Lunch @ Felicia Suzanne Restaurant and Saturday news

Yesterday I returned to Felicia Suzanne Restaurant’s 25 cent martini lunch with my friends Stacey, Nate, and Mary Ann. I made the reservation earlier in the week for 1 PM. After I called in the reservation, I told Stacey “NO NAPS,” reminding her that she overslept the last time we went to Felicia’s and was 50 minutes late.

So, yesterday morning I led off at Bardog, figuring I’d get a few PBRs in me to pre-game. Around 11 I texted Stacey, “Felicia Suzanne’s 1 PM. Be there or be square. NO NAPS.” She texted back about 11:50 and said she would be there.

At 12:56 I tabbed out at Bardog and walked over to Felicia’s. Nate and Mary Ann were there. No Stacey. At 1:08 she texted me, “On my way.” We went ahead and got seated and got our first drink. At 1:30 Stacey walked in.

“You took a nap, didn’t you?” I asked her.

She stared at me and smiled for about 10 seconds and then nodded yes.

I took a look at the menu. I couldn’t believe I was doing this on a rare visit to the restaurant, but my eyes were set on a vegetarian entree, the mac & cheese. “If Felicia’s putting that on here as an entree rather than a side, it’s got to be good,” I reasoned. It turns out I wasn’t the only one thinking that way – Stacey and Nate ordered mac & cheese too. Of course we all got the 25 cent martinis, of which you can purchase up to three with the order of an entree. Nate and I got dirty martinis, Mary Ann got “just barely dirty,” and Stacey got a gin martini with orange juice. All came out perfect.

The mac & cheese did not disappoint.

So cheesy and chewy rich and good! I finished every last bite.

The mac & cheese came with a side of sweet greens with big pieces of bacon, satisfying my need for meat as part of my lunch. The cornbread stick was delicious too.

Mary Ann got the crab crepes. “They are loaded with crab,” she said.

What an elegant lunch table! You know, I did not grow up a fan of mac & cheese. My attitude toward it was, “What’s the point?” I saw eating mac & cheese in the same light as I saw ordering a steak well done and then dipping it in Hunt’s ketchup. It wasn’t until I moved Downtown and had chefs tell me, “Yeah I know you think you don’t like mac & cheese, but let me cook it for you and change your mind” that I started to open my mind to it. Felicia’s mac & cheese was among the top two or three I have ever had.

Back in 2014 I had  a groupie. She’d come to the Blind Bear many Saturdays, asking Brad about me, asking my relationship status, asking if he thought I would be coming in that day, asking to be introduced to me. This went on for months before I found out. She was such a huge mac & cheese fan that one of the local teams cooked smok’d mac & cheese at BBQ Fest for her. If she’s reading this (and I know she is), she should try Felicia’s mac & cheese sometime. She’ll have to find someone else to go with, though. These days I would sooner ask Rahul & Tony out on a date than I would her.

Those martinis are little but they’re potent. Man… I was pretty well sloshed the rest of the day, and it didn’t help that Jessica talked me into doing a shot at the Silly Goose. And OF COURSE after I finished the martinis I discovered a voice mail from a recruiter with a great lead about a job. I decided it was wise to wait until Monday to call her back.

On to the news, and I don’t have much since I spent most of Friday recovering from those martinis… Nine Inch Nails plays the Orpheum this Monday, along with Jesus and Mary Chain and Tobacco.

Flight restaurant at Main and Monroe is hiring bartenders.

Lisa’s Lunchbox is looking to hire someone for line prep. The hours are 9 to 2, so this would be perfect if you have kids in school.

You can get free admission to museums today by downloading a ticket.

Comedian and actor Nick Cannon brings his Wild ‘N Out Live Tour to FedExForum tonight.

That’s it for now. Time to go spread a little sunshine. Back tomorrow with more news.

Friday update

Got some interesting beer news to lead off this post. City Market posted a photo of tap handles yesterday and said they now have a selection of local beers on draft for $4. I commented, “Is that the Downtown location?” and they replied, “Yes sir!” So now you can get a pint with your sandwich or salad or hot lunch from their deli. Pretty cool!

