it’s been widely reported on these blog thingies that the ajc in it’s ‘best of the big a’ contest picked morrocan restaruant imperial fez as best indian restaurant.

but megan’s comment on the krog street post got me wondering what other fine institutions has been selected as finalists by the ajc.

so i spent some time poking around and they really did picks some winners, and i thought i would share them with you:

apparently maggiano’s is the best place for italian food in atlanta, narrowly beating out finalists ippolitios and god-help-us, the olive garden.

apparently if you are looking for really good pizza in the big a you’ll do no better than the mellow mushroon, although finalists pizza hut and papa john’s are a good bet. i bet domino’s is feeling pretty pissed off about being left off. and what? no cici’s pizza buffet?

if it is take-out you are after, finalist chili’s is sure to provide some delectable dishes for you.

of course if seafood is more your fare, there’s always the amazingly fresh, high-quality fish and shellfish at red lobster and pappadeaux’s – both finalilsts.

you say you like steak? well finalists longhorn and outback have cuts of beef that can’t be beat; except maybe by winner ruth’s chris; apparently the best steak in atlanta.

and finally, i know you may be on a budget and are just dying to know where to go for some great cheap eats. well look no further than finalist taco bell – one suggestion though, don’t go to the taco bell in suwanee.

wow, i am almost speechless after that review.

now far be it for me to tell the cox media empire how to run it’s business, but perhaps the folks at the ajc may want to reconsider their methodology for this award?

then again, maybe pizza hut really is one of the five best places to get a slice in the atl….

photo courtesy of David Hunter

so yes, the ajc ran a recent ad on the revitalization of dekalb avenue. it was pretty standard stuff, increased tax base, changing demographics, but it did contain this interesting paragraph:

t’s a stark contrast to the graffiti-covered train trestle at DeKalb Avenue and Krog Street, just a few hundred feet away from 626. Such sights once were common along the mostly industrial thoroughfare, which runs parallel to two rail lines. But as condos and apartments go up, slowly the graffiti and other eyesores are disappearing.

eyesore? huh?

i’ll agree with daily loaf’s mara shaloup who wrote:

Personally, I love the rust and the grit, the imperfections and pure urban-ness of DeKalb Avenue — and the Krog Street tunnel in particular. When I was a teenager exploring the city, such a welcome reprieve from the soulless burbs, it was my favorite stretch of road. I’d hate to see it morph into a replica of the East Cobb homogeny from which I tried to escape.

and i also agree with frequently commenter abby, who suggested this via suggest a story and wrote:

I think most of the people around think it’s amazing — and I, for one, am happy that it adds some character and interest in my (granted, already character-y and interesting) neighborhood. The tunnel they need to clean up is the next one over, Boulevard going underneath Lenny’s. Human feces, decaying garbage, and people smoking crack in the stairwell at 3pm = eyesore that needs to be “cleaned up.” A relatively well-lit tunnel with outstanding (sometimes for humor content, sometimes for artistic ability) and informative (i look to the bridge for the events metblogs may forget to tell me about) graffiti = landmark that should be continued.

obviously the ajc reporter is not from our ‘hood. seriously, things like the krog street bridge are the whole reason people are moving to the east i-20 corridor neighborhoods.

i remember the first time i drove under that bridge. i thought, this is the place for me. this is a place where bands play and people paint and an old 1913 bridge becomes a social icon. i like to go home on krog street, just because the bridge reminds me of everything i love about my hood.

and i am hoping the people buying glitzy new condos on dekalb avenue feel the same.

or are mara, abby and i all off base?

You can read the complete list here.

Boy, the sad part is how unsurprising this is. Anyone who has commuted for a year or more in this city knows what it is like to come home, sit down on the couch without a word to spouse or roommate, and start crying. I seriously thought in my days of commuting that the only good thing about it was that I would probably die in my car, and my family could just use that as a coffin.

Atlanta’s commute is soul-crushing; it just reminds me how much I want to be able to find a safe intown neighborhood with affordable housing and good schools.

Okay, so it isn’t a world takeover, but Atlanta-based Creative Loafing, Inc. has acquired alternative weeklies in both Chicago and Washington DC markets. That’s pretty big news for the little alternative weekly started here in the ATL in the ’70s. (Of course, Metroblogging.com is already on the web in both Chicago and DC.)

