Some of my favorite events for finding cool and unique gifts have to be the ICE (Indie Craft Experience) summer and fall shows. With birthdays, weddings, graduation, and other occasions to shop for - check out this 2-day event that features over 75 craft vendors, music, food trucks, and more!
Details: Sat/Sun 6/8-9 11am-6pm. $5 entry. First 250 entrants each day get an exclusive swag bag!
If there is anything Atlantans love more than live music, it’s great food and beer to go along with live music! Yet another killer combination for this year’s annual Red Stripe Midsummer Music and Food Festival in Candler Park. Better still - the music is FREE!
Details: 6/14-15 - Candler Park. FREE!
790 The Zone is hosting some of the best acts around including tunes by local artists Coy Bowles (of Zac Brown Band), Reynolds & Williams Band, Neil Cribbs, Stokeswood, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, The Soul Rebels, The Whiskey Gentry and Connor Christian & Southern Gothic.
Favorite local food trucks and artist market will be on hand both days, with a 5K on Saturday.
Great music, great food and another fun way to spend your time with family and friends in Atlanta.
As chef and restauranteur Ford Fry opens more dining concepts around Atlanta, it’s easy to focus on the new and forget the places that put him on the culinary map in our city. JCT Kitchen & Bar is in my opinion the crown jewel in his list of amazing restaurants in Atlanta and with a new chef revamping the menu, we’re seeing a new version of a classic dining spot.
Meet E.J. Hodgkinson, the new (as of January) Executive Chef at JCT Kitchen & Bar. E.J. was most recently the sous chef at Woodfire Grill working under Top Chef finalist Kevin Gillespie and caught the attention of Fry when attending culinary events around town.
There will be some things that never really change on the menu, including diner favorites like the fried chicken, but be on the look out for a new ‘Bites’ section with tasty little starter dishes like the Strawberries and Avocado and the Peekytoe Crab with Hushpuppies. So refreshing and taste like summer!
Chef Hodgkinson was enthusiastic about connecting with purveyors of locally and regionally sourced cheeses to offer diners and the addition of raw oysters to the menu. The locations from where the oysters are from will rotate, but there will always be both east coast and west coast offerings.
The appetizers are classic southern - be sure to try their Deviled Eggs, ‘Angry’ Mussels and the Truffle-Parmesan Fries, which are some of the best in town. The entrees can lean toward the heavy since since it is upscale southern cuisine at it’s finest, but there are definitely light options to be found. I really enjoyed the Wood Grilled 1/2 Chicken and their Country Ham & Arugula Salad is a must-get.
For dessert, there is an array of classics that will change seasonally, but the one I enjoyed the most was the Fried Blueberry Pies with a Malted Vanilla Shake. So good!
Some cool events happening during the week include their Sunday Suppers each Sunday from 5-9pm, which is described as a ‘Fancy Meat & Three’ for $24pp. Also, live music is also a big part of the venue, with ‘jam sessions’ in the bar each Wednesday and scheduled performances Thursday-Saturday evenings.
Now that the summer weather is starting to heat up Atlanta again, a great time after work is to hang out at the JCT bar upstairs, enjoy a craft beer or signature cocktail, bar bites, and some cool live music with friends.
So with the flood of shiny and new restaurants coming into Atlanta, don’t forget some of the best gems have been around for some time now - including JCT Kitchen & Bar.
The Atlanta Summer Beer Fest is coming up in June! 150+ beers, live music on two stages, fun and games!
Details: Sat 6/22 4-9pm at Masquerade. $35+ ($45 on Sat)
One of the best things about summer in Atlanta is all the fun movie screening events! From blockbusters to classics, there are so many ways to get your movie fix - including the annual Coca-Cola Summer Film Festival at the historic Fox Theatre!
Beat the heat and enjoy gorgeous setting that is the Fox Theatre and screenings can be about a fun time with family, a date night or friends enjoying a night out. Come early for the sing-alongs with the famous “Mighty Mo” organ and enjoy a vintage cartoon before the show.
Details: $8.50 pre-sale for adult movie tix ($10 after 6/1), $7.50 for kids. Buy tix here.
2013 Movie schedule:
Friday, June 14th 7:30pm - Raiders of the Lost Ark
Saturday, June 15th 10am - Saturday Morning Cartoons
Saturday, June 15th 7:30pm - Oz, The Great and Powerful
Friday, June 21st 7:30pm - 42
Saturday, June 22nd 2pm (Matinee) - Finding Nemo
Saturday, June 22nd 7:30pm - Les Miserables
Sunday, June 23 4pm - The Birds (50th Anniversary)
Friday, July 26th 7:30pm - Django Unchained
Saturday July 27th 6pm - The Croods
Sunday July 28th 4pm - Lawrence of Arabia
Saturday August 17th 10am - Saturday Morning Cartoons
Sunday August 18th 4pm - Breakfast at Tiffany’s
You haven’t seen a movie in Atlanta until you have seen one at The Fox Theatre!!
Another fun music event is coming up soon - Party in the Park! This one-day music event is being held in Centennial Olympic Park and will feature performances by Passion Pit, Ellie Goulding, GroupLove, The Electric Suns, and Yeasayer.
Details: Sat 5/18 3-11pm. $35+.
The event is being held rain or shine and attendees can bring blankets, Soft-backed collapsible chairs and personal umbrellas. No pets, coolers, alcohol, or bags - but you will be able to enjoy delicious eats and drinks from Googie Burger! Come on our and enjoy an afternoon (and evening!) in downtown Atlanta!
