Month: October 2023

A Philly cheesesteak flatbread is the special at Local on Main today.

They also have their usual lunch special, a pork chop, grilled or fried, with 2 sides.

Turn on channel 13 at 4 PM today and cheer on a Memphis family competing in Family Feud.

11 people were inducted into the Memphis Sports Hall of Fame last night at AutoZone Park. Among them were former Grizzlies coach Hubie Brown and former WMC-TV sports director Jack Eaton.

The Grizzlies got a 108-102 preseason win over the Milwaukee Bucks last night. Next up: The Grizz hit the road to play Atlanta Thursday at 6:30 PM (TV: NBA TV).

A man was carjacked in broad daylight at the gas station on Riverside Monday morning.

A Maserati with a small dog in it was stolen from the 400 block of Front Street around 7 Tuesday evening.

This is my second update of the day, so keep scrolling for more news.

This first news item is for all my service industry friends. The Jameson Service Industry Ball makes its return Monday, October 30 from 6 to 10 PM. This year the ball will be at 507 Lux Lounge in the basement of Curry N Jerk, 150 Monroe (former Bon Ton Cafe location).

• DJ Mylon will be spinning the tunes
• Halloween costumes encouraged
• Games, prizes, treats, swag

All service industry folks are invited to attend – it’s free, but you must fill out this RSVP form to be put on the list.

Looking for a coffee shop in the Downtown core? The folks at Boycott Coffee at 240 Madison would love to see you. One of the owners posted the following to Facebook:

We need to see about 25 more people a day at Boycott Coffee. Anyone want to become regulars? We have a loyalty program that would earn you a free drink on average every week.

What would it take?

Details:

The cafe is downtown on Madison.

Three owners (includes myself) at 3-way split.

Black-owned. Woman-owned.

Owners invest in company with little to no draw.

We are dairy free. Plant based. Vegan.

We roast and make syrups in house.

Ethical/Sustainable approach to coffee sourcing.

We don’t have a consistent food program (looking to connect with local vendors)

We open at 6:30 AM every weekday

Free side-street parking

Open 7 days a week

Aiming for 100% Green/Brown Waste by EOY

Free Wi-Fi

Amazing staff we put as our priority to support

Barista program ( % share on revenue for select beverages)

Help us keep this thing going.

It’s time again to wish a happy day to the Kimberlys, Kimsters, and Kimmy Kims reading this blog. It’s National Kimberly Day.

It’s National Sausage Pizza Day. Aldo’s Pizza Pies would be a good place to celebrate, as would Ferraro’s or Slim & Husky’s.

It’s also Southern Food Heritage Day. Alcenia’s restaurant on Main just north of I-40 would be my celebration recommendation.

Coffee shop Vice & Virtue has closed its stand at Tom Lee Park, the CA’s Jennifer Chandler reports. V&V’s owner said the coffee shop “just wasn’t the right fit” for the park. The Tom Lee Park Welcome Center will move into the stand previously occupied by the shop.

Not Downtown but worth a short trip: The Hi-Tone will give away 1000 grilled cheese sandwiches on Thursday, October 19 between 6 and 9 PM. Here’s what you need to know:

• One free sandwich per customer
• Dine-in only, unless you’re donating your free sandwich to someone in need
• Must show proof that you shared November 5’s Memphis Grilled Cheese Fest on Facebook

Memphis to the ACC? Might be a possibility under the right circumstances.

Green Beetle is staffing up for Grizzlies season. They are looking to hire nighttime and weekend servers.

Bishop will be closed for dinner service today due to a private event.

Frank Bruno will play Eight & Sand Lounge this evening from 7 to 11.

Get ready for a fantastic evening of FREE live music with the talented Rachel Maxann! 🎤🍻🎶 Come party on the patio of South Point Grocery on Thursday, October 19 from 5-7 PM! https://t.co/mhL1dyiTV4 pic.twitter.com/YzWlEusZrU

— Downtown Memphis (@DowntownMemphis) October 10, 2023

Feast & Graze is hiring a charcuterie board artist & catering assistant. Contract; November and December only; 7 AM-3 PM Tuesday=Saturday; $15/hour.

Let’s wrap up this post with a bit of trivia from my favorite fake sport.

