[KC]

Alright Memphis, I'll be visiting your fine metro in a couple weeks for a 3 day weekend....give me the skinny on what you got going on.

Places to eat....I'll try your 2nd place BBQ :) We love all types of food, so whatever you like, let me hear about it

Things to do....I'd like to avoid Graceland but that might not be possible....just some background, we both 28, no kids, not big on art museums (at least the woman isn't) but other type of museums are cool, general activities, we're open to almost anything......I'd would love to go to a redbirds game but doesn't look like that is possible as they aren't in town. Any other sporting events to see?

bars....what we really enjoy doing....we've heard of Beale st. so plan to check that out....but not big into super loud live music places...chill martini bars/overall lounge places are good. Sports bar that we might be able to catch the royals playing...or somebody else playing.

We're staying in East Memphis due to some free hotel rooms but plan to be downtown most of the time and take cabs back if necessary....I assume they are easy to flag down in most bar areas?

Anything else we should see, let me know.....this is my first Memphis visit so I'm pretty excited.

Thanks.

[tennreb]

Most of everything worth seeing is downtown. If you are into music, then you will really like Memphis. We have a good nightlife scene here, but nearly everywhere has a live band. However, there are a few good chill martini bars. I recommend Swig at Peabody Place and Main. EP's Delta Kitchen has a live band, but they have a great patio overlooking Beale Street that isn't loud. There are two bars at the new Westin that are really cool, but they are a little too quiet. It just opened, so it hasn't caught on as the place to be. If you are going to be here on a Thursday night, you definitely have to go to the rooftop party at the Madison Hotel. It is the ultimate place to chill. If you aren't going to be there on a Thursday, you can still get some drinks at the downstairs bar and take them to the roof and watch the sunset over the river. The lobby bar at the Peabody Hotel was named one of the top 10 in America, and it is a great place to get a pre-dinner drink and people watch. The piano bar at Pat O'Brien's is pretty loud, but you can still have a conversation in there and it's a lot of fun. Late at night go to Earnestine & Hazel's, a former brothel, and go upstairs and get a drink from Mr. Nate. This is the ultimate Memphis chill bar (although it gets wild downstairs at times). It's at the corner of S. Main and GE Patterson. Their soulburger is the perfect late night drunk food. Nearby is the Cheesecake Corner, which has the best cheesecake you've ever tasted. It's also a wine bar with live jazz or piano players and local art adorning the walls.

As far as barbeque goes, avoid the Rendezvous, as it is a tourist trap. I think Central BBQ has the best wet and dry ribs, but their pork sandwich isn't very good. The Cozy Corner has a sliced pork sandwich, which is unique but excellent. Corky's is in East Memphis, and it is good, but they are definitely not the best. I think the Germantown Commissary has an excellent pork sandwich. You can't go wrong with The Barbeque Shop's pork sandwich. Be forewarned that we consider real barbeque to be pork. I saw some people from Texas get thrown out of Central BBQ for requesting beef barbeque. The only barbeque place downtown is Rendezvous, so you may have to settle for their ribs (only get dry ribs or barbeque nachos there). Blues City Cafe supposedly has good ribs, but I've never had them.

Memphis has some good music-oriented museums. My favorite is Sun Studios. It's only two rooms, but the tour guides are amazing. The Smithsonian Rock'n'Soul Museum is really cool. I've heard really good things about Stax Records, but I've never been. You have to venture into a pretty bad ghetto to get to it, but they have security I've heard it is worth it. The National Civil Rights Museum is educational and very emotional at the spot where Dr. King was killed. Sun Studios operates a free shuttle between Graceland and all these other museums mentioned. If you are into history, the Cotton Museum is small but pretty neat.

A cab from East Memphis to downtown is going to run $20-30. It's pretty easy to find cabs downtown. There are always some parked in the motorcourt at the Peabody. At night, there are always cabs at Beale and Third, and they circle in front of Earnestine & Hazel's pretty frequently.

If you let me know which weekend you are coming, I can give you some recommendations about different events going on. Also, Memphis has a ton of great restaurants downtown. If you let me know what kind of food you are looking for, I can tell you about some places.

[MidTenn1]

As a frequent visitor, I find some of the older neighborhoods to be appealing. If you take the trolley out Madison Street, you will go through some quaint districts with some unique restaurants and shops.

It makes for an inexpensive little side trip.

[KC]

Thanks tennreb.....I know we're going to the wrong city but we're just not big live music bar people.... but maybe blues would be cool. We really like bars with nice outdoor patios....and also like to sample any regional/local beers you can recommend.

