Quick update for those needing BBQ Fest T-shirts

As most of you are aware by now, Sache is closing its doors April 1. That means they won’t be around to print team T-shirts for BBQ Fest this year, and I know many teams used their services. For those now having to look elsewhere, I would like to recommend my friend Josh Cottrell who operates his printing business at Winfield’s, the clothing store at Main and Madison across from Walgreens. He has printed shirts for my team the Moody Ques for several years now, and he does an excellent job at a quite reasonable price per shirt. Go by Winfield’s and ask for him, or if you prefer shoot me an email at paul@paulryburn.com and I will get you in touch.

Keeping it short today because I have a job interview this afternoon. Looking at their website now and this one looks like a great fit given past experience. Wish me luck!

Saturday update

Last night I ended up at the Blind Bear. At one point I looked at my phone. “12:08,” I thought. “Time to pay my tab and get home and get a good night’s rest.”

Then I looked at the TV. “Gold medal match in men’s curling starts in 22 minutes.” Argh! So much for getting a good night’s sleep. Like many, I have become addicted to curling the past two weeks. So much strategy. It’s a thinking person’s sport.

After 5 ends (ends are kind of like innings in baseball) I was so tired I couldn’t take it anymore. I paid up and walked home and went to bed. I wish I hadn’t. The Americans pulled off a miracle 5-stone score in the 8th end en route to winning the gold via a 10-7 upset of Sweden. What a win for the USA. This is nearly on the level of the 1980 Miracle on Ice for the U.S. hockey team.

There’s a Winter Festival of Lights Gala tonight in the upper ballroom of 409 South Main. Food from area restaurants, live music, a DJ, dancing, and cocktails. Proceeds will benefit an effort to turn 333 Adams at Danny Thomas into a facility for homeless women. It will be a live/work facility with the women being able to work in the on-site coffeehouse inside the building.

Soup Sunday is tomorrow at FedExForum, benefiting Youth Villages. Sorry for being a broken record but I am going to say this one last time. Doors open at 11 and you want to be standing outside at 10:55. When they let you in, don’t get in line behind everyone else at the first soup serving station past the door. Seek out the restaurants whose soups you want to try the most before the place gets busy. The most popular restaurants will run out of soup after about an hour to 75 minutes.

Which restaurants to seek out? Well, I admit I am partial to this place for more reasons than soup, but Bardog Tavern is a multi-time winner of the People’s Choice vote for best soup.

I was down at South Main Trolley Night yesterday and noticed that Sache, set to close April 1, has everything on sale. There were racks of $1 shirts and $3 shirts and there were 50% off signs all over the store. They posted to Facebook that they are liquidating everything – furniture, screen printing equipment, salon equipment, office equipment, hangers, clothing racks, shirts, even their T-shirt machine.

There’s a game that teaches people how to spread misinformation, how to spread fake news. Hmmm I can think of one person who would be a Grand Champion at this game.

Check out the City of Memphis’ new mobile-friendly website.

IHOP is giving away free short stacks this Tuesday 7 AM to 7 PM.

Here’s the official document spelling out the plea deal for Rick Gates, who was Paul Manafort’s right-hand man. Remember, Gates was hit with 32 new charges earlier this week. Yet, the government is willing to pursue only two of them if Gates cooperates. That tells us he has some good stuff that Mueller can use to reel in the big fish. I also read yesterday that three indictments are on their way to London. Betcha one of them is for Wikileaks’ Julian Assange, currently hiding out in the Ecuadorean embassy there.

That’ll do it for now! Time to go out in the rain.

Friday update

Yesterday was National Margarita Day. I celebrated with some excellent margaritas at two of my favorite spots.

First up was Bardog, where I enjoyed catching up with two of my neighbors from my apartment building.

With rain in the forecast, my troll was grateful that an umbrella came with Bardog’s margarita.

After that I stopped by Silly Goose for their version of the Mexican cocktail.

Tonight is South Main Trolley Night, with restaurants and shops open until 9 PM or later so you can mingle with your neighbors. SMA members, there will be a table set up at the 409 South Main food hall and The Civil Pour will have drink specials for you and Megan Carolan will be performing. There will also be live music at South Main Sounds, The Vault, Earnestine & Hazel’s, The Dirty Crow Inn, and The Arcade.

Memphis Made Brewing Co. is releasing three new high-gravity beers, to be sold in 4-packs in locations around Shelby County. They are named The Kickdown, Slumber Party and Mr. Anderson and have ABVs of 9 to 9.2 percent.