In the late 1990s, pro wrestler “Bad Ass” Billy Gunn was a decorated tag team champion as a member of the New Age Outlaws and D-Generation X.

Fast-forward to 2023… Gunn, now in his late fifties, is still an active competitor in AEW, the number-two wrestling promotion in North America. His two sons wrestle in AEW as well.

And ol’ Billy has a new ring name that reflects his status as a family man.

“Daddy Ass.”

You just can’t make this stuff up. Think I’m kidding? See the results of Saturday’s AEW event.

AEW, by the way, will be at FedExForum a week from Saturday. It’s unknown for sure if Gunn/Daddy Ass will appear, but he is on the graphic advertising AEW’s Collision show to be broadcast from FedExForum that night.

And that’ll wrap it up. Very possibly back in the late morning/early afternoon with a second Wednesday update.

Momma’s, “the diner and dive off 55,” will be closed today for scheduled maintenance. The restaurant will reopen bright and early at 6:30 AM Wednesday for breakfast. In the meantime, you can visit Momma’s sibling restaurants Aldo’s Pizza Pies, Slider Inn, and Bardog Tavern today.

Feelin’ Memphis has glasses for viewing Saturday’s solar eclipse. We will only see a partial eclipse here in Memphis; the full-on path for the eclipse will pass through Eugene, Oregon and Albuquerque, New Mexico. According to the DM, the eclipse will be about 60% visible in Memphis at its peak, lasting from 10:32 AM to 1:35 PM.

Today is Ada Lovelace Day. She is generally considered the world’s first computer programmer. She described practical uses for a general-purpose analytical engine Charles Babbage invented in the 19th century.

As if nerds needed another reason to celebrate, it’s also Powers of Ten Day. Whether 100, one million, or 0.00000001 is your favorite, enjoy.

And it’s Squid and Cuttlefish Day. I recommend celebrating with calamari at Bardog, the Majestic, or the Fish.

Prayers for Father Dexter Noblefranca of Downtown’s St. Patrick’s Catholic Church… he was part of a group on a pilgrimage to Israel. In Jerusalem, they heard what they thought were fireworks but later learned was Israel’s anti-missile defense system activating. Their trip, needless to say, has been cut short and they hope to travel home today.

Oh Sweets Skincare, a couple of doors down from Bardog on Monroe, will host a Barbie & Me Mix & Whip Party from 11 AM to 4 PM Thursday.

The CA has a look at the Downtown Memphis Commission’s plan to replace Paul Young. Young, who was elected the next mayor of Memphis last week, is the DMC’s chief executive officer.

Downtown’s Hyatt Caption Hotel is hiring cooks. 1-2 years of previous line experience, a culinary degree, and previous hotel experience are all pluses.

Soul & Spirits news:

To thank all of you for your support these past two years we are having a Year Two Anniversary Giveaway – we are giving 3 lucky winners some awesome Soul & Spirits swag and gift cards! $100 gift cards to all 3 winners plus 1 lucky winner will get a retro travel case record player with a record of your choice plus other rad S&S goods. You will get a ticket for every new beer release you purchase this anniversary week! You can also buy extra entry tickets for only $5! Only available Thursday through Sunday at the taproom. We will draw 3 tickets on Monday, so keep an eye on social media and DM us if you have the winning ticket!! Cheers to another year!

The Brooks Museum of Art will change its name once it moves Downtown. Thereafter it will be known as Memphis Art Museum.

Maciel’s will open a location at 3397 Summer next spring. They want to be more of a taqueria at that location than the original Downtown one, with an increased number of tacos on the menu. The owner sees an opportunity to connect with Memphis’ large Hispanic community in the new location.

The Golden Girls return to the Orpheum on March 28. Tickets go on sale this Friday.

There was a thread on Facebook yesterday about where to get soup in Memphis. Downtown-related responses included

• Bishop has good French onion soup
• McEwen’s for their soup of the day
• Beer cheese soup when Bardog has it on special (a followup comment recommends to dip the sliders in it)
• Another followup comment recommends dipping a Bardog grilled cheese sandwich in tomato bisque
• Gumbo at Jerry Lee’s club on Beale

I’ll add a response of my own: The Caldo Tlalpeno (chicken tortilla soup) from Maciel’s.

