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Last night I stopped by happy hour at the Silly Goose and noticed a new special. From 4 to 7 PM on weekdays they have Pie & PBR for $6. By pie I mean one of their 8 specialty pizzas, along with a PBR draft. I saw someone order the Pie & PBR and the pie that came out was full-sized. Pizzas are normally $10 at the Goose. With PBR at $1.50 for happy hour, you’re effectively getting a pizza for $4.50, a 55% discount. That’s a very good deal.

The Cavern Club, the downstairs of the Brass Door, is going to open up as “a loud club” (those were the words in the email Diamond Dave sent me) on Friday and Saturday nights when they don’t have live music. They’ll have $3 domestic drafts, well liquor and house wine. Fireball and moonshine will be $4, and Jameson $5. For those who appreciate the finest of beverages, they will have $2.50 PBR cans. Check The Cavern Facebook page for schedule.

Couple of music recommendations: First of all, Jeremy Stanfill and Josh Cosby play the Blind Bear tonight at 9. Tomorrow, the Eric Hughes Band will have an “Act a Fool Blues Party” at Double J from 8:30 to 1.

Rock for Love 7, a three-day event benefitting the Church Health Center, begins today. Details here.

Stacey Greenberg has a great article about last weekend’s Cochon Heritage BBQ on the Flyer’s Hungry Memphis blog. There are photos of the menus and all the food. Each team had to enter four entrees and two sides.

News for my Little Rock readers: A second Gus’s could be landing in the city soon. The first Gus’s in Little Rock, in the River Market district, has been doing very well.

The Downtown Memphis Commission recently published a list of “Dirty Dozen” properties they’d like to see redeveloped. One of those properties, 107 South Main, has had its price reduced to under $600,000. This would be a perfect spot for conversion to apartments with retail on the ground floor.

That’s the news for now. I’ll probably get out to the Bear tonight and hear Jeremy Stanfill and Josh Cosby and watch the NFL game.

Since yesterday’s post I’ve heard from two reliable sources that the wheel thieves that left cars on blocks Downtown this past weekend have been caught – at least three of the four, anyway. One of the sources told me that Elvis masks were found near the scene of one the cars they burglarized. Empty PBR cans were also found next to the car. IT WASN’T ME, I PROMISE!!!

I woke up to some surprising news on Twitter this morning: Kerry Crawford is leaving the I Love Memphis blog effective September 30. It sounds like a positive thing, with Kerry having a chance to work for herself. The I Love Memphis blog will live on with a new writer, Holly Whitfield. Thanks Kerry for all you’ve done to promote this city the past four years. It’s made a ton of difference waking people up to all there is to do and experience in Memphis.

The Carnival of Madness is coming to Mud Island tonight. Shinedown, Skillet, Papa Roach, We As Human, and In This Moment. General admission tickets are $62 and gates open at 5.

If you are still trying to figure out where you stand on Syria, this article has five things you should know. It’s hard to know what to think. There are arguments both in favor of bombing and against bombing. It’s not really breaking down along party lines, either.

Speaking of Syria, Sen. John McCain was caught playing poker on his iPhone during the Syria hearings.

Not Downtown news but worth a mention: There’s a new snow leopard cub at the Memphis Zoo.

The Fire Museum on Adams is using a grant to develop fire safety video games for kids. That’s pretty cool.

I came in second at Blind Bear poker last night. Ellen had a huge stack after surviving a 4-way all-in involving everyone but me, and there was no way I could stage a comeback. Congratulations to her. Although I didn’t win a prize, those points I picked up toward the league final table are quite valuable at this point in time. Some of the plays I saw at my initial table were “creative” to say the least, especially during the first five blind levels.

Got more news on deck so it’s possible there will be another post after work. Outta here for now.

Servers in the Memphis area are finding super-generous tips being left, along with notes explaining why. The tips are random acts of kindness that are part of Operation Tucci, in memory of David “Tucci” Santucci, a male nurse who recently died in a senseless murder in the South Main area.

There is also a Tucci Foundation that is being set up as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Tucci’s memory.

