I love how well my dad knows me and my bff who I went to visit in Atlanta last week. Upon my return, he asked me, “What did you guys do? Eat?” He knows what we love to do.

And yes, it’s true. I ate a lot of great food and cooled off by eating my share of ice cream and popsicles. It was in the 90s after all. King of Pops, the little carts shaded by colorful umbrellas, can be found in gas station parking lots all over Atlanta, proudly serving up artisan popsicles with seasonal ingredients.

There are unique flavor options like you’d find at our local Molly Moons – watermelon mojito, fresh GA peach, and lemon ricotta. But I couldn’t resist their famous chocolate with sea salt. It was delicious.

And yes, frosty beverages were consumed to cool us from the humid heat. We certainly wouldn’t want to suffer from heat exhaustion, right? Right.

The Tall Cool One at JCT Bar was my favorite, made with a fancy gin and tonic I didn’t recognize and strawberry rhubarb shrub. This lovely number was made even better with the garnish of strawberry and pickled rhubarb. I wish I could order another round right now.
Of course, we did other things besides eat. We went to the goat farm where goats and vegetables coexist among run-down warehouses, which are being transformed and beautified by local artists (more on the goat farm here).

We also took a road trip to North Carolina. I’ve visited Atlanta so many times it was time to explore a little more of the South. Our destination was Asheville, a little city in North Carolina Radhi knew I would love.

But first, we did a little sight-seeing – we toured the Biltmore, America’s largest home! We wandered around the house on a self-guided tour for several hours. I couldn’t help but think about scenes from Downton Abbey, especially when we toured the servants’ quarters and the kitchen. Oh my word, the pantry and that kitchen with its original copper pots!
Set on an 8,000 acre property, the house is surrounded by a beautiful landscape, a garden which was designed by the same man who designed Central Park in NYC. We set out to the garden and wandered around for as long as we could stand the heat.

We made sure to make a stop at the Antler Hill Winery on the property on our way out. Wine tasting was in order. Once we made it into town, it was clear that Asheville proper was me all over. I loved the focus on local, seasonal and homemade.

I think I can safely say that besides the vintage inspired store, Hip Replacements, which had me swooning (and buying), Tupelo Honey was our favorite thing about Asheville. The restaurant that came highly recommended delivered in a big way.

It’s busy, but a call ahead to get your name on the list will get you walking in the door to your table in a jiffy. The menu boasts many a southern dish and lots of pickled and preserved goodies. The cookbook does too and I’m kicking myself for not buying it when I was there. A plate of warm biscuits delighted us before our meals arrived and Radhi  decided they were the best biscuits she’d ever had. Now for a girl from the south where biscuits abound, that’s quite the statement, but I have to agree.

Since we were in the area, I was able to visit Ashley and drink in all the beautiful things she is doing with their land. The fact that Huxley greeted me by saying my name when we arrived made my heart melt.

So clearly, the answer to my dad’s question is yes, we did eat. But it wasn’t really the food that was so memorable. It was who I was sharing it with that meant so much to me. It was the opportunity to be able to sit across the table from Radhi and talk and laugh with her, face to face, instead of through our computer screens on Skype. It’s the silly synchronicity of our hunger pangs that is memorable – our bodies’ way of getting us to enjoy each others company across the table again. That is really why we love to eat.

Wish you were here!

Love,
Stacy

* Images by David Payne, Radhi Mohan and yours truly