Last night I met fellow Sunday bruncher John D at the Peabody/Capriccio Corner Bar to check out the free appetizer buffet (free with alcoholic beverage) that they’re now doing. John D was already there when I arrived, and they had Bud Light bottles, so needless to say he was a happy man.
The buffet consisted of some breads, some nice imported cheeses, and one hot item, which last night was fried ravioli. I’ve been told they have other hot items on different days, including (according to a press release the Peabody sent me) fried calamari, chicken Parmesan strips, and meatballs.
Between the two of us, we had 4 beers and the tab was $17.48 before tip – that works out to $4.37 per beer. A little pricey for Bud and Bud Light, but it’s the Peabody, what do you expect. My recommendation: The happy hour is worth going to, but fill up on apps while you have one beer, then tab out and go somewhere where the beer is cheaper (like Frenchie’s bar across the street at the Holiday Inn).
John D and I then headed up to Court Square for “Bands, Beer and Bums: The Court Square Concert Series.” A guy walked up and started talking to John D: John had him immediately pegged as a panhandler, but I didn’t. He was clean and had all his teeth. I went to get a round of beers, and while I was away the panhandler asked John, “Do you think that guy (meaning me) will give me some money?”
“No,” said John D. “But what he will do is take your picture and post it to a panhandling site on the Internet that the cops read.”
The panhandler beat a hasty retreat to the other side of the park. When he saw me take my camera out of my pocket, he nervously ran over to another panhandler and pointed me out, and they gathered their belongings and left the area.
So I didn’t get a pic of him, but I did manage to snap a few other pics.
Giant Bear performing in the gazebo. They were outstanding.
Legendary Downtown street person Willie N. lights up some concert attendees with his sparkling conversation. That is, if you consider “Hey, lemme get a quarter” sparkling conversation. The Blue Suede Brigade told me he was in rare form last night.
The guy in the gray jacket approached John D and me for a cigarette. I don’t smoke, but John reluctantly gave him one. The guy walked away, then came back up about five seconds later. “Hey man, look here, I’ve got some VCRs I’m trying to sell,” he said, motioning toward a couple of bags on a bench. Couldn’t see the contents of the bags, but they looked like they very well could contain VCRs. After we turned him down he was nice enough to pose for the picture above, which has since been brought to the attention of MPD.
Then I moved on to the Saucer where I had a few Left Hand Sawtooth Ales on Fire Sale. My friend Lee was there and, on the bartender’s recommendation, he got the Winter Solstice Ale, which came in a collectible porcelain bottle. “Yeah, that was left over from a past ‘buy the beer, get the glass’ night,” I told him. “Specifically, it was left from December 22, 2005.”
“This beer is almost two years old?” he asked me. “How much is it?”
“Hell if I know,” I said. “They took it off the menu 18 months ago, when spring ’06 arrived.”
He offered me a sip. I don’t remember Winter Solstice being a high-alcohol beer, but it seemed to have fermented into one after two years in that bottle.
Was going to head to Beale Street to catch The Dempseys, but Kings of the Delta were playing the Saucer and they were good, so I just stayed there. They played the Beatles’ “Rocky Raccoon” from the White Album… that’s a song you don’t hear a lot of bands cover.
Ever wonder which beers are most frequently consumed at the Saucer? I saw a list posted by the waitress station:
Memphis Saucer Most Popular
- Blue Moon
- Newcastle
- Stella Artois (really? A draft that isn’t on Pint Nite made the top 3? Wow. It’s good beer, but still, I’m a little surprised.)
- Paulaner Hefe-Weizen
- Guinness (and they spelled it correctly this time! Good job on that!)
- Shiner Bock
- Dos Equis Amber
- Sierra Nevada Pale
- Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat (they misspelled “Leinenkugel,” but that’s a tough one for anyone to spell)
- Woodchuck (they didn’t say if it was the Amber, Granny Smith, Pear, or bottled Raspberry cider – maybe they all count as one)
Hmmm… I wonder what the Cordova Saucer Most Popular would look like. Here’s my guess at their top 5:
- Coors Light
- Bud Light draft
- Bud bottles
- Miller Lite
- Bud Light bottles
And I’ll take a shot at my personal top ten:
- Dos Equis Special Lager (with lime)
- Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat
- Woodchuck Pear Cider
- Franziskaner Hefe-Weizen (several waitresses told me this was better than the Paulaner, so I gave it a try – not bad)
- Blue Moon
- Foster’s (only because it’s the value drinking option at the Saucer – $5.50 for a 25-ounce “oil can”)
- Warsteiner
- Flying Dog Woody Creek
- Bridgeport IPA
- Stella Artois
Dogfish Head Midas Touch would’ve been on the list (at #1) but they’re currently out of it.
Time to get to work. Trying to decide if I’ll hit the Madison rooftop to catch Charlie Wood this evening. Probably will hit EP’s a little later on, around 9.