TracksideTavern Opening

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Trackside Tavern had a soft opening today at 1:00 the party will last until...

The place looks great, go by and check it out.

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Trackside Tavern
313 E College Ave
Decatur, GA 30030

The Plaza Theatre

El Azteca Mexican Cantina

El Azteca Mexican Cantina
939 Ponce DeLeon Ave
Atlanta, GA
404-881-6040

Look for Trackside Tavern Opening

Trackside Re-Opening Grows Near

But the exact time is still under wraps to sidestep long lines at the bar

By Theresa Woodgeard
From Decatur Patch

The long wait for Trackside Tavern’s re-opening is almost over. In fact, it’s just days, maybe even hours away. Really.

“The place looks beautiful,” said owner Doc Al Czarkowski in an e-mail. The staff is hired and trained, the glassware is washed and on the shelves. The beer is in the fridge and the liquor is in the cabinet.

Indeed, cold beer and clean glasses leave little doubt the pouring of the first libation is imminent and according to a July 21 post on Trackside’s Facebook, “there is “nothing ‘tentative’ about it anymore.”

But for now, ‘mum’ is the word on an exact day and time the Decatur “Cheers-like" bar will open.

“We are going to try our best to have a soft opening to avoid a line of people waiting at the door at the same time,” said Czarkowski.

The popular neighborhood bar on College Avenue closed for more than two years due to a fire that destroyed the tavern. The 1917 building was demolished and rebuilt from the ground up.

Taboo-LA-LA Coming July 23 at The Plaza

From: plazaatlanta.com

Join us for the newest Plaza film series sin-sation TABOO-LA-LA with BLAST OFF BURLESQUE!

Jimmy John's

Jimmy John's
335 West Ponce De Leon Avenue
Decatur, GA 30030
(404) 474-6999

Check out the menu

Cinefest Showing of Shampoo July 21

A student-run film theatre on Georgia State University campus. Causing a cinematic commotion since 1991, Cinefest shows a variety of movies that ranges from indie, foreign, documentary, cult-classics and even your favorite mall movies.

Thursday, July 21: Newly Restored 35mm Print of "SHAMPOO" - Special One Night Only Screening

66 Courtland Street SE, Suite 240
Atlanta, GA 30303

404-413-1798
cinefest@gsu.edu
Campus Map

General Admission:
$3 - Before 5:00 pm
$5 - 5:00 pm and after

Georgia State University students, faculty, and staff: Free with your Panther I.D.

From: http://cinefestfilmtheatre.com/

"American Pickers" on David Letterman

Fifth Avenue School to Open Aug 2

From Decatur Patch

By Timothy Darnell

Decatur's newest school is close to being ready for the Aug. 2 start of the school year.

The 4/5 Academy at Fifth Avenue is the first new school built in Decatur since Renfroe Middle School in 1972. It will serve fourth and fifth graders from throughout the city's school system.

The new building replaces the old Fifth Avenue Elementary, which sat empty for the past few years.

The Academy will be part of the International Baccalaureate Program, which offers a curriculum that is seen a much more rigorous than those offerd by most public schools.

The official ribbon-cutting will be held on Sunday, July 31, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. The public can tour the building during that time.

Full story

Whitney Miller’s free signing at The Cook’s Warehouse-Decatur July 22

Interview Whitney Miller from Gordon Ramsey’s MasterChef

WHO: Whitney Miller, Season 1 winner, Gordon Ramsey’s MasterChef

WHAT: FREE EVENT: Miller will autograph her new cookbook, “Modern Hospitality: Simple Recipes with Southern Charm” at the Decatur location of The Cook’s Warehouse

Hors d'oeuvres and beverages served from the cookbook

The public is kindly asked to RSVP for planning:

https://classes.cookswarehouse.com/ClassReg/Public/classes.asp?classid=4943

WHERE and

WHEN: Friday, July 22, 2011, 5 to 7 p.m.

The Cook’s Warehouse

180 West Ponce de Leon Avenue

Decatur, Georgia 30030 / 404-377-4005, store phone

Bird's Eye View of Church St & Commerce Dr.

Decatur, GA

Click to enlarge

Fox 5 visits Decatur

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Road Warrior: Decatur Square: MyFoxATLANTA.com

-- The second video features Decatur/Atlanta fashion bloggers The Asian Cajuns. Read more over at there blog.
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Road Warrior: Decatur Square: MyFoxATLANTA.com

Hello, Ponce City Market.

