Dishing on Greensboro

Downtown Greensboro, NC and the International Civil Rights Museum

Here it is the end of March and I'm finally sitting down to write about Valentine's Day. (I'm running a bit behind these days.) On Valentine's Day my husband and I booked it out of town for a weekend getaway to Greensboro, North Carolina. In the days leading up to our trip, it seemed iffy we were going to make it. For one, our main purpose in going to Greensboro was to see the Wailin' Jennys in concert. (Love them!) The only problem is that the band had to reach North Carolina from Winnipeg and New York. Normally that wouldn't be an issue, but there were snow and ice storms all over the South. Things weren't looking pretty there for a while. However, the travel gods prevailed and all parties were able to reach snowy Greensboro.

This was my first time in Greensboro and I thought I'd share a little bit about our trip with you. It's is a cute little town with a charming downtown area. The concert was held at the Carolina Theatre, an old movie house/Burlesque hall turned modern performance space. It reminded me a little of the Fox Theatre here in Atlanta, just on a smaller scale. The acoustics were fabulous and it was a great show! 

Carolina Theatre

On Saturday, we slept sinfully late and spent the morning and early afternoon at the International Civil Rights Museum in downtown Greensboro. The museum is housed in the former Woolworth's Department Store, which like many stores of that era, boasted a large luncheon counter where shoppers could grab a sandwich or slice of pie while they shopped. This particular luncheon counter was made famous by the events of February 1, 1960. Four African American college students set out to change the world by simply sitting down to eat there. Within days, the sit-in movement was launched and college students from all over the country conducted sit-ins of their own. They wouldn't allow pictures, but if I could I would share with you pictures of the actual lunch counter where the "Greensboro Four" sat.  I would show you the vintage Coca Cola machine that was 5 cents on the "white side" and 10 cents on the "black side." I would also show you their display of the mugshots of all the Freedom Riders and others arrested for peacefully protesting throughout the Civil Rights Era. It was a very inspiring place!

Now on to lunch ...

Lunch at Crafted.

Picking out just one slice at Cheesecakes by Alex is so difficult!

After the museum, we walked down the street to a cute little taco joint called Crafted. We really enjoyed our food and North Carolina brewed beer. Afterward, we had a requisite slice of cheesecake from Cheesecakes by Alex. Sometimes cheesecake is too rich for me, but the Kahlua Espresso Cheesecake we settled on was light, creamy and delicious.

Once stuffed, we headed back to the interstate and over to what I call "Dish Mecca." Replacements, Ltd. is located right outside of Greensboro near High Point. If you love china, crystal and silver, then you need to make a pilgrimage. They have a massive warehouse and showroom and likely carry that missing piece of china you need to replace. Even if you're not sure of a pattern's name or vintage, they can help you identify it and likely have other pieces in the same collection. The place is so huge and they offer guided tours! Who would go on a tour of a dish warehouse? I would! Like most cooks, I have a thing for dishes.

A display of the most popular patterns at Replacements. Do you see yours?

I enjoyed peeking behind the scenes and seeing how they categorize, process and rehab their wares. The best part? They have a bargain room and overstocks room where you can buy pieces that have been marked down -- some antique but many new. I could have spent hours looking through dishes, but finely landed on a few pieces to add to my food photography prop collection. 

Aisles and aisles of dishes behind the scenes at Replacements.

At last, after a busy day, we took it easy the rest of the night. We headed back to Atlanta -- and reality -- the following morning. We had a great trip and I can't wait to get back up there one day with the boys (though not necessarily to the china and crystal showroom because that would kind of be a nightmare). Now that I have some new beautiful dishware, I need to get back to posting some recipes. I just haven't been feeling it lately. I feel like I'm in a food rut. (Frozen pizza, anyone?)  But, I promise I'll get back to cooking and baking again soon. Thanks for sticking around with me!

A Visit to the North Carolina Mountains

It's been a strange summer in Atlanta. It's scarcely gotten over 85 degrees, it's rained like Seattle and now it's almost over -- at least for the kids. I can't believe that my kids go back to school in less than two weeks! We are trying to squeeze every bit of remaining summer fun in between day camps, doctor's appointments, back to school shopping and afternoon thunderstorms. There are pools to frequent, amusement parks to visit, cooking projects and so much that we just haven't gotten to yet. But, we did get to travel a good bit this summer. We just got back from the beach in Florida, but in late June, we had the unexpected treat of going to the Boone and Blowing Rock area of North Carolina. I'm writing a story for Atlanta Parent, so look for that in September. But, for now, I want to share a few photos and highlights of our trip.

First of all, North Carolina is just a stunningly beautiful state. The mountain views of the high country near the border of Virginia, are just phenomenal. While my husband worked, my boys and I set off to Dahlonega to pick up my dad. Just before we got to his house, my youngest puked in the car. What's a road trip without a little drama? After a bit of a rough start, we got back on the road and drove the North Georgia Mountains and through Franklin heading toward Asheville. We made it to Boone in about 5 hours and met up with the travel writers that I would be tagging along with. On the agenda: family fun.

My oldest got to go ziplining with me the first day and had the time of his life. Remember that I zip lined for the first time last year in Hilton Head? Well, I feel like an old pro now (sniff, sniff). Hawksnest Zipline offers a scenic journey through what used to be a ski resort. The lines go through hardwood forests, over woodland creeks and offer amazing views throughout. A couple of the lines were over 1500 feet long and I pretty much screamed myself silly. I was proud of my cautious, level headed boy for taking on the challenge.

Zipping and crossing swinging bridges through the trees.

Proof I did it!

Another highlight was visiting Grandfather Mountain. It's so incredibly breathtaking -- and the best part -- you can drive almost to the top. No sherpa required! There is a swinging bridge that joins two of the peaks. The boys had fun climbing over the rocks along the cliff and scaring me to death. My dad, the ultimate mountain-lover, remembers going there as a kid. It was nice to get to see him reconnect with the beauty of the mountain views and experience it with his grandboys.

Grandfather and grandsons on top of Grandfather Mountain.

Please don't fall off the mountain, boys!

Simply unbelievable walking between two mountain tops.

There is much more to tell you about, but I'll have to save that for the story. Finally, since this is technically a food blog, I would be remiss not to mention our meal at the Dan'l Boone Inn. It's an old-fashioned family-style (meaning they bring heaping bowls of food to the table to share) restaurant that has served the Boone area for over 50 years. It's been covered in Southern Living and on all the "best of" lists. I particularly enjoyed the country ham and biscuits and fried chicken. The country ham was locally cured and the biscuits were definitely from scratch - buttery and delicious.

Country ham and biscuits at the Dan'l Boone Inn.

I hope you are having a wonderful summer. I'll be back soon with beach adventures and, of course, good food.