During my spring break trip to Atlanta, my friend who's a native of the great peach state, gave us the grand tour of the city via the Atlanta Beltline, and to put it simply, I fell in love.
For those of you who aren't familiar with the Atlanta Beltline, it's a 5-mile stretch of path that runs through the hub of Atlanta. The first main area we came across was Ponce City Market, which is a quarter of a mile in. This humongous structure is two stories with a mix of diverse restaurants and shops. It's best known for it's Central Food Hall, located on the first floor, which is home to some of the hippest joints in Atlanta. They have restaurants that offer almost everything, ranging from gourmet burgers to barbecue to fresh seafood, and award winning chefs such as Anne Quatrano, Linton Hopkins, and Sean Brock cooking in them.
One noteworthy place in there is King of Pops Bar & Good Grub, which is a trendy chain that serves refreshing popsicles and other food.
Once you leave PCM, the walk on the Beltline is full of rad street art and sculptures done by local artists.
There's also an art campaign called Tiny Doors ATL where people literally install 6-inch doors all over the Atlanta area to inspire and promote free art. The Beltline is the home to some and we were delighted to discover a few during our walk.
Krog Street Market marks the end of the Beltline. Unlike Ponce, it's only one floor and has a more cafeteria feel with its take-out restaurants and booths. I was feeling Middle Eastern food, so I tried my luck at YALLA! and got the best chicken shawarma bowl of my life, and I've been to Greece if that tells you anything.
After five minutes of digesting, my sweet tooth got the best of me, so I waddled over to Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams. As an ice cream connoisseur, I know good cream when I taste it. Their Brown Butter Almond Brittle flavor earned a 10/10.
However, what I really appreciated about Jeni's was their diverse flavor selection. We're talking Sweet Cream Biscuits and Peach Jam, Goat Cheese With Red Cherries, Wildberry Lavender, and Rieseling and Poached Pear Sorbet type flavors. And they were all mind blowing.
The best part about visiting all of the booths and vendors was getting to talk to them and hear their stories. Every single store owner I talked to had a passion for food or crafting and decided to take a chance and start their own business. The Atlanta Beltline isn't just a place to get good food and quality items, it's a place where people can share their passions and ideas. So if you ever get a chance to venture down to Atlanta, visit the Beltline. It's a truly enriching experience.