The Last Thing on My Mind – A Collection of Atlanta Food Blogs

There are a lot of people in Atlanta writing about food – which is good, because there are a crap-ton of restaurants in Atlanta (by my estimation, the exact number lies somewhere between 14 and 12,972 – WolframAlpha was no help…). I’ve met a handful of these bloggers in person, and chatted with a few others online. They all share a passion for food and drink, and fortunately, they’re willing to share that passion with the rest of us.

The list that follows is by no means comprehensive – it’s just what inhabits the “Atlanta Food Blog” folder in my RSS reader. I know there are quite a few more Atlanta blogs, so if you see an omission, please let me know in the comments and I’ll add it. When I feel I’ve got a good handle on this list, I’ll make it a permanent page.

Atlanta Blogs

Adventurous Tastes
Lover of all things delicious. Eating her way around the world one meal at a time.

Amy On Food
“I’m an in-town foodie and adoption attorney, excited to share my adventures with others who appreciate a good meal.”

Atlanta Dish
Nibbles, bites and scoops of all things culinary

Atlanta Ethnic Foods Examiner
“An explorer of worldwide cuisines, Beth travels constantly. When home in Atlanta, she can be found shopping international markets and eating anything off the menu she can’t pronounce.”

Atlanta Restaurant Blog
Atlanta Restaurant Reviews, Food News and Recipes from a Real Foodie

Birchow’s Palate

Chow Down Atlanta
Live * Eat * Blog * Atlanta
“Chow Down Atlanta is about eating good food, whether it is in Michelin-rated restaurants, or whole-in-the-wall or mom-and-pop joints where literally, everyone knows your name.”

Creative Loafing Food & Drink

Cured Meats
The Art and the Craft
Dedicated to making salumi, charcuterie or cured meats.

Eat It, Atlanta
A pleasantly biased view of food & wine in the ATL

Eat, Drink, Man… A Food Journal.
“A 30-something male who enjoys to cook, eat and share culinary experiences with others.”

Food Near Snellville
Where to buy food, get food, and food worth cooking in the Snellville GA area.

FoodieBuddha

Fried Chicken Blues
Obsession, gluttony, shamelessness
“A place to document my recipe/eating/diet/exercise successes and failures.”

Heading Upstream
Now where the *!@# is my paddle?

Honey & Jam
Baking + Photography
“I like baking, picture taking, growing vegetables, trees, autumn, irish breakfast tea with honey and just a touch of milk, old crow medicine show, big band and early mornings. I dislike cilantro and mathematics.”

Live To Nibble
Experiencing life one small bite at a time
“To live to nibble is to structure an existence around the daily meals, not as chores or routines, but as adventures that tickle the most basic pleasures.”

Mr. Orph’s Kitchen
Seeking Culinary Excellence Through Experimentation
“Passionate about cooking and I plan to share as much as time allows.”

Northside Food
Eating Well in Roswell, Georgia.

OctoSquid
“While I am particularly partial to octopus and squid, I am a lover of all ocean dwellers.”

Running with Tweezers
Tales from the frontlines of food
“An Atlanta-based fashion stylist who has merged her two loves – art and food – to add food styling to her resume”

Savory Exposure
Broderick Smylie Photography

Spoonfed (Atlanta)
“My photographic exploration of the culinary scene in the Atlanta and surrounding metro areas”

Steakhead’s Atlanta Eats Blog

The Low Down on Eating in A-Town
“I am not a refined food critic. I rarely eat French. I don’t do Fois Gras. I have had my last Vegan meal. Heaven to me is a medium-rare 10-oz. filet from the Chops Lobster Bar with a side of lobster tail.”

Suburban Wino
Food, drink, and the ponderings caused by too much of both…

sushiandpassion
“My name is Taka. I own a Japanese restaurant in Buckehad, Atlanta. I’ve been doing this since 2002.”

take thou food
“I started this blog in 2008 to keep track of my journey and to connect with other people who are passionate about food.”

The Blissful Glutton
Your guide to eating in Atlanta
“My aim is to let my readers know about good (and bad) food here in Atlanta and around the world. I simply offer you my perspective on the restaurants I visit in Atlanta and around the world and hope you find it useful.”

The Food Abides
“My soapbox and your guide to all things food”

Tongue Sausage
“A blog filled with good food, good drinks, and good times in the Atlanta area.”

Vintage Victuals
A culinary trip down memory lane

Cheese! (チーズ)

Maybe it’s the narcotics in my flu meds, but these are some of the best commercials I’ve ever seen. Seriously. I want Curry Cheese Noodles in the worst way right now. Seriously.

