Paul Ryburn's Journal

My BBQ teammate Otto did. He got the BBQ sandwich. Here’s a pic.

“Damn fine sandwich,” he tweeted. He said he had some PBR with it and the total was only $9, which is a really good value. One of my other BBQ teammates posted a pic of a steak, baked potato, and asparagus that he ordered (sorry, forgot to ask him for permission to use it here) and it looked delicious too. I have got to get in there SOON and try their food. All these years, when tourists have asked me the best place to go Downtown for BBQ that’s walkable/trolleyable, I’ve always said Blues City. I have a feeling I may have a different recommendation after trying the vittles at the Double J.

I want to apologize to Jeff, John and everyone at the saloon for not making it by for opening night. The thing is, I’m just not a huge fan of opening night crowds. I prefer to try new places for the first time when they’re not too busy and I can enjoy the place and get a feel for it. Jeff and John have a ton of friends so I knew the Double J would be packed to the rafters last night. I started the evening at my usual happy hour spot, the Saucer, and was 50/50 on heading south. Then I overheard one of the most annoying people I’ve ever met say he was about to “check out the new spot,” and that was enough to convince me to wait for another night. Besides, I’d already seen the place at the meet & greet last Friday. Will be in there soon, I promise.

I texted friends who’d checked in at the Blind Bear and confirmed they’d be there for a while. As I drank my first beer, we started to hear reports of a dead horse at Main and Union. There were all kinds of rumors flying around that it had been hit by a trolley, by a car, etc. I told the doorman I’d be right back and walked that way.

Sure enough, there was a dead horse lying in the Union trolley stop. About 10 police cars were there and they had all of Main Street taped off at Union. It was one of the carriage horses that are used to give people tours of Downtown. It did not appear that the horse had been struck by a vehicle. There was a trolley waiting for Main to re-open, but it was a distance away.

I posted the news to Facebook. One of my Facebook friends, who is a carriage driver, said that she believed the horse had an aneurism. She said that he was one of the younger horses in the stable. Just like people sometimes die young – like that conservative/Tea Party guy who died of a heart attack at 43 earlier this week – sometimes horses die young too. Another of my Facebook friends, who works at the FedExForum, joined the conversation and offered a fork lift if they needed a way to move the horse. That may sound silly but I doubt Memphis has had a standard plan for horse removal since 1910 or so. Anyway, I thought that was an extremely classy move for the Forum folks to make that offer. They do a lot more to be good neighbors Downtown than most people realize.

I stayed at the Bear for a while, then timed my walk home to get to City Market just before close. They had Nawabi Gosh spicy beef in the prepacked food refrigerator. SCORE! I took it home and had a good late-night snack. I’ve decided that 11:30-midnight is the dead zone for eating in the Downtown core on the weekends – it’s the period when City Market is closed and Cockadoos has not yet opened. Of course, when I say that, I overlook the fact that there are a number of other good places to eat nearby that are open during that time frame.

Plans for today: None really, other than I need to stop by Tater Red’s. My NO BUMS shirt has a tear in it so I need a new one. Of course, there will be plenty of beer involved too, and possibly a trip south to Double J.

Attention artists: Work has begun on a walkable art experience in Downtown Memphis called “Unveil Downtown.” 20 artists will be given exhibit space in makeshift galleries in 20 active shops and restaurants for 20 days. Each selected artist will be able to exhibit and sell up to 10 pieces, and keep 100% of the proceeds. Artists will be required to donate one piece to the Downtown Neighborhood Association to be part of a silent auction. Artist proposals due March 23; selections made March 30. Silent auction May 25, and work will be exhibited June 1-20. More information here.

Itta Bena, the restaurant on the third floor of BB King’s, has posted photos of their food and of the restaurant’s elegant atmosphere. If you’ve never been in Itta Bena before, take a look at what you’ve been missing.

Double J SmokeHouse and Saloon is looking for a 1960s-70s Cadillac convertible. They want to put their logo and longhorns on it. If you know of one for sale, contact the saloon. If you don’t know how to contact the saloon, contact me (paul@paulryburn.com) and I’ll pass it on.

Ladies, if you’re not sports fans, here’s something you can do while your guys are watching the first night of March Madness. On Thursday, March 15, eighty3 will host Ladies Night In, a four-course dinner utilizing chocolate in every course. Here’s the menu:

Mole
Grilled shrimp basted in chocolate mole with crispy kohlrabi slaw on a mushu corn pancake

The Salad
White chocolate-topped scallop on raspberry-dressed micro greens

The Main
Mocha-crusted roasted beef tenderloin with bittersweet chocolate demi
Or
Pan-seared sea bass with white chocolate beurre blanc and sweet potatoes

The Flight
A tasting of chocolates (chili, salted and semi-sweet) with fresh berries and cheese

Cost is $59 per person. Make reservations for your group of friends by calling 901-333-1224 or visiting www.eighty3memphis.com. 83 Madison Ave.

