Paul Ryburn's Journal

“Those who have fresh news, report; those who don’t, link.”

Or something like that.

My main news source today consists of links to the Memphis Daily News. In their first article, they report about a new restaurant/bar I’m super excited about: A new Irish pub called The Brass Door will open at 152 Madison. It will be an upscale pub serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The Downtown core hasn’t had an Irish pub since Dan McGuinness closed in 2008, and having one so close to my front door is an added bonus. I’m also happy to see a business of this caliber going into the block of Madison between Second and Third – I’ve long felt it was one of the “sleeper” blocks of Downtown just waiting to be re-discovered.

The same article reports that another restaurant, Red Velvet, will open at 314 S. Main. This will be a restaurant and bakery that will offer treats such as cupcakes, coffee, and wine. Great addition for the northern part of the South Main District, which has seen businesses such as the Rumba Room, Pearl’s Oyster House, Frank’s Deli, and South of Beale open in the past three years.

More hotel rooms will be coming to Downtown. The Daily News reports that a Hilton-branded hotel will come to the corner of Linden and Fourth, anchoring the SoFo (South of Forum) district. It will have 20,000 SF of meeting space, an outdoor pool, signature restaurant, and lobby bar. More high-end hotel rooms means the ability to attract bigger conventions to downtown, which is a Very Good Thing. Some people abhor the term “SoFo” for the area, but I personally like it, because I can call the people who live and work there “SoFo mofos.”

All three businesses are applying to the CCDC for forgivable loans and grants. Best of luck to all three, as they all sound like they will make Downtown even better.

I’ve heard from a couple of people that Primetime Sports Bar at Second and Peabody Place has closed. Not surprised. I hardly ever saw people go in there. It struck me as a poor attempt to keep something similar to Jillian’s/Club Atlas alive, just to have something in the building for when the Peabody expanded into the Peabody Place Mall. Now that the Peabody expansion has been delayed, I guess they saw no reason to keep Primetime alive. Too bad because that space is in an extremely desirable, high-traffic location Downtown. Something successful needs to go in there.

I’ll tell you what I think would work, and I’m not alone in this thought, because a couple of friends have mentioned it to me. Most chain restaurants are not a good fit for Downtown. TGI Friday’s on Union does okay but it’s mainly due to tourist traffic – I rarely see locals go in there. I can’t see something like an Applebee’s going in that space. But there’s one chain I think would do really well in the Primetime space: Buffalo Wild Wings.

For those who have never been in one, Buffalo Wild Wings offers a casual dining menu, the highlight of which are wings dipped in one of twelve signature sauces. They recently added some dry rubs too. They have a good selection of beer as well as a full liquor bar, and the restaurants are full of TVs for watching whatever games are on.

The Primetime location is about the right size, in terms of layout and square footage, for a BWW. There would be plenty of foot traffic past the door: The location is one block from the Beale Street entertainment district, and is right across the street from the Flying Saucer, arguably the busiest bar Downtown. There are many other bars and restaurants within one block of the location. The Peabody and Hampton Inn hotels are right around the corner, and the Westin is two blocks away. Many apartment complexes and condos are within a quarter-mile walk. Both locals and tourists tend to bar-hop, and a BWW’s presence would likely benefit surrounding businesses in terms of increased traffic for everyone.

BWW locations feature Buzztime, where you can play trivia, card games, and sports games against other restaurant patrons via video screens and handheld controllers (“little blue boxes,” or as we call them “crack boxes”). There is no place in the Downtown core that has Buzztime. A lot of people look for these Buzztime locations when traveling on business, so they can have something fun and social to do in the evenings without knowing people in town. A BWW could fill that need for people staying in the Peabody, Westin, Hampton Inn and all the other nearby hotels. The only location in all of Downtown that has Buzztime is Calhoun’s, in the South Main district, farther than a lot of people would choose to travel if they don’t have access to a car and aren’t familiar with the trolley system.

