A Low Country Culinary Getaway
Savannah, Georgia’s charm extends far beyond it’s own celebrity chef, Paula Deen’s famous drawl. She may have gotten this historic town noticed for the excellent foodie scene, however Savannah sells itself easily to visitors the
instant they set foot onto the city’s famed riverfront. Fall is an ideal time to plan a weekend jaunt to this lazy Southern locale because temperatures are milder and affordable deals are aplenty at local hotels as summer tourist season ends.
Charming B&B’s and inns populate the city’s historic district, but some boutique hotels are garnering many traveler’s accolades and attention. Try out the funky, artsy dwellings at AVIA Savannah, complete with a chic onsite neighborhood lounge for the city’s top cocktails and small plates. For amazing riverfront views from the rooftop restaurant and sumptuous accommodations, look no further than the Bohemian Hotel. Expect to be delighted and spoiled as a guest here while enjoying adjacent riverfront attractions like a riverboat tour, horse-drawn trolley tour and shopping at local favorites such as, Savannah’s Candy Kitchen, for their decadent pralines and other chocolate delicacies. Also check out the 700 Kitchen Cooking School at the Bohemian Hotel’s sister property for an interactive 3 hour class on preparing Low Country Cuisine specialities like fried green tomatoes to impress your friends back home.
If you’d rather enjoy just tasting the tantalizing southern dishes than cooking them, head over to lunch in the unique setting at Mrs. Wilkes’ Dining Room. Folks line up around the corner to sample the life-changing cuisine at this family-style restaurant. No menus are offered, while ten-person tables are stacked with enormous plates of crispy fried chicken, buttered biscuits, savory black-eyed peas and more. Every day is a different line-up of low country goodness. For more down home specialities, no visit to Savannah is complete without visiting the origins of the Food Network’s grand dame at The Lady & Sons. You may not catch a glimpse of Mama Deen in her first restaurant but you will get to sample her yummy hoecakes with syrup or her fantastic peach cobbler. Reservations 
must be made in person each morning, so plan your day tours of Savannah after scoring your lunch or dinner table time.
Be sure to not get too stuffed and leave enough room to sample a cone or two of butter pecan at Leopold’s Ice Cream, a 92-year-old Savannah institution. Then try to walk it all off along the shores of Savannah River while enjoying the vibrant, bustling nighttime bar scene. A few days spent in Savannah may increase your waistline but it’s definitely worth it to experience this heartwarming and beautiful jewel of the South.
Photos courtesy of Avia Hyatt, Mansion, and Leopold’s
