Treat Yourself

from Savannah Magazine March/April 2022

Chef Q&A: Dustin Ricker of Ardsley Station

Tequila's TownLocal eateries o er tempting menus — and merch

Written by MARTINA YVETTE

A SIGNIFICANT DINING experience doesn’t have to end at the restaurant. Take home more than a to-go box when you visit several local restaurants with on-site stores or websites for gifts, signature apparel, homemade condiments, food items and branded extras.

COURTESY FINCHES SANDWICHES AND SUNDRIES

Finches Sandwiches and Sundries

2600 Mechanics Ave. Fresh, farm-to-table ingredients are on many of Finches’ modern classic sandwiches, like their noteworthy grilled cheese. Rebecca Matthews, chef Miles Matthews and Jamie Pleta offer a restaurant experience that also allows you the opportunity to peruse quirky, miscellaneous accessories from indie makers and small-business owners (“Sundries” is part of the name, after all). It’s “a nod to pop culture [with] a focus on artisan brands who create with consciousness,” Rebecca says.

The Grey Market

109 Jefferson St. No wonder this place has become one of the most popular restaurants in Savannah (and has expanded westward, with a new outpost in Austin, Texas). There are signature burgers, meat-and-three meals and other home-cooked staples to enjoy in store, but you’ll also want to take their hot finger peppers and addictive “comeback sauce” with you. With camping mugs, tote bags, T-shirts and hats available on-site and online, you can rep TGM 24/7.

COURTESY THE GREY MARKET

Cohen’s Retreat

5715 Skidaway Road This picturesque restaurant is a Southern dream drenched in artsy decor, the aroma of shrimp and grits and crab cakes wafting gently about. You’ll probably be inspired to redo your house, and wouldn’t you know? Cohen’s Retreat off ers two in-house shopping experiences at Brown Dog Market and The Little House Bakery, where you can fi nd anything from home decor to jewelry to local books and stationery. You can take something sweet home with you, too — the bakery off ers cookies and cakes, to-go.

Starland Strange and Bazaar

17 W. 41st St. This Starland ice cream shop is a natural point of pause for locals and tourists alike. How can you miss its beautifully painted entrance and eclectic apparel? Ice cream melts (try the Nanner Nanner Boo-Boo Banana Pudding fl avor), but the Strange also sells items that last longer. Grab a T-shirt, stickers or even house-made sprinkles that perfectly capture the quirky cowboy theme.

Crystal Beer Parlor

301 W. Jones St. Come for the beer and Gawgia Cracka Nachos and leave with a beautiful trinket from the parlor’s adjacent gift shop, Crystal Trading Co. If you’re looking for history, a Crystal Beer Parlor shot glass is just the ticket: this rumored speakeasy, with roots dating back to the early 1900s, was “one of the fi rst American eating establishments to serve alcohol after the repeal of Prohibition,” according to the restaurant’s website, “probably because the booze was already on the premises!”

Pirate's House

20 East Broad St. No need to drive to Tybee Island in search of nautical knick-knacks. You only need to travel to East Broad Street and experience the Pirate’s House. The former inn for seamen back in the 1700s is now a family restaurant where thousands come to tour and experience a little part of Savannah’s folklore (pirates and ghost stories aplenty). The true treasure of the restaurant has to be its gift shop, off ering kitschy pirate swords and coins, treasure boxes and eye patches — a hit with the kids, to be sure.