Make sure you read the Memphis Flyer’s cover story this week. It’s an important one! It’s about cheese dip.

The CA has a First Bites look at Maciel’s new location on Highland. If you haven’t been yet, put it high up on your to-do list.

Enivronmental Court Judge Potter plans to retire soon. Thank you for your many years of service to our city, Judge. Memphis is a better place because of your efforts.

A new cocktail club called Tailor’s Union is coming by April at 115 Union. With 117 Prime steakhouse opening next door and Belle Tavern going strong in the back, business is soon to be booming on that block of Union.

The Flyer’s Meghan Stuthard has a great article about Memphis Sounds Lounge, on Third in the Econo Lodge building until recently. It has found a new home on Mud Island.

If you haven’t been to Carolina Watershed yet, this StyleBlueprint article will give you an idea what to expect.

LeBron comes to town as the Grizzlies host the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at 7.

The performances of Guess Who Showed Up at Dinner tonight and tomorrow at the Orpheum have been canceled. Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase.

Rick Gates, Paul Manafort’s right-hand man, is expected to plead guilty to a number of charges including tax fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy against the United States today. Observers are comparing the way Mueller is running his investigation to the way he rolled up the Gambino crime family (that’s the one that was headed by John Gotti) and I would have to agree, that’s exactly what he’s doing. He’s putting pressure on Manafort until Manafort finally flips and spills everything he knows about Trump’s ties to Russia.

All right. Time to study SQL for an interview I have next week, and then I’ll get out and about.

Big Wednesday update: Music Fest lineup, possible grocery store, Brass Door news and lots more

It’s that day of the year, when half of your friends are going, “I can’t wait for Music Fest! This is the best lineup ever!” and the other half are all like, “Man, the lineup this year sucks. There’s almost no one I care about seeing.” View the 2018 Memphis in May Beale Street Music Fest lineup and decide for yourself which side you are on.

There’s speculation that the former Spaghetti Warehouse on Huling may be turned into a grocery store. The building is the right size for a mid-sized grocery store (Sprouts was mentioned as a possibility) and there is ample parking. Sounds good but I don’t know if Sprouts is exactly what I would want going in there… it would draw business away from the Memphis Farmers Market on Saturdays.

The Brass Door will host a special appearance by NYFD Emerald Society Piper Jim Lee Thursday night from 7:30 to 8:30. Jim is a former pipe major and decorated NYFD hero who entertains crowds around the world.

In other Brass Door news, they are stepping up their game at their 3-6 PM happy hour on the weekdays. Garlic shrimp, sausage roll, corned beef slider, pretzel twists with dips, and chips are only $4 each during this time.

There’s also cheap bar eats on the south side of Downtown.

Monday night I finally got around to trying one of the hot dogs on the new menu at Max’s Sports Bar. I got the Chicago Style dog with an all-beef frank topped with mustard, relish, a pickle spear, tomatoes, onions, sport peppers, and celery salt. It was very good. Most of the hot dogs on Max’s menu are in the $4 price range.

My troll thought the sport peppers and pickle were what really made this a great meal. She tends to like foods that match her hair. In fact, I’m drinking a Mountain Dew Throwback as I type this and she is asking if she can have some.

Hoppy Hour is coming to Bardog March 1.

Pint of Laguintas IPA and Jameson Caskmates IPA edition for $10 5 to 7 that night. By the way, I have to mention what an excellent job Bardog does curating a fine list of local and regional beers (and the Cadillac of beers, PBR) on tap.

Meme I saw on Facebook the other day:

Yup. Guess I won’t be putting any beers on that person’s tab anytime soon.

I Love Memphis has a fantastic interview with Shamichael Hallman and the plan to turn the Cossitt Library into a community hub that benefits all of Memphis’ citizens. Definitely worth five minutes of your time to read.

The Redbirds are looking to hire a visiting team clubhouse manager. The position is part-time and seasonal.

Yikes!

The first wave of ServiceMaster employees has moved into their new Downtown home.

And Sunrise Memphis had a welcome for them:

That’ll do it for now. Today could turn out to be exciting for me. I have been approached about doing some pro bono digital marketing work to help promote a great nonprofit down here that I have believed in since the day I moved Downtown. Hopefully today I will find out more about what I can do with them. Outta here, back tomorrow with more news.

