It's Hard to Believe this was Decatur Just 6 Years Ago.

Decatur Ga square in 2009

From the founders of Decatur’s The Pinewood comes Mercury!

 Coming to Ponce City Market in late 2015.
From: http://atlantaeats.com/

By : by Krista Miller

From the founders of Decatur’sThe Pinewood comes Mercury! Brooks Cloud, Julian Goglia, and Mike Blydenstein will be opening The Mercury, a cocktail-focused, classic American eatery, at Ponce City Market in late 2015. Inspired by the culture of the 1960’s, the restaurant will offer updated takes on Mid-Century American cuisine and classic cocktails. Cloud, Goglia, and Blydenstein are familiar faces on the Atlanta dining scene, as they are the team behind The Pinewood in Decatur and Proof Old Fashioned Cocktail Syrup.

The menu will be updated Classic American with a raw bar, steaks and seasonally influenced entrees. Julian will develop a cocktail program that harkens to the mid-century cocktail scene. He will even be bringing back cocktail hour, a la Mad Men.

On Tuesday, Jun 9th Mercury will be asking for their future patrons to help out by launching a Kickstarter. If you would like to help out and get those cocktails even quicker, you can donate directly here. Check out this video.

Decatur's Big Pop Up is Tonight

 From The Decatur Minute
by Catherine

Head over to East Decatur Station between 6 and 9 p.m. tonight for Decatur’s biggest little festival of art, crafts, jewelry, music, local brews, food and fun. For a full list of events and vendors, visit the Big Pop Up Facebook page.
If you aren’t from the Decatur area and need to Google Map the event, enter: 111 New St., Decatur, GA 30030.
See you there!

Slide the City Tickets on Sale Wednesday June 10

 Photo credit slide the city website.
 From thedecaturminute.com 
In celebration of the 30^th anniversary of the Decatur Business Association, the DBA along with the City of Decatur has decided to shake up our traditional summer event, the Decatur Beach Party, and make a huge SPLASH this summer. For one day only, there will be a 1000 foot long water slide in the middle of W. Ponce de Leon Ave, stetching from Clairemont down just past Ponce de Leon Place.
This amazing event is produced a by a professional event company called Slide the City which has brought this wild slide to cities such as Salt Lake City, Boise, Fountain Hills, and Ft. Lauderdale.  Decatur will be the only metro Atlanta city to host this event which will bring Decatur thousands of visitors and tons of foot traffic.

Tickets go on sale Wednesday, June 10th at 9am EST through the Slide the City website. This is the only place where tickets can be purchased.  Only a limited number of tickets will be sold for this event.

Note: only 6000 tickets will be sold for this Decatur event.

“Junior Police Academy” Hosted by The Decatur Police Dept.

From: http://thedecaturminute.com/
The Decatur Police Department will be hosting a “Junior Police Academy” during the week of June 22nd-26th, 2015. Class times will be from 9:00 am- 5:00 pm each day. This program is designed to educate and enlighten youth about the functions and duties of their police department.  Attendees will participate in fun and educational exercises designed to simulate real law enforcement activities as well as learn about personal safety and crime prevention.
The class will be limited to 12 participants who are 11-14 years old.  Preference will be given to city residents and students who attend schools in the city.
learn more about this here.
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photo credit: I did something like this when I was a kid. It was fun, I thought I was Joe Friday.

Southern Living's - The Grumpy Gardener's Guide to Awesome Lawn Care

- http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/gardens/how-to-fertilize-lawn-video

Waffle House Construction underway at Old Decatur Belk Department Store Building

 In my research on the building, I found a circa 1948 photo  showing the front side of Belk-Gallant Co. which shows the original brick front with 3 large windows on second floor,(now Eddie's Attic) In the late 1950's Belk-Gallant redesigned the front entrance making a larger entrance walk-in area with surrounding windows.
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From the June Decatur Focus:

Construction on the Waffle House at 515 N. McDonough St. is underway.  Waffle House and the property owner agreed to work with us to remove the false facade and expose the original brick building if possible.  We found that all of the brick had been removed on the lower floor but plan to do more exploratory work on the second floor to see if brick still exists under the large stucco covering currently in place.
The building was originally a Belk’s department store and a version of the stucco second floor covering appears in photos dating back to the late 1950s or early ’60s.  We will continue to work with the property owners to find option for creating a more appealing treatment for the front of the building.