I love all the local festivals around Atlanta and one you shouldn’t miss is the Virginia-Highland Summerfest! This neighborhood in Atlanta is home to some of my favorite restaurants and shops in town. Add to the mix great live music, artist booths and a kids area - you have a party!
Details: Saturday, June 1st & Sunday, June 2nd 10am start. FREE!!
If you are a fan of the area or have never been before, this is the weekend for you! Summerfest features live music both days. Music line-up TBD
The artists market will have more than 200 vendors from across the country will be featured and is not to be missed! Dad’s day is coming up, or just get some early Christmas shopping done!
For the fit and families, there is a 5K run/walk on Saturday at 8am ($30 reg) and afterwards a Tot Trot ($10) for kids to walk/crawl/run/waddle their way to the finish at Inman Middle School. Advance registration required, sign up here.
There will also be a KidsFest at John Howell Park on Sat (10am-5pm) and Sun (noon-5pm). Lots of fun music and art activities - the theme this year is ‘Wild Animal Safari’.
Note: Parking is already tough in the VaHi area, so if you can take MARTA, that would be great, or be on the lookout for paid lots or approved street parking.
This event is a great excuse to explore the Virginia Highlands area - so mark the dates on your calendar for a fun, free, family friendly festival in the heart of Atlanta!
Atlanta is a town filled with amazing chefs, great restaurants and an abundance of fantastic locally grown ingredients including - tomatoes! In celebration of local farmers and their ties to local dining, JCT.Kitchen and Bar hosts their Fifth Annual Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival this July!
Details: Sun 7/21 1-5pm at JCT Kitchen. $55+.
This annual event has a rock star line-up of local chefs and mixologists who are paired up with local farmers to create amazing dishes and signature drinks to benefit a great cause - Georgia Organics.
The festivities this year also will include food writer, stylist and photographer Angie Mosier and registered dietician, author and food journalist Carolyn O’Neil as co-masters of ceremonies, as well as live entertainment from The Spazmatics and local chef band Five Bone Rack.
So be sure to get your tickets now for this event. There are only 1,400 available and sell out quickly! All ticket prices will increase to $70 per person starting Monday, July 1.
One of my favorite weekend escapes in Atlanta has to be a trip to Oakland Cemetery paired with friends, food and some tasty brews. Not just any cemetery, Oakland is a gorgeous historical space with lush landscaping and a great way to dive head first into Atlanta’s history. One of their new signature events is coming up that you will want to check out - Oakland’s 3nd Annual Tunes From The Tombs!
Details: Saturday, June 8. 1pm-8pm. $10+. Get tix here.
This special one-day event features two main stages that will host amplified artists, while buskers will perform on distinct vignette stages throughout the cemetery. All genres of music will be represented; rock, folk, Americana, jazz, classical, and everything in between. Bring a lawn chair or blanket and stretch out under the gorgeous trees in the park while you enjoy this special outdoor concert experience.
Creative Loafing Lion Square Stage
6:15pm - Blair Crimmins and the Hookers – New Orleans roots/Americana/swing
5pm – 4th Ward Afro Klezmer Orchestra – jazz
4pm - The Bonaventure Quartet (featuring Amy Pike) – jazz/swing
3pm – Bird City Revolutionaries – reggae
2pm – The Breeze Kings - blues
1pm - Caroline and the Ramblers – rockabilly
Scoutmob North Public Grounds Stage
6:30pm – Rod Hamdallah – blues/rockabilly
5:30pm – Slim Chance and the Convicts – Americana/alt.country
4:30pm – The Deadfields - Americana
3:30pm – Rolling Nowhere – Americana/alt.country/roots rock
2:30pm - Little Country Giants – folk/Americana
1:30pm – Spanky and the Love Handles – New Orleans delta blues
Other performances throughout Oakland on smaller vignette stages:
Wasted Potential Brass Band – jazz / standards / busking & stage
6pm - Atlanta Sacred Harp Singers – shape note singing
Tunes From The Tombs will feature bands and musicians from Atlanta, Georgia and beyond, just not the ‘great beyond’.
After the show, wander over the local fave Six Feet Under and indulge in some of their fantastic food and brews! Other great spots around there include Ria’s Bluebird for a killer breakfast, Mi Barrio for a tasty Mexican lunch/dinner and Octane + Little Tart Bakery for coffee and decadent pastries.
A fantastic way to enjoy some amazing music, learn about Atlanta’s history and all proceeds benefit the upkeep of this important historical landmark.
A great way to kick off a spring and summer filled with fun theater and musical events in Atlanta has to be Broadway Atlanta’s production this week of Sister Act at the Fox Theatre!
Details: 4/23-28 at the Fox Theatre. $59+.
Based on the ‘90s cult film starring Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg, ‘Sister Act’ follows Deloris Van Cartier, a wannabe singer who after witnessing a crime, has had her life turned upside down. From her glamorous and high-rolling ways as a club diva, she was forced to embrace a life of piety, prayer, asceticism and worship. Though it seemed like she had a hard time fitting in at first, her newly gained sister friends, including the initially suspicious Mother Superior, gave her plenty of reasons to turn her sister act into more than a mere disguise, but as a way of seeing and doing things differently and this time, with a higher and better purpose.
Plan a fun night out with friends or as a date night in Midtown. Dinner and a show never goes out of style, especially with all the great restaurants in the area like The Livingston, Proof & Provision, Baraonda and more. Amen!