Monday update

There will be a dinner and cabaret show this Saturday, February 24 at Cafe Keough, presented by Kitty Wompas’ Cathouse. It’s $25, with doors opening at 6:30, dinner at 7, band at 8, and show at 9. Performers will include Le Tumulte Noir, Goldie Dee, Hoop Rebel, and Kitty Wompas. The show is sponsored by the Memphis Flyer.

The Beale Street Caravan radio show and podcast has uploaded its latest episode: Music from the International Blues Challenge 2018 finals.

News on Gray Canary’s grand opening:

Daaaaang. WWE announced today that Jeff Jarrett, who cut his teeth in a wrestling ring here in Memphis, will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. If you’re familiar with pro wrestling history, you know that is like hell freezing over. Jarrett held up the then-WWF for a $150,000 payday in 1999, refusing to drop the Intercontinental title before leaving for WCW if he didn’t get the money. In 2001, after buying WCW, Vince McMahon publicly fired Jarrett on two national cable networks. The following year, Jarrett and his father started the company that has most successfully competed with WWE this century. Strange that Vince McMahon did an about-face and put Jarrett in this year’s HOF class.

My troll is not alone. The folks at the Majestic told me they have a troll too, and it has yellow hair.

That’s it for now. Back tomorrow I hope.

Lots of Sunday news: My dream chair, Belle Tavern charcuterie, learn about being on a nonprofit board, more

The Brass Door is giving away a BEAUTIFUL chair at its St. Patrick’s Day party next month.

Me sitting in a PBR chair, wearing my PBR hoodie, drinking a PBR. Best photo ever.

But wait, there’s more. The seat is a pull-out cooler.

Be sure to come to Brass Door on March 17 for a chance to win. Downtown’s Irish public house will be the place to party on St. Patrick’s Day.

Leadership Memphis is having a seminar on March 22, open to the public, on serving on a nonprofit board of directors. Brian J. Stephens, CEO of Caissa Public Strategy, will lay out the ABCs, expectations, and commitments associated with being on a nonprofit board. I served on the board of young professionals’ organization MPACT Memphis 2004-2005 and I can tell you, it is a very rewarding way to give back to the community and help shape the future of an organization you care about. It looks great on a resume and LinkedIn as well.

In recent weeks I have been hearing that Belle Tavern has an amazing butcher board/charcuterie/meat & cheese plate. I haven’t been hungry enough to swing by myself and give it a try, but this weekend they tweeted a photo.

Holy damn. That’s one of the best looking butcher boards I’ve ever seen. I need to get by there and try this. Although, I’ll probably need to fast for a day to be hungry enough to tackle it.

Wild Bill’s, the legendary juke joint on Vollintine in North Memphis, is back open Friday and Saturday nights. Doors open at 8, music at 9, and the place stays open until 3.

Seeing the writing on the wall that South Main is about to kick into overdrive in 2018, the Arcade is expanding. Front room will remain the same but they will enlarge the back room.

Tamp & Tap has added sandwiches, salads, and pastas from Passione Foods to their grab & go. Franco from Tap & Tap tried Passione’s creations at Miss Cordelia’s and immediately knew he had to start carrying them. He got in touch with the owner and within a day they had an agreement. The food flew off the shelves Friday but they will re-stock tomorrow.

The Blind Bear has added Pig Tail Porter, a brew made by Diamond Bear from my home town of Little Rock (North Little Rock, if you insist on being technical) to their tap selection. By the way, for my friends who are into craft beer, Little Rock is an easy weekend trip with a number of great breweries.

Proud Voter and the Tennessee Equality project have a website where you can register to vote, sign up for election reminders, and check to make sure your registration is valid.

Already getting “thanks for the Maciel’s recommendation” messages from readers who live in the University of Memphis area. True, authentic Mexican that is a must-try.

Moody Ques teammates – got a few things to share. Going to get an email out in the next day or two, but since many of you read this blog I’ll put it here as well:

First of all, we handed in our 2018 BBQ Fest application on Friday. In doing so, we had to write a check that almost completely drained our bank account. We really need people to pay their dues so we have money to pay vendors and other expenses that will be coming our way in March and April. You can pay on the team website or email moodyques@gmail.com to arrange payment by check or cash.

Secondly, at the last planning meeting we talked about forming a sponsorship committee. If you would be interested in being a part of it, email moodyques@gmail.com. The more the merrier when it comes to pursuing sponsors, and this is an excellent way to step into a leadership role.

