Year: 2009

Last Sunday I had a couple of Bloody Marys at the Silly Goose’s make-your-own Bloody Mary bar, which they have every Sunday from noon to 6.  In recent weeks I’ve been experimenting with Louisiana and Mexican hot sauces to spice up my drink.  However, Sunday I learned the error of my ways.  The best hot sauce is from nowhere near Louisiana or Mexico…

… it’s this one.  It’s labeled “Sriracha HOT Chili Sauce” and I believe it’s Chinese.  (Edit: I’ve learned that the sauce is actually Vietnamese.  Here’s an article about it.)  Just look for the chicken on the bottle.  A few drops of this makes a Bloody Mary perfectly spicy.  Give it a try next time you’re at the Goose… or buy it at one of Memphis’ international markets, if you prefer to make your Bloody Marys at home.

Speaking of things Chinese, that reminds me of a story… one time I in the late ’70s I was watching the TV show All in the Family, and Archie gave his grandson Joey a stuffed panda.  I asked my mother and grandmother, “Why did Archie call the panda a ‘chinky bear?'”  Things you could get away with on TV in the ’70s that would never, ever fly in the politically correct 21st century.

Time to head to work… probably another post to come around noon.  More details on the SportsBall kick-off party at Kooky Canuck, plus a couple of events going on at the PowerHouse, plus whatever else comes my way between now and then.

Yeah, yeah, I know, no post before work or at lunchtime.  Mondays just plain suck.  Especially when they follow Sunday Fun Days where my favorite beer is the Fire Sale and the Dempseys play Huey’s.

After posting about the long lines to get on Beale Street due to metal detectors, I received feedback from people who went this weekend, and endured the lines and got in. They told me that once inside, Beale was a lot more fun than it had been in recent years. “Inside were actually people who just wanted to have fun, check out good music and drink big beers,” wrote one person. Glad to hear it! The first few years I was down here (2002-05) Beale was a lot of fun on the weekends, and I went there all the time. I’ll give it a try as soon as I have a weekend night free. Like I posted yesterday, I bet the lines on Third Street are considerably shorter than those on Second.

I also want to address an article that was in the Commercial Appeal about a shooting on Beale Street this weekend. That shooting happened at the Orchid Club, in the 600 block of Beale, which is well on the other side of Danny Thomas, nowhere near the entertainment district proper which runs from Second to Fourth. So that report should not be taken as a sign that the entertainment district is unsafe.

Yesterday I had my Hoop’s Bar T-shirt on, which I got last year for being a judge at their Pub Olympics event. It has “pub olympics” printed on the back, and I had several people ask me if that event would be coming back for a second year. That particular event, as far as I know, won’t – Hoop’s went out of business with EP’s in September of last year, and there was some talk of reviving Pub Olympics when Hoop bartended at the Voodoo Room, but that’s now closed too.

However, there will be another bar olympics event held Downtown this fall, probably late September. I’ll have more details on that one when the organizers are ready to share them.

The Memphis Flyer’s “Hungry Memphis” blog had an article about the new restaurant/bar South of Beale that will open soon. I had a couple of people ask me this weekend about the place, wondering what a “gastropub” is. Find out here.

They’ve been soliciting beer suggestions on Twitter today… seems like all of their followers like PBR, except the Nuh-Uh Girl. I agree with everyone else… PBR in some format (draft, bottle or can) is pretty much mandatory if you’re going to open a locals’ bar Downtown. I bet if South of Beale marinated some food in PBR and put it out on a free buffet, the Nuh-Uh Girl would change her tune about PBR real quick.

Kooky Canuck is having their kick-off party for the 2009 SportsBall on Wednesday, August 5 from 5 to 7:30 PM. Come by the kick-off party to learn how you can attend the SportsBall and support Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Memphis. And be sure to eat while you’re there… three words for you… maple flank steak.  (Edit:  Just got more info on this… will post tomorrow… dammit I wish the iPhone Facebook app displayed events and event invitations)

In the news this afternoon… High Point Pinch has been shut down as a public nuisance.

Time for Pint Nite. I’m at 132 beers toward my third plate and still have Pint Nite beers left. Tonight will be Warsteiner, Skinny Dip, and a third beer yet to be determined.

I mentioned earlier in the week that I had a birthday party/pub crawl to go to Friday night.  About 9:30 we arrived at our third stop of the evening – Beale Street.  Security guards guarded the entrances as usual.  In the past, it took less than a minute to get through the gates.  However, Friday night, this is what we encountered:

Two long lines snaked back from the entrances all the way to Second Street and down the sidewalks.  Security guards were wanding people with their new metal detectors to check for guns, and they were doing a pretty thorough job.  I’m 100% in support of their decision to do so; we don’t need guns on Beale Street.  However, I have to wonder if they’re implementing this the right way.  After 5 minutes the line had hardly moved.  I and several other members of our party decided to skip Beale Street and go on to the next destination.

I wonder how many people will get frustrated by the lines and will go elsewhere.  You can walk a short distance from Beale and get to a blues club that’s as good as anything on the street (Ground Zero), a nightclub that’s as good as anything on the street (Red Rooster, and soon Republic Nightclub too), and to bars that are good as anything on the street.  Me personally, 3 minutes is about all it takes to hit my frustration limit.  Beyond that I simply refuse to stand in line, knowing I can have just as much fun elsewhere.

