Midtown Review: Deckard's Kitchen and Kegs

Now this is my kind of restaurant! When you walk into Deckard's Kitchen and Kegs you walk into this rustic atmosphere with beautiful wood floors and brick walls. It definitely sets the mood for your meal. The inside is incredible and they also have a great patio area as well.

Before having lunch, I asked some of my followers on Twitter what they recommended for me to get. My responses were mostly people that have never eaten there since it only has been open for a couple months. But I was recommended by @RestaurantsATL to get the onion rings so at least I had a start. As I looked over the menu, I saw soo many things I wanted to get. From the variety of steam kettles including shrimp and grits, beef goulash, and thai shrimp and scallops to their Farmhouse ham and cheese sandwich with gruyere, pit ham, and beer mustard, this place has it goin on! I ended up ordering their meatloaf sandwich which isn't normally on the lunch menu but I saw it on their website and pretty much begged (I know I'm lame). They were nice enough to give it to me with a side of macaroni and cheese. My dad, after much contemplating, ordered the fish and chips.

Onion Rings

Fish and Chips



Meatloaf with Macaroni and Cheese












To start off, @RestaurantsATL was 100% right! The onion rings were fabulous. That saying everything is bigger in Texas should be "Everything is bigger in Deckard's". The onion rings were huge and thick! These put every onion ring I have ever had to shame. Seriously these were so big I had to cut it with a knife to eat it. I mean have you ever had to use silverware when eating onion rings? At Deckard's you might have to. The "Everything is bigger in Deckard's" saying continued when we got our meals. The portions were huge and if you aren't crazy hungry then I encourage you to split a meal. The meatloaf was rich and full of flavor. The meat was moist, juicy, and perfectly flavored itself. The macaroni.... wow.... it might need its own blog posting. I could go on for days describing my new love affair with their macaroni and cheese. Not overly cheesy or greasy, but perfect. My dad loved the fish and chips and their hand cut fries. He said it was some of the best fish and chips he has ever had and that it had an abundance of flavor.

I could go on and on about this place because it was exceptional. This is my kind of place. I should have seen that coming with a name like "Kitchen and Kegs"... only a couple of my top two favorite things in life. There is nothing like discovering a new restaurant where you can have a great beer in an impressive atmosphere with even better food! Screw Texas, everything is definitely bigger in Deckard's - big portions, big taste, I can't wait to go back :)


Deckard's Kitchen and Kegs
650 Ponce De Leon Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30308

Midtown Review: Loca Luna

I might be the only person in this town that has lived in Midtown Atlanta and not tried Loca Luna yet. This place definitely has a reputation in Midtown as a "fun place with a great atmosphere" but I have never heard any incredible talk about their food. So I decided I would try it out last night with a group of friends.
Loca Luna is a tapas style restaurant off of Amsterdam Avenue in Midtown. If this place didn't have such a reputation, I don't know how anyone would ever find out about it. It definitely is hidden between the neighborhoods of Midtown and Piedmont Park itself. All the talk about Loca Luna that preceeded my visit was right; Loca Luna definitely has a great atmosphere. Live music, bright colors on the walls, lights hanging around the restaurant, "tiki hut" style sitting areas for larger groups, and a killer patio are a few of the first impressions I got of Loca Luna as I walked in. The atmosphere definitely didn't disappoint.

We sat down in one of these "tiki hut" lookin areas and looked over the menu. Our waiter recommended the mojitos to drink so we got one. Let's just say I wasn't that impressed, especially since that is the one drink our waiter said was the best at the whole restaurant. Nothing was authentic about it and it didn't stand out from any other mojito I've ever had. Some of the tapas options included Pao De Queijo brazilian cheese rolls with sundried tomato pesto, Moqueca shrimp, scallops, mussels, cabbage in a brazilian tomato coconut sauce, Costillas Espanolas grilled ribs with balsamic reduction and fresh herbs, a couple paella and ceviche options and many, many more. Since we had a larger group, we all decided to get a bunch of different tapas and all share. To start off with we ordered the Tomate y Mozzarella with vine ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil, balsamic vin, and the Black Bean Hummus, tortilla chips, carrots, cucumber. (Note: If you order the hummus ask for extra flat bread cause they barely give you any.) Both of these cold tapas were good and made us all begin to scour over the menu to figure out what to order next!