From The AJC


By Rachel Tobin

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Goodbye, Sears building. Adios, City Hall East. Hello, Ponce City Market.
The new owners of City Hall East, a historic structure in Atlanta near Midtown, are planning an organic garden, a "green" roof top and a foodie market akin to the Ferry Building in San Francisco or Pike Place Market in Seattle. They also plan to shed the names the building has been called, as far back as 1926, to rebrand it as Ponce City Market.

Plans call for hundreds of residential units, 2,000 internal parking spaces, loft-style, upscale offices, retailers -- possibly national chains -- and a foodie destination with “farm to table” vendors and local restaurants. The North Avenue side of the building could have an organic farm to supply the market.

Still, no new tenants were announced Monday as Mayor Kasim Reed and executives with Jamestown Properties celebrated the long-awaited sale at a news conference atop the brick building.

Nonetheless, if everything comes to pass, it will be a big change for the hulking building that for years sat mostly empty along one of Atlanta’s busiest arteries, Ponce de Leon Avenue. Jamestown is paying Atlanta $27 million to buy the building and plans to spend $180 million redeveloping it for an early 2014 reopening. The project will benefit from opportunity zone tax credits through the Atlanta Development Authority and other tax credits from the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Full story at AJC

Old Sears Building Sale Announcement

From: AJC
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Rachel Tobin

On Monday, Mayor Kasim Reed is expected to announce the long-awaited sale of City Hall East to Jamestown Properties. The 85-year-old building -- once a huge Sears complex -- has been a white elephant of sorts along one of Atlanta’s most central thoroughfares.
When then-Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson announced the deal to buy the Sears building for $12 million in 1990, he called it "the deal of the century." Less than five years later, renovation costs had skyrocketed and lease income didn't materialize, in part because of limitations on the debt used to finance it. Atlanta never fully occupied the 2 million square foot building, which is one considered one of the largest in the Southeast.

Twain's Billiards and Tap

Twain's Billiards and Tap is located in Decatur, GA just off of the downtown square. They are walking distance to the Decatur MARTA train station.
Check out their menu.

Twain's Billiards and Tap
211 E. Trinity Pl.
Decatur, GA
404-373-0063

Isabella's Cafe Offers International Experience

Isabella's Cafe Offers International Experience

Decatur/Kirkwood restaurant brings new flavors

By Kalin Thomas
From Decatur Patch

When you first walk into Isabella’s Café the first thing that you notice is the upbeat international music playing. Then you notice the aroma of international spices, like curry. But with a name like Isabella’s you’d think this was an Italian restaurant; however owner, Wambui Maina, is Kenyan.

“I named the restaurant after my mother. She was one of the first female physicians in Kenya. It was a way for me to honor her,” said Maina. The restaurant, which opened in July 2010, is in an old 1920’s building on West College Avenue at the edge of Kirkwood. The space Isabella’s is in used to be a coffee shop that closed around 2008 and stayed empty for two years. “I love Decatur because it’s like a foodie town. People look for innovative menus and support local restaurants. I thought this space was the perfect place to open my eclectic restaurant,” said Maina.

The eclectic menu offers American dishes with a twist, as Maina adds the flavors she loves from her native Kenya and New Orleans – where she first lived when she moved to this country at age 13. Dishes like the Kenyan-style Chunky Beef Stew over Basmati rice, Chicken Masala, chipotle-maple black beans, and cheeseburgers made with Isabella’s home-made pimento cheese are a hit with diners.
Full story

Film Crew for Jayne Mansfield's Car Packs Up.

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After a full day of filming in Oakhurst for Billy Bob Thornton's movie "Jayne Mansfield's Car"
the film crew are packing up and Donovans Discount store will become a Church again.
Earlier today Billy Bob Thornton and Kevin Bacon were both there poising for pictures and giving autographs.
See photos at Decatur Patch



T Shirt photo from mskittyspub.blogspot.com the Cedartown shoot.

Trackside Tavern Update

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Inside construction at Trackside Tavern, they are hoping for a July opening.

Yeah Baby ! Vintage 70's VW Bus Cruising Around Decatur

Oh behave.

"Jayne Mansfield's Car" Filming in Decatur

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Some of the filming of Jayne Mansfield's Car will be filmed in Oakhurst
this week.

From nola.com
The film, which will be directed by Billy Bob Thornton -- his first time behind the lens on a non-documentary since 2001's "Daddy and Them" -- and which will star Robert Duvall, John Hurt, Kevin Bacon, Robert Patrick and Ray Stevenson, will begin shooting this summer in Georgia, according to Deadline.

