inDECATUR

Time to decorate those yards for Halloween, Decatur

This house was a winner in last year's Christmas decorations contest.

Dennis @ Next Stop...Decatur shows another one. And another.

Send your photos to dav3kell@gmail.com and inDECATUR will publish them.

Winners of the Trackside Spaghetti Sauce Cook-Off

On Sunday, 10/12/2008, the Trackside Tavern [on E. College near S. Candler in Decatur, GA] held a Spaghetti sauce cook-off. The Tavern furnished the pasta, bread, salad, and dressing. Eleven contestants brought home-cooked sauces. Customers brought only an appetite and drinking money. A packed crowd of 50-75 people (some coming and going) participated and all had a great time. Historic Italian music (like "it's Amore!") was played for a while to create the appropriate ambiance.

Here are the winners:

Sorry it's blurry -- apparently the camera was set for no flash.

Here are the winning entries (for pride and pub cash -- 60, 40, 20, 10, & 10):

Images of the non-winners are in the continuation.

Points were awarded by "tokens" (actually pieces of pasta) placed in cups (each consumer had 3) and independently by  a panel of three judges (Doc Al, Patrick, and Rose -- see image in continuation). Awards were given based on the total of the two scores. Normally, there would only be three awards, but a 4th was given because the points between 3rd and 4th were so close [see image of scoring sheet in the Flickr album linked below], and the judges elected to give a special award to Mark because his sauce ranked high with them.

Here's a short video clip of Doc Al (the owner) announcing the winners:

See images of all the entries, and more, in this Flickr album. (There are currently two images of most entries. -- Duplicates will be culled out soon.)

This was a great idea! Now, if they could just find trays with a dozen sections, so we could keep the entries straight.

Trackside has events like this every few months.

Incidentally, happy birthday was sang to "Cooking Bill" who probably came up with this idea and is instrumental in most Trackside events. [see image of him with the cake in the continuation].

Oakhurst Art & Music Festival

The big event in Decatur today is the Oakhurst Art & Music Festival, from 10AM to 7PM.

Get over there, if you can.

Worthmore reception for ACP

Worthmore celebrated the 10th anniversary of Atlanta Celebrates Photograhy [ACP] starting at 7PM Friday.

Since Worthmore took over the space that was an art gallery, Harris Botnick was inspired to include art on the walls. The idea has so successful that it's been incorporated in the stores Midtown location on Amsterdam.

DJ Johnny Colt provided live music. His photography was also on display. In addition to wine, beer and cola, Worthmore's Signature Rum Punch (with a secret recipe) was served.

A steady crowd passed through, and some milled around a while.

Naturally, the charming and always photogenic "Asian Cajuns" were there:

more photos by Sunday

Tickets available for Decatur Wine Festival on 10/01/08

CORRECTION (thanks to Cheryl, and Steve)

The Decatur Wine Festival is on 11/1 from one to four this year. Tickets will be on sale on November October 1st, Cheryl says.

In a comment, Steve questions the timing, since the event itself is two days after that. Hmmm, is somebody drinking wine already? ;-) Steve speculates Cheryl meant 10/1, not 11/1.

In my haste to post a correction, I didn't even notice that.

UPDATE: Cheryl and now confirmed she did mean 10/1.

You can get them at www.ticketalternative.com or at www.decaturwinefestival.com (which will be active soon).

There will also be a limited number of tickets for sale at Decatur Package Store.

inDECATUR regrets the error (as the big boys say on the back page when they make an error).

The confusion resulted from what must be the remnants of last year's site. See continuation for details.

As we've all learned, you can't believe everything you read on the internet.

And, this blogger needs to take a few moments to check a post for reasonableness before posting it.

DeKalb Heritage Festival 9/26/08

Volunteers are needed to help with the DeKalb Heritage Festival on Sept. 26, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., 720 W. Trinity Place. Some 500 fifth graders will visit the DeKalb History Park to experience life in the 1800s. Students meet historic characters and participate in hands-on activities. The morning session will run from 9:15 to 11:30 a.m., and the afternoon session will run from 12:15 to 2:30 p.m. Volunteers are needed for the full day or for one session. To volunteer or for more information, call Leslie Stumpff at 404-373-1088, ext. 20.

On Common Ground

Concert on the Square in Decatur on 9/13/2008

In keeping with the Mayberry end of Decatur's Berkeley to Mayberry scale, many enjoy relaxing on the grass on the Square and listening to a band playing:

Beat the street for little feet Saturday 9/13

OakhurstCoop.com

Book signing with biscuits at Taste Saturday afternoon

Steve at Taste on Church Street writes:

We have a cool event coming up that your readers would love.  At Taste we carry a lot of made in Georgia  gourmet products from Fat Matt's BBQ sauce to locally milled grits.  It's good business for us and for the state of Georgia.  Continuing the tradition of promoting Georgia foods and Southern culture, Taste is having a great book signing at our store.  On Saturday Aug. 30 from 2-4 pm we will host Delia Champion, the creator of the Flying Biscuit, at our store at 416 Church St. (404) 370-1863.  Yes, she is bringing biscuits for the book festival.  The last thing to leave a culture is its food, and we love to preserve a great culinary tradition in the South. 

Maybe I'll tempt to get her to open a Decatur location! 

 

Steve Ring

tasteessentials@earthlink.net

Concerts on the Square in September

Dan Magee @ 231 Sycamore reminds us concerts on the square (arranged by the DBA) are just around the corner, cranking up soon after the Decatur Book Festival:

Blue Sky Concerts - 12 to 1 pm, Wednesday, September 3, 10, 17, 24

Enjoy a mid-week lunchtime music break every Wednesday in September at the Community Bandstand on the square in downtown Decatur. Free. Bring your lunch or purchase a special to-go lunch from a nearby restaurant and enjoy live performances from a variety of artists. Brought to you by Decatur Business Association and SunTrust Bank.

Sept. 3 · The Starlings, american folk. Co-sponsors: The Art Institute of Atlanta-Decatur, Lotus of Life Chiropractic.
Sept. 10 · Infinite Orange, orriginal rock. Co-sponsors: The Art Institute of Atlanta-Decatur, Lotus of Life Chiropractic.
Sept. 17 · Jimmy Galloway, singer-songwriter. Co-sponsors: The Art Institute of Atlanta-Decatur, Lotus of Life Chiropractic.
Sept. 24 · Buddy O'Reilly Band, irish music. Walk or ride your bike: It's Car-Free Day! Co-sponsors: Little Shop of Stories, The Art Institute of Atlanta-Decatur, Lotus of Life Chiropractic.

 

Concerts on the Square 2008
September 6, 13, 20, 27 • 7-9:30 p.m.

Every Saturday night in September at the Community Bandstand on the square in downtown Decatur. Free. Pack your picnic, bring your quilts and blankets and enjoy an evening of musical entertainment. Brought to you by Decatur Business Association and Wachovia Bank of Georgia.

Sept. 6 · Morgan Rowe Band, local singer/songwriter. Co-sponsored by Decatur Downtown Development Authority.

Sept. 13 · One Leg Up, country.

Sept. 20 · Atlanta 17, big band. Co-sponsored by Decatur Atlanta Printing.

Sept. 27 · Farmland Band, local bluegrass. Co-sponsored by The Artisan.