Author: paulryburn

Today is a big day for the city of Memphis. The American Queen steamboat pulled into Beale Street Landing early this morning. Priscilla Presley will christen the boat tomorrow at 3, and it will embark on its first voyage tomorrow at 5. The steamboat has already brought hundreds of jobs to Memphis, and will bring many thousands in tourist dollars to the city in the weeks and months to come. If you’re Downtown, head over to Riverside Drive today and have a look at this majestic steamboat.

Memphis in May has announced that Jerry Lee Lewis will be unable to perform at Music Fest. Another rock’n’roll legend, Little Richard, will take his place.

Dr. Zarr’s Amazing Funk Monster brings the ’70s and ’80s disco to the Peabody rooftop tonight for their weekly party. $10 admission includes your first drink and a food buffet. To go along with the band, this week’s buffet theme is ’70s. There will be pigs in a blanket, celery and carrot sticks with pimiento cheese for dipping, and cheese fondue on French bread. If you’re in the VIP section, there’s a second buffet for you with mac ‘n’ cheese casserole, deviled eggs, prosciutto-wrapped asparagus, and chips with French onion dip. Ladies free til 7, VIP passes available for purchase at the front door.

The Peabody won’t be the only ’70s themed party tonight. Over at Bleu, the ’70s are the theme at their “Go Retro” party on the patio. 6-9 PM. Food and cocktails to match the theme.

Now, I know many of my readers weren’t even alive in the ’70s and are probably wondering what to wear. Look no further than this blog for fashion advice… TUBE TOPS were huge in the ’70s. No better way to go retro than in a tube top. With highs back in the 80s today, weather should be perfect for tube top wearing.

Joyce Cobb will headline tonight’s rooftop party at the Madison. Jazz, blues, and pop; cash bar; small plates prepare by chef Connor O’Neill. 7-11 PM, $7 cover.

It’s also the weekly Buzztime poker tournament at Max’s Sports Bar. I have a little insider information to share with you: Many of the regular players have a BBQ team meeting and won’t be there for tonight’s game. So, it would be a good week for someone new to slip in and win the bar tab. Game starts at 7, but you should probably get there a bit early to get a box. Maximum 10 players in the tournament.

Also tonight, the Redbirds are back in town for a 7:05 game. Tonight is social media night with Facebook and Twitter themed contests and prizes. Tomorrow’s game is a special afternoon game starting at 3:05 PM, with $2 Coors Light, a block party two hours before the first pitch, and a bluff blanked giveaway to the first 2000 fans.

And I guess that’s the news… OH WAIT! There is one other thing going on tonight… a little game of basketball at the FedExForum. The Grizzlies are playing the L.A. Clippers in the first round of the playoffs regardless of tonight’s outcome, but if we beat the Orlando Magic, we move into the #4 seed. That would give us home-court advantage, giving us the games in bold of the 2-2-1-1-1 series. According to the CA, the NBA has confirmed that Game 1 will be Sunday, regardless of who ends up being the #4 seed. If we win tonight, we could be looking at a playoff game happening the same time as Beale Street Wine Race on Sunday. That’ll be interesting to say the least.

All right, outta here for now. Not exactly sure what I’ll be doing tonight, but I’ll have the Tube Top Cam out with me, so come say hello if you want your photo taken for the blog.

Big news for beer lovers in Downtown Memphis today. It looks like we’re going to get a second craft brewery. High Cotton Brewing Company has a contract on a building at 598 Monroe, which would be across the street from Kudzu’s, and they plan to turn the former auto repair shop into a brewery. There are five partners, one of whom is the owner of brewers’ supply shop Mid-South Malts. In addition to selling kegs, they hope to have a tap room with limited hours, although this would require a change to a city ordinance. Full details in the Fuzzy Brew blog.

Memphis in May has released the 2012 BBQ Fest booth map. Individual booths are not numbered, but if you know your team’s number you should be able to count to find your spot. Our booth is almost all the way to the southern end of the park. That’s booth good and not good. Good because it’s easy to give people directions to find us; not good because most of our guests will come in through the north entrance and have to walk the length of the park to get to us.

