Savannah Day 3 - Paula Deen's (!) and a Trolley Tour

I was one lucky lady on our last day in Savannah because I did not have to wake up early but still got reservations at Paula Deen's The Lady and Sons.

Paula and I!

Not because it was a quiet day, because as you can see in the photo below, the place was packed.  Rather, Nick got up and was in line at 8:30am in order to make reservations that they don't start taking until 9:30am - that is how crazy it gets down there!

Crowd getting ready...

At 11:00, the time of our reservation, a women they affectionately nicknamed "Jelly Roll" comes out and goes crazy ringing the bell to let everyone know it is time to start digging in.  Then, one by one they call the names of the parties and send you in.

Nick and I were sat at a table for 2 on the first floor and almost immediately we were greeted by our super friendly waitress, who I think definitely threw a few extras "y'alls" into her sentences, and ordered some drinks while we reviewed the lunch menu.  At the same time there was a server who met each table and served them a Hoe Cake and a Cheddar biscuit. 

Who needs a bread basket??

The Cheddar biscuit was delicious - so light and fluffy, and much more so than the ones in the cardboard tube I have in my fridge.  The hoe cake was unreal - it is a pancake that actually has a bit of cornmeal in the batter and is cooked in a cast iron skillet with loads of butter.  After topping it off with a little syrup, I was wondering if the food could get any better!

After reviewing the menu we decided to go for the buffet rather than a lunch meal - really, the selections were rather limited and for a dollar more you could get the buffet, which had too many tempting choices and included dessert!  So, off we went.

The Buffet

The buffet was packed with fried chicken, baked chicken, pulled pork, mac and cheese, lima beans, brown eyed peas, zucchini casserole, mashed potatoes, corn bread and gravy, yams, creamed corn, collards and green beans.  The selections were endless.

Nick had a pretty good strategy going into the buffet: he got a few items to try with the expectation of going back up to try some others.

Nick's Plate

I on the other had had a terrible strategy at the buffet.  I just got a little over excited and went for everything on one plate.  As you can see, anything I wanted I grabbed and started piling things up, even though I do not like having things really touch or piled.  I started to panic a bit, but could not stop.  

My loaded plate

Everything was delicious, however the fried chicken was absolutely incredible.  The crusty batter on the outside had such a great flavor and the chicken was moist and delicious.  I had one piece but could have gone up for seconds or thirds!  The pulled pork was another favorite.  Again the meat was cooked perfectly and the the BBQ sauce was so tasty!

Finally they brought out a selection of desserts for us to choose, which included banana pudding, peach cobbler and sweet potato gooey butter cake. 

Desserts

Even though we were stuffed, the portion was perfect for just a little taste - how do you go all the way there and not sample the dessert?!

To be honest I was skeptical of the Lady and Sons because I was worried that everyone (myself included) had built it up too much, but this was not the case at all.  The food was really that good and totally worth waiting in line to make a reservation.  While you are there you must take a peek at her store, where you can find all sorts of fun stuff to buy and take home in order to pretend that you are Paula Deen herself (get your butter ready!)

After a big lunch at Paula Deen's we went on one of the Oglethorpe Trolley Tours.  Like the trolleys here in Boston, they take you all over the city, giving you the history of the area and allowing you to pop on and off as you please.  With the trolley tour we went further into the city than we had before. 

One of the fun things we saw on the tour was Jim Williams' mansion.  If you are not familiar with the name in the particular, you may know the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, in which Jim Williams is the main character.  The house is beautiful and was one of my favorites that we saw.  I definitely want to watch the movie again to see it since they filmed on site.

Jim Williams House

Another fun thing we saw was the Waving Girl statue.  Turns out the waving girl was the sister of the lighthouse keeper and waved to all the ships that came in and out of the harbor.  After many years of waving to the sailors, they wanted to her to know how much they appreciated it so they sent letters to her.  Since they did not know her name they addressed them simply to "The Waving Girl."

Waving Girl

Last but not least we headed to Forsyth Park, which is a 20 acre park in the historic district of Savannah - the park with large fountain.

Forsyth Park

The park was one the places we jumped off the tour and walked around.  The area was beautiful - lots of lovely landscaping and benches to sit and relax.  While at the fountain taking pictures, Nick was asked by a couple to take theirs and right as he looked up, the guy actually got down on one knee and proposed!  Talk about high-pressure picture taking!

All in all, I would highly recommend Savannah as a great destination for a getaway.  The Historic District is just the right size, so you can go see the sites and still have plenty of time to relax.  For us, while it is was cold and rainy in Boston, Savannah was sunny and 85 - a nice break from the chilly spring we've been having.

Bottom line - need a long weekend?  Savannah is perfect!

Savannah Day 2 - Belford's, Architectural Tour and the Olde Pink House!

