Rooftop Fun at Six Feet Under Westside

Fried Okra platter.

Not long ago I was invited to a fabulous networking event on the rooftop deck of Six Feet Under - Westside. I had not been to this location previously and truly enjoyed the experience. The food and atmosphere was delightful as was the good company. The spicy rat toes were especially tasty as was the horseradish-dill sauce served with the addictive homemade potato chips. The view of midtown Atlanta is spectacular (sorry - no photo!).

Spicy Rat Toes - that's baked jalepeno peppers stuffed with shrimp and wrapped in bacon, served with Ranch dressing.



Housemade potato chips with delicious horseradish-dill sauce.

Sushi House Hayakawa

Today's specials with complementary bean sprouts. The green tea hit the spot as well.

I finally made it to Sushi House Hayakawa, an Atlanta area destination sushi spot worth the drive and the cost. Owner/head chef Atsushi (Art) Hayakawa is from Sapporo, Japan and has worked in the sushi business for many years, including in several other quality local establishments. He finally opened his own sushi restaurant in 2008 and it has retained a following ever since. Not only does Sushi House Hayakawa have great sushi, it also has a large menu of Japanese home style dishes as well as daily specials printed on special cards. I enjoyed everything that I tried and look forward to returning again.

Mother's onion miso soup. This was truly outstanding - so different from regular miso with bold onion flavor.



Avocado tofu salad - very tasty, mild and unique and fried oysters - also delicious.



Sashimi platter.



Outside the small restaurant.



Salmon Torch Roll - absolutely delicious! Salmon is my favorite type of sushi and this did not disappoint.



Takoyaki topped with bonito flakes - Wow - finally found another place that serves these tasty Osaka treats. I still haven't found any that equal the quality of the street food in Japan but it's still fun to be able to experience these unique flavors and interesting presentation.



Mochi ice cream dessert - green tea and sesame flavors. These were really delicious and brought back fond memories of Japan.



Chef Hayakawa (left).



Ikura - part of the sushi and sashimi platter - gleefully salty as they should be and served over perfect rice.

Adrian Grenier's Paparazzi at Vanquish

Vanquish lounge in midtown.

I was recently invited to view Adrian Grenier's new movie Teenage Paparazzo at Vanquish Lounge in Midtown. Not only did we get to watch a good movie but we had the opportunity to sip tasty cocktails in this ultra-hip new space, which is attached to Reign Nightclub.

My photos did not come out too well - guess I need to get a camera that's better at catching the stars!

Georgia Aquarium's Aqua Vino Fundraiser

We couldn't resist taking a photo with Deepo!

Last week Calvin and I had the opportunity to attend Georgia Aquarium's 6th Annual Aqua Vino fundraiser. In addition to live and silent auctions, visits from fishes and the ability to see all of the aquarium's exhibits (love the belugas), we also got to sample tasty bites from 30 area restaurants and wines from around the world. The fundraiser benefits the animals directly at the Correll Center for Aquatic Animal Health. Check it out!

My favorite taste of the night: tuna avocado spoons from BLT Steak.



Tasty block of cheese pairs well with wine from Veni Vidi Vici.



Awesome cake from Highland Bakery.



One aquarium resident.

Tastykake Brand Hits Atlanta market

Variety of Tastykakes.

I was offered a sample of Tastykakes recently because they are now in the Atlanta market - the expansion also includes other parts of Georgia, Alabama and Florida. The cakes originate in Philadelphia (circa 1914) and are baked more often than some other packaged snacks, resulting in tastier goods and expiration dates that come sooner. The cakes' unique names include Krimpets, Kandy Kakes and Kreamies. I enjoyed the cakes over the pies and had fun giving out Tastykakes to others. Welcome to the South, Tastykake!

Taste of Atlanta 2011 This Weekend

Delicious pork belly/fried banana bites at JCT Kitchen, one of the 80 restaurants participating in Taste of Atlanta this weekend.

I was invited on a fun progressive tasting highlighting some of the fabulous restaurants featured at this year's Taste of Atlanta event, to be held in Tech Square this weekend, October 22 and 23 with a special Friday night party on October 21. Taste of Atlanta features food, cocktails, wine, beer, cooking demos, competitions and more, with dozens of Atlanta area restaurants featured. Click here to purchase tickets. Looks like a great weekend for the 10th Anniversary of this fun food festival. Below are some highlights from the sneak peak.

Bar upstairs at JCT.



