Looking Forward to Beer Festivals This Year

I thoroughly enjoyed myself going to the Winter Beer Carnival in February, 2011. I am now starting to look into all of the different festivals that I might be able to enjoy this year. I am looking at the Winter Beer Festival put on by Atlanta Beer Festivals. It takes place at the Masquerade and looks to be a great time. I am hoping that I will be able to get the super cheap $25 tickets by being among the first in line. The first 250 people get the tickets at this discounted rate. Should not be too hard to get that, but you never know.

To all of you hopheads out there who scoff at the idea of beer festivals being a summer thing, my hat is off to you. I feel the crisp air is the perfect thing for when you have had one too many hops in the belly and you are starting to heat up. I only wish that there were more festivals which happened throughout the winter here in Georgia.

A note about the food: I want to see more food of a better quality in the future. The hand dipped corn dogs were nice at the Winter Beer Carnival, but all of the rest of the food left something to be desired. Food got too cold too fast and lacked the hearty flavor I would expect from winter fare. Up the ante with some jalapeño stuffed sausages or maybe some hot pretzels with horseradish mustard dipping sauce. Bring the HEAT!

Anyone on staff for the beer festivals during the winter or throughout the year can feel free to contact me. I would love to get as much information as possible to report about these wonderful events so that I can post them here. Naturally, free passes for me and my lovely wife are always appreciated! I look forward to seeing everyone at the pouring stations!

Save Candler Park Golf Course

The city of Atlanta has many great traditions which should be preserved when they are good for the community and discarded when no longer needed. There is a current problem where the Parks and Recreation department is looking to eliminate one of the public golf courses in the city. Candler Park Golf Course is in trouble of being shut down because it is being dubbed as “not profitable enough”. This is a terrible reason to get rid of something which helps beginners to get started with golf in a less intimidating environment as well as a place where golf enthusiasts can get away for a relaxing 9 holes of golf.

Those who are familiar with the course feel that efforts can be better served in improving the golf course rather than shutting it down. This is why the Friends of Candler Park Golf Course has been making an effort to change the mind of those trying to shut down the golf course. If you are so inclined, you can learn more by visiting sites.google.com/site/focpgc or by contacting me directly at brianbedell@gmail.com.

I have recently obtained permission from Edwin Watts Golf on Piedmont Road to provide merchandise which can be raffled to help promote the golf course and to try to raise money. The first raffle will be help shortly and will include the use of recovered balls from the course which will be stamped with a serial number. The drawing will choose one of these numbers and the winning number will win the prize.

Additional efforts will be made to have a tournament on the course and other promotional affairs. Every effort will be made to help in making sure that the city realizes how beloved Candler Park Golf Course is to the golfers and to the community. I encourage all golfers and those living in the community to reach out to those in control of this decision making process to let them know what you think.

If you are interested in writing a letter to those who can weigh in with more influence, the suggested people include:

·         Mayor Kasim Reed, City of Atlanta

·         Senator Jason Carter

·         Alex Wan, City of Atlanta Council District 6

·         George Dusenbury, City of Atlanta Parks & Recreation

·         Walt Rey, Park Pride Director of Park Visioning

Any questions or comments about this issue are welcomed and I will be sure to post them here for the consideration of all. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you out at Candler Park Golf Course soon!

Having Fun Playing Golf at Candler Park

Second Hole

There are few things more enjoyable than getting up early in the morning to play golf. Most of us are willing to get up earlier than you are for work or other kinds of obligations so that you can get first crack at the fairway and so that you will be able to beat the afternoon heat. This is exactly what I did when I was playing at Candler Park Golf Course the other day.

The Candler Park Golf Course is a 9-hole walking course in Atlanta, GA. It is steps from Little 5 Points in the Candler Park neighborhood. The greens fees are very reasonable at $10 for gameplay on the weekdays and $14 for playing on the weekends. The variations in elevation can be a bit of a challenge even though it is still a good course for those still beginning.

