Paul Ryburn's Journal

I’ve made a deal with my apartment building, Number 10 Main (10 S. Main, just south of the intersection of Main and Madison). Readers of this blog can print out the coupon below for a month’s free rent when you sign a year’s lease.

I moved into Number 10 in February 2003, and have been so happy there that I have re-signed my lease six times. Here are some of the reasons it’s one of the best apartment buildings Downtown:

– Large apartments, some with high ceilings and river views

– Washer/dryer and dishwasher in every unit

– Every unit has its own climate control: Turn your A/C on in January if you feel like it

– Very nice gym in the basement with exercise bikes, stairmasters, treadmills, weight machines, free weights, cable TV

– Lounge area in lobby with kitchen, cable TV, fireplace

– Large 17th-story rooftop with a hot tub and two restaurant-quality grills. Great place to watch the sunset overlooking the Mississippi River.

– Courtesy guards on duty every night. Alex and Chris will keep you safe.

However, I think the best reason to live at Number 10 is LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. Here are a few reasons why:

– Baseball: The Memphis Redbirds’ home Autozone Park is 2 blocks away

– Basketball: The Memphis Tigers’ and Grizzlies’ home FedExForum is 5 blocks away

– Theatre: The Orpheum is 4 blocks away

– Party: Beale Street is 4 blocks away

– Dance: Paula & Raiford’s Disco is 1 block away

– Eat: Here are some of the restaurants within a 4 block radius: Felicia Suzanne’s, Flight, A&R BBQ, McEwen’s, Leonard’s BBQ Buffet, Blue Plate Cafe, Little Tea Shop, On the River Seafood & More, Pa Pa Pia’s Italian, Bangkok Alley Thai (opening soon), Rio Loco Mexican, Huey’s Burgers, Automatic Slim’s, Kooky Canuck, Sauces, Flying Fish, Orleans on Front, Circa, Encore, Bluefin, Majestic Grille

– Hang out: Four of the best Downtown locals’ bars are within a 4 block radius: Bardog Tavern, Voodoo Room, Silly Goose, Flying Saucer

– Shop: Walgreens is just steps away; Jack’s Grocery and Easy Way are two blocks away

– Work out: If the gym in the basement isn’t enough for you, there are two gyms within 3 blocks that offer full workout facilities, classes, etc.

– Trolley stop right outside the front door, making the South Main Arts District with lots of galleries, shops, and restaurants, easily accessible; also, if you work in the Medical Center District, you can ride to and from work on the Madison line.

– If the Thursday night rooftop parties are your thing, you have less than a block walk to the Madison and 2 blocks to the Peabody

– Half a mile walk to Tom Lee Park for Music Fest, BBQ Fest, and Sunset Symphony

If you have any questions about the place, shoot me an e-mail at paul@paulryburn.com and I’ll answer them. It’s the end of school year, so several people have moved out and there are 1 BRs and 2 BRs available. If you’ve been thinking about moving Downtown, this is a great time to do it.

Last night I stopped by Bardog Tavern for to-go food, and noticed a couple of changes since the last time I looked at their menu.

First of all, I noticed that they now have free delivery for a limited area Downtown, between opening time and 10 PM. If you’re between Jefferson on the north, Peabody Place on the south, Riverside on the west, and Third on the east, you can get their food delivered. Call 275-8752 to place an order.

Secondly, I noticed that they’re staying open an hour later on Sundays now… closing time is now 1 AM, rather than midnight.

Their air guitar contest is tonight at 6:30 PM.

It’s Opera Week at the Majestic Grille in honor of Faust at the Orpheum. They’ll have specials all weeks for ticket holders, and they’ll show opera classics on the big screen. In addition, Opera Memphis will hold live performances at the restaurant Wednesday and Friday of this week from noon to 1 PM.

Don’t forget that tonight is the Corey Osborn Let the Music Play fundraiser tonight at BB King’s, to raise money Memphis musicians in need and for the “Queen of Beale Street,” Ruby Wilson. Corey’s note will be unveiled on Beale at 5:30, and at 7:30, the roster of entertainers listed below will take the stage:

Bobby Blue Bland
The Beale Street Flippers
Brian “Breeze” Cayolle
Joyce Cobb
Delta Cappella
The Dempseys
Kallen Esperian
The Kattawar Brothers
Rusty Lemmon
Niko Lyras
Rhoney G.
Preston Shannon
Jason D. Williams

There will also be a raffle for a 65-carat ruby donated by Mednikow.