After a great first day we were looking forward to what our second day would bring.  On Saturday we made reservations (or attempted to) for Sunday brunch at Belford's right in City Market - a couple of blocks of shopping and restaurant in the historic district.

Belford's Patio Area

Arriving on the early side we were lucky enough to grab a table for brunch under the large awning on the patio.  While it was warm, there was plenty of shade and ceiling fans circulating the air, making for a lovely time.  We thought we were going to a champagne brunch but those tricky Georgia state laws prevent any liquor service before 12:30pm on Sundays, so it was just straight brunch for us!


When I saw baked brie on the menu, I jumped right on it.  Not very southern, but it was calling my name!

Baked Brie

 The baked brie was yummy, and the puff pastry was nice and flaky.  The spreads really made this dish, though.  The honey was from the Savannah Bee Company, which is absolutely amazing.  So good, in fact, that we actually stopped off at the store and brought home some souvenirs!  Nick got the Blue Crab Frittata.

Frittata and Grits

The frittata was an open faced omelet with blue crab meat, roasted corn salsa and Cheddar cheese.  This dish had some good crab chunks, but after the grits from last night, these seemed a bit elementary - still delicious, though.

After brunch we had an Architectural Tour scheduled, one of the few things we had scheduled before we got down there.  The tour received all sorts of amazing reviews on Trip Advisor, and after reading up on the tour and finding out that it was a 90 minute walk around the city, we figured why not!

The owner/guide is a graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design and is a knowledgeable fan of the city, and we met him in the center of the city in Chippewa Square, right next to Oglethorpe's (the founder of Georgia) statue.

Chippewa Square

Among some of the great things we saw/learned was the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (the founder of the girl scouts!)

Scouts Started Here

And the Davenport House, which is a perfect example of a Federalist-style house.

Davenport House

Other places included the Kehoe House - all of the white and gray portions are actually rod iron!

Kehoe House

One of my favorite was the Owens-Thomas House, a part of the Telfair museums.

Owens-Thomas House

This was one of the best things we did all weekend.  It was a great tour of the city by someone who really knows and loves where they are.  We really learned a ton and actually enjoyed the process!

That night we had reservations at the The Olde Pink House, which is literally in an old pink house right on Reynold's Square.

The Olde Pink House

The restaurant is only the most recent of tenants in this house: it has held secret meetings that helped secure the original independence, it was a bank for planters, and a General's headquarters during the Civil War to name only a few uses.  We sat in a smaller room upstairs that was originally the master bedroom of the house.  Each room was decorated like you were sitting in a house rather than a restaurant - almost like the original L'Espalier or Mama Maria's.

I started the evening with a refreshing raspberry vodka lemonade drink.

Yum

I could have continued drinking these for the entire evening, but still wanting to enjoy and remember the evening, one was enough!  To begin our meal he had a bread basket with a variety of fun breads, including a warm yeast roll with sea salt and rosemary, corn muffins and biscuits.

Southern Bread Basket

The bread was really amazing - the yeast bread has such a great flavor.  The corn muffins were definitely not Jiffy!

For an appetizer, I just could not resist ordering the “Southern Sushi,” which had smoked shrimp and grits rolled in coconut-crusted nori. 

Southern Sushi

This was such a fun, playful dish - a great combination of flavors.  When I dipped the roll in the wasabi sauce it added a nice spice to each bite.

Nick had heard about this restaurant was told to get fried green tomatoes, so he chose the BLT salad, which used fried greens, applewood bacon and a sweet corn cream over greens.  The salad was delicious - Nick thought the tomatoes were perfectly cooked, and that the thick bacon was some of the best he had ever tasted.

BLT Salad

While I only had one of the first type of drinks, I had to try the raspberry martini - the puree and the fresh berries were just too tempting.

Martini

This drink did not disappoint!  For entrees, Nick had a pork tenderloin with bourbon sauce that was served with collard greens and a yam with vanilla butter.

Pork Tenderloin

I ordered the crab-stuffed grouper with a white wine lemon sauce, mashed potatoes and mixed beans.

Stuffed Grouper

I haven't had grouper in a long time, so I was excited to order this, especially since it was stuffed with crab.  The fish was well cooked and moist.  The two types of flavors worked well together and made each one even better.

While we were completely stuffed, we had to order dessert and went with the pecan pie.

Pecan Pie

The pie was also cooked with a chocolate, adding a whole other layer of deliciousness.

The Olde Pink House was a great restaurant and a bit more fancy, making for a great night out on the town.  Perfect for our Easter Dinner!

Day 2 was another success - we really got a better feeling for the city and learned the lay of the land.  We were not looking forward to having to go home the next day, but were ready for a hearty lunch at Paula Deen's - saving some of the best for last!

