Georgia on my mind ...

[SaxChik]

tonight is my last night in ATL for a conference. i must say i had a very nice food experience here!

we arrived on saturday. we went to redfish creole on the east side for dinner saturday night. i really liked the decor of the restaurant. they had a margarita made with fresh strawberry puree for their drink special, so i had one of those. my husband had a local atlanta beer. i had the cajun seafood pate for an appetizer and jambalaya. my husband had the creole ceviche piquant and the crawfish etoufee. i admit, we have an excellent cajun/creole place where i live in PA, so i'm a little biased, but we really enjoyed our meal. his etoufee was especially tasty. they make a mean roux! they had a bread pudding with currants and a dark rum sauce that was TO DIE FOR! 7 out of 10 on the lauren-meter.

sunday, we went to the globe for brunch. my husband said the decor was like eating at ikea. i kinda liked it. it was one of the better breakfasts i've had in a long time! i got their "blue plate"... which was 3 eggs, potato latkes (which they served with apple butter), toasted banana bread and i had them substitute chicken apple sausage for the bacon. very nice! fresh squeezed oj, too. the husband had a smoked salmon and egg sandwich that looked tasty. 7 out of 10 on the lauren-meter.

sunday night, it was off the sweet lowdown (the site has music, so turn down your volume) for some southern food. i went with my husband and two other people. i had she-crab soup and fried chicken with mac and cheese. unfortunately, i was not too impressed with this place. it was ok. nothing to write home about. 5 out of 10 on the lauren-meter.

monday, i lunched at the vortex in little five points (atlanta's funky section). really good burgers and really nice people! made me wanna get more tattoos and piercings.

monday night i went to a cocktail party at the four seasons. my friends and i were hungrier than the hors d'oeuvres they were offering, so we went to park 75, the four season's restaurant. they had a $65 tasting menu that we decided to go for. they started us out with an amuse bouche of fig marinated in balsamic vinegar with foie gras mousse. mmm. i had an appetizer of foie gras atop a wonton-like crisp and strawberry rhubarb. that was followed by wagyu shortribs over smoked gouda grits with mushrooms and a trio of honey panna cotta with berries. O-M-G. it was AMAZING. i told the waiter to tell the chef the ribs gave my tongue an orgasm. perhaps a little much for the south. 10 out of 10 on the lauren-meter.

tonight, we went to ecco for dinner, which is part of a series of restaurants owned by the same people. it was a veritable feast for the senses! i wasn't starving and they offered tapas-like portions, so i picked three. i started with fried goat cheese and honey. they took balls of goat cheese, dipped them in a very light tempura batter, fried them, then drizzled them with honey and cracked peppers. it was like eating greek loukoumathes filled with cheese. WAY YUMMY! next, i had chirizo with pears and hard cider. the spiciness of the chirizo was a lovely match for the sweetness of the pears. last, i had the garlic shrimp. this was shrimp bathed in garlic and oil with hot spicy pepper and a bay leaf. it reminded me of a good szechuan garlic sauce. i was sopping the sauce up with bread. for dessert, i asked to sample their ice cream. they came out with a very generous scoop. it was burnt honey ice cream with gorganzola cheese. you wouldn't think it would be good, but the flavors were so layered, it was amazing! it started with the sweetness of the honey, then the burnt taste, followed by the creaminess of the ice cream, finished with the salty-tang of the cheese. really good. my friends had riccotta fritters with framboise sauce (the lightest, best donut holes you've ever eaten) and an olive oil pound cake with rosemary ice cream. not very sweet, but light and really delicious! 9 out of 10 on the lauren-meter.

i basically blindly picked these restaurants doing web searches and reading a little off e-gullet and was overall very pleased with the food in atlanta! if you're here visiting for a conference or whatever, please take some time to wander off the beaten path a little and i guarantee you'll be rewarded!

starting tomorrow, we go back on the diet!

[robyn]

We usually stay at the Four Seasons when we're in Atlanta (once or twice a year). Have enjoyed Park 75 for dinner - but our best meal there was its Sunday brunch (which really isn't a brunch at all the way we usually think of brunch - but a multi-course tasting menu - the chef's ideas of the week). Glad you enjoyed Atlanta! Robyn