We recently visited Atlanta in Georgia, to visit friends and for a World Cup game. This was my first time in the US and I had a list of classic American things to do. So I thought it would be a good round-up post to share what we we did, their typical costs. I’ve given my thoughts and a rating for each of them too.
I already had some ideas of things I wanted to do from TV, films and the internet. People who knew I was going to the US gave me suggestions, and our friends recommended a few things too. This post is a mixture of all of these things.
This trip was mainly to see our friends and, alongside the things listed in this and my other Atlanta content, we got to spend quite a bit of time hanging out. Honestly, that was 10/10.
But what about all the other classic American things to do that we enjoyed? Here are my rankings.
Eat at Chick-Fil-A
The UK does actually have Chick-fil-A now, with restaurants in Leeds and London, plus two Northern Ireland service stations. I had looked at the Leeds location previously. The menu was really limited so I saved it for the US. I knew there’d be far better options.
We didn’t actually go to Chick-fil-A itself, at first anyway. Instead, we ordered takeout to our friends’ house on our first full day here. They were going out for tea with some other friends and we were babysitting. It made sense to tick off one of the meals I wanted to try at that early stage.
J went for a spicy chicken sandwich with waffle fries and a lemonade. I wasn’t a fan of the fries: they really needed some sort of seasoning. But the burger was good and the lemonade was really tasty. I love that American lemonade is really full of flavour. Unlike lemonade in the UK, it’s not fizzy. Lemonade in the US is usually made from water, sugar and lemon juice, rather than being carbonated.
I chose a chicken fillet meal with a side of mac and cheese, and a frosted soda. Chick-fil-A’s chicken fillet was described as plain. But it had some sort of sweet flavouring, and the coating was super crispy. I really enjoyed it, and the mac and cheese was really cheesy. The frosted soda, a frozen Dr Pepper swirled with dairy ice cream, could have been disgusting but was absolutely delicious. I’d drink that again for sure!
The meal, including delivery and tip, cost $45, around £33.67. I couldn’t justify this for every meal and wouldn’t eat it twice in a week. But when I’m in America again I’ll happily return to Chick-fil-A.
(When I’ve gone back to edit this post I wanted to mention that I did have Chick-fil-A again later, at the baseball. I was craving another frozen soda!)
I’d rate Chick Fil-A 9/10
Visit a Farmers Market
This one was J’s recommendation. He’d been with our friends last time he went to Atlanta, nearly four years ago. We went to a small one in Brookhaven, near where our friends live, and had a look around the stalls. We all had a snack from a German baker and the boys had popsicles.
Peaches are a Georgia speciality, so I was tempted by getting some. But I decided against buying them as I wasn’t sure I’d get through them when they were fresh enough.
We spent $24.15 (around £18.17) on two pretzel sticks, one pretzel and a couple of breads with cheese, ham and jalapenos.
I’d still be interested in visiting a bigger farmers market as one of the classic American things to do. I wouldn’t be too fussed about visiting this one again, although it was a nice way to spend an hour.
Maybe I would have got more out of it if we’d been cooking for ourselves more and bought things like fruit and vegetables at the farmers market. I can see why they’re a big thing in America.
I’d rate the farmers market 7/10
Shopping at Target
Shopping was absolutely one of the classic American things to do that I wanted to spend time on. Target was high on my list, as I knew I wanted to bring back lots of American goodies.
I had some food I wanted (different flavours of Lays, some Lucky Charms, some cheese popcorn flavouring, and some sweets/candy). But I also wanted Tide stain remover pens, melatonin, Secret deodorant and some EOS lip balms.
Also, I wanted to spend some time doing a general browse of the craft, toiletries, drinks and a couple of other sections.
I got really lucky as, on our first full day in Atlanta, we headed to the gym with our friend. There was a Target on the same strip mall. I’d forgotten to pack deodorant so picking some up became a priority and we popped in to Target.
I did a quick shop to grab the things I really wanted and was relieved I knew how much I’d spent. My aim was to do a more leisurely browse in another store when I was only holding J up, not our friends.
For my shopping I spent $149.66 (about £112.33). A trip to Target can really be as cheap or as expensive as you like, depending on what you want to buy.
I’d rate Target 8/10
Going to a baseball game
I would have never done this solo, but I really like going to see different sports with J. Baseball was something I knew a little about (well, I knew it was similar to rounders, so got the general gist!) and I wanted to have the whole experience as a classic American thing to do in Atlanta.
Initially, we were going midweek but the weather forecast was bad and our friend said it would be rained off. We didn’t get tickets and it was postponed as the weather was terrible, as had been forecast. In the end, we went at the weekend with our friend and his little boy, which was really nice.
Our tickets cost $52.50. We also had a Chick-fil-A, some peach pastry things and I bought a baseball as a souvenir. We also covered our friends’ tickets and parking as a contribution for them letting us stay with them, as we wanted to show our appreciation.
I really enjoyed the baseball. I’d expected to find it interesting but I got far more into it than I thought which was really cool. I loved how the national anthem was sung at the beginning and they thanked military attendees, which made me emotional,
I’d rate the baseball game 8/10
Shopping at Walmart
Walmart was another big American store I wanted to explore. On one of the days we came back from downtown, we knew there was a Walmart across the road from the Marta station.
I had a great time checking out the sections I was interested in and spent another £93.27. That finished my ‘things I want to buy in America’ list off nicely.
The Walmart we went to was bigger than the Target we visited. I was able to wander without holding anyone else up, but I don’t think both shops would be needed on a future trip. I did much prefer Walmart’s crisps (or chips!) aisle.
