In Birmingham:
Magnolia Market At The Silos
If you’ve spent more than five minutes on HGTV in the last two or three years, you likely know what’s going on here. On our way through Waco, Texas, we stopped at the Magnolia Market at the Silos.
This cute little building is the new bakery:
…and inside the main building is the shop
There wasn’t anything I had to have (though I do like those galvanized cake stands) but Shug really-really wanted a tee — I will let them watch HGTV just to have something on in the background in hotels, soooooo he got a #DemoDay one.
The best part of the whole visit, though, was spending time on their lawn. It’s artificial grass, but it’s like the most wonderful artificial grass in the whole world (I had to look: it’s DuPont Foreverlawn Select Synthetic). On the lawn are provided balls, cornhole, all kinds of things for fun. This is a great place to go just to exercise with the kids to get off the highway for a little while.
We spent a long time. Here’s Shug and Shugie starting a cornhole game:
There are foodtrucks in the back if you have more of an appetite than just something small from the bakery, and all this covered seating is available. We sat with a woman who was a huge fan of the show and had driven multiple states just to shop here.
The four of us shared a cookie, a cupcake, and most of a cinnamon roll. They were all really good.
Museums x2 in Augusta and Cafeteria Love
Augusta was fun! And rainy and museum-y and yummy.
Well, okay there was this one thing — something was going on in the city when we were there so the better hotels (Doubletree, Marriott, HGI…though it seems as though most of the hotels here are more budget-oriented) had limited availability and were much higher than they ordinarily should be. One new hotel called ECCO was in the top ten at TripAdvisor, and I thought it would be a great way for us to save a lot of money since there wasn’t a particularly interesting hotel to stay in anyway, and it obv had good ratings. It was completely meh, though we weren’t expecting anything other than meh. Totally didn’t matter because we had such a fab time in Augusta anyway.
Av was off to do some work in Augusta, so the boys and I decided to spend the day walking around and taking in a couple of museums. The first one was the Morris Museum of Art which was tucked inside an office building that also happened to be right on a riverwalk at the Savannah River.
This is not a big museum *but* it’s got some interesting pieces
So so so happy to see Nell Choate Jones‘ Georgia Red Clay
This is a really wonderful Nicola Marshall, ‘Young Girl with Cat’ from 1867. Not too many people can rock a middle-part with a widows peak, but this little girl sure is. She and kitty have been playing with her stocking. Love this one.
Nice Ida Kohlmeyer pieces
And this beyond-fab Jonathan Green ‘Daughters of the South’ — the museum is hanging an exhibit of his works from their permanent collection beginning October 4 going through January 28, 2018
Afterwards, we took in the the riverwalk and tucked ourselves into a little alcove when a short rainstorm started, then kept going to the Augusta Museum of History which was also really, really good (and included a special exhibit to favorite son James Brown). We spent well over an hour here.
Nice that they had such immersive environments, especially for kids. We enjoyed the train a lot.
Now for the best and last part of Augusta — lunch. Right across from where The Masters is played is a big, big, big church complex in what was probably a shopping center at one point.
In this same development is ‘Honey from the Rock Cafe’ — it’s rated #3 of 399 restaurants in Augusta. This place gets amazing reviews. Plus, how many places like this are there?
…actually one less than there was a year ago because Ernest Angley’s Cathedral Buffet closed in April.
Anyway. It’s set up as a cafeteria. Everyone is just crazy nice.
There are Bible verses on everything. On the wall, on table placards, on the food labels…
Everything is neat and clean and just so. Niki’s West has trained me to be completely alert, thinking ahead so I won’t get barked at through the line. I know exactly at what point I need to ask for collards and rutabagas and butter beans. Here, though, take your time and consider the options.
The boys got meat dishes but I was in for vegetables, like fried okra and sweet potato casserole and fried green tomatoes which, yeah, negated all those vitamins. It was like my Thanksgiving plate except I wasn’t beholden to take any turkey. It was all very, very good.
And those were some gooood FGTs, y’all.
Pretty-Pretty Lunch In Savannah
Cohen’s Retreat in Savannah has somehow managed to make the leap from quite literally ‘Cohen’s Old Man’s Retreat’ (it is what it is (or was) — a place where “men would not die old and lonely” thanks to the generosity of Percival Randolph Cohen) to *such* a pretty restaurant and event space today.
There was also a homewares shop on one end of the building that was Anthro-ish with Anthro-ish prices.