LYFE Kitchen posted that they have permanently shut down their operation in the Chisca as of yesterday. I have heard for a while they have been looking to get out of their lease. I wonder if this means a new tenant for the space has been found.

Pontotoc Lounge is discontinuing lunch as of next week. However, they will have brunch Friday-Sunday.

On the other hand, Blind Bear is seriously considering bringing back weekday lunch in October. Jeannette was polling the regulars about it last night.

RedRover Sales & Marketing posted several open positions yesterday – marketing analyst, senior account manager (marketing), and business development coordinator/proposal writer (part-time). Insider tip: If you own a dog, it is entirely appropriate to include a photo with your application.

In other job news, Libertas is hiring an after-school program assistant.

YOGA! The Memphis Yoga Festival is tomorrow, all day long at Rhodes College. Partake in your choice of over 30 yoga classes, plus there are kids’ activities, food trucks, a tea garden, vendors, walking meditation, and more. Hmmm… it’s possible one of my favorite bartenders will meet the woman who stood me up on Valentine’s Day 2015 at this event.

@JasonSmith929 tweeted yesterday that a source confirmed that it is 100% that Justin Timberlake will be at Memphis Madness on October 4. Held at FedExForum, Madness is an open practice and pep rally for the Tigers basketball teams. It was revived by men’s coach Penny Hardaway this year and is expected to be a major recruiting tool.

Flocktoberfest returns to Bass Pro at the Pyramid October 5-14. Chris Janson concert, Super Retriever series, World Championship Moon Pie Eating Contest, Shoot Like a Girl demo, kids’ activities, duck calling contests, free pro seminars, Duck Commander, 10-day sale. It’s The Ten Days of Christmas for rednecks!

For those of you who love the Majestic Grille:

The Majestic recently took all of its employees on a fun Memphis orientation excursion. What they learned there will allow them to do more than just serve food and drinks – they can be ambassadors for the city and tell guests about all that Memphis has to offer. Typical of Majestic to go the extra mile for a great customer experience.

Want to give feedback on the parking situation Downtown? There’s a survey where you can do that.

Roadie, a new on-the-way delivery service, is coming to Memphis. Need something delivered to another part of town, anything from furniture to food? Use the app to find a driver headed in that direction.

The Daily Memphian has an article about Spincult, the new cycling studio in The Edge.

Hear Sande Lollis, Kris Acklen, Stephen Chopek, Shannon LaBrie, and Emily Otteson tonight at Songwriter Night at South Main Sounds at 7 PM.

The Soul Concert Series returns to the National Civil Rights Museum tonight at 6.

The Memphis Auto Show is at the Cook Convention Center this weekend.

Fall into Fall is the theme at the Memphis Farmers Market this Saturday. Autumnal vegetables are in stock, although I don’t know if you can get a nice autumnal mead there (Dilly Dilly). Opera Memphis will be there with 30 Days of Opera. There will be live local music and a kids’ crafts corral. The Market runs every Saturday through the end of October under the pavilion at Front and G.E. Patterson from 8 AM to 1 PM.

Cheers to two good friends for asking the right questions and listening and understanding at the Silly Goose bar yesterday. You sought the understanding of me that no one in South Main has bothered to do in the past 3 years. It really does mean a lot to me.

It’s about time to head to 25 cent martini lunch at Felicia’s with my friends Stacey and the recently-returned Nappin’ Ass Nate. Back tomorrow with more news.

Thursday update

Yesterday I mentioned that a walk in the hot sun to Max’s Sports Bar was unavoidable yesterday. It was the photo shoot for the 2018 group photo. These days Max has so many regulars that they can’t all fit in the main bar area at once, so we did it outside in the courtyard. The photo was shot by Real 2 Reel. If you have professional photography needs and want to support a great Downtown business, check them out.

I had to head back north immediately after the photo to make it to Blind Bear trivia at 7:30. We didn’t win, but I learned something interesting: From 1912 to 1948, there were Olympic competitions in the arts. Specifically, medals were handed out for painting, sculpture, music, and architecture.

As I walked back north, I noticed that Earnestine & Hazel’s was closed once again. Such a shame to let that legendary dive bar die. I sure hope the closure is temporary.

