Friday, May 09, 2008

The Beacon





On the way back north from Atlanta, we made a stop by Donny's Mom, Greta's family home in Chesney, South Carolina. Her parents' home was recently sold, and it was time to get to the sad, final task of clearing out the last items from the storage area in the garage. Her parents have been deceased for many years, and the house had been rented. Greta's sister and her family live just next door.

It's always nostalgic to visit the place you grew up. Greta pointed out spots she remembered, and told stories of the town and the land when she was a girl. The green pastures, wildflowers, tall trees and white fences were beautiful. We had a tasty home-cooked meal prepared by Greta's niece, and heard more colorful family stories over dinner. It's a wonder we still had room, since we had gorged earlier at the landmark Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg.



According to their site, "The Beacon stands for old-fashioned things...God, country, family, friends, children, and a decent meal at a fair price." The Beacon has been there 60 years, serving up barbecue, burgers and plates "a plenty" which come with a sandwich and a serving of fries or onion rings that could easily serve 4 or 5! They're also famous for their iced tea, making 62,500 gallons a year! We were greeted by the manager, who gave us a brief rundown on the difference between "lowcountry," "outside" and regular barbecue. Then we were sent on to JC, who asks you to "Call It!" He's been calling orders Beacon for over 50 years.








Sunday, May 04, 2008

Atlanta Highlights

We're in Atlanta for work and play, so never having seen some of the notable tourist attractions, I've been taking that project on as well. This past weekend Greta and I stopped by a Powerade event Donny was working and were slipped in a back door to the new World of Coke! The museum featured a couple of short films (one in 4D), lots of artifacts, memorabilia and history of this 120 year-old beverage, a gallery, store, bottling line and a tasting room at the end with over 60 Coke products from all over the world to try. Favorites included Bibo Candy Pine-nut from South Africa, Fanta Blackcurrant from Hong Kong, Smart Apple from China, Simba Guarana from Paraguay. There was also a great Fiesta Atlanta Festival going on across the street, where we sampled some products, listened to some music and I won a package of tortillas!




Later, we stopped by The Varsity, designated The World's Largest Drive-in Restaurant in 1950 when 100 carhops in 1950 greeted folks with their famous "What'll ya have?" Originally set up with nearby Georgia Tech students in mind, they have been serving customers in Atlanta since 1928. The chili cheeseburger, hotdogs, fries and onion rings all greasily hit the spot.

Click HERE to view some photos of the day.