There have been a rash of wheel thefts reported Downtown. I first heard of this a week ago when a friend who lives in River Row found her car up on blocks, with all four tires removed. This past weekend it happened to another friend of mine who lives in South Bluffs (a gated community!), the Bardog delivery vehicle while parked in a garage at Front and Monroe, and several others. With the right tools it’s possible to remove a car’s wheels in 30 seconds.

We’re done with baseball at AutoZone Park this season. The Redbirds lost the season finale, and as a result will miss out on the playoffs.

On to better news: There’s a new website, main2main.com, where you can keep up with news on the Main-to-Main project connecting Memphis and West Memphis.

The Peabody is hosting a special dinner on Saturday, August 14, to celebrate the 375th birthday of Dom Pierre Perignon, the spiritual father of champagne. The 7 PM dinner will have a four-course menu and of course, Dom Perignon. $85 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Call 901-529-4188 to make reservations.

A fun Memphis Music & Heritage Festival weekend has come to a close. I wish I had gotten out to see more bands, but it was just so damn hot. A server in a nearby bar asked me if I thought they’d get a lot of business from the festival. “If it’s 80, your bar will be dead because everyone will be outside,” I replied. “If it’s 95, you’ll be busy.” It was 95. Sunday evening after the sun went down, I finally got outside to hear the Swamp Katz:

The Swamp Katz play classic rock and have a new album out. They play frequently at the Center for Southern Folklore and also the Brass Door.

I hear I missed some shenanigans at Blind Bear while I was outside though. I commented yesterday that Downtowners need a “where’s the shitshow” smartphone app so we don’t miss anything.

Yesterday I tried the two new local Wiseacre Brewing Company beers at the Flying Saucer. It was the first day on tap for both the Tiny Bomb and the Ananda IPA.

Both were outstanding. Descriptions of both beers, from the Saucer’s UFO computer, are below (click to see the image in a larger size).

I had the pleasure of having a beer with a retired Navy SEAL and his wife at the Saucer, whom I met at the Blind Bear and decided to come over with me. He had some great stories. Thank you for your service to our country, sir.

That’ll do it for now. Out at the usual places after work, including Blind Bear poker at 8.

Yesterday I walked down to the Blind Bear about 1:30. The Bear is opening at noon this weekend (including Monday) to accommodate festival-goers for the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival. I planned to have a few beers, then go outside at 3 to hear Mouserocket. About 2:50 I was finishing up, sitting in front of the far TV at the bar. Colin grabbed the remote.

“You wouldn’t mind if I changed this to the Arkansas game, would you?” he asked.

Would I MIND??? That change of the channel managed to keep me at the Blind Bear for an additional three and a half hours and six PBRs. The Hogs looked good in their 34-14 victory over Louisiana, and the Bret Bielema era started off with a bang. I’m looking over Arkansas’ schedule as I type this, and I’m thinking it’s going to be a really good year for the team if they get to 7-5 and a bowl appearance. It’s not that the Hogs aren’t very good; it’s that they’re in the SEC West, the toughest division in college football. They can get to 7-5 if they sweep the nonconference schedule (Rutgers isn’t going to be easy though), beat Auburn and State, and upset one of the following three: A&M, Ole Piss, or LSU.

Later in the day, I finally made it out to the festival, and got these:

BBQ nachos from Central BBQ! Their food truck is parked at the festival and will be serving nachos, pulled pork and other yummy BBQ treats today.

I still haven’t seen a cooking demo schedule, so I never tweeted it yesterday. I heard that the Nuh-Uh Girl showed up for a free sample as the chicken fried rice demo concluded.

Here are a few music recommendations for today.

• Banjo workshop, Folklore Store stage, 1 PM
• The Sheiks, garage punk, Peabody Place at Main stage, 4:45 PM
• Tonya Dyson, neo-soul, Folklore Store stage, 6:15 PM
• Sonny Burgess and the Pacers, rockabily, Peabody Place at Main stage, 6:45 PM
• Swamp Katz, rock, Union at Main stage, 8:30 PM
• Joyce Cobb, honored performer, Peabody Place at Main stage, 9:45 PM
• FreeWorld, although not at the festival; go see them in their native habitat at Blues City Cafe, 10:30 PM

With no meaningful football games on today, I plan to spend considerably more time outside.