Seen on Facebook this morning: “Dak Prescott cologne, for those nights when you don’t want to score” HAHAHAHAHA

From ABC 24: How splitting Memphis in May and Tom Lee Park could cost Memphis millions

Drone 101 happens at the Cossitt Library tonight from 5 to 7. This is part of a filmmakers’ series at the library. Tonight’s presentation will explore cinematography when using drones, fundamental drone operations, and legal issues.

DJ Cashmere plays Ibis Wednesday night from 8 to 11.

Jason Sims (Witnesse) plays Eight & Sand Lounge at Central Station Hotel Friday night.

Blind Bear is replacing the floor underneath its bar during the early part of this week. Everything in/on/around the bar has been moved or covered up and a temporary bar has been set up where the big poker table is. You can still sit at the main bar, in one of the 8 or so seats not in front of covered equipment – you’ll just have to get up and walk over to the temp bar to get a drink or order food. I think they said Wednesday is the target date for having the repair work done.

I do not yet have the list of specials the Blind Bear will run this week. I hope to publish an update late this afternoon listing them. I heard Tony was thinking about lasagna for this week, but I don’t have that confirmed.

Otherwise, that’ll do it for now. Back this afternoon or tomorrow.

The DM has a list of the best places in the Memphis metro to see fall colors. Closest to Downtown is Elmwood Cemetery, which will have a guided fall tour on Saturday, November 18 and 25.

Memphis-based Blue Note Bourbon is expanding.

MPD says that a Peabody valet parking attendant stole guns out of cars he was being paid to park.

The I-55 bridge (“the old bridge:) is back open following construction over the weekend.

Come to the Cossitt Library and express yourself using Big Feelings Pineapple!

It’s on the gray Young Adult Fiction shelf in the southeast corner of the library’s second floor. Notice there is no pizza in the photo. Big Feelings Pineapple does not belong on pizza. Nor does any other pineapple!

The Grizzlies picked up a 127-122 overtime win in last night’s preseason game vs. Indiana. D-Rose was said to have looked good as he started and dropped in 13. The Grizzlies host Milwaukee Tuesday at 7 in the next preseason game. We’ll get to see how Dame Time and the Greek Freak work together.

There’s a petition on Change.org to ban horse-drawn carriages in Downtown Memphis.

The basketball Tigers have been picked to finish second in the AAC. Florida Atlantic is regarded as the top team in the conference. Four Tigers picked up individual preseason honors.

Good news for Steve the squirrel who hangs out in front of Local on Main: It’s been found that male squirrels get smarter in the fall.

Employee walkouts at Walgreens may happen this week.

This is my second update today, so keep scrolling if it’s your first time here this Monday. Back tomorrow if I find more news.

Rather than argue whether it’s Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples Day, why not look to our neighbors to the north for inspiration about what to call today?

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving Day!

I recommend celebrating the day at Kooky Canuck, which will have a special plate today including turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans, gravy, and a buttered roll.

If turkey’s not your thing, it’s International Beer and Pizza Day too.

From StyleBlueprint: Meet Kristen & Lindsey Archer of ARCHd, the gift shop which recently opened at 65 Monroe.

Broadway musical Funny Gitl will be at the Orpheum Tuesday through Sunday.

The Mersey Beatles return to Memphis on Thursday for a show at the Halloran Centre. This is the Beatles tribute band that is Liverpool-born, and which held a residency in that city’s Cavern Club, just as the Beatles themselves did from 1961 to 1963. This tour will feature music from 1962 to 1966, so everything from “Love Me Do” to Revolver is fair game.

Eight & Sand Lounge in Central Station Hotel will have a Grizzlies Pre-Season Kickoff tonight from 5 to 11. $8 Grizz Shots and $5 bottles/cans.

The Peabody Hotel will have a job fair on Tuesday, October 17 from 10 AM to 3 PM.

The Fire Museum on Adams Avenue celebrates its 25th birthday on Friday. From 11 AM to 2 PM the museum will have a celebration with cake pops for the first 250 visitors and a fire truck bouncy house. Tickets are $5 per person regardless of age.

