Should I move to Atlanta from Boston? can't take this long cold winter! (Roswell: good schools, tornado)

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by Stars&StripesForever

What makes you think that Harvard and MIT are any more challenging? Is a legacy passed down, by which they were considered the "Ivy League", actually reality, or is it perception? I'd say the latter.

In my opinion, based on various universities I've attended, those that are often perceived to offer a higher quality education do not. It is those that are perceived as "party schools" that often have more difficult professors and are more challenging, mostly as a way of trying to overcome the stereotypes.

You have got to be kidding. I attended MIT and Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech is a fine school. MIT is world class. It's not a legacy passed down. It's God's honest truth. Doesn't cheapen Ga. Tech or any other school around here. Many excellent universities in the Atlanta area.

[JC84]

Well, from a foodie point of view-

In my opinion (and I was born and raised in Boston) the food in Atlanta is nowhere close to what Boston has to offer. Locals will point you to an "Atlanta institution" called the Varsity. If you like grease fried hamburgers, then its your place. Avoid it like the greasy plague it is. In general though, much of the cuisine in this region is fried. You will gain weight moving here.

There are very very few "mom and pop" hole in the wall kind of places, everything in Atlanta is a chain- nothing unique and special. Except Chick-fil-A, but its still a chain. Southern food is strange, grits are weird and collard greens closely resemble the leaves you rake in the fall.

Good seafood is hard to find but that's to be expected of a city so far from the ocean.

Avoid Waffle Houses, its basically the WalMart equivalent of a diner.

And lastly, it is IMPOSSIBLE to find quality Italian cold cuts, there are very few Italian Deli's.

Sorry if I offended anyone, but these are pretty common complaints from my fellow New Englanders.

[tellitetre]

As someone who grew up in Medford and Boston; and who lived in Atlanta, I beg to differ with you. There are many and varied places to eat in Atlanta. Believe me, I know from 1st hand experience. The Varsity is equivalent to Nathan's. It is what it is, an icon. Just because it is considered an Atlanta institution doesn't mean that it has to be good for you. Boston has more than its share of greasy spoons.

Waffle House is not supposed to be a diner, as in "Jersey" type diner. It is a place you get cheap breakfast food - quick, fast and in a hurry. People from Atlanta could make similar statements about Boston eateries based on what they are used to in the south.

Perhaps you could benefit from a trip around the city with a local foodie. There are loads of places that serve fresh seafood flown in daily from the east and west coasts. There's even a Legal Seafood (a New England icon) at Centennial Park. There is an abundance of good, quality food of all types in Atlanta. Granted, you may not be able to roll out of bed and find a bagel or Italian cold cuts at your corner store.

Most restaurants in the south do not serve traditional southern food. Most serve American fare, which unfortunately, regardless of location, includes fried foods. You will find that some of the finest restaurants serve shrimp and grits, as well as collard greens.

I like potatoes, my ex from Charleston liked rice. Neither is better than the other, it just has to do with where we were raised and what we grew accustomed to.

People from the northeast often quickly loathe and denounce foods, traditions and customs from other parts of the US - especially the south. But when they travel to other parts of the world -especially Europe, they find these same things unique, noteworthy and remarkable.

This attitude is exactly why a lot of people in the south would happily pay for an express ticket for transplants back to the northeast.

[Kelkmac]

ATLANTA..? Sorry, but Yuck.

I had family move to Atlanta from CA., and after several visits, I just couldn't. They've all since moved. I looked close to Altanta and found Charlotte, NC. Check it out !!! Same weather, but without all the traffic etc that make atlanta...atlanta. (no offense, atlanta. charlotte might be like that in 50 years...) ;-)

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by JC84

There are very very few "mom and pop" hole in the wall kind of places, everything in Atlanta is a chain- nothing unique and special. Except Chick-fil-A, but its still a chain. Southern food is strange, grits are weird and collard greens closely resemble the leaves you rake in the fall..

No offense intended but it sounds like you may have missed the boat entirely. There are zillions of hole-in-the-wall and other local eateries in Atlanta. Countless ethnic restaurants, too.

You should check it out on the Loaf or something like that, or maybe just bop around town. We've lived here for years and very rarely eat at chains.

