Travels: Favorite Restaurants + Americas Mart in Atlanta

Last weekend I travelled to Atlanta for one of our market buying trips at America's Mart. I assist in purchasing merchandise for a gift and book store, which sells a huge variety of things: a curated selection of gifts, tabletop, books, women's clothing and accessories, and children's clothing and even children's toys. We are almost like a mini department store with so many categories and two stories of building to fill. With all of those categories, it makes in necessary for several buying trips throughout the year. Most of our trips are back and forth between Atlanta now, and we average 2-3 trips there a year.

Since I have visited Atlanta for the past 6 years frequently, we have really nailed down some of the best restaurants to dine at! We tend to stick to the downtown to midtown area since we usually are staying downtown near America's Mart. Here is a mini recap of my last trip:

We had an early flight out of Raleigh which allowed just enough time to breeze through the airport Starbucks. This was a first for me with a new spelling of "Katie"....I've never had one of these funny incidents occur until now, but I rarely treat myself to Starbucks :)

Lunch while we are in Atlanta is usually served in the showrooms. During gift shows, a lot of the big showrooms will cater a nice big lunch from a good restaurant and you can usually find something decent there. This was clothing market and those showrooms don't have quite as much selection. If we aren't in a good spot for lunch we will swing by a cafe spot or Chic-fil-a located throughout the three giant buildings.

This is what I wore all day long the first day, then changed out of flats into heeled booties for dinner. It was the first true cold weather I have felt this fall and I was freezing ALL day long, this poncho was a life saver for me. I couldn't find the exact one but it is so cozy and I cannot wait to wear it again on another cold day. This is very similar. 

The flowers at market are always a breath of fresh air when you are stuck in buildings all day. Aren't they gorgeous?

My view from my hotel room! I'm always amazed how different the night sky is in the city vs. my little beach town. 

This photo was taken on our last day and we are about to head home! I ended up catching a cold {probably on the plane, ughhh} and remained freezing the entire rest of the trip. Thank goodness my mother-in-law packed an extra cashmere sweater I borrowed and layered on a scarf from our shop. Jeans are old  J Brand but these are similar. As you can see, I keep it pretty casual on these trips {nothing too exciting but I thought you might be interested in what I would wear on these long days!}

So, here is my recap on restaurants in Atlanta: We feel very strongly about treating yourself to a nice, sit down dinner to recover from the day. Market sounds like fun {and it is!} but it is really taxing too. You are making big decisions for your business, trying to remember what the heck you need, trying to plan ahead and you are on your feet all day. It really is exhausting! We usually call it quits in time to run back to our rooms, catch up with family on the phone, rest our feet for a few- then head to dinner!

These are my faves:

Alma Cocina

This restaurant is on our favorite list and we have eaten there once each market trip since they opened about three years ago. I love Mexican food and this place does not disappoint! It is a step and above your typical Mexican restaurant. Everything is very authentic with a fresh twist on your typical dishes, throwing in a variety of flavors you would not expect. For instance, we ordered the fried chihuahua cheese and it came out as a brick of cheese fried, in a piping hot bowl of salsa verde. At the table, you can mix your cheese into the salsa and serve it as you wish with chips or tortillas. So amazing {and hot}. For dinner, I always order the fried avocado tacos. They are so darn good and better explained as noted from the menu: "Crispy queso cotija, poblano pesto, roasted tomato, corn tortillas" If you go, I would highly recommend them!

Poor Calvins

This was our second trip to Poor Calvins and it was just as good as the first time. This restaurant offers thai fusion with touches of southern cuisine. You really can't go wrong with the appetizer menu: fried goat cheese, lobster wontons, steamed pork and chicken dumplings, or lobster macaroni and cheese, to name a few. For dinner, I had the Crispy Beef which is just out of this world good! The entree is angus beef prepared with soy glaze over rice and greens. They also offer free Uber service which I thought was such a nice treat! This time around we treated ourselves to dessert because practically everyone in the restaurant was doing the same and we didn't want to miss out! This was a giant piece of cake we could barely make a dent in, but was oh-so-good.

La Tavola Trattoria

We stumbled through many Italian restaurants before finding this gem! This one is located in the Virginia Highlands area {so cute} and offers the best authentic Italian with homemade pastas and really tasty combinations. It's a small restaurant and off the beaten path, but very well worth it. It definitely seems like the place the locals flock to that live in the quaint area. Love this place!

Ray's in the City

If you are looking for a fabulous steak and seafood restaurant, this is your place! I have actually only tried the steak entrees but seafood is flown in daily for ensured freshness {this is a must people!} and the restaurant is really well known for it. It is a fun, upbeat environment too without being too formal. Excellent option. 

South City Kitchen Midtown

If you are looking for your Southern food staple meals, this is a great option. To name a few: fried green tomatoes, pimiento cheese, fried buttermilk chicken, shrimp and grits, collards, beef short rib...does that sound good or what? Definitely head here when you need some comfort food. 

So, those are my favorite restaurants so far in Atlanta! I would love to hear if any local Atlanta readers or frequent visitors have more recommendations for our next trip...although it will be hard to peel me away from my favorites above!! 

Also, I might mention that you can follow along with our store on instagram @deegeesnc... and, exciting news- we are working on our website so we can finally reach our customers far and away that only get to visit us during the busy summer season. This store is over 80 years old and I am so proud to be a part of it! Please do follow along for more updates, I promise there is something cute for everyone!! :)