That's because the movie, despite the title, doesn't really appear to be about that ill-fated 1967 night on U.S. 90 after all. Rather, it's a dramatic comedy, one that "revolves around the culture clash of two families, from different continents, in 1969."

That's two years after Mansfield's death.

A report on Collider expands on the synopsis: "The story revolves around a guy whose wife leaves him for an Englishman and moves away to England. 20 or 30 years later, in 1969, the wife dies but wishes to be returned to Alabama where she grew up, so the English family meets -- and clashes with -- the original family that she abandoned."

More photos from the Decatur set on Flickr


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Here are 2 youtube videos that was shot in Cedartown and what we may expect here.


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Oakhurst Market

The new Oakhurst Market sign goes up.

Decatur Sidewalk Sale July 1-4

The B-17 "Liberty Belle" Crash Lands and Burns

Liberty Belle pictured above at Peachtree Dekalb airport Feb. 15, 2009

see crash photos From : www.chicagotribune.com

Seven crew members and volunteers walked away without serious injury after a World War II "Flying Fortress" bomber burned in a cornfield southeast of Aurora Municipal Airport on Monday, June 13, officials say. The B-17, christened the "Liberty Belle," took off from the airport at 9:30 a.m. and made an emergency landing in a cornfield near Highway 71 and Minkler Road in Oswego after the pilot reported an engine fire, according to Sugar Grove Fire Chief Marty Kunkle.

Cool Decatur Pins

Check out these great looking Decatur Ga pins over at the decatur minute
Decatur-themed pins at Decatur Screenprint. $1 each or 10 for $7.
photo from decatur minute site

I Drove All Night - Roy Orbison

Dear Avondale Estates, Don't You Wish Your Theatre Looked Like This.

Dear Avondale Estates, Don't you wish your theatre looked like this.

This blogger hates to see a vacant movie house for lease. So I made it as a open theatre in my photo.(Hey, I can dream.) also the city put up one to many sidewalk street lights, so I took it out of my picture, it is about 3 or 4 feet from the marquee.
This theater has been closed for many years, the last time it was operating as a theatre
was back in the 1960's, when it was called "Avondale Theatre". I think the name change happened in the 70's, through out the year's it's been a recording studio but now it's vacant and it's for lease. Call 404-256-3061 for info.


This is the lobby floor with original "A" when it was called The Avondale Theatre

Interview Youth Cookbook Author While She’s in Italy (in Decatur!)

Interview Youth Cookbook Author While She’s in Italy (in Decatur!)

WHO: Yvette Garfield, Handstand Kids cookbook sets

WHAT: During her Atlanta visit, Garfield will teach two classes around her Italian cookbook set:

Kids ages 3 to 5, class from 10 a.m. to noon

Kids ages 6 to 9, class from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Garfield’s cookbook sets are an immersion in Italy, Mexico or China with recipes for dishes from the country, using local words for the food-ingredients.

The Italian kit comes in a pizza box with a chef’s hat.

Youth cooking is a trend in cooking instruction.

WHERE and

WHEN: Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Cook’s Warehouse

180 West Ponce de Leon Avenue

Decatur, Georgia 30030 / 404-377-4005, store phone

Garfield can be interviewed before her first class or during the break from noon to 1 p.m. on July 14; please schedule with media contacts below.

BACKGROUND:

Yvette Garfield, founder and author of the Handstand Kids Cookbook Company, creates international cookbook kits that introduce children to the culture, language and cuisine of a new country. Garfield has appeared on dozens of TV shows, bringing international healthy cooking for kids into the homes of Americans.

The Handstand Kids Cookbook Company aims to use international cooking to create a global community of children and empower kids to take a stand in their own community. Cooking is a fantastic way to promote health and nutrition, explore different cultures, encourage family togetherness and give to others in need.

The Handstand Kids cookbooks are the perfect recipe for kids to learn how to cook, while learning about the people, places and language of a new country. These international children’s cookbook kits feature the languages and cuisines of Italy, Mexico and China. Each Handstand Kids cookbook introduces children to delicious and healthy recipes, familiarizing them with the language of the corresponding country. The cookbooks translate each of the ingredients and utensils into the country’s primary language and are each uniquely packaged with a child-friendly cooking accessory: The Handstand Kids Italian Cookbook is packaged in a pizza box with a chef's hat; The Handstand Kids Mexican Cookbook comes in a tortilla bag with a child-sized oven mitt; and The Handstand Kids Chinese Cookbook is packaged in a take-out box with a set of chopsticks.