Oh, yeah – almost forgot: Kikkomaso! Check it HERE

Viet Tofu – Bún Thịt Nướng Hobby Kit

Viet Tofu may offer some of the best deals in Vietnamese food on Buford Highway. Tucked in the back of shopping center that is also home to Hoa Binh (market) and Penang, most food is pre-prepared – this is take out only (no seating). Don’t let the name fool you – while there is a lot of tofu here, they have an extensive variety of Vietnamese meat dishes.

My shrink wrapped tray of bún thịt nướng, complete with an incredibly tasty cha gio and even a fork, set me back a whopping $4.00 ($3.90 if you count the dime I found in the parking lot…).

Viet Tofu
4897 Buford Hwy
Atlanta, GA 30341

Cooking with: Nira

During a recent walk through the produce section of the Buford Highway Farmers Market I ran into two women who appeared to be on their first trip through the market. They were obviously overwhelmed by the array of unfamiliar greenery laid out before them – gailan, a-choy, yo tsai, sherlion, kohlrabi, epazote – and they seemed relieved when they finally identified something familiar – ginger. I didn’t have the heart to tell them that it was in fact galangal that they had discovered – not ginger…

We’ve all been there – so I’m starting a series to shed a little light on some of the ingredients that many of you probably have tasted (or will) as you explore ethnic cuisines, but that you may not recognize when you encounter them in the market.

Nira

Nira is known by many names:

• Nira (Japan)
• Jiǔcài (China)
• Buchu (Korea)
• Hẹ (Vietnam)
• Garlic Chive, Chinese Chive (other parts of the world)

What is it?

Nira, as you can see from the photos, is a plant… it’s in the Allium genus (same as garlic), with long flat leaves, 10-15 inches long. It’s easy to grow – my first exposure to it was when I found it growing wild in the backyard of my house. It’s even easier to harvest (with scissors), and like grass, it grows back after cutting.

In the market, you’ll find as many as three types of nira:

Nira is dark green.

Yellow or golden nira is… yellow. It’s actually etoliated – after cutting the green leaves, the plants are covered and allowed to re-sprout in the dark – similar to white asparagus.

Hananira or Chive Flower has the flower bud at the top of the stalk.

What does it taste/smell like?

Hm… This is a similar dilemma to the one I have with fish sauce (nước mắm) – you may love or hate the smell, but it adds a character to foods that is impossible to get any other way. Pungent, as obtuse as that is, is the best way to describe the smell. The flavor is more that of a garlicky onion and much stronger than a regular chive.

What can I do with it?

You’ve probably eaten it before – nira is a common ingredient in Asian dumplings: Chinese jiaozi (being made in the photos), Japanese gyoza and Korean mandoo.  Chinese green onion pancakes, cōng yóu bǐng (蔥油餅), can be made with nira instead of green onions. These are called  jiǔcài you bing (韭菜油饼). Nira-reba is a Japanese dish, where liver is stir fried with nira. Supposedly, this dish will give you “stamina”. Another common Chinese preparation is to scramble eggs with nira (a lot of nira). In the book Oriental Vegetables, Joy Larkcom mentions a tempura preparation, where the leaves are wrapped into bundles, dipped in batter and deep-fried.

How do I store it?

This is important, as once cut, nira does not keep well. Wrap it with damp paper towels and store in the vegetable drawer for no more than 2-3 days (you’ll know when it’s time to go…)

So what’s baffling you in the markets? There’s lot’s more to come in this series, but let me know – I’ll try to push requests to the top of the heap.

Cabbagetown: Chomp & Stomp pt. 2

Cabbagetown: Chomp & Stomp Chili Cookoff

Carniceria Hispaña vs. Don Taco

Yay

Tacos carnitas – Carniceria Hispaña

OK – I’ll spare you any artificial tension, B.S. or whatever. Carniceria Hispaña. Hands down. So now you don’t have to read anymore – just look at the pretty taco pictures and be done with it.

Tacos al pastor – Carniceria Hispaña

Carniceria Hispaña

Carniceria Hispaña
3258 Buford Hwy NE
Atlanta, GA 30329-1708

Sunday lunch, and HX declared “Mexican”, followed by “tacos”, so we were off. HX has been demanding to eat at Don Taco again since the one time he tried it at their former location, about 4 miles South on Buford Highway. That was 4 years ago – when he was 3. I guess that makes him persistent and me stubborn.  So I caved and we decided to start at Don Taco. We would start with a small order – if it was good (I remembered otherwise), we would stay and order more, otherwise we’d move on.