Ladies, this looks to be a good week to hit the Red Rooster party Thursday night after the rooftop parties let out… this week’s “Chicklette of the Week” will win a Jessica Simpson shoe collection.

Speaking of rooftop parties… the Dempseys play the Madison Thursday night. Is anyone going? Usually the Dempseys are enough to sway me in the direction of the Madison for sure, but with the great weather being predicted I’d kinda rather be at the Peabody, or on the patio at the Silly Goose or at the window of the Saucer. If I know people that are for-sure going to the Dempseys, I may do it… just don’t want to be on that tiny rooftop knowing very few people in the crowd.

Back to work… trivia tonight at 7.

Here are a few pics from this past Sunday’s Rajun Cajun Crawfish Fest.

Some of the gang partied on the rooftop of Barton Flats during the festival.

… and this is an example of why I don’t do Barton Flats at Rajun Cajun and have a “no side parties” policy for this and many other festivals.  This is Carrie, who was my student in Concepts of Numbers and Concepts of Algebra classes at the U of M in the ’90s.  After she graduated she got married and moved to New Zealand.  She’s back in town visiting for a month.  If I’d gone to Barton Flats I would’ve missed seeing her.  I’ll say it again, when there’s a festival going on I want to be at the festival, not somewhere near the festival.

They gave each of Carrie’s kids a live crawfish to take home.  I wish Little Rock had crawfish festivals when I was growing up.  I’d love to see the look on my mother’s face if I’d brought a live crawfish home.  Not that it would’ve survived for very long, since we had a cat.

Here’s a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.  She had her own bucket of crawfish, but that didn’t stop her from coming over and eating out of other people’s buckets.  As one of our gang likes to say, “she’s a food panhandler.”  At least she had a tube top on.

The Nuh-Uh Girl, Stephanie, and Erin on the grass eating crawfish.

Our makeshift crawfish table behind the Autozone HQ.

Here’s another pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating, inside the cooking competition tent.

A great day, and thank goodness the rain held off for the majority of the afternoon.  Festival season is here!

Fifteen different cocktails and pints of PBR are only $1 each at the Silly Goose from 5 to 7 tonight.  That’s a deal you can’t beat!  Here’s a link to a photo of the dollar cocktail menu (from Hot Wing Fest, where the Goose was our team’s sponsor), and here’s a link to a recent Commercial Appeal article on the Goose’s drink specials.  Not only do you get your choice of cocktails for a buck, but you get free tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.  After the dollar deal ends at 7, they have $2 domestic longnecks for the remainder of the evening.  If you want to do a little bar-hopping, the best Pint Nite in the city is next door at the Flying Saucer – $2.75 for your choice of almost 70 draft beers.  Needless to say, the Goose and then the Saucer are on my agenda for tonight.

In other news:  Yesterday as I was walking to Hot Wing Fest, I noticed police cars blocking off the entire block of Union between Second and Third.  I figured maybe there was a big celebrity in town, but then I noticed there was an ambulance too.  This morning, I found out what was going on… a wall collapsed at the Benchmark Hotel/Denny’s at Union and Third, injuring a woman who’d just eaten there.

Friday night is Trolley Tour night, and LOOK AT  THE WEATHER!!!  As of right now they’re predicting high 83, low 64, with little chance of rain.  Sounds like this is the night we’ve been waiting for.  I bet South Main will be packed.  Galleries and shops will be open from 6 to 9 PM, many of them serving refreshments.  Also, if you’re a South Main Association member, you get free food and Boscos beer in the parking lot next to Bluff City Coffee.  If you’re not a member, you can join just in time for the SMA’s Cinco de Mayo party (which will actually be held on Cuatro de Mayo).

Eating an Italian oven-baked sandwich from Domino’s as I type this… when I picked it up, I noticed they had a “big deal bailout” which I think was 3 pizzas for $5 each.  As I’ve said before, everyone has to call their discount a “bailout” or a “stimulus” these days.

Back to work… wish I had a fast-forward button to move the time up to 5 PM.  Silly Goose, here I come.

Two friends of mine are relocating to Atlanta, and are offering an excellent deal on their condo at the corner of Front and Linden.  It’s a New York-style loft in the Hays Building.  There are only 4 units in the building, and you get 2 gated parking spaces as part of the deal.  It’s an 1875 SF 1 bedroom, 1 bath condo, appraised in February 2009 at $278,500, but they’re asking $254,500.  $24,000 instant equity!