If you’re a fan of the Chris Vernon Show on Yahoo! Sports 730, his first show for Sirius/XM will be Sunday night, 7-10 PM, on Sirius/XM College, channel 91. As with his main show, Roser will be the producer.

All right. After the day I’ve had, I deserve a BEER! Weather is looking like it will hold up, so I’ll try to make it south to Double J tonight.

The waiting is finally over. Today at 4 PM, Double J Smokehouse and Saloon opens its doors to the public. They’ll kick things off with an atmosphere of fun, excitement, great food, and cold beer. Demitrie and his staff will be in the kitchen, with Jeff and John on the smoker.

From 10 PM to 2 AM the Eddie Smith Band will play the Front Porch Stage with special guest Russell Scott. They were the band who played the meet & greet last Friday, and if you weren’t there, let me assure you, they were excellent. Also, you never know who might come up on stage to sit in with them.

Parking is not a problem. There’s street parking, the Double J lot, and at night there are plenty of spaces available in the nearby Civil Rights Museum lot.

Really excited to have this new venue. Not only will it be a place where the locals feel comfortable, but I suspect it will draw people from other parts of Memphis who otherwise wouldn’t come down here. I can even see it becoming a regional attraction.

As they said on their Facebook page, “Hollar and swallar!” Weather permitting, I’ll pop in there sometime tonight. If not tonight, sometime this weekend.

Last night I had a good time giving away tickets to River City Brewers Festival. I got to the secret location about 6:45, having promised to reveal where I was at 7. However, I put out a couple of hints early:

“At the giveaway location. Just ordered a mug of PBR.” I wondered if that would send people running to Bardog or Blind Bear, both of which were incorrect guesses.

“I used to listen to Turbo 350 here. And watch cartoons with Maurice. And wrestling with NightHawk.” That was a hint for long-time readers of my blog, who were around in the 2004-06 era.

At 7 I revealed my location – the Beale Street Tap Room. I had 5 pairs of tickets to the afternoon session, and 5 to the evening session. By 7:25 I had given away the last pair.

One person guessed my location without any hints, and was there waiting on me. I wondered if that would happen. Given that the festival is run by River City Management, it made sense to park myself in one of their venues, and it’s no secret that I like the Tap Room. The hints I posted helped three more people figure out where I was before 7.

I’m sure it will surprise no one to learn that the Nuh-Uh Girl showed up for free tickets. She normally works out in her basement gym after work, but last night she conveniently decided to jog around Downtown instead. She didn’t get fooled by the “mug of PBR” clue and was the second person to find me. Within one minute of being handed the tickets, she asked if there would be food at the festival.

I wasn’t surprised that many of the tickets were claimed by people I knew. If they didn’t figure out the exact location, they were able to guess approximately where I’d be within a block or two. They were then able to run to the Tap Room and claim tickets when I made the announcement. Congratulations to Jake, Clay, Ian, Katie Mac, Dave, and Otto on their ticket wins. There were two people I didn’t know by name who got tickets. The tenth person, I’m pretty sure, had no idea there was a giveaway going on, but one of the winners told him and he came over and asked for tickets. Hey, whatever works.

I have confirmed that there were people waiting on me at the Saucer, the Blind Bear, and the Brass Door. I had to delay my usual 6 PM start time at the Saucer, because I knew if I went there, people would follow me to the giveaway location at 7.

Fun night. Congrats to all who won. If you didn’t win tickets, you can buy them here.

As many of you know, I work in Horn Lake, in Mississippi a couple of miles from the Tennessee border. The bad news is that I’m too far away from Downtown to hit my favorite restaurants down here for lunch. (And some days it kills me when they post their specials.) The good news is, there are some good restaurants not far from where I work, including a new one called Memphis Barbecue Co.

Memphis Barbecue Co. is the only restaurant in the country that has two world championship pitmasters cooking. Their trophies from past BBQ Fests are prominently displayed as you walk in. Today was my third visit there and I decided to try their Big Honkin’ Potato, a baked potato topped with pulled pork, sour cream, cheese, bacon, and green onions. “It’s just a potato,” I thought. “What if it’s small and not enough for lunch? I better order a cup of red beans and rice too.”

When the potato came out, it was immediately clear that it was more than enough to eat by itself.

