Chicken and The Egg + Beer, Bourbon & BBQ = FUN!

Marietta's own Chicken and the Egg is heading to Atlantic Station on Saturday afternoon, March 3 to strut its stuff (Southern farmstead fare) at the Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival. There's a whole schedule of big-top festival events from entertainment and bands to BBQ, tastings of more than 40 bourbons and 60 brews, the BBQ Sauce Challenge and exhibitors such as Scoutmob and the Atlanta Hawks. Look for Chicken and the Egg Owner/Chef Marc Taft who will be preparing a porchetta brined in bourbon and sorghum and covered in a bourbon BBQ glaze with onions, house-made pickles and beer mustard. Click here for hog-wild ticket options.

Our Appetizing Aperture of the Week: Cherry Classic

Cheers to Buckhead Restaurant Week! You have to try the Cherry Classic - it's the official cocktail for the event and is made with American Spirit Whiskey, Cherry Herring, Fernet Branca and cola. Come out for a special tasting event to celebrate the finale of Buckhead Restaurant Week this Sunday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Latitude - be sure to RSVP today if you'd like to join the fun!

It's Follow Friday; Meet Our Tweep of the Week @stbaldricksatl

St. Baldrick's bares all on Twitter! Bares all scalps and noggins, that is, as this Tweep follows the St. Baldrick's Atlanta event that's shaving the way toward a cure for childhood cancer. Fadó Irish Pub & Restaurant holds a big St. Baldrick's shave-a-thon before St. Patrick's Day, and it's always a hair-raising experience, for a few minutes per person anyway. After that, heads are clean as a whistle, and Fadó is pushing the edge closer to curing childhood cancer. So far this year, Fadó Irish Pubs have raised $229,080 for the cause. Follow along on Twitter (@stbaldricksatl).

March into Ray's Restaurants for Sensational Specials

The month of March is here and Ray's Resaurants are giving you plenty of reasons to march into one of their locations. All three Ray's locations - Ray's on the River, Ray's in the City and Ray's at Killer Creek - are bringing back their popular $10 lunch menus. The special $10 lunch menu includes a beverage choice of soft drinks, coffee or tea. Enjoy your Saturday alongside the Chattahoochee River when Ray's on the River opens for lunch on Saturdays at noon beginning March 3. If you're craving fresh seafood, visit the sushi bar for daily sushi specials at Ray's in the City - all prepared by Sudo, the downtown restaurant's full-time sushi chef. Buy one sushi roll, get one half off on weekends in March from 4 p.m. Friday until closing time on Sunday (half off sushi rolls must be of equal or lesser value).

RA Sushi Says "Aloha" to its Spring Cocktails

Cases of “spring fever” are starting to pop-up in Atlanta, and we all know Midtown isn’t known for its palm trees or sandy beaches. Fortunately, RA Sushi will kick-off its patio season today by introducing new tropical cocktails that will reduce most “spring fever” symptoms. If you’re in the mood for a “hula”-va time, taste their Pineapple Express featuring Kai Young Coconut Shochu, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, pineapple juice, a hint of lemon juice and bubbly prosecco. Not quite ready to jump on the Pineapple Express? Then try a Bikini Martini – a dash of Blue Curacao, Kai Young Coconut Shochu, vanilla vodka, pineapple juice and a splash of lemon-lime soda. RA's spring cocktails are $8 each from March 1 to April 30. So Ladies put on your grass skirts and gents rock those loud shirts and join in on these tropical celebrations. And, if you've been hibernating all winter, RA Sushi's Sushi and Sake Social on March 6 is the perfect excuse to come out of your cave and be sociable while honing sushi-making and sake-tasting skills.  Make reservations online or call 404-267-0114. 

Bocce Ballin': Sign up for the Spring League at Double Zero Napoletana and Ormsby's by March 1

Good thing it's a Leap Year, because that means you have an extra day to sign up for the Atlanta Bocce League. The spring season gets rolling on Sunday, March 11 and tomorrow at 10 p.m. is the deadline to sign your team up! In Sandy Springs, Double Zero Napoletana tournaments are on Wednesday nights on the restaurant's two regulation bocce courts. Grab five of your best bocce balling friends to play. If you'd rather be a spectator on the sidelines, come enjoy the food and drink specials. On the Westside, Ormsby's court (pictured on the left) hosts bocce games on Monday nights. Sign up for singles, doubles or four-person team tournament play on the restaurant's website.

Got the Luck of the Irish? Win a Trip to Ireland from Fadó!

Lads and lassies, your eyes will be smiling after you sign up for Fadó Irish Pub & Restaurant's newsletter. At least two reasons why: you might win a trip for two to Ireland, including flights, hotel and a tour of the Guinness Brewery at St. James Gate in Dublin, and you'll keep up with all of the events and specials at Fadó via e-news. With St. Pat's Day on the horizon, that's really important. Sign up online through St. Patrick's Day or at the Paddython party at Fadó on March 17. Winner will be announced on March 30, 2012.

