#29 - The Porter Beer Bar

Endless work week number 123,098 required some immediate vino and a home cooked meal with midtown bestie Nat. After a few glasses went down the hatch, I was easily convinced to go man shopping with my taken wingman nearby. A quick wardrobe change later we were off to the four mile commute down to The Porter Beer Bar in Little Five!

I must say that out of all the bars I have blogged about thus far, this is BY FAR my fav. Period. "Porter" (as the locals call it) has everything you need. Not so small you can't enjoy bringing a few of your besties with you, but not so large you lose your mind finding the bathroom? CHECK. Outdoor seating? CHECK. Tons of variety in local and national beer? CHECK. Great tunes? CHECK.  Amazing, affordable food? CHECK. Super friendly staff? CHECK. Nearby, free parking? CHECK. Walking distance to a gazillion other bars, restaurants and musical venues? CHECK. You get the point....the list is as endless as their beer list.

Pretty sure their beer list is 10 pages...front and back. That's what I call impressive.

After bonding with our new fav bartender Ty who sported their trendy catch phrase on a t-shirt "Where the Wild Beers Are", I was introduced to owner Molly Gunn. We chatted for a few minutes while I sipped on my irresistible Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (say that five times fast) per Ty's recommendation.

Team Ty

thank you very much....

...and down the hatch it went

A little background for you....Molly and Porter-chef hubby have owned the L5P newbie for almost two years now. It began as a bare and open ally way, and was enclosed years ago to become what is now my fav spot. Aka Porter. Exposed brick throughout, dim lighting provided by Mason jar lighting fixtures....it's heaven on earth people.

Love, love, love the Mason jar lighting idea

Front bar seating for just you or a plus one

Walk down the hallway and it opens up to larger tables great for groups

Anywho, they moved into the neighborhood just a few steps away and instantly had an eye for the spot. They dreamed of a place where you could integrate the taste of fine dining with great beer and a laid back atmosphere, all while chatting away with local Five Points residents. In fact, much of their menu items include food from their very own organic garden! My mouth is watering, and I'm sure yours is too.

mouth watering...engage

I enjoyed myself so much I made a second appearance with late night wingman Adriatic the very next night, where I had the pleasure of noshing on some herb fries. I am still dreaming about them as I type. They also host frequent beer classes to keep you up to snuff on all the hops you crave, and according to Ty a Sunday brunch that will knock your socks off. That will be my next appearance during daylight hours I can assure you.

So whether you're a beer snob or PBR-for-life type, this not so hole-in-the-wall-esque bar is a great place to meet up for a quick bite at lunch, alcoholic beverage after work, dinner for two or ten, and of course a late night top off. Tell Ty I sent you and he'll make you feel right at home just as he did me. Bucket list worthy? Obvi!

#28 - Atlanta Braves Game

Last weekend came and went with no bucket list worthy events...sorry guys, my wallet needed a break. The weekend prior was "Amy is ATL Bound" weekend and we lived it up with all her ATL favs...most of which have been checked off the list already.....all but one of course!  The dreary weather provided a not-so-gorg hair day, but MARTA didn't mind at all. I scooped up Seany and headed to the blue lot for the Atlanta Braves Game vs. Houston Astros! 

Side note, did anyone else notice that the MARTA prices went up? Um, it's $4.50 for a roundtrip. GASP. Depending on where you're living at the moment, it may not be cheaper than the drive down to Turner Field...even if gas is close to $3.00 these days. It still beats the heck out of being stuck in traffic and finding a parking spot...says me, the person who has an hour commute to work every morning. Again...GASP.

Ok, back on track. There is nothing I like better than a group email with 19 "reply all" responses with subject: BRAVES GAME SATURDAY - BE THERE! I had yet to be to a game this season, and despite their losing streak, I needed my boys to feel the love from this ATL gal. Only a few MARTA stations later I was steps away from our amazing tailgate spot with Amy and company waiting for our arrival, beer in hand.

If you're going with a group, get one person to purchase the $10 parking ticket and split the cost if need be. Also, always get the cheapest tickets, then hang out at the chop house if you're looking for more of a social gathering than watching the score board.

I was with some big Bravos fans, so we headed up to our seats up in the sky....well, pretty much....

We didn't care. The breeze was amazing and despite my semi-panic attack due to my fear of heights, it was a spectacular event. We sipped on tall boys, ate hot dogs, tomahawked and cheered with the best of em!

before

after...poor thing never even saw it comin'

I'd like to think my appearance played a part in them finally winning a game (10-1, I believe), putting an end to their nine game losing streak, but I suppose I could be more humble than that....don't get used to it.

All in all, it doesn't matter if you're an Atlanta native, newbie or just passing through on business....you should be making an appearance and supporting the big boys aka Atlanta Braves. If nothing else you get to see the fancy cars they drive and do some major manscouting....wowie wow wow, call me.

