Callaway Gardens Speckled Heart Grits

For the last two years I have taken a little trip by myself around Mother’s Day…just me, myself and I.   It’s a time of reflection, rejuvenation and I also use the time to review goals and set new ones for the year to come.   


Relaxation and great food and drink fit into the weekend, too………of course!


The first trip I took was a return trip to a place my mother and I visited often…and a place where we had taken a “girl’s trip” with my best friend and her mother when my friend and I were in high school.   


The four of us had a wonderful time…making Callaway Gardens one of my “special” places to visit.


One morning while we were there we left our hotel and drove up Pine Mountain to Callaway Garden’s Store and had breakfast.  Not only did we have a wonderful view from breakfast….we had some of the best grits I ever had.

The grits happened to be speckled heart grits and they aren’t your normal run-of-the-mill grit at all. 


Speckled heart grits are made from the whole grain including the heart of the corn kernel.   This results in robust grits that roll around your mouth with a slight grainy texture.


I love them.


I love them so much I bought two bags during my weekend sojourn at the gardens.  The bag had an interesting recipe……I’ll admit I haven’t tried it yet, but I plan to soon.


Here's the recipe:


Baked Grits Souffle


1 ½ cups Speckled Heart Grits
4 ½ cups water
2 cans mushroom soup
6 eggs, well beaten
1 cup cracker crumbs
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese


Cook grits according to traditional recipe above.  Mix with Mushroom soup.   Add well beaten eggs.  Place mixture in baking dish greased well with bacon drippings.   Cover with cracker crumbs and cheese.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes    Serves 4-6


While it’s almost ten months until my next trip I’m already thinking about the location.   I usually try to stick somewhere in the Atlanta area.


Any suggestions?

Restaurant Review: Six Feet Under

We had dinner Wednesday night at Six Feet Under.  The Mister and I had dined there this past April, and we liked it so much we wanted a return trip.   The occasion was the Mister’s birthday and our grown children would be joining us. 

Six Feet Under has two Atlanta locations……437 Memorial Drive, S.E. and 685 11^th Street.    We have only been to the Memorial Drive/Grant Park location so far, but love the atmosphere.   It’s a great restaurant…..tavern……and hang out spot with lots of beer choices and interesting food.

  

First of all Six Feet Under is located in a great historic place with a  Grant Park address….close to neighborhoods like Cabbagetown and Glenwood Park, PLUS it overlooks historic Oakland Cemetery making my history loving toes curl. 

In fact, the reason why the Mister and I ended up at Six Feet Under in the first place had to do with the fact we were enjoying a Sunday afternoon wandering through the 48 acre cemetery visiting the graves of folks like golfer Bobby Jones, Gone with the Wind’s author…Margaret Mitchell, and various other Atlanta notables.

The complex that houses Six Feet Under is known collectively as The Jane and it’s more than just a restaurant.   The complex offers office and retail space and loft condos are in the mix as well.

Second, the restaurant is housed in a reclaimed Atlanta manufacturing company.  The building used to be the home of Southern Elevator Company as far back as the 1920s.   A blurb on the Six Feet Under menu states, “According to local old-timers the factory produced everything except those ‘really fancy cabs’.  A former controller at the factory enjoys ‘sitting in his old office’ now that [the restaurant has moved in.]”  

While the space was renovated for the restaurant there are still signs that the space was a manufacturing spot with exposed pipes and factory windows.  There is a bar downstairs 

…along with a main dining room.   Notice all of the old beer signs along the walls.

Take a walk up the beautiful staircase and you find yourself with one of the best views of Atlanta’s skyline where you can dine and drink on the rooftop.

During our afternoon visit in April the place was packed and we had to wait a few minutes for a table.  The Mister sampled the oysters….

….while I ordered the Fried Green Tomatoes.   I’ve tried everyone’s from Savannah to Asheville….so why would this be any different?   We joke that we are on an extended Fried Green Tomato tour across the South.   

I pronounce these to be yummy.   The tomatoes are dusted with a cornmeal rub and deep fried…then brought to you drizzled with a horseradish-dill sauce and a few chopped tomatoes scattered about.

I then opted for the Fried Chicken Tacos.   The waiter delivered three soft flour tortillas to the table stuffed with fried chicken, cotija cheese, shredded lettuce, roasted corn.  Each taco was drizzled with spicy salsa drizzle and a fried jalapeno.  A little salsa verde was served on the side.

The mister had the Black n’ Bleu Slider which consisted of a honey wheat bun, bleu cheese crumble, fried leeks and chopped spinach.  

Everything was great!

Wednesday night's dinner was great as well…..

Dear Daughter had to sample the Crab Cakes…..four sautéed crab cakes served over fresh spinach and topped with corn, micro greens and mustard sauce.

She also sampled the Chilled Cucumber Soup…..served with a crab cake and topped with micro greens and Sriacha – a Vietnamese hot sauce.   I admired how the soup was presented with dots of the Sriacha on the lip of the bowl.

Dear Son followed in his father’s footsteps and enjoyed the Black n’  Bleu Slider while the Mister and Dear Daughter enjoyed Crab Legs which were described as being a fisherman’s pound.   

I had the Fried Shrimp basket and the one word I could use to describe my meal would be……LIGHT.     Yes, it was fried, but I didn’t leave the restaurant feeling like I had just ingested a greasy meal.   The basket came with several shrimp, homemade chips, and two hushpuppies which were unique.   They seemed to be a mix of flour and cornmeal….with the end result being more like a cake than the normal hushpuppy.   While I didn’t rave over them…..it was a nice change, and I try to be open to new ways of preparing food.  The menu stated the hush puppies as well as the tartar sauce were prepared with chopped jalapeno, but they weren’t hot at all.

As I mentioned above one of the enticements of visiting Six Feet Under has to do with Oakland Cemetery……check out some of my pictures I took at the cemetery in May and one of my favorite Oakland stories over at Georgia on My Mind.