Tomato and Mozzerella

Hummus

Next we decided to all order the Nachos with tortilla chips, roasted poblano - cheese sauce, pico de gallo, Barilla de Pollo - grilled chicken skewers, crispy plantains, Cuban mojo, Filet Mignon tapas and then a variety of their tacos which included chile chicken confit with charred corn salsa, beef brisket with pico de gallo and queso fresco and grilled grouper with cabbage slaw and jalapeno aioli. I'm going to warn you that my review of this food is about to get really boring. I would rather just write that all the tapas were "good" (note my overuse of good in this posting) instead of going into individual detail about each tapas. Normally, I would describe each tapas I tried and what I liked about it but I feel the food at Loca Luna did just enough to get by. I find myself struggling to find enough words to describe these tapas cause they were just good. I didn't leave Loca Luna hating the food but then I didn't leave Loca Luna caring to really ever come back to eat. So instead of boring you with a bunch of sentences about the food that leaves the same "good" conclusion, I will just tell you that Loca Luna definitely has an incredible amount of options for tapas but I didn't find anything that was great.

Grilled Chicken Skewers

Nachos

Variety of Tacos

Filet Mignon

I guess I will close this "exciting" review (seriously I am sure you are yawning by now), by saying that the service was not good at all. I hate when you go to a restaurant with a large party and they put down one long bill at the end of the meal for everyone. Can you not just split it up? So anyways, giving our waiter the benefit of the doubt, I nicely wrote down next to every item on the menu who each item belonged to so that he could split up the bill. He still wouldn't split it up. Seriously? A little customer service goes a long way especially when I pretty much already did your job and split it up for you. And the attitude from the waiter didn't help at all either. So overall I would say Loca Luna = great atmosphere, ok drinks, good food, and bad service.  I guess all the hype about Loca Luna and the atmosphere was right because there definitely is no way this place could be hyped for anything else.

Loca Luna
550 Amsterdam Ave NE
Atlanta, GA 30306

Midtown Review: Brunch at La Tavola

Since I recently discovered that Atlanta is a brunch city, I decided to try out La Tavola for brunch this past Sunday morning. I'll start out by saying I am not a "brunch" kind of girl... or a breakfast kind of girl for that matter.  I never ate breakfast growing up and considering it is the "most important meal of the day", let's just say it didn't make my mom too happy. She couldn't understand why I could go to lunch time without eating. It wasn't that I wasn't hungry, it was just that breakfast food never appetized me that much. So brunch for me is something new and definitely something I could write off and quit doing if I'm not satisfied. But I decided to try out brunch at La Tavola in Virginia Highlands this past weekend. La Tavola is nestled in the heart of Virginia Highlands (one of my favorite parts of the city). Steps away from the hustle and bustle of Midtown, Virginia Highlands provides that small town feel with small town coffee shops and great restaurants. We sat outside on La Tavola's back patio which overlooks the lush greenscape and I almost forgot I was only 2 miles from Peachtree Street. I ordered the Housemade Challah French Toast with seasonal fruit and honey mascarpone.

My friend Christa was more in the mood for lunch so she ordered the Bruschetta with marinated tomatoes, spicy ricotta with an arugula salad for an appetizer and the Grilled Chicken panini with pesto, tomato, fontina cheese and a zucchini and tomato salad.

I was tempted to order lunch since breakfast has never been my meal of choice, but I decided I would go out on a limb. The menu has sooo many incredible options to choose from and I found it extremely hard to make a decision. I found myself struggling between their Pork Milanese with breaded pork scallopine, arugula-tomato salad, poached eggs, and the Chicken Sausage with potato, leeks, poached eggs and a spicy cherry pepper chutney, but I ultimately decided on the French Toast. I couldn't have been more satisfied with my decision. The french toast was incredible... seriously incredible. It wasn't overly sweet but perfectly sweetened with some fresh fruit and honey mascarpone to compliment it. I also got a side of eggs and bacon which were equally as tasteful. The side of applewood smoked bacon was huge and sadly I ate it all (it was that good)!

My friend loved the bruschetta and the grilled panini. She kept saying "I'm full, I can't eat anymore", only to find her sneakily taking another bite. Everything was amazing from the service to the atmosphere to the food. So if you want to enjoy a city brunch while also enjoying the simpleness and small town atmosphere that is Virginia Highlands, come on over to La Tavola. They just might have made breakfast my favorite meal of the day :)

La Tavola
992 Virginia Avenue NE
Atlanta, GA 30326

Midtown Review: Facial at Exhale Spa

This isnt the best picture, but it is the only
one I have taken since the facial earlier this
week. My skin looks great thanks to
Exhale Spa!

