The Southender takes Savannah for an afternoon of tasty drinks, records, comics and delicious food!
Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Southender Travel Section! While we truly love our Island, our team are also firm believers in the soul-replenishing value of hopping in the ride and getting the hell out of Dodge every once in a while. This couldn’t be more true than it was last month, when, faced with deadlines and stress of rather epic proportions, John and I decided to step away from the bullshit for a day and roll out in the van to Savannah, Georgia, where we had a VERY solid day of playing hooky in one of our favorite towns.
We rolled into town early in the afternoon, and the first stop was a no-brainer, and the initial impetus for the trip. It was time to hit up Odin and Sons Comics and Collectibles, the recently opened and majorly hyped comics and coffee shop on State Street. We were instantly thrust into nerd heaven, with walls full of custom film and comic art, collectible statues and figures of all sizes and genres, and clean, organized racks of the newest and hottest comic releases. We walked out with a stack of fresh issues, a Jawa figurine, and some complimentary Star Wars art and Savannah Comic-Con passes from the manager, our new best bud Logan.
After all the hard work and stress of comic shopping, we felt we had earned ourselves our first drinks of the day. We took a quick cruise over to the Historic District to Ghost Coast Distillery. Cranford checked the place out for an upcoming gig and I checked out some whiskey in the form of a perfect Manhattan served up by a very knowledgeable and affable mixologist named Cameron. The dude really knew his craft, and we had a grand old time talking spirits.
With some good drinks in us and the day looking better and better, we decided it was time to roll to our favorite spot in town, Graveface Records and Curiosities on 40th Street. This store has to be seen to be believed. Yes, they have a great vinyl and VHS selection, plus video games, used books and retro toys, giant bunny masks, and taxidermy. Give yourself at least an hour to hang out and browse here. I walked out with a fresh copy of “Van Halen II” and a Swamp Thing pin, but I ALMOST bought a pair of framed velvet sword and sorcery paintings for $175. Bring cash.
By this time it was happy hour, or close enough, so we reported to the best dive bar in Savannah, The Original Pinkie Masters on Drayton Street. Dark, great AC, cold drafts, a David Lee Roth poster over an old school jukebox packed with dope records, and cheap Jameson shots poured up by a very cool, very sassy little lassie. We only had time for a couple before dinner but I kind of wanted to stay there all night.
I can’t say dinner was a disappointment though, as, on Cranford’s recommendation, we hit up Fire Street Food on Perry Street, a bright, casual spot featuring asian style street food in a hip setting. We dug in on the customary edamame, some crispy wings with cold Sapporos, and a couple bangin’ noodle dishes at a pretty sweet price.
With minor buzzes and full bellies it was about time to hit the road, but with the night temperature cooling down we felt like we’d be remiss if we didn’t hit Savannah’s newest rooftop bar, Peregrine at the Perry Lane Hotel. Located just up the street from Fire, the place was busy and low-key swanky, they had a laid-back, lush lawn area and a trendy, good-looking crowd. Drinks were on the pricey side, but definitely a cool spot above the city to look back on a pretty badass day from before we rolled back to the South End. I just wish I had been wearing something cooler.
Or maybe we should have just gone back to Pinkie’s.
