Adventure Eating

Before so many of my sorority sisters left this fine city, we had a monthly gathering to try ethnic foods. It's been a few years, but I recall wonderful Indian food. And I remember that Marianna's idea of African fare was Gladys Knight's Chicken & Waffles. Or she just wanted an excuse to have chicken and waffles. I'm OK with it.

Watching tonight's episode of The Layover, I realized I missed these culinary adventures.

So let's roll it back out: The Atlanta Adventure Eating Club
The Rules. The restaurant must be:

1. Sketch - Whether it's weird food or a weird neighborhood, it's gotta make you a little uncomfortable.
2. Untried - If we been before, we aint going again.
3. Cheap - Aint no fine dining in adventure eating.
4. Known Locally - Everybody loves a local hotspot.

Yes, that spells SUCK. The restaurants have got to be SUCK.
So here is a starting list. Some of these are per Anthony's recommendation, and some spring from my own insatiable curiosity. Let's get freaky:

• HD1 - (Poncey Highlands) Hotdogs like you've never had them. Come hungry. You're gunna wanna try two.
• Thompson Brothers BBQ - (Smyrna) Conveniently close hole in the wall.
• Heirloom Market BBQ - (NW Perimeter) Supposedly among the best in Atlanta, and has some elements of fusion BBQ. Yessss.
• Fox Bros BBQ - (East Atlanta) Let's just put together a BBQ Tour de Atlanta.
• Crawfish Seafood Shack - (Buford Hwy) I have always eschewed shellfish, because I hated it as a child. But I recently tried shrimp again and was OK with it. I've never had crawfish. So let's do this.
• The Colonnade Restaurant - (Cheshire Bridge) True southern fare.
• Sabores Del Plata - (Buford Hwy) Uruguayan meat, meat, and more meat. I am so curious.
• Nicola's Restaurant - (Druid Hills) Lebanese. Bring me baklava!
• McKinnon's Louisiane - (Buckhead) Maybe breaking rule #2, but how can we not take Katie to this place?
• Desta Ethiopian Kitchen -(NE Atlanta) No chicken & waffles.
• JCT Kitchen - (Westside) Southern-inspired bistro food. Apparently the truffle parmesan fries are a must-eat item of Atlanta. Slow cooked rabbit, anyone?
• Woo Nam Jeong Stone Bowl House - (Buford Hwy) Korean, famous for their bimimbap. Put some squid on it.
• The Local Three - (West Buckhead) Pushing the limits of Rule #2, but apparently this is the hidden gem of Northwest Atlanta. And it's 5 minutes from my home. Stephanie, this could be your foodie Shangri-La.
• Nick's Food To Go - (Downtown) Greek corner counter on MLK Drive. If that's not an adventure, I don't know what is. Daylight required.

Things I want to try. If you know of a fantastic place to find these things, speak up:

• I've never had Peking Duck. Let's have a Peking Duck. A good one. I'd pay up for a good one.
• Best dumplings around.
• Traditional regional Chinese food. I know it's out there. Birdy mystery meats and 7 year broths and whatnot. Serve it up. I'll try it.
• Eastern European. I feel like these are a people who cook like southerners, in that they have historically made the best of what they had. But I have no idea where the Poles are hiding in Atlanta. And I'm not referring to stripper poles - everybody knows where they are (Cheshire Bridge).

Let's add to these lists. Speak up!