I spent last week down in Atlanta with my brother and his family and I had some damn good food while I was there.  I thought I would share with y’all some of my favorites.

And yes, I know.  I’m talking about Atlanta on a Cleveland food website, but you’ll get over it.

The Varsity – What an amazing place this is folks! An 81 year-old Atlanta landmark the Varsity is also the World’s Largest Drive-in Restaurant.  What other restaurant do you know that has a parking-deck?

The food is greasy, delicious and cheap.  Really cheap.  You could have a big meal for under $5, easy.  And The Varsity even has it’s own lingo for ordering which is a sign of a top-notch restaurant.

While the burgers are a real treat my favorite items are the onion rings and the Frosted Orange.  The onion rings literally drip with flavor which you’ll have all over your face by the time you’re done. What I really like about them is that they stay together, so you don’t end up eating the breading and the onion separately. Very nice.

Now the best part, the Frosty Orange or FO or as I prefer, a the Frosty O.  This magical concoction is a frozen orange slushy, but it’s really frozen so you can’t drink it, you have to spoon it out.  The taste is out of this world, reminded me very much of those Flintstone’s push-ups you used to get in grade school.  Seriously amazing.

And although there is a lot of talk at places like tripadvisor.com that the staff is rude, they guy that came out to our car couldn’t have been nicer.  He even wished us a “Merry Crifthmas” (There’s an F in Christmas?). 

Sugar Cakes – This Patisserie does more than just pastry and they do it right.  A great place for lunch in Marietta, their sandwiches are fresh and fantastic.  The true star at Sugar Cakes is their brie and mushroom soup which will make you wonder how something so simple could taste so good.

5 Guys Burgers – A burger and fries is a pretty simple meal, but almost everyone manages to screw it up.  5 Guys lets their quality ingredients speak for themselves.  Another greasy treat, their fresh ground beef is stacked with your favorite toppings and paired with perfectly cooked fresh-cut french fries.  All I needed was some malt vinegar and I was in heaven. 

Too bad the Ohio 5 Guys locations are so far away from me. Ok, maybe that’s a good thing.

Blue Moon Pizza – New York style pizza in Atlanta?  You betcha!  This stuff is sweet.  I could have eaten the whole pie by myself with its big triangular slices, folding them in half as I crammed my fat face. 

Blue Moon, in addition to serving up some great pizza also has these things called “Garlic Balls”.  Sweet mother.  I felt so dirty eating these, I wanted to eat them alone in the bathroom to hide my guilty little pleasure.  They come with a tub of garlic butter and a tub of marinara sauce, by the time you’re done you’ve got sauce up to your elbows and a smile on your face.

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