   I'm not normally the kind of person to get facials often. Every now and then I love a good facial that I feel "resets" my face and gives me a fresh start. So Monday evening I went over to the new Exhale Spa in Midtown Atlanta to get their True Facial with a couple add on services which focuses on transcending skin into the renewed glow of youth. Now I am a huge critic when it comes to facials. I especially am not happy when I leave a place feeling like I could have done that myself without the over $100 price tag. I like to know that I am getting a truly unique experience that is worth it and not just a simple cleanse and exfloiant with some hot air in between. Well a unique experience is definitely what I had at Exhale Spa in 12th and Midtown.
   Exhale has an amazing philosophy when it comes to skin care. Rather than just quick fixing the problem, they correct the cause. And they correct in ways that encourage the natural healing processes of the body by using light, vibration, electric energy and ingredients found in nature. They don't use chemicals, sand blast your skin or peel it away. I began talking with Crystal who was my esthetician for my true facial. She told me that Exhale believes a facial is a complete sensory experience.
     My senses were definitly stimulated! The facial therapy began with aromatherapy which calmed me almost instantly. I tend to hold my stress in my forehead and my jaws and the aromatherapy almost instantly opened and relaxed them both. She began with the cleanse using the IS Clinical Cleansing Complex. It contains Salicylic acid (white willow bark) to deep clean the pores and Chamomile to sustain a calming balance. After cleansing and examining the skin, she chose to use the add on service of a Sircuit Smart Peel called Youth Accelerator. It is a pumpkin enzyme peel (and smells amazing). This allows a smoother, brighter complexion and allows for corrective products to penetrate with ease. While the peel was working on my face, she massaged my arms and hands with a Kahina Argan oil and put them in a warm compress.
   After gentle extractions she applied a cooling mask from Actifirm called Active Skin Soother. It contains Shiitaki mushroom, aloe vera and cucumber. This mask produces a cooling effect after all of the stimulation from peel, steam and extractions. After the gel mask is applied, she used another add on service of the Cool Beam light therapy. The Cool beam light therapy machine is run over the entire face. Cool Beam is an amazing tool. It utilizes 3 different spectrums of light to correct skin conditions on a cellular level. Cool Beam produces results by killing the bacteria that causes acne, deflating under eye bags and dark circles. It helps reduce fine lines and wrinkles, reduces age spots and heals broken capillaries. At the grand opening event at Exhale, they did mini-sample facials with this Cool Beam and my mom became addicted. She actually could see a difference around her eyes! So I will be purchasing one of these for her for Christmas (and hopefully she won't read this post and find out).
   After a few more facial therapy treatments using IS Clinical Pro Heal Serum and Fixzit which is a blemish spot treatment, Shaffali orange blossum moisturizer was used on the remainder of the facial skin. This moisturizer provides restoration, nourishment and hydration. The facial then ended (unfortunately.. because  I could have layed there for days) with me completely relaxed and overly satisfied.
   Exhale Spa provided that unique experience that I was looking for. As you can see, this review was one of my longest to date because there was so much detail and time put into the experience that I couldn't leave out. This truly was the best facial I have ever had and my skin is still so clear and radiant. I truly feel like I have a new surface and a fresh start to my face!

Also on a side note, another nifty thing about Exhale is that they provide IPOD docks in the facials rooms so that you can bring your own music to listen to while you are getting a facial. A hip hop facial could be pretty interesting...


Exhale Spa is attached to the Loews Atlanta Hotel in 12th and Midtown
1065 Peachtree St.
Atlanta, GA 30309
404-720-5000

Midtown Review: YEAH Burger

 












Do you ever tell yourself "ok this is my last taste.." and then you put your spoon down only to pick it back up two seconds later and say "just one more bite..."? Today I repeated that probably 10 times at YEAH Burger. I kept saying "Seriously, I'm full...no more" only to find myself halfway down my milkshake 5 minutes later. Today I decided to check out YEAH Burger since I have heard nothing but good things about this place since it recently opened.

   Since I know a lot of my followers who read this travel to Atlanta on occasion, I thought I would give a general idea where YEAH Burger is located! YEAH Burger is located in West Midtown in the White Provisions area. White Provisions is one of my favorite little communities in Atlanta because it is so authentic and different (see the picture above). It reminds of an old warehouse district with a train running right through the middle under a beautiful brick bridge!

