After a long bike ride, we like to eat lunch out. Because of that pesky coronavirus, that’s been hard to do lately. We still haven’t eaten indoors at a restaurant. For this week’s installment, we eat at one of our Marietta favorites, but only because we get to sit outside.

We can’t argue with The Local’s claim that they are Marietta’s best comfort food. When we last reviewed The Local in January, things were a lot different. You can read the review here. Since then, the restaurant closed in March for many weeks as they figured out how to deal with coronavirus safety protocols. With nearby courthouses not having trials, business has definitely slowed, but we are glad they are back.

They took away a lot of their indoor seating and added a bunch of tables outside. You can choose from about ten tables on the sidewalk. That works in the warm weather, but things will get interesting when winter arrives. We are pleased to report that the food is as good as ever.

When you order inside, the daily special salad is sitting right there next to the cash register. Today’s is grilled chicken with grilled peaches. Add blueberries and some yummy candied pecans and you have quite the successful salad.

Every time I walk by The Local, someone is eating the French toast with fried chicken.

OK, so I have had this before. I’ve also had the meat loaf and the fried chicken sandwich, but never a salad. Challah French toast and a fried chicken breast–it’s still as decadent as ever. We think they should put some grilled peaches on the top during the summer and leave the apples for colder weather.

We were very comfortable with the distances between the tables and hardly anybody walked by the table on the sidewalk. That’s all good news, and we look forward to our next visit.

Did someone mention a long bike ride? Our other reward is ice cream. Sarah Jean’s is across the Marietta Square from The Local. It’s a great place to put back all of your lost calories from cycling.

Inside, there’s a cool train that goes around the store. Here’s our order:

Lick and turn! I get Moose Tracks and my date goes for the black cherry cone. Was it because it matched her nails? The ice cream is by Hershey’s. They don’t make it here, but hey, it’s a cold treat on a hot day and who can argue with that?