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 Here is a photo of the floor tile that is still there today.

 Interesting note in top photo: If you look close on right side bottom window you can see a reflection of a Decatur Cab Co.
I thought that was cool.

Wild Oats and Billy Goats 5th Anniversary

From The Decatur Minute
Wild Oats and Billy Goats is celebrating its 5th Anniversary in full folk art funky style on Saturday, June 6.

11 a.m.-9 p.m.: Sale on select artwork

noon-7 p.m.: Goat petting zoo

noon, 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m. & 6 p.m.: Soap making demo by Hope Floats Farm

2 p.m.: Puppet show by All Hands Productions

3 p.m.: Cake cutting and raffle winners announced.

112 E. Ponce de Leon Ave.
Decatur, GA 30030

404-378-4088

Restaurant News: New Menu and New Hours for No. 246

h/t  to Daniel for sendng this in. Thanks Bro

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Here is a little info about No. 246 from their website.

The name no. 246 reflects the original name of the plot of land on which the restaurant sits, dating back to the early 1900s. The no. 246 dining experience is influenced by seasonality and local products as well as the culinary techniques of Italy.

Like all of Ford Fry’s restaurants, no. 246 focuses on seasonal cooking with high-quality ingredients — letting the food speak for itself. Belline is an Atlanta native who has worked at Charlie Palmer’s Kitchen 22 and Tom Colicchio’s Craft in New York as well as Quinones at Bacchanalia and Floataway Café in Atlanta. As the executive chef-partner of no. 246 as well as Ford Fry’s Creative Director, he created a menu of Italian-inspired cuisine that is composed of local, farm fresh ingredients and utilizes simple wood-fired cooking techniques.

“Culinary trends in the Southeast have been very meat-centric, but we’re trying to make the food at no. 246 more about vegetables and dishes that guests can eat every day,” Drew says. “The menu is driven by what local producers have to offer.”

129 E PONCE DE LEON AVE DECATUR GA 30030

TEL: 678 399 8246

Eye on Decatur

The Unsafe building at 102 Fifth Ave

 From: http://thedecaturminute.com

Making a Safer Oakhurst – the Demolition of 102 Fifth Avenue

The building at 102 Fifth Ave. has been in an unsafe condition for a long while. For this reason, the City will be demolishing the building starting on June 1, 2015.

This building has had several uses over the years. Most may know it as the recent home of the Tabernacle of God Missionary Holiness Church. The Church no longer uses the building and no longer has the financial resources to provide proper maintenance. The City became involved last year when it was determined that the structure was abandoned and generally unsafe. The process used to handle situations such as this is known as nuisance abatement. This process has lead to the City’s plan to demolish the building.
read more about it here

photo credit goggle maps

Twain's Pub Acquires Suburban Bowling Lanes

 

From: http://www.twains.net/
Twain’s is Going BOWLING!

Plans are to provide an entertaining and engaging atmosphere for all ages that includes a modern bowling experience and other social games for all skill levels and interests.

 

GREAT NEWS from Twain’s Brewpub & Billiards:
Twain’s Brewpub & Billiards is happy to announce that we have acquired the former Suburban Lanes, and plan to reopen the space in the fall of 2015 after a much needed remodel in true Twain’s style. The bowling alley has been a longstanding fixture in Decatur and we look forward to carrying it into the next phase of its history as a funky bowling center that recreational bowlers and league enthusiasts will love.

Plans are to provide an entertaining and engaging atmosphere for all ages that includes a modern bowling experience and other social games for all skill levels and interests. We will offer a vibrant food and beverage program featuring craft beers, a full bar, hand tossed pizza, burgers and plates designed for sharing.  As at Twain’s we will be committed to using locally sourced goods whenever it’s possible.

