Tue update: Filming on South Main, hotel tip, chicken livers, terrible TV, Start Co. Lounge, America’s Got Talent Live, pop-up shop

There will be a TV series filming in the South Main area today. If you plan on doing any dining or shopping in that neighborhood, be aware that there will be no parking today on parts of South Main Street and G.E. Patterson Avenue.

I got a tip recently from a friend who was checking out event venues. He says that the Downtown Econo Lodge is really, really nice. Many people don’t even know we have an Econo Lodge. It’s tucked away on North Third Street, occupying the top 3 floors of a building that houses a parking garage, A&R Bar-b-Que, and Memphis Sounds Lounge just south of Court Avenue. My friend said the rooms are very good and the pool area is so nice that he wished it could be rented out for private functions. I got on the hotel’s website and did some searches for rooms and they are very reasonably priced. It looks like that’s a hidden gem of a deal if you have friends coming in to town and they need a place to stay.

I’ve mentioned a couple of times that my grandmother got me hooked on fried chicken livers when I was a little kid. Since Flying Fish took them off the menu, I’ve been looking for a place within walking distance to get them. Sunday I found such a place – Miss Polly’s Soul City Cafe on Beale. They have a chicken liver appetizer for $5.99. The menu says you get eight livers, but there were way more than eight on my plate and they were huge. More than enough for a meal, and nearly double the amount that came on the Fish’s chicken liver dinner.

There’s a new reality TV series called WWE Total Divas, featuring the women of the World Wrestling Federation. The first episode was this week. I didn’t catch it, but based on this recap, Total Divas just may be the worst show in the history of television. It sounds so bad that I wonder if it will attract a cult following the way Honey Boo Boo did.

Start Co. Lounge is holding an event at the Silly Goose tomorrow after work. It’s a chance to network with people involved or interested in startups – innovators, creators, coders, creative types. It starts at 5:30. Happy hour drink specials. May I recommend the PBR?

America’s Got Talent Live is coming to the Orpheum Friday, October 11. Tickets go on sale August 6.

A pop-up shop is coming to Hoot & Louise on Thursday from noon to 8. It will be called “Paper and Clay” and will feature the work of artist/ceramicist Brit McDaniel. There will be music and refreshments including Ghost River beer.

That’ll do it for now. Sorry I haven’t been around the past couple of days. Should be back to posting daily now.