Looks like Rachael Ray will be coming to Memphis soon. She has a show on the Food Network where she visits a city and dines on $40 or less for the whole day. I’ve never been a big Rachael fan – she’s a lousy tipper, and since I have a lot of friends in the service industry, that annoys me. However, this is great publicity for the city of Memphis and the restaurants she chooses to visit.
If you have suggestions for Rachael, you can give them to her here. Be sure to uncheck the boxes before you submit, or you’ll be subscribed to about a bazillion of her newsletters.
Hmmm… where in Downtown Memphis would I suggest…
– Breakfast at the Arcade… mmmm… haven’t had their Western omelet with ham, cheese, and green peppers in a while. Oldest restaurant in the city, lots of character, lots of stories to be told.
– Maybe Dyer’s on Beale for lunch… some of the best burgers in town, and that’s a place with a lot of history… 90-year-old grease. She could walk across the street to Handy Park and listen to the house band afterward, maybe buy a Big Ass Beer.
Alternate for lunch… Cozy Corner on North Parkway. I’ve heard a lot of people say that’s THE place to go downtown for ribs – not the Rendezvous or the Beale restaurants. Doesn’t have the nearby entertainment that Dyer’s does though.
(edited to add: Another alternate for lunch – Gus’s Chicken. How could I forget Gus’s?)
– Peabody lobby for the 5 PM duck march (free)
– Dinner… that’s a tough one… a lot of my favorite places downtown would be out of her budget. Maybe Pearl’s Oyster House… their enormous po-boys are inexpensive. Can’t remember the price but under $10 I’m pretty sure. Wonder if she’d go for Pearl’s… great place but Memphis is not known for seafood. If she wants to stick to stereotypes Pearl’s might not make it. It’s still my suggestion though.
– Late night… partying at EP Delta Kitchen. She could try the Lobster Pronto Pups, Not-Yo-Crawfish nachos, or the Duck Quesadilla, all under $10. Great house band for her to dance to, it’s on historic Beale, and the building used to be Elvis Presley’s club.
Those are my thoughts… hey, if you like my suggestions, I guess you could get on her site and post a link to this blog entry.
Will be working from the Second Street branch office this afternoon. Happy weekend everyone.