  I love a good cheeseburger. No crazy toppings or anything, just a good burger that is seasoned and made well. So today at YEAH Burger I ordered the basic cheeseburger. I decided not to do any toppings that they offer (even though they all looked really good) because I wanted to really taste the burger. I also brought my dad considering he is always on the search for the best cheeseburger (seriously... he will drive miles out of the way just to try a cheeseburger). And considering he is also a pimento cheese conoisseur, he ordered his two favorite things in the world; a cheeseburger topped with pimento cheese. As you can see, I failed to get a picture of his burger because he had already magically eaten half the burger before I even realized it. He didn't even speak for 10 minutes because his mouth was full.... talk about an entertaining lunch date of silence. But I can appreciate a good meal and let's just say he was realllyyy appreciating it. My burger was incredible and as you can see there was a plentiful amount of cheese on top which is my favorite. The burger was seasoned perfectly and full of soo much flavor! The onion rings and fries were killer as well!
  And the grand finale was my chocolate milkshake. I learned that YEAH Burger is one of a few restaurants in the country to offer milkshakes with both organic milk and organic soft serve icecream! I'm not a big sweet person so I usually only have a few bites of dessert and then I am done. But today was a rare exception, I finished the whole milkshake with the help of my dad. I think we both kept saying "you can have the rest I'm done" only to grab the milkshake out of the others hand and have a bite. And isn't it funny how before the milkshake came we were both leaned back in our chairs saying how full we were and couldn't have another bite of anything, but when this milkshake came you would have thought we had not eaten in days!!
  My only negative about YEAH Burger were the prices. A little steep for my taste. If you got a burger ($7.99...and thats with no premium toppings which are an additional $1 each) and fries ($2.49) and a milkshake ($5.49), your bill would be $15.97 for one person which is a little pricey for me. But their portions are huge and can be shared by two people and I highly recommend doing that! That makes the prices not so bad!
  So now I am off to the gym. I should have stopped the first time I said "no more," but considering I finished the rest off, I now owe the gym another hour...but it was completely worth it!

   YEAH Burger offers other options besides burgers as well such as grilled chicken breast sandwich, salads and hotdogs! See their full menu at http://www.yeahburger.com/

YEAH Burger
1168 Howell Mill Road
Atlanta, GA 30318
404-496-4393

Midtown Review: Pacci Ristorante Brunch



French Toast




Peachtree B&G

 

















There is one thing I have learned about Atlanta that I never realized... brunch in this city is VERY popular! So many restaurants offer such incredible brunch options on the weekends here! Last Sunday morning I had the opportunity to try out Pacci Ristorante for a bridesmaid brunch! This was my first "brunch" in the city so I didn't know what to expect! I ordered the Peachtree B&G which is buttermilk biscuits with sausage gravy. I was expecting the traditional sausage gravy biscuits that I have had many, many times before. But this dish, exceeded far beyond my expectations in the fact that it was sooo different. It was like nothing I have ever tasted before! The gravy had this spicy taste and hearty warmth to it that left me suddenly regretting my promise to my friend that I would share it with her. My friend got the french toast with cinnamon butter, fresh berries and maple syrup. After tasting hers, I realized I could sacrifice a couple of my bites to share our plates. Prepared perfectly, not soggy, still had a bit of a crunch, with the warm maple syrup complimenting the cinnamon butter without being overly sweet. It was a great start to the day without me feeling like I had just eaten dessert. I wish I had gotten to try more items on their brunch menu such as the Eggs Abercrombie with poached eggs, house crab cakes, rucola and hollandaise, or the Wagyu Flat Iron & Eggs with two eggs, wagyu flat iron, basil pesto and potato hash. They have so many incredible brunch items to choose from and at reasonable prices. (And if you were lucky enough to score the ScoutMob you can get half off). Now that I understand the obsession with brunch in this town, I am already making plans for my next brunch stop this weekend. Hopefully I can fight off my cravings to go back to Pacci and choose a new restaurant to try :)


Pacci Ristorante and AltoRex Rooftop Lounge

866 West Peachtree Street, NW
Atlanta, GA 30308
Adjacent to Hotel Palomar Atlanta - Midtown

Midtown Review: 5th Street Cafe

I wish I could time travel. Travel to last night right before I walked into 5th Street Cafe on Peachtree St. Do you ever have such an enjoyable dinner, great wine, even better food, good company, amazing service and you just want to stay in that moment for a long time? Well that is the night I had last night at Zaza Pachulia's newest restaurant 5th Street Cafe on the corner of Peachtree Street and 5th Street. I didn't want to leave. And now I sit here wishing I had the ability to time travel back and savor the moment even more.

Last night my roommate Jamie and I walked down Peachtree Street to try out 5th Street Cafe. Upon walking in, I was first impressed with the decor. Not at all what I was expecting (in a good way). I have run past this restaurant many times on my morning runs and for some reason had a different vision of what it would look like in there. If I could describe the ambiance of 5th Street Cafe in three words it would be: sheek, sexy and sopshisticated. The service was incredible from start to finish. Nice greeting, patient waitress (I hate when you go to a restaurant and you are obviously in the middle of great conversation but the waitress keeps interrupting you to see if you are ready to order) but the service here couldn't have been better.