It would probably be accurate to say that the difference between the size of the Big Honkin’ potato and a normal baked potato is comparable to the difference in size between a goose and a duck. (We have geese and ducks in our pond at work, so I’ve been thinking in those terms lately.) This thing was just HUMONGOUS. It’s hard to tell in the photo above since it’s an overhead shot, but the potato was piled about two inches above the top with pulled pork.

Now, the thing is, there are a lot of BBQ restaurants in Memphis, and people go to most of them and comment, “Well… it was good… but not as good as what you’d get at BBQ Fest.” Let me tell you… having been on teams for five years and about to make it six, having eaten my own team’s food was well as that of other teams: Memphis Barbecue’s pulled pork is as good as what you get at the festival. In fact, it’s better than what I’ve been served by quite a few teams. I truly enjoyed my potato, although it was so big that I could only finish a little more than half.

At $7.99, this is an outstanding value. For a dollar more you can get the same potato topped with pulled chicken, brisket, or smoked turkey. You don’t see too many Memphis-area BBQ restaurants that have brisket on the menu, but they do.

If you find yourself in the I-55/Goodman Road area, I highly recommend you try this place. If you’re heading south from Memphis, exit at Goodman, turn right, then turn right again onto Interstate Blvd., taking you into the shopping center with Kroger and Target. Turn right at the street behind Arby’s, and you’ll see Memphis Barbecue on the right.

In case you missed last night’s post, I’m doing a ticket giveaway to the River City Brewers Fest tonight. I’m going to hide in a location somewhere Downtown, and at 7 I’ll tweet and post to Facebook where I am. First people to find me get their choice of a pair of tickets to the afternoon or evening session. I have five pairs for each. A few minutes before 7 I’ll tweet/Facebook post a hint or two; if they help you find me before 7, the early bird gets the worm!

I hate it that I have to do the giveaway on the night of Ignite Memphis 4, especially since my friend Darrin is speaking on theme parks. However, there’s really no good day in the next 10 days or so for me to get this done, after tonight.

The Live from Memphis Music Video Showcase starts today and continues through Sunday. A weekend pass for $25 gets you in all the events, and there are a lot of them. Art exhibits. A dance party. Showcases by Visible Music College, Neosoulville, and Goner Records. An award show. Panel discussions. Premier of the 48 Hour Music Video Launch videos. Much, much more.

Important info to remember: If Best Memphis Burger blogger Seth comes in your restaurant and orders wings, he’d like them without feathers, please.

Need a job? Mahaffey Tent is holding a job fair March 10.

Plans for tonight: I’ll be “somewhere” at 7; Saucer around 8; then at 9 I’m headed over to the Silly Goose for their “Soul Train” party. Looking forward to hearing what DJ Cody has in store for us tonight.

I’ll be doing ticket giveaways to the River City Brewers Festival tomorrow night. That’s the festival I wrote about earlier this week – in Handy Park, Saturday, March 31, afternoon (12-4) and evening (6-10) sessions. Last year this festival was loaded with beers not often seen in Memphis, and they were generous with the pours.

Here’s how it will work. Tomorrow night, Thursday, March 1, I will park myself at a location somewhere Downtown. At 7 PM, I will post where I am to Facebook and Twitter. All you have to do is come find me, and tell me whether you want a pair of tickets to the afternoon or evening session. First come first served, and I’ll be there until 8 or until the tickets run out (I have several pairs for each session). Obviously, since this is a beer festival you need to be 21 or over to win. If you look young and I don’t know you, don’t be offended if I ask to see your ID.

Might be a good idea to keep your eye on Facebook and Twitter a few minutes before 7, though, because I plan on getting to the location a little early. I may drop some hints where I am.

Hope to hand you a pair of tickets tomorrow night! Should be a beautiful night Downtown.

I want to start off with a reminder that there’s an art exhibit tonight at the Silly Goose. “Gravitional Anarchy: Works by Magyn Darmstaedter” happens from 7 to 9. $3 house wine and $4 sangria, and music by Jeremy Stanfill.

Tonight is an important Grizzlies game, and not only because another W would improve our chances of getting in the playoffs. Proceeds from tonight’s ticket sales benefit Plus-1, the MIFA program that helps those in need pay their utility bills. Purchase tickets here. If you can’t make it to the game but would like to make a donation to the Plus-1 program, you can do so here.

