FoodieBuddha.com

After 45-years at the intersection of Lindbergh and Cheshire Bridge, The Varsity Jr. is sailing off into the sunset.  One of six outposts of the institution, the original plan was to rebuild the family-owned location. I first heard about this via a ton of people on twitter and my heart sank as the information was confirmed by 11-Alive just a little bit ago, this thing seems set in stone.  They have all the gritty details, so I won’t bother to give you all the he-said, she-said.  What I will tell you is that this sucks!  The Varsity Jr has been at the same place since before I was born and while I’m a Fenway type of guy, the plan to rebuild it seems reasonable to me. This isn’t right! And while I’m not so bold as to think my word alone carries any weight, but maybe with some help it will.  Thus, I’ve started a petition to save the Varsity JR..  We don’t have much time, but let’s see what a little elbow grease can do!

VIVA LA FROSTED ORANGE!!!!

Despite the tragic end to the World Cup just a handful of weeks back, it looks like I have another reason to break out my beloved Oranje jersey before 2014.  It turns out that Whataburger, another one of those boutique burger chains, is handing out free burgers.  On August 3rd 2010, if you walk in to any Whataburger in the fast food nation, you get a free burger.  Ah … but there’s a catch.  You see, you have to show up between 5-8pm and you have to wear a piece of Dutch soccer paraphernalia.

Okay, I fibbed a little, you don’t actually have to wear something Dutch … just something orange.  The event is a celebration of the franchise’s 60th year in biz.  Those of us in the ATL can get in on the action if our heart and our gas tank so desires.  With locations in Thomasville and near Savannah (x2), it looks like South Georgia is your best bet if you’re hell bent on staying inside state lines.  If you don’t mind handing your tax dollars to another state, Birmingham is actually your best bet to snag one of these (mappage).

[photo via whataburger website]

Well Atlanta, are you looking for another burger joint? [Insert Rhetorical Answer], because it turns out the heavens have opened and one Shaun Doty has stepped down with his excitement imploring Yeah! Burger.  Planted firmly on the Westside in the bursting at the seems White Provision Development, Yeah Burger is hoping to capitalize on that incongruous relationship that is our lust for a burger amidst the rage for ultra organic, ethically produced, plastic wrapped grub.

If Rodeo Drive’s culinary alternative existed in Atlanta, its being would probably hit smack dab at the intersection of 14th street and Howell Mill.  Amongst the shi shi of the Star Provisions empire, the buzzed about Miller Union, the gentrified tacos of TdS, and the morphed West Egg, this hood can keep table hoppers busy for some time.  Might as well get on it myself.

Open inside of 7-days, I recently took advantage of the nice arm candy, courtesy one Georgia Devine, and some typically steamy Atlanta weather to sit porch side and engage in America’s messiest past time: burger chomping (with a hot dog thrown in for good measure).

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In less than a year, Grindhouse Killer Burgers has firmly entrenched itself as the go to spot in the Sweet Auburn Market.  On the heels of its success, the market is seeing some cool food spots open and an influx of traffic through events like Atlanta’s Urban Picnic.  In a move that is signed, sealed, and delivered … owner Alex Brounstein is ready to expand his burger bar beyond the confines of Downtown Atlanta.

Grindhouse’s satellite location is set to open in the non-delineated area of Morningside/Lenox Park/Piedmont Heights.  I believe the address is 1842 Piedmont Road, but I may be off by a digit or two.  For those familiar with the area, the spot is next to the Gorilla Car Wash.  It’s an area of town with a smörgåsbord of eateries, but this will be the first burger place in the area.

No word yet on how the operations will go, but I’m sure it will be different than it is at the counter-service necessitated by the original restaurants location.  If all goes well, expect this place to be open in September.

All this Atlanta burger chatter got me thinking: “Maybe it’s time for a diet.”  Then, I got a late night request from The Legend (twitter) which brought me to my senses.  Yes, maybe just one more day of gluttony (haven’t we all said that?).

You see, The Legend was taking a few people for a little afternoon birthday party at the world famous Ann’s Snack Bar.  It’s one of the few well known burger joints across our land that claims to be world famous … and really IS.  Despite rumors of its demise, brought on by the dominating Miss Ann herself, the Snack Bar is alive and well in East Atlanta.

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Even I don’t have the heart to dress this up.  Denver based Smashburger is expanding into Atlanta.  Thankfully, we might get as many as FIVE of these burger joints!  According to Scott Crane, el jefe de la empresa (the boss), they have put out five letters of intent in strip centers around East Cobb, Perimeter Mall, Dunwoody, Alpharetta, and Buckhead/Midtown.  Thank god, cuz what we need is more fast casual restaurants serving up burgers.