The only question would be, what to do with the bowling alley which was prominently featured in both Jillian’s and Primetime. It could be split off as a separate business, or perhaps BWW could take it too and feature the location as one of the few BWWs in the chain with a bowling alley.

BWW is a proven concept that has been around almost 30 years.  I wish Downtown leaders would pursue getting a BWW in the Primetime space, because I can’t think of a tenant that would be a better fit.

The Redbirds have made the playoffs! Their come-from-behind win in the final regular season game yesterday was good enough to put them in the divisonal playoffs this week, and if they win they’ll go on to the league championships next week. Home games at AutoZone Park will be September 8 and 9, and if the ‘Birds continue on, September 17 and if needed, September 18 and 19. You can buy tickets here.

The third annual “Feed the Soul” fundraiser for MIFA will be Thursday, September 30 at The Warehouse at 36 East G.E. Patterson. There will be entertainment by Raiford, the Ryan Peel Band, and Earl Randle, as well as soul food by Chow Time. $40 general admission tickets can be purchased on MIFA’s website or by calling 901-529-4525. For those of you who haven’t been to The Warehouse, it is a wonderful venue for hearing live music. I guarantee you will have a good time, and it’s hard to find a charity that does more for the community than MIFA.

Yesterday several people in animal costumes were roaming the streets of Downtown Memphis, including this one who stopped to chat at the Saucer window.

They were in town for a furry convention. I remember the Memphis Flyer reporting on this convention several years ago… it’s for people who are interested in anthromorphic arts. Many of the attendees dress in costumes, or furry suits. The local convention is called Mephit Furmeet (no I didn’t misspell that) and they meet every year over Labor Day weekend in Olive Branch. They seemed like nice, friendly furries but I think they freaked out some of the Saucer waitresses a little.

Go Hogs! The Arkansas Razorbacks have moved up to 15th in this week’s coaches’ poll, a jump of four spots.

‘Twas a good Labor Day, even if I spent it where I spend most of my time, the Saucer… I’d been invited to a cookout down on South Main, but I got into a fascinating conversations about hostels that kept me at the bar several hours longer than intended. I finished the night off with poker at the Silly Goose, where I again busted out early. I just can’t seem to catch cards there. Well, except for one time when I was dealt pocket Kings and everyone folded to my big blind. Why can’t y’all do that when I’m holding 3-7 offsuit?

Plans for tonight: Back to the Saucer for team trivia at 7. Hopefully the team will recover from our disastrous showing last week. Other stuff going on: Super Tuesday at Kooky Canuck with $5 34 oz. mixed drinks; Pint Night at Bardog Tavern with all drinks $3.

It’s Labor Day!  Many many years ago, someone said, “Having to go to work five days a week really sucks.  Let’s give people a day off,” and Congress made it a national holiday.

In honor of Labor Day, I found a good link this morning that I wanted to pass along:  Here’s a company called 360JobInterview.com that does live interview coaching in Memphis.  Well, actually they’re not in Memphis, but they simulate the interview experience via webcam.  (If you don’t have a webcam on your computer, they can help get you set up.)  You choose a coach who is an expert in interviewing in one of 55 fields – everything from accounting to IT to marketing to printing, and more.  They run you through a mock interview, with questions likely to be asked for your field and your level of experience.  Your coach then gives you a detailed critique and offers suggestions for improvement, and you get a chance to ask your coach any questions you have.

If you’ve been to a number of interviews and haven’t been offered anything, interview coaching would likely be money well spent… sometimes the best constructive criticism comes from a neutral third party who doesn’t know you personally.  360JobInterview also offers career action planning and resume planning.  If you’ve been frustrated and stuck in the job search for a while, these might be good people to talk to.

I had a very enjoyable second day at the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival yesterday.  For some reason I never snap a whole lot of pics at the festival, but here are a few random ones I took:

It’s Monday.  That means it’s Pint Nite at the Saucer, and they’re open at 11 AM.  Most pints $2.75.  Will has tweeted that trivia at Local will happen as usual at 8 PM.  I’m assuming poker at the Silly Goose (9 PM and 11:30 PM) will not be taking a break for Labor Day either.  Not sure about half price wine & pizza night at Spindini.

