Slick Pig Bar-B-Q, Murfreesboro TN

When it’s feasible, I like to do a little bit of advance reading about a restaurant before we visit. The best way to do that, once we’ve picked a place, is to pop by Urbanspoon and read the blogger reviews. Once in a while, though, we run into a joint that seems untouched, and I don’t really have the time or the inclination to go a-Googlin’ for blogs that don’t yet affiliate themselves with that service. Once in a while, in other words, I deprive myself of an experience that sounds really good. Continue reading “Slick Pig Bar-B-Q, Murfreesboro TN”

Clumpies Ice Cream, Chattanooga TN

This is Marie, contributing an article about a cute little place that serves ice cream that a fair number of Chattanoogans seem to think is quite tasty. We went to Chattanooga to relax and had a simple vacation day without filling in all of our spare time at new restaurants. First, we went back to Champy’s Fried Chicken, which we visited the month before. Grant wanted to try the tamales and the catfish, which he says were pretty good, but not as good as their fried chicken, which was excellent. Continue reading “Clumpies Ice Cream, Chattanooga TN”

Leopold’s Ice Cream, Savannah GA

This is Marie, contributing an article about ice cream. Because of an unfortunate scheduling snafu, the baby and I went to visit my folks without Grant or the girlchild, so they got no time at the beach. Well, I didn’t either, but the more important part of the visit was grandparent fun time with baby. One of the activities for that was a trip to the opening day of the first phase of the Savannah Children’s Museum. They are associated with the Savannah Railroad Musum and the children’s area is among some of the historic buildings so the place has a lot of character and considerable charm. They’re going to have problems with the grass being trampled by babies pretty soon, and the toys are so portable my son tried to escape with a Lincoln Log and I had to go back to return it. Continue reading “Leopold’s Ice Cream, Savannah GA”

Gibson’s Donuts, Memphis TN

The last time we were in Chattanooga, we stopped by that city’s children’s museum, prompting me to write a few paragraphs in praise of these fun little getaways. If you’ve Googled your way to our blog because you’d like to read a short thing or two about Gibson’s Donuts, then hit your Page Down button a couple of times. Before I get there, I’d like to reiterate what I said previously for the benefit of our road tripping audience. Continue reading “Gibson’s Donuts, Memphis TN”

Hillbilly Willy’s Bar-B-Q, Chattanooga TN

Hillbilly Willy’s was already several years old before I discovered them. George Foster started his business in a tiny little shack in Ooltewah, on the other side of Chattanooga from his present location, about eleven years ago, doing carry-out and catering. Around the same time that he was growing and thriving and looking for a larger space, I was stopping at a Bi-Lo just off I-24 on my way to Nashville for occasional twelve-packs of Double Cola. In time, the Bi-Lo closed, the shopping center’s owners lowered the rent on the smaller spaces to attract business to the mall as it lacked an anchor, and Foster moved in, setting up billboards letting people know about his great barbecue on the west side of town. Continue reading “Hillbilly Willy’s Bar-B-Q, Chattanooga TN”