Even Pittypat's Porch can change

Things are changing there also.

Currently this restaurant in downtown Atlanta is closed to change its decor to get away from its Civil War decorations.

The first thing a friend told me when he learned I was going to Atlanta for a weeklong conference: “Be sure to go to Pittypat’s Porch Restaurant.”

Then, Atlanta was like stepping back into what is an era of unpleasant history. That’s why the restaurant is changing its theme and decor, going the way of most Confederate monuments.

We were seated on the balcony overlooking the dining area while waiting for our table. From large rocking chairs, we ordered the traditional mint juleps, a generous squirt of mint over ice cubes.

Not a favorite for me, but apparently for some.

The place was even then pricey, but the food was good, “like grandma used to make,” one reviewer stated at the time.

I shared the experience with our neighbor, Dorothy Stiegelmeyer, who is from Georgia. She knows the restaurant well, and we both produced menus from the place that were made into fans. 

When in Atlanta, if the name “Peachtree” comes up, you’ll need to have a precise address because the name is on everything.

Sometimes you go somewhere just for the experience, and Pittypat’s is such a place.

Atlanta was where I first met Jimmy Carter, his wife and some of the Georgia mafia who followed then Gov. Carter to the White House. Carter was the key speaker at our conference, and when he finished his talk he just stood around, so I went up to meet him. He asked if my wife was going on the governor’s home tour the next day, and I told him, yes. He said, why don’t you come out and we will continue our talk.

The next day I went out to Carter’s home, and we sat and talked for quite a while, where he disclosed that he planned to run for president.

Carter said he planned to announce his candidacy after the National Governor’s Conference scheduled for Seattle several weeks later. He said he planned a reception while there and would send us an invitation.

At the time and place, we met him again. He greeted us by calling us by name.

I guess most politicians have this one gift, remembering names.

I never visited Georgia again. But while covering the pro baseball team in Boise, my boss talked of sending me to Waycross, Georgia where the team held its spring practices. 

It didn’t happen, but team members told me of the racist things that occurred as they traveled through the south.

Black team members were denied service in restaurants and team members had to get “take outs” for them. The same went for overnight stays.

While black players were used to such treatment, you could tell it hurt.

Nothing like that in Boise. All team members were welcomed and their stay was on a higher plane.