quote:

Originally posted by goldsborscht

When visiting New Orleans, I hit upon some great thrift stores heading toward the minor league stadium in Metairie (sp?). I got a South Alabama baseball tee shirt, a Pirates tee shirt with coach written on the back, a Bimbo’s bread sign, and a New Orleans Saints belt buckle, all in one store! All mint. I wish I remember the name of the place. It was pink. Oh, Mayhaw?

ED: What was the name of that burger place you like in Ventura? BTW Art’s Corner Cafe has a great breakfast!

Dearfolk,
A musician here in town has a work shirt from Falls City Brewery with HIS NAME ON IT that he bought in a thrift store in Louisville for 25 cents – it fits him perfectly, too.
Not too long ago, someone I know in Atlanta found an Atlanta Flames hockey team t-shirt for 75 cents or thereabouts. They went out about 1977. Plus, he knows someone who found several Kiss tour t-shirts (in XL, no less!) from 1975 to 1977 for a quarter a pop in Anniston, Alabama. Now THERE’s a thrifting town! And there’s gotta be decent roadfood there, although I have yet to run across anything truly stellar.
Recently, my own best find has to be an autographed copy of a book by Eugenia Price (Georgia writer) for $1.01 on half-price day: that means I paid 51 cents plus tax. Eugenia Price has been unable to do any book signing for six or seven years due to her (ahem!) demise.
Right down the street from the Goodwill store in Opelika, Alabama is Dave’s Bar-B-Que, which has THE WEIRDEST barbecue sauce I’ve EVER seen – it’s more like gravy! I tried it on the french fries and it was superb! It was brown and gelatinous, but quite tasty, all in all.
Just down the street and around the corner from the Goodwill on Ralph David Abernathy Blvd. in Atlanta’s West End neighborhood (years ago it was Gordon Street) is a luscious-looking soulful diner named Chanterelle’s, at 644 (I think it is) Evans St., S/W. At some future thrifting time, I will scour out that Goodwill, the hasten over for some culinary research to accompany my finds.
Folks, I LIKE this thread… it really hits home for me! Let’s keep it alive for awhile, so I can hit the road and report back!
Roadly Trippingly, Ort. Carlton, Ye Travelling Trencherman (And Thrifterman!) in Decent-Enough-In-Both-Those-Fields Athens, Georgia.

When my wife and I visit a city or region, we buy tee-shirts. Not the kind for $12. each but thrift store bargains for $1.00 each. When Joyce and I visited Las Vegas last year, I bought 36 Las Vegas and Casino shirts for $1.00 each in a store between The Strip and Downtown on Main Street. I even found a Las Vegas Stars (AAA Minor Legue) baseball team shirt.

She must have bought about 40 shirts as well.

I remember that in California, thrift store sales (if resale) are free of sales tax.

Thrift store bargains and roadfood, two of my best vacation events.

You are very perceptive. Thrifting and food are two of my best passions (along with baseball, but that’s another topic). Check my thrifting obsession here:
http://thriftgoddess.netfirms.com

and my food passion here:
http://fruitedplain.netfirms.com

You have hit the nail right on the head! Great topic idea! [:)]

Elise, that’s the one. There were like 3 great thrift store within a couple miles from each other. St. Joseph, MO. is a thrift store mecca. Just miles from Arthur Bryant’s in KC. There were about ten stores in that town. I got a great MONDALE cap for a quarter. I’m apolitical so save the comments.

While the joy of thrifting has been somewhat diminished by the rise of eBay, there are still places in this country that aren’t convinced that every set of country cornholders or McDonalds Star Wars glasses is a "valuable collectible". I’ve heard really good things about Pittsburgh lately, where the ’50s are apparently alive and well, but I’m partial to Lincoln, NE. I actually found a nearly full set of Franciscan Starburst dinnerware (with gravy boat and S&P shakers) for next to nothing. That was several years ago, though, so the "collectible" fad may have finally killed it. However, the main thriftstore strip in Lincoln has some very good (read: cheap) Mexican restaurants, if I recall correctly.