Lansky at the Peabody is having a big event Saturday from 11 to 5. They’re having a visit from Robert Stock, designer of my absolute favorite line of shirts in the world, Robert Graham. Here’s the event summary they sent me:

Robert will lead the ducks down the red carpet at 11a which will kick off our event. Lansky at the Peabody has turned into a Robert Graham shop for the weekend with a lot of new clothing offered by the brand and an exclusive opportunity to preview and special order the Fall Collection. Robert Stock rarely does guest appearances so we are lucky he chose Downtown Memphis’ very own Lansky at The Peabody. Live music in the shop by New York’s The Colour Sound. Gift with purchase of any Robert Graham (while supplies last). It’s going to be a fun party all day at Lansky’s. A trimmer fitting, denim-based sportshirt line by Robert Graham called Freshly Laundered will be featured in Lansky 126. The Robert Graham shirts have a following and collector’s like to come to the even to meet Robert and have their shirts autographed by him. Robert Graham connoisseur’s are welcome to bring their previously purchased RG gear for him to sign as well.

Not a Downtown event, but worth posting anyway: A few months ago I posted a YouTube video of A Trip to the Moon, a 1902 movie that was the first science-fiction film ever. On Thursday and Saturday, the Brooks is showing A Trip to the Moon. The film has been hand-painted in color, and is accompanied by a new soundtrack by the French band AIR. The 16-minute film is paired with an hour-long documentary about its restoration. Buy tickets here. $6 Brooks and Indie Memphis members, $8 non-members, free with VIP Film Pass.

If you like the 38103 shirt I’ve been wearing in recent weeks, Hoop City Memphis will be selling that shirt and the others in its line at South of Beale Friday night for Trolley Tour.

However, I’m still getting requests for 38103 tube tops, and Hoop City doesn’t seem to be getting on board. Since our BBQ team has a tube top option this year, I’m going to get with our designer and ask if he’d like to do a 38103 tube top. Stay tuned for details. I hope to talk with him about it this weekend.

Quick run to Target then back to work. Weather’s nice and I’ll be out somewhere tonight, not sure where yet.

The canoe and kayak race is returning to Wolf River Harbor on June 16. In past years, it had to be canceled due to bad weather; organizers are hoping that moving it to June will help conditions improve for the race. The Memphis Flyer has details here.

This Thursday, April 26, is Dining Out for Life day, with many Memphis-area restaurants donating 25% of their proceeds for the day to Friends for Life. FFL is a local nonprofit dedicated to helping those with HIV/AIDS and their caregivers. Kerry has a complete list of restaurants. Among the Downtown restaurants: Felicia Suzanne’s, Grawemeyer’s, Green Beetle, McEwen’s, and Rizzo’s Diner.

There’s a new set of Thursday parties in addition to those thrown by the Peabody and Madison hotels: Bleu has a launched “Go Retro” Thursday night patio parties. Every week is a different retro theme. They kicked it off last Thursday with a Rat Pack-themed party. This Thursday it’s ’70s disco, and in the weeks ahead themes will include ’50s doo wop, ’60s Beatles, ’20s speakeasy, and ’40s swinging blues juke joint. Food and drinks are selected to match each week’s theme. Bleu is in the Westin Hotel across from the FedExForum on Third.

Friday night, April 27, is South Main Trolley Tour, with many South Main restaurants and galleries open 6 to 9 PM. With nice April weather out, a number of street performers have been booked. The list includes Michelle Bush, Emma Webb, Bean, Fire Tribe Memphis, Danza Azteca, Tiger Styles, Shufflegrit, Shelley Brown, The Dancing Fire, Mike Sweep, and AJAE.

My plans for tonight: Poker with Jamie at the Blind Bear at 8. Last week was a rough week, with Poker Jon from Goose/Bardog showing up to play and sitting to my left. A good player to act immediately after me, especially someone who has a good idea what hands I play, is not an ideal situation. Hopefully I’ll do better this week.

Other stuff going on: First birthday for trivia with Kevin Cerrito at Ferraro’s, 8 PM, with $1 PBR and Rolling Rock; trivia at the Flying Saucer, 7:30 and 10 PM; trivia at Silly Goose, 8 PM; $2.75 pint night at Bardog, 7 PM to 3 AM.

The Grizzlies have a home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at 7. It’s the second-to-last regular season home game of the year. There will be a zumba performance at halftime, and $5 from each ticket goes to Go Red Por Tu Corazon.