Watching past episodes of WWE NXT while waiting for the bars to open. That’s the WWE’s developmental territory where the stars of tomorrow learn their craft. It’s really good, especially the women’s division. When I first watched Emma I thought she sucked but I’ve since come to the conclusion that she’s hilarious and I am enjoying her feud with Summer Rae, who is Fandango’s dance partner on the main roster. Check it out if you get a chance. They moved it from Hulu Plus to regular Hulu, so you can watch for free.

Good move by the New England Patriots on retaining Arkansas alum Ryan Mallett at backup QB while cutting Tim Tebow. Mallett is a true NFL quarterback who just needs a little seasoning. Tebow is a sideshow act. Have fun playing in Canada, Tim, and you might want to buy a winter coat, I hear it gets cold up there.

I’m not going to make it to the Majestic’s new Sunday brunch time of 10:30 very often, but this week I’m up early enough. I want to catch up on the latest WordPress news from my friend Otto, who has been traveling to a lot of WordCamps the past month. And of course my “DAWG” John D will be there too. Rest of the day TBD, but I plan on spending a lot of time at the music festival and Blind Bear. I will not be playing poker tonight at 6:30 though. Time to enjoy a Sunday without a Monday behind it!

Today’s the first day of the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival. It’s on Main Street Mall between Union and Gayoso and is free. Nearly 50 bands will perform on five stages, two of which are inside the air-conditioned Center for Southern Folklore. The music schedule is here.

There are cooking demonstrations as well, with samples at the end of the demos. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. They still have not posted the cooking demo schedule yet, so I can’t link to it. Tell ya what I’ll do… when I get down there, if I see the schedule I’ll snap a pic and post it to Twitter. Follow me on Twitter at @paulryburn. I have one of the best Twitter accounts in the city. Well, not really, but the Memphis Flyer thinks I do.

With the temps headed to the upper 90s, I will pretty much make the Blind Bear my headquarters this weekend, stopping in there to cool off throughout the day. They will be open at noon. If you rarely get Downtown and aren’t familiar with the Bear but will be down here today for the festival, stop in and try their pepper jack mac & cheese. It’s really good. I hate to give away info from a future Paul’s PBR Review, but the pepper jack mac & cheese pairs really well with PBR.

One other food recommendation: Ella Kizzie’s hot water cornbread and greens. It should be for sale at the Folklore Hall to the left of the stage.

I hate to make music recommendations because all the bands are good… but here are a few. If you’re down there in the afternoon, check out the interview with Joyce Cobb in the Folklore Hall at 2:15, then go outside to see MouseRocket at 3. If you’re down there at night, Hope Clayburn & Soul Scrimmage performs at 9:15 in the Folklore Hall, and then reggae band Exodus performs outside at 10:15.

What if the music festival isn’t the main event of the weekend for you? What if today is all about college football and you’re looking for a place to watch? I have an answer for you: MAX’S SPORTS BAR. It’s in the South Main district, same building as the Arcade, all the way to the east on G.E. Patterson. It’s small and it tends to get loud on game day, but they have all the games on and there are a lot of good people there.

The Majestic Grille has announced a new start time for their Sunday brunch: 10:30 AM, half an hour earlier than before. I certainly don’t blame them for making this move. There was always a line waiting at the door when they opened at 11. This lets people get a half hour more patio time in before the Orpheum or whatever their plans for the day are.

That’ll do it for now. Going to kick it off at Panda’s bar at Bardog as usual at 11 then head to the festival. Hope to see you there!

IMPORTANT PBR UPDATE: My source who told me about the PBR at Gus’s went back yesterday and sent me a correction. The 16-ounce PBRs there are $2.00 + tax, not $2.75 as I previously reported. That’s such a good deal that it’s worth going there even if you don’t eat chicken.

Home from work early today. They let us leave after a company picnic at noon. We had two seating options: outside (95F, bugs) or inside (72F, no bugs). In retrospect I’m pretty comfortable with my choice of “inside.”

I have someone looking to rent a condo Downtown, at least 1500 SF and 2BR/2BA, that allows two old small dogs. They’ve been searching but the dogs have been the sticking point. Can anyone help?

