What to do on a day out in the Classic City? The Rare South team took a stroll on the hilly streets of Athens to handpick a few of our favorite spots and share them with you.
Walkers Coffee Shop & Pub
Walker’s is one of the two absolute best people watching spots in downtown Athens (the other being Cutter’s Pub on the weekends). Grab a bar stool facing the sidewalk for a front row seat of Athens’ famous street performers, hometown hot messes and inevitable protesters at the arches across the street.
Walker’s features local coffee from 1,000 Faces (refills only $1!) and the dopest, greasiest bacon egg and cheese croissants in town (a surefire hangover cure). Don’t forget to pick up a coffee stamp card for a free brew on your 8th stamp.
Community
I really can’t say enough about Community. This place has been a favorite of ours since it opened in 2010.
The shop is thoroughly curated to feature only the best local art, jewelry, clothing and beauty products. The team at Community specializes in in-house alterations and creations from repurposed and vintage fabrics.
Sanni Baumgärtner, Community owner and buyer, is dedicated to sustainable fashion. Each piece you purchase from Community is not only beautiful, but also gentle on our environment.
Wuxtry records
Wuxtry is a veritable browsing wonderland of records and CDs from all eras. Here you can find the latest local release or that Hall and Oats album you’ve been looking for.
What I enjoy most about record shops is the tactile experience—the feel of the thin albums between your fingers and the distinct smell of perfectly aged vinyl. You’ll also be delighted by the fair prices and friendly service.
Atomic
You are not allowed to visit Athens without dropping in at Atomic. Get lost in the labyrinth of vintage clothing, home goods, jewelry, local artwork, records, and furniture, and don’t be surprised if you hear REM on the stereo.
afternoon break
A full morning of coffee and shopping deserves a delicious wine spritzer break. We recommend that visitors to Athens retire to a shady porch mid day to get out of the Georgia heat and enjoy some refreshment.
Make our favorite wine spritzers with a chilled white or blush (box wine? we won’t tell if you won’t) with your favorite soda water (we like La Croix lime). Maybe even whip up some home made pimento cheese to scoop up with crackers or pork rinds. You’ll be eating and drinking more later, so make your mid day meal light!
Creature Comforts Farmers Market
Every Wednesday from 4-7pm, April 12 to November 29, Creature Comforts Brewing Co. hosts the Athens Farmers Market. This beautiful brewery is right on the edge of downtown and sits in the old Athens Snow Tire building. Hitting up this market means we get to shop local and drink local at the same time!
We loved meeting the vendors and sampling their wares, including fresh, juicy strawberries, picked that morning.
And it wasn’t just fruits and vegetables. We also tasted some amazing sourdough bread and jam (two different vendors: The Comerian and Piedmont Provisions consecutively).
The Comerian
The Comerian Artisan Bakery is, appropriately, from Comer, GA and they specialize in sourdough (try the salted rosemary loaf—it’s unbelievable). They source their whole wheat from DaySpring Farms in Madison County and all the breads are naturally leavened by sourdough cultures, hand-shaped and baked in a stone hearth oven. Visit the next Athens Farmers Market at Creature Comforts to meet the team and try it for yourself.
Piedmont Provisions
If you want to get schooled on jam, Piedmont Provisions is the right booth to hit. Not only are their jams, jellies, marmalades and preserves (which are, apparently, all totally different) savory, sweet and perfectly unique, they are multi purpose. Skip the toast and put your jelly on goat cheese and crackers for an appetizer, drizzle it over salmon and veggies before baking or, my personal favorite, put a dollop on your favorite ice cream.
The market closes up at 7, so we finished our beers and departed at dusk to head home, full of jam and memories. Having this much fun can be really exhausting, but it’s totally worth it. Next time you’re in town, hit some of these spots and make some memories of your own.
Content written by Tara Dunn and photographed by Erin Boyette.
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Thank you for reading!