I had one of my cyber friends mention they might be headed to Atlanta for a leave the kid behind weekend (they have #2 on the way so I guess it might be a babymoon of sorts). She asked me what my favorites things to do are here in Atlanta – events, restaurants, etc. Does not have to be kid-friendly and so my head went *ding*ding* – good post for my blog. Of course then I realized I didn’t really know what would be good to do when visiting Atlanta – but I tried to put some thought to it anyway.The first thing that comes to mind is the Fox Theatre – my hubby and I love to go out for a night at the Fox Theatre. We’ll go to see plays or musicals that aren’t even our ideal just to go out for a date night there (I should apologize publicly for buying my husband tickets to see Cats for his birthday a few years ago – I know that wasn’t something he really wanted to see – but again, we wanted the date night out and it was actually ON his birthday).Other things we enjoy doing is going to see a local sports team play – Braves and Thrashers are my personal favorites. We are spoiled here because I work for a company which often gets us tickets to see these events, so we don’t really ever pay to go see sports. I don’t know if it would be as fun if we had to pay.If weather is good, one of the best parks to visit is Piedmont Park. Just so fun to people watch, walk around, see nature in a city. If you like the plant/nature side of things, you can also visit the Botanical Gardens right there. Also, Atlanta has really good festivals – so if the weekend has a festival, even better. There is Oysterfest in late February (I haven’t been to that one yet), Dogwood Festival in April and Summerfest in June. Actually there are many many more – but these are ones off the top of my head. Also – right on the park is Park Tavern – I spent many afternoons on their patio in my 20s. Wouldn’t say its the best food in the city – but its good and the location is ideal.I actually really like to visit the aquarium & the zoo – but mostly with my kids. So I wouldn’t put those on the adult-must see list. I haven’t been to the new World of Coke since it opened – if you like Coke then I’m sure its great fun. The old one was fun to visit – but didn’t seem worth the entry fee. But it was much smaller, and I’m sure this one is much more grand. The tasting room is really what its all about – taste Coke from around the world!Right now Atlanta magazine has the 67 things you must do in Atlanta for $0.99 – I might have to download it to see what they said!I guess because I am one of those people who really likes food – you know the ones who look up the menu before they go to think about what they want all day long – many of my visiting Atlanta ideas come back to restaurants I like.If you want to go pricey, and like the traditional dark steakhouse restaurant – probably my favorite restaurant in the city is Rathbun Steak. We’ve only eaten there once and hopefully we will go back again soon. Its actually not outrageously priced, you do really get a lot for your money. I thought it was worth every penny. The porterhouse for 2 was to die for, and the service we received was excellent. He also has another restaurant – Rathbun’s – just down the street which I hear is also very good.Probably my choice for brunch would be Murphy’s – such good food and we also tend to buy most of our wine from there – very knowledgeable wine guru Nick and his staff seem to be great at picking out what we like.Some other fun places, centered primarily in the Westside area of town since its where I work and near where I lived for a few years – and in the pretty affordable category (some more than others) are:Flip – very unique burger boutique concept with awesome mikshakes (Love the nutella burnt marshmallow)JCT Kitchen – one of the best tomato bisque soups to be had, and their truffle fries are so goodOsteria del Figo (or just Figo Pasta) – this is one of the best food/value deals around – Italian food made by Italians – usually around $8 -$10 for a heaping portion. They even have a $6 lunch combo deal and that includes drink – it is more casual (order at the cashier then find a table).For more of a restaurant Italian – I really like La Tavola. Its been awhile since I’ve been there but, very tasty memories. You know – its actually been a really long time since I’ve even been out for Italian other than the basics like Maggiano’s or my staple of Figo Pasta – having kids has limited the number of times we go out and for some reason we rarely pick Italian. We tend to gravitate towards steakhouses.We do really like Ecco – its more Mediterranean than Italian. Small plates to share, that type of thing. Try the fried goat cheese. Trust me.I recently had pizza from Antico Pizza – a tiny little place on Hemphill (again, near work). Its the Napoletana style – and I loved the white pizza there. If you stay there to eat, you just join others at a communal table. (We happened to have take out)I just reviewed Bocado yesterday on my blog – I hadn’t heard of it until then but the burger – delicious.Something I’ve been wanting to try – Atlanta has a chocolate tour – anyone know if this is worth it? It stops at Chocolate Pink which is apparently an amazing bakery. I’ll be testing that out in a few weeks when I meet a few fellow Atlanta bloggers/tweeters.Also there is one restaurant that I’ve always wanted to try – but on a night when we can do the wine pairing and have a driver to take us home – its probably one of the most expensive nights you’ll have, but I’ve heard just amazing things. This would be Bacchanalia. I can’t attest to it, having never been.I will say that before you plan your trip – or even after – watch sites like Atlanta on the Cheap, GroupOn and ScoutMob to see discounts to help make the trip more affordable. (The GroupOn link is a referral link – I get credit if you buy something from there – I only put it because I do use it – often. I’ve gotten donuts from Sublime through it, as well as wine classes – all worth it for sure!)Which reminds me – if you just want a unique tasty treat – try Sublime Donuts on 10th street. I love the apple fritter. It is a caramel delight with just the right amount of apple (just a taste).I should mention – most people might say you should visit The Varsity – it is part of Atlanta culture. But honestly – its heartburn just waiting to happen. If you want a greasy delicious burger that will sit with you for hours – great – but this is really best saved for after a long day of watching GT football with adult beverages (or for the morning after – grease helps with the… um headache from watching football right?)Other restaurants I’ve enjoyed were One Midtown Kitchen & Two Urban Licks (same owners), South City Kitchen, Horseradish Grill….Oh one of our favorite things to do (and I think this is one of the things that used to be really popular but maybe isn’t so much anymore?) – is to have dessert & coffee at Cafe Intermezzo. They have this whole case of yummy desserts and a coffee menu that is many many pages long. Last time we went it was not nearly as hard to get a table as a few years ago – but I still really enjoyed it.Full disclosure – I am in no way compensated by any of these places – I just like food!Probably one of my other favorite things to do – which really can happen anywhere – is to get a massage or spa treatments. In general I prefer Natural Body Spa over Spa Sydell – the two big chains here – but really – I’ve had great services at both places.I’m not much of a shopper – so I’m not really one to recommend where to go for that – I would guess if you want a mall then Lenox or Phipps would be the ones to go to (right next to each other) – but I know there is great boutique shopping here in Atlanta. People talk about it all the time. I just have no idea where to direct you for it – not really my thing. (I love Internet shopping!)I also know that there are quite a few new trendy hotels (with restaurants) around town – seems like they have been building them for years – but I also know nothing about them. Sorry! (I do know we stayed our wedding night at the Ritz Carlton downtown and it was fantastic – best burger ever – but then again I had not eaten all day long at that point)My thoughts are all over the place in this post – aren’t they? Well – please comment and share some of your favorites and what you think people should do when they visit.
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