Buckhead Homes and Real Estate » Atlanta Activities

Rosemary Beach – as great as its ever been!

admin — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 21:05:23 +0000

My family is currently vacationing in Rosemary beach. I booked the vacation about eight months ago , so I naturally had a little trepidation in light of the BP oil disaster – vacations are not supposed to be so stressful. But after a lot of assurances from friends on the Panhandle, we kept our reservations. It was the right decision. The water is crystal clear and beaches are white. I wouldn’t know there was problem except for what I’ve read in the newspaper; apparently the oil has stayed to the West.

I’ll keep you posted on some of the activities and our favorite restaurants.

Atlanta History Center

Administrator — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 22:59:25 +0000

Located in Buckhead, on West Paces Ferry Road, is the Atlanta History Center. We have a family membership and really like everything the museum has to offer.

It has extensive exhibits on Civil War history and Atlanta history. The major permanent exhibit, “Metropolitan Frontiers: Atlanta, 1835-2000,” traces Atlanta’s history from the days of the Cherokee Indians and rural pioneer settlements to the present day. Atlanta has had previous names that include Terminus, Marthasville and finally a feminine form of Atlantic, Atlanta. Displays include videos and many photographs, documents, and artifacts. There is an entire 1890s shotgun house, a fire engine that was used in Atlanta’s great fire of 1917, and some other antique cars.

Don’t forget to take the tours of tours of the Swan house and Tullie Smith farm house. It represents a good cross-section of life as either middle class or wealthy in Atlanta. There are very nice gardens throughout the campus. The Swan house is fully furnished with period furniture and carpets. The front staircase is a “floating staircase” made from concrete and has no visible supports.

A real treat for the ladies, and daughters, is lunch at the Coach House restaurant at the property. It’s a nice, girly luncheon, with special Southern hospitality. The atmosphere is decidely for “Atlanta ladies,” and it’s a popular spot for showers.

Rosemary Beach Florida

Administrator — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:48:51 +0000

I’m currently on vacation in Rosemary Beach Florida. It’s the third, annual time our family has vacationed here, so I guess you could say it’s become our spot. It’s a 5 1/2 to 6 hour drive from Atlanta. The Florida panhandle has some beautiful white sand beaches and the relatively short drive makes it a great Atlanta family destination.

Once you get into Florida, you can approach Rosemary from the east or the west. I suggest the eastern approach, through Panama City Beach. Once you’ve driven by twenty airbrush shops, fifty bars and an infinite number of mullet “hairstyles,” you’ll appreciate Rosemary’s serenity all the more. Rosemary beach is located on scenic Route 30-A, which is an 18-mile road that hugs the coastline (Gulf of Mexico) in Northwest Florida, between Panama City Beach and Destin.

In Atlanta, you’ll hear a lot of folks talk about vacationing on 30-A or in SoWal (South Walton County). While there are a number of beach communities on this strip, the most prominent ones are Rosemary Beach, Seagrove Beach, Seaside, Watercolor and Santa Rosa Beach.

While we love the entire 30-A strip, for it’s beauty and relative lack of commercialism, we like Rosemary Beach the best. It’s an idyllic community, where people ride Schwinn bikes, children play in the town square and folks engage in conversation with their neighbors; even if they are just neighbors for a week. The community is designed in a unique Dutch West Indies architecture and the layout of the town encourage pedestrian traffic, where nothing, including the beach, is more than a five-minute walk away. There are no high-rise buildings, everything is done in earth tones, with much consideration to the native environment.

There are always activities for the family. Every Thursday night (8:15) from May-August, family movies are played on a big screen on the “green” by the beach – what a background! It also seems like every Sunday evening there is a bluegrass band that plays outside the town auditorium. It’s wonderful time to walk around the town square, watching kids play and listening to live music.

We think the best values are “the flats”, which are basically the condominiums. While they are the farthest point from the beach, it’s still a short walk. The condos are the all the same floor plan: 2 bedroom and 2 bath, so it fits our family perfectly. We are friends with the owners of the condo we stay at, and are quite happy with the quality of the bed, the furniture and decorations. I suggest looking at photos on the internet, as furnishings can vary widely. Our condo is on the bottom floor, which hasn’t been a problem in the past, but I’m currently wondering whether a gymnastics or a sumo wrestling tournament is being held in the condo above us. It might be time to look at a top level condominium for our next trip. There are also some great homes for rent, and we’ve thought about sharing one with another family of friends.

Nothing beats the sugary sand at Rosemary. This is only a few miles from Greyton beach, which was named the top beach in the country a couple of years ago, and for a good reason. The water is crystal clear, unlike other areas of Florida. The crystal clear water and beautiful sand beaches reminds me of our other favorite vacation destination, Harbour Island, Bahamas.

If you tire of the beach, there are four pools to choose from, including an indoor pool. I’ve never had a problem finding a chair to sit in, which is not the same as other resort pools where they pack guests in like vienna sausages.

Here are some thoughts on restaurants in the area:

Last night we ate at a new restaurant in Rosemary Beach called Restaurant Paradis. They are currently running a great special, 1/2 price entrees if you eat between 5 and 6 pm. Which meant Chuck’s $37 filet mignon was only $18.50. While the special brought us into the restaurant, I would eat there in the future at full price. The food was great and it’s probably the best decorated restaurant on 30-A. It has a really cool and hip atmosphere. I ordered the grouper and my husband ordered the filet, both of us really enjoyed our meals.

Wild Olives – Rosemary Beach – This seems to be the most popular restaurant in Rosemary Beach. It started out as a deli and has evolved into a lot more sophisticated restaurant. I’ve never had a bad meal here. Their pastries are “to die for” as his donuts, muffins and cookies are the best I’ve ever had anywhere. The service here can be a little slow, even relative to other in-season restaurants.