The Downtown Getdown happens tonight in Barboro Alley 5 to 9 PM. DJ Superman and DJ Capital will perform and there will be free Amurica photos. Bring money for food and drinks from MemPops, Belle Tavern, Aldo’s Pizza Pies, and Local Gastropub.

In honor of National Pepperoni Pizza Day, Aldo’s has $2 pepperoni slices today. They also have 25% off pepperoni pies today for dine-in, take-out, and delivery.

The Memphis Flyer has details on Sage, the new restaurant soon to open in the former Oshi space. It will be a soul food fusion restaurant. The chef plans on changing up the menu, starting with Asian soul food, and then venturing into Sudanese- and Syrian-Soul fusion.

Ghost River is having its Oktoberfest celebration this Saturday, all day long (noon to 11 PM). Oktoberfest will be on tap, of course, and making its return will be P.S. I Love U, an Imperial Brown Ale at 9.8% ABV. There will be live music and games, the Gourmade food truck will be on site, and they’ll have Small Shop featuring Mama Jody’s famous Bloody Mary Mix noon to 4.

There will be a Putt-Putt Pub Crawl presented by Young Professionals for the American Cancer Society next Saturday, September 29, from 1 to 5 PM.. The crawl will start at the Flying Saucer, with stops at Kooky Canuck, Local Gastropub, Huey’s, and more. There will be prized for best dressed, best scores, etc.

Very, very, very disappointed in my senator for this quote:

The horror of being accused of something like this? What about the horror of being a victim of a sexual assault? I saw this on a FiveThirtyEight analysis of how the Kavanaugh investigation will affect the midterms, and one of the analysts made a very good point. Republican senators are mostly male and run in very male circles. Therefore, they are more likely to see being accused of an assault as an immediate problem than they are to see being the victim of an assault. If Kavanaugh and his accuser testify Monday, you can bet that some of the senators will treat Kavanaugh as though he is the victim. The attitudes these clowns have are just sickening.

All right, that’s it for now. I will try to post tomorrow but can’t promise one. I am meeting friends at Felicia Suzanne’s for Friday lunch so I will not have as much free time at home as usual.

Wednesday update #2

About 5:15 yesterday afternoon, I was at the Silly Goose’s happy hour. The Triple-A National Championship Game, Memphis Redbirds vs. Durham Bulls, was 45 minutes away. Knowing the game was on NBC Sports Network and the Goose has Xfinity, I pulled out my phone to search whether Xfinity carried NBCSN, and if so what channel was it on. “I sure hope they have it,” I thought. “It’s 96 degrees out and I really don’t feel like walking all the way to Max’s Sports Bar to watch the game.” A little work with Google revealed they did carry it.

“Hey Brittini, can you put one of the TVs on 852?” I asked.

“What’s on there?” some of the other people in the bar asked.

“Redbirds,” I said. “They play for the national championship at 6.”

“They already won it,” one of the other people in the bar replied.

“They won their league,” I explained. “The Pacific Coast League. Tonight they play the winner of the other league, the International League, for the national Triple-A championship. It’s not a series, just one game, winner take all.”

So we got the game on – well, it was not actually game time yet, and NBCSN had equestrian on. So we had to look at 45 minutes of men in white spandex balancing upside down on horses. “My friends Rahul and Tony would love this,” I thought.

Finally the game started, and before long the Redbirds were clubberin’ the Bulls. By the 4th inning, and near the end of happy hour, the ‘Birds already had 8 runs. I decided to relocate to the Blind Bear.

I got over there and the place was average-busy for a Tuesday, about 8 people playing poker and another 15-20 at the bar and in seats. The Redbirds game wasn’t on; they had Cardinals-Braves on both TVs. I told the bartender and she changed the channel on one of them, but still I couldn’t help but thinking, “A room full of people and not one of them knew the Memphis Redbirds were playing on national TV.”

Other than the watch party they had at Aldo’s, the Redbirds really didn’t do a whole lot to get a buzz going about the game. I wonder why? I guess maybe because it wasn’t in town and they wouldn’t get any ticket sales off promoting it. Still, though, the Redbirds playing for a national title… that’s kind of a big deal! They need to generate as much talk about that as they can.