After reviewing all the incredible choices on the menu we each ordered an appetizer. I ordered the Charcuterie Plate of Meats and Cheeses while Jamie ordered the Fried Calamari, Sweet and Spicy Peppers & Tomato Sauce. Other appetizers options (that were in close competition to be our choices) were the Beef Carpaccio with Parmesan & Arugula, Chilled Artichoke with a Lemon Dipping Sauce, Warm Goat Cheese and Carmelized Onion Tart, and Roasted Summer Corn Ravioli with a Piperade Fondue. With all this competition it was hard to make a decision, but we ended up loving our choices. The brie and prosciutto were my personal favorites from the meat and cheese plate and the calamari was addicting. Seriously addicting. I almost thought Jamie was going to get mad at me because I pretty much was eating her whole appetizer because I couldn't stop. For our main course, I ordered the Cafe 8oz Filet with Garlic Fries and Herb Butter while Jamie ordered the Fish of The Day which was a Sea Bass which comes steamed or sauteed with seasonal vegetables or a mixed green salad. We then enjoyed the rest of our appetizers while sipping on some amazing wine. After a while, I began to wonder where our main courses were because it took a while. But they finally came and wow was the wait worth it. I now understand why the main courses took a little longer than expected. I had ordered my filet medium well (more towards well), but I specifically stated I didn't want it butterflied. I hate it when restaurants butterfly my steak just to save them time and make it easier on them. But 5th Street Cafe, set my big steak on low heat and slowly cooked it to PERFECTION. The inside was perfectly cooked and (as you can see in the picture) full of juicy, juicy flavor. The outside was not burnt at all (which shows how slowly they cooked this steak in order to cook it to almost well done without over-searing the outside.) And the steak was HUGE. It seriously took me 30 minutes to eat the whole thing. Jamie was pretty much obsessed with her Sea Bass and also in love with the flavor of the vegetables. We both just sat there staring at each other in awe of the perfection before us. (Yes I know that sounds crazy, but seriously you need to experience it). And for the finale, I tasted the Lemon Cake and the Banana Cake as well. A perfect ending to an incredible experience.

Moments and experiences like this are why I feel so blessed to live such an incredible and amazing life. I had an incredible night sitting in a great restaurant, enjoying some great wine and wonderful food with great company. The dinner turned into a 2 and a half hour experience with me leaving wanting more. 5th Street Cafe has made me fall in love with this city even more than I already have.

I wish I could just give you a little taste of the perfection I experienced last night because you would understand my new found love of 5th Street Cafe. I guess you are just gonna have to go try it out yourself. Until next time, I will be figuring out a way to time travel back to when I first walked in those front doors at 5th Street Cafe last night, unaware of the inspiring night that was ahead...

Read all about 5th Street Cafe on their website http://www.fifthstreetcafe.com/ or follow them on Twitter at @FifthStreetCafe.

Midtown Review: Bliss Spa at W Midtown

Not happy. My nailpolish is already coming off my fingers. Unfortunately yesterday I decided to try out W Midtown's Bliss Spa for a manicure. You would think that a place like the W Midtown would be top-of-the-line, best manicure I have ever received in my life! At least that is what my perception was before getting one. I sat down at one of two manicure tables (which are facing a blank wall) to get my nails done. Considering the lady doing my nails didn't talk too much, I was left there facing a blank, white wall bored out of my mind. They could have at least given me something to look at (window, picture, magazine, hot nail guy, etc.). To my left was a long hallway which I am assuming is where other spa services were done. The other spa attendants who had nothing to do found it convenient to be extremely loud in the long hallway which echoed down to me. Yeah, maybe the blank, white wall in front of me wouldn't have been so bad if I could relax, but with the loud noises coming down the hall that was pretty much impossible. The manicure was simple. It probably took her 10 minutes to cut my nails and everything. She wasn't too detailed in her work. I left with my cuticles still needing to be cleaned after. She basically did "enough to get by" and maybe last the 10 minutes after my manicure, but nothing that left me with the confidence that my nails would look good after a couple days. She took FOREVER on painting my nails. And I mean FOREVERRRR! I seriously couldn't stare at that blank white wall for much longer. She literally would put polish on my nail and ALL the skin around my nail and then slowly with a cotton swab with nail polish remover on it wipe around my nail! I was like why don't you take the same detailed time with the actual nail polish and put it only on my nail?!?! Oh, and the cotton swab had cotton coming off of it so I had pieces of cotton on my wet nails. There is nothing like looking at your nails when they are being done and seeing something that is obviously wrong and hoping the technician notices it before it drives you crazy. But no, she never noticed the cotton pieces that were drying on my nails with the polish or the polish that was still on my skin surrounding my nails, or the fact that she had put so much nail polish on me that it started curling on the ends when it dried. And then for the finale, when she was finally done painting and then using the nailpolish remover on my finger, she just left. Left me sitting there staring at this blank white wall and told me to wait there while it dried. No water, no magazine, no nothing, no fan to dry them, just completely walked out of the room. Ummm thanks??