Folks from Downtown’s Cossitt Library will be doing Story Time at the Memphis Farmers Market this Saturday. 11 AM is the time. Stories will be family-friendly. Alternatively, you could come get drunk with me at Bardog at 11, where the stories WON’T be family-friendly.

Poker players at Blind Bear get extra chips if they order beers or shots. Note that you only have to ORDER them, not CONSUME them. So if you were to say, “Put a PBR and a Jameson on my tab and send them to Paul sitting at the bar over there,” you could totally do that.

Visible Music College news:

The Drums Division at Visible Music College presents, A Fall Break Shed.

This shed session is a free networking opportunity for any creative that wants to connect with other creatives.

The event will be hosted in Vining Hall Tuesday, October 10, from 3:30pm-6:30pm. Come ready to jam, create, and rest.

Dollar butter cookies all day long Wednesday at Makeda’s Downtown location, 301 Jefferson. If you have to be at the Darth Vader Building (200 Jefferson) to file for bankruptcy that day, why not get Downtown a little early and walk down the street and get you a cookie?

There’s a cat veterinarian conference at the Renasant Convention Center this coming weekend. The theme this year is an exciting one: The Ins and Outs of Feline Nutrition and Gastroenterology

I remember a Hollywood Squares question from my youth: If you give your cat a sip of beer every day for a year, what’ll happen? Answer: You’ll have a dead cat.

Love classic cars? Then you should check out Edge Motorfest on Saturday.

Monster Market @ The Medicine Factory on Virginia Ave. will host a Wake & Bake Pop-Up on Sunday. No, not THAT kind of wake & bake. Whisks of Doom will hold a breakfast pastry and cold brew coffee sale. 11 AM start time.

YOGA! There will be Spooky Yoga at the haunted Woodruff-Fontaine mansion on Adams Friday morning at 9. $30. All-levels. BYO mat and water bottle. Enjoy a self-guided tour of the museum after yoga. Class will be in the mansion’s garden.

Hennything Is Possible Fest comes to Fourth Bluff this Saturday. This will be a festival and bartending competition celebrating Hennessy.

Let’s have a look at college football games of interest this coming weekend:

Friday the 13th

• Tulane at Memphis, 6:00 PM, ESPN
• Stanford at Colorado, 9:00 PM, ESPN

Saturday the 14th

• 1 Georgia at Vanderbilt, 11:00 AM, CBS
• Indiana at 2 Michigan, 11:00 AM, FOX
• 3 Ohio State at Purdue, 11:00 AM, Peacock
• Syracuse at 4 Florida State, 11:00 AM, ABC
• Arkansas at 11 Alabama, 11:00 AM, ESPN
• 8 Oregon at 7 Washington, 2:30 PM, ABC
• Texas A&M at 19 Tennessee, 2:30 PM, CBS
• Auburn at LSU, 6:00 PM, ESPN
• 10 USC at 21 Notre Dame, 6:30 PM, NBC
• 25 Miami at 12 North Carolina, 6:30 PM, ABC
• 18 UCLA at 15 Oregon State, 7:00 PM, FOX

Whoever wins that Memphis-Tulane game is going to be in great position to contend for the Group of Five berth into a New Year’s Six bowl.

I wonder what the last time was that numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4 all played (and not each other) at the 11:00 hour?

The Dallas Cowgirls proved last night that they are PREtenders, not CONtenders. They blow out the bad teams, giving their fans false hope; but then they face a good team and get blown out themselves. I bet Dallas fan Butt Slut #1 cried herself to sleep last night.

That’ll do it for now. Happy Monday or whatever you call today.

Big trouble in the Middle East this weekend… Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel, taking a number of Israeli civilians and soldiers hostage in the process. Israel retaliated, striking Gaza.

Israel is a Jewish state in a neighborhood full of Arab states. A lot of people who live in those Arab states think Israel shouldn’t have the right to exist. Israel has one of the strongest militaries in the world, but still, it relies on allies from outside the region, such as the U.S.

There are those who, for many years, have wanted to see an Israel vs. whoever conflict escalate into World War III in order to destabilize the world powers. I bet Putin is excited about this. And the mullahs in Iran. And Kim Jong Un.

One more fact that makes this so scary – Israel has nuclear weapons.

