A few weeks ago, I went out on one of my early days, and arrived at a restaurant far too early. I don’t object to waiting around for fifteen minutes for a place to open – that’s when I can get some good reading done – but I’d neglected to confirm when the restaurant actually opened, and while fifteen minutes is no problem, an hour and fifteen’s a bit much. Continue reading “Pancho’s, Atlanta GA”
Category: buford highway
Havana Restaurant, Atlanta GA (CLOSED)
Once upon a time, Atlanta was home to a pair of remarkably good sandwich shops where people could go for authentic Cuban food: Havana and Kool Korner. Then, across two terrible years, Kool Korner’s owner retired (only to move to Birmingham, get restless and reopen his beloved store) and Havana burned to the ground. Fortunately, around the time that Silvesonso Ramirez went back into business in Alabama, Debbie Benedit and her son Eddie Benedit Jr. reopened Havana using most of the same recipes that Eddie’s grandfather Guido had used when he first opened Havana on Buford Highway in 1976. Then there was, briefly, some bad blood boiling as Eddie’s uncle started his own sandwich shop with a very similar name. That’s all in the past now, but doing further reading of older stories about this restaurant – see the list below – will probably find traces of the family disagreements. Continue reading “Havana Restaurant, Atlanta GA (CLOSED)”
Hae Woon Dae, Doraville GA
This is Marie, contributing an article about our recent adventure on the outside-the-perimeter side of Buford Highway, visiting the venerable Hae Woon Dae. We took a trip out there with one of our fellow foodie bloggers, the always-fun Leslie from The Food And Me at a place of our own choosing rather than at an invitation, so we could make a social evening of it. Continue reading “Hae Woon Dae, Doraville GA”
Quõc Húóng, Doraville GA
Since our visit to Buford Highway last month to sample pho and bánh mì sandwiches, I’ve been looking forward to returning to Lee’s Bakery for another, but I’ve also wanted to have one from another restaurant. Chow Down Atlanta’s guide (link dead) suggested that there could be as many as four more places that assemble a better bánh mì than Lee’s. So I decided to visit the restaurant that is number one on her list, a small place in the Asian Square strip mall called Quốc Húóng. It is closed on Thursdays, which is the usual day that I go out and play for lunch by myself, but two weeks ago, Marie and the kids went down to Saint Simons Island while I stayed in town to work some extra hours. This gave me the chance to go visit on a Friday. Continue reading “Quõc Húóng, Doraville GA”
Pho and Bánh mì
So, another expedition over to Chamblee to get something to eat from the city’s most eclectic and one of the most fun stretches of road. This time, the objective was to sample a little Vietnamese cuisine from a couple of places. We got some good recommendations from some of our fellow bloggers for what to try here. Leslie from The Food and Me suggested that we try a bowl of beef noodle soup from Pho Bac, and Jason from Kitchen Man Can suggested that we get a traditional bánh mì sandwich from Lee’s Bakery. Both restaurants have been written about fairly extensively. So we loaded up the children two Saturdays back and took off for Buford Highway. Continue reading “Pho and Bánh mì”
Mexican Chains on Buford Highway
A few chapters ago, I mentioned my desire to visit more restaurants along the Buford Highway corridor, and sample more traditional and authentic tastes. I figured that Marie and I would enjoy some Asian restaurants together, but I would give some Mexican places a try by myself, as I enjoy traditional tacos and sauces more than she does. So, a couple of Fridays back, I made my way to visit two well-known stores. They’re both outposts of small Atlanta-based chains. El Taco Veloz currently has six stores, and Las Tortas Locas currently has seven. Continue reading “Mexican Chains on Buford Highway”
Canton House, Chamblee GA
Marie and I would love to learn more about all the interesting and curious – I’m not sold enough to say wonderful or even “good” – food choices available along Buford Highway, and so we’re going to make a more concerted effort to get out of the ‘burbs and over here for more authentic Mexican, Chinese or Korean meals more frequently. As it happens, Marie seems to appreciate most Asian-style cooking a little more than I do, so perhaps we’ll try to give these restaurants a shot when we can go together, and maybe I’ll focus on the taquerias and Latin American cuisine when I get out on my own. Continue reading “Canton House, Chamblee GA”
Marie, Let's Eat! 