Thirdly, I have had potential members hesitate to pay and join for 2018 because they are concerned they won’t be able to get their invited guests into the booth. Member/guest experience at the door is a first impression and therefore I see it as a public relations matter. I’ve talked with our vice-president about it and it is going to be an agenda item at our next meeting.

We also had one of Downtown’s premier bartenders approach us about working our bar. Not sure we can make that work from a financial standpoint, but the fact that she reached out and let us know that the Moody Ques are her preferred team is quite a compliment.

Excellent quote about sports figures using their fame as a platform to express their political views:

That’ll do it for this post. Back tomorrow or Tuesday with more news. Shaping up to be a full week of skills tests and interviews.

Vermicelli Bowl @ Oshi Asian Kitchen

I rewarded myself after a fruitful week job hunting, including an interview at a company multiple people have told me is a wonderful place to work, with dinner at Oshi Asian Kitchen yesterday. Having had sushi the past few times there, I decided to explore the main menu.

The Vermicelli Bowl, I suppose, could be called a cousin to their pho and ramen dishes. It has a base of vermicelli topped with shredded carrots, purple cabbage, chicken, beef, shrimp, miniature spring rolls, and an egg. It comes with a side of fish sauce. “Should I pour the fish sauce over the bowl?” I asked, not familiar with this dish.

“The fish sauce is spicy,” they advised me. “Pouring it in the bowl might make the bowl too spicy to eat. We recommend you dip your food in the fish sauce.” Having made the mistake of putting too many jalapenos in my pho on a previous visit, torching my tongue in the process, I decided it was best to heed the advice. They brought me both a fork and chopsticks and I used chopsticks to dip the meats in the fish sauce.

Very filling and there was no shortage of meat in the bowl. The mini spring rolls and the fish sauce were nice complements. A delicious dinner and one that I would recommend next time you come to Oshi.

I talked to sushi chef Minh a bit, and he told me there will be karaoke tonight at Oshi from 8 to 11. Also, he said he was thinking about doing an all you can eat sushi night on Monday. Call the restaurant to confirm this, but he told me he was thinking $25 for the basic rolls or $30 for the deluxe rolls.

Couple of good live music gigs on the south side tonight: Chris Hill plays The Vault, and Eric Hughes plays Dirty Crow Inn. If you’re more into the classical stuff, MSO will be at the Cannon Center performing Tchaikovsky’s Fifth.

In case you missed the news: Special Counsel Muller’s team handed down 13 indictments against Russian trolls who used social media to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and three Russian businesses as well. Sources I follow on Twitter indicate that this is an opening shot and a lot more dominoes are going to start falling rapidly. Also, Paul Manafort’s right-hand man Rick Gates has flipped and is singing to Mueller like a canary, which has resulted in a new charge of bank fraud against Manafort.

That’s it for now. Blog posts may be sparse in the next week as my job hunting efforts kick into overdrive.

Friday update

Crawfish Sunday has been announced by Max’s Sports Bar for this Sunday. Doors open at 11:30 AM, crawfish ready by noon. You get one pound for $12 or two for $20. They come cooked perfectly spiced with all the trimmings – corn, taters, and sausage. I haven’t been to every crawfish boil in town but I can vouch that the crawfish here are very far above average.

Expect to see more of me at Max’s Sports Bar the next two weeks. Great place to watch the Olympics and the time is especially opportune for some conversations with people who hang out down there.

Nice to see the Flying Saucer’s best Beerknurd, Gary Smith, getting some love on Twitter as he completed his 34th time around the Ring of Honor.

The Memphis Flyer has an excellent story about B.J. Tamayo, the lady behind the food at Alcenia’s. If you’re in the mood for some soul food, this place on North Main in the Pinch District is hard to beat. One note, though: Your lunch may run a little over an hour (it did the times I have been there) so bear that in mind if your work is strict about how long you take for lunch.

I recently found an excellent app called OurCalling that lists resources for the homeless nationwide. I searched for Memphis and there were a huge number of search results returned. If you get approached by the homeless asking for help, as many of us Downtowners do, might want to get this app on your phone.

A new cocktail bar called Tailors’ Union is coming to 115 Union. That is next door to where the 117 Prime steakhouse is going in.

The folks at New Wing Order contacted me recently to let me know they will be starting up a food truck and it will be out on the streets by this fall. Here’s the tentative menu.

The Memphis Farmers Market has announced new hours for its 2018 season: 8 AM to 1 PM, so it will be starting an hour later than in previous years.