Special fall drinks at JCT Kitchen.



Dining room at Tuk Tuk Thai Loft.



Mieng Kum at Tuk Tuk. We loved these!



Beef with sticky rice. Oh how I adore you sticky rice!



Shrimp and chicken toasts.

The Capital Grille - lunch post

Mini-tenderloin served with roasted butternut squash & cranberry chutney. Usually two tenderloins are included but we split this plate with the fried lobster tails (unfortunately NOT on the special $15 plate lunch!) and the chef split the plates for us.

I was recently invited to try The Capital Grille's new lunch menu, which includes special 3 part lunch plates. The lunch plates are $15 and include soup or salad, choice of entree (current choices include mini-tenderloin sandwiches, lobster roll and "knife and fork" BLT) and a side dish - see Atlanta lunch menu here. This is a more economical option for those who want to experience the great service, atmosphere, view (it's on the 8th floor) and food of The Capital Grille in Atlanta. I found all of the options I tried from $15 menu to be tasty. I also love the bread service here. In addition to the $15 plate with the porcini bisque, mini-tenderloins and roasted squash we also tried the special oysters of the day (wonderful!) and the fried lobster tails - also a daily special. The Capital Grille is a great place for a business or special occasion meal and now for lunch there is a more cost-conscious option as well.

Porcini mushroom bisque- one of the options on the $15 lunch plate menu. Creamy and tasty.



Special of the day: fresh raw oysters, shucked perfectly with lots of sauces to choose from.



Homemade grapefruit soda - really fresh and not too sweet. I preferred this to the lemonade.

This cheesecake is awesome: light, delicious and made even better by the strawberry puree and berries served on the side. I love the sugar top and the tasty crust is made from vanilla wafers. I usually don't even like cheesecake and this was so good I had to take a piece back for my co-workers.

Birthday Party with Delicious Indian Food

Delicious Indian and Indo-Chinese food from Chopaati in Decatur. As you can see they cater!

Our friends' baby turned one in August and we were invited to share in the festivities. In addition to hanging out with more one year olds than I've ever seen at the same time in one room, we enjoyed a delicious Indian/Indo-Chinese lunch with food catered from Chopaati. I definitely look forward to going to this place and recommend it if you are looking for Indian food catering.

We also enjoyed watching the birthday girl tear into this special cake made just for her. So cute and fun to be included in this family's special day.

Souper Jenny Lobster Roll Truck

This is way out of date but I wanted to still post my impressions and photos from the Souper Jenny lobster roll truck, which served lobster rolls every Monday and Friday in August out of the Souper Jenny truck in front of the SJ store. SJ closes every August so their wonderful soups, salads and sandwiches are not available. This year Jenny decided to do something different and sell lobster rolls, lemonade and cookies out of her truck even though the regular restaurant was closed for the month.

Overall I was a bit underwhelmed by the lobster roll, although I enjoyed eating it. I think the problem was that I have had a Maine lobster roll and this is just a totally different animal. In Maine the lobster roll is served on a warm, grilled and buttered bun, sometimes with buttered lobster meat or sometimes more of a lobster salad like this. Souper Jenny served the lobster salad on an herbed roll, which to me did not really go well with the lobster salad (you could also get the lobster salad in a to-go container and do without the bread).

I am glad I tried Souper Jenny's lobster roll but I am even happier that Jenny is now open for the fall with her traditional, ever-changing menu.

George's

George's famous onion rings.

We recently dined with our neighbors and played trivia at George's, a long time Virginia Highland neighborhood hangout. The restaurant's tables are covered with small plaques identifying the famous people who have dined at each particular table - neat idea and fun to know you are sitting where someone famous once sat!

Trivia happens on Tuesday nights here and there were several die-hard and very smart teams participating, although we thought that one of them violated the "no smart phone" ban. Although we did not come close to winning the trivia competition, we had a great time and enjoyed the atmosphere and good burgers. In my opinion this is one of the better burgers in Atlanta; without getting into the burger war debate I will say that George's burgers are cooked properly, delicious and not outrageously priced. The onion rings were a bit hit, too. The only miss was the shrimp po'boy, which I probably should not have ordered after hearing about the great burgers! Now I know.

The above smaller size burger is also available.

Shrimp po'boy. Don't fall for it. Get a burger!

Mushroom swiss burger.

Bacon cheeseburger with tots.

Chocolate cake at Jimmy Carter's seat.