Take the Long Way Through Grayson!
Grayson is easy to turn into a set of directions: through the intersection, past the shops, on to somewhere else. Give it an entire fall afternoon, though, and the places between those turns become the point.
Start with permission to browse badly. At family-run Peddler’s Emporium Antiques & Collectibles, 6,000 square feet of antiques, vintage pieces, collectibles and home décor reward the shopper without a particularly useful shopping list. You can arrive needing nothing and still spend time considering whether your house has room for something old. Measuring first would be sensible. Looking first is more fun.
That attention to things with a past carries into The Railyard at 2115 Loganville Highway. Its design nods to the turn-of-the-century railway that once crossed the property. Restaurants, retail spaces and residences now share the site, making the old route a place to stop.
Together, those two stops offer different ways of looking at Grayson’s relationship with time. The antique shop holds objects worth another look; The Railyard incorporates an earlier chapter into a place built for current use. Neither requires a history lecture to make an afternoon more interesting. A little curiosity will do.
Eventually, curiosity needs lunch. Grayson Sweet Home Cafe, an independent coffeehouse at 502 Grayson Parkway, serves coffee, baked goods, brunch and sandwiches, with outdoor seating for days when the weather cooperates. Take the opportunity to sit down. An afternoon off can accommodate a conversation that lasts longer than the drink.
Farther along the same parkway, at number 420, Berens Frozen Custard supplies a fitting finish with a family story behind it. Don Berens opened his first Atlanta frozen-custard business in 1976. After his death in 2005, his son continued the special-event operation, then opened a shop in 2010 with help from his wife and two sons. The Grayson business continues that tradition, making custard fresh throughout the day.
The appeal of giving Grayson this much time is how little occasion it requires. No festival date needs circling, and no ambitious itinerary needs defending. Browse, look around, eat something and leave enough room for dessert.
For Gwinnett residents, it is a manageable experiment in paying closer attention to home. The next time Grayson appears along the route, you might have a reason to pull over.
Find more ways to spend an afternoon nearby in the Guide to Gwinnett recreation directory: https://www.guidetogwinnett.com/family-recreation-places
