Falcons at Ravens, Sunday Oct. 19, 1 p.m., M&T Bank Stadium, Fox

Has Joe Flacco stopped throwing touchdown passes yet? If so, it likely won’t be long until he starts again. Atlanta comes limping into town this week with a 2-4 record and a defense with an aptitude for folding. The Falcons are giving up an average of 277 yards passing per game, fourth worst in the NFL, and they’re surrendering 28.3 points per game, third worst in the league. They’re 0-3 on the road, which makes the Ravens a solid bet even as 7-point favorites.

What to Eat: I spent part of last weekend in suburban Atlanta hanging out with more than one native Georgian. When I asked what special food is associated with “Hotlanta,” their faces looked as dumbfounded as the Buccaneers’ defenders did last week. Soul food seems to be the city’s signature, so for lunch I’m heading to the appropriately named Georgia Soul Food (102 E. 25th St.) for some fried catfish, candied yams, collard greens, and peach cobbler.

But before that, a trip to the venerable
Miss Shirley’s Cafe (513 W. Cold Spring Lane and 750 E. Pratt St.) seems to be in order. Does it get more southern than Dixie cornbread squares, southern fried deviled eggs, chicken ‘n waffles, or the southern fried slammer sandwich, an artery-busting combination of fried green tomato, applewood-smoked bacon, smashed avocado, cheddar cheese and fried egg on pumpernickel?

If you’re staying in, this
Savannah-style crab soup recipe seems like the perfect marriage of Georgia and Maryland. (It even has Old Bay!)

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• Cooking spray
• 2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon Old Bay
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cups clam juice
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1 pound lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
• 1/3 cup dry sherry

Directions:
Place flour in a cast-iron skillet; cook over medium heat 15 minutes or until brown, stirring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat. Melt the butter in a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add carrot and the next five ingredients (carrot through garlic), and sauté five minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add Old Bay seasoning, salt, black pepper, dried thyme, and bay leaf; cook for one minute. Sprinkle the browned flour over vegetable mixture, and cook one minute, stirring frequently. Stir in clam juice, and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until mixture is slightly thick, stirring frequently.

Stir in the milk and half-and-half; cook four minutes. Stir in crabmeat and sherry; cook five minutes or until the soup is thoroughly heated. Discard bay leaf before serving.

What to Drink: Georgia, of course, is known as the Peach State, and folks down south are now using that juicy fruit to make beer. RJ Rockers is a brewery out of Spartanburg, SC, but its Son of a Peach is an unfiltered American wheat ale that’s Georgian at its core. It’s available at Total Wine in Laurel.

I was drawn to this
peach margarita recipe because of the site it’s on, ABeautifulMess.com. That’s often how I feel after drinking a few margaritas.

• 1/2 cup peach puree
• 1 lime
• 1.5 ounces tequila
• 1/5 ounce of triple sec
• 1 tablespoon simple syrup
• Sea salt and a peach slice to garnish

Directions: Skin and puree two white peaches. This should yield enough peach puree. Combine the puree, lime juice, tequila, triple sec, and simple syrup. Stir to combine. Rim your glass by placing the rim in a shallow amount of water and then dipping it into coarse sea salt. Add ice and pour the mixed drink over ice. Garnish with a peach slice.

When the vacant corner spot that once housed the venerable M &
J’s Soul Food at 25th and St. Paul streets began to show signs of
activity earlier last year, we were giddy with anticipation for the
comfort foods it promised. Finally, Georgia Soul Food opened in August
and has already amassed a loyal following. Some hardcore enthusiasts may
decry the absence of soul-food pillars like hog maws and feet as
heresy—the menu being a fairly vanilla roster of home-style dishes—but
what Georgia does, it does well. The menu is straightforward with
sections for chicken boxes, fish baskets, side dishes, desserts, and
drinks. An “Everyday Meal” ($9.99) includes a main dish, like a turkey
wing, two sides, and cornbread, and can be embellished with à-la-carte
items that are almost anachronistically priced—for example, tilapia for
$2.29, a pork chop for $2.19, and a fried chicken breast for $2.69.

On the restaurant’s website, georgiasoulfood.com,
the new proprietors promise satisfying Southern soul food culled from
the recipes of six generations and three families. And they follow
through. The collard greens—always a reliable barometer—offer plenty of
smoked neck flavor with a little bit of a kick. The other sides are
impressive, too, from the flavorful mac and cheese and green beans to
gooey candied yams. The usually humble baked chicken is outstanding,
seasoned from the skin right down to the bone, and the fried chicken and
fish are crispy and juicy. Salisbury steak with rice and gravy is a
sleeper hit, and the fried pork chop (get it with gravy) is down-home
delicious.

Whether you choose to carry out or sit in the sunny,
cozy dining room, steal yourself for a lengthy wait (usually at least 30
minutes) for your food. Call ahead for to-go orders, and, for dining
in, expect earnest but not exactly polished service. If your sweet tooth
hasn’t already been sated by the yams, you can count on desserts like
banana pudding and sweet-potato pie to do the job.

We liked the
peach cobbler, but, for a truly monumental sugar buzz, wash down your
food with some cherry Kool-Aid. There is so much sugar in it that it
actually feels heavy—but then, that is the proper soul-food way.