BUCKHEAD RESTAURANT WEEK RUNS THROUGH MARCH 14 -- $25 BUYS A THREE-COURSE DINNER AT ARIA!
 AJC Food Writer Meridith Ford Goldman raved about Aria in last week's "Go Guide." During Buckhead Restaurant Week, dinner guests can discover why as they sit down to Aria Executive Chef Gerry Klaskala's special three-course prix fixe menu for only $25. Dinner starts with an opener of lobster and sweet potato soup with sweet peppers, leeks, peanuts, basil and lime. The entrée is Zinfandel-braised short rib of Niman beef with celery whipped potatoes, parsnips and tender carrots. Aria's acclaimed Valrhona chocolate cream pie brings it all to a sweet conclusion. (Beverages, tax and gratuity not included.) Click on the event link above to see other participating restaurants and their prix fixe menus.
Aria: 490 East Paces Ferry Road; 404-233-7673. |
WANNA EARN SOME BROWNIE POINTS? COME TO THE JUDGING PARTY FOR SHARE OUR STRENGTH'S GREAT AMERICAN BAKING CONTEST!
 The batters are up, the buns are in the ovens -- all you have to do is have a tasty time helping Share Our Strength's Great American Baking Contest raise some dough to eradicate childhood hunger in America. The final judging will take place at a wine and dessert reception on Thursday, March 11 at The Cook's Warehouse Midtown. Judges include AJC Food Writer John Kessler, The Cook's Warehouse Founder/Owner Mary Moore, Bakeshop Chef/Owner Jonathan St. Hilaire, Alon's Chef/Owner Alon Balshan and Aria Pastry Chef Kathryn King. Prizes will be awarded in professional, amateur and young pastry chef categories. Sample their prize recipes, desserts and wines -- your patronage makes you a key ingredient in the fundraising party! Tickets (tax deductible) are $25 for general admission beginning at 7:30 p.m. or $35 for VIP admission/special reception with Q100's Jenn Hobby at 6:30 p.m. Click here to purchase or find out more.
The Cook's Warehouse Midtown: In Ansley Mall behind Blockbuster, 1544 Piedmont Road, Suite 403-R; 404-815-4993. |
FREE CHAMPAGNE AND TRUFFLES AT LW CHOCOLATIER!
 Drop into LW Chocolatier in One Buckhead Plaza from 5 - 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 11, and you'll be richly rewarded with free champagne and truffles! LW Chocolatier has provided chocolate connoisseurs in Europe, South America and Asia with premium, all-natural chocolates for more than 60 years. If life is like a box of chocolates, we want to be a gorgeous box from LW Chocolatier -- bittersweet, creamy milk chocolate, solid chocolate flowers or chocolate treasures filled with
fruits, marzipan, truffles, nuts, caramel or nougat. Here's another nougat of knowledge: LW Chocolatier holds a champagne and chocolate tasting on the second Thursday of each month from 5 - 7 p.m. Store hours are weekdays from 9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Sunday, 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
LW Chocolatier: One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Road, NW, Suite 40; 404-467-8503. |
TRADE CANNED FOOD FOR FREE FOOD AT AQUA BLUE AND MARLOW'S TAVERN DURING ATLANTA COMMUNITY FOOD BANK PARTY ON MARCH 13
 Here's our recipe for some of the best gumbo and lobster bisque you'll ever eat and the easiest to prepare: bring one or more canned food items to Aqua blue or any Marlow's Tavern on Saturday, March 13 and exchange them for a free bowl of lobster bisque with any entrée purchase at Aqua blue or a free bowl of roast chicken and shrimp gumbo from the Bayou 'n Bourbon menu at Marlow's Tavern. It's not a secret recipe -- spread the word! Requests for assistance are up at the Atlanta Community Food Bank (ACFB), and they need every canned food item they can get! Eat and drink up because Aqua blue and Marlow's are donating a portion of the day's proceeds to the ACFB. And if you add a $1 or more donation to the ACFB to your check at Aqua blue, you'll be entered to win a three-course meal for two!
Aqua Blue: 1564 Holcomb Bridge Road in Roswell; 770-643-8886.