Also, the Redbirds didn’t just play for a national title… they won it! Their domination of Durham continued and they beat the Bulls 14-4. Congratulations to everyone involved in the Memphis Redbirds organization. You made Memphis proud last night, and the entire season.

Eyes of Major League Baseball GMs are going to be on Stubby Clapp more than ever now. There are going to be underperforming MLB teams who, after this season, decide it’s time for a change at the helm, and Stubby will be seriously considered, no doubt. I wish he could stay in Memphis forever but he has more than earned the right to be the skipper of a major league team. If we’re lucky maybe we’ll get to keep him one more year.

The game was a reminder that money and corporate sponsorships are what drive sports these days, as even the most routine things had a sponsorship. There was the Mount Carmel Health Pitching Change (actually, a lot of them as the Bulls went through nearly their entire pitching roster trying to contain the Redbirds). There was the Orange Crush Home Run. Maybe I need to get in on this. Does someone want to sponsor the “(your company name here) Afternoon Walk to the Bar” in exchange for picking up my bar tab?

While I was at the Silly Goose, my friend Clay came in. After ordering, he asked me, “Do you know why so many people are talking about Mario Kart today?”

“Are you really sure you want to know?” I replied. He said he did.

“Stormy Daniels’ book came out,” I explained. “She described the sex she had with Donald Trump. She said his penis was small, although not freakishly small, and it had an unusually large head. She said it reminded her of Toad the Mushroom from Mario Kart.”

Clay was sorry he asked.

In the other big news of the day, a Sesame Street writer confirmed what we have all suspected for years – Bert and Ernie are a gay couple. However, later in the day Sesame Street issued a denial that Bert and Ernie are gay.

The Onesie Bar Crawl returns to Memphis December 1. The most comfortable bar crawl of the year will begin at Blind Bear at 4 PM and will proceed through Downtown through 10 PM.

CitizenFest is coming October 13. This is an festival learning summit, organized by Citizen University and Fourth Bluff, on how to exercise civic power. You’ll learn how to make your voice heard, how to fix a rigged system, how to dispel apathy in others… plus, there will be free food and drink.

Catherine & Mary’s is hiring servers, back servers, bartenders, bar backs, hosts, and cooks. They say to check their online bio for an application to fill out, and I would link to it in this post but I can’t find the application anywhere (they posted the job openings to Facebook, so I assume they meant on there).

The Downtown Neighborhood Association monthly gathering will happen at the Halloran Centre for the Performing Arts next Tuesday, September 25. Jason Wexler, president of business operations of the Memphis Grizzlies, will discuss the 2018-19 season. Social time at 6:00, presentation at 6:30. There will be light snacks and a cash bar. Free for DNA members, $10 for non-members.

113 Madison, vacant for 20 years, has been purchased by a California developer who already has a footprint in Memphis. He plans on doing renovations and sees the building as a blank canvas. Great to hear about further revitalization of the block of Madison right around the corner from me.

Singer/songwriter Ben Rector, with special guest Cody Fry, plays the Orpheum tonight.

In case you missed my earlier post, 2 PBRs + 2 sliders for $10 at Bardog until 7 today. Also 2 Jameson shots for $10.

Well, I avoided the walk in the heat to Max’s Sports Bar yesterday, but today I gotta do it. I have an appointment there at 6:00. Back tomorrow with more news.

Wed update #1

Hey everyone… got a long post coming but I wanted to go ahead and get a quick, time-sensitive item out.

It is Bardog’s actual 10th birthday, even though they celebrated it at Monroe Fest last month. Today they will have 2 PBRs plus 2 of their original sliders on special for $10, or 2 shots of Jameson for $10, from 11 to 7 PM.

More news coming soon.

 

Tuesday update

I discovered a really neat app last night. About 8 PM I was walking down Peabody Place and looked up into the night sky. I saw the moon and two planets. You can always tell which ones are planets because they appear in a uniform arc (the moon also in the arc) and they don’t twinkle. One seemed to have a red hue and I guessed it was Mars, although it was so bright I couldn’t rule Venus out. Another planet, close to the moon in the sky, I was less sure about, but I guessed Jupiter.

