Blog Topic: Bummertown

Grub Notes: Pulaski Heights BBQ's Smokehouse Destroyed By Fire

By Hillary Brown | November 28, 2016 1:53pm

Photo Credit: Pulaski Heights BBQ via social media

Pulaski Heights BBQ experienced a pretty major fire over the Thanksgiving holidays, but the Flagpole Athens Favorites winner has a plan to be back up and running ASAP.

Owner Chuck Ramsey says they put out all of their Thanksgiving food Thursday morning, "shut the smoker down, and left around 1 [p.m.]. I got a call at 2:40 from a neighbor saying the smoke coming out didn't look right. It totally gutted the smokehouse and destroyed the smoker. The fire inspector hasn't been able to determine a cause yet, but said it didn't look like arson."

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In the Loop: Gov. Deal Declares Drought Restrictions in Athens

By Blake Aued | November 17, 2016 5:04pm

Gov. Nathan Deal declared Athens-Clarke and other North Georgia counties to be in a "Level 2" drought today, tightening outdoor water use restrictions for more than 50 counties.

“Today’s declaration is driven by an extended period of little or no rain and increasing dryness in the impacted areas,” Richard Dunn, director of the state Environmental Protection Division, said in a news release. “What’s more, there is little hope for relief as weather forecasters expect an unusually warm, dry winter across most of the state.”

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In the Loop: Athens Did Its Part to Help Elect Hillary Clinton (and More Local Election Results)

By Blake Aued | November 9, 2016 2:02pm

Most of us can empathize with this guy watching the results come in at Hi-Lo.

Most Flagpole readers probably are still processing Donald Trump’s stunning upset, the biggest since at least Harry Truman in 1948. If it’s any small comfort for local Democrats, you did just about everything you could to elect Hillary Clinton.

Turnout was higher in Clarke County this year than in 2012, with 4,000 more votes cast, and Clinton won 65 percent of the Athens vote, outpacing Obama by two percentage points. Trump won just 28 percent of the vote locally, six points less than Mitt Romney. Libertarian Gary Johnson won 4 percent—a bit higher than usual—and 1,137 people cast write-in votes, but looks as if third-party candidates drew more from Trump than Clinton, at least locally.

Still, Trump won Georgia handily, 51-46, which is about the usual margin we’ve come to expect here. I have thoughts on the national race—though I wouldn’t blame you if you don’t care, given the pundits’ record—and we’ll get to those, but first, some more local results:

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Grub Notes: La Dolce Vita, Hip Pops Are Closing

By Hillary Brown | October 6, 2016 2:04pm

Photo Credit: La Dolce Vita via Facebook

Let's just put all the bad news in one post. La Dolce Vita, upstairs from what was its sister restaurant, Etienne Brasserie, is now also closed, announcing its shuttering on Facebook. It's been a bad year for that block of Broad downtown, between Jackson and Wall streets, which now houses only the bar Bourbon Street.

Shiraz, which retails wine and snacks in the Leathers Buiding, on Pulaski, hasn't updated its Facebook page yet but has sent out an email announcing a temporary closing, with no date when it might reopen.

And Hip Pops, in the Tracy Street warehouses, has announced that it will close its retail location for good (although the popsicle cart will still show up at events and can be hired for catering) in the next few weeks.

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In the Loop: That Stolen UGA Press Van Was Actually Towed

By Blake Aued | September 7, 2016 4:21pm

Photo Credit: the back of a milk carton

It turns out that a van full of books belonging to the University of Georgia Press that wasreportedly stolen from outside a Decatur book fair was actually illegally towed.

UGA Press released a detailed account of what happened to the van today, after discovering that it was on a tow lot.

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Homedrone: Brandi Carlile Cancels Tour Dates, Including Georgia Theatre Show

By Gabe Vodicka | August 30, 2016 2:05pm

Photo Credit: David McClister

Americana mainstay Brandi Carlile has canceled a run of tour dates next month in order to undergo a surgical procedure to address endometriosis-related back and pelvis problems. Among the shows that got the axe was her Sept. 8 appearance at the Georgia Theatre.

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Grub Notes: Atlantans Are Whining About Their Lack of Tropicalia

By Blake Aued | August 27, 2016 2:09pm

A few weeks ago I went to a cookout in Atlanta, and a friend of a friend who works at a package store told me that they sell out of their weekly allotment of Tropicalia within hours, even though they limit purchases to one six-pack per customer.

He wasn't lying. The AJC recently ran an article about the city's shortage of Athens-based Creature Comforts' flagship IPA. Just another reason to be glad you live in Athens.

The article also includes some interesting insights into the limitations on production that small craft breweries face. As international beer conglomerates buy up crafts, they're able to negotiate better deals with hop growers.

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Grub Notes: Brixx and the Broad Street Dairy Queen Are Closed

By Hillary Brown | August 22, 2016 10:53am

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file

Brixx

After a little more than two years, Brixx, the franchise pizza place at the base of the West Washington Street mixed-use parking deck downtown, has closed. Should you have a gift card, other locations will honor it, and there are two in Atlanta. The Athens location has been for sale for a while now, through the Shumacher Group in Atlanta.

The Broad Street Dairy Queen has also closed and will apparently not be renovated into one of those fancy new DQs.

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Homedrone: Here's a Crowdfunding Campaign to Help Replace DJ Mahogany's Ruined Equipment

By Gabe Vodicka | August 15, 2016 2:50pm

No local DJ is as well-known or well-loved as Mark Weathersby, aka DJ Mahogany, a medical professional by day who spends nearly every weekend spinning funk, soul, disco and more of his favorite sounds at various downtown spots (most frequently Go Bar and Little Kings). So it was a blow to the entire music community when some of Mahogany's equipment was recently ruined after a careless dancer spilled an unidentified beverage all over his setup.

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Homedrone: Daniel Johnston's Popfest Performance Is Canceled

By Gabe Vodicka | August 13, 2016 2:25pm

Photo Credit: Peter Juhl

Daniel Johnston's headlining appearance at Saturday's Athens Popfest show at the Georgia Theatre has been canceled, according to posts on the singer's social media channels.

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