Who Remembers Prohibition? Atlanta's Oldest Continuously Licensed Tavern Does -- Atkins Park Tavern in Virginia Highland Hosts 1920s-Themed Prohibition Dinner and Party

Anyone remember prohibition?  Atkins Park Tavern in Virginia Highland does, because next month Atlanta’s oldest continuously licensed tavern turns the big 9-0 on Wednesday, February 29. That’s right; this tavern has been serving up great drinks and great food since the prohibition days of 1922. But unlike back in the day, this Prohibition dinner is no secret, so feel free to tell the whole gang! Guests will go bold with four cocktails and four plates including speakeasy snacks such as Devils on Horseback, Welsh rarebit, deviled eggs and salt roasted nuts paired with a Black Velvet cocktail; clams casino with Terrapin cask-conditioned rye pale ale (brewed with orange peel by Terrapin Owner/Brewmaster Spike Buckowski); medallions of lamb with sauce chasseur and asparagus au gratin with an Old Fashioned; and Chocolate Charlotte with burnt almond caramel and a Mint Julep. It’s no wonder there are only a few seats left; you get all this for only $40 per person! Hurry and call 404-876-7249 to secure your spot!

If you do miss out on the dinner, you get a second chance to join in on the fun! On Thursday, March 8 Atkins Park is hosting a Prohibition Party at 6 p.m. with a limited, open bar and a complimentary buffet until 7 p.m. A special Prohibition menu will replace the regular menu during dinner with specials including Scotch eggs, oysters Rockefeller, stuffed broiled lobster and suckling pig porchetta ($5-$24). Blair Crimmins & The Hookers will perform 1920s jazz, ragtime and blues beginning at 9 p.m. Want to win cash and prizes? Then wear roaring '20s attire and take part in the 10:30 p.m. costume contest. Prizes include $100 cash, a $25 Atkins Park gift certificate and 90^th anniversary bags will be awarded to the best-dressed male and female.  Then you can look good and feel good in the Photobooth sponsored by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LSS). Each $5 photo donation will go to the 2012 Georgia Chain Gang and the team's endurance Race Across America for LLS. Visit this flapper-happy website or take a peek at some 1920s Atlanta photos to help prep yourself for this evening of fine, old-fashioned fun!

March Into The Week's Best Culinary News with Atlanta Dish

It's time to corral that coffee and head to The Dish for your weekly fix of culinary news around town! If you're not receiving the Dish every Tuesday morning in your inbox, you can sign up either here on our blog or on our Facebook page. 

Have Your Cake and Help Others Too - Alpine Bakery & Trattoria Teams Up with North Fulton Community Charities on Feb. 28

Do something to help your neighbor before the love month comes to an end. Alpine Bakery & Trattoria in Alpharetta shares the love Tuesday, February 28 by donating 10 percent of the day’s proceeds to Have a Heart for North Fulton Community Charities (NFCC). Italian food, NY-style pizza, sweet desserts, cupcakes and helping thy neighbor -- that’s finger-licking love. The fundraiser caps a month of awareness events for the non-profit human service agency dedicated to preventing homelessness of individuals residing north of the Chattahoochee River in Fulton County and to assisting families with basic needs such as food, rent, utilities and clothing during short-term emergencies. In 2011, NFCC distributed food more than 20,500 times, provided clothing vouchers to 2,000 families and gave $1.2 million to those in need of financial assistance. And hey, if you miss out tonight, NFCC also needs your help during the other 11 months of the year.

Just Say No to Sloppy Joes: Lunch Break for a Good Cause at JCT. Kitchen & Bar Tomorrow

On Wednesday, February 29, JCT. Kitchen & Bar Executive Chef/Owner Ford Fry and the makers of Hidden Valley® Salad Dressings will host a Lunch Break for Schools fundraiser to help schools stock up on fresh veggies and fruits rather than Sloppy Joes and French fries. Lunch guests who dine in at JCT. Kitchen or get it to go can enjoy Fry's $26 specialty lunch featuring crudités served with Original Ranch® Light, Maine lobster chopped salad with Meyer lemon “ranch” vinaigrette and a brown bag “afternoon snack” of Hidden Valley® Ranch oyster crackers. The fundraiser is one in a weeklong effort by restaurants across the U.S. to host Lunch Break for Schools events with net proceeds going to American Culinary Federation's Chef & Child Foundation (CCF) and the Chefs Move to Schools program. As a father of two, Fry is excited about contributing to this program that will increase nutrition education and lunchroom options for American children. Learn more online and join the Lunch Break for Schools discussion on Twitter (#LunchBreakForSchools).