As I kept walking, I wondered if there was an app for that. There’s an app for everything these days. Back when I was in college, my astronomy professor showed me a program on my Macintosh SE that let me identify stars, planets, and constellations. I had to learn to count degrees in the sky, but if I could do that, the program did the rest of the work. I figured, surely there’s something equivalent for a smartphone these days.

Sure enough, there was. I found an app called Planet Finder, where all I had to do was point my phone’s camera at the planets. Here’s what I got:

Pretty neat. At least I got Mars right. And the moon. Later in the evening when I was at the Blind Bear, I wondered if the camera actually had to be on the moon and planets, or if it was all based on position. Without going outside, I pulled up the app again.

Planet Finder is not the only good astronomy app out there. I was talking to my friend Stacey last night and she found an app that will show you the positions of the constellations.

The Triple-A National Championship Game is tonight at 6:05 on NBC Sports Network, and the Redbirds are throwing a watch party at the Downtown Aldo’s Pizza Pies. Starting at 3:00, Aldo’s will have $3 draft beers and $2 domestic bottles, and the Redbirds will have giveaways all night long.

So, last week I incorrectly reported a piece of news. I heard from a former employee of Purple Haze that the guy in charge said “I can’t do this anymore” after two of his employees were injured in a fight/shooting there, and shut the place down. No, actually Haze shut down because their liquor license got suspended.

The Silly Goose has had so much success with their Sunday pop-up brunches with Wok’n in Memphis that they’re teaming up with Wok’n for a pop-up dinner this coming Sunday at 5. Here’s the menu:

Jalapeño Poppers
-Crab Rangoon Style

Chili Noodles
-Fried Garlic and Green Onion

Fried Rice
-Egg, Peas, Carrots
~Add meat for an extra charge

BLT Sandwich
-BOLOGNA, Lettuce, Tomato-Ginger Jam

Chicken & Waffles
-Ginger-Scallion Ranch

The Daily Memphian has an article about new construction in Founders Pointe. The new homes being built there will likely be the last ones in Downtown Memphis to offer a river view.

Memphis River Parks Partnership is presenting So Long, Summer with Spincult at Tom Lee Park on Saturday, September 29 at 10 AM. Instructors from The Edge’s new cycling studio will take you through a spinning class with a view of the mighty Mississippi.

The Flyer’s Hungry Memphis blogger tweeted news about LYFE Kitchen:

No operation on the weekend? That’s just downright weird. I’ve heard some things about that place which I have been asked not to blog, and this announcement is sort of consistent with what I have heard.

Tug’s is hosting an Oktoberfest celebration October 1-6. They’ll have German beer along with traditional dishes like beer cheese soup, bratwurst, strudel and schnitzel. Also, if you’re into Oktoberfest, don’t forget that Wiseacre will have a celebration September 29.

Yesterday, the History of Wrestling Twitter account tweeted a video of the ending of a match I have heard about all my life, but never seen. I thought I would share it for the benefit of my readers who are also wrestling fans.

I don’t know if I have any vegetarians who read this blog, but in case I do, here’s some news from Bluff City Coffee:

That’ll do it for today. Back tomorrow with more.

Monday update

Since I didn’t post yesterday, let’s back all the way up to Saturday and recap the weekend. That moment when you realize your team is the worst team in the entire Power Five:

North Texas made a fake fair catch and Arkansas fell for it. North Texas returned the punt for a touchdown en route to a 44-17 win over the Hogs. Might as well go ahead and call the season over. Arkansas has Auburn on the road next Saturday and will probably lose 76-10.

I really have to wonder what Arkansas was thinking with this coaching hire. Chad Morris only had 3 years’ previous head coaching experience, at SMU where he went 14-22. What in the world makes him qualified to lead one of the top 20 (in terms of money spent) college football programs in NCAA D-1? They should have kept Bielema for another year if they had no other options for a top-shelf head coach. That fake fair catch would’ve never happened under him. Hell, he would have thought of it.