Keep an eye on this developing story. And now, on to local news…

Memphis 901 FC got an important 4-0 win over El Paso last night.  The club’s final regular-season match is Friday in New Mexico.

WREG has a look at the mural makeover The Edge District got yesterday thanks to Paint Memphis.

Curtis Givens III, a local 4-star high school basketball prospect many believed would be headed to the U of M to play for Penny, surprised many with an announcement yesterday. Givens will don a Tigers uniforms, but it will be a purple-and-gold uniform of LSU.

I saw this in Recomendo’s newsletter this weekend at thought it might be of interest to Memphians: The Bug Bite Thing. It’s a suction tool that, when applied right after a mosquito bites you, sucks out the poison it injects into you as it bites. Therefore, you don’t ger itchy.

Mayor-elect Paul Young made an appearance at the Grizzlies’ open practice yesterday. Young is a season ticket holder.

Young shared his plans for Memphis with Action News 5.

Tomorrow is Columbus Day, so expect banks and government offices to be closed and don’t expect mail delivery.

Neat book I found at the library last week: The History Book. It breaks world history down int digestible chunks with timelines, lists, and related topics.

Last week I noted that Melissa had been promoted to Bardog’s GM, and I wondered who would take over her happy hour bar shifts. Now I know:

• Allie Cat will do Monday and Tuesday happy hour;
• And it’ll be Dani Wednesday-Friday.

Now the question is, who’ll take over Allie’s Monday and Tuesday morning shifts?

I’m pleased to report that Dani and Butt Slut #1 made it back safely from their New Orleans trip. “OF COURSE we had to go to a bar Sunday that had 5 big-screen TVs so she could watch her stupid football team,” Dani said, referring to Butt Slut #1’s Dallas Cowboys.

Who the Cowgirls got today… San Francisco in NBC’s Sunday Night Football game. I’ll be rooting for the Niners in that one.

The power ent out in the Downtown core this morning, south of Monroe. I took a walk about 9:30 and ran into Miss Su of The Little Tea Shop. She said workers had told her the power might be out all day. UGH – no Blind Bear on Sunday? What would I do?

Back home about 10:15, though, I looked out the window and saw the traffic light at Main and Union was working. Power had been restored! And here I am with my MacBook at the Bear, putting the finishing touches on this post.

Back tomorrow, probably. Maybe even later today.

Paul Young is the next mayor of Memphis.

Young finished last night’s election with just under 28% of the vote, leading a field of 17 and in particular beating three other notable candidates – Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, former Memphis mayor W.W. “King Willie” Herenton, and Shelby County Commissioner Van Turner. Each of those three took 21-23% of the vote. There are no runoffs in city-wide elections, so Young is the mayor-elect.

From ABC 24: Meet Paul Young, Memphis’ next mayor

Michalyn Easter-Thomas led the District 7 field that includes Downtown, but that is a non-city-wide race and she did not hit the required 50% + 1 vote threshold to take the seat outright. She will face her top challenger, clothing store owner Jimmy Hassan from North Memphis, on November 16. I would like to encourage my readers to get out that day and vote for Ms. Easter-Thomas, who has been a voice of the people, needed in a roomful of career politicians. City Council results from last night’s election

On to the news…

What sounds like a badass job got listed on Indeed yesterday: Marketing/Creative Content Producer at the National Civil Rights Museum. Pay is up to $60,000 a year. I came close to applying for this role myself, but they want video editing experience and I don’t have that. I would love to see one of my readers land this job!

Two restaurants inside the ARRIVE Hotel (South Main at Butler), Bar Hustle and Longshot, are hiring servers, bartenders, and line cooks.

Go grab a copy of this month’s Memphis magazine and check out “Weekend at Bjarni’s,” a feature about Max’s Sports Bar’s bartender/manager Bjarni.

One Strange Bird plays Slider Inn Downtown tonight at 8.

RIP Dick Butkus.

The Blind Bear is talking about bringing back Sunday poker night. I think they said 6 would be the start time. Since the pandemic, the only night they’ve done poker has been Thursday.

Yesterday I mentioned that a lot of good things are being said about Straight Drop Seafood at Chelsea and Thomas, just northeast of Downtown. Well, add one more compliment to the list. Straight Drop’s shrimp boil is the $10 Deal in The Daily Memphian this week.