Seventh Hole

I have taken my son to Candler Park Golf Course on a few different occasions and it is a lot of fun to know that you are right next to a thriving metropolis while still being able to enjoy the nature and the beautiful vistas. The main thing that you will need to make sure of is that you are ready to get in a good hike. This is because you will be climbing all of the hills to get to your next shot.

The most challenging hole looks to be innocent enough. This is the second hole. The reason why the hole is so challenging is because you have to hit the green spot on or short. If you are off on either side or too far, your ball will trickle down a hill and you will be almost as far from the hole as you were when you were on the tee box.

Another challenge is that you will not be able to see the green whenever you are on the tee box on the par three on the ninth hole. You will also not likely be able to see the green on approach on the fifth hole or on the sixth hole. You will likely have to play the course a few times before you will be able to get a hang of the course.

Fourth Hole

I enjoy playing Candler Park Golf Course during the week early in the morning when there are not very many people on the course. This is a great way that I will be able to take my time when I need it and I can play fast whenever I am hitting good. Get out soon to play this wonderful course and you will enjoy yourself. Just remember that you might want to bring a walker or you can rent one for $3.50 from the course. This will help to take some of the strain off of you so that you can enjoy playing Candler Park Golf Course.

Learn Some Manners!

I have just created a blog which is the exact kind of thing that every chef everywhere dreams of doing for many different kinds fo diners. It is a blog which is dedicated to providing useful information for all of those people who do not behave correctly whenever you eat out. It is a practical look at what the restaurant sees and what you can do to improve your status as a patron of the restuarant. I hope that everyone will check out my new blog and provide feedback and even suggestions as I would love to make it as versatile as possible.
Brian

Tunes from the Tombs - Live it Up at the Oakland Cemetery

Living in Atlanta means there are many different kinds of events you can look forward to. There are the ordinary events that you would expect like sports and massive concerts. What you might not expect to hear about is that one of the most historic cemeteries in town will hold a concert. This is exactly what will happen the weekend of 5/21 – 5/22. This May, Historic Oakland cemetery has decided to allow an unprecedented musical event, Tunes from the Tombs to be held among the many graves and tombs which it holds.

The event is sure to be a lot of fun as it draws many different bands from all across the nation. Even bands as distant as Colorado, Pennsylvania and California will be showing up. The genres of music will range from jazz to rock, classical, folk, Americana and others. The artists will have small stages that they will be able to perform on and those in attendance are encouraged to walk from one band to the next.

Featured bands at Tunes from the Tombs include SmokeThatCity – an instrumental act featuring Bill Taft and the original members of the Cabbagetown act Smoke. Also included on the bill are such great acts as The Blacktop Rockets, Slim Chance and the Convicts and AM Gold. These are only a few of the local and national acts which will be hitting the stage at Tunes from the Tombs.

Full performer lineup here.

The entertainment, and the likeness to a New Orleans event, does not end there. You will also be able to enjoy the stylings of different buskers who will show up on their own small stages. Additionally, you can get your fortune read by Robyn Avalon, a well-known Atlanta psychic and fortuneteller. She will start offering her services at 2pm and will be available until dusk. You will also be able to enjoy free mini tours as a part of the price of the ticket that you paid for.

You will not have to worry about getting hungry at Tunes from the Tombs as there will be great food from nearby restaurants: Six Feet Under, Pallookaville and Hottie Hawg’s Smokin’ BBQ. Along with the food vendors, you will have the chance to purchase “spirits” in the form of beer and wine. Sorry, no ghouls invited!

Attendance at Tunes from the Tombs is expected to be high. With cheap tickets, there is really no reason why you should not show up. Tunes from the Tombs will run from May 21 to May 22. It will operate from 11am until dusk. It is held on the grounds of the Historic Oakland Cemetery which is found at: 248 Oakland Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30312. The tickets are being sold only at the event. You can get your tickets for $10 if you plan on just going for one day. If you want to go for both days, it is only $15. If you are bringing along your children, those who are 12 and under will only be $5 for one day, $10 for both.