Shelton Clothiers is going out of business. They will be closed for Labor Day weekend and then will have a liquidation sale Wednesday-Saturday of next week. Prices will be reduced 30-60%, and even the Pink Pig line, never before marked down, will be 20% off. Read Tom Shelton’s letter to his customers here.

Dishcrawl has announced its next event, and this sounds like a really good one. It will be a soul food crawl, on which participants will board a motor coach and visit some of the best soul food spots in Memphis. The event will be hosted by Ms. Tonya Dyson and will include a performance by her. Sign up for the soul food crawl here.

The Cochon Heritage BBQ event kicks off tonight at Beale Street Landing, 5:55 PM. Five chefs compete, each utilizing one whole heritage-bred pig to create four entrees and two sides. That means there will be 30 dishes to sample. Tickets are $125 general admission, $200 VIP. Ticket information here.

SOCIAL MEDIA ALERT: Look for “Does anyone have a Cochon BBQ ticket they’re not going to use? ” posts from the Nuh-Uh Girl on Facebook and Twitter today.

Tonight is South Main Trolley Night, with many of the area’s shops and galleries open from 6 to 9. There will be artists and vendors along the route including Miss Birdsong’s Sweet Tooth, Bonnie Simmons McAdams, BobX, and Isis Dance Academy. There will also be music by Chelsea Chandler, Rice Drewry, Donna Staub, Nick Black, Steve Reid, and Yancy and Yancy.

Rebel without a Cause starring James Dean plays on the Orpheum’s big screen tonight at 7.

Say Cheese is the theme at the Memphis Farmers Market tomorrow, Front at G.E. Patterson 7 AM-1 PM. Pick up some locally produced cheese from a market vendor, or get cheddar bread, spicy cheese sticks, or cheese crisps. From 10-11 there will be a Book Brigade for kids, with reading aloud about farmers and food. Music by Abbye Pates West, 8-9:30; Pageant, 9:30-11; Screaming Eagles, 11-12:30.

Tickets are now available for Bluff City Oktoberfest’s beer tasting. It will be from 2 to 6 PM Saturday, October 5. Get tickets here.

That’ll do it for now. I have a lot to get done on my afternoon off. Most of what I have to get done involves drinking beer at the Flying Saucer. No better time to start than the present.

The Blind Bear will open early this Labor Day weekend. On Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, August 31 and September 1-2, the speakeasy on the Main Street Mall will open at noon and will remain open until its normal closing time of 3 AM. Of course, Saturday and Sunday the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival will be happening outside. The Bear will be a great place to duck into to cool off and to enjoy a $2.50 PBR draft.

A friend of mine who is a member of Ptolemy Memphis asked me to mention that they’re having a poker run in South Main Saturday, September 14 from 3 to 6 PM. $15 for one hand, $40 for three hands. You crawl from bar to bar and get a playing card at each bar. The best poker hand at the end of the crawl wins prizes. All proceeds go to children’s charity.

The Daily News has info about Bluff City Oktoberfest happening October 4-5.

Couple of pieces of beer news today: The Memphis Flyer has a virtual tour of the new Wiseacre Brewing Company now open on Broad Avenue. Their tap room will be open tomorrow 4-8 PM. Yesterday I was at the Flying Saucer and there was a sign above two taps saying “Local Beer Coming Soon.” I believe that will be Wiseacre beer.

The Cash Saver on Madison will have an Abita Amber sampling from 5 to 7 PM today and will have 12-packs of the beer on sale for $9.53.

Manna House, a hospitality hub for the homeless in Midtown, offers showers, coffee, conversation and laundry services. However, since St. Vincent de Paul nearby closed in June, Manna House has taken on the additional task of feeding the homeless. More info in this Flyer article. This isn’t a Downtown thing, but I want to mention it because two of my readers are big fans of St. Vincent de Paul and I’m sure they would want me to. Manna House could use monetary donations to help pay for the turkey sandwiches and bananas they are serving.

The Flyer’s Hungry Memphis blog has a photo gallery of what’s for lunch at Tamp & Tap.

It’s College Football Thursday with two big games on ESPN: North Carolina at South Carolina at 5, and Ole Piss at Vanderbilt at 8:15. The bars will be crowded tonight with people watching the games. I’ll lead off at Silly Goose about 5:30 and figure out the rest from there.

