Atlanta Planning Thread

May 5, 2009 6:39 PM

Matt says we must pick a date and time between July 17 and July 19, so let us do so. And a location, too. If you've ideas, let them fly.

There's always Manuel's Tavern, the old stand-by. Or perhaps The Highlander? This is a party for all Atlanta MeFites, after all, so I want to know anywhere you want to go.

As for dates, July 18th?

posted by grabbingsand to Atlanta, GA at 6:39 PM (52 comments total)

I really want to come to this (and help plan it!). I'm around July 18th, so that date works for me. I think that we should do something more "festive" than Manuel's Tavern.

In the HIGHLANDS, I think that maybe afternoon or happy hour-ish drinks could be good there. But then we should go somewhere else for food. I also like The Righteous Room as a option for drinks (or Atkins Park ?).

Nearby food that is okay for large-ish (and rowdy-ish) parties, I got Zaya (greek / middle eastern), Surin (thai), Harry and Sons (Japanese + Thai).

Another option for the 10th anniversary is to do DECATUR (or even Oakhurst). We could drink (great beers, great whiskeys) at The Brick Store. We could head to Leon's for dinner. Or to Taqueria Del Sol though the line is long there. They can accommodate a largeish party but probably not more than 12-15. There's a new restaurant across the street from there. And then some late night bowling at Twain's?
posted by zpousman at 7:10 PM on May 5, 2009

Twains has pool and darts, not bowling.
posted by zpousman at 7:11 PM on May 5, 2009

I love The Brick Store with all of my heart. That's an excellent idea. And the food there is almost as great as the beer list. And with Twain's after for pool -- and more exceptional beer -- that's a win again.
posted by grabbingsand at 8:29 PM on May 5, 2009

I'm a bit edgy about Decatur locations, honestly. Parking is a pain in that area. The only place in Decatur I really like is the Thinking Man - primarily because it actually has decent parking and a good atmosphere.

I agree, we need something more festive than Manuels - Atkins would completely be my pick of choice. There's so much good food, and decent parking, and good booze there.

My vote date wise would be the 18th.
posted by strixus at 8:35 PM on May 5, 2009

My #1 choice would be Brick Store/Leon's/Twain's etc in Decatur (Tesoro is there too and parking near there is often a little better). I also like Atkins Park, but parking can also be tight there on weekends too so I think that might be a wash.
- We could also go a bit further down Highland towards Highland Tap.
- Midtown Promenade where Highlander, The Independent, and Frogs are strikes me as a possibility too. (and then we could all get pedicures at Ultimate Nails! wait, where did everybody go?
July 18 I think works for me. Thanks, grabbingsand for starting this thread.
posted by pointystick at 6:47 AM on May 6, 2009

I definitely think the Highland/Independent location has a lot going for it. Plenty of parking. Stiff drinks. And games to play (air hockey anyone?).

Dining options from Indian, to Thai, to Pizza, to Vietnamese, to Apres Diem (though I'm personally not a fan) also abound.

As for dates, that's my birthday weekend, so I may have a bit of schedule gymnastics to perform, but I'm definitely hoping I can make it whenever, but my personal preferences is the 19th.
posted by trox at 9:02 AM on May 6, 2009

Parking for Atkins Park is as problematic as parking at Brick Store, so if we're going that route, my vote is for Brick Store. The advantage of Midtown Promenade is the reasonably large parking lot, and there is no Piedmont Park festival that weekend, which helps a whole bunch for logistics.

My only quibble with Highlander - and it is a tiny one - is that indoors is smoky and I am allergic to cigarette smoke, but if it's a nice day we'd probably be on the patio anyway, yeah? And then, as trox says, people can either stick at Highlander or disperse off to one of the ten or more restaurants in Promenade.

plus I can walk there, which frees up a parking place for someone else
posted by catlet at 7:46 AM on May 7, 2009

I rather like the awesome burgers at The Vortex, but I dunno where the midtown one is in relation to parking and such. I'm out in the sticks near Douglasville, so I'll just keep an eye on this thread.
posted by Fleebnork at 8:18 PM on May 7, 2009

My preference is Brick Store or Twain's because of accessibility by MARTA. I am also in favor of the 18th.
posted by ijoshua at 7:36 AM on May 8, 2009

Five Seasons?
posted by nzero at 6:34 PM on May 8, 2009

The midtown Vortex isn't the best for parking, as it is right on Peachtree. Ah, if only it were still on Spring Street -- but it's not. The Little 5 Vortex is a local icon, but unless we're on the deck, there might not be enough room.