As mentioned yesterday, in a frenzy of magnanimous delight, burger fiends have descended on Farm Burger in Decatur with fervor and excitement.  Like cows set out to pasture at Augusta National, people just can’t seem to get over this organically inclined burger joint.  Case in point: by noon on day one, tables were filled and the ordering line was 15 deep for the better part of the lunching hour.  Despite this welcomed intrusion, Farm Burger dusted off a few opening day jitters and managed to set the stage for potential success as one of Atlanta’s better options when your waste line isn’t given a second thought.

Though hitting restaurants early and often is just part of my MO, I too must admit an adrenaline rush during the drive over.  Thankfully stationed just a few miles away, had I been forced to commute any farther, there’s a good chance I’d have gone telephone pole all up on Ponce.  Yeah, I was kind of giddy.

Upon arrival, this excitement quickly turned to a case of “The burger loves me, the burger loves me not.”  For lack of a better term, parking at Farm Burger was a bitch, and it will probably stay that way.  You see, Farm Burger shares the same lot with Watershed and some dry cleaner whose name I’ve never taken the time to notice.  Excited that the place was a buzz, but pissed that people didn’t have the decency to save me a spot, I shoved my car in illegally and strolled on in (don’t worry – I didn’t block anyone).  I was dead on shocked by the size of the crowd; fortunately, the thought of running past my 45-minute time limit for lunch quickly dissipated … you just can’t help but feel good when a newborn baby grows up in a matter of moments.

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Yes, today is a foodie day.  You see, it’s the first full day of service for Farm Burger, Decatur’s next trending restaurant.  As you may infer from the wisely chosen name, Farm Burger is a burger joint that features grassfed beef from locally sourced providers.  The restaurant has been in the works for some time and is the brainchild of partners Jason Mann and George Frangos.  It’s located at 410 W. Ponce De Leon, the former home of Viola.

Frangos’ name might be familiar to those of you who follow the Jaw-ga food scene.  He is one of the partners at Farm 255 in Athens and serves as the director for both Full Moon Farms (website) and Moonshine Meats.  As logic follows, many of the menu items come from those two establishments.

There’s a whole slew of things to talk about, and seeing as I just skedaddled over for lunch (witness the messy hands), I’ll be sure to put something up just as soon as I can find the time.  By the way, did anyone spot me and win the prize?

Farm Burger Restaurant Address & Information

410b W. Ponce de Leon, Decatur, GA 30030 // 404.378.5077 // Farm Burger website // Farm Burger menu // FB twitter // FB facebook

Back in November, I mentioned that Shaun Doty and Erik Maier were set to open a burger joint over in the Westside.  At the time, the tentative name for the establishment was Good Burger.  However, it appears that name is now a thing of the past.  The new name is YEAH! Burger and this information appears to satisfy the journalistic bar for fact.  Surprisingly, there’s already a Facebook page for the restaurant, so you might as well be a fan!  Meanwhile, things still seem on track for a Spring opening in the old West Egg building, but take that with a grain of salt. There are other rumors floating around, but nothing even worth mentioning at this point.

Two establishments, one building, and one curious story.  That’s the deal with two new eateries going in at Renaissance Walk, a struggling (aka foreclosed) downtown condominium complex just a few steps from Georgia State.  One Café and Yoeshi are siblings spots that have been in production for quite sometime.  If recent grumblings (spurred by self-promotion) are to be taken at face value, then the two newborns will say hello sometime in mid-February.  Still, details are muddled.

Tucked in at the corner of Auburn Ave. and Piedmont, the location for these two restaurants is not nearly as ideal as one would think.  In that same location, several restaurants have opened and closed faster than you can say recession.  Still, that hasn’t stopped one restaurateur from trying to open not one, but two, fast casual concepts.

One Café is purportedly set to offer a mind-boggling array of cuisines with everything from burritos to burgers and all the way through pastries.  They’ve actually named just about every restaurant in Atlanta as their source of unoriginality inspiration.  Speaking of names, according to the Renaissance Walk website, the name of the restaurant is actually spelled One Caffe.

As for that other gig, Yoeshi will serve Japanese street food as well as Japanese pastries and desserts.

According to their own musings, these will be a walk-up and order establishments with no service staff.  They have a chef, but no word on who that actually is at this time.  Anywho, there y’all have it.

One Cafe / Yoeshi Address:
171 Auburn Avenue NE, Atlanta, GA 30303-2552