whenever in maine, we try to visit the moxie soda shop in lisbon falls. moxie was the first mass produced soda in america and is still popular in the new england area. lisbon falls is known as the moxie capital of the world and is home to the annual moxie festival.

the old timey soda shop in lisbon falls is where you’ll find all things moxie, including shirts, stickers, pencils, frisbees and more. they also have sodas, candy and ice cream (even moxie flavored ice cream). not much has changed over the years, i can remember going to this same little shop as a kid and it looks exactly like my memories of it. plus it’s the same guy behind the counter, frank. we have a good amount of moxie gear from many visits and wear them quite a bit.

people generally love or hate moxie. i like it, but i only like it every few years when in maine. i’m not sure if i’d love it as an everyday soda. it tastes sort of like cream soda meets dr. pepper, but a little more medicinal. there is a mixed drink called a new englander made with moxie, the recipe can be found below.

when in maine, keep your eye out for the bright orange soda cans. you’re in for a true new england experience.

– ryan

new englander recipe:

1 part gin
2-3 parts moxie
a large slice of lime
a dash of worcestershire sauce

after recently trying an albariño, we’ve been keeping an eye out for other wines mentioned in last month’s splendid table episode. we found the 2008 la cana at the candler park market in atlanta. we spent a nice summer evening on our front porch drinking this refreshing wine. it went great with the chilled, steamed shrimp leftover from the beaufort stew at gub’s mom’s birthday.

the wine describes itself as:
“where the steep hillside vineyards meet the tranquil rias you’ll find groves of rush canes known locally as juncos which are as emblematic of galicia as the albariño grape itself. offering lush aromas of white peaches and ripe pears followed by flavors of pineapple and bright citrus the wine finishes on a crisp dry wine.”

– ryan & gub

we recently went to leon’s full service in downtown decatur for dinner. it’s run by the same people who own the brick store pub, another long-time favorite decatur restaurant of ours. we actually tried to go to farm burger, but the line was so long we ended up at leon’s where we were seated immediately.

we really enjoy the interior design of this old converted gas station. the round booths and old industrial lights help keep the atmosphere of a former petrol station. leon’s also has outdoor seating and a bocce ball court on the side of the restaurant.

leon’s has a great selection of draught beers, including brews from victory, avery, oskar blues, allagash, bell’s and other craft breweries. they also have unique infused liquors, including rhubarb infused myer’s white rum, pineapple infused inca gold pisco and bacon infused bourbon. we haven’t tried any of the infused liquors, but they sound excellent.

another specialty at leon’s is their pub frites, which are basically really awesome french fries with fancy sauces. boy are they tasty! the sauces include: garlic aioli, goat cheese fondue, masaman curry, smoked tomato mayonnaise, bacon & tarragon mayonnaise, cucumber-dill yogurt and a bunch more. the menu also offers a variety of creative and interesting meals. a noteworthy snack option is bacon in a glass for $5. we tried the mussels in a witbier & lemongrass broth and the white oak pastures grass-fed burger, which were both delicious.

if you’re looking for a night out in downtown decatur, definitely try leon’s full service. the food is very tasty and reasonably priced.

check out their menu.

– ryan & gub

leon’s full service

131 E ponce de leon ave.
decatur, georgia 30030
404-687-0500

check out our beautiful big red tomato! it was one of the last before our tomatoes were ravaged by the squirrels.

– ryan & gub

we are very excited about the ola podrida show at the drunken unicorn on july 21st in atlanta. our friend craig first introduced us to david wingo, singer/songwriter of ola podrida, after they met through mutual friends at film school. david has created the musical score for several great films, including george washington, all the real girls and great world of sound. he released his debut album, ola podrida, in 2007. we brought david to georgia to play at the hand.craft.it festival we curated a couple of years ago. we loved his performance and look forward to seeing him play with a full band.

now based in austin via new york, ola podrida’s latest album is called belly of the lion. u.s. tour dates include andrew kenny (american analog set) on bass, david hobizol on drums and colin swietek on guitar.

tickets can be purchased here for the atlanta show.

ola podrida will also be playing at cine in athens on july 20th. there’s a good article in this week’s flagpole.