Our lunch was in this room, featuring a portrait of sweet Mr. Cohen
We were all really happy with everything we had — Av and the boys had sandwiches or salads
…and I had the tomato pie which I always love to see on a menu (and theirs was pretty good)
We’ll definitely return on our next visit to Savannah. While I’m looking forward to eating there again, I’m actually even more interested to see how/if they change up the interior.
The Good and the Wha? at the Mansion on Forsyth Park, Savannah GA
While Savannah’s Kimpton Brice was fun, we were looking forward to trying the Mansion on Forsyth Park too. It’s a Marriott Kessler Collection, so one can expect art *everywhere*, an in-hotel gallery, trendy furnishings, and a very boutique feel.
This hotel can get expensive in the high season, into the $400s. Thankfully we were able to jump on a Marriott package on an off-week and were able to save tons. We avoided valet fees since there was a ton of on-street, non-metered parking right beside the hotel.
There’s art everywhere. Everywhere-everywhere. This is the hallway to our room
Our room
The bed was soooo comfortable. It can be purchased from the Kessler Living site, and Av and I are a few years past due for a new mattress. I’m thinking, though, that we might give the Casper mattress a try (Consumer Reports liked it too). If you have experience with it, I’d love to hear.
This is where our problem was. I took the boys swimming one morning. See how the pool surround is marble? Know how marble is really, really slippery? So maybe having marble all around a pool isn’t the greatest idea. When Shug got out of the pool, he actually slipped and fell on his side getting out. He was hurt but was able to walk it off. Shugie got out right behind him and did the whole slide-but-catch-yourself thing. Also, you can’t see in this pic, but around the lounge chairs by the pool steps — and I didn’t see them until we were toweling off and Shugie stepped on one — there were little shards of marble. His foot was cut but it wasn’t too bad and we were able to stop the bleeding with some pressure. Sooooo….
…we did what anyone would. We got up, went to the lobby and told the front desk person that an area of the marble decking may have some kind of cleaner residue that makes it really super slippery, and that there are some shards of marble that need to be swept up.
We thought that was it. We just wanted someone to know. We weren’t upset, we didn’t ask for a Bandaid, neither of the boys were in tears, this was for informational purposes so they could do something about it. The front desk person asked us to wait just a minute. Here, I’ll paste the text of an email I sent to management:
The woman at the desk immediately went to get the manager on staff. (name retracted here) came out, and rather than doing what any person in any similar position would do — express that they were sorry about these things happening and thanking them for letting the hotel know so it could be fixed — she treated the three of us as potential lawsuits.
She scribbled notes on a series of post-it notes, then told us to show her the shards. Rather than walking with us back to the building, she got on the phone and started laughing.
At no point did she ever say “I’m sorry that happened” or “thanks for letting us know” so no one else would similarly be injured. Several minutes later, there was a knock on our door with her telling me to fill out a multi-page incident report.
How did this go so wrong?Â
Even my kids realized this wasn’t handled correctly. She never said she was going to get the shards swept up (though a maintenance man did come over to look at the shards too), or look into getting the slick spot on the pool deck taken care of. Never acted as though she cared.Â
I was going to let this go, but just today, one of my boys asked me again if I thought she took care of things so no one else was going to get hurt on their vacation. The other one asked me why she didn’t say “sorry” like they are taught to do at school. The fact that they are still thinking about it is enough for me to reach out to you.
I have no idea why we were treated as though our next stop might be a lawyer. And I have no idea why this was handled as though my children were exhibits rather than little people who were hurt and had genuine concern for others.Â
BTW, when the maintenance man came to look at the shards, he reminded me that the pool deck of course gets slick — it’s smooth stone. I just didn’t say anything. Maybe if they’re so accustomed to people falling getting out they should consider putting down something other than a smooth stone. You know, like just about every other pool that has a textured decking.
Your pool can be so hot it breaks Instagram but if the fact that people get hurt around it elicits a you-shoulda-known, maybe something’s not right.
Actually, I realize that their fear of lawsuits is real, but we presented as nonchalant people who just wanted someone to look into something for the next guest and we were on our way up to our room to get ready for another fun day in Savannah. And if filling out an incident report is policy, okay too. Anyway. This could have turned out so much better. And I was especially proud of our boys for even several days later hoping that they got things fixed so no one else would get hurt.
