As you might have come to realize, Atlanta is a relatively big city.\u00a0 My parents live in the same house where I grew up which is ‘OTP,’ that is, Outside the Perimeter, a local Atlanta colloquialism.\u00a0 For the most part, the best restaurants in the city are, as you might also have guessed, not in the suburbs, but instead ‘ITP’ or Inside the Perimeter.\u00a0 \u00a0However, for a free place to stay and seeing family who you haven’t seen for two years, it’s worth the chance to seek out good restaurants away from the city.\u00a0 Thus, having revisited 1910 Public House<\/a> (which, most, unfortunately, did not hold up in value or quality) earlier in the week, for our last night in the States, it was up to me to find a new place to try.<\/p>\n Gwinnett County has a great website for supporting local restaurants<\/a>, and I poured over them, looking for a hidden gem.\u00a0 In a location I wouldn’t have expected, with an exterior that belies the value inside, I found Parkside District<\/a><\/strong> (which, for the record, is neither near a park, or in any type of district).\u00a0 Much like the spacious loft-style\u00a0interior of The Optimist (but with much better scallops)<\/a>, Parkside District is spacious and broken into different areas — bar, dining room, and\u00a0outdoor patio.\u00a0 As it was absolutely pouring down outside, I snagged us a booth were we were able to enjoy a nice meal together.\u00a0 We started with some delicious cocktails, mine a Peach Whiskey Cosmo (yes, please!) and Hubs with something whiskey based that I’ve now forgotten the name of.<\/p>\n I also ordered the Charcuterie and Cheese Board<\/em>, USD$14, which honestly, was the only disappointing part of our experience (we did much better earlier in the week at Leon’s Full Service<\/a>.\u00a0 For mains, I decided on building two appetizers (both veggie dishes, not on purpose), the Fried Green Tomatoes<\/em> (served with Pimento Cheese), USD$8 and the Cauliflower Steak<\/em> (served with Gruyere\u00a0cheese, nom and SUPER reasonable at USD$6), while Hubs predictably ordered the Hanger Steak <\/em>(overpriced by at least $10 at USD$30, but still quite tasty).\u00a0 My parents, who we were treating as a belated gift for my Dad’s birthday, as well as their hospitality, were both happy to order the Seared\u00a0Scallops<\/em> (with an extra scallop versus my less than deisrable\u00a0version at The Optimist, a day earlier).\u00a0 The scallops were also USD$30, which seems high for a main, but again, they were some of the best we had during the trip.\u00a0 Maybe that’s the cost of mains in Gwinnett?<\/p>\n As it was our last day of our\u00a0holiday, Hubs decided on a dessert, which had an interesting presentation, Jeni’s Affogato (USD$8, very reasonable), which involves a tiny Cafe Du Monde French\u00a0press, Lotus cookies and Jeni’s Homemade ice cream (a local favorite).<\/p>\n Altogether, the experience was a lovely one and a great last night in the States.\u00a0 Our server was friendly and knowledgeable, and the music fit the mood. My only notes would be to completely overhaul the exterior, which read like a TGIFridays.<\/p>\n\n