The Downtown Neighborhood Association will meet Tuesday, February 27 at the Brass Door. Speaker is TBA. Social at 6, meeting at 6:30. Come check out this newly-reopened Irish public house if you have not done so already.

Many of my readers are probably too young to remember George Burns, but for those who do, Say Goodnight, Gracie is coming to the Halloran Centre tomorrow and Sunday. George Burns was part of a comedy/dance team, the straight man to his wife Grace Allen. After Allen died, Burns embarked on a solo career, gaining a reputation as a comedian who was really, really old (he lived to be 100).

Sorry I had to be away from the blog for a couple of days, but I was busy studying C# and T-SQL and prepping for technical interviews (and buying dress shirts that fit and remembering how to tie a necktie). My blog posts may be a little irregular for the week to come as well, because I have more on the horizon. Got “homework” from an interview I had this morning and I have two more recruiters wanting to talk to me about open positions.

For right now, though, I am at the point of information overload. I am calling it a week and heading to Bardog for the afternoon.

A first visit to Pontotoc Lounge

You’d think it wouldn’t have taken me three months to get to Pontotoc Lounge, the new jazz lounge on South Main in the former Cafe Pontotoc space. It’s only about 7 blocks from where I live, and it was opened by Daniel Masters (Silly Goose/Civil Pour) who I have known for 14 years. I’m a creature of habit, though, and it took me a while to break out of my regular rotation. Finally, Holly’s post last week made me realize I needed to get down there and try this place for myself.


I got there about 4:30, not long after opening, and was the first one there. This is the kind of place I like – classy and elegant, but not pretentious. Soft jazz was playing on the speakers and they have live jazz later in the evenings on some days.

They have PBR in 16 ounce cans for $3. I got one with my early dinner, although on a future visit I want to come back and let bartender Cady make me one of Pontotoc’s specialty cocktails. The thing about Daniel’s bars is, he spends quite a bit of time in New York studying the latest cocktail trends, and he brings what he learned back to Memphis and trains his staff. You can always count on getting a good drink at one of his places.

As for what to eat, the Mississippi Pot Roast Holly blogged about looked amazing, but I wasn’t hungry enough. Therefore, I decided to order two appetizers: The Trout Deviled Eggs and the Alligator Fritters.

The trout deviled eggs were delicious – I have loved deviled eggs since I was a child – and I thought getting four of them for $6 was a very good value. The alligator fritters were different from other places I have had alligator in that their consistency was more like that of crab cakes. They came with remoulade sauce and I thoroughly enjoyed them.

Service was excellent. I bet this place has a great vibe later in the evening when more people are gathered. I will be back.

PROGRAMMING NOTE: I may take a couple of days off from this blog. I have a technical interview Friday morning with a company I would really love to work for, and I want to spend lots of time preparing. So, if it’s a few days before I’m back with a new post, please forgive me.

Tuesday update

Got a question for my readers who live in the Shrine Building: HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO SLEEP? At 3:45 this morning I heard the sound of construction equipment and jackhammers digging more holes on Monroe as they have been doing for over two years. I can hear it a block away. I can’t imagine what it must be like actually living on Monroe. I understand why they do it early, so as not to disrupt traffic, but is disrupting sleep in a residential neighborhood any better?

Twitter account to follow: @mem_saysnomore. Memphis Says No More is a nonprofit whose mission is to end sexual assault, rape, and domestic violence in our city. It’s not the most pleasant issue to discuss but it’s one that we cannot afford to sweep under the rug.

On to a lighter subject: chips.

The Tennessee Brewery is hiring a part-time leasing professional. You can hit them up on Facebook if interested.

Memphis in May’s 2018 Volunteer Expo is this Thursday at the Memphis Botanic Garden 6 to 8 PM.

If you’re not on Nxtdoor, you’re missing out.

Surprising news: Sache, the clothing and hair boutique on South Main, is closing April 1.

Memphis Pets Alive plans on holding an introduction for prospective volunteers on February 25. Follow them at @MemphisPetsAlive on Twitter for more details in the days to come.

The MBJ has a slideshow of Memphis’ newest brewery, Crosstown Brewing Co.

Musical The Color Purple is at the Orpheum today through Sunday.

Memphis Black Restaurant Week has been set for March 5 through 11 with 12 participating restaurants.

Woohoo! Just set up an interview for Friday morning with an awesome company. Hopefully I will be back in the game soon. Back tomorrow with more news.