You can read all about it on The Fresh Loaf. Congratulations to our little hometown paper; This is good news for alternative publishing.

Thanks to CL’s own Andisheh for the heads up.

I’m sure I’ll get reamed for this being in bad taste, but hey, I didn’t come up with the idea. . . and I SO want one of these t-shirts.

Oh, and on another note, is anyone else kind of annoyed by the graphic WSB is using on their news reports about Vick? The one with him and a ferocious-looking pit-bull superimposed next to him? I mean, what an insult to the poor dog.

as reported in the fresh loaf aaron rents ceo charlie loudermilk will not be hosting any more rock acts at the venue where i once saw mute math bang on buckets for 15 minutes.

instead loudermilk is looking forward to acts more like tony bennett and charlie daniels.

my favorite quote is this one though –

“If it’s not first-class, I don’t want anything to do with it,” says Loudermilk, who also sees the venue hosting corporate events and special movie screenings.

as local blogger and frequent commenter jimj v notes a bit sarcastically, this is pretty funny from the guy who made a fortune selling cheap furniture at 300 per cent interest.

as for me, if they open up a new venue further south to host the acts the roxy did, i’ll be happy for this development as it will be one less reason to have to go to buckhead….

So ordered NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

News conference at 4pm from Arthur Blank to discuss the camp leave of absence (it’s not really a suspension or a ban).

The Falcons have been asked by the league not to heap their own punishment on Vick until the NFL can review the government’s case against him, and they’ve been asked to keep paying him his pre-season check.

What do you think? Will be back for the season now that he’s out of camp?

Can Joey Harrington win for this team?

Are you sick of this story yet, or just plain sick?

I mention this not because it is especially relevant or earth-shattering, but because I have just recently heard it and just recently had it verified by people who would know: Inman Perk‘s location in Inman Park is apparently on the move. Sometime, uh, soonish (?) the great polished-concrete location with the full-length walls of shelves and brilliant decorating sliding walls will be gone, replaced by yet another pile of condos. Inman Perk isn’t going far, though — sounds like they’re opening a new spot just a stone’s throw away, in one of the new retail spaces that’s also been laid down around that intersection.

I have to wonder, though… if the atmosphere changes, will I keep going back? One reason I visit Inman Perk is because I wish my workplace was all polished concrete, sliding walls and coffee mugs. Without all that stuff, it’s mostly the staff that’ll keep me coming back. So let’s hope that enough of them make the move. ‘Cause if I were to get the kind of service I got today (which is to say, ugh) in an atmosphere that wasn’t both productive and cunning, I probably wouldn’t be a customer.

Meanwhile, ParkGrounds, in Reynoldstown, has a really very handsome new website to go with the new for-humans patio they’ve just built in their off-leash dog park area. That website? Full of pictures of cute dogs. Fair warning.

I really haven’t given ParkGrounds enough first-hand traffic, so remind me to head back in there as soon as possible. Three simple pleasures that hit me right in the furry-footed Hobbit part of my brain — the part that thinks sitting around would be a great way to spend one’s life — are coffee, dogs and breakfast cereal. So ParkGrounds has my number, there.

So, there you have it. This post written in lieu of actual, you know, content.

While at the Braves game on Friday (for Friday Night Fireworks…a real treat since I heart fireworks), my boyfriend pointed out the new All-You-Can-Eat Seats. Yes, for one flat price, you can enjoy an Upper Level seat with unlimited baseball fare like peanuts, hot dogs and popcorn, or you can upgrade to a Lexus Level seat and chow on BBQ and Budweiser. Since concessions at Turner Field are so pricey, at first it kinda made sense to me. But when I actually started thinking about how much food you’d have to eat to get your money’s worth ($25 for the “Ballpark Favorites” and $60 for the “BBQ & More” package), it just grossed me out.

Learn more about snagging these sure-to-be-popular seats.

oh they are all over the place. just a smattering:

our dear friend, andisheh nouaree, has some fun over at the fresh loaf
the michael vick experience nike commerical mashed up
‘cats in the cradle’ rewritten as ‘dogs in the kennel’

still think he has a career ahead of him?