We ordered 4 tacos – carnitas, barbacoa, and 2 al pastor (my bellweather). After an interminable wait, 4 tiny foil packets were delivered to our table. The foil and steam had reduced the flour tortillas to a gelatinous mess, and in no time my fingers were covered in tortilla, bits of napkin and random flotsam. Al pastor – mealy and flavourless. No amount of tampering from the fixin’s bar could revive this one. Barbacoa – tortilla disaster aside, flavourful and moist – not too bad. Carnitas – again with the tortilla, but surprisingly tasty and tender pork. I could get behind this carnitas, but who knows if it’s consistent… The restaurant is clean (if not reminiscent of a hospital cafeteria from the ’80s) and the staff friendly.

After using the remnants of our rationed glass of water (the drought is over, guys) to soften the wheat paste on our fingers, we decided that round 2 was to be found elsewhere and ventured on to Carniceria Hispaña.

Carniceria Hispaña pretty much does what it says on the tin. It’s a Hispanic butcher shop with a small market and restaurant inside. One guy works the flattop and mans the tiny “kitchen”. You can watch your food being prepared (which I like) or wander about the market until he hunts you down to let you know your order is ready. The $2 tacos are generous (about twice the size of the $1.60 tacos from Don Taco). Double corn tortillas, a splash of lime and chipotle salsa and a tamarind soda got us back on track. The pictures (above) say it all.

Boo

Carnitas & barbacoa – Don Taco

Carnitas, barbacoa, al pastor – Don Taco

Hospital cafeteria – I mean, Don Taco

Don Taco
5884 Buford Hwy NE
Doraville, GA 30340-2422

Ming’s BBQ – Duluth

Jiang you ji – soy sauce chicken

I’m a huge fan of Ming’s (see here), so it was a bit embarrassing when Blissful Glutton asked me if I’d been to the Duluth location and I had to say, “no”. So this weekend, HX and I ventured to Duluth – not a regular destination for me. After a bit of exploring and making notes on a few new places to try, we decided to (finally) hit up Ming’s.

Roasted duck (kăo yā) noodle soup

The upscale sheen of the Duluth location has done nothing to diminish the quality of food.  The barbecue is still impeccable, the menu is the same (with the notable absence of quail), and even better – they’re open til midnight!

Flash interior

Ming’s B.B. Q. – Duluth
2131 Pleasant Hill Rd.
Duluth, GA 30096

Nightcap – Morellino di Scansano

Tuscan, obviously young and a bit too bright for my palate. Cooks better than it drinks.

Frittata al pomodoro e basilico e funghi

OK, so I wasn’t going to post this – I wasn’t even going to photograph it (I don’t photograph most of what I cook or eat). For some reason, a lot of the cooking that I post on this blog are first takes or one-off dishes. But damn it – I do know how to cook. My toque may not have 101 pleats (sorry if you don’t understand that – look it up), but it’s got a serious few and I can put a hurtin’ on some eggs when I feel like it.

Now it’s not like there is anything difficult about a frittata, but as with all things egg, if you don’t pay attention to what you’re doing you can seriously f* it up. And before anyone jumps on my back about frittatas not being brown on top – it’s not burnt. I sprinkle grated Parmigiano-Reggiano on top before it goes under the broiler to create a kind of frico crust.

I’ll post a recipe later if anyone’s interested. OK – done with my chest thumping.

***** UPDATED WITH RECIPE *****

OK, enough of you asked, so here you go – it’s really not hard (or exact – just the way I like it).

• 1/4 onion – chopped
• 1/2 medium tomato – chopped & drained
• 1/4 cup mushrooms – chopped
• Chopped fresh basil
• 4 eggs
• Olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 3-4 tbsp grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• salt
• pepper

1. Add olive oil to a pan and cook onion over medium heat until translucent. Add mushrooms and cook a bit longer, followed by tomatoes. Continue cooking until tomatoes are warmed through. Drain any excess oil and liquid and transfer vegetables to a bowl to cool.
2. Beat eggs in a bowl. Add vegetables, basil, salt and pepper and beat together with eggs.
3. Melt butter in a heavy (ovenproof) skillet over medium heat. When butter foams, add egg mixture and immediately turn the heat to low. Let cook slowly until the eggs have set and only the top is runny. This will take about 15 minutes or so.
4. Sprinkle Parmigiano-Reggiano over top and place under broiler for ~1 minute (watch it like a hawk).
5. Loosen the frittata and slide from the pan onto a plate. Cut and serve.