Weekend in the ATL (part #2)

Last weekend the BF and made like the birds and headed South(west) to Atlanta!  You can check out part 1 of our mini vaca here.

Soooo where did I leave off?  Oh yes, one of many two-hour naps Smile

When we finally awoke, it was time for DINNER.  We were both in the mood for some Mexican treats and after some research we agreed on Tin Lizzy’s.  They have a HUMONGOUS menu and you can order things a la carte, which always makes me happy. What’s there not to love about sampling LOTS of mini niblets?

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I was also happy to see that Tin Lizzy’s supports National Breast Cancer Awareness month AND that the restaurants sports a good sense of humor 🙂

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After perusing the menu, the Man Candy and I developed a game plan.

Course #1:  A “Top of the House Margarita” for the lady, A “Fall Off the House Margarita” for the man, and Queso Fundido with chorizo, grilled onions, and peppers:

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This dip was delicious—though I would have preferred larger hunks of sausage…  The bigger the better in my book Winking smile

Come to think of it, the margaritas may have been a contributing factor to my love for this dip.  What I remember most vividly is how deliciously creamy it was.  The chips had some sort of seasoning — paprika and cayenne perhaps?  The spice of the chips paired with the creaminess of the cheese made for a really good combination.

Course #2:  A second round of marg’s plus one Santa Fe Steak Taco and one Fiesta Chicken taco.  For each of us, naturally.

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Good god these tacos were delicious.  The Santa Fe steak taco came with grilled steak, jalapenos, onions, tomatoes, cilantro and was smothered with spicy ranch and cheesy queso blanco.  Despite being listed as a “healthy option,” the fiesta chicken taco packed a tasty punch.  It came on a whole wheat tortilla topped with grilled chicken, corn, black beans, tomatoes, onions and cilantro.  SO GOOD!

Course #3:  Margarita #3 for the man…. Big glass o’ water for the lady… AND a Grilled Chicken Tin Skillet:

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Right when the food arrived, Jarrod looked concerned….

“Did I seriously just order that?!”

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Even though we were both ridiculously full by this point, we managed to do some damage on this skillet.  The hot skillet was full of veggie rice, grilled red peppers and onions, jalapenos, some crispy tortilla strips, queso blanco, and salsa fresca…..   Heaven.

After eating all this delicious food, we had to do some googlin’ and see if there are other Tin Lizzy’s locations closer to home… Sadly, the only locations are in Atlanta, but this restaurant alone is worth the drive to ATL.  I promise you.

Tin Lizzy’s Cantina on Urbanspoon

And as if that weren’t enough…..

Course #4:  Dessert from Joes on Juniper!  Sooo…. Joe’s turned out to be a gay bar (oopsie…. Smile)….  Jarrod and I felt a little bit like outsiders… But who cares check out the dessert tray!

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Enter my perpetual indecisiveness!  Gahhh!  After much debate and a few suggestions from the bartender,  I nabbed the chocolate cake with white icing and took it back to the hotel with me.  After we ate ourselves into oblivion there was nothing left to do but SLEEP.

Good thing we had a big dinner, because we didn’t eat breakfast until NOON on Sunday.  Torture, I tell ya.  Torture.  I’m surprised my body didn’t experience a complete meltdown.

Apparently, we weren’t the only ones who thought the Thumbs Up Diner would be a good stop for Sunday brunch, because we waited for nearly an hour for a table!

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This gave us ample time to figure out what we wanted to order.  Jarrod went with the build-your-own omelet… of course.  What is it with guys and their obsession for build-your-own menus???

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I got my usual eggs & turkey sausage plus a whole wheat homemade biscuit, and about 3 lbs of potatoes:

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I was really excited about the homemade whole wheat biscuit — but once I sunk my teeth into it I was not a fan.  It was way too moist–kind undercooked in my opinion.  In my mind a biscuit should be flaky and buttery with a bit of a crunch to it.  This guy was DENSE.  And moisssttttttt.

Oh… and there may have been a belgian waffle Smile

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Thumbs Up Diner on Urbanspoon

After breakfast, we headed to the Centennial Olympic Park to walk around a bit.

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We got there just in time for the water fountain show.

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By then it was nearly football time!  Jarrod did some research and found a bar with the Sunday Ticket—so we were hopeful that they’d have the Browns game on.

When we pulled up outside of Black Bear Tavern I was ECSTATIC to see a decked out Browns van parked on the street!!!

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Once inside I was stunned to see a bar FULL of Browns fans!  Unbeknownst to me, Jarrod had secretly scouted out a Browns bar in ATL.  It’s official.  My boyfriend rocks Smile

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After watching half the game and realizing the Browns were definitely not in it to win it, Jarrod decided to take me to lunch at a cool place he’d found last time he was in Atlanta.

Alon’s Bakery & Market

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This place was AWESOME.  It reminded me of a smaller Earth Fare with less groceries and more soul.

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They also had a fully stocked bakery section:

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PLUS a large selection of fresh breads, pre-made grub, and made-to-order sandwiches and paninis:

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They even had a fresh-served ice cream section and a mini coffee bar in the middle complete with stools for sitting!

LOVE THIS PLACE!

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We grabbed a couple of salads to share:

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And a few turkey sandwiches:

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This was the Peppered Turkey sandwich:  naturally smoked peppered whole turkey with alfalfa sprouts, avocado, red onion, and sliced tomato served on whole wheat bread with grainy mustard and mayonnaise (AKA my sandwich soul mate).

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And since the whole weekend was a major bust, we decided to try and turn things around by sitting on the patio with some dessert and some coffee.

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Ok… maybe the weekend wasn’t a complete bust.  😉

Alon's Bakery and Market on Urbanspoon

 

 

P.S….   HAPPY 300TH POST TO ME!!!!

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10 Comments

  1. Oh wow, all of it looks so tasty! Love the name “Thumb’s Up Diner”, sounds very retro. We used to have an adorable retro style diner in town that I miss. It looks like you two had a great time! 🙂

  2. WOW you are making me full just looking at all that glorious food. Sounds like you guys had a blast.

    And on the perpetual indecisiveness, I too suffer from it… 🙁 Why don’t they make dishes for people like us- a mouthful of each? Now there’s a restaurant name for ya.. A Mouthful of Each. The bigger the better. LOL. I don’t even know what i’m saying anymore.You have sent me into a virtual food coma.

    x krystie

  3. I’m glad you found so much good eating in our city! It’s just a shame you didn’t leave room for a Googie Burger and a peach milkshake while you were at the dancing fountains, because they’re terrific, and, I think, considerably better than Grindhouse. Alon’s and Tin Lizzy are certainly really special. Come back anytime, y’all!

  4. This post is making me sooo hungry! Everything you had to eat in ATL looks amazing. I’m totally the girl who fills up on chips and salsa at Mexican restaurants and then doesn’t want to eat her dinner. Nice job of powering through that skillet with Jarrod! 🙂

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