The gourmet sandwich concept is nothing new, but Atlanta has seen an explosion of such establishments in the past year. Are gourmet sandwich shops this year’s cupcake or fancy hamburger? Trend or not, there's a need for this type of dining — especially in areas saturated with office workers — and it’s easy enough to conceptualize the menus. Just throw on a few sandwiches, a salad or two, some fancy chips and pricey beverages.Cafe Mims (659 Peachtree St., 404-897-5000, www.livingstonatlanta.com) is the latest spot to capitalize on the need for speedy lunchtime fare. The food, overseen by Livingston’s executive chef Gary Mennie, is made fresh daily and pre-packaged so you can grab and go. The cafe opens early so you can pop in for some coffee and one of the homemade baked goods, such as the trio of mini bear claws filled with blueberries, cheese and almond paste. Sandwiches are the best thing the cafe has to offer at lunchtime. Each sandwich — with the exception of the grilled cheese — is made with a personal-sized baguette and wrapped in brown paper affixed with a branded sticker. The crusty bread has just the right amount of chew. And the fillings have been uniformly excellent. Click here to read the rest...
ALPINE BAKERY: Alpine’s pies resemble those you find at any worthy New York (or Jersey) diner and the varieties are endless. Like everything in the shop, the pies — available in virtually any style you can imagine — are made on site daily and rise just as high as the cakes. Each pie except the apple is offered in both small (serves 6-8) and large (serves 16-20). The chocolate cream pie is especially delectable. 295 Rucker Road, Suite 140, Alpharetta. 770-410-9883. www.alpinebakery.net.SOUTHERN SWEETS: Out of all the bakeries in Atlanta, this family-run Decatur mainstay is the first place most people recommend when you’ve got cherry on the brain. The bakery hand-rolls its signature flaky crust and fills it with tart, sour cherries swimming in “secret sauce” before covering it with a crunchy layer of crushed sugar cubes. Click here to read the rest...
1. The entrance, 2. The best wine deal on the menu, 3. The central servers' station, 4. In the corner, 5. Fried ceci peas, lamb liver fritters, duck rillettes, foie gras mousse and tuna in oil, 6. Beet salad, cod, slim jims and jerky, 7. Pork and beef hamburger with homemade fries, 8. Shrimp stew, 9. Riverview Farms porkchop, 10. Maple and bacon beignets, 11. Carolina Gold Rice Pudding, 12. Done
Finding the words when I have none
14 comments Published by The Blissful Glutton on June 25, 2009 at 5:15 PMI've been noticeably absent and feel guilty as hell. But four years of taking photographs, eating, writing, eating, coding, eating, spending and eating for this blog can really take it out of a girl. I'm spread way too thin and there just aren't enough hours in the day.
For me, the lulls between posts are especially deafening because I wouldn't be so busy if I hadn't started the blog in the first place. The Blissful Glutton granted me the opportunity to write about food for various publications and I've even had my pictures in magazines like Bon Appetit. And though writing doesn't pay anything close to the salary I made in my former life as a PR gal at a Fortune 500 company, I'll take the life of a culinary tourist over a cubicle any day.
There is, however, a downside to the "glamourous" life of a food writer. I go out to eat around eight times for my weekly assignments, which leaves little time for extra dining out since I love to cook as much—maybe more—as I love eating. There isn't enough time, but I am working on a balance.
In the meantime, all I ask is that you cut me a little slack--especially since I have been working out like a mad woman and (grumble) cleaning up my diet. Yes, that does mean this burger (and those nutty pancakes) from Holeman's brunch last Sunday will most likely be my last for a short while. Goodbye, my love.
Believe me, I hate it more than you do. But the upside is that I’ll be eating at home much more, which means you’ll probably be seeing more cooking related posts. The produce at Morningside Farmers' Market is absolutely inspiring right now.
I will still be eating out—just not as much. And when I do, it will be dishes such as Dynamic Dish’s oh-so fabulous Tofu, avocado, tomato and celery & walnut pesto slathered on to some amazing nutty bread with a crackly crust. It was weirdly the most satisfying sandwich this meat-lover has had in a long time. 
Don’t fret. It won’t all be cooking posts and vegetarian outings. My Abattoir, Livingston and Shoya Izakaya reviews should be up in the next couple of weeks. And I just did a piece on meat farmers for the upcoming “Local Issue” of Atlanta Magazine, which profiles Riverview Farms and the coolest man in Georgia, Will Harris, who owns and runs White Oaks Pastures (pictured below during our lunch at Blakely Chicken, a fried bird spot he’s been a regular at since he was a kid).
And there is one more thing in the pipeline worth mentioning; my kitchen is done! Well, it has been, but the wedding plans have taken over our lives. I’ll be following up my initial teaser about the renovation with how it went down and some pictures very soon.
Until then…happy eating and thanks for reading.
~Bliss
Free sushi followed by a sake tasting at MF Buckhead tonight!
0 comments Published by The Blissful Glutton on at 10:40 AM
Hop City Craft Beer & Wine: Westside
5 comments Published by The Blissful Glutton on June 24, 2009 at 7:41 PM
Until a few months ago, those of us who live on the Westside were forced trek if we found ourselves in need of a bottle of wine or some beer that didn't come from some seedy package store or gas station. So, color me excited when I heard Hop City had opened its doors across from Octane. Like most people, I thought this was a beer only operation, but the stores' owners told me they try to stock a wide variety of "everyday wines." And they have a nice selection of affordable options from all over the world. I picked up a Rose and some Cava the other day and spent around $15/bottle. Moon knows much more about wine than me and liked the store. His only complaint was that they don't have "shelf talkers," which would be a big help since the store is apparently understaffed.
A shot of the wine section
As expected, the beer section is huge and has pretty much anything you could ever want as a beer drinker. I was especially excited by the variety of Japanese beers, including a new type of Hitachino I'd never had before. They also have all the stuff you need to make your craft beer, which I know nothing about. But it's there.
Beer.
Cold beer.
More beer.