Marlow's Tavern: Alpharetta at 3719 Old Alabama Road, 770-475-1800; Kennesaw at 745 Chastain Road, NW, 770-425-8777; Midtown at 950 West Peachtree Street, 404-815-0323; Vinings at 2355 Cumberland Parkway, 770-432-2526; Northlake at 4156 LaVista Road, 678-987-1197; and Duluth at 1950 Satellite Boulevard, 770-622-2033. |
WILL YOU WALK A MILE FOR A MEAL? JOIN Team mmmmmmmMLA AT HUNGER WALK 2010 ON MARCH 14
 Walk toward a solution for hunger, not away from it. Hunger Walk 2010 begins and ends at Turner Field on Sunday, March 14. You don't have to go it alone, enjoy the pre-spring afternoon walking with Team mmmmmmmMLA. Sure, we'll talk food -- as in how exciting it is to know that by hoofing it, we're being part of a community solution to put food on the plates and in the pantries of metro-area residents experiencing really tough times. Hunger Walk 2010 activities begin at noon so you can still sleep in/read the paper/church/brunch. Already committed that day? Send an online donation instead!
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MORTON'S SERVES ITS FAMOUS KEY LIME PIE FOR $3.14 ON NATIONAL PI DAY, MARCH 14
 As every math teacher knows, Sunday, March 14 is National Pi Day, figured into the calendar to celebrate the mathematical constant π (3.14159265). Both Atlanta locations of Morton's The Steakhouse -- Buckhead and Downtown -- have calculated the correct answer to this date is to serve their beloved Key lime pie for only $3.14 a slice from 5 - 10 p.m. in both the bar and dining room areas. A slice is usually $10. Do the mouthwatering math and see that this Key lime "Pi" deal is well worth adding to your evening. Morton's The Steakhouse - Buckhead: Peachtree Lenox Building, 3379 Peachtree Road, NE; 404-816-6535.
Morton's The Steakhouse - Downtown: SunTrust Plaza Building, 303 Peachtree Center Avenue; 404-577-4366. |
WOODFIRE GRILL HOSTS ROBERT SINSKEY WINE DINNER ON MARCH 16
 When an Atlanta restaurant kitchen and a Napa winery share the same philosophies regarding organic, sustainably raised local foods, you know the fruit of their labors will yield an awe-inspiring wine dinner! Experience the perfect pairing when Woodfire Grill hosts a Robert Sinskey Wine Dinner at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 16. Woodfire Grill Co-owner/Executive Chef Kevin Gillespie and Sous Chef EJ Hodgkinson have planned out a four-course menu complemented by Robert Sinskey Abraxas, Carneros, 2006 in magnums; Pinot Noir, Los Carneros, 2007; Merlot, Los Carneros, 2006; and POV 2005, Napa Valley Red Wine. Mark Neville, national sales director for Robert Sinskey Vineyards, will be discussing the wines with each course. Robert Sinskey Vineyards crafts wines from organically grown vines raised following biodynamic agricultural methods to go easy on the earth. We'll raise a glass and fork to that! $109 per person, all inclusive; call 404-347-9055 for reservations.
Woodfire Grill: 1782 Cheshire Bridge Road; 404-347-9055. |
TOP 'O THE ROOF TO YA! ALTOREX ROOFTOP LOUNGE PARTY TIPS HAT TO ST. PATTY'S DAY!
 Hats (and ceilings) off to St. Patrick's Day! Open-air AltoRex Rooftop Lounge, atop Pacci Ristorante, is the place to shake those shamrocks on Wednesday, March 17. After a few mugs of green beer and drink specials such as the Lemintcello, you may think you see Dublin, but it's the magical Midtown skyline view. Irish food, a raffle with prizes and a real leprechaun for photos keep the merriment going from 7 - 11 p.m.
AltoRex Rooftop Lounge: 866 West Peachtree Street, NW; 678-412-2402. |
RA SUSHI HAS A HOT MESS OF FLICKR CONTEST-WINNING PHOTOS
You won't believe how many sushi fans really got into their Hot Mess sushi at RA Sushi and photographed the fun for the Flickr contest. Wash the Hot Mess off your fingers and take a look at the winning shots:
For "Anything Goes" category:
First place ($100 gift certificate): Mary
Tie for second place ($50 gift certificate each): Molly and Vance
Third place ($25 gift certificate): Sharon
For "Hottest Hot Mess" category:
First place ($100 gift certificate): Shawn
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GET THOSE BRACKETS READY -- MAKI MADNESS IS MAKING HEADLINES AT RA SUSHI ON MARCH 21
 We gave you notice on RA Sushi's Hot Mess Flickr contest so you could be prepared. Now, a heads up that RA Sushi's 1st Annual Maki Madness will take place on Sunday, March 21 -- the same day as the second round of March Madness. Doors open at noon, and the final showdown should hit the tables around 3:15 p.m. To move through the brackets -- qualifying, first, second and third rounds and on into the "final four" Championship Sushi Showdown -- competitors will speed-eat their way through uncut RA Sushi signature Tootsy Maki rolls. Meanwhile, spectators will score with hoop games, March Madness TV viewing, $4 Tootsy Maki rolls and drink specials such as the Free Throw Bomb and Rim RA'cker ($4), 3-Pointer ($5) and $2 Chang Beer. All registered players will receive a RA Sushi sweatband at the competition. The Maki Madness grand prize winner will receive free sushi for a year (one $50 gift certificate per month for one calendar year); second place wins a $100 gift certificate; third place wins a $50 gift certificate; and fourth place brings home a $25 gift certificate. To play, register in advance online or at the restaurant before March 12; your $10 cash registration fee goes to Bert's Big Adventure.
