Typical Atlanta's Food (Savannah, Washington: restaurants, best, money)

[fumbleman]

Where I can taste typical Atlanta's food in Atlanta downtown?
Which is a typical atlantas's food?

[Iconographer]

I can't say that Atlanta has a 'typical' food. But if you're looking for some rib-sticking Southern cooking in the downtown area, here are a couple of suggestions:

Pitty Pat's Porch - Southern Dining

Gladys and Ron's Chicken & Waffle

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by fumbleman

Where I can taste typical Atlanta's food in Atlanta downtown?
Which is a typical atlantas's food?

Atlanta's typical food? What a wonderful excuse for us to have another long-winded debate over Atlanta's identity, or lack thereof.

No, I agree with the first responder. The thing about Atlanta is that it, like many 'capital' cities of a nation, a state, or region, is more of a reservoir of tendencies that originate beyond it than a source of innovations in its own right. The closest that we have to an indigenous tradition -- "Southern cooking" -- is here just one in a cast of many traditions, like Thai, that are imported and may or may not be reasonably authentic. But then, to some extent this is the same anywhere now as cooking becomes more and more a part of a globalized 'culture industry'. But, that said, as the dialectic moves to the next stage there is increasingly a counter-movement which takes the form of an effort to resuscitate and renew all things "local", such as ingredients, and methods, etc. To see where things stack up in Atlanta on this front, check out this recent blog post in the local paper: The best restaurants in Atlanta 2009: Songs of the South | Table Talk

[green_mariner]

Do you think Anthony Bourdain would ever do a No Reservations episode in Atlanta? He's done some in South Carolina, South Florida, Washington DC, and New Orleans.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

Do you think Anthony Bourdain would ever do a No Reservations episode in Atlanta? He's done some in South Carolina, South Florida, Washington DC, and New Orleans.

Good point. I remember him doing one in Baltimore, the beginning of which was prefaced with "returning to a city that years ago I wasn't too fond of, but friends and occasional visits since had made me take a second look at."

Which I took to be a subtle admission of being blinded by a NY-centric snobbery.

Something tells me he'd probably have something similar to say about Atlanta, though the city might still have some ways to go.

That said, there is one way Atlanta could be viewed as already possessing more of an indigenous culture and cuisine, and that's of course to focus on African American cooking here. But here again, I'm still not sure how that would differ from African American cooking in the South generally. So again, we're back to Atlanta as more of a reservoir, to some extent of things Southern but increasingly of things that reflect the contemporary American cosmopolitan mishmash of things global in the age of globalization.

[antiquesmountainapache]

Here are two more "oldies but goodies". Mary Mac's Tearoom, Mary Mac's Tea Room > Home, 224 Ponce de Leon Avenue, 404 876-1800. Swan Coach House, lunch only Monday through Saturday 11:00 - 2:30, 3130 Slaton Drive NW (on the grounds of the Atlanta History Center) 404 261 - 0636. I dearly love both of them.

[DeaconJ]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

Good point. I remember him doing one in Baltimore, the beginning of which was prefaced with "returning to a city that years ago I wasn't too fond of, but friends and occasional visits since had made me take a second look at."

Which I took to be a subtle admission of being blinded by a NY-centric snobbery.

Something tells me he'd probably have something similar to say about Atlanta, though the city might still have some ways to go.

That said, there is one way Atlanta could be viewed as already possessing more of an indigenous culture and cuisine, and that's of course to focus on African American cooking here. But here again, I'm still not sure how that would differ from African American cooking in the South generally. So again, we're back to Atlanta as more of a reservoir, to some extent of things Southern but increasingly of things that reflect the contemporary American cosmopolitan mishmash of things global in the age of globalization.

I realized at some point that "soul food" is the same food my parents grew up with. It wasn't just black people eating that type of food, it was poor people in the South - which was almost everybody in the 30s and 40s.

[afonega1]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

Good point. I remember him doing one in Baltimore, the beginning of which was prefaced with "returning to a city that years ago I wasn't too fond of, but friends and occasional visits since had made me take a second look at."

Which I took to be a subtle admission of being blinded by a NY-centric snobbery.

Something tells me he'd probably have something similar to say about Atlanta, though the city might still have some ways to go.

That said, there is one way Atlanta could be viewed as already possessing more of an indigenous culture and cuisine, and that's of course to focus on African American cooking here. But here again, I'm still not sure how that would differ from African American cooking in the South generally. So again, we're back to Atlanta as more of a reservoir, to some extent of things Southern but increasingly of things that reflect the contemporary American cosmopolitan mishmash of things global in the age of globalization.

I think Savannah would be more for him.(Anthony B.)But even then Charleston might have taken that shine.Usually Charleston and Savannah are said in the same breath.

[afonega1]

Originally Posted by DeaconJ

I realized at some point that "soul food" is the same food my parents grew up with. It wasn't just black people eating that type of food, it was poor people in the South - which was almost everybody in the 30s and 40s.

Thats true.Its like the stereotypical black people loving chicken and watermelon,but my white friends had always beat me to the punch!!LOL.When I was much younger I used to care about any what people thought.I grew up around rich(new money mostly) southern white kids.They were my friends but they made awful jokes about black people eating those foods.I just got to point as I am now older and too tired to give a ***** what anyone thinks.


YouTube - All Black people Love to Eat Chicken and Watermelons

[DeaconJ]

Originally Posted by afonega1

Thats true.Its like the stereotypical black people loving chicken and watermelon,but my white friends had always beat me to the punch!!LOL.When I was much younger I used to care about any what people thought.I grew up around rich(new money mostly) southern white kids.They were my friends but they made awful jokes about black people eating those foods.I just got to point as I am now older and too tired to give a ***** what anyone thinks.

My mom's fried chicken and cold watermelon are two of my favorite things in life.