A Visit to Atlanta

Its been a while since I've posted and lots has been going on. I had surgery, and am midway through radiation and chemo. One of the toughest things for me has been separation anxiety from my two fur-faced pals. See, I came to Canada to visit for 6 days back in mid-November and have not been out of Regina since. This past weekend my fiance and his Dad went down to Atlanta to rescue my car (which was still in the airport parking lot) some clothing (remember I had packed for a week) and my two cats. You are probably wondering to yourself about now - what the heck does this have to do with food? I'm getting there I promise, keep your britches on.

The 'boys', as I'll refer to them here on out, arrived at my apartment on Friday afternoon to what I knew would be inedible fridge contents. The veggies had liquified, the bleu cheese was green and what the heck was that stuff in the tupperware anyway? Some sort of science project? So aside from some baking staples in the cabinet and a few tins of anchovies - which I love but they don't - I knew that they would need some sustenance from someplace else. Of course I insisted that their first dinner MUST be at the River Room, which is not only fantastic but within stumbling distance to my house so they could enjoy some adult beverages with their meal if they so chose. You may remember my article about the River Room from this blog a while back. My future father in law is German born and lives in Regina so while there is some decent food to be had here (he prefers German dishes) - there is nothing like the art you get in your mouth at the River Room. The last time I wrote about River Room and chef Jeff, my favorite dish of the evening was the pork chop. I have since been back for the crispy skin trout and it was amazing. This is the dish I recommended to my fiance's dad. Fiance, who I have never seen pass up a mussel appetizer did indeed order them. He told me that mine were better but he is a very smart man. However, if I could make anything as well as Jeff Sigler, the chef there, I would not be writing about food - I would be cooking it professionally. Fiance had the scallops with "squash spaghetti" for an entree and as he texted me with his choices, my mouth watered for that squash even from 2000 miles away....c'mon, do the Homer drool with me. Apparently Jeff even came out to bring a cheese plate and sit and chat with them, the wait staff did the same so here is a shout out to all my friends at the River Room for making their experience above and beyond mere dining. As always a wonderful meal and excellent service were enjoyed. Damn....have I said I am hungry for one of Jeff's dishes? Do me a favor - go there and eat one for me and post a comment about every little detail so I can enjoy vicariously!

I next sent the boys on to Williamson Brothers BBQ since when left to their own devices they ended up at the Olive Garden - really??? In Atlanta where the choices are so fabulous? How about Flip? Southern traditional BBQ seemed a good choice for my father-in-law's one and only visit to Atlanta. Other than the language barrier (the boys don't speak Georgia drawl) they had a great time and enjoyed stuffing themselves on the treats. I Insisted (via txt message) that they order pulled pork and ribs with all the fixin's - mac & cheese, fried green tomatoes and sweet tea. They took my advice except for the sweet tea which they eschewed in favor of some locally brewed beer. OK probably a better choice given that they had to go back to my house and wrestle with two ornery cats.

There are, of course, a myriad of wonderful choices in Atlanta ranging from the outdoor casual BBQ, to burgers, taquerias, chic southern and fine dining. I chose two of my favorites since I wanted, not only to give them a sense of Atlanta, but a sense of what I love about it. Excellent food and amazing service be it fine dining or home southern style is a hallmark of Atlanta and one of the things I have missed the most these past couple of months. We will need to take another journey south to store my household goods and car so if you have suggestions for eateries that will rival the ones I have chosen, please comment and tell me about them! (sorry for the lack of food photos - since I am food obsessed, I take them but the boys are appetite obsessed so they simply devour them!) The boys like the River Room best followed by Williamson Bros with Olive Garden a distant third - guess I'm doing something right!