We are excited to be bringing the metro area a new and soon to be favorite place for hanging with friends and family, enjoying the camaraderie, with the great food and beers that you have come to expect from the folks at Twain’s. Come join us in the fall, see the changes, feel the excitement! We look forward to serving you in the fall!

Cheers!

Summer at The Rock

 Summer at the Rock includes adventure and excitement for every member of the family.

    Photo credit: Flickr member Ron Mayhew

 From: https://www.stonemountainpark.com
From fun-filled attractions to special summer entertainment and the nightly Lasershow Spectacular in Mountainvision®, it’s the perfect destination for you and your family to unplug and reconnect this summer.
Experience all of Stone Mountain Park’s exciting attractions daily during Summer at the Rock. Challenge yourself on SkyHike, the nation’s largest family adventure course, or cool off and play in the spray on Geyser Towers…the adventures are endless! Plus, there’s entertainment and activities fun for the whole family!
Be sure to stay into the evening for the Lasershow Spectacular in Mountainvision®, showing nightly during Summer at the Rock, and now with more lights, more lasers and more music! State-of-the-art graphics and awe-inspiring effects create multi-dimensional magic on one of the world's largest outdoor screens - Stone Mountain.

Eye on Decatur - Agnes Scott Dana Fine Arts Building

Doggy Dogg Coming to old Las Brasas Spot

From: http://clatl.com/omnivore
James Hammerl is in the dogg house, or, at least he's 'bout to be. The proprietor of the popular Doggy Dogg weiner carts has a brick-and-mortar hot dog joint in the works.

Hammerl tells CL that after touring Atlanta with his decked out wiener carts for the last four years, he is planning to open the first-ever stationary Doggy Dogg outpost in the former home of shuttered Peruvian chicken rotisserie Las Brasas (310 E. Howard Ave.) in Decatur. (Las Brasas, is in the process of relocating to 614 Church St. and hopes to open in July.) Meanwhile, Hammerl's hot dog carts will continue to make their farmers market appearances.

Doggy Dogg's ingredients are preservative free and sourced locally (most sausages are from the Spotted Trotter). Buns come from Holeman and Finch, including a gluten-free option. Hammerl plans to serve ten or so items such has the signature Doxie, a dog topped with with sauerkraut and a dark-ale German mustard, and the Saigon Slinger with hot pickled vegetables and cilantro mayo.

Doggy Dogg will have take-away lunch six days a week and dinner every night. The late night window will be open Fridays and Saturdays. Projected opening is June. Look for a pretty cool mural by Kyle Brooks (Black Cat Tips) to grace the bright white sides of the building. More information as it becomes available can be found at www.doggydoggatl.com.

The Decatur Arts Festival Photos

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  Joe Stark of Baby Bee performs at The Decatur Arts Festival on Saturday

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Don't Get Me Wrong - The Pretenders

Kick off the Decatur Arts Festival with Artwalk Friday May 22

 All around Decatur • Free and open to the public

Friday, May 22 • 5-10 pm

 From: decaturartsfestival.com

Beer will be on sale at East Court Square so drop by to visit beer sponsors Red Brick and Starr Hill, plus local brewers Three Taverns, Wild Heaven, Blue Tarp, and Twain’s.