As far as food....we'll do BBQ one day for sure....a Mexican place? Italian? Noodles/Thai? sports bar? the local speciality (other than bbq). Soulburger sounds good even right now :)

I think the civil rights museum sounds cool...have to do that....

is the mud island thing cool? I hear there is a riverboat and a gondola ride to the island? Any good?

So the trolley hits some cool neighborhoods....any stops we should get off and check out?

Thanks for the help.

[tennreb]

Thanks tennreb.....I know we're going to the wrong city but we're just not big live music bar people.... but maybe blues would be cool. We really like bars with nice outdoor patios....and also like to sample any regional/local beers you can recommend.

As far as food....we'll do BBQ one day for sure....a Mexican place? Italian? Noodles/Thai? sports bar? the local speciality (other than bbq). Soulburger sounds good even right now :)

I think the civil rights museum sounds cool...have to do that....

is the mud island thing cool? I hear there is a riverboat and a gondola ride to the island? Any good?

So the trolley hits some cool neighborhoods....any stops we should get off and check out?

Thanks for the help.

Other than barbeque, Memphis has great fried chicken and catfish. The best fried chicken in the world can be found at Gus' on Front. Be sure to get an ice cold forty there with your plate of chicken. The best catfish in Memphis is at Soulfish on Cooper street near the Cooper-Young intersection, where some other cool restaurants and bars can be found. Central BBQ is close to here as well. If you want a great burger during the day, go to Huey's on Union and Second. But there's nothing better than a soulburger at Earnestine's late at night. All of these places are dirt cheap. If you are looking for something a little more upscale, I recommend the Daily Grill for classic American fare. The Majestic Grille is very good too, and a great value. Bosco's in Overton Square has awesome wood oven pizza and amazing microbrews, and it isn't too expensive. If you are looking for fine dining, I recommend Felicia Suzanne's for upscale Southern cuisine. For beer, you have to go to the Flying Saucer, where they have a couple hundred beers on tap. The only locally brewed beers you'll find at Boscos, but there is a beer out of Nashville called Yazoo's brewed by people from the Mississippi Delta. You can also find most of Abita's new orleans beers there. For New Orleans-style seafood, Pearl's Oyster House on South Main is very good. The oysters, crawfish, boiled shrimp, and gumbo there are all great and fairly cheap.

The Madison line of the trolley doesn't go through much. However, you can take it close to Sun Studios. There are a few bars and coffee shops around there, along with a theater with a black company. There's a club called the Complex along the Madison line that has great, cheap Mexican food during the day. There isn't much street life in this area. The riverfront loop is much more scenic, though.

Which weekend are you coming?

[KC]

we're not sure on the weekend but it might be this weekend...or in 3 weeks.

so what was the madison trolley line built for if there isn't a lot it connects to?

Thanks for all the suggestions....

this is a pretty low key weekend so our dining will be pretty basic. Any mexican place you recommend? I can always go for a good margarita. Also any other outdoor bars/patios you can recommend?

[tennreb]

we're not sure on the weekend but it might be this weekend...or in 3 weeks.

so what was the madison trolley line built for if there isn't a lot it connects to?

Thanks for all the suggestions....

this is a pretty low key weekend so our dining will be pretty basic. Any mexican place you recommend? I can always go for a good margarita. Also any other outdoor bars/patios you can recommend?

This weekend there is a really good outdoor festival called the Sunset Symphony. The Memphis Symphony will be giving a sunset serenade with the Temptations on the banks of the Mississippi. There will be about 10,000 people there with their lawn chairs, coolers of beer, and bottles of wine. It's a nice relaxing way to kick off summer. In a few weeks, Norah Jones is playing in the Amphitheater on Mud Island in the river. There are several other shows going on there over the summer. There are lots of good outdoor patios in Memphis. Movie and Pizza Co in Harbor Town on Mud Island has good pizza and pints and a great patio. Any restaurant on main street has a good patio, including Bluefin sushi, Majestic Grille, and Sauces (fish). The Daily Grill has a good patio but is pretty expensive. Pat O'Briens on Beale Street has a great patio and supposedly decent ribs, but I've never had the food there. Decent Mexican can be found downtown at the Happy Mexican on South Third (don't walk there from Beale after dark). The city's best Mexican can be found at Swanky's (kind of like Chipotle or Moe's but more upscale and much better food) in East Memphis near Germantown and Los Tortugas/Deli Mexicana in Germantown (authentic, very fresh Mexican, order at the counter). Cafe Ole in Cooper-Young is pretty good and has a great patio.

The Madison line of the trolley was sort of a boondoggle. It mainly goes to the Medical Center and was built with the intention of being extended all the way to the airport and converted to a light rail line.

[sleepy]

I was going to add some stuff, but TennReb did an exhaustive overview.

Oops! He forgot to add the Pandas at the zoo.

[cityguy]

Any new developments in Memphis?