Atlanta’s Living Walls project, with the help of artists from all over the world — from their site:
Living Walls, The City Speaks, is an annual conference on street art and urbanism that began in August 2010 in the city of Atlanta. Along with changing the urban landscape, the Living Walls conference set out to highlight a number of problems facing the city. Living Walls did not just showcase art, but also built a platform for much-needed dialogue in the city. Here, found by accident
Since Av and I were already in Atlanta, there was no way we could go and not run over to the Varsity. We always try to get over there if we have any time – even just for a sweet tea.
Whenever you walk in, you’ll hear the people taking orders saying, “whaddya have, whaddya have” – so be sure to have your order figured out before you step up to the counter.
Av had a couple of hotdogs – they’re beef, but I don’t know what brand – and some fries. I had a sandwich (they have yummy egg salad, and pimento cheese!) and a fried peach pie.
This past week, Av and I spent a couple of days in Atlanta. We hadn’t been to the Georgia Aquarium yet, so we spent about an hour or so there (I thought it would take much longer to go through, but we both really enjoyed it).
There were several places where the guests could pet animals – from shrimp to starfish to these stingrays and sharks below. Fun!
All the displays were really nice.
These beluga wales were so fun to watch:
We were there on Monday, and while it was busy, it didn’t seem too crowded. When the aquarium first opened, they scheduled times on tickets for people to be admitted so there would be some crowd control, but we walked up to buy our tickets and they let us right in. It was great!
Av and I had *the* most delicious lunch at Mary Mac’s Tea Room in Atlanta Sunday a week ago (and let me tell you, everybody was dressed to the 9’s. It was really something to see). Mary Mac’s is at 224 Ponce de Leon Ave NE downtown (404.876.1800).
It was a beautiful experience, what with the little slips of paper that you write on what you’ll be having, and the lovely little breads – cornbread, rolls, cinnamon rolls – and the delicious cup of pot likker to begin with. There’s a sweet lady that comes around and talks to everybody and rubs your back. So sweet.
Av and I thought it was odd that when the server set down the bowls of pot likker, he automatically described, in detail, what pot likker is and how it comes about (and he did that to everybody). I had to stop him and explain that “oh, we’re from Alabama….we have pot likker all the time”. They must have a lot of business of people from outside the South.
Pot likker is the delicious liquid that is left in a pot when you cook collards for a few hours. You take collard greens (rinse them off really well and tear them into pieces) and add to a big pot full of water. Season with salt and pepper and add a nice piece of fatty meat. Bring it up to a boil and then let that pot simmer for 3-4 hours…I’ve cooked collards several hours, but then I like mine really, really tender. After the collards are cooked, put them in a nice-size bowl, and pour the pot likker into another bowl. Pot likker is good in a variety of ways, but mostly for soaking cornbread. If you have left-over pot likker, you can freeze it and use it later.
Collard-cooking does make the kitchen smell, but it’s a smell that I love. It reminds me of my MawMaw Polk z”l in her kitchen.
Anyway, our meal was just delicious. Delicious! Pics are below. And guess what? Mary Mac’s is now listed on my favorite places to eat and I bought one of their cookbooks it was so good. Yum!
These are their ‘tearoom favorites’:
baked chicken with cornbread dressing & gravy
country fried steak & gravy
fried chicken
meatloaf with tomoto sauce
roast pork with dressing & gravy
chicken & dumplings
baked turkey with dressing & gravy
chicken pot pie
pork barbecue with Brunswick Stew
smothered chicken over rice
AND take a look at these vegetables!
macaroni & cheese
french fries
sweet potato souffle
whipped potatoes
baked potato
vegetable soup
creamed corn
okra & tomatoes
broccoli souffle
fried green tomatoes
potato cakes
steamed spinach
steamed cabbage
steamed carrots
cheese grits
fried okra
steamed broccoli
spiced apples
cheese & vegetable souffle
Brunswick Stew
butter peas
rice and gravy
dumplins
Hoppin’ John
turnip greens
green beans
black-eyed peas
collard greens & cracklin’ cornbread
cup of pot likker with cornbread
applesauce
cole slaw
green salad
fresh fruit
carrot and raisin salad
pickled beets
bartlett pear salad
fruited jello
Beverages included:
lemonade
table wine of the South (sweet tea)
sweet milk
cream soda or root bear
coke, diet coke, or sprite
coffee, tea, or punch
cranberry or orange juice
buttermilk
brown cow
milkshakes
and a full-service bar
I can’t wait to go back. It was just wonderful.
Pot likker. Mmmmmmmmmhhh…….
Turkey and dressing, cranberry sauce, collards with cracklin’ cornbread, and hoppin’ john (rice and black eyed peas)
Country-fried steak and gravy, dumplins, and potato cakes
mint julep (I’m not so sure about their choice of a glass to serve this in, but it sure was good anyway)
dueling desserts : my Georgia peach cobbler on the left and Av’s peanut butter pie on the right. Av’s pie was sooooooo good!