Kick off the Decatur Arts Festival with the city’s largest one-night gallery event – now with a DJ and fire twirler! See exhibits at 20 shops, galleries, and restaurants and enjoy complimentary snacks and drinks.Pick up a free map card at any ArtSpot or see all the locations online here.
more http://decaturartsfestival.com/festival-events/artwalk-2/

DISH DIVE Now Open for Lunch

 From: http://www.dishdivekitchen.com/#about
DISH DIVE is a new restaurant located in KIRKWOOD.  Owned and operated by Chef Travis Carroll & Jeff Myers.  We have a 16 seat dining room.  AND, now have 16 additional seats on our patio.  In our kitchen, we have 3 tiny refrigerators.  We start everyday at the market buying fresh food.  Our goal is to sell out every day.  So join us before the line out the door begins.
WE NOW TAKE RESERVATIONS. 
DELIVERY!!!   www.thefastfooddude.com

 DISH DIVE is located at 2233 College Ave. N.E. Atlanta, GA 30317
photo credit : https://www.facebook.com

As David Letterman retires, fans hope Jay Leno will appear on final ‘Late Show’

From: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/fans-hope-jay-leno-show-letterman-article-1.2228100
 SAY IT ain’t nay, Jay!

It remains unclear whether David Letterman’s longtime foil Jay Leno will help the gap-toothed comic sign off for the last time Wednesday night.

You can’t help late-night TV fans — including this critic — for wanting the kind of closure that a Leno appearance would provide.

The late-night warhorses who fought for so long against each other — Leno at “The Tonight Show” from 1992-2014 and Letterman at “The Late Show” from 1993 until Wednesday — don’t hang out. They don’t go for drives in one of Leno’s 700 cars.

But they are forever linked in American entertainment history, like two men who served in the same elite television army unit.

They rose to prominence in the L.A. comedy scene in the late 1970s, reaching the pinnacle of TV acceptance with appearances on Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show.”

This Week-end is the Decatur Arts Festival. - Sat. May 23 -Sun. May 24

From: http://decaturartsfestival.com/festival-events/
Downtown Decatur comes alive on Memorial Day weekend for the annual Decatur Arts Festival. The festival takes over downtown, extending from the Decatur Recreation Center to the downtown square, including East and West Ponce de Leon Avenue, Clairemont Avenue and the Dalton Gallery at Agnes Scott College.

This year’s festival will be bursting with artful opportunities and events — artist market, live musical performances, improvisational and stand-up comedy, a children’s festival and parade, literary events, dance performances and more.

Break in on South Candler between E. Davis St. and Green St.

 One way or another, they were coming in.

 

From Nan Norton on  Oakhurst Neighborhood Association facebook page.
Hi all - just a heads up that my house was broken into last Monday during the day when I was at work.
 I'm on S. Candler between E. Davis and Green St, near the bike path. Same old story - took laptop and tv. In and out very quickly. Pushed in a window from back deck (no glass broken) after unsuccessfully attempting to pry the window up and smash open a french door with a rock.
 One way or another, they were coming in, so I don't have any advice for prevention. However, I will say, if you kinda sorta think you've got your photos or anything you care about on your laptop backed up but aren't really absolutely sure, take a moment and make sure.
 Photo credit:http://blog.monitronics.com

The Black Sheep Ensemble at The 2015 Decatur Lantern Parade

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Decatur Lantern Parade Photos

The annual Decatur Lantern Parade kicked off at 9:00 PM on the dot at the Color Wheel Studio on E. Howard Ave. with music provided by the Black Sheep Ensemble.
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--The star in this photo is the little girl in orange shirt out front, she was marching to the music. Loved it.

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 To see more photos go here https://www.flickr.com/photos/24391992@N00/sets/72157650682260714

Welcome to Wayward Pines - A new FOX Series

Kirkwood Spring Fling May 16 - Looks Like Fun

From: http://www.kirkwoodfling.com/
The Spring Fling takes place in Bessie Branham Park in the heart of historic Kirkwood, 2051 Delano Drive.  Check out the music line-up
MARTA

The closest MARTA station is East Lake. The walk from the station to Bessie Branham is about half a mile (15 minutes), or you can ride the bus over to the park.

Parking

Parking is available on the streets around the festival. There are also designated lots located at Israel Baptist Church (2071 Hosea Williams Drive) including the lot behind the church building, as well as the empty grass lot at the corner of Norwood Avenue and Hosea Williams Drive.


Saturday, May 16
10am – 10pm
Bessie Branham Park
2051 Delano Drive NE, 30317