Captain Anderson’s – Panama City Beach – While I poke fun at Panama City, it’s because you “kid” the ones you love. The truth is Panama City is a great place to take the children for go-carting, miniature golf or water parks. They also have some great restaurants that have stood the test of time. Captain Anderson’s has been synonymous with fresh, gulf coast fish for over 30 years. I must say I wasn’t that impressed with Captain Anderson’s this year. Chuck’s grilled fish did have a disclaimer, that it was made the “Greek way”, which means lots of oil. But my dish, the stuffed grouper, was way too oily and I found myself only able to eat about half of my meal. It just didn’t taste right. Both of our dishes were mediocre.

Goatfeathers – Santa Rosa Beach – We both had great meals here. My stuffed grouper was awesome, nowhere near as oily as Captain Anderson’s. Chuck enjoyed his fried Mahi Mahi, as it was lightly battered and flash fried. All the food was very fresh. While the line was long, 40 minute wait, it was worth it. Goatfeathers has been in business since 1988 and it’s because they do unpretentious, fresh seafood very well. I’d recommend this place for casual seafood and we’ll be eating here on our next trip. We were actually going to eat at Stinky’s that night, it’s just a little further west on 30-A, but their parking lot was so packed, and such a cluster, that it looked like the fall of Saigon. We decided not to enter that mess and head to Goatfeathers, where a 40 minute wait seemed relatively reasonable. I’ve eaten at Stinky’s before, liked it, but think it’s overrated. I liked Goatfeathers better.

Seagrove Marketcafe – Seagrove Beach – I love a place with short menu, but everything is great. Sometimes the restaurant that recognizes its limitations is the best place to eat. I’m always wary of a place with a 10 page menu; do they just pull everything out of the freezer? The Market Cafe makes a great, fresh grouper sandwich. That’s what I get each time I eat there and I’m always happy. I hear they also make a wonderful, hand-patted, fresh-meat burger. I think it’s a travesty when restaurants win “Best Burger” awards and they use frozen hamburger patties. I can think of a couple of burger joints in Atlanta, always at the top of the “Best Of” lists, that use frozen patties from the local restaurant supply wholesaler; great marketing can do wonders.

Lake Lanier recreation is down 13%

Chuck — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 23:15:24 +0000

The number of annual visitors to Lake Lanier is down 13% from 2005, when the lake was at full pool. The number of boaters is expected to be down even more than 13%. Obviously this has a negative economic impact to businesses located around Lake Lanier. From marinas to restaurants, everybody is feeling the squeeze far beyond the current economic conditions. So aside from being the water supply for metro Atlanta, there are recreation and economic benefits to the lake.

I think we have done an extremely poor job in the media, countering Florida’s economic arguments. We’ve all heard about the fisherman and shrimpers in Florida, but there is no sympathy for the marinas, boat mechanics and restaurants on Lanier. Fortunately, there is a new group called the 1071 Coalition. I believe one of their primary goals is to produce an economic study of Lake Lanier. Hopefully, the study will counter all of Florida’s propaganda. I expect the economic impact could be larger to Lanier than in Florida.

On a brighter note, all the rain we have been receiving has caused the lake levels to rise rapidly. The lake is up more than three feet from this point last year.

Walking tour of historic Buckhead cemetery

Administrator — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:48:44 +0000

On March 7th, in conjunction with the Atlanta Preservation Center’s Phoenix Flies two week celebration of Atlanta’s living landmarks, Buckhead Heritage will be offering free tours of Harmony Grove Cemetery. At noon, Buckhead Heritage President, Wright Mitchell, will lead a tour for Buckhead Heritage members only. Tours for the general public begin at 1 p.m. and will depart on the hour until 3 p.m. The cemetery is located at the corner of West Paces Ferry and Chatham Roads.

We hope you will be able to join us on March 7th to learn about the history and restoration of Harmony Grove Cemetery. For more information, please visit www.preserveatlanta.com.

A few health clubs in Buckhead

Administrator — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 05:14:16 +0000

If you are interested in getting a good workout in Buckhead here are a few places that come to my mind:

Buckhead YMCA
My family is a member here. The facility is fairly new and very family oriented. Some of the features that come to my mind are outdoor tennis courts, outdoor swimming pool with gradual entry, indoor swimming pool and state-of-the-art fitness area. The weights are really cool because each machine has a computer that keeps track of your fitness progress. There is also a free childcare facility where the kids are always doing activities. We take our little girl to the indoor swimming pool a lot, it’s a great bonding experience and breaks up a cold winter.

Jeanne’s Body Tech
A nice facility right in the center of Buckhead. I have worked out there a couple of times, but have never been a member. Not very family oriented, but a great place to workout if you would like to meet other fitness minded singles.

LA Fitness
I was a member a few years ago. No complaints; it is what it is. It is located right next door to the Disco Kroger and has all necessary equipment. No swimming pool. You will get hit up pretty hard for personal training sessions.

Best Soup in Buckhead

Administrator — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 04:55:23 +0000

My two favorite places to get a homemade soup in Buckhead are Souper Jenny’s and the Gallery Cafe. Souper Jenny’s is more well-known, which has it’s disadvantages as there will be a long line of hungry customers out the door at lunchtime. She’s expanded beyond soups into some great sandwiches. The turkey chili is her most famous offering.

The Gallery Cafe is less commercially known, but has a loyal base of customers. The soups are all gourmet and my favorites are the tomato bisque and lentil. It’s a popular lunch destination for the Buckhead Betty’s.

Both Buckhead restaurants also do a hefty to-go soup business.

No related posts.