So anyway, I watched the game at Max’s Sports Bar, and while I was there I heard some disturbing news: Earnestine & Hazel’s was not open Friday night (neither was 5 Spot), and Saturday morning some of the regulars went by to see Clarence and E&H was not open then either. I hope it’s not closed for good following the death of owner Bud Chittom. I had heard rumblings that it might happen. That place has so much soul. Downtown would be poorer without it.

Sunday morning, I switched things up a bit. Normally I do D-RANKS with B-RAD at Pontotoc but he was out yesterday. His friend Tony wanted to go to New Orleans and check out the drag queens, and so Brad went along. With my regular bartender out, I decided to check out other Sunday brunch options. Silly Goose posted that their Wok’n Memphis Sunday brunch pop-up had a fried rice and Bloody Mary deal, so I decided to go check that out.

$7 for bacon fried rice with a fried egg on top, AND a Bloody Mary! Now that’s one heck of a deal. Joe makes a good Bloody Mary and you can get it mild or spicy. Not sure if this was a one-week deal or if it will be back, but if it comes back, this is a good thing to do on a Sunday.

Wiseacre is having a watch party Wednesday evening for the Memphis episode of The Big Food Truck Tip with Andrew Zimmern. Three Memphis food trucks will be featured.

The University of Memphis athletics department is hiring a Coordinator, Athletics Business and Travel.

There will be a State of Downtown Community Gathering on the Civic Center Plaza Wednesday, October 3 from 5 to 9 PM. Hear from Mayors Strickland and Harris, and hear the announcement of the winners of the 2018 Downtown Vision Awards. There will be food, music, and demo rides by Explore Bike Share and Bird scooters.

Cirque de Soleil will bring its beloved show Corteo to FedExForum from January 31 to February 9. Tickets will be available to the public this Friday at 10 AM.

Memphis Heritage has a historical building tour series called Preservation Posse, and this month’s tour happens this week Downtown. The W.C. Ellis Building at 245 S. Front, soon to become part of One Beale, will open for an after-hours tour this Thursday.

The Triple-A National Championship Game, featuring the Memphis Redbirds and the Durham Bulls, will be broadcast live tomorrow night on NBC Sports Network. I need to do some research this evening on which bar cable packages carry NBCSN so I can decide where to watch tomorrow. This is a one-game, winner-take-all deal, not a playoff series.

That’s it for now. Back tomorrow with more news.

Saturday update

Last night was a night of wild, vivid dreams. I dreamed I was at the opening of a new grocery store. The produce section was expanded and named after my friend John D – not sure why because when I think of produce, John does not immediately come to mind. But anyway, John told me there were vending machines in the back, and I went back there to check them out, a security guard keeping a close eye on me, worried I would steal something I guess.

There was a vending machine that had “chicken snack” for 50 cents, and I thought that sounded interesting, so I put in two quarters. Out came a live chicken, about the size of my thumbnail. This was a fully grown brown chicken, not a chick. I guess I was supposed to eat it in one bite. I couldn’t do it though. I put it on the floor and it hopped around for a minute and then its head fell off. Maybe I need to go to that Broom Closet place that specializes in magick and spells and tarot and ask them the significance of dreaming that a chicken’s head fell off.

I wonder if they actually have vending machines like that in Vietnam?

As I drifted in and out of sleep, a Krystal commercial I had seen on TV last night flashed in my head, and I thought, Krystal Kondiments would make a good stripper name.

A lot of people Downtown are excited about John Prine playing the Orpheum tonight at 8 PM. Tickets are not cheap ($69-$109) but the ticket price includes a copy of Prine’s new album of original music.

The Redbirds won last night’s game in 11 innings, 2-1, so all it will take is a win over Fresno today or tomorrow to secure a second straight PCL championship. $1 Dugout and Field Box tickets will be on sale, and tonight is a fireworks game.

For those of you who are into beer, Wiseacre has a good educational post on the difference between dry hopping and wet hopping. Their Ananda IPA, which has been around for years, is dry hopped. Next Friday they will release Tacky Wet Hopped Pilsner.

Six Degrees to Tennessee Roots Jam is this evening at the New Daisy.

That’s all the news I can scrape up this morning. Those of you going to Cooper-Young Fest, keep hydrated because it’s going to be a hot one. Back tomorrow with more news.

