Atlanta has turned out to be a great “weekender” trip full of stuff to do. Sami and I decided to stay in Atlanta for a weekend before heading up the rest of the way to Windrock Park in Tennessee.
In Atlanta, we were able to explore lots of food and tourist destinations. It was a great weekend trip and we would definitely return.
We got to Atlanta, checked into the DoubleTree, and grabbed some freshly baked cookies. The whole evening was ours to explore, so we headed to Ponce City Market, a hip little mall in the trendy area of Atlanta. Ponce City Market was full of stores, Christmas décor, and endless casual dining options. There is also a movie theater. I ended up having a drink at ABV, the bar only area of Atlanta City Winery. I ordered a flight full of local IPAs, and shared a shot with the bartender. ABV was a cool spot with a speakeasy vibe, and endless options for beer, wine, and liqour.
After exploring Ponce City Market, we took a pit stop at the tomb of Martin Luther King Jr. The tomb was humbling. There is a reflection pool with running water over a few steps, a quote, and MLK and his wife in a large tomb in the middle of the pool. I really enjoyed visiting the tomb at night. The aura was serene, yet slightly eerie.
For dinner, we headed to the HIGHLY recommended Vortex Bar & Grill. The Vortex is known for burgers, and they were indeed amazing. You can’t miss The Vortex. The front door of the building is a giant skull. This place is not kid friendly at all. There is tons of suggestive messages all over the bar, and the menu is filled with “rules” of manners for dining at a restaurant. It was full of expletives and funny to read. I ordered the sriracha burger, but I am not too great with spicy foods, so that was an interesting experience for me. Regardless, the burger was amazing.
The World of Coca Cola is kind of like being inundated with Coca Cola advertisements in a museum. Entrance was $17 and you get a free Coke. It was nice to learn about the history of Coca Cola, and check out all the relics from when it first started. We skipped the picture with the Coca Cola Polar Bear since the line was consistently long the entire time we were there. We had arrived to the World of Coca Cola nearly at opening time, and when we left, the line to get in was insane. At the exit, there are several different Coca Cola products available in soda fountains from all over the world. It is a LOT of soda to try, and you’ll have enough soda for the week if you try them all. This was a cool tourist destination, and we actually learned a lot about how Coke works, how bottling companies buy the license to make Coke, and saw the vault where the secret formula for Coca Cola is kept.
After the World of Coca Cola, we had a short walk to Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken. To be honest, this was just a spot we found on Yelp and it wasn’t recommended to us, but it was phenomenal. I have never had such juicy fried chicken before, and the southern comfort sides were also amazing.
The Georgia Aquarium was a must since it is one of the most famous aquariums in the United States. Turns out if you go after 4pm, you get around $10 off the entrance, so that’s exactly what we did (more money for Jeep stuff, obviously). The aquarium is extensive, and THEY HAVE WHALE SHARKS. Obviously, the whale sharks are what gets all of the attention at the Georgia Aquarium, but they also have a wonderful dolphin show, beluga whales, and penguins! There is lots to see at this aquarium, and a lot of animals you wouldn’t get to see at usual aquariums or zoos. We were hoping that visiting after 4pm would mean the aquarium was less busy, but it wasn’t, even on a Sunday night! We were there until close, 9pm, and tried to attend as many shows as possible.
Our day ended at a pizza joint called Savage Pizza. This comic book themed pizzeria was delicious. We actually met up with some friends and shared Atlanta stories over lots of cheese.
The next morning, it was off to Tennessee!