Tomorrow night, March 1, is Paulette’s 1-year anniversary on Mud Island. They’re offering a special menu for only $19.95 tomorrow night to celebrate:

Starters

FIELD GREEN SALAD
Mixed field greens, iceberg, romaine,
tomatoes, cucumbers and carrots
tossed in tarragon vinaigrette

SOUP OF THE DAY
Made fresh daily

Entrees

FILET TIPS PAULETTE
Fresh beef tips lightly coated with cracked pepper,
sauteed in a Worcestershire cream sauce
with julienne tomato, onion and bell pepper,
served with whipped potatoes

LOBSTER AU GRATIN
Maine lobster in sherry cream sauce topped with parmesan bread crumbs, baked in a casserole, served with roasted new potatoes, fresh asparagus

CHICKEN BROCHETTE
Marinated fillets of chicken breast, mushrooms, bacon, and scallions grilled an a skewer, served on a bed of rice with our creamy mushroom sauce

Glass of Wine
HOUSE CHARDONNAY, CHAMPAGNE, OR MERLOT

To make a reservation, call 901-260-3300 or go to www.opentable.com.

I’d like to offer some words of praise to my BBQ team sponsor WordPress. This morning I had to post a bridge hand to my company’s website, then copy and paste it into a WordPress blog I maintain. I dreaded doing it, thinking how WordPress’s editor would probably screw up the formatting ten ways ’til Tuesday and I’d have to spend a lot of time fixing everything. I pasted, previewed the post, and discovered that WordPress’s editor had maintained all the formatting PERFECTLY. The only work I had to do was change the color of the hearts and diamonds to red, and it was good to go. If you’re setting up a new blog, or if you’re setting up a website and need a content management system so non-technical users can create posts and pages, WordPress is the best.

Plans for tonight: I’m going to attend Magyn’s show, of course. I see from the event listing on Facebook that several of my BBQ teammates will be there – always a treat to hang out with them. Reminds me, I need to spend some time reading Eat Local Memphis, the blog of Thomas who reminded me to post about the Plus-1 event. I like his writing style, and since I’m more or less the food blogger for the Moody Ques BBQ team, perhaps reading his posts will help me write about ‘que more effectively. Anyway, Goose will be the main stop tonight, with side trips to defend my Saucer and Bear mayorships on Foursquare.

Gotta run. They’re about to have Wise Guys Pizza for us at work. (Wow, I didn’t know sites were still hosted on Tripod)

The biggest news today is that the Beale Street Music Fest lineup has been announced. The Flyer has the list here. This looks like one of their better lineups in a while.

Beer news: Tickets for the River City Brewers Fest are now for sale and you can buy them here. There are afternoon and evening sessions available. This is the one that happens in Handy Park. They absolutely hit a home run with this beer festival last year – large serving cups, and lots of beers not usually seen in Memphis. I definitely recommend you go to this if you’re into beer.

The Redbirds are selling tickets for opening night that include 2 1/2 hour buffets. For more information, see this image. There are two buffet options. Game is Friday, April 13 at 7:05 PM.

LaunchMemphis has announced that they are doing office hours, free to the public. You can stop by and get free business advice Tuesdays 9 AM-noon and Thursdays 2-5 PM. Office hours are at the LaunchPad, inside the EmergeMemphis building at the corner of Tennessee Street and G.E. Patterson.

South of Beale will be closed Friday-Sunday. Owners Ed and Brittany are getting married, and they want the entire SOB crew to be able to celebrate with them. Congratulations to Ed and Brittany!

Pigeon news: There’s a pigeon who rides the ferry from Manhattan to New Jersey every day. Wonder if any of our Downtown pigeons will hitch rides on the Great American Steamboat cruises when they begin operations from Memphis?

Plans for tonight: Poker at the Blind Bear, 8 PM. I was in there last night, talking to Jamie about it. If you’ve ever seen the World Series of Poker final table, you know how they put the grand prize – millions of dollars – right there in the middle of the table. Jamie is going to do the same thing for the final table of his 3-month poker league – but his grand prize is going to be an iPad. Still plenty of time to earn points toward the final table, so come on down. Jamie has told me that the game is becoming so successful that both poker tables fill up, plus a third table in the back, and he may have to add a fourth table.

Time to grab a quick bite, then spend the afternoon making a Google Mini search appliance smarter.

Congrats to Chad on becoming the final table winner at the Silly Goose tonight. Poker Jon does a 10-week league and the top 9 meet at the final table for the chance to win a grand prize. Chad eliminated Lauren after a lengthy heads-up session to claim first place.

Jon’s games are free to play and happen at Silly Goose (7:30 and 10 PM Monday) and Bardog (7:30 PM Wednesday). I’ve heard Aldo’s Pizza Pies will be added once open. Each tournament has a prize of its own, usually $50 or something equally good like Grizzlies tickets. You also accumulate points toward Jon’s final table, for a big prize.