So if you haven't already guessed, I wasnt too happy. Especially since I payed $25 for a manicure that shouldn't have been worth more than $5. I'm going to stop ranting and save you the annoyance since I could probably make this blog go on for forever and ever about how bad it was. So there is my spill and my personal recommendation to take your money elsewhere.

Midtown Review: SHOUT's All You Can Eat Sushi Lunch

To start off, there aren't going to be too many people happy with this review. Let's just say if you could possibly eat $10 worth of soup, I did.

I ventured to SHOUT for their $10 all you can eat sushi lunch. I had been looking forward to lunch all day since sushi is my favorite meal of all time. When you walk into SHOUT, the all you can eat sushi is in the very back of the restaurant! I have never been inside before, but I kept walking and walking to the backroom and finally it came (after venturing through a few others dining areas). This place is huge!

I have always been a little weary of places that have sushi along with pizza and pasta on their menu. This kind of weirds me out. I would rather go to a sushi restaurant that specializes in only sushi. But I decided to give it a chance, I mean they do have a completely seperate back room just for sushi so it seemed legit. First off, the all you can eat sushi only consists of about 6-7 selected rolls and each roll consists of 4 pieces of sushi. We got our soup and salad first which was really good! I then ordered the Spicy Chicken Roll (yes as a personal sushi lover myself, this is not something I would normally order since it technically is not realllly sushi, but I gave it a try anyways). It was pretty much just finely chopped up chicken mixed with spicy mayo and then DRENCHED in teriyaki sauce. Pretty much both the Spicy Chicken Roll and the Crunchee Roll (fried shrimp, avocado, cucumber, mayo, shrimp, and teriyaki "glaze") were soaked in teriyaki sauce. I wasn't a big fan. As you can see in the picture, there was so much sauce that the rolls were sitting in a little soup of sauce and the rice became almost like a mush. I also ordered the Spicy Tuna roll but it wasn't up to par either. Just basic. Not too much flavor at all.

I guess I can't really complain though. I mean it is $10 for all you can eat sushi. I couldn't have honestly expected anything much better. But personally, it was a waste of $10. I ended up ordering a few cups of soup and eating that the whole time since I just couldn't make myself eat the mushy rice and bland spicy tuna roll. I did eat the a piece of the fried shrimp out of the Crunchee Roll and that was alright (had to throw a positive note in here somewhere)! So overall, I wouldnt recommend SHOUT for their sushi lunch special. I can't say I don't recommend SHOUT as a whole because the rest of their menu might be pretty good (that's my next venture). But for the sushi lunch, waste of money and time. I would rather have payed a couple dollars more and gone to an actual sushi restaurant and eaten a couple bigger rolls.

But if you really like miso soup, then I highly recommend SHOUT for lunch. Because I certainly filled myself up on miso soup today for only $10.

Midtown Review: Fat Matt's

I've driven past this place 1,000 times and would look over at Fat Matt's and say "I bet that place is good, we should try it sometime." But I never remember it when it comes down to making a decision to eat. Of course, you think of the Atlanta staple restaurants or your go-to places when deciding where to eat lunch or dinner. So naturally, I would just forget about that little "hole in the wall" place that I have said I wanted to eat at on those 1,000 drive-bys. But this past week, I decided it was about time I give this BBQ place a try. It's not the "nicest and upscale" restaurant I have ever been to, but this place might just have the most charm. We waited in line (which was out the door) to order lunch! Inside Fat Matt's is this colorful dining area with live blues music carrying through the little restaurant. Their menu consists of the BBQ ribs, chicken, chopped pork sandwiches, and sides which include "rum" baked beans, potato salad, cole slaw, macaroni and cheese (which is INCREDIBLE by the way), brunswick stew, and roasted peanuts.