RA Sushi: 1080 Peachtree Street at 1010 Midtown; 404-267-0114. |
VOTE FOR BEST OF THE NORTHSIDE!
 Vote for your best choice -- it's the American way! And that includes voting on your favorites. If you live in or frequent businesses on Atlanta's north side (Roswell, Alpharetta and Milton), you'll want to vote for them for Best of the Northside. We're clicking on Aqua blue, Marlow's Tavern - Duluth and Ray's Killer Creek. How about you?
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YELPER LOOKING FOR LATE NIGHT GROUP GRUB SAVED BY ATKINS PARK
 Can't you hear the collective sigh of relief as Yelper Michelle A. and her group of late night revelers stumble into Atkins Park Restaurant after trying unsuccessfully to find a place to grab some grub? And then find out the food is really good? Double high five!
Now that I've sobered up after a night of mayhem, I can write about this yummy, yummy place...
Stumbling around the Highlands after Metalsome Friday, my group needed some grub to soak up the alcohol. Dark Horse was packed, Limerick Junction wanted a cover (to get in to a restaurant with nothing going on? Hell no!), and we wandered down to the first open thing we could find. Enter Atkins Park, our savior!
I loved that they kept a section open that was quiet and secluded from the bar area for people looking for food (like us). We easily found a table for five and scanned over the menu. What a hard decision! Even with the entree section null and void (it isn't served after 11pm), we still found plenty to choose from. Pretzels, sandwiches, burgers, chicken tenders, salads... My boyfriend settled on a reuben with a salad - his test for a good bar - and I wound up with the chicken fingers and fries. Let me tell you in one word how I felt the moment the first piece of tender hit my tongue: AMAZING. These had so much crunch but the breading wasn't heavy at all, and the tenders were HUGE! The fries still had skin on, a sign that these were probably hand cut. They aren't crispy, but that's good for me as I hate crunchy fries. The honey mustard... oh man. It was spicy yet sweet, a delicious compliment to the tenders and fries. YUM. I also stole much of my boyfriend's salad, and it was so good! A sweet but light vinaigrette over little bacon bits and feta cheese... mmm.
So glad we came here. It's a little more than your standard bar food I suppose, but you definitely pay for better quality and taste here. Wow.
As for service, any server who can handle drunks with ease and a smile earns praise in my book! Atkins Park: 794 N. Highland Avenue, NE; 404-876-7249. |
EAT IT AND TWEEP: ATLANTA COMMUNITY FOOD BANK TWITTERS TO NOURISH STRONGER COMMUNITIES
 It's easy to sit back and watch the world spin. Lift a finger to tweet and find out in a flash how you can plug in and help make a difference in that world. The Atlanta Community Food Bank has added a Twitter link. Stay up on which restaurants are running specials to benefit the ACFB, how many hours ACFB volunteers logged and how you can be a part of "Nourishing Stronger Communities."
Sample Tweet: Head on over to Marlow's Tavern and support @ACFB Hunger Walk/Run 2010! http://www.marlowstavern.com/
And one more sweet Tweet . . . our own Team MMMMMMMLA page for Hunger Walk 2010! Come join us in the fight against hunger in Hunger Walk/Run 2010! |
| Looking for the latest restaurant opening, weekly wine tastings and drink specials, or other culinary happenings? Whatever makes your mouth water, Melissa Libby & Associates will point you in the right direction. Our monthly calendar, blog, flickr, Facebook page and Twitter feed will keep you up-to-date on new and ongoing restaurant events around Atlanta. |
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 Melissa Libby & Associates is an Atlanta-based public relations firm specializing in the restaurant, retail and hospitality industries.
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