Let’s talk about fun stuff again! The hotel, true to its name, is right at Forsyth Park, the one with the famous fountain. We spent lots of time there around the fountain and the park — Shugie brought his football so he and Shug were kicking and passing the ball…running everywhere, having a great time.
One morning, we had the breakfast at the hotel’s restaurant, 700 Drayton, which was included with our stay. It was all really good, from the pancakes to the omelette, benedict, and shrimp and grits.
And the setting there was really pretty as well.
I think we’ll pass on staying at the Mansion on Forsyth again. The TripAdvisor reviews are giving me pause too. Maybe the Bohemian Riverfront next time?
Jepson Center for the Arts, Savannah
This Moshe Safdie building, opened in 2006, is the Telfair Museum’s Jepson Center for the Arts in Savannah, Georgia. While the emphasis here is on more contemporary art, which entirely complements the structure, the strongest part of the museum is in its rotating exhibits rather than permanent collection.
Here, William Christenberry’s ‘Painted Male’ and ‘Painted Female’
Keith Sonnier’s ‘JOB’
Cedric Smith’s ‘Freedom is a Road’
Anne Ferrer’s ‘Hot Pink’
powered by:
We spent hours in their ArtZeum space which is geared for children, and the boys played in their large workshop making many pieces of art.
This is the Walden, The Game — and it was written up this week at Hyperallergic
Walden, a Game takes a seemingly absurd premise — transforming Walden: Or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau into a video game — and makes it a surprisingly thoughtful experience about finding balance in life. Players can devote all day to wandering the shore of the titular pond, listening for owl hoots or watching hummingbirds flit around flowers, but their Thoreau character will start to starve, and his firewood supplies will run dangerously low for the approaching winter. Yet spend too much time chopping wood and planting beans, and his inspiration will dwindle, the color seeping out of the digital landscape and the birdsong becoming quiet.
When they first sat down at the keyboard, I thought to myself “knowing Thoreau, this isn’t exactly going to be Mario Kart Rainbow Road” but they enjoyed it.
We were very fortunate to be there just before the end of the Nick Cave exhibit
Of the current and upcoming exhibits listed, I’d most like to come back to see Kahlil Gibran and the Feminine Divine which will be on exhibit through January 2, 2018.
Telfair Museums boasts the largest public collection of visual art by Kahlil Gibran in the United States, donated in 1950 by his lifelong supporter and mentor, Southern native Mary Haskell Minis. This exhibition concentrates on works that capture Gibran’s enduring belief in the oneness of all things, often characterized in his paintings and drawings as the feminine divine.
Snacking Savannah
It must be a rule that when in Savannah, one must go to Leopold’s for ice cream. And for good reason.
Not sure who thought a scoop of ice cream between two cookies was a good idea, but the four of us each had a bite and agreed.
We also happened to walk later to Chocolat by Adam Turoni (on IG here). We got four small pieces — one for each of us, and one later for Av since he was working — and honestly none of them were as delicious as we had wanted them to be (though they were pretty). What was so compelling was the atmosphere:
The shop is set up to appear as a library. The pieces are placed here and there in bookcases…
…and to select a piece, one takes a wooden tray which has in it a small set of tongs, opens the door, and takes a confection
His Etsy shop shows how gorgeous these all are.
We had our highest hopes for these passion fruit truffles (below) but they weren’t especially tasty. Unfortunately no flashbacks with the confections here to visits to Paris or Brussels. We *so* wanted them to be amazing. Perhaps we just came on a day when something was going on, because even the customer service person seemed off. They packaged our chocolates in a small clear cellophane bag, and when I asked for a paper bag to slip that into, explaining we had a lot more walking around Savannah out in the sun to do, the person seemed very put out. Everyone has an ‘off’ day. We’ll give them another try.
But the interior! It’s all done here (and at their other shop in town which is made to look more like a dining room (gasp at how fab those chocolates look!) by Alexandra Trujillo de Taylor. Bravo, Alexandra! Her IG is here.
Not snacking, but supper: one evening we went to Garibaldi Cafe at city market, and it was pretty great too:
Scallops, lasagna, lobster tail app (I just had a salad for my entree) — all fab.
Chandelier love:
Cathedral of St John the Baptist, Savannah
:::theceiling:::
Just as in St Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, visitors in Savannah flock each day to the Cathedral of St John the Baptist
Gorgeous. A history of the congregation is here.
