Marvel With A Mango: Low Country Fish Boil From Seafoodlicious

A few weeks ago my parents, my wife, and I spent a weekend in Savannah. We saw the sites around town and we wanted to try to local cuisine and as Savannah is on the coast we wanted to get some seafood.

My Mom mentioned that she had had some great low country fish boil the last time she was in Savannah and after a few google searches we found a little restaurant called Seafoodlicious that had amazing review for their fish boil. It was located far away from the historical squares and tourist areas of the downtown.

We knew we were in the right place when they had the smoker going full blast smoking fish next to the road. 

And here is the amazing fish boil that included corn, crabs, shrimp, sausage, and potatoes. It was much more than a person could eat in a single sitting and was only about $6 believe it or not! We ended up having a picnic with our lunches at Fort Polaski National Monument and it was a great time. I'll share my Fort Polaski photos in a future post.

The Chapel of the Fallen Eagles

A few weeks ago while visiting Savannah we stopped at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum in Pooler, GA [which is just outside of Savannah]. My Grandfather was a part of the 8th Air Force during World War II and I'll have another post highlighting the exhibits from the museum.

Today I'll highlight one part of the museum which is a chapel on the grounds called the Chapel of the Fallen Angels. It was built as a replica of a traditional English chapel that allows visitors and veterans a chance to pay their respect at the museum.

It is a very tranquil place and although you can't tell from the outside view but on the inside all the beautiful stained glass windows are air force related in one way or another. I took photos of all the windows with my favorite being this first one with the pilot staring out at you with the bomber in the background.

Trading Cards From The Ocmulgee National Monument

Just outside Macon, GA you can find an interesting artifact of Native American culture called the Ocmulgee National Monument. Be sure to bring your NPS Passport!

The monument is not a single structure but a collection of mounds built by the South mound built by the South Appalachian Mississippian people about 1,000 years ago. 

This particular mound is the Great Temple Mound and you are able to climb to the top. 

It is a sacred site and there are a lot of things you can't do on the grounds including flying kites. 

The view from the top show the floodplains of the Ocmulgee River and on the opposite side you get a great view of the Macon skyline. 

 

I'm always a sucker for a gift shop and National Parks have some of the best gift shops anywhere. Ocmulgee's gift shop didn't disappoint as they had complimentary packs of of trading cards featuring historical figures and events related to the park. Here are some scans of the front and back of each card in the set with my favorite being of General Sherman.

Marvel With A Mango: Chicken and Waffles At The Juke Joint

 In downtown Atlanta there is a restaurant that pays tribute to Georgia's juke joint past, named appropriately enough the Juke Joint. During segregation times "juke joints" were bars and clubs mainly located in the countryside that allowed black farmers and workers to enter.

The juke joints were also famous for their live music and the Juke Joint was no different as we had a blue guitarist playing along. 

So with the combination of great food and live music it's a place that could lead to a long dining experience. In fact the menu asks you to try to keep your visit under three hours. I don't think I've ever seen that at a restaurant before. 

But let's get down to what's important, chicken and waffles! The fried chicken at the Juke Joint regularly wins awards and my pieces were excellent with a little spicy kick. The waffle was crisp and soaked up the syrup nicely and created a great sweat counterpoint to the zesty chicken. Without a doubt the best version of this dish I have ever had! 

A Trip Down The Hill

My first time sledding in what has to be 10 years. I'm glad I got to experience snow this winter. As I write this wearing shorts in the middle of January it is 63 degrees outside. The most winter we've had here is a frost on the car windows a day or two.

My Favorite Christmas Album

I finally got the old record player up and ready and so as we get closer to Christmas it is time to dust off my favorite holiday album, Stan Boreson and Doug Setterberg's "Yust Go Nuts At Christmas." Released in 1970, this album brings back so many memories of Christmas in Wisconsin and Minnesota and enjoying a piece pickled herring and some lefse covered in butter and sugar. 

Boreson's singing style also honors the great and strong Scandinavian accents that you hear less and less each year as people have more and more distance from their European ancestral roots. Living down in Georgia now I miss the opportunity to hear some interchange a "V" and a"W." 

Here's the title track:



And my favorite song overall from the album, "Christmas Goose (Snowbird)":

Fall Has Finally Arrived

In case you wondered, fall does eventually come to Atlanta if you wait long enough. Although there are so many evergreen trees around our neighborhood there are now patches of very brilliant color. These five trees are along the parking lot of a Jehovah's Witness church near us.