Gonna go take a walk and get the Sun’s assistance de-Elvising my hair.  Will be at Pint Nite this afternoon.

Two places nearby: Majestic Grille and Cockadoos.  Can’t go wrong with either place.  Both have their menus on their websites.  The Majestic is within the boundaries of the festival; Cockadoos is less than a block away on Second.

If you missed the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival yesterday because you were busy watching college football, you can still catch it today.  It happens from 11 to 11.  It continues to get bigger and better every year.  Here’s the schedule.  Some recommendations (sorry, some of these overlap, too much good music):

• Watoto Memphis, African dance clinic at the Tennessee Arts stage, 12:30; blues dance at the ArtsMemphis stage at 5:15; and folk dance at the Tennessee Arts stage, 7 PM.  Come learn about this wonderful group that teaches children about music and dance.
• Papa Top’s West Coast Turnaround, classic country, 6:45, Folklore Hall stage
• Valerie June, folk, 8:15, Folklore Store stage
• FreeWorld, jam band, 8:15, Tennessee Arts stage
• Funzo Crush aka Young AJ featuring Al Kapone, rap, 9:00, ArtsMemphis stage
• Most of the beer vendor booths have 16 oz. PBR cans for $3
• Try the homemade guacamole at the Las Delicias booth, $5
• Try a slider with Swiss and horseradish grilled on the patio at Circa, $4
• Get some of Ella Kizzie’s greens and hot water cornbread at the kitchen to the left of the Folklore Hall Stage.  At 7 she will have a cooking demo at the Cooking Stage.

If you have an iPhone or Android, don’t forget to download the Center for Southern Folklore app.  It’s really good, and will come in handy when trying to decide what stage to visit next.

I had fun there yesterday… walking around, reconnecting with old friends, meeting new ones… that’s what festivals are all about.  Normally I have a “no side trips” festival rule, but I bend it when the Saucer is a block away, and I made a couple of trips there too.  And, of course, I frequently refreshed the ESPN app on my iPhone to keep up with football, to the point where I had to go home and re-charge my phone late in the afternoon.  Looks like I may have been wrong about Tennessee being the biggest embarrassment in the SEC this year; Ole Miss stepped up yesterday to claim that role.  Jacksonville State, a school no one has ever heard of, handed the Rebels a loss at home.  Meanwhile, the Razorbacks of Arkansas looked strong.  I think this is gonna be a good year for football.

Today I’ll be hanging out at the festival for most of the day.  Come say hello!

If find it odd that in this economy, when people claim they are desperate for work, that this Evening Bell Captain position at the Peabody has been open since June 14.

Why hasn’t someone jumped on this?

True, it’s not a white-collar job, sitting in an office making $60K a year.  But it’s an opportunity.  Since this is a “captain” position, you’d get management experience to add to the resume, not to mention the fact that you’d have one of the South’s most recognizable business names on there as well.  You’d get to improve your customer-service skills.  I’m sure the pay is decent, and don’t bell captains make tips?

Yeah it says “1 to 5 years” experience on the listing, but this job has been open almost THREE MONTHS.  I bet they’d be willing to talk to anyone who shows initiative, and has some kind of experience (for example, acting as manager when the boss is out of town) that would translate to this position’s requirements.

Somebody needs to get on this.  And check out the Peabody’s other job listings as well.

Okay, I’ll get off my rant now.  Up too early, waiting for the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival to start.  Surfing restaurants on MarksMenus to kill time.  Been meaning to try Fuel Cafe in Midtown.  Wonder if any of the local food bloggers have reviewed it?

Last night as I was walking down the Main Street Mall, I saw a poster advertising that the Alley Jams concert series is returning to Downtown this fall.  This year, they’re doing them on Fridays.  I took this pic of the lineup (click it to view it in higher resolution):

Alley Jams showcases the great music you can hear in Memphis, and the many great venues Downtown.  These will be a good way to kick off the weekends.