Rabun County TDA photo
Clayton, Ga.
Shopping on Main Street in Clayton, Ga.
“Is that what I think it is?” I asked my wife, Dawn, as we stepped onto the outdoor deck of Grapes & Beans, a Main Street coffee shop in Clayton, Georgia. She took a moment to examine the object of my gaze: vine that beautifully climbed the deck’s wooden trellises, providing shade overhead this open-air dining room.
“Yes, it’s kudzu,” she said. In effect, this unassuming cafe had managed to train the much-despised vine known to control the South.
The scene was but one surprise on a sunny Saturday spent exploring this charming town in the heart of Rabun County.
In addition to the kudzu on the deck, French Gypsy music and a smile greeted us at the coffee counter. Grapes & Beans, it’s worth noting, is a member of Slow Food, USA, an organization encouraging folks to trade their hectic schedules for long-lasting enjoyment. We did our part lingering over two cups of Dancing Goat organic coffee and a cinnamon roll hefty enough to share.
A few doors down, we found another, newer coffee shop, White Birch Provisions. Local, original art and chandeliers made of wrought-iron gates soften an otherwise modern aesthetic. To the left, the Wine Cave features cigars, accessories, and fine wines. To the right, the Farm offers cheese, charcuterie, snacks, honey, and other regional products. Upstairs, visitors recline in the Coffee Loft, with a bird’s-eye view of the goings-on below.
Out the door, with about an hour to go before lunchtime, we chose one of our favorite pastimes: strolling around. We entered and exited two throwback barbershops. It was hard to determine if the locals waiting for a cut or a shave were particularly happy with our curious presence. A tattered image of a smiling, well-known politician decorated a very visible dartboard in one of them, and we decided it best to keep the conversation brief. Busy tables full of crafts and fresh fare beckoned over at the Main Street Farmers Market. Storefronts advertised ice cream and live bait.
At Prater’s Collectables, where the owner has been collecting old postcards for over 30 years, one could spend a day thumbing through the huge variety of vintage snapshots. While there, we checked out the old books and enjoyed the shop’s special blend of Guatemalan coffee and fresh-baked biscotti. I do love the smell of old parchment and new pastries.
I had heard about the fried chicken at the Clayton Café, and just as the noon steeple chimed, we found ourselves right in front of the restaurant. We entered, slid into a corner booth, and scanned the menu. Quickly realizing this place existed to satisfy rather large appetites, and that we were still full from earlier delights, we apologized to the waitress for changing our minds but made a mental note to return soon.
We noticed a crowd gathering down Main Street, so we decided to investigate. We had landed in Clayton on the same day as the “Tour of Georgia,” a Gran Fondo National Championship Series bike competition. The back roads and mountains of Rabun County provide a beautiful setting for the three race categories (33, 69, and 108 miles), and its central location attracts racers from up and down the East Coast.
The after-party and awards ceremony were to happen at the Universal Joint, a refurbished garage and gas station that now specializes in juicy burgers, cold drinks, and tater tots. The street was roped off, and a local band was already on stage scorching through a variety of rockabilly favorites. Our lunch spot had found us. My brisket with fried onions and Dawn’s blackened flounder tacos with jalapeno aioli—and a pico that she referred to as “good north Georgia catsup salsa”—blended perfectly with the music and a full-bodied micro-brew. We could have stayed all day, but we had one more stop before we were to leave Clayton.
Every small town is richer when its public library is convenient, open every day, and full of life. The Rabun County Public Library in Clayton fills the bill. The beautiful facility has come a long way since its 1915 one-room roots and provides both physical and virtual resources for kids and adults. And the interesting, original art is worth the visit on its own merits.
Leaving Clayton, we headed north back to our home in Sylva, but decided to stop in along the way at Porter’s Coffee House and Antique Mall in Dillard. This huge store has a bit of everything, but what we were really interested in were the vintage books. From early editions to rare out-of-print volumes to old series that many of us remember as our first grade-school “chapter books,” the titles in these stacks bring back a flood of memories.
Awash in nostalgia and our appetites more than satisfied, we drove home, looking forward to our next simple adventure.
About the authors: Tim Osment and his wife, Dawn Gilchrist, explore small towns in Southern Appalachia in search of fresh coffee, smart books, and good eating.