On "Salvation Army Boutiques": That’s just their way of trying to cash in on the aforementioned collectibles thing. They’ve got their sorters on the lookout for anything that they might’ve seen on Antiques Roadshow. Unfortunately, they usually end up with "vintage" REO Speedwagon jerseys and the highly sought-after penguin ice bucket. Stupid eBay…

Dearfolk,
Now I get to reply to my own reply.
On the road, I always try to coordinate thrift store hopping with eating roadfood in local eateries. Everywhere I go, I scout the local specialties and the meritorious restaurants that serve them. As I wander, I will report back on my finds. Be forewarned, and keep watching this space.
Developmentally, Ort. Carlton, Ye Travelling Trencherman of Almost-Studious Athens, Georgia.

Dearfolk,
My favorite Atlanta neighborhood eatery, The Lakewood Diner, is located on Lakewood Avanue right around the corner from my favorite Value Village Thrift Store on Stewart Avenue… well, they renamed it Metropolitan Parkway. I would write more, but the library’s closing.
Hurriedly, That Thrifting-And-Eating Machine, Ort. Carlton in Rapid-fire Athens, Georgia.

There was a great thrift store in New Orleans where I bought a bunch of old Mardis Gras costumes…with a very good po’boy served next door. They are in the same mini-mall as the "Mid-City Lanes Rock n’ Bowl" on South Carrolton. I also like the little shops by the French market. I got some very cool antique glass mardis gras beads there for four dollars each.

When visiting New Orleans, I hit upon some great thrift stores heading toward the minor league stadium in Metairie (sp?). I got a South Alabama baseball tee shirt, a Pirates tee shirt with coach written on the back, a Bimbo’s bread sign, and a New Orleans Saints belt buckle, all in one store! All mint. I wish I remember the name of the place. It was pink. Oh, Mayhaw?

We spent 2 weeks in Gulfport Mississippi last year and decided to take a ride over to Hattiesburg…….I think I was expecting to see Harper Lee, but instead we found a good old Dollar Store. We snooped through the junk and came up with……STEAK KNIVES and really good ones, too. They were two for a buck. So I bought two. Now when we have friends over we look at each other and say, "We need to go to Hattiesburg and get two more knives!!" What was I thinking? I should’ve bought a dozen! After leaving the Dollar Store with our two precious knives we passed a Chinese restaurant that had obviously just opened because on their marquee was this: "We are welcome". Ok, we do need to go back.[:D]

I would venture that there’s a correlation between good food, good junking, and good(interesting) people. It’s been my experience that all go into the mix, and hopefully you come out with Springfield and not Shelbyville. If the people led interesting full lives, then the junk they owned reflects that and I think the food in that neighborhood/town that is appealing reflects the same idea. Adventurous, not bland.

quote:

Originally posted by ocdreamr

I have made several good finds there including a bunch of CDs that included a Tony Bennett album, The Junior League of Hawaiis "Aloha" cookbook and several unusual smaller cookbooks featuring ethnic cooking and a Naval Academy wives cookbook.

I have the "Aloha" cookbook too—–one of the few of that type that’s actually hardcover. I really like it. It may not be truly authentic but I did use it back in the 80’s to do a pretty credible luau straight out of it. I still enjoy reading it and looking at the "fun" recipes!

quote:

Originally posted by EliseT

The Salvation Army stores out here have a seperate section of the store with a seperate cash register and everything called the "boutique".

I have to say—–the boutique section here in the Long Beach store seems more like a way to inflate prices then anything else.

yes, Ventura is fun—–I’ve gotten a lot of cool stuff up there. I love the store with the old "lunchboxes". Imagine my surprise when I saw the atomic submarine lunchbox I carried when I was young now fetches $70.00!!!!!