Dear readers,
While I very much like doing meetups, in pretty much every city in the US, I have no idea what the local venue options are and am therefore depend on reader assistance. Without that, I can’t do them. And to be blunt, I haven’t gotten the help I need for the Atlanta meetup next week. That suggests there may not be much local interest, and that I will wind up having incurred unnecessary expenses via stopping in Atlanta and having to spend a night in the hotel due to setting up a meetup when there was no local interest.
I have barely gotten any suggestions regarding the Atlanta meetup next week. Reader Peepers suggested Manuel’s Tavern, which sounded like a fine idea. But they were astonishingly slow to respond to my repeated requests to book their private room (which I should have regarded as a bad sign). They told me only today that it is taken. They offered as a fallback giving us a group of tables. That will work only if Manuel’s Tavern is not that noisy and if our group is not too large. I think we’ll have at most 25 people and could have as few as 10. Note that we have in the past simply gotten a restaurant to set aside a bunch of tables for us, and that worked reasonably well in Dallas (the noise level was low, bu one reader complained that the “sitting at tables” part made it hard to mingle, which is true, and that’s why I prefer a room or at least a clearly defined section of our own, which we get, for instance, in San Francisco).
Another option is a hotel lobby. That worked extremely well in Chicago, where the hotel served drinks in its very very large lounge. It was only sort of OK in Los Angeles, where were were lucky that were were able to commandeer enough tables and chairs to work for our group. But there was no service, so participants occasionally wandered off to snag a drink.
I hope readers will give input on Manuel’s and suggest other options.
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Manuel’s is also the only place I could come up with that’s not noisy. But then, I don’t actually live in Atlanta, just kind of close to it, so I’m not the best person to offer a suggestion. A hotel lobby sounds perfectly fine to me, but then again, I’m not familiar enough with the area to suggest one. I’ll start asking around. In the meantime, whatever you suggest will be just fine.
Last time I was in Atlanta I saw there were several group-accommodating places off of Peachtree. If none of those suit your needs, try a quiet restaurant on Peachtree. Then of course is the whole entertainment area bisected by Peachtree.
Thanks but I am in New York and have never been to “Peachtree” so I need names.
Of course, someone from Atlanta will say: “Which Peachtree?. (>:
That includes a wide expanse of the city.
Are there places close to the airport? I don’t live in Atlanta, so I can’t help but joke.
I have yoga teacher friends from all over the place. I just put out a call to see if anyone knows of a place. I will also ping a friend who sets up meditation retreats. Should hear something in a day or two. Probably a slim chance, but you never know.
Turns out one of my friends is in Atlanta tonight. She promised to ask at the front desk in the morning. Fingers crossed.
Thanks so much! Am in further communication with Manuel’s Tavern to see if they have such a thing as a relatively quiet area and can let us have it. But a place with an actual room or a section we can take over would clearly be better.
Try Georgia Tech hotel. It’s in midtown, has a lounge, and walking distance to food and drinks places nearby.
Thank you!
If Georgia Tech Hotel is anything like Hotel Capstone on Paul Bryant Drive in Tuscaloosa, Al., I’m all for it. It’s centrally located and has a lounge that is quiet and low key. It also has several small meeting rooms as well, which are affordable to rent. And since I live too far away from Atlanta to drive home late at night, I particularly like the idea of being able to stay in the hotel where the meetup takes place.
But hey, that’s just my preference. So whatever is best for Yves and the others that plan to attend Is just fine for me. If Yves can work out a deal with Manuel’s that suites her, I’ll go along with it. Being a favorite watering hole for neoliberal type Democrats is a bit of a turn off, but I won’t let that bother me. Not one bit.
Manuel’s is a hangout for yuppie Clinton Democrats. My parents tried to have a liberal political gathering there several years ago, I think moveon.org, and the staff treated them with hostility.
Yves, I’ve asked my wife for suggestions. She loves party planning so she should have something.
Yves, surprisingly she had fewer suggestions than i expected: La Petite Maison (Sandy Springs, north of Midtown and OTP (outside the perimeter)) and 5 Church (Midtown)
Yves, sorry about Manuel’s. Off the top of my head there is a coffee shop directly across the street, Java Vino. You can rent the upstairs room for a hundred dollars. They have beer and wine, sandwiches, muffins, coffee shop food. I’ve never noticed it being used for anything other than bridal and baby showers, but it might suit us. Here’s the page with a pic http://www.javavino.com/private_events.html . I’ll poke around a bit elsewhere tomorrow too.
Here are some thoughts near the center of town:
(1) Joy Stick Club – very nice owners, however may be too noisy 427 Edgewood Ave SE, Atlanta, GA 30312
(404) 525-3002
(2) Condessa Coffee – they serve liquor and we’ve had neighborhood meeting there in the past – 480 John Wesley Dobbs Ave NE #100, Atlanta, GA 30312 condesacoffee.com (404) 524-5054
(3) Noni’s – 357 Edgewood Ave SE, Atlanta, GA 30312 nonisdeli.com (404) 343-1808
(4) Tin Lizzy’s Cantina (has a great roof top bar area – 415 Memorial Dr SE, Atlanta, GA 30312
tinlizzyscantina.com (404) 554-8220
(5) Krog Bar – 112 Krog St NE, Atlanta, GA 30307 krogbar.com (404) 524-1618
(6) Vickery’s Bar & Grill – 933 Garrett St #101, Atlanta, GA 30316 vickerysatlanta.com (404) 627-8818
All of these are close to downtown and is easy to find parking. These are some of my thoughts. There are more places in Midtown and Buckhead but traffic and parking can be challenging.
Yves, I checked Meetup.com to see where other political groups have met. Manuel’s seems popular for that. Another option is the hotel bar of the W in Midtown, Lobby. I called, and the attendant said that it shouldn’t be bad on a Wednesday night. It’s very centrally located and a short walk from public transit. I will be happy to get there early to save space.