Turn Back Time With a Stay at a Charming Retro Motel & a Meal at This Vintage Diner in Georgia

Even if you're living your best life now, sometimes the idea of a time machine sounds amazing. For me, it would be all about seeing the vintage designs of eras past.

Lucky us: We don't even need a flux capacitor for this nostalgic trip in the Peach State. Turn back time with a James Beard Award-winning dining experience at The Grey, located within a lovingly restored 1938 art deco Greyhound bus terminal. Then, casually stroll around the block to turn down your bed at The Thunderbird Inn, a circa 1964 retro hotel in Savannah, Georgia.

Both structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and are part of the largest National Landmark Historic District of more than 1,800 buildings spanning far beyond the decades of these two spots. Bring your walking shoes if you love architecture and history! (You may already know that, since we are talking about Savannah, after all).

The Thunderbird Inn and The Jackson 5

The Thunderbird Inn is one of the coolest examples of a revived roadside hotel, and it's won awards for that in addition to being so pet-friendly. The hotel is located on West Oglethorpe Avenue in downtown Savannah. Originally built in 1964, the hotel was a popular roadside lodge on U.S. Highway 17, the old coastal highway.

Restored to its mid-century charm and featuring bold, colorful design elements and decor, The Thunderbird Inn also incorporates many modern sustainability-minded elements. The property reflects an earth-friendly ethos that "Earth is worth getting nostalgic about." You'll notice that in water conservation with landscaping, irrigation systems and plumbing features, solar panels, and finding glass cups over paper on the premises.

You can use those glass cups for the RC Cola awaiting you alongside Moon Pies in your room. It's another classic touch to make your stay as easy as singing your ABCs. (Speaking of, did you know the Jackson 5 stayed at The Thunderbird Inn? Now you do.)

While sugary snacks may power you through an afternoon exploring the vast Savannah Historic District, you'll be ready for something more substantial for dinner. This city has dizzying options for dining out, and for this nostalgic stay, we recommend The Grey.

Dinner at The Grey in Savannah, Georgia

While The Grey's story is as layered and deep in flavor as the dishes you'll taste there, we'll start at the beginning.

After buying a home in Savannah in 2011, entrepreneur and New York native Johno Morisano fell in love with the classic lines of the city's long-abandoned 1938 bus terminal back in 2012. After purchasing the building a year later to develop a restaurant, Morisano met Bronx-born Chef Mashama Bailey, who was working as a sous chef in New York.

Although she'd moved back to Queens as a preteen, Bailey had spent much of her early years in Georgia, about six of them in Savannah, eating and learning about the best of Southern cooking. This was all long before she found her culinary career, bolstered by training in France and work in New York. She credits her passion for cooking to the women in her family.

Morisano and Bailey opened the restaurant together as co-owners in December 2014. Not long after, the accolades came rolling in and haven't stopped. In 2019, Bailey won the Best Chef, Southeast award from the James Beard Foundation. In 2022, she took the organization's top honor of Outstanding Chef.

Dinners at The Grey are Three-Course Prix Fixe and $75 per person, including a choice of one each from four options from the pantry, six different starters, and four main course dishes. From the current menu, I'd go for charred beets, shrimp toast, and the "dayboat catch" of clams, probably adding on collards, garlicky mashed potatoes, and the Parker House rolls. But that's just me. Check out The Grey's current dinner menu on its website and follow The Grey on Facebook for the latest news.

To check availability and book a stay, visit The Thunderbird Inn website and follow The Thunderbird Inn on Facebook for the latest news and events.

You will want a souvenir for an experience like this, and it's best captured in photos of Savannah's outstanding architecture, incredible food, and welcoming vibe. Snap plenty of pics, then transfer your favorites to a retro custom reel viewer from Uncommon Goods.

Let us know if you've had the joy of visiting this retro hotel in Savannah or had a delicious dinner at The Grey. We'd love to hear your stories.