Wahoo! Decatur Grill

One of the gifts that comes with moving away from home is the ability to really value the limited time you get to spend with your family. My parents always tell me that as a kid, it was a rare day that I could be found hanging out at home. And I don't need to be reminded that during my more, let's just say 'argumentative' teenage years, I didn't exactly ooze appreciation for everything they did (and do) for me. But now, I find myself wishing that I had more time to visit home and spend time with my parents and brother.

So it's perfect timing that my mom came to visit this weekend for my sorority's Mother Daughter Weekend. Whenever my mom and I get together, our first order of business is to find someplace new and exciting for dinner and drinks. It's a win-win situation: I get to eat at great restaurants for free and Mom gets to take a break from the meat and potatoes routine that my dad and brother insist on at home.

Tonight, we headed to Wahoo! Decatur Grill for an eclectic seafood dinner and we couldn't have been happier - a glass of wine, artsy decor and warm atmosphere made the perfect combination for a couple hours' worth of a much-needed catching up and girl talk. And I have to mention the dishes we ordered-I ordered the trout and mom got the Wahoo (it's a type of swordfish, who knew?), both of which were incredible. No wonder this place has won Best Seafood in Atlanta multiple times.

I'm looking forward to spending the rest of the weekend with mom--more delicious food and gossip! Some things never change...like the fact that she still can't keep her eyes open in a picture (see below).

Dekalb Farmer's Market

After a two-week long hiatus in Ireland and what seems like twice as long in thesis-induced self exile, I decided it was about time that I got out in Atlanta and did something fun. Low on food and low on cash, I thought I'd knock out a few things on my to do list and visit the Dekalb Farmer's Market. I'd imagined this place to be a glorified fruit stand in the middle of a field, so you can imagine my surprise when I pulled up to a sprawling warehouse with a crowd worthy of a Hanson concert circa 1999. Replace pre-adolescent girls with plucky housewives and you'll get a sense of the exciting buzz of the place.

Naturally, the first thing I noticed when I arrived was a table of fresh bread samples and dips. If the entire farmer's market had consisted of just this table, I would have been satisfied. When I eventually dragged myself away from the table, I picked up a loaf of challah about the length of my arm and made my way over to the overwhelming produce section. Honestly, I didn't recognize half the fruits and veggies there but in the spirit of trying new things, I bagged a few funny looking fruits to add to my overflowing basket of grapefruits, oranges, bananas, etc. In retrospect, I seriously overestimated the amount of fruit a person could possibly eat in a week but hey, at least I'm not at risk for scurvy.

For the next hour, I walked up and down each aisle and scoured every corner to see everything they had to offer. No description of the sheer amount of items or their uniqueness can do this place justice, it's definitely something you have to see for yourself. I landed at the cash register with one of the more peculiar combinations of food I've ever held and was delighted to find out that I bought an entire week's worth of food for only $30!

Goodbye Kroger!