So it looks like we're divided between Decatur (Brick Store / Twain's) and Midtown (Highlander). Parking at both Midtown Promenade and Decatur Square (Brick Store) is particularly heinous, but Decatur has a municipal parking deck about a block away.

The Highlander is a great bar for what it is, but what it is not is a great place to meet and greet if weather keeps us indoors, particularly for the smoke averse among us. And while I love tater tots as much as anyone, a little food variety is worth having.

Others so far: Righteous Room - better food, okay parking unless there is Plaza Theatre event, but so very small. Twain's - decent parking, great microbrews, okay food, pool tables. Atkins Park Highlands - good food, decent parking.

And then there's The Thinking Man - I've not been there yet, but I've heard really good things (41 positive reviews on Yelp). I'm wondering if this might be the perfect place.

Can we go ahead and get a show of hands on a date? No votes so far for July 17th - so if you've a Friday leaning, speak now. July 18th, a Saturday, gives us a weekend evening without a work day the next morning. July 19th might work, provided we get the ball rolling earlier for those that might want to bail early. So maybe take your pick: July 18th at 8pm or July 19th at 6pm?
posted by grabbingsand at 8:35 AM on May 9, 2009

The Thinking Man is fantastic. I love that place.

What about the Vortex in Little 5 rather than the one in midtown? Its got really fantastic seating.
posted by strixus at 9:57 AM on May 9, 2009

I can do either 18th or 19th.
Midtown Promenade - Parking can be tricky, but free. Agreed on the food at Highlander not the best we have to choose from.
Atkins Park - tricky parking on weekends and maybe not so great for MARTAns but awesome food. Same with 5 Seasons too, I think.
If we can call ahead and get seating on deck at Little5 Vortex, that's sounds good (have done so with a big group and it worked well) but if not, I think you're right that we wouldn't fit. Not sure how it is for MARTAns.
Thinking Man- sounds good too. :)

Top pick is Brick Store/Twain's, but would go any of the suggested places. I am totally willing to defer to the people taking MARTA as I will carpool with neighbor catlet.
posted by pointystick at 8:20 PM on May 9, 2009

My top pick is Brick Store/Twains, but from my recall it's kind of hard to seat a bigger group at Brick Store. 5 Seasons can DEFINITELY seat all of us regardless of how many, and they can accommodate anyone with food allergies (I don't know if any of you have food allergies or SO's who might come with might have them - they are fantastic about even very complicated situations.)

5 Seasons can definitely seat us all; I, for one, am happy to offer a ride to anyone who needs a lift to/from Dunwoody MARTA station or whatever station is closest to the Prado (I believe it's Dunwoody, anyway). So, all that for, my final vote is 5 Seasons.
posted by Medieval Maven at 8:47 AM on May 10, 2009

Thinking man is great. Really like the food at there, and they have beer specials. Also would be up for Twains or Manuels (or Highlander as a distant forth). Not so much for Brick Store, Righteous Room or other, trendier and/or fancier venues. They're too small and not conducive for meetups. Especially on weekends.

Vortex means no parking and smoky venues, which appear to be a problem for some.

Any day is cool with me.
posted by jpburns at 5:12 PM on May 10, 2009

My ranked list (assuming 10-12-15 people, not 30): Leon's, Brick store (I bet we could take over the top floor belgian bar no problem), Thinking Man's, Then Highlander or another Midtown Promenade spot, Then Atkins Park of 5 seasons.

That said, I'll almost definitely attend, so whatever the team decides I'll be there.

I can also provide rides from intown locations to the selected venue. However, since I plan to drink, I'll probably cab it home (or get a ride from mrs. zpousman)...
posted by zpousman at 8:53 PM on May 10, 2009

The Vortex in Little 5 has very nice outdoor seating which I can attest does not hold smoke at all. Its also ALL 18+, which means no kids, end of story. A major plus in my opinion over many other places.
posted by strixus at 10:27 PM on May 10, 2009

Can people planning to take MARTA chime in? ijoshua's already said that's an issue, and Ziggy Zaga, will you be MARTAing as well?