Fat Matt's just might have become my new addiction. I ordered the combo which was 1/4 slab and 1/4 chicken. Don't judge, I can eat my weight in BBQ and sadly I wanted to order more after smelling the sweet BBQ aroma that was filling the restaurant. Lunch came out quickly and wow, I felt a pride come over me to live in the South when it landed on the table. The BBQ here is incredible and will be my go-to place for BBQ from now on. This place is a MUST when entertaining guests from out-of-town. Your guests will truly receive the southern experience and hospitality at Fat Matt's from the atmosphere to the people to the food. This place has it all.

So next time you drive past this place and say to yourself "I need to go there," just do it. Pull that car over and grab yourself a slab of ribs and a cold beer and feel the pride I felt to live in the South at Fat Matt's.

Fat Matt's is located at 1811 Piedmont Ave. NE Atlanta, GA 30324

www.fatmattsribshack.com

Midtown Review: Exhale

Today I was lucky enough to take a walk through the new Exhale Spa in Midtown Atlanta. Located conveniently in 12th and Midtown, Exhale Spa provides an inner city sanctuary, an urban spa to support you on your path to overall healing. Exhale Spa is an active and multi-disciplinary experience that combines fitness and movement with spa and healing therapies in a modern, tranquil day spa setting. Upon entering Exhale, the deep and rich colors seem to set the mood. Dark browns and creams take over the spa and are accented with rich, brown, wooden doors that look like they were taken out of a extravagent log cabin. This spa is different from any other gym/spa experience I have ever had. You don't walk into an open air gym with fitness equipment everywhere. Exhale Spa almost feels like a vacation when you walk through it. You completely loose touch of the busy city life around you.

As you walk in, to the right are the beautiful spaces lining the hallway for Exhale's Core Fusion, Yoga, Cardio, and various other classes. To the left is the space for their Express Wellbar. This Express Wellbar consists of "express" facials such as Blemish Banish, Hangover Helper, and Luscious Lip. These facials last about 20 minutes and are around $20 each. The Express Wellbar also consists of healing therapies such as aromatherapy scalp and hand massage, guided meditation, vibrational therapy, and a wellness checkup. Finally, this Express Wellbar will have manicures, pedicures, and waxing!

Another aspect I found fascinating, is that the Core Fusion/Yoga studios are lined with a ballet bar surrounding the room. This bar is attached to the wall and will be used for various strength training workouts using your own body weight! I thought this was amazing! What a different workout and experience from any gym in Atlanta! The fitness equipment is also top-of-the-line with incredible views looking out at the Atlanta skyline!

I could go on and on about this spa, because honestly I feel it has so much to offer! Exhale Spa will also offer many, many more healing and spa options including acupuncture, massages, fertility reproduction, nutrition, healing programs, cleanses, and much more! You can check out everything this new spa will offer at http://www.exhalespa.com/.

I do know that memberships have been going fast and they only allow a certain number of memberships (to avoid overcrowding and to maintain the oasis lifestyle). The body transformation options here are endless so get your membership today and give yourself a chance to exhale.

You can also follow the new Exhale Spa in Atlanta on Twitter at @ExhaleAtlanta for specials, events and news!

Midtown Review: Highland Bakery

Since Highland Bakery decided to open their doors in Midtown earlier this month, I have been hearing constant excitement about this place. I have never heard the words "pimento cheese" as much as I have these past few weeks when I ask people about this new bakery. So I decided it was about time that I venture over there to check this place out! Highland Bakery sits right at the intersection of 14th Street and Crescent and serves both breakfast and lunch. Breakfast items include a hot breakfast tray with egg, meat and cheese, homemade cinnamon rolls, quiches and frittatas, as well as their Highland French Toast and the Sweet Potato Pancakes which are lightly sweet, southern style pancakes served with warm caramelized brown sugar syrup and toasted pecans. I visited Highland Bakery for lunch and asked a few of my followers online what they recommended. Of course, I heard the words "pimento cheese" from mostly everyone but also was recommended their grilled cheese with vermont white cheddar on Rosemary Garlic bread with tomatoes and thickly cut bacon. There are also options to add sprouts or avocado onto this sandwich. So I took everyone's suggestions and ordered the grilled cheese while my favorite lunch date, my dad, ordered the pimento cheese. He likes to consider himself a pimento cheese conoisseur (which is slightly embarrassing) but I knew he could conquer this pimento cheese sandwich and give me his "expert" review. Let's just say I could barely hold him off long enough to get a picture of his pimento cheese sandwich before he dived in. He loved it! And even though he got it without the tomatoes (which normally come on the sandwich), he said it was one of the most flavorful pimento cheese sandwiches he has had in a long time!! My grilled cheese was AAAMAZING. Seriously, amazing. The rosemary bread added the perfect compliment to the cheese, thick bacon, and fresh tomatoes!