 Bucket list worthy? Um, anything with Tim Hudson involved is worthy of my presence...and this bucket list. Sooooo yuppers! Onto the next...

#27 - Inman Park Festival

Waking up to thunderstorms last weekend almost put a damper on my bucket list plans, but knowing that my adventure would be a brand new experience for me I had to pack up a weekend bag, get on the road and power through the thunderstorms for Inman Park Festival!

 

The event lasted several days and boy did they provide some bipolar Atlanta weather. Does everyone remember last Saturday? Yeah....day one was monsoon central. Street parking wasn't horrible to find but definitely took a drive by or two. 

Thanks to my previous roomie Adriatic, we had the festival at our fingertips, literally. Her house sat right on one of the busiest vendor streets! After a quick costume change, we headed out with our umbrella's to watch the parade...

Unforunately the majority of the vendors closed down early or were hard to get in and out of because of the rain, but we did make a quick cameo at the one's that caught our eyes.....and ultimately our wallets.

Amazing sculptures of people made from junk yard scraps!

Necklaces that can turn into headbands...made out of t-shirts.What a cute idea!

Day two was a whole new ballgame. Hello street parking, where did you go? I can't find you through the sea of vehicles that took over you. Horrendous. A 78 degree cloudless follow-up to the monsoon the day prior invited about 50 times the amount of people! Check out this crowd....

So if this isn't an obvious testament to taking MARTA, I don't know what is. Skip the stress of getting towed with your creative parking job and pay the $2 for a stress free transit. Get off at the Five Points station and you are steps away from hundreds of food, booze and white tents as far as the eye can see.

I was thankful for the rays since this girl can offird a sun bathing session here and there....not to mention I finally got to weave from street to street to see ALL that the local artists, cooks and entertainment had to offer. Jessie Parks, aspiring artists, photographer and all things adorable, served as wingman for the day.

It was hard to keep up with the crowd, but we did an excellent job of talking each other out of ridiculously expensive purchases. Here are a few that made my credit card want to jump out of my purse and into its Mecca.

 

Out of all the festivals I have attended thus far this spring, this one wins the best of the best...by a landside. Perfect mix of vendors, food and entertainment....but above all else LOCAL VENDORS. I can't tell you how many times my heart would skip a beat when I found myself falling in love with an item that my wallet said no to at Dogwood or 420fest. "I'll get that next paycheck" I'd tell myself. Really? You're going to drive to Minnesota to try on that dress are you? Ugh. I know we can all purchase our favs online these days, but we all need the touch and feel or a good old fasioned retail store from time to time right? Right. So thank you Inman Park community, for providing more local vendors than any other festival has this year. Well played.

Bucket list worthy? Rain, sleet, snow or tornados could not keep me from coming back next year. Definitely one for the books!

#26 - Sweetwater 420 Festival

It didn't take long for my thirst for "festivaling" to come biting back....Sunday afternoon I headed to the Ninsters to carpool down to Candler Park for Sweetwater 420 Fest.

I purposefully made the trip on Sunday in an attempt to avoid a packed out festival days prior. To be honest, I wanted room to shake my groove thang. Fact. But seeing as we had another beautimous day and there are no alcohol sales on Sunday in the great state of Georgia, Candler Park clearly had a different agenda for me! The park was packed to the max with vendors, food and local musical artists the entire day. Surprsingly I was not bothered by the crowd at all, despite my original mindset.

 

We found street parking pretty easily, but I recommend taking MARTA to avoid the stress of remembering which street you parked on, and if you're going to get towed on a Sunday (that would make for an interesting work debut Monday morning...boo).

While the festival is advertised as FREE, you must pay $5 for a wristband if you're planning to drinkity drink. I willingly paid the $5 and thanks to our 99X buds, the Ninster and I got VIP wristbands that helped us avoid the $5 Sweetwater's and $6 corn dogs. Thanks boys!

I guess they were a bit reluctant at first...but we wore them down

For life

After meeting up with our OTP friends, we made our way through the maze of vendors. I realized after about ten minutes of walking that I was not prepared for the hottest day of the weekend. Note to self: long flowy tan dress + 80 degree weather = potential swet stains allllllllll over. Thank goodness for Loose Loosies's tent where I could find a cute new dress to sneaky snake into.  Vendor and friend photoshoot for your viewing pleasure....

New dress - soooo comfie

What a fantastic Sunday Funday we ended up having at Candler Park. Totally worth fighting through the crowd every once in a while for a beer or to pee pee for coco puffs. While I had a blast, I will admit it was second to Dogwood Festival. 420fest is more about the beer and food than the vendors, and that's one my favorite parts of the festivals. Their music blew Dogwood's out of the water, but I was still craving about 20 more tents full of local artists and maybe a new pair of earings for that perfect night out. All and all, this festival rocked and quenched my desire for a springtime Sunday Funday. I will leave you with the picture below....

Oh, and Bucket list worthy?  You betcha! Onto the next....