The music schedule for the Center for Southern Folklore’s Memphis Music and Heritage Festival has been posted. This FREE festival will be on the Main Street Mall between Union and Peabody Place, and will have nearly 100 bands and performers on five different stages over two days (Saturday, August 31 and Sunday, September 1). The cooking demo schedule has not bee released yet but I will link to it as soon as I see it. Check it out for something fun to do this weekend.

Over the years I’ve linked to RealClearPolitics a few times. It’s a nonpartisan site that aggregates political articles on both sides of the aisle, and is especially a good read in presidential election years. Well, today I was trying to get up to speed on what is happening in Syria, and I discovered that RCP has a sibling site, RealClearDefense, which links to many good defense-related articles.

The Green Beetle has rolled out a new menu.

The Downtown Memphis Commission has released a Dirty Dozen list of Downtown properties it would like to see redeveloped. Most of all I agree about 107 S. Main, between Main Street Flats and Yao’s. In 2001 I toured that property and was told it would be available for rental the following year. 12 years later it still sits vacant, which is sad.

RedRover is hiring for two positions: Creative Director and Sales Trainer/Coach. Great place to work and you’d be able to walk to Gus’s and the Blue Monkey for lunch.

The Redbirds have moved to within one game of PCL American Northern division leader Omaha. The ‘birds will be playoff bound if they can overtake Omaha by season’s end.

Time to head out for lunch, which will include a large order of tater tots so I’m pretty excited. It’s possible I will get the next PBR Review online after work.

In my lunchtime post, I blogged that the next installment of Paul’s PBR Review might be posted tonight. However, that post is going to have to be delayed, because there’s enough news for a second Tuesday post.

The first piece of news, ironically, is PBR news. Some friends of mine were in Bardog for happy hour last night, and they report that the tavern is taking PBR off draft for a while and selling cans instead. They were finishing up the final keg about 6 PM. That’s actually fine with me, because I like PBR equally well draft or cans. I wonder if they did the switch because it’s easier to order cans for both Bardog and one of its sibling restaurants, which will be the subject of my next PBR Review.

On Friday, September 6, The Orpheum will show classic 1933 movie King Kong, personally selected by Orpheum exec Pat Halloran. In a tribute to movie prices of that era, tickets will be only 50 cents. Cash only at the ticket window that night. Concessions will be available at regular Orpheum prices. Show time is 7 PM.

On Wednesdays in September, the Green Beetle will donate a portion of its proceeds for the day to St. Jude. In addition, on those days St. Jude employees will get 25% off any meal or $2 off delivery.

On Thursday of this week there will be a food truck rodeo in Court Square. Six to eight food trucks will be there from 11 to 2.

The Fuzzy Brew blog has a look at Wiseacre Brewing Company, a new craft brewery opening in the Broad Avenue Arts District this week.

Meant to post this around 5:30 before going out. Instead it’s 10:45 and I’m home eating Dill Keema from City Market. Not a bad way to end the evening. If news comes in I’ll do a lunchtime post. If not maybe the PBR post will go up.

A Memphis hotel is in today’s celebrity gossip. Sources told TMZ what they found after NBA player Lamar Odom checked out of the Westin after his team played at the FedExForum. The carpet was so badly burned that it had to be replaced, white powder was found on a desk, and the room smelled of noxious smoke. More info here.

Best Memphis Burger Festival is looking for Bloody Mary judges. Info can be found on the festival’s Facebook page. Judging starts at 9 AM, which pretty much guarantees I won’t be volunteering. Of course, judges have to be 21 or older, and IDs will be checked.

Here’s a link to a really good recap of the Downtown Neighborfood event held by Dishcrawl this past Saturday. Upcoming events are listed too. There’s a taco crawl Downtown next month that I wasn’t even aware of, and it’s already sold out!

The MBJ reports that The Corked Carrot has a new menu and direction. Based on feedback from customers, they’re getting away from the concept of being a cupcake bar and are moving towards being a bistro with wine and small plates.

I’ll be out at the usual places tonight including Blind Bear poker at 8. I’ve got a new Paul’s PBR Review almost ready to go and I may finish it after work, so check back.