The Olde Pink House, Savannah
Our first reservation in Savannah: The Olde Pink House. It faces Reynolds Square and is housed in a mansion on a lot which was a land grant from the British Crown. Begun in 1771 and construction completed in 1789, it’s especially distinctive thanks to the pink stucco covering the brick. It’s also adjacent to the Planter’s Inn. After serving as a private home for James Habersham Jr and his family, the building served as Planter’s Bank and First Bank of Georgia.
We made reservations via OpenTable so didn’t even worry about timing or availability, while several others I noticed came in just to put their name on the list. We use OpenTable all the time and love to get to bypass the hoping they have a res that was called in or hoping for the best without one, and we’re almost always seated immediately.
This is the dining room we were in:
Shortly thereafter, we were treated — just as everyone is — to a jar of their fab cheese straws (the cheese straws I make are piped shorter and thicker, but they come in all shapes and are equally delish)
Rather than an entree, I chose an appetizer: the fried chicken livers over Geechie Boy grits with bordelaise and fried spinach. Completely delicious.
Av chose the fried chicken, which was also crazy good. The skin was crispy and flavorful without being too salty. Shugie (who opted for a bowl of she crab soup which was nice) came over and helped him with it.
I *knew* the interior was going to be beautiful, so I asked if it would be any trouble for me to visit some of the other rooms since we’d be considering a future visit for supper — they were happy to, and offered that I could go upstairs, too.
Upstairs is just one beautiful room after another. Here, by the landing
Even though the restaurant gets a huge share of tourists, we thought it was fab and would not hesitate to make supper reservations. Looking forward to it.
Staying at the Kimpton Brice, Savannah
It seems as though there’s a plethora of great hotels in Savannah. I even made a little list of ones that looked interesting: the Mansion on Forsyth Park, the Bohemian, the Kimpton Brice, and four B&Bs —Â The Kehoe House, the Hamilton-Turner Inn, Eliza Thompson House, and The Gastonian.
Those B&Bs have their place, but although our boys are very well-behaved, I perceive them as places best suited for couples. Also, lately I just haven’t been in the mood to stay in that kind of setting.
We wanted fun.
So we chose the Kimpton Brice to be the first hotel we stayed with there. It’s right on E Bay Street, so we walked to everything. For whatever reason, the night we checked in, there was a ton of really close on-street parking available, so we did that rather than valet, even.
The lobby isn’t especially large but it’s interesting and cozy. Design is by Anna Busta.
I saw this print below and thought to myself: I know this. It’s by Methane Studios in Sharpsburg, Georgia.
And yessss to this Angel Olsen print screenprint they made.
Below is Pacci, the hotel’s restaurant with these magnificent floor tiles. We didn’t even eat here because we had resys elsewhere, but in *love* with these tiles. Walker Zanger maybe? Ann Sacks?
Courtyard
According to the hotel’s PR, the building was “originally built in the 1860s as a livery stable, cotton warehouse, foundry and machine shop, wholesale grocer and Coca-Cola bottling plant prior to becoming The Mulberry Inn in 1982.”
The room itself was fine. They carried the same mod look into the guestrooms
Bath amenities are from Atelier Bloem, with the mandarin & citrus body wash, oolong tea shampoo, and geranium conditioner. Atelier Bloem is exclusive to Kimpton hotels, but it’s made by Matthew Malin and Andrew Goetz, so if you know Malin + Goetz from the 21c hotels or elsewhere, that’s the idea. And yes it all smells amazing.
The armoire opens to reveal umbrella, yoga mat, and ::ohyessss:: seersucker bathrobes ($95).
A tray of goodies. The Patron = $32, JD = $20, San Pelligrino = $4. Snacks include gummy pandas, jerky, nuts, bars, and the like. If you join the Kimpton Karma loyalty program (free), you get $10 credit for the mini bar. I chose the $5 Savannah Bee Company mint julep lip balm and without checking the label, a $5 Kate’s Grizzly Bar which has 360 cals and…wait for it…51g of carbs. Whut.
The Kimpton Karma membership also means you can get a weekly email of their last-minute deals. We managed to get a great price on this room, but the weekly email shows what’s going on where as far as specials.
Happy with this stay and looking forward to checking out other Kimptons.
Wrapping myself in seersucker. Ta-ta, friends.
From the screenprint by Methane mentioned above, Angel Olsen’s ‘Shut Up Kiss Me’
NYT review of the Brice. Â Telegraph review.
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