CONTACT:

Wendy Allen, (404) 492-9015, wendy@cookswarehouse.com

Jim Brams, (404) 403-6218, jimbrams@att.net

Allie Herzog, (713) 446-6377, aherzog@integratepr.com

Toss Your Chucks Over a Wire During Decatur's Independence Day Celebration

From : Decatur Patch

HomeGrown is hosting the Chuck Taylor public art installation project in downtown Decatur.

By Renee DeGross Valdes
On July 4, there's more than just the fireworks celebration in downtown Decatur.

HomeGrown on Church Street, is kicking off the first ever Chuck Taylor public art installation project. At 4 p.m. on Independence Day, participants are invited to meet on the square to toss their Converse creations over a wire spanning the plaza. Stay tuned to the stores' Facebook page for exact meeting location and further details.

"I saw some shoes over a wire when I was out running one night," said Lori Ronca, one of the owners of Homegrown. "I thought, how fun."

For more than a month, the store has invited patrons to visit HomeGrown to create unique art - free of charge - using Converse high tops as their canvas. The store supplied the shoes through donations and thrift store acquisitions, though some people brought their own to create in the back of the store or at home, according to Ronca.

Anonymous said...

What's next, throwing Frisbees on the Courthouse roof.

Decatur Hotel gets New Sign.

Future Home of ACPE on Church St.

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The Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc. (ACPE) is a multicultural, multifaith organization devoted to providing education and improving the quality of ministry and pastoral care offered by spiritual caregivers of all faiths through the clinical educational methods of Clinical Pastoral Education.

Rainy Night at The Plaza Theatre

Before the Storm

Avondale Estates

Coleman Social Media ad

Ask This Old House Films in Decatur

Great story over at The Decatur Patch. Tom Silva of Ask This Old House installs a new front door.

Between the hinges with DIY expert Tom Silva.

By Renee DeGross Valdes

Seven years ago, Lucius and Danielle Herrmann bought a new front door as a joint anniversary gift and until Wednesday, it sat gathering dust.

"We never installed it," said Lucius Herrmann of Decatur. "The door was so darn expensive (at $1,500), I didn't want to mess it up."

There's no chance of that now. Home improvement expert Tom Silva arrived with camera crews and producers of "Ask This Old House," to film the door installation at the Herrmann's South Candler Street home.

"The door is beautiful," Silva said, between takes on the set. "It's a nice, solid, oak door."

Silva made it look easy, too. He measured hinges, and cut the shape of the new door with the old white one.

full story

New pizzeria coming to Decatur

From Access Atlanta
by Jon Watson
Fans of Neapolitan pizza will soon have another in town destination for authentic style pies in Decatur. Sapori di Napoli, a joint venture of two brothers from Naples, will open in the coming weeks at 314 Church St. near the Decatur square.

Daniele and Ambrogio Florio are the team behind the new operation, whose sign many Decatur regulars may now recognize. Daniele, who has worked as a chef in Italy, London, and New York City, came to the states 8 years ago, and his brother Ambrogio, a trained pizzaiolo, recently moved to Georgia from Italy to start the new restaurant.
full story.

Church St. Scene

Having fun with gold filter. The art on the side of Johnny's Pizza may be changing
or edited now that Johnny's Pizza is closing and/or changing names and menu.

What Would You Like to See in Suburban Plaza?

Photo credit: nextstopdecatur.com
click on photo to enlarge
From the northdruidhillspatch



Walmart said they're not committed to opening a new store in the shopping center despite several reports to the contrary.

By Emma Harger and Jonathan Cribbs


Fore more than a week, rumors have been swirling that Walmart may be coming to Suburban Plaza shopping center in North Decatur. Tomorrow's News Today, a well-respected Atlanta real estate blog, reported June 13 Walmart's already gassing up its backhoe and could have the store open by 2013, attributing its information to unnamed sources.

Another blog, What Now Atlanta?, then called Selig Enterprises, the shopping center's developer. Selig told them there were no solidified plans, and a Walmart representative told the blog Selig had approached them and Walmart is interested but remains committed to nothing.

North Druid Hills-Briarcliff Patch made some calls too. We couldn't get in touch with Selig, but Glen Wilkins, a Walmart spokesman, also confirmed the international retailer is interested in many potential Atlanta-area sites, including Suburban Plaza.
full story

Trackside Tavern Over the Years

The new 2011 Trackside Tavern with original sign restored, now green.
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This is a 2007 photo.

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Trackside Tavern the early years.

--Visit Trackside Tavern on facebook

From the Decatur Patch

Bookzilla: Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis to Keynote Book Fest

A rock singer and his artist wife, two parades, opera singers, theatrical performances, a treasure hunt, a literary duel and more than than 300 authors will be featured.

