Figo Pasta - Vinings, GA (Atlanta)

Last week we had lunch at a pasta place in Vinings, GA. Figo Pasta is a fast casual restaurant that serves Italian food. Fresh pasta with several different sauces, along with soup, salads and paninis.  Figo Pasta is set up like a typical fast casual restaurant, you order at a counter and your food is brought out to your table by a server. The food however is on par with or better than many full service places we've dined at. Figo offers many different types of pasta and several different sauces. You chose whatever type of noodle you want (they also have ravioli with many tasty and inventive fillings) and then select a sauce. You can add meatballs too if you'd like.

After we ordered we were given a brightly colored pepper mill table marker and headed outside to take advantage of what was a truly beautiful day. Our server stopped by and took our drink orders. He returned a short time later with some bread and offered a nice pour of olive oil.

While we waited for our food we sat back to enjoy the day. Adding to the ambiance were the people a couple of tables away speaking Italian and enjoying their lunch of pasta and paninis.

Lunch started with a crostini appetizer: goat cheese, caramelized onions and apricots spread on toasted ciabatta bread.

For entrees we had the tagliatelle with ragu of lamb and kalamata olives and the pappardelle with the amatriciana sauce. Both entrees were excellent, perfectly al dente pasta with just the right amount of sauce. One of the better bowls of pasta I've had.

Pappardelle with Amatriciana sauce.

Tagliatelle with ragu of lamb and kalamata olives

 Figo Pasta is a low key, comfortable place that serves really good pasta. Lunch for two ran us about $25 for an app, two entrees and two beverages. Add in friendly, knowledgable staff, a nice location and Figo Pasta is a winner.

 After lunch we walked across the street to CamiCakes Cupcake shop. I'd noticed it on the way to Figo and decided to pop in for a dessert to take home with us. I'm a sucker for cupcakes and these looked amazing.  While the flavors of the cupcakes were delicious, the cake itself was a little dry. I put this down to being over baked just a tad. Next time I'm in the area I'll give CamiCakes another try. Hopefully they'll have the minor cake issues sorted out.

Chocolate Raspberry Almond Cream, Key Lime and Classic Vanilla & Chocolate (L-R)

Fox Brothers BBQ - Atlanta, Georgia

A couple of weeks ago we went to Fox Brothers BBQ for lunch. Fox Brothers is a local Atlanta BBQ joint that serves up Texas style BBQ. Texas style BBQ is all about the beef, brisket primarily and also beef ribs.

Earlier this year a large tree from a neighboring property fell on and destroyed a part of the Fox Brothers dining room. Slowed down but not out, the restaurant was open again in less than 48 hours. In the picture below the white tent now stands where the front part of the restaurant used to be.

There was a line of people waiting to sit outside under the tent so we opted to sit inside where there was no wait. The inside dining area is small and dominated on one side by a good sized bar. It's nice to find a decent BBQ place with a full bar and my favorite Texas beer on tap.

We started with an appetizer called The Lopez, tater tots covered with brisket chili and cheese. Honestly I was all in at tater tots but the addition of the chili and cheese made it that much better.

We ordered a Shiner Bock to go with our tot appetizer and placed our order for lunch. I ordered the Fox Brothers burger, a smoked burger with bacon and pimento cheese with a side of Frito pie. My dining companion had the two meat combo, ribs and brisket with potato salad and coleslaw.   In short order our food arrived. Everything looked good, including my "Frito pie" served in a small chip bag. (For those unfamiliar, Frito pie is basically corn chips covered with chili and cheese and baked into a casserole.) The coleslaw and potato salad were both flavorful.  Unlike most of my experience with smokehouse sides, these were really good. 

Frito Pie served in a chip bag

Having ordered the burger I had to forgo my standard BBQ order of ribs. Lucky for me my dining companion shared his ribs and brisket. The ribs were fall off the bone tender but not mushy. My complaint with brisket is always the same, too dry and too thin. Not here; the brisket was moist with a good amount of fat and not too thinly sliced. A good showing all the way around. 

Brisket and Ribs

Chocolate cake with strawberries and ice cream

We finished up lunch with a huge slab of chocolate cake. All in all our lunch at Fox Brothers BBQ was good with the sides and brisket both better than expected.  If you're ever in the Atlanta area and looking for Texas style BBQ do stop by. Fox Brothers will definitely fit the bill.
 
A quick note: We had lunch at Figo Pasta this past weekend. Easily one of the best dishes of pasta I've had in a long time. Fresh made pasta, a large variety of sauces at a very reasonable price point. I've paid twice the price or more at higher end Italian restaurants and didn't have pasta this good. Look for a full review with pictures coming soon. 

Madison, Georgia

Last week we visited the Bruce Weiner Microcar Museum in Madison, GA. After our stop at the museum we headed into the downtown area of Madison.

We took a brief ride around the town square in an open air car called the Lady Buggie. The ride around the city is free and helps to get an idea of what to see and the places to visit.

Madison is a lovely small town and it's very clear that the people who live here take great pride in their city.

A small but beautiful private courtyard

The town of Madison was once located on the stagecoach route between Charlestown and New Orleans. When the railroad pushed east from Augusta along that same stagecoach route Madison's citizens fought to preserve their downtown. The town deeded land to the railroad and arranged for the tracks to skirt the town. The town was spared during the civil war and rode out the boll weevil destruction of the cotton crop but by the end of WW II the population had declined and the economy had slowed down. For the next 30 years the town continued in a state of decline. Then in the 1970's with a renewed interest in preservation many of the older homes and businesses were purchased and restored. Today Madison is a lovely small town with a lot of charm and some beautifully restored spaces.

Small public park

 

While we were there I had a chance to visit a couple of these lovingly restored homes. The first place I visited was the Rose Cottage. This was a small home built by a former slave, Adeline Rose. Adeline earned a living by taking in laundry. Truck load sized loads of washing and ironing for which she earned 50 cents a load. Rose and her family lived in that little house for 68 years. It was moved to its present location by the city of Madison so that it could be preserved.

Picture of Adeline Rose

Adeline Rose

I also stopped in at the Madison Tea Room. What a gorgeous place. On the day I visited it was decked out for a wedding party. Just lovely. I managed to take a few pictures.

Hats - It's a Southern thing

I'm going to try and get back to Madison when it is decorated for the holidays. Historic and private home tours take place between November 30th and December 1st.

The visit to the Weiner Microcar Museum and the visit to Madison are part of our effort to get out and see the local sites of whatever area we find ourselves in. You never know what's right outside your front door unless you get out there and take a look.

Happy travels!