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5 Seasons Atlanta blogger dinner

You know what I love about blogging? Bloggers!

It is so much fun to meet the people behind the blogs in person, and it’s easy because everyone kind of feels like they already know each other. And of course, we all have something in common that we can talk about!

The group met up at 5 Seasons in Sandy Springs. I was so happy that nearly everyone started out by enthusiastically ordering beer. I got a scotch ale that they were having for a limited time. It was really tasty, very roasty with some coffee and chocolate flavors.

5 Seasons scotch ale

The turkey burger was great, not dry and crumbly like so many bird burgers are. Didn’t love the sweet potato fries, they were too soft and had soaked up a lot of oil. They were pretty good dipped in the cranberry sauce intended for my burger though.

Turkey burger and sweet potato fries

I was soooo hungry…

Eaten turkey burger

Our waiter dropped off a huge mug of free beer. He plopped it down right in front of Lee who already had a beer of her own. Of course I offered to “help” her with it, can’t pass up a free beer, right? 😉

Free communal beer

Amazingly, we didn’t talk too much about blogging. Everyone was very open and sweet, so we got to learn a great deal about each other over the course of the evening.

5 Seasons Atlanta bloggers

From left to right: Myself, Lee, Sarena, Tina, Laura, Kristy, Stacy, Laura, and Laura.  Yes, three Lauras, we are children of the 80’s after all.

If you’re ever in Atlanta hit us up!

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Doing the Java Jive

Ahhh! Weather is back to feeling good, as evidenced by these two blissful sunbathers!

Sunshine babies

This morning Jeff and I got dressed early and headed over to Decatur’s outdoor farmer’s market. There weren’t too many vendors out today since spring hasn’t officially sprung, but we were still able to snag a few special items.

Decatur Farmer's Market bounty

I’ve been wanting to get my hands on some farm fresh eggs for a while now! These were so beautiful in their varying colors and shapes.

Multicolored eggsPinhead egg

You can really feel how much thinner and more delicate the shells are since these chickens haven’t been fed a bunch of crushed oyster shells, bone meal, and calcium tablets like the factory farmed chickens are.

Can’t wait to eat one of those nearly raw tomorrow morning over rice for breakfast!

We also got some awesome granola full of candied ginger. I’m such a huge ginger fan, this is going to make me very happy sprinkled over a bowl of chopped fruit and drizzled with almond milk.

Maple ginger granola

And when we saw a vendor selling fresh tamales, we had to restrain ourselves from buying more than one pack! These will make a delicious dinner for tomorrow night.

Fresh tamales

After we got home and put everything away it was time to meet up with Emily and John for brunch at Java Jive.

Java Jive breakfast menu

Jeff and I had never been here before, but I heard about the charming 50’s diner decor and antique kitchen appliance memorabilia online.

We waited in a cute little area surrounded by old pastel-colored stoves and rusty old oscillating fans.

Java Jive waiting areaOld-timey stovesAntique fans

Everything was so cute! I loved all the silly knick knacks and charming collectibles.

Knick knack shelf Antique tin cans

Silver coffee setOld toasters in glass case

I did quit snapping pictures long enough to eat. I started out with a latte and the garden scramble.

Mmmm latteJava Jive garden scramble

I loved all the fresh veggies, and that biscuit you see there is easily the best I’ve ever had! It was the perfect flavor, texture, doneness, butteryness, flakiness imaginable!

Jeff got the gingerbread waffle with lemon curd. Oh yeah, it was amazing!

Gingerbread waffle with lemon curd

It had a great spicy flavor and was perfectly crispy on the outside while soft on the inside. I kept sneaking little dollops of lemon curd to put on my biscuit, it was delightfully tart and not too sweet.

We loved Java Jive and will definitely be going back. Now what to do with the rest of the day?

Tonight’s my blogger meet-up with other fellow Atlanta bloggers, some that I haven’t had the chance to meet yet, so that should be a good time. Tell you how it went tomorrow!

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Recent Eats

Just as predicted, the nice weather didn’t last and this week has been awash in shades of gray and just literally washed with buckets of rain.

I’ve spent several days feeling a bit moody at being trapped indoors with the memory of sunny walks into town that took place such a short time ago. I’ve used the “opportunity” to practice a few extra-long yoga sessions in the dining room, trying not to fall out of pose onto one or more curious cats.

But sometimes you just gotta get out of the house!

We hit up Garlic Thai again this week for a spicy little reminder of approaching spring. I got the fruitiest, springiest cocktail I could find on the menu; one with lychee, ginger, and sake. It was fruit-tastic. The maraschino cherry makes it fancy. 😉

Ginger lychee drink

Jeff got a barley shochu that was a bit lighter than he was wanting, but it was still good.

We both shared a plate of the prettiest spring rolls I’ve ever seen.

Garlic Thai spring rolls

Love the basil leaves pressed perfectly between the layers of soft and chewy rice paper.

I got a miso soup. This one was pretty salty and inauthentic. Pretty sure it was a powdered mix or something and it had the wrong kind of seaweed in it; tasted like thick lettuce.

Garlic Thai miso soup

I got a glass noodle salad called Yum Woon Sen that had minced chicken and grilled shrimp all in a spicy lime-flavored sauce.

Unholy gates of hell! This was the single spiciest thing I’ve ever put in my mouth! Jeff asked for his curry to be Thai hot, and my dish was listed as mild on the menu. I think they got switched because I was sweating and breathing hard and my lips were huge and painfully red.

Napalm salad of doom

Jeff’s panang curry, on the other hand, was sweet and delicious. It had some heat to it but not nearly as much as my little salad did!

Panang curry at Garlic

Still love Garlic Thai though. I can’t wait until it’s warm out again so we can drink fruity cocktails on their nice patio.

Tonight we got out again for sushi at Sushi Avenue. It’s not the best sushi place ever but it’s only a mile from our apartment so I can’t complain.

I had an Asahi Black beer which I love. It’s so roasty and malty, tastes a bit like toasted buckwheat or roasted barley. We both got seaweed salads to munch on. I was telling Jeff how much I like the sound it makes in your head when you crunch on the seaweed! Yeah, he thought that was weird.

Asahi Black and seaweed salad

Of course we ordered takoyaki, and it was just as awesome this time as it always is.

Gooey takoyaki plate

For sushi we got 2 inari, a crunchy eel roll, a spicy tuna roll, and a scorpion roll. Sushi Avenue is bad about cutting their pieces too large and packing too much rice around the rolls. It all tastes great though.

Sushi plate at Sushi Avenue

And here’s something I made at home earlier this week…

Miso salmon with bok choy and shiitakes

Miso-glazed salmon with stir-fried bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. It was so, so, so good! I love this dish, it takes so little effort to prepare.

Well, the weather is supposed to perk up a bit for this weekend, so maybe we can get out a bit and not feel so cramped up in the house.

I’m excited that I’ll get to attend an Atlanta blogger meet-up at 5 Seasons this Saturday!

What are your weekend plans?