You guys. Atlanta is a magical city. We have great food, great people, great culture, great film industry. You name it, Atlanta's got it. I love everything about the city (except the traffic) and I love going out and finding new places to visit and explore because there are so, so, so many.
A few years ago, I was on a mission trip in Doraville, GA, an international village that's about twenty-thirty minutes (without traffic) outside of downtown Atlanta. Just outside of Doraville, not even five minutes away, there is this magical, beautiful, wonderful place called the Buford Highway Farmers Market. Inside this magic market are foods from every. single. corner. of. the. world. You want Korean instant noodles? They got 'em. Costa Rican coffee beans? Got 'em. Filipino prawn chips? Got 'em. Japanese gummy candies that taste like heaven? Got 'em. There's a whole isle that dedicated to popular Mexican candies. You know the ones that everyone carried around in high school? The ones covered in chili powder that were traded out of book bags like contraband? There's a whole isle of them. There's a bakery section where the market fresh-bakes pastries and bread from around the world and a restaurant in the front of the store where you can get hot food.
The market is divided into sections based on geographic location and within each geographic location, the isles are divided by country. To explain: there is a South American section that is divided into Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, etc, etc. Similarly, there is an Asian section that is divided into Japan, China, Korea, the Philippines, etc, etc. It is amazing.
This market is one of my favorite places around Atlanta because I love trying new foods that I've never had before and that are hard to come by. Plus it's so fun to wander around in there and get lost among the food you've never seen before. And, as a big bonus, it's super educational and interesting to see what people eat in other parts of the world. Food is a huge part of culture, so it's nice to experience other cultures in this way.
That said, it's also super fun to get your friends together, buy a bunch of random snacks that you can't read the ingredients of, and taste test them.
And that is exactly what I did.
My friend, Rhachyl, and I drove to the market and spent two hours and about twenty bucks getting "strange" snacks for us and our other friends to try (and sometimes suffer through).
And then I videoed the whole thing.
So, here it is: The Buddies Try Strange Foods. Watch the video, laugh, cry, do whatever -- but then, anytime you're in Atlanta, head to the Buford Highway Farmers Market and explore! Enjoy!