Tomorrow is the 1st birthday of trivia with Kevin Cerrito at Ferraro’s Pizzeria and Pub. They’ll celebrate by moving trivia back to the party room for one night only. As always, there will be $1 Rolling Rock and PBR, prizes for first through third place, prize for the best team name. Trivia starts at 8 PM.

There will also be a rock-paper-scissors tournament at Ferraro’s tomorrow night. The event listing has it incorrectly listed as the first single-elimination rock-paper-scissors tournament ever in Memphis. I know that’s not true because I was in one about five years ago at the Saucer, and made it to the final round. Should be fun though, and you have a little over 24 hours to practice the fundamentals of the game.

The Daily News reported on Twitter today that the thirft shop at Adams and Danny Thomas is being demolished.

Plans for tonight: I’m going to miss the 7:30 poker game at the Silly Goose for the next few weeks, because I have work to do at the Saucer. I need 14 more beers to get my sixth plate done, and there are 12 beers left that I can drink on Pint Nite at the Saucer for $3. So I’ll knock out my three tonight and probably a Dos Equis Lager as well, then head over to the Blind Bear for their $4 sausage and cheese plate (special price 6-9 PM Mondays) sometime between 8 and 9. Depending on my state of mind, I may or may not play the 10:00 poker game at the Goose.

Last fall our friend Mike told everyone that if Kentucky won the NCAA title, he’d dress up in a Speedo and tiger head and run his way down Main Street sipping Thousand Island dressing. Today he paid the bet off. To his credit, he made it a fundraiser for Wounded Warriors to support our injured military.

Here’s a link to photos (about 60). Proud of Mike for fundraising for the Wounded Warriors, but, damn: Things you cant un-see.

This is Kelly. She’s the one who recommended Hoop City Memphis sell a 38103 tube top. I cannot think of two better reasons to agree. Make it happen, people!

About 2 yesterday afternoon, I walked down to Jefferson Davis Park for the Southern Hot Wing Festival. I was pleased to find that the festival was not only in the park, but that they’d closed off Riverside from Monroe to Jefferson, and that’s where the team booths were. The park itself held entertainment and vendor booths. I like the new location. Festivals by the river – Memphis’ biggest natural asset – are always nice. There was plenty of room to walk around, and the booths weren’t blocking anyone’s home or business, as was the case with the previous South Main location. I had fun at the team booths I hung out in and enjoyed the wings. I especially want to thank those involved with The Chris Vernon Show booth, where I spent much of my time.

I took a few pics and will post them later. However, I want to keep this post short and draw attention to a couple of problems I observed with the festival:

1) Not enough trash cans – It’s a hot wing festival. Hot wings by their very nature are messy. There should be a trash can every 100 feet for a festival like this. There weren’t. I didn’t see any on Riverside and had to walk my empty plates all the way to the park to throw them away. I observed some people littering because trash cans weren’t conveniently placed.

2) Not enough bathrooms – As far as I could tell, there was only one row of eight or nine porta-potties, out of the way at the far north end of Jefferson Davis Park. Not enough and too hard to find. There were single porta-potties here and there on Riverside, which was just weird. There should have been another row of 8-9 porta-potties at the midpoint, Court Avenue, and at the southernmost point, Monroe Avenue. I ended up walking home to use the restroom, since I live only 2 blocks away, but not everyone has that convenience.

This competition started as a small contest in a parking lot, and grew to its current 60-team size. My advice for the organizers would be to hire a consultant who has done successful festivals of this size, to fix the problems with trash cans, bathrooms, and anything else that needs improvement.

Overall though, great idea to move it to Riverside, and a fun Saturday afternoon. I look forward to coming back next year.

Last fall, as the NCAA basketball season started, our friend Mike didn’t believe Kentucky could win a national title. “If Kentucky wins,” Mike said, “I’ll run down the Main Street Mall, wearing a tiger head and a Speedo, sipping Thousand Island dressing out of a cup.”

Guess what? Kentucky won. Most Memphians aren’t happy about that, but it’s time to pay the piper.

Mike will start his run at the Flying Saucer today, Sunday April 22, at 3 PM. He will stop at the Green Beetle for a beer then end at Max’s Sports Bar. After realizing he had to live up to his bet, he did a very smart and generous thing and made it a fundraiser for Wounded Warriors, all branches of the military. So come see Mike run and pitch some $$$ in the bucket.