Take a jacket if you go out this evening. It’ll be warm today – almost 80 – but tonight it’ll drop to 48 with a north wind at 15 gusting to 25.

Women’s soccer superstar Megan Rapinoe has her final home match in Seattle tonight before she retires.

Today is National Noodle Day. My recommendation to celebrate would be the Penne a la Vodka at Bardog. It’s penne topped with garlic cream sauce with just a touch of marinara, red pepper, and Parmigiano, with your choice of shrimp or chicken.

Today is also Garlic Lovers’ Day. To celebrate, I recommend stopping by Bardog’s sibling restaurant, Aldo’s Pizza Pies, for some Garlic Knots.

Downtown distillery Old Dominick has some new limited-edition offerings available.

Lansky 126 in the Peabody is hosting a Chanel makeup event Saturday. Renowned makeup artist Rama Moering will provide personalized makeup consultations.

Kate Teague and Amy LaVere play the amphitheater at Maria Montessori School on the island Saturday afternoon/evening.

Memphis 901 FC hosts El Paso on Saturday at 7. A win and a Louisville loss would give the Memphis club a top-four finish and they’d host a playoff match.

The buffalo fried catfish over jalapeno cheese grits has made it onto the special board at Local on Main for a third day. They also have a chicken breast, grilled or fried, with two sides.

Back tomorrow with more news, probably.

Steve, the squirrel who hangs out on the patio of Local on Main, experienced a growth spurt overnight.

The buffalo fried catfish over jalapeno cheese grits is once again the special today.

Election Day (for Memphis city mayor and City Council seats) has arrived. The Daily Memphian, although normally a paywalled publication, always makes its election coverage free. They’ve already fired up their live Election Day blog and will be updating it throughout the day.

Bill Dries of the DM explains what makes this particular Election Day so important for Memphis. Dries also examines storylines in the mayor’s race.

Chicago vs. Washington is the Thursday Night Football game this week. Sadly, patrons of the places I go will be more interested in TNF than in the election results. I’ll bring my laptop to the bar so I can keep up.

God I hope we don’t put Willie back in office.

The DM has a look at the University of Memphis’ Student Madness open Tigers basketball practice and pep rally.

Memphis in May head honcho Jim Holt talked to WREG about the organization’s recent struggles and what comes next. The story notes that the site for BBQ Fest 2024, not Downtown and possibly at Liberty Park, will be announced in the next week or so.

Get a free steering wheel lock at the MPD North Precinct, 444 N. Main, from 1 to 3 PM Saturday. You must show proof of city residency. The locks make your car less attractive to those who would steal it.

Over in The Edge District, LEO Events is looking to hire a meeting planner.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in Concert comes to the Orpheum this weekend.

The Foolers, a night of jaw-dropping illusions, comes to the Cannon Center Saturday. The show is curated and endorsed by Penn & Teller, although they will not be present.

The Cossitt Library will hold a smartphone food photo workshop with Justin Fox Burks Wednesday from 5 to 7 PM.

Silky O’Sullivan’s 50th anniversary celebration kicks off today and runs through the weekend with all your favorites: Buddy Albert, Barbara Blue, New Era Band, Even Odds Band, the dueling pianos, and of course Molly & Bailey the goats.

That’ll do it! This is my second post of the day, so keep scrolling down for another 15 or so news tidbits.

A restaurant I didn’t get to try at Memphis Medical District Collaborative’s Taste of the District Tuesday afternoon was JEM Dining.

 

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JEM stands for either the initials of the chef, Joshua Mutchnick, or “Just Enjoy the Moment.” Their website states that their mission is to make fine dining approachable. A Mobile native, the chef has cooked in Chicago, Philadelphia, and D.C. Pop-up supper clubs and private dinners will be among JEM’s offerings.

From the Memphis Flyer: Cafe Keough turns 10

Insomnia Cookies – the entire chain, not just the Beale Street store – is up for sale. Current owner Krispy Kreme is looking to unload Insomnia so that it can better focus on donuts.

Gus’s is looking to hire servers.

