From Creative Loafing’s Omnivore…

To celebrate the [10 year] anniversary, the owners plan to open a different TDS for a few hours each Sunday in April. Diners will get a chance to order some more complicated dishes. “We hate that we can’t do certain dishes now,” Trusler said, “but they take too long with the high-speed pace of the taquerias.”

Get on the TDS mailing list to be sure you’re notified about the anniversary celebration.

I can’t say that I was able to sit around last night and await the verdict in the Atlanta mayor’s race, but a leisurely scroll up my AJC feed  on Google Reader and a check on CL’s excellent, continuously updated election post gave me a good recap of the night’s razor-thin, unofficial win by Kasim Reed.

Reed is already making the media rounds this morning, making pledges of a new, better, friendlier Atlanta police chief.  Low hanging fruit indeed, but really who could resist such a scrumptious political apple? Yum…police chief.

And though Mary Norwood is still promising a recount, the fall-out has already begun…in the AJC blog comments section.

It took precisely three comments on Jim Galloway’s fine recap of last night for the conversation to devolve into some sort of emotional therapy for those who suffer from knee-jerk reaction syndrome.

Why the AJC continues to allow itself to be a platform to yahoos and trolls is beyond me.  But if it’s simply a budget issue, please suck it the heck up and hire yourself a comments moderator.

The New York Times has 11 of ‘em.  Do Atlanta and its new mayor (regardless of who it is) a favor and hire at least ONE.

Last Friday, the AJC announced a drastic change in its editorial content: it would no longer be offering endorsements of local political candidates. That means no Atlanta mayor endorsement this year, no governor endorsement next year, and so on.

We have heard from readers — and we agree — that you don’t need us to tell you how to vote. What readers tell us they need is information on who the candidates are, what they have done and what they want to do in the new job.

That world has changed, steadily and more rapidly in recent years. We see our role now as providing you with information to help you make decisions — and not trying to make them for you. This is consistent with our move earlier this year to make the editorial pages more balanced — offering a wide array of opinions.

This morning, Creative Loafing, speaking through its urban politico reporter Thomas Wheatley, replied to the change.  To put it succinctly, CL’s official response was “Horsehockey!”.

While this sounds very forward-thinking and probably could be spun as “bold new thinking” in NewspaperLand, we think it’s hogwash.

The explanation the paper gave for its decision to quit endorsing just doesn’t jibe. The paper can still provide information about the candidates’ stances on the issues — while issuing endorsements of its own. The two aren’t mutually exclusive.

Perhaps the true reason the paper is giving up on endorsements has something to do with the AJC’s attempt to render the paper devoid of any opinion that could offend anyone.

What do you think?  Is the AJC’s move to suspend political endorsements something to be hailed or derided?  And here’s my own follow-up to that – if the AJC is now only in the business of presenting “facts”, who’s got the clout to pick up and lead the Atlanta conversation?

OK, enough with the grandstanding, I’ve got filtering to do!  Here are all the Decatur winners.  Looks like the city of Decatur beat out the Brick Store for the most overall awards with 4 (vs. 3).

Cityscape

Critics Picks

Best Neighborhood – Decatur  (Choice quote: “Decatur, you marvelous son of a bitch, you win again.”)

Best Local Blog – Decatur Metro

Readers Picks

Best down-to-earth-place in Atlanta – Decatur

Best neighborhood to live in – Decatur

Best suburb – Decatur

Poets, Artists & Madmen

Critics Picks

Best Book Event – Decatur Book Festival

Best Literary Love for Atlanta – Outcasts United

Reader’s Picks

Best Emerging Visual Artist – John D. Weiss

Best Local Poet (tie) – Kodac Harrison

Best Place to Hear the Spoken Word – Java Monkey

Best Book Event – Decatur Book Festival

Best Acoustic Music Club – Eddie’s Attic

Best Pool Hall – Twain’s

Best Neighborhood Bar – Brick Store Pub

Oral Pleasures

Reader’s Picks

Best Patio Dining – Wahoo! Grill

Best Tacos – Taqueria de Sol

Best Fried Chicken – Watershed

Best Veggie Meal at a Non-Vegetarian Restaurant – Watershed

Best Brew Pub – Brick Store Pub

Best Beer Selection – Brick Store Pub

Consumer Culture

Reader’s Choice

Best Jewelry – Worthmore Jewelry

Best Nail Salon – Jazmin Spa

Best Kids Clothing – Wiggle

Congrats to all the winners!  I hope I got ‘em all.  Let me know what I may have missed!

If you’ve yet to vote in Creative Loafing’s “Best of Atlanta” poll for all things Decatur, you only have one day and roughly 8 hours left to do so.

In addition to “best blog” and “best blogger” (found at the bottom of the Cityscape section), I’m hoping DM can produce surprise victories in “overrated thing about Atlanta”, “local rabble-rouser”, “street character” and “person you hate to love”.

The ballot for this year’s Creative Loafing “Best of Atlanta” awards just went live!

Click over to the ballot page on the Creative Loafing site or on Facebook to vote Decatur for all categories!  Best Suburb? Decatur!  Best Beach Retreat?  Decatur!  Best Neighborhood to Live in Without a Car?  Decatur!

But seriously, head on over and vote for all your favorite Atlanta spots/people/things among 5 categories: “Cityscape”, “Poets, Artists & Madmen”, “After Dark”, “Oral Pleasures”, and “Consumer Culture.”   And FYI, you have to fill out a minimum of 10 slots in order to submit your vote.

And if you’re at all interested in showing DM a little love, you’ll find the “best blog/blogger” and “best blogger” entries near the very bottom of the “Cityscape” section.

XOXO in advance.

…for being so awesome.

Creative Loafing’s Besha Rodell does a full review of Leon’s Full Service and determines that “Decatur gets what it deserves.”

CL’s Cliff Bostock gives Decatur’s new steakhouse a mixed review.

Thanks to Carl for forwarding.

Steve Fennessy reports that Sunday Paper publisher Patrick Best has offered $1 MILLION DOLLARS for Creative Loafing.

Andisheh responds (with his pinky finger at the corner of his mouth) over at Fresh Loaf.

Creative Loafing Atlanta has fired its editor Ken Edelstein, according to the AJC.

Not good.  Not good.  My best to you guys…especially Tom and Andy.

UPDATE: xokyditive links to a more detailed post by Atlanta Magazine’s Steve Fennessy, who has covered the CL bankrupcy story better than anyone since the beginning.  Apparently it wasn’t pretty.  Tears were shed.

Geez….