I was only 1.5 miles from some of the most severe damage from the tornado last month.  Until last week, when I was driving through Cabbagetown, I had no idea the homes had been hit so hard.  Of course, the Cotton Mill Loft damage took much of the lime light, with collapsed floors and a corner chunk of the historic building gone.  But porches were ripped off, huge trees fallen right in the middle of houses and on cars.  Massive damage. Blue tarps on roofs still scatter most of the neighborhood.

The artists have already had a fundraiser shindig, and now the restaurants in the area are pitching in.  On Monday, April 14, if you dine at participating restaurants, 15% of the bill will go toward disaster relief.

I'm all about food and fundraising.  Here is your change to enjoy a nice meal and some drinks (think Agave and tequilla bar --yum) and not feel guilty about how much you spend, as the more you spend, the more charitable you become. 

For a list of participating restaurants, view the Dine-Out for Tornado Relief website, and get the scoop on the $5 raffle tickets where you can be entered to win restaurant gift cards and gallery-style canvas of the famous tornado picture snapped by Shane Durrance.

Boulevard is still closed to through traffic so getting to Cabbagetown and parking should be challenging.  Best bet for getting there is via the Krog Street tunnel which will dump you right into Cabbagetown and off-street parking (I think the fallen trees in the street are gone now) or Hill Street to Memorial Drive.