– ryan & gub

21st amendment brewery recently started selling their hell or high watermelon wheat beer in georgia. willy and i tried this tasty beer at the 21st amendment brew pub in san francisco many years ago. we enjoyed the unique flavor so much, it actually inspired us to start bottle rocket brewing. over the years we brewed many similar wheat beers with fresh puréed watermelon and they were always great.

the hell or high watermelon is a perfect summer beer. it is fairly light with a crisp fresh watermelon flavor that’s not too sweet. it’s perfect for grilling, drinking by the poolside or taking to the beach or a park.

like oskar blues, 21st amendment sells their craft beers in cans. for those who are still hesitant about drinking canned beer, be sure to read the message on the bottom of the packaging:

six good reasons to open a can of beer:
– cans keep beer fresher because the beer never sees light
– cans are lined so they don’t affect the flavor of the beer inside
– cans weigh less than glass and chill faster
– cans are easier to recycle and more often recycled than glass
– cans use less energy to prduce and transport than glass
– cans go where no glass dares: beaches, parks, stadiums, boats, pools, golf courses…

– ryan

21st amendment brewery

563 2nd street
san francisco, ca 94107
415-369-0900

we had brunch yesterday at le petit marché in downtown kirkwood. it’s a cute little market that features a food counter with breakfast, lunch and coffee items. besides homemade soups and build-your-own egg sandwiches, they offer award winning pb&j sandwiches. the peanut butter options include jungle banana, dark chocolate duo, cinnamon raisin, white chocolate raspberry and chocolate chip cookie dough. your jam choices are raspberry, strawberry and housemade golden fig. we went with the cuban panini and the biscuits & gravy brunch special. very tasty!

we are super excited to have such a great brunch option within walking distance from our house. we will be back soon for some pb&j sandwiches!

check out their menu.

– ryan & gub

le petit marché

1963 hosea l williams dr se no. 108
atlanta, ga 30317
404-371-9888
marchetsparks@gmail.com

we went to see sleigh bells last night at vinyl in atlanta. their live show definitely lived up to the hype; it was insanely loud with lots of strobe lights and arms/iphones up in the air. to say the least, we had a lot of fun! alexis, the female lead singer, sang from the audience at times and had the crowd singing along on other hits. there was lots of dancing and everyone seemed to know all of the lyrics. highlights were rill rill, crown on the ground and a/b machines.

i picked up sleigh bells debut album treats on picture disc vinyl at the show. it is really awesome!

– ryan

we were able to find lots of yummy fresh blackberries & cherries at the store this week. the blackberries were not super ripe yet and ry was having me try bites of them together with the cherries. the combination of sweet and sour was so good we decided to make a blackberry & cherry cobbler!

we used the basic (add any fruit) cobbler recipe from the first paula deen cookbook & finished with ice cream.

– ryan & gub

blackberry & cherry cobbler recipe:

ingredients:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
3/4 cup self-rising flour
3/4 cup milk
2 cups fresh sliced fruit (we used blackberries & cherries)

directions:
– preheat oven to 350 degrees
– put butter in deep baking dish and place in oven to melt
– clean and slice fresh fruit, place in a bowl and sprinkle with some sugar
– add the fruit, 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar to a saucepan
– bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often
– mix 1 cup sugar and flour; add milk slowly to prevent lumping
– pour over melted butter in baking dish, do not stir
– spoon fruit on top, gently pouring syrup, again without stirring
– bake 30 to 45 minutes, batter will rise to top during baking
– serve with vanilla ice cream and/or whipped cream

we found these two half eaten tomatoes in the garden today. i guess the chipmunks have found a way under the fence…  what to do?
– ryan & gub