If the event goes well and there is minimal damage to the space, it is likely that this will be a repeat event. So, please get out and support Atlanta and make sure that you are respectful of the eternal souls who will be rocking alongside you. Also, keep in mind that the proceeds from the event go to help preserve the Historic Oakland Cemetry so that it can remain part of what makes Atlanta so special.

Seeing the Golden Age of Comics at the Breman Museum in Atlanta

There is so much to do in the city of Atlanta that it is pretty easy to find something that you want to do. Being Mother’s Day, we decided to do something really special with our day. First, my wife was able to sleep in. It was nice to hear that Garrison Keeler from Prairie Home Companion agreed with us that this is something that every mother really wants. That, and to get away from the family for a little while for some alone time.

After we had pancakes and eggs as a family for brunch – no Mother’s Day brunch at a restaurant for our family – we set out to the Breman Museum to see the Golden age of Comics exhibit. I was not sure exactly why the Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum would hold such an exhibit. We made sure to read all of the information and I was amazed to learn about how the comic book industry was born. It was basically founded by two Jewish men in the 30’s – Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel – born out of the pulp books which were popular at the time.

We learned how the comic book artists of the time were drawing many of the scenes of American soldiers whopping up on Hitler before the United States of America ever entered into the war. Many of the artists were even hired to draft posters which were used as propaganda posters. These were some of the greatest scenes that I have ever seen of Hitler getting his light punched out and more.

Ariella got to dress up as Wonder Woman and ride the Batmobile. Brenden got to read a lot about many of the greatest artists of all time like Will Eisner and Jack Kirby. We even got to sit down and watch interviews from industry greats including Stan Lee. We even watched some old episodes of Superman which were originally aired in the movie theaters.

It was an overall interesting exhibit and a must see for anyone interested in comic books in general or just art. It is a shame that it is not better advertised as the only thing I ever saw for it was the poster outside of the Breman Museum which is easily ignored. If you or someone you love enjoys comic books, this is a great exhibit to go to.

After we went to the exhibit, we went to Kilwins to get some chocolate and candies. My wife got a delicious candied apple. We also got two caramel apples, two caramel dipped rice crispy treats, a white chocolate dipped rice crispy treat, 1 1/3 pound of fudge and some caramel dipped pretzels.

Now, we are getting ready for Treme to come on and we will undoubtedly drink some Heineken and New Castle Brown Ale. It is a great Mother’s Day in our home. I hope that all of the mothers out there had a great one and will have many more to come in the future.

Atlanta Coca-Cola Building All Lit Up

This year marks the 125^th year anniversary of Coca-Cola. They have decided to throw a huge party in Centennial Olympic park which they will simulcast on their website for all the public to see. Apparently there will be a few friends from American Idol which will show up and there will be plenty of festivities for the Coca-Cola employees.

To do something to say thank you to the rest of the city of Atlanta, the corporate headquarters in downtown was draped with screen material and different images were used to advertise the celebration to the city of Atlanta. We celebrated by heading out to The Varsity Restaurant right across I-85 from Georgia Tech. We got a good view of the building and we were able to see all of the images as they were cast on the side of the building.

We expected a big show since we knew that Coca-Cola paid close to $1 million just to project everything on the side of their building at night over the course of the weekend. The official anniversary is not until Sunday, but the festivities are underway. It is great to live in a city with so much heritage and pride.

In my family, we for one celebrate drinking Coca-Cola. My only wish is that we did not have to wait until Passover to get Coca-Cola made with sugar or buy the product made in Mexico. Still, all I want to say is happy 125^th to Coca-Cola and here is to another 125 years of deliciousness to come.

You can get even more information through the Creative Loafing website.