If you’re wondering why there are thousands of people in town wearing badges, it’s an archaeologists’ convention that is said to have drawn 4000 people. Here’s a link to more info. I went to the Saucer last night and the crowd was huge. Lines three deep at the bar most of the time I was there (6-10 PM) and sometimes as many as seven deep. They seemed like nice people but DAMN there were a lot of them. They’re in town through tomorrow.

I have a new post on my poker blog for those of you who like to keep up with it. It covers some mistakes I made as a new player, and an awesome poker math app I found for the iPad. There are also iPhone and Android versions.

There’s a Corvette show on Beale today.

Plans for today: Hot Wing Fest at Jefferson Davis Park, Riverside at Jefferson, $10 cover. It starts at 11 but I’ll probably pre-game at the Saucer for a beer or two (Christina gets mad if I don’t come in). Especially excited about meeting Seth from the Best Memphis Burger blog today. I’ve never met him in person, and he’s invited me to stop by his team’s booth for wings and a PBR. I’d prefer not to make a return visit to the Saucer tonight after the wing fest, since the huge archaeology crowd will likely be back, but it’s Lil’ Kim’s last day so I pretty much have to go. Look for me at wing fest – unless it warms up considerably I’ll have the PBR hoodie and shorts on.

The Flying Saucer held a beer dinner Thursday night, featuring beers from Yazoo brewery in Nashville. I decided to skip opening night of the Peabody rooftop party season to attend the dinner, and it did not disappoint.

The menu

Saucer GM Kirk welcoming everyone to the dinner

Amy, Danielle, and Bob

Opening beer: Yazoo Rye Saison

Ivan “Cellar Man” Chester discussing the Rye Saison

During the tasting of the opening beer, I got called over to the window at the Saucer. Elizabeth wanted to point out that she had a tube top dress on.

First course: Fried green tomatoes and a crawfish-stuffed jalapeno, paired with Yazoo Dos Perros. Ivan explained that the smooth, fairly light Dos Perros was chosen to relieve some of the heat from the jalapeno. “If we paired this dish with an IPA, your mouth would be on fire.”

Ivan then told us that we were just getting started with the heat. “If you think the jalapeno was hot, wait until the main course,” he said. “You may think you’ve had spicy chicken, but you haven’t until you’ve tried Nashville spicy chicken.”

Second course: Sausage and cheese plate paired with Yazoo Hop Project batch 63, a Belgian IPA. Every batch of Hop Project uses different ingredients, and you can read about the batch you’re drinking on the brewery’s blog.

Third course: Nashville spicy chicken and waffles, paired with Gerst. Coming into the dinner, I wasn’t sure whether I would like this dish. I tried chicken and waffles a couple of years ago at Onix, and my reaction was “Meh. I don’t get it.” The dinner’s pairing totally worked though. The chicken was delicious, and the waffle was a perfect counterpoint. Both went well with the beer.

I have to disagree with Ivan though: That chicken was not burn-your-mouth spicy. I’d rate it slightly spicier than medium. That said, I really enjoyed it and the amount of spice it had was perfect for the combination with the waffle.

I honestly had no idea hot chicken was a “thing” in Nashville the way BBQ is here and gumbo is in New Orleans, but damned if Nashville hot chicken doesn’t have its own page on Wikipedia. Here’s a link to a Serious Eats post on Prince’s, a chicken shack in Nashville that Ivan mentioned several times.

Fourth course: Sly Rye Porter flavored ice cream atop a brownie, paired with SUE. Yazoo SUE is a 9% ABV smoke beer.

At the end of the dinner, there was a drawing for some Yazoo door prizes. Amy won a pair of socks. (Slow down, Amy, I’m trying to take your picture!)

Danielle won a Yazoo trucker hat.

Joe, who works down the street at Kooky Canuck, attended his first beer dinner ever. He won a Yazoo T-shirt.

The only minor glitch was that they forgot to bring out silverware until halfway through the first course. Not a problem though; I didn’t mind eating the fried green tomatoes and jalapeno with my hands. Overall, this was an excellent dinner. There was plenty of food, it was all delicious, and I learned a lot about how the beer paired with it. I can’t believe that I only paid $25 to go (the price for UFO members). That is one heck of a value.

Rating: Five stars out of a possible five. Thanks to Ivan, Kirk, and everyone else involved in organizing the dinner. I thoroughly enjoyed it.