D. Taylor's Food & Travel

I wanted to surprise my wife with brunch at the Artemisia Café in Portland. She worked in the building 40 years ago when she taught the foundry course at the Portland School of Art. As such, it was a trip down memory lane for her as the Artemisia Café is in what was once the silver smithing studio.   Artemisia Café   ( Photo courtesy of Google Maps ) We arrived in the area about opening but couldn’t find a place to park. When we found parking, the restaurant was packed with no tables available and an expected 40-minute wait for a table.  Rather than waiting outside, we decided to sit at their bar.  Pre-ordering Erin mixed a great Bloody Mary; she was also fun to talk with. The drinks were excellent and priced nicely.  Ordering We ordered with the expectation we’d be eating at the bar; however, before our food arrived, a table opened up and we were able to relocate to it. I ordered the “Smash Burger,” and my wife ordered the Bene, served with home fries and extra...

Cinco is a "casual yet sophisticated" Mexican restaurant with four locations in the Atlanta area.  I have only been to the Atlanta location which is on Akers Mill Rd near the Cumberland Mall. It is upscale casual with plenty of space between tables, black cloth napkins and interesting decoration.  There are two very different atmospheres within the restaurant, one darker section with mostly padded leather booths and the other an open feeling room with lots of windows, tables and chairs. I mentioned to a friend that Cinco had one of the better Sunday brunch buffets I had been to recently, so we decided to meet our friends for brunch. My wife and I arrived first and were deeply disappointed to see a sign on the door which indicated they weren't having the brunch due to Cinco de Mayo.  We watched a couple of other couples arrive, see the sign and turn around to go elsewhere.  I called my friend to see if he wanted to go somewhere else. He said he was just pulling in...

First Watch is a relatively new restaurant located at the Ivy Walk Shopping Center (corner of Atlanta Road and Cumberland Parkway, SE) in Smyrna. Although they don't like to think of themselves as a chain, they are with over 100 restaurants over thirteen states. There are two currently in Georgia; the other store is located in John's Creek.  They serve breakfast and lunch, but no dinner, seven days a week.  The restaurant in Smyrna was my first contact with them. Walking in the door, we were promptly greeted by a very pleasant person who seemed genuinely happy with life in general and with our arrival.  We were asked how we were to which we said "hungry."  The greeting person said they could fix that. Selecting from the menu was difficult.  There are so many varied items to choose from. Omelets, eggs, pancakes, healthy selections, salads, soups, and sandwiches. Our server was there quickly and found we were not ready to order. We asked for water with lemon...