Friday update

The Memphis Flyer’s Hungry Memphis blog reported yesterday that BurgerFest will indeed be back this year. BurgerFest, the successor to Best Memphis Burger Fest that was organized by Seth Agranov and his team, will be at Tiger Lane on October 27. However, this year it will be a little bit different: There will be no cooking competition among teams this year, although they do plan to bring that back in the future. There will be a ticket that gets you burger and beer samples, and there will be a burger bar where you can get full-sized burgers. There will also be kids’ activities.

Personally, I am quite fine with hearing there will be no team competition. My team the Moody Ques accomplished what we needed to last year. We proved we could run with the big boys on the burger scene, hauling in two trophies; we proved we could still function as a team after a couple of key departures. A personal goal of mine was to beat one other team in particular, and we did that too – I won’t say which team or I will get lectured by a redhead. Given our success last year, taking a year off from burgers sounds good to me. I did talk to our vice-president Jamie this week and we’re looking into options for a fall get-together for the team.

The Memphis Tigers host Georgia State at the Liberty Bowl tonight at 6 PM in a nationally televised game on ESPN. For those going to the game, there are throwback dog specials:

Food truck Fridays are back at the FedExForum plaza today through October 5.

John Mellencamp comes to the Orpheum Sunday, March 17 of next year. He’ll perform his classic hits plus some new songs.

Mick Jagger was in Memphis this week, meeting up with Jerry Lee Lewis at Sun Studio. The CA learned the reason Sir Mick was here: He’s doing reconnaissance for an upcoming movie project.

There was a joke on Twitter that Mick is making more appearances in Memphis these days than Tennessee Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn. How true…

For those of you into all things pumpkin, the Gourmade food truck will be at Ghost River this evening (starting at 3 PM) with a limited batch of their pumpkin amaretto pound cake. They’ll have banana pudding too.

The Commercial Appeal is in the kitchen with a Q&A with Majestic Grille chef Patrick Reilly.

The University of Tennessee is giving Carolinians escaping Florence free admission to their home game against UTEP tomorrow. Man, given the choice between the hurricane and Neyland Stadium, I think I’d take the hurricane.

Belle Tavern is opening early this weekend for soccer:

Statistical analysis site FiveThirtyEight has its Senate projections online. As of this morning the Republicans have slightly more than a 2 in 3 chance to retain the Senate. They also have projections for all the individual Senate races. As of this morning Marsha Marsha Marsha has a 7 in 10 chance of defeating Phil Bredesen, although she is projected to win by only 2 percentage points.

For those more interested in sports than politics, FiveThirtyEight has NFL projections too.

Oh, My Squash! is the theme at the Memphis Farmers Market this Saturday. It’s the perfect time of year for those who love this vegetable, with summer squashes still around, but also with winter squashes starting to make their debut. Market sponsor Char Restaurant will be there with a demonstration on how to make their Plum Peachy Iced Tea. The demo will be 9-11 AM at the Glass Silo, Trainside South. Shamicheal Hallman of the Cossitt Library will be there with a Reading Corral for kids 10-noon. There will also be a kids’ crafts table. Live music all day long. The Market runs from 8 AM to 1 PM under the pavilion at Front and G.E. Patterson every Saturday.

Former Trump campaign manager has reached a plea deal with the Special Counsel’s office. The Special Counsel has arranged a charging document, charging Manafort with lying to the FBI, witness tampering, money laundering, tax fraud, failing to report foreign bank accounts, and failing to register as a foreign agent. Now, here’s the interesting part… Manafort must admit that he committed all the crimes in the charging document, but he’s only pleading to two of the charges. That means the other charges could still be prosecuted by the State of New York at a later date – and remember, state convictions are not pardonable.

The next question is, by accepting the plea deal, does that mean Manafort is now cooperating in the investigation of Donald Trump? Based on what I’ve read, I tend to believe not, at least not yet. Manafort’s lawyers and Trump’s lawyers still have a joint defense agreement, meaning they share everything they know in order to help each other’s cases. Trump’s lawyers had joint defense agreements with Michael Flynn, Rick Gates, and Michael Cohen… but it was announced those agreements were ended a few days before the aforementioned three defendants flipped and starting working with prosecution. Not until we hear a similar announcement from Paulie Walnuts’ attorneys will we know he is cooperating. (EDIT: Two minutes after I hit Publish, I saw this. Manafort will indeed be cooperating with Mueller.)

