I wouldn’t be a good tour guide to Columbus if I didn’t make certain that anybody traveling with me had the chance to try a scrambled dog. (Note: I’m probably not a good tour guide to Columbus, period, but that’s neither here nor there.) So while we were at Chicken Comer, I noticed that they offered scrambled dogs on the menu. I asked Adam and Emily whether they’d ever had one, or even knew what they were. Since they didn’t, we took a quick detour to Dinglewood Pharmacy so that they could enjoy one. Of course, doing that meant that I had to indulge a little bit as well, and also have a hand-mixed cherry lemon Sprite, so by the time we made it to Macon Road Bar-B-Que, bellies were a little bit full. Marie passed on trying anything here. Continue reading “Macon Road Bar-B-Que, Columbus GA”
Tag: georgia
Chicken Comer, Columbus GA
We were very much overdue for a trip to Columbus, and when our friends from Spatialdrift suggested that we take a road trip somewhere or other, Columbus, the state’s second-largest city, was the idea we eventually settled on. So one day last month, with the temperature in the low nineties and humidity at what felt like 200%, we motored on down and arrived at one of the barbecue joints that I’ve been wanting to visit for years. Chicken Comer – I will spell it as the sign does, although “Comers” and “Comer’s” are also seen – has had a number of ownership changes, but traces its lineage back in a zig-zagged line to the late 1920s. Continue reading “Chicken Comer, Columbus GA”
Bludso’s BBQ, Atlanta GA (CLOSED)
Is it possible that Atlanta’s actually transitioning from a pork town to a brisket town?
Yeah, I know, and the next barbecue joint to open will be serving unicorn meat on solid gold plates. But we are certainly seeing at least a little evidence of this. Honestly, and I say this as somebody who’s been championing the quality of Georgia barbecue as loudly as I can for years, I’ve had a surprising amount of downright average pulled pork in the Atlanta area in the last twelve months. Some of these meals were at newer restaurants which got a little bit of a grade on a curve for being new. Blue Sky in Woodstock and Anna’s in Kirkwood come to mind. I’ve also stopped by old standards like Pappy Red’s and Bub-Ba-Q to see that the quality had dipped a lot, and some joints, like Pigs-N-Heat in Kennesaw, were so disappointing that they weren’t worth the time to write about them. Continue reading “Bludso’s BBQ, Atlanta GA (CLOSED)”
10th & Piedmont, Atlanta GA
Last week, Marie and I were invited to 10th & Piedmont to meet Executive Chef Javier Rivera sample some of this two year-old restaurant’s popular menu items. It’s in a really lovely space on the corner of… well, you know… in the former home of a bookstore, OutWrite. It’s more than just a restaurant; every other Wednesday evening, they open the huge windows and move some of the tables around for a painting class! Co-owner Gilbert Yeremyan was there to talk with us as well, His company, Communitas Hospitality, also owns two sister restaurants in midtown: Hobnob, which is on the corner of Monroe and Piedmont, and G’s, which is in the space next door. Continue reading “10th & Piedmont, Atlanta GA”
Bill’s Bar-B-Q, Hull GA (take two)
The only really disagreeable part of this hobby is noting when a restaurant that we’ve visited has closed. It’s especially irritating when it’s a place that we never really gave a fair chance. Many years ago (mid-nineties, I guess), I decided that Bill’s Bar-B-Q in Hull, just north of Athens, wasn’t quite as thrilling as Zeb’s, about twenty miles up the road. Over time, this deteriorated in my dingbat head into thinking it wasn’t all that good. We revisited the place in 2011, and I was half-aggravated about how I gave them a shorter shrift than they deserved, and half-thrilled by how good it was. Continue reading “Bill’s Bar-B-Q, Hull GA (take two)”
Preserve, Athens GA (CLOSED)
In the previous chapter, I mentioned how some restaurant spaces seem cursed. You might think that one particular building on Broad Street is another contender for that name. For about the last nine months, it has been home to Preserve, a modern American place that boasts a really nice brunch and is owned by local musicians Ella Sternberg and Lenny Miller. The building, erected in the late 1950s, was the home of a drive-up dairy bar called Arctic Girl for many years, but it has also been the home of three barbecue joints: Walter’s, JB’s, and Hollis Ribs. Just to put things in perspective, I mentioned Hollis Ribs in January 2011 and intended then to get over there, but never did. Two different restaurants, a hot dog place and a coffee shop, have come and gone since that story. Continue reading “Preserve, Athens GA (CLOSED)”
Champy’s World Famous Fried Chicken, Athens GA
Last month, Marie and I celebrated our anniversary, but instead of having a simple date night – or a complicated date night – we decided to have a family day in Athens. This resulted in a little grumbling from the teenager, who wants to be included when she’s left behind, but left behind when we include her. Happily, even she had a good time in the end. We tried to juggle several things that everybody would enjoy, starting with a long stop at Washington Farms, outside Watkinsville. We picked three buckets of strawberries, and the four year-old probably ate a fourth on his own, so we didn’t complain about the price. Four for the price of three’s not bad, really. Continue reading “Champy’s World Famous Fried Chicken, Athens GA”
Marie, Let's Eat! 