I share zpousman's ranked list except that I'd swap Leon's and Thinking Man - not sure how easy it would be to seat a group of some size at Leon's. I prefer Decatur to an intown location.
posted by catlet at 12:38 PM on May 11, 2009

If MARTA is a deal-breaker -- and I understand if it is -- then Little 5 Points is probably off the list, unless folks are steely-of-will and ready to study the latest bus schedules.

Taking over the top floor of The Brick Store might be a fine way to go. We'd need to be there a touch earlier for a Saturday, maybe 6pm, but nothing says we couldn't do so. And it is just around the corner from the Decatur MARTA station. Is it trendy? Not too much so, but even if it is, they've have a great menu and an amazing beer selection. Be as posh as you want, so long as I can have my Left Hand Milk Stout on draft.

I can't recall if Twain's is as immediately MARTA-accessible. (Want an annoying/amusing experience? Google "MARTA Twain's"). Same question goes for Thinking Man.
posted by grabbingsand at 1:26 PM on May 11, 2009

Twains is easy to get to from the Decatur Marta Station. It's about 5 minutes at a (drunken) stroll. Thinking Man's is going to take a bit of carpooling... It's about 15 minutes from the square, near college ave / dekalb ave (it's actually McDounough through Decatur). Thinking man is actually closer to the East Lake station, but it's not a 2 minute walk from there either.

That said, Thinking Man has the best club sandwich I've ever eaten. So there's that. They have a nice beer selection and *plenty* of room. There's an outdoor patio, too, but it's a little bit concrete (no trees!).

I can go either way on the Thinking Man's / Brick Store debate. And I'm happy make a pickup at Marta if we go to Thinking Man's.
posted by zpousman at 2:12 PM on May 11, 2009

MARTA is not a deal-breaker for me; all of the places from Little 5 to Decatur are close enough to my home. I have never been to Leon's or Thinking Man's. I'm in favor of either of those.
posted by ijoshua at 7:17 PM on May 11, 2009

I'm in favor of anywhere, at this point, that will not be a nightmare with (apparently) 7 to ~20 people. I love Brick Store but it's the size of shoe box and does not favor big parties, IMHO.
posted by Medieval Maven at 6:16 PM on May 12, 2009

I am not familiar with any of these places...I don't get out much and generally eschew the city.

Time/day don't matter, MARTA access would be preferable but not mandatory.
posted by Ziggy Zaga at 8:02 AM on May 13, 2009

It's looking more and more like The Thinking Man is the place to be.

For those seeking a decent brew selection, BeerAdvocate gives it a B+. For those who are MARTA-dependent, we can set up a list of folks available to call-for-pickup from the East Lake or Decatur MARTA Stations.

So can I get a show of hands? Who's cool with hitting The Thinking Man around 7pm on July 18?

(Of course, as your relatively fearless organizer, I am still open to suggestions.)
posted by grabbingsand at 4:58 PM on May 13, 2009

Ziggy:

Why eschew the city? What's it ever done to you?

Thinking man is an easy walk from East Lake Marta station. It's 1/2 a mile. Maybe a 10 minute walk.

It's great choice.
posted by jpburns at 6:05 PM on May 13, 2009

seeing as you're my ride, I'm down. 7pm. July 18. The Thinking Man.
posted by Medieval Maven at 6:24 PM on May 13, 2009

I'm late, but I'm in for thinking man on July 18th. Just gotta figure out where it is. :)
posted by MsLgean at 8:12 PM on May 13, 2009

Thinking Man ftw. Date and time sound good to me as well.
posted by strixus at 11:39 PM on May 13, 2009

Can do thinking man at that date and time. Can also ferry people from MARTA if necessary.
posted by pointystick at 5:48 AM on May 14, 2009

Date/time/place work for me, too. Woot!
posted by catlet at 7:57 AM on May 14, 2009

Making it official then. Awesome.
posted by grabbingsand at 7:06 PM on May 14, 2009

Curses. Being exact about the location has confused the Google Map. Let me see if I can get this fixed.
posted by grabbingsand at 7:10 PM on May 14, 2009

I think I fixed up the problem, grabbingsand. Technically the meetup is in Decatur, so that was confusing things a bit. It should be set now.
posted by pb at 7:12 PM on May 14, 2009

Argh. I'm late to this thread! My old scooter comrades meet weekly at Thinking Man for YEARS, and I abhor the place (mostly because of the emotional baggage). But I'll do my best to attend despite that mess. Hooray for meetups. And for what it's worth, the walk from East Lake Station to Thinking Man is pretty short and easy.