That’s it for now. Back tomorrow or Sunday with more news.

Thursday update

I’ve now confirmed from a former Purple Haze employee that the place is closed for good. The former employee told me, after two employees got injured after last weekend’s fight/shooting, Charlie who ran the place reportedly said “I’m over it” and shut it down. In related news, a suspect has been identified in the shooting.

Walking Pants Curiosities is holding a Sunday in September Sip Shop-a-Jam this Sunday from noon to 4. Grab your favorite musical instrument and come jam out.

Memphis River Parks Partnership is hiring for two very good positions. If you love the riverfront and want to be a part of its redevelopment, this is your chance. The positions are

Field Ops Analyst

Garden Ranger

If interested, apply with a resume and cover letter to info@memphisriverparks.org.

Memphis Made Brewing Co. is working with Memphis Music Export on a project. Memphis Music Export, whose goal is to make people in other cities in the region aware of great Memphis music, has sent a couple of artists to Americana Fest in Nashville this weekend. Specially-labeled Memphis Made Americana Junt will be served at the Pure Memphis Happy Hour at the festival tonight from 5 to 8. Some of the musicians will have a return date at the Memphis Made taproom on October 6, and six-packs of Americana Junt will be available for sale during that time.

I tried another one of the $6 lunch specials at Pontotoc Lounge yesterday.

Chicken casserole is the Wednesday special. It comes with a side of fruit or salad. Pontotoc’s famous Mississippi Pot Roast is the $6 special today.

I heard something about the River Rat Rounders that makes their games my recommended games for those who are looking to get into the bar poker scene: They expect players to play real poker there. If you make a bunch of crazy moves that reduce the game from a game of skill to a game mostly of luck, you will be pulled aside and told that if you keep doing that, you will be asked to leave.

For those who have never played, let me give an example. Say it’s the first hand of the game with small blind 25/big blind 50, and I have 4000 chips. That’s 80 big blinds, allowing me plenty of room to place strategic bets to try and elicit information about my opponent’s hands. I look at my cards and decide to raise to 150, three times the big blind. If I have a starting hand like A♠Q♦, that raise is saying, “I have a big hand.” If I have a hand like 6♥5♥ that isn’t a very good hand but could turn into one if the right community cards are dealt, the raise is saying, “I want you to believe I have a big hand.” In either case, I still have 3850 left in my stack, plenty to respond to re-raises and play the flop, turn, and river properly.

When the flop (the first three community cards) come out, I have options. If one of the cards in my A♠Q♦ pairs up, I want to bet a little over half the size of the pot, because I probably have the best hand and I want to build the pot. I also bet here because I want to see if anyone re-raises me, possibly giving me information that my top pair might not be good and I need to be careful. On the other hand, if I have a speculative hand like 6♥5♥ and it doesn’t connect with the flop, I can bet a little over half the pot here anyway, because I represented in the first round of betting that I had a big hand. I’ve built the credibility to bluff and possibly take down the pot right then and there.

On the turn (the fourth community card) and the river (the fifth community card), I have two more opportunities to bet and gain additional information about my opponents’ hands, and because I had a large starting stack relative to the size of the big blind, I have the chips to size my bets properly. The turn in particular is considered the most important betting round of Texas Hold’em when played with skill, the card on which you decide if you want to go all the way with the hand or fold to cut your losses.

At a lot of bar games, however, there tend to be players who go all-in before the flop, even with deep stacks, whether they have a premium hand like A♠Q♦, a speculative hand with potential like 6♥5♥, or total hot garbage like J♣2♥. That reduces poker to a game that involves only slightly more skill than roulette, and it only takes one player at the table who does that to screw up the experience for everybody. Let me tell you, at bar poker, there is ALWAYS that one player at the table, and usually there are two or three of them. If the River Rat Rounders take people who do that aside and tell them “stop it or leave,” then I fully endorse their games.

That’s all, folks! Back tomorrow with more news.