[Lagwagon113]

You know its funny. I spent a month out in Las Vegas for work and even took a weekend trip to San Diego during that time. From what I saw of out west it looked to be similar to Atlanta in terms of sprawl, chain restaurants, and strip malls everywhere. I guess since the west is considered "cool" it's all good over there but in Georgia its backwards southerners being backwards.

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by tellitetre

As someone who grew up in Medford and Boston; and who lived in Atlanta, I beg to differ with you. There are many and varied places to eat in Atlanta. Believe me, I know from 1st hand experience. The Varsity is equivalent to Nathan's. It is what it is, an icon. Just because it is considered an Atlanta institution doesn't mean that it has to be good for you. Boston has more than its share of greasy spoons.

Waffle House is not supposed to be a diner, as in "Jersey" type diner. It is a place you get cheap breakfast food - quick, fast and in a hurry. People from Atlanta could make similar statements about Boston eateries based on what they are used to in the south.

Perhaps you could benefit from a trip around the city with a local foodie. There are loads of places that serve fresh seafood flown in daily from the east and west coasts. There's even a Legal Seafood (a New England icon) at Centennial Park. There is an abundance of good, quality food of all types in Atlanta. Granted, you may not be able to roll out of bed and find a bagel or Italian cold cuts at your corner store.

Most restaurants in the south do not serve traditional southern food. Most serve American fare, which unfortunately, regardless of location, includes fried foods. You will find that some of the finest restaurants serve shrimp and grits, as well as collard greens.

I like potatoes, my ex from Charleston liked rice. Neither is better than the other, it just has to do with where we were raised and what we grew accustomed to.

People from the northeast often quickly loathe and denounce foods, traditions and customs from other parts of the US - especially the south. But when they travel to other parts of the world -especially Europe, they find these same things unique, noteworthy and remarkable.

This attitude is exactly why a lot of people in the south would happily pay for an express ticket for transplants back to the northeast.

Great post...well said.

[Green Sub]

There is a lot of Boston blood here in Atlanta from where Delta Airlines aquired Northeast Airlines in 1972. There have been times when the Braves would play the Red Sox in Atlanta and there would be more Boston fans at the game than Atlanta fans. That was a long time ago though.

[JC84]

Originally Posted by arjay57

No offense intended but it sounds like you may have missed the boat entirely. There are zillions of hole-in-the-wall and other local eateries in Atlanta. Countless ethnic restaurants, too.

You should check it out on the Loaf or something like that, or maybe just bop around town. We've lived here for years and very rarely eat at chains.

Yes, but they're much, much less common. Case in point- I don't live in ATL (i live in the suburbs) but have of course been to ATL many times. The fact that I would remotely need a magazine for help me find hole in the wall places shows my point- coming from a Bostonian, there really is a big difference. You can't go to the next neighborhood without going past a family-run deli.

The old Italian neighborhoods in Boston especially...just about every corner has a little Italian deli.

[DTL3000]

Originally Posted by JC84

Yes, but they're much, much less common. Case in point- I don't live in ATL (i live in the suburbs) but have of course been to ATL many times. The fact that I would remotely need a magazine for help me find hole in the wall places shows my point- coming from a Bostonian, there really is a big difference. You can't go to the next neighborhood without going past a family-run deli.

The old Italian neighborhoods in Boston especially...just about every corner has a little Italian deli.

You make a valid point. I think some folks were taking what you said to mean that Atlanta didn't have ANY ethnic eateries. In fact there are quite a few in the area but they are for the most part clustered in the northeast sector of the city. Decent ethnic offerings are thin here in East Atlanta. There's an alright Jamaican place and a couple mediocre Chinese spots. It's fairly weak on authentic Mexican too, although I'd like to try that place at the corner of Memorial and Blvd(can't remember the name. Not El Toro.)

I lived in Astoria, Queens and the variety of food up there was mind blowing. I could walk to an Afghani, Japanese, Chinese, Mexican Czech, Greek(several), Irish, Peruvian, Indian, Turkish, Egyptian...(you get the point) within 5 minutes from my doorstep. They really do have it made up in the NE when it comes to food.

Atlanta has most of the ethnic food bases covered. However, the nature of the city makes it less likely one of those hole-in-the-wall places of every type will be convenient to everyone.