I’d rate Walmart 8/10
Eating at a burger bar
Eating at a burger bar was high on my list of classic American things to do. Not least because both J and I really like a good burger! On a day we were coming back from the city via their public transport system, Marta, our friend mentioned a local burger bar he liked, Grindhouse Killer Burgers, which was really close to the station. J and I headed there for tea.
Grindhouse is an Atlanta chain with five branches, including at the baseball stadium. They have a fairly simple menu with burgers, hot dogs and salads. What I did like is how customisable the food was, especially the burgers; you chose beef, chicken or turkey; whether you wanted one or two patties; then a variety of toppings including different cheeses, tortillas, bacon and various vegetables.
I went for a turkey burger with two types of cheese, while J had beef with onions and cheese. Grindhouse had a few different sides options, a small cocktail menu, some local beers, and a selection of refillable sodas. I had a couple of lemonades, as I love that American lemonade is not fizzy like at home.
I’d rate Grindhouse 10/10 (our friend smashed it with this recommendation!)
A bonus second burger bar
We also had Shake Shack at Atlanta’s airport before our flight home.
J first tried Shake Shack last time he visited our friends and I had it with him in Hong Kong, so this wasn’t a new thing to try for either of us, but I really wanted some frozen custard!
Sadly, they didn’t have it, so I missed out. We do have a couple of Shake Shacks in the UK now though.
I’d rate Shake Shack 6/10 (8/10 if they have frozen custard!)
Pancakes from International House of Pancakes (IHOP)
One of the classic American things to do I was really excited about was ordering from International House of Pancakes. I have a couple of American friends living in the UK now who recommended their food to me. We were struggling to make it work but on our last morning, our friends went out for brunch and we were able to order in, so we went for IHOP.
Our IHOP order was one of their full breakfasts, which came with eggs, bacon and a hash brown and two pancakes. We added chocolate chips and we also added a side of chopped fried potatoes, and all of their syrup options. We still had some food we’d bought in America that we needed to eat so we shared this breakfast.
I didn’t like the bacon and American hash browns are not for me either but the pancakes were delicious!
I’d rate IHOP 7/10
Going to ‘The Mall’
Going to a mall is top of the classic American things to do list. All of the books I read as a child (Sweet Valley High, specifically!) talked about them doing this at least weekly. Whilst I’m not a massive shopping person, I do enjoy a wander around shops we don’t have in the UK.
We went to a more local one rather than the biggest in the city, because it had the shops I wanted without being ridiculously large. I’ve been to bigger in the UK, but I deliberately didn’t want the temptation of hundreds of shops I would have wanted to look in.
I really enjoy looking in new shops and was able to pick up some bits from American Eagle and Bath and Body Works, so I was happy.
I’d rate going to the mall 8/10
Eating at Waffle House
One of the classic American things to do I had on my Atlanta plan was to eat at Waffle House. It’s mostly a breakfast place although Waffle House is open all day. We managed to go for brunch one morning at the Waffle House near Centennial Olympic Park.
Waffle House was founded in Georgia. So it was even more special for our first time eating there to be in Atlanta. The wait staff were super friendly, asking where we were from when they heard we were English, and we had a great experience.
J appreciated the coffee refills and the food was good although, again, I didn’t love the hash browns.
I’d definitely go back to Waffle House and try more of the menu, when I’m in the US again.
I’d rate Waffle House a 7/10
Drinks and live sport at an Irish pub
I wasn’t sure how American this was but J said it really is. We watched a World Cup game in an Irish pub in downtown Atlanta, eating food and having a couple of drinks at the same time.
The atmosphere was great as the city really did have World Cup fever, and I’d do it again.
I’d rate the Irish pub a 9/10
Going on a trail run
One thing I see in films and read about in books all the time is going on a trail run. Ours was trail-ish as we did a parkrun. I know parkrun is far more of a UK thing than an American thing, but the one we chose, Northside Beltline, was a bit more trail than we’re used to at home.
The 5km was tricky because it was both hot and humid, and I ran about 1km before walking the rest. Getting up earlier (for an 8am start, not the 9am we’re used to) didn’t help. J took pity on me and walked with me, but could have managed to run it, he did a decent run later in the week too.
I was just pleased to get the American flag on my parkrun app!
I would rate going on a trail run at ?/10
Eating at Cheesecake Factory
Hands up if you really know about the Cheesecake Factory from The Big Bang Theory? Yup, me too.
I do love cheesecake, so this was a meal out I was super excited about. We managed to go at the mall and we had a full meal there.
We shared biscuits and gravy for a starter as I really wanted to try them. The biscuits, a bit like a less sweet scone, were really nice. The gravy, which was like a white sauce, I wasn’t a fan of at all.
For mains, I chose orange chicken and it was delicious. The portions were so big I had leftovers and the server kindly brought me a takeaway box for my food, which lasted the next couple of days in the fridge. J enjoyed his meal too.
The cheesecake portions were massive and we took those home too. There were so many flavours! I went for Key Lime Pie and J went for Tiramisu.
Mine lasted three days of sensible portions and it was a really nice treat.
I’d rate The Cheesecake Factory 9/10
Barbecue food on the grill
This one I cannot take credit for at all! Our friends who we were staying with were kind enough to do a barbecue one evening and invited us to join them.
On the very rare occasion I do this at home I am a chicken breast sort of girl so having hot dogs was a nice change, and the food was delicious. So delicious, in fact, that I ate it all before I managed to take a photo. Oops!
I’d rate the barbecue food 10/10
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