cats and dogs” at Inman on Saturday but we still managed to see some art and I even purchased some.  Keoni got some great pictures of the parade.  We were soaked but at least it wasn’t as crowded as usual.

The weather for “Taste of Marietta” was gorgeous!  Our friends, Karen and Hervie, and Va and Mark joined us and we had a wonderful time.  The square is lined up on both sides with vendors with everything from slices of pizza to oxtail stew and just about as much barbecue as you can stand!  Each taste ranges from $1.00 to $4.00 and some of the tastes are pretty good portions.  Keoni, the carnivore, got bacon wrapped chicken at Sal Grosso and bef tenderloin with cheddar mashed potatoes at Aspens.  I got a spinach and feta pie in filo pastry at Kybele, the Turkish place, as well as a stuffed grape leaf (dolmade).  I got an empanada at Kiosco Columbian Restaurant., one of my favorites!  I also tried the shrimp and grits at Henry;s (in Acworth).  Very good!  Their chef is well known even outside of Acworth!  Va had some Phad Thai from Thaicoons and Karen enjoyed a very spicy tamale from Kisoco.

We were there at 11:00 am and by 12:00 it was getting” elbow to elbow” so we retired to the terrace at the top of the Strand Theater for some beer and a birds eye view.  What a great day spent with friends, enjoying good food and glorious spring weather!

The Sweetwater festival in Candler Park was also a fun time.  This is the third year for it and they had some artists and good music and great beer and food.  We did not enjoy the Jonquil festival as much.  There wasn’t much that grabbed my attention, it seemed to be geared toward young kids andsince we don’t have those, we can cross that one off the list for next year!