I hope they figure out a way to speed things up yet still keep patrons safe.  If the line was that long at 9:30, I wonder what it looked like at peak time, 11 to 1 or thereabouts?

A few tips if you’re going to Beale:

• The entrances on Third Street will probably have much shorter lines than those at Second and Fourth, which are the ends of the street.  Wish we had thought of this Friday night.
• If you’re going to Beale for some authentic Memphis barbecue ribs, the best place to get them is Blues City Cafe, and Blues City’s entrance lies outside the barricaded entrance to Beale Street.  So you won’t have to deal with the long lines.
• Itta Bena, the only fine-dining restaurant on Beale, also has an entrance outside the barricades.  Look for the valet-parking stand on Second.  There’s a separate entrance to the third floor of BB’s, which is Itta Bena.

Off to Sunday Fun Day… Dos Equis Lager is the Fire Sale at the Saucer.  Yay!  The Dempseys play Huey’s at 8:30 PM.

Time to roll out another new site.  Introducing the Dog Shirt Shop.

I got the idea for this one after I had some success selling dog shirts and dog jerseys on Hawaiian Shirt Paradise and the College Logo Shopping family of sites.  I checked Amazon, and there is a huge amount of dog apparel out there… and is often the case, it’s incredibly disorganized on Amazon’s site.  Perfect candidate for a storefront.  Among the cool stuff you’ll find there:

• Funny T-shirts including this “I DO IT DOGGY STYLE” shirt
• Dog sports jerseys.  Couldn’t find any for the Tigers, but the Tennessee Titans are represented.  My Arkansas Razorbacks are too.
• Fashion dog shirts like this argyle shirt
• Dog business suits
• And much, much more

As always, the site is in association with Amazon and they handle the secure checkout and the shipping. I never see your name or credit card, just a notification that items were ordered and I made commission.

Getting ready to head to the Saucer for Marci’s last shift… although, it’s a beautiful day, so I’ll probably spend part of it outside as well.

According to this crime report in the CA, officers caught Kenneth Russell, 50, attempting to use a hanger to fish dollars out of a pay-to-park box on a lot at Main and Huling, not far from the restaurant Spindini.  They found three torn, wrinkled dollars in his left sock, so apparently he had some success before the cops arrived.  Here’s Mr. Russell’s mug shot, from the Shelby County “Who’s in Jail?” site:

According to General Sessions and Criminal Court lookup, Mr. Russell has been charged with theft of property under $500 quite a few times in recent years, as well as the occasional motor vehicle burglary.  His other arrests, for possession of drug paraphernalia, may shed some light as to Mr. Russell’s plans for the money he fishes out of parking boxes.

Wow what a crappy drive to work. Wish I could’ve laid in bed and enjoyed the sound of the thunderstorms instead of having to drive in them… how I miss the days of working for myself… well, except for that “no regular paycheck” thing.

Additional information about the Orpheum’s art auction tonight here, including a link to their online preview of the artwork. The Nuh-Uh Girl forwarded me that link, so I have a feeling she’ll show up for the free food.

If you wear Nat Nast or Robert Graham shirts, you can stop by Lansky at the Peabody and pre-order from their fall collection. Robert Graham makes some of the coolest looking shirts ever.

Hip Kitty plays the Peabody rooftop tonight… or more likely, inside, if it continues to rain all day. The band is described on the Facebook event page as “super sexy, in your face, great American rock’n’roll.” $5 cover, ladies free before 8. The Dempseys are scheduled to play the Madison rooftop (edit: May have that wrong, think it may be Delta Highway), but I don’t think there’s an alternate location in the case of rain there, so I’m not sure that’s going to happen.

That’s the news for now, back to the daily grind…

People have been telling me about the hot wings at Calhoun’s for a while. Tonight I finally got down there and tried them. I must admit, I was skeptical… the wings were recommended by Calhoun’s regulars, not always the most objective bunch. They’ll tell you Calhoun’s school lunchroom pizza is the best pizza in Memphis.

Their wing recommendation, though, was right on the money. I tried the habanera honey wings. Not normally a fan of “honey” wings but Max said they were the hottest ones. They were outstanding! So hot they almost made me cry, perfect with blue cheese. Comparable to Three Mile Island wings from Hooters in hotness, except that Calhoun’s wings had actual meat on them. Highly recommended.

The Dempseys play Downtown Huey’s Sunday night at 8:30. Best place to hear them Downtown, plus it’s their Friday so they’re always in a fun mood.

At the Saucer blogging from my phone. Thanks to Jeff for the Jager shot. One of the girls is wearing a “Bag it at the Saucer” tank top, which I think is an artifact from the old Sunday Night Swill promotion that I wish they’d bring back. I told her she should wear it on Fridays and Saturdays because a lot of people bag it at the Saucer on weekends.

Forgot to post this earlier on… the Flyer will have a happy hour tonight at the Silly Goose.  $2 domestic longnecks, $3 wells, $4 flatbreads.  Drawing for two tickets to the August 20 O.A.R. show at the Mud Island Ampitheatre.

I’ll definitely be there… should arrive around 5:30.  Hope to see you there!