From Bleacher Report: The 3 players with the most to prove on each NBA team. For the Grizzlies they picked

• Ziaire Williams: Will he earn a place among the Grizzlies core?
• Marcus Smart: Can he bring as much to the table in Memphis as he did in Boston?
• Ja Morant: Can he quit posting images of guns to Insta and get back to being one of the best in the NBA?

The Sheraton Hotel is hiring a director of sales & marketing.

There’s a cigar festival called Let it Burn at Court Square on Saturday.

Catch a performance of Shakespeare’s The Tempest at Wiseacre Downtown tonight at 7.

Pam & Terry will host the Beale Street Ghost River taproom’s first Grizzlies pre-game party of the season Sunday, October 8 from 3 to 7 PM.

Grind City Brewing has its Oktoberfest celebration this Saturday from noon to 10. Live music, Albee’s and Pok Cha Egg Rolls food trucks, bratwurst toss, keg carry competition, beer sliding competition, stein holding competition.

What a Way to Go is an Elmwood Cemetery tour exploring uncommon causes of death – causes like elevator pulleys, poisoned cookies, and snowballs. Friday evening 5:30-7:00. The cost is $20.

Must be nice to be a Utah Utes scholarship football player: Each of them got a Dodge Ram 1500 truck as part of an NIL deal. 85 trucks in total were handed out.

From the CA: Penny’s Memphis Tigers will appear on national TV at least 21 times this season

Two men were robbed at gunpoint on South Main at about 10:15 PM Tuesday.

I was yesterday years old when I learned that king crabs aren’t crabs.

Reminds me… I’ve been hearing good things about Straight Drop Seafood lately and they got invited to do a cooking demo on WREG Live at 9 this week. They’re in that strip mall at Chelsea and Thomas, a very quick drive from Downtown. Looks like they’re your new go-to place for boiled seafood.

The Forbes list of 400 wealthiest Americans is out and the Trumpster has fallen off it. I bet he’s throwing a tantrum like a baby who needs its diaper changed.

Most likely I’ll be back in the 11 AM-noon hour with a second update for today – whatever more news I can round up, maybe an opinion or two, and Local on Main’s daily special.

This is gonna be a huge news update, so grab yourself a cup of coffee, a PBR, or whatever you prefer, strap yourself in, and get comfortable. We’re gonna be here a while.

Yesterday was the Taste of the District food festival in Health Sciences Park, put on by the Memphis Medical District Collaborative. As I blogged the event last week, I thought, “I should go. There are a number of restaurants in the Medical District I’ve been meaning to try. The price is right (it was free to attend, you just had to register in advance) and I’m free between 4 and 6 PM on a Tuesday.”

Am I ever glad I went. Y’all…. that is one of the hidden gem events on the fall festival calendar. But don’t take my word for it – let’s dive right in and have a look at the food.

I led off at the Venezuelan restaurant Sabor Caribe for two of their empanadas, one beef, one chicken. (They also had black bean.) I loved the corn shell of these South American fried pies. It complimented the flavors of the meat so well.

I got the spicy sauce (pictured above) for dipping, but in hindsight, I wish I’d got a cup of the green cilantro sauce too. I bet it would have been amazing with the beef pie.

A giant meatball from Rock & Dough Pizza, topped with ricotta and basil, was my second sample to try. I was already familiar with the restaurant, having eaten at the Germantown location several times when I worked out there.

“I wonder what their tie is to the Medical District is?” I wondered. I soon got my answer – they told me a Rock & Dough is coming to the District in early 2024. That is great news! We can never have too much delicious pizza down here!

Speaking of delicious pizza, the one restaurant I wanted to try more than any other at Taste of the District was Slim & Husky’s, the hip-hop-themed pizza joint on Union. They had a pepperoni & sausage pizza, and I almost got that, since I prefer to get a traditional pizza when I try a new place. However, once I saw the spicy chicken jalapeno pizza, I had to have it!

Slim & Husky’s absolutely lives up to the buzz that has been generated about the place. Thin-crust pizza is a little harder to get right than other pizza varieties like hand-tossed or pan. If not prepared right, thin-crust pizza can come off as no better than a frozen Totino’s or a school lunchroom pizza. Slim & Husky’s has the flavor on point, though.

I want to hit the restaurant soon to enjoy more than just a slice of their pizza, and they encouraged me to do so with a coupon good for 20% off anything but alcohol.