Savannah Day 1 - Alligator Soul and Rocks on the Roof

I have been very bad about posting the past couple of days, but I have the legitimate excuses of being in Savannah for a long weekend followed by travel delays (thanks, United Airlines).  The wait is worth the reward, though, because I have tales to tell with tips on where to go when you head to Savannah, which you all (y'all?) should!

We stayed at the Marshall House, located right in the middle of the Historic District of Savannah. 

The Marshall House

Nick reserved a room that had access to the balcony, which was perfect for a little relaxing and reading...

Or a little posing

What was fun was that rather than doors, the access was through a couple of really large windows - we had conflicting reports that is was either because of a door tax in Savannah, or because the balcony was not original to the building.

He came in through the bedroom window

The hotel was close to everything and the staff was extremely helpful with all of our questions. I highly recommend staying here.

On our first morning we headed down to the riverfront to explore all the fun shops, which included everything from touristy gift shops to art galleries to fun restaurants.

Along the riverfront

After covering most of the riverfront my stomach was growling.  Lucky for us, we were right outside the new Bohemian Hotel, which has a fantastic roof deck restaurant - the Rocks on the Roof.

Top of the brick building is Rocks on the Roof

The views of the river were beautiful...

Views

Also, I had no idea the river was so big - enough to carry a shipping container!  The bridge in the background looks a bit familiar - very similar to the Zakim Bridge.

Instead of getting actual entrees, we decided to just get a couple small plates - more in line with the menu's offerings.  First we went with the shrimp and crab bruschetta on foccacia with arugula.

Bruschetta

This was tasty, but paled in comparison to our next dish - chicken and waffle sliders.  Yes, you read that right: this place took chicken and waffles and kicked it up a major notch!

the best sliders!

The chicken and waffle sliders had crispy chicken tenderloins with boursin cheese and pepper jam sandwiched between two mini Belgian waffles.  These were unbelievable!  Any other sliders pale in comparison to these - imagine how good these are based solely on the name and they are even better.

That afternoon we walked around some more, checked out a few of the squares and read a little on the balcony (see above), enjoying the warm weather before heading out for dinner at Alligator Soul.  This was a recommendation made to Nick prior to our trip and the hotel helped us with reservations.  So off we went...

Alligator Soul is right off of Broughton Street in the Historic District in a "garden level" space with exposed brick and stone floors.  Sitting at the bar we were a bit overwhelmed by the fun offerings on the drink menu that not only had a number of fun cocktails but also a couple of different drink "flights." In addition to scotch you could choose three martinis or three different craft brews, which Nick went for.  I, on the other hand, was immediately drawn to the Sparkling Fleur de Soul.  

Sparkling Fleur de Soul

The drink was delicious and not too sweet, and the presentation was beautiful.  The drink had acai berry vodka and elderflower liqueur, and was topped off with some champagne and garnished with a hibiscus flower that was soaked in a sugar syrup and a bit of mint.

Each party was treated to an amuse bouch (thanks, Top Chef, for making these the norm!) of filet with a salsa verde. 

Amuse Bouch

This really fit the bill and got us excited for the rest of the meal to come.  To start we decided to split some shrimp and grits.

Shrimp and Grits

The shrimp and grits had Georgia wild shrimp sauteed in lemon butter and Creole spice served over Georgia stone ground grits with tasso ham and Cheddar cheese.  These were the best grits we have ever tasted!  The grits were so delicious with the rich flavors of the tasso ham and and cheese.  The shrimp was cooked perfectly and not at all greasy or oily from the butter.  I think this was my favorite dish we had in Savannah - a must have if you find yourself there.

For main dishes Nick and I went with the daily specials.  The menu items looked great, but we were swayed.  Nick ordered grilled mahi mahi on a bed of wild rice that included the "trinity" (of bell pepper, onion and celery) and grilled pineapple.  The fish was cover with an apricot bourbon sauce and greens. 

Grilled mahi mahi

The presentation was beautiful and the dish came together well.  The pineapple and the apricot seemingly would be an odd pairing but worked perfectly together.

I got the prime rib special that came with green beans and fingerling potatoes that were roasted in duck fat.

Prime Rib

The green beans were so tender and rich.  Obviously, the potatoes were perfection - I mean, they were roasted in duck fat!  The prime rib was cooked perfectly, and the meat basically melted in my mouth.  The sauce was something amazing, and unfortunately I cannot remember the different components, but I think there was some bourbon and cheese of some sort. 

We walked out of Alligator Soul completely satisfied and stuffed.  This was such a great meal!  Another great recommendation if you happen to find yourself in Savannah.

Our first day was a great intro to the city.  The warm and sunny weather was just what we needed after the cold spring we have been having up here.  The next two days had some more great food and some more fun tours of this beautiful city.