As we finish up chapters from our trip to Memphis, we visit a 45 year-old doughnut palace. It is always open, it is gloriously retro with old-fashioned neon and a rotating sign, and their treats are just wonderful. But first, a few paragraphs in praise of children’s museums. Continue reading »
While my daughter and I were exploring the city and eating barbecue, Marie and her family were spending the time eating considerably less than us, but eating well all the same. When we all met for a light supper, we found a coffee shop kind enough to accommodate us and let them spread out a giant board game. Continue reading »
We finished up our Memphis barbecue tour at this very popular restaurant. Happily, for those frustrated by the small parking lot and the long line at the store’s original location, there’s a huge second location on Summer Avenue that very rarely gets packed. Continue reading »
The motto at this eclectic and silly restaurant boutique in the Cooper-Young neighborhood is “Look good, eat good.” My daughter and I believe that they should add “…and drink goofy.” Continue reading »
This unassuming restaurant is located in a pretty bleak area of town, but it is well known among barbecue lovers as one of the great Memphis shacks. My daughter and I visited this place on a hot spring day and agree that their reputation is well-deserved. Continue reading »
On the second day of the trip to Memphis, my daughter and I recused ourselves from family activities to spend the day shopping, sightseeing, and visiting some of the city’s legendary barbecue joints, starting with this amazing place that opened ninety years ago. Continue reading »
I had some of the best chicken that I’ve ever had at this legendary little place in Memphis. So why was I so filled with regret afterward that I had trouble sleeping? Continue reading »
Here’s a restaurant that I genuinely waited a year to enjoy. When Marie and I went to Memphis to visit her younger sister in June of 2010 – “Never again visit Memphis in June,” I told myself, “because it’s too darn hot.” Shows how I listen. – Anne suggested that we eat at The Bar-B-Q … Continue reading »
On the Sunday we were in Memphis, I chose to wear my Zeb Dean’s T-shirt. I packed it even before we established the bizarre truth that Marie had not selected a barbecue restaurant for us to try. It’s just that I’m going to carry my home town pride with me, and even though Danielsville’s not … Continue reading »
This is Marie, writing the entry about Dinstuhl’s because I saw the place first. We were in Memphis a little while ago to visit my sister, and since we ate well all weekend, Grant asked me to contribute a chapter to help get us caught up. According to the rumors, Dinstuhl’s was Elvis Presley’s candy … Continue reading »
I’ll tell you the number one, guaranteed best way to start a good-natured argument: get into it with somebody local about where the best barbecue in Memphis might be found. Folk here take their pork seriously. The locals eat a whole mess of it, with a thick, sweet sauce and lots of slaw. The strangest … Continue reading »
This is Marie, writing the entry about Penzeys because I am the cook in the family. Penzeys is the kind of place that could make any cook weak at the knees. Imagine a room filled with wooden racks and shelves, the air scented with the smell of blended spices, and on every shelf and rack … Continue reading »
You have to love a place whose mascot is the spitting image of ex-Bauhaus singer Peter Murphy from those old Maxell tape advertisements, you know? Perhaps that wasn’t intentional, but once I sat down at Swanky’s location in Germantown, a suburb just east of Memphis packed absolutely full of places to spend money, and saw … Continue reading »