Pousman, I realize you were the DJ for the comedy night/burlesque dealie at 529 a couple months back, right? I flaked on making the connection and saying hi properly. So, um, HI!
posted by sadiehawkinstein at 1:43 PM on May 15, 2009

Ziggy:

Why eschew the city? What's it ever done to you?
posted by jpburns at 9:05 PM on May 13 [!]

Terrible things, friendo. Terrible things.

I'm remaining tentative about this meetup; I'm about to go back to school and have a messy breakup and I have no idea where I'm going to be living or what my schedule will be like that far out.

Further bulletins as events warrant.
posted by Ziggy Zaga at 2:52 PM on May 15, 2009

I will attempt to confer with Mrs. Megafly as to her desire to visit with some "internet" people.
posted by Megafly at 1:07 PM on May 20, 2009

When I mentioned this to Ms. TAL (the organized one) she put it on the calendar, so I'm certain we'll manage to be there (barring, say, catastrophic illness or the like..)
posted by Tuesday After Lunch at 2:44 PM on May 22, 2009

Should be there.
posted by arimathea at 1:48 PM on June 30, 2009

Made a phone call today. The Thinking Man Tavern knows we're coming and says they'll be ready for us. All is in readiness. So on and so forth.
posted by grabbingsand at 6:41 PM on July 6, 2009

May have to not be there. Got bad news about my fiance's grandmother today. Will know more tomorrow.
posted by strixus at 6:51 PM on July 14, 2009

Last minute update, but I won't be able to make it. :(

'til next time...
posted by Ziggy Zaga at 9:33 PM on July 17, 2009

So it sounds like we have 6 or 7 for tonight, right?
posted by arimathea at 11:03 AM on July 18, 2009

Oh gosh, I hope it's more than that!
posted by catlet at 11:09 AM on July 18, 2009

I just changed from 'maybe' to 'attending' so add one more.
posted by hydrobatidae at 11:22 AM on July 18, 2009

Me too. Can we get a list of people who are for sure attending?

Right now I have:
catlet
grabbingsand
hydrobatidae
MsLgean
pointystick
jpburns
Medieval Maven

Maybes:
Tuesday After Lunch + Ms.
sadiehawkinstein
ijoshua
zpousman
nzero
trox
arimathea
posted by arimathea at 11:36 AM on July 18, 2009

Well, there are 17 on the RSVP page for yes, so let's hope. :)
posted by catlet at 12:01 PM on July 18, 2009

Doh, thanks. I'm with stupid, and didn't see that.
posted by arimathea at 12:34 PM on July 18, 2009

I told Thinking Man that we'd be rolling in about 15 to 20 folks. Seems about right.

And to make things easier, I'll be sporting an official MeFi shirt, thus allowing anyone to step right in and say, "Hey, that logo looks familiar." Debating with myself whether the practicality of nametags outweighs the dork-icality of nametags.
posted by grabbingsand at 1:41 PM on July 18, 2009

I have some removable address labels in my purse should anyone desire a nametag (because #1, am a giant dork, and #2, read better than I hear in noisy places [for purposes of future Blatcher-esque enspousing contact-making]).
posted by catlet at 1:54 PM on July 18, 2009

I’m planning to be there, and may bring along a couple friends who are on the fence.
posted by ijoshua at 2:11 PM on July 18, 2009

I am definitely still coming. Yay for a shirt because I was starting to wonder how I'd identify anyone.
posted by MsLgean at 2:19 PM on July 18, 2009

This was a lot of fun. Thanks, all! I'll be happy to use up a question getting in ID on that critter, once pics are put up somewhere.
posted by ewagoner at 10:24 PM on July 18, 2009