Sunrise Memphis, the popular breakfast joint on Jefferson, was stop number four. “How are they gonna do breakfast from 4 to 6 in the afternoon?” I wondered. Breakfast for dinner is a thing, of course, but many breakfast dishes tend to be so heavy, not ideal when walking around an outdoor food festival.

Sunrise found a way around this conundrum, though, serving cheddar biscuits with onion jam. Really good!

You know I had to stop by Alcenia’s booth. The North Main soul food restaurant served chicken (baked or fried), cornbread, a spicy green beans/potatoes side (REALLY good, never had anything like it), and a cobbler for dessert.

The goodie bag I got when I showed my Eventbrite registration at the front booth.

As I was eating my Alcenia’s sample, I got a strong “THAT’S ENOUGH” feeling from my body – a sense that if I tried to eat any more, I’d get sick (not from Alcenia’s food, but from overeating). Since I had to walk home a mile in the October heat – yes, in Memphis that’s a thing – I wanted to err on the side of caution.

I hate it that I didn’t get to go see Cristina at the Feast & Graze booth for some charcuterie, though. Hmmmm… she’s closing up at 55 S. Main this fall and moving to a yet-to-be-disclosed location… could her presence at Taste of the District offer a hint as to where she’ll end up?

I also hate it that I missed out on Riko’s Kickin’ Chicken, but the lines were the longest in the park and I didn’t feel like waiting. People in this city go crazy for some hot wings.

The Medical District is usually thought of as the area between Jefferson and Union, between Manassas and Cleveland, but it’s actually bigger than that. It includes The Edge and Victorian Village as well. And because of St. Jude, the District arcs to the northwest to include Uptown (and therefore Alcenia’s) as well.

Y’all. Put this event on your MUST-DO list for 2024. Well worth taking off work an hour early. If MMDC had charged $20 for this event, it still would have been a good value. It blows my mind that Taste of the District is free.

Visit the MMDC website and sign up for The Vitals, their monthly newsletter. That’s how I found out about Taste of the District.

Quite a bit of other news going on…

General manager Joe wrapped up his tenure at Bardog yesterday and many people were there to send him off. Thank you Joe for making the place so welcoming. I always feel tremendously respected when I hang out at the ‘dog.

And don’t worry, the place is being left in good hands. I hear Melissa is the new GM. They could not have found a more qualified candidate. With her working 9 to 5 most weekdays, I wonder who will get her happy hour bar shifts?

Just in time for Halloween, Insomnia Cookies on Beale has limited-edition candy apple cookies. They’re made with bites of toffee, apples, Hershey’s kisses, and M&M Minis.

The Cossitt Library’s Dos Hermanos Kitchen will host a Little Shop of Horrors brunch on Saturday, October 14, Solar Eclipse Day. All library locations have glasses that allow you to view the eclipse safely.

The Cossitt will host Frame by Frame: A Filmmaker’s Workshop this month. This set of seminars will be led by 6 talented artists, and will get you familiar with many aspects of filmmaking and content creation.

• October 10, 12, 16, 18, 19 | 5-7 PM
• October 14 | noon-2 PM

Memphis in May had a record loss for its 2023 event, Action News 5 reports.  Music Fest had its lowest attendance in 30 years. The loss is the second record one in two years.

Austin “Walking” Cane with Daykisser’s Jesse Wilcox plays South Main Sounds, 550 S. Main, Friday from 7 to 9.

Today is National Vodka Day.

Today’s the last day for a while with highs in the mid 80s. A cold front/rain moves through tonight and tomorrow and Memphis highs will be in the 60s and 70s afterward. Rain will be likely tomorrow, unfortunate since tomorrow is Election Day.

One last reminder: Paul Young is the candidate I endorse for Memphis mayor. If you want me to give you an alternate choice, Van Turner is worth a look as well.

A test of the Emergency Alert System will go off on TVs, radios, and phones today at 1:20.

As if this post needed ANOTHER food pic, here ya go. This is the special at Local on Main today, buffalo fried catfish over jalapeno cheese grits:

Breaking news: MLGW plans to move its headquarters out of Downtown.

All right. Gonna go ahead and hit Publish. Back tomorrow probably.