Check back in this space between now and noon as I will update Downtown business closings for today, Friday, February 4. (Disclaimer: I try as hard as I can to build an accurate and complete list, but once in a while I get incorrect info. Calling the business is recommended if you need to be 100% certain it’s open or closed.)
Closed:
- Atomic Rose (tonight but they plan to open Saturday and Sunday)
- Baron’s Man Cave
- Big River Crossing
- Brass Door
- Cordelia’s Market (closed due to power outages; they will update social media if anything changes)
- Paulette’s (closed due to power outages; they will update social media if anything changes)
- Rachel’s Salon and Day Spa
- River Time Market & Deli
- STIX
- Stock & Belle
- Tug’s Casual Grill (closed due to power outages; they will update social media if anything changes)
Open:
- Aldo’s Pizza Pies Downtown
- Arcade
- Automatic Slim’s, at 11, for brunch
- Bardog Tavern (opened at 8 AM – Underdog downstairs opens at 11)
- Blind Bear, at 11, for brunch
- Chef Tam’s Underground Kitchen, 11 AM-4:30 PM, half-off for MLGW workers
- Flying Saucer
- Green Beetle
- Huey’s
- Loflin Yard
- Majestic Grille
- McEwen’s
- Memphis Chess Club (for lunch; closing 1 PM)
- Paula & Raiford’s Disco (9 PM-3 AM)
- Pontotoc Lounge
- Robusto by Havana Mix
- Slider Inn Downtown (Slider Inn Midtown will be closed due to lack of power)
We got the expected ice storm yesterday. In the Downtown core, the surface-level temperature hovered around 33-34 all morning, making for a slushy walk when I got out at noon. However, the temperature higher up was a little colder, causing ice to form on tree branches.
This tree at Main and Gayoso had a large branch on the ground. It’s a good thing a car was not parked there.
Here’s a video by ABC 24 of a tree blocking lanes on Riverside Drive.
Around 1 PM the temperature dropped below freezing, and the Main Street Mall and roads iced up. Power lines started to be affected. The Downtown core never lost power but Mud Island did. At its peak, 137,000 in Memphis were without power and Mayor Strickland declared a state of emergency. Some people may be without power for several days,
MemphisWeather.net posted that early morning temps were in the mid-20s Friday. Temps will struggle to make it to freezing today, so what’s on the ground is likely to remain on the ground all day. I bet a lot of offices will remain closed or work-from-home today as this morning’s commute is more dangerous than yesterday morning’s.
Looking out the window, it appears that Second Street has been de-iced. Monroe Avenue has patches of ice but is passable.
Very few restaurants were open in the Downtown core yesterday. I didn’t go to Bardog Tavern but was told by lunchtime, there was barely room to stand in there.
Silly Goose missed out on a lot of money by not firing up their pizza oven until 4 PM. That’s especially the case on snow days but it’s true most weekdays, given that they’re located in the ground floor of an office tower, plus they’re a block walk from AutoZone headquarters store support center.
One especially bad result of the ice storm is that the PBR delivery truck couldn’t make it, causing the Blind Bear to run out of the greatest beer ever made. I switched to a local product, Grind City Tiger Tail, a malt liquor I found quite refreshing. At $6 per pint and a 7.5% ABV, you get plenty of bang for your buck with a Value Drinking Index of 20.
Thanks to wonderful friends who made sure I got home last night without having to traverse the icy Main Street Mall. And now, let’s get on to the news.
The reservation book that was taken from Rizzo’s several days ago has been returned.
Longshot is doing another all-inclusive special for the Cincinnati Bengals vs. L.A. Rams championship game happening on February 13. $56 gets you
- Frito pie
- Coconut curry cauliflower
- Honey gold fried chicken
- 3 drink tickets
Seats are limited, so call 901-701-7494 to make your reservation.
Tug’s Casual Grill fans, mark your calendars for Mardi Gras specials Tuesday, March 1. They’ll have gumbo, red beans & rice, shrimp & sausage jambalaya, a shrimp po’boy, and a muffalini. Drink specials will include a hurricane, a voodoo lemonade, and a Bourbon Street martini.
From Media Referee: Former NBA championship team member Richard Jefferson believes that Ja Morant can guide the Grizzlies to championship contention
From the DM: Jaren Jackson Jr. is no longer a longshot for Defensive Player of the Year. He leads the NBA in blocks this season with 121. His teammate Ja Morant praised Jackson for being able to guard all five positions and for often being assigned to guard the other team’s best shooter.
Today is National Quacker Day. Get your souvenir rubber duck at the Peabody gift shops.
The Breakfast Club will perform ’80s rock, New Wave, and dance tunes Saturday at the Hard Rock beginning at 7.
All right. I’ll update the list of closings (and late openings) that I’m aware of at the top of this blog until about noon. After that, I’ll post closings on Facebook and make the post public so you can see it even if we aren’t connected on there. Back tomorrow with more news.