savannah magic
Savannah was an absolute dream. It’s pure magic. It forever feels like the first ten minutes after a thunderstorm. The air is full of warmth and life. I've listed some of the favorite things we did while we were there below and if you click on the photo below you can view the full Savannah gallery.
GALLERY
Airbnb:
We stayed in this beautiful townhouse in the Historic district of Savannah, right next to Forsyth Park. Adam, the host was incredible. He is the only artisan chocolate maker in all of Savannah. He has two locations for his shop Chocolat by Adam and if you ever make it out to Savannah, be sure to try his Honeycomb chocolate bar. It is absolutely to die for.
Coffee:
We tried a couple coffee spots and the one truly worth mentioning is Perc Coffee. The cafe is part of their roastery that's housed in a beautiful old brick building. I love how they utilized the space. We went here every day we were in Savannah and every day it was consistent and the cappuccinos were made perfectly.
Food:
The Grey is true Savannah magic. It's a 1938 art deco Greyhound Bus Terminal that has been restored to it's original beauty and is proudly serving what I think is the best food in all of Savannah. Every single thing we ordered was amazing, and we basically ordered every vegetarian thing they had on the menu. They bring out the tiniest thing of popcorn before your meal and at first I was like, "um, okay? That's small. Why bother?" But omg. Please bother. All-the-bothers. Because that popcorn was the best popcorn I've ever eaten, and I am a popcorn connoisseur. At the end of the meal, before dessert, they bring out tiny popsicles that were also incredible. Even though they brought us the popsicles for free we still ordered cheesecake because CHEESECAKE. And it was my favorite part of the meal. Perfect texture, perfect sweetness, perfect everything. If you go to Savannah and only eat at one place, make sure it's here.
Fox & Fig is the only true vegan spot in Savannah and they were about to charge us rent because we were there so much. They had too many interesting things on the menu so we had to try pretty much everything. The weirdest, but most delicious thing was a special that wasn't even on the menu — a glazed donut cut in half and grilled and then filled with Miyoko’s cheese which had a smoky flavor so it was like a sweet + smoky hooked-up donut grilled cheese. AMAZING. And if you haven't had Miyoko's cheese and you're a vegan, what are you doing with your life? You must get your hands on it because it's the best vegan cheese we've found. Photos of donut deliciousness in the gallery.
The Collins Quarter is all-around incredible. The decor is stunning, the staff is helpful, and the food was some of the best we had in the city. They didn't have a ton of vegetarian options so I risked being annoying and asked our server if they could make the # Tag This Hash, but leave out the meat. She said she was a vegetarian too and gets it all the time sans meat. She said she would have the chef hook it up veg-style. And man, it was perfect. They have great brunch drinks here, too — strawberry mimosas, bellinis, bloody marys, all the goods done really well.
Cafe M could have killed me with their croissants they were so good. And their ceylon black tea I could have consumed by the gallon.
Vinnie Van Go Go's was the perfect spot to grab a pizza for lunch. Great local spot. It was all about their crust - the perfect texture. The line gets long here and it's cash only so come prepared.
Emporium Kitchen and Wine Market is located inside the beautiful Perry Lane Hotel. We had a few drinks and appetizers here as we waited for the Rick Bragg event to start. Lively and bright atmosphere, lovely decor, great service, and well-made drinks.
All the things:
Perry Lane Hotel is amazing, everything about it. They have a rooftop bar that has a view of the city that is incredible. We explored the hotel (they even have dog-friendly rooms!) and I loved every single room. We spent most of the time in their Ballroom for the Rick Bragg reading and signing. It has a view across the city and we watched a beautiful thunderstorm as he told stories that touched my heart.
Forsyth Park is a must-see. We walked it twice a day because we just couldn't get enough of the trees. You'll see a lot of photos from here in the gallery.
Bonaventure Cemetery is a beautiful and haunting graveyard that sits on the bluffs of the Wilmington River. I tired to look at the headstones, but I couldn't take my eyes off the trees. In Savannah, the trees are magic.
E. Shaver, Bookseller hosted the Rick Bragg event and they have the oldest bookstore in all of Savannah. I bought the most darling book bag and filled it with Rick Bragg books that I bought for myself and friends.
The Book Lady is another great indie bookstore that also has used books. The staff was really helpful and they were kind enough to let us hold and smell a first edition of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. Yes, smelling old (and new) books is a thing, an acceptable thing.
Woof Gang Bakery was awesome and they showered Jackson + Memphis in tons of treats and love. There's a super cute photo in the gallery of Jackson smelling the treat bar and another cute one of Memphis with a treat that's too big for him in his mouth. It's pretty much the best thing you'll see today.
Black Dog Savannah General Store was calling to us. Being official members of the Black Dog Club we had to check it out. Love their merch, love their logo, and the staff is so friendly. My favorite part was the little chihuahua they have with a balloon tied to her harness so they know where she is at when she is walking around the store. Adorable and brilliant idea.
I have so many highlights, but the one that tops them all is having the opportunity to talk with Rick Bragg, one of my favorite authors of all time. He is so real, so raw, and so incredibly charming. I feel so grateful to get to ask one of the greats questions that plague me as a writer. And his answers were full of validation that I so desperately needed.
He spoke truth — messy, dirty truth. There’s nothin’ more valuable than that.
He was so kind to personalize two books to me. In one he wrote, “welcome home” because after all my years I finally found a place to call home in the beautiful mountains of the south. And in the other he wrote, “by way of North Carolina” which I thought was extra special because it was through North Carolina that I found him to begin with. It was in a used bookstore in Raleigh that I first stumbled across his work. I paid 25 cents for All Over But The Shoutin’, and now knowing how much it’s touched my heart, I would have paid the moon.
Here’s to the truth-tellers, the life-livers, and the memory-makers.