And this isn't your typical bakery either. Highland Bakery provides other lunch options besides sandwiches such as shrimp and grits, grilled salmon, chicken pot pie with roasted chicken, peas, carrots, and potatoes cooked in a pie shell until golden brown, jumbo lump crab cakes, and many many more "non-traditional" bakery menu items!

You can also spice up those otherwise boring monday morning office meetings with their catering options as well.

Check out Highland Bakery's full menu here and try them out for breakfast or lunch! You might just become a pimento cheese conoisseur yourself :)

Midtown Review: HobNob

So after weeks of hearing from many people how great HobNob was, I decided to go give it a try for lunch. On the corner of Piedmont and Monroe, HobNob has turned the former Starbucks into a cozy and upbeat restaurant with a great atmosphere. The menu consists of snacks which include bar nuts, oven roasted tomato and garlic hummus, and soft pretzels with warm cheese dip. They also feature "neighborhood noshes" such as chipotle cornmeal crusted fried green tomatoes, shrimp and grits, chicken wings, Belgian endive boats, fish and chips, and many more other options. I tried out HobNob for lunch and was torn between the HobNob's slow roasted pork sandwich or the lamb burger. The waitress told me both were very popular but persuaded me on the pork sandwich since she said it tasted like sweet North Carolina barbeque. Since my family is from North Carolina, I was sold while also giving it some high expectations. My friend ordered the special burger of the day - the 3 cheese burger featuring beer cheese. Beer cheese? I never heard of such a thing!

The food came out and wow was the presentation appealing. Big portions (probably enough to share if you have the will power to only eat half of some incredible food). The pork sandwich was exactly like I had expected, sweet North Carolina barbeque! It reminded me of my younger days when my family and I would roadtrip up to Hickory, North Carolina and stop at all those amazing barbeque places off the highway. Great flavor and the perfect amount of sauce. I hate when restaurants drench your sandwich with sauce and you don't get to really taste the pork. HobNob's pork sandwich was great and I would highly recommend it! My friend got the burger and I tried a bite. The actual flavor of the burger was amazing. This burger standed out to me from some other places I have tried because it was rich with flavor. It didnt need any toppings or accessories, it was rich and full of flavor itself.

We then learned that the special dessert for the day was Strawberry Cobbler. You should have seen my face light up when I learned this. I rarely find strawberry cobbler anywhere and I am obsessed! So of course, I told myself I would work out later to make myself feel better about it(Even though I probably won't) and we ordered it. OMG, thats seriously all I have to say. Sweet vanilla icecream on top of a crusty topping and fresh (and I mean really fresh) strawberries. Wow, I don't even know what to say.

I would definitely recommend HobNob for you to try. I don't eat at many fancy schmancy restaurants so I truly love when I find a place like this that is affordable and has great beer and great food. Seriously what else could you possibly want? HobNob also features dollar hotdogs as well as other special menu items at midnight!

(Side note: If you do try HobNob, apparently you have to try the Chocolate Stout milkshake with Left Hand Stout, Vanilla Extract, Vanilla Icecream, and Chocolate Sauce. It was highly recommened by many people but since I do have to go back to work, I'll have to save that one for another day!)

See HobNob's full menu at http://www.hobnobatlanta.com/

Midtown Review: Cafe & Pizzeria Nonna Mia

I decided to order a pizza today for lunch since I need something good to soak up those couple drinks I had last night that aren't sitting too well in my stomach. I didn't want to order from your traditional Domino's or Papa Johns, and I wanted something with lots of fresh flavor. I remembered that this Cafe & Pizzeria delivered some pizzas to our office for us to try a while ago and everyone was obsessing over them. So I ordered myself a small italian pizza with pepperoni, ham, italian sausage, prosciutto, pancetta, red onions and mozzarella cheese with tomato sauce. As you can see in the picture, the pizza was stacked with toppings! The thick cut sausage was full of flavor with just that right amount of crisp on the outside. The pizza wasn't overly greasy at all and was incredible. This is a short review since I ordered delivery and never have actually been into the restaurant. But if anyone else has been to the actual restaurant, I would love your insight on what it's like!

Some Nonna Mia specials:

DELIVERY or TAKEOUT
2 Large 2 Topping Pizza - $18.99 + tax
2 Signature Pastas & 1 Italian House Salad - $20,99 + tax
1 Large 2 Topping Pizza + Breadstix + Soda - $13.99 + tax

DINE IN
Tuesdays - Buy 1 Get 1 Free
2 Entrees & 1 House Bottle of Wine - $25.99 + tax


See their full menu at http://www.nonnamiaatlanta.com/