A rock singer and his artist wife, two parades, opera singers, theatrical performances, a treasure hunt, a literary duel and more than than 300 authors will be featured at the sixth annual AJC Decatur Book Festival presented by DeKalb Medical on Labor Day weekend.

And this year, you'll be able to bid on having a beer with some of the authors at the Sept. 2 to 4 festival that is expected to attract thousands of book lovers to the historic Decatur Square and surrounding venues.

The nation's fourth largest book festival announced its headliners Thursday at an Eddie's Attic party packed with Decatur's political and literary dignitaries.

The festival will kick off on Friday, Sept. 2, with a keynote by Colin Meloy, lead singer of the folk rock indie band The Decemberists, and his wife and illustrator Carson Ellis, who are releasing a new family-friendly book, "Wildwood."

full story

The Square Pub and Mac McGee

Winnona Park area of Decatur,GA

Avery St and Winnona Dr

The Very Popular Pete the Cat Returns

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James Dean

From : http://www.crossroadsnews.com
Pete the Cat is back, and his creators – author Eric Litwin and artist James Dean – will be talking up his latest adventure on June 18 at the Decatur Library.

Their new book, “Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes,” will be on bookshelves in July. It comes on the heels of their first tome, “Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes,” which was published last year to rave reviews and made it to the New York Times Best Sellers List.

They will be in the Decatur Library Auditorium at 10 a.m.

Read more: CrossRoadsNews - Popular Pete the Cat returns

Java Monkey Speaks celebrates ten years of open mic

From CLATL.COM

On Sunday, Java Monkey Speak, Decatur's weekly open mic destination, will celebrate their tenth anniversary. To put that in perspective, ten years of weekly readings translates to roughly a millennia in reading series years. While many others come and gone, Java Monkey Speaks has kept people coming back week after week for what founder Kodac Harrison says have been exactly 517 evenings of spoken word (they missed just a few in an entire decade). We caught up with Harrison and Collin Kelly, who together have edited the Java Monkey Speaks Poetry Anthologies, to ask them about the secret to keeping Java Monkey Speaks going.

Full story

Dress for Less - Sebastian Maniscalco

Jokes.com
Sebastian Maniscalco - Dress for Less
comedians.comedycentral.com
Jokes Joke of the Day Funny Jokes

Rodney Dangerfield a Classic Comedian

Cooking Classes for Kids at Cook's Warehouse

Cooking Classes for Kids;

Interview Opportunity with Children’s Cookbook Author

WHO: Yvette Garfield, founder-author, Handstand Kids cookbook kits

WHAT: During an Atlanta visit, Garfield will teach two classes using recipes from the Handstand Kids Italian Cookbook:

Kids ages 3 to 5, class from 10 a.m. to noon

Kids ages 6 to 9, class from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Youth cooking is a trend in cooking instruction. Virtually all kids’ classes at The Cook’s Warehouse sell out and the stores sell the Handstand Kids cookbook kits.

WHERE and

WHEN: Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Cook’s Warehouse

180 West Ponce de Leon Avenue

Decatur, Georgia 30030 / 404-377-4005, store phone

BACKGROUND:

Garfield, founder and author of the Handstand Kids Cookbook Company, creates international cookbook kits that introduce children to the culture, language and cuisine of a new country. Garfield has appeared on dozens of TV shows, bringing international healthy cooking for kids into the homes of Americans.

The Handstand Kids Cookbook Company aims to use international cooking to create a global community of children and cooking is a fantastic way to promote health and nutrition, explore different cultures, encourage family togetherness and give to others in need.

The Handstand Kids cookbooks are the perfect recipe for kids to learn how to cook while learning about the people, places and language of a new country. These international children’s cookbook kits feature the languages and cuisines of Italy, Mexico and China. Each Handstand Kids cookbook introduces children to delicious and healthy recipes, familiarizing them with the language of the corresponding country. The cookbooks translate each of the ingredients and utensils into the country’s primary language and are each uniquely packaged with a child-friendly cooking accessory: The Italian kit is packaged in a pizza box with a chef's hat; the Mexican kit comes in a tortilla bag with a child-sized oven mitt, and the Chinese kit is packaged in a take-out box with a set of chopsticks.

Garfield can be interviewed before her first class or during the break from noon to 1 p.m. on July 14; please schedule with media contacts below.

CONTACT:

Wendy Allen, (404) 492-9015, wendy@cookswarehouse.com

Jim Brams, (404) 403-6218, jimbrams@att.net

Allie Herzog, (713) 446-6377, aherzog@integratepr.com