Every so often we decide we’ll go spend an afternoon in downtown Augusta. I’ve written about it several times before, so I’ll just say it’s with a tiny bit of optimism and hope we head downtown early on a Sunday afternoon to grab some lunch at a nice, shaded outdoor spot, have a nice walk, and maybe afterwards, if the walk is long enough, stop somewhere for a pint.
There’s been some turnover in the places on Artist’s Row, a short block of gallerys and such that’s been around since the late 1990’s, and they’ve gained a small, independent bookstore, which unfortunately isn’t open on Sunday. As usual there isn’t a lot of shopping to be done on a Sunday with all the stores and most of the restaurants closed, but you can tell from the full rubbish bins and also, in certain places, the smell, that there’s been a late-night party in the last few days.
While we were walking towards the lower numbers of Broad Street, a small red car with a young couple inside stopped us to ask if there was anyplace open to get a bite to eat. I can understand their question — we’ve lived in the area over five years now and we still have trouble predicting what will be open when we venture downtown. We suggested the relatively new 1102 Broad Street, which had a small brunch crowd, or Pizza Joint, where we were headed. I think they ended up at White Elephant, because we passed their car parked in front on our way back up the street.
Pizza Joint was at about 50% capacity outside, and after lunch when I went inside to wash the sandwich bits off my face and hands, I was surprised to see it was nearly full inside.
As we walked past the deserted Augusta Commons, we noticed the Bermuda grass there is starting to look a bit shabby — I’m not a turfgrass expert but aren’t there higher-traffic grasses they could have used instead of that?
The walk was quite nice regardless of the opportunities for consumerism. It was hot, but there was a refreshingly cool breeze blowing in from somewhere that kept us from sweltering. At the intersection of 8th Street and the Riverwalk, we were heartily pleased to see the old King George location has finally got a proper tennant — Red Hugh’s Irish Pub! The ambience was pretty good, certainly a bit cleaner and not as old or worn as most of the true pubs I’m used to, but a friendly and inviting place to stop by for a break. The place was by no means crowded, but a slow, steady stream of customers kept the bar area nearly full, which is about the best I would expect of a pub early on a Sunday afternoon!