The location is ideal for someone who wants to be a part of the Downtown lifestyle.  Only a block from the Orpheum; a short walk to Beale; great restaurants like Circa, Bluefin, the Majestic Grille, and Pearl’s Oyster house are an easy walk, as are two of Downtown’s best watering holes, the Silly Goose and the Flying Saucer.  The South Main Arts District is about a 5 block walk or trolley ride.  Frank’s grocery and deli is nearby for your shopping needs.

You can see pics of the condo below.  Full appraisal is available upon request.  If you’re interested, shoot me an e-mail at paul@paulryburn.com and I’ll put you in touch with the sellers.

If you’re going to any of the big three Memphis in May events, you’d be well-served to click the link below and place an order:

Emergency Poncho for Weather Protection

These are a good thing to have at Memphis in May when the sky lets loose and there’s nowhere for blocks around to run for cover.  Experienced MiM attendees carry one of these in their pocket or purse at all times.  If you order them now, they’ll arrive in time for Music Fest.

The Ques Brothers competed yesterday at the 2009 Southern Hot Wing Festival in South Main, and I stepped into my role as team photographer and took 150 pics.  Before I start posting pics of us, though, I want to recommend a GREAT band I heard yesterday at the festival:  The Young Guns.

I happened to take a walk early afternoon, and as I approached the stage, I heard the band and thought, “these guys are rocking out.”  Then I looked at them and realized they were kids, probably 13-16 years old, playing some of the best rock covers I ever heard.  They played AC/DC’s “Whole Lotta Rosie,” which was supposed to be their final song, but the crowd went wild and started screaming for an encore.  How often do you hear encore requests at street festivals?  Usually, crowds are like, “ok, band’s over, let’s get another beer.”  But the wing fest crowd couldn’t get enough of this band, and the fest’s organizers told them they could do an encore if they wanted.  “We’re going to play some Led Zeppelin for you,” said the lead singer, and then they proceeded to play the best rendition of “Rock and Roll” I’ve ever heard by a cover band.  These guys love performing and I could tell they would’ve been happy to stay onstage all afternoon.

Check out their website – they have a version of Jimi Hendrix’ “Voodoo Chile” and some other songs.  They play the Daisy again on May 9, the Redbirds game on May 11, and Minglewood Hall on May 31.  A lot of people were saying, “they should book these guys to play the Saucer” but I think the over-21 rule would put a stop to that.  Wonder if there’s an exception for performers… anyway, I’m definitely going to try to go see these guys at either the Daisy or Minglewood next month.

A few festival pics:

Uncle Ray loves having his picture taken.  He’s seen here sampling Pluck U’s wings.

John D and Otto enjoying patio seating underneath our sponsor The Silly Goose’s banner.  John looks annoyed that we had kegs of PBR rather than his favorite, Bud Light.

Bicycle Bobby grills a fresh batch of wings.

No festival photo album is complete without a pic of Mikey hamming it up for the camera…

… or a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.

In addition to the wings, we served up homemade onion rings (pictured here), fries, and tater tots.

About 5:30 the rain began to threaten, and we hopped into cars and trolleys and headed north to the Saucer, where the festivities continued around the pool table.

The gang’s all here (except Erin, who I accidentally cut out of the picture.  She wasn’t too happy about that).

With Terry, who isn’t in the best of moods after losing 4 games out of 5 to me at pool.

Stephanie gets ready to break.  You can’t really tell in this pic, but Stephanie has a tube top dress on.

Complete photo album (151 pics) here. What a great festival, and we were fortunate that the rain held off for the better part of the day.  Can’t wait for next year.  My only complaint was that they only had four portable restrooms, which was not enough for a crowd that size and the lines got long.

Now we move on to today’s festival – Rajun Cajun Crawfish Fest.  It’s on Wagner Street along the river betwen Union and Beale, and runs from 12 to 6.  Two bands, buckets of crawfish for sale, as well as crawfish races, crawfish eating contests, and bobbing for crawfish.  I’ll be there all day (weather permitting), and I’m enforcing my “no side trips” rule.  No going to the Saucer for “just one beer” and not coming back for three hours, as I’ve done in previous years.  The Saucer will still be there at 6 when the festival ends.  Many of the gang like to hang out on Barton Flats’ rooftop, but I’m not doing that either – when there’s a festival going on, I want to be at the festival, not somewhere nearby looking at the festival.  Not sure where I’m going to sit to eat my crawfish, though, since this morning’s rain has surely made the grass nice and soggy.  I’ll figure it out though.  Hope to see you down on the river this afternoon!

It’s a little after 8:30 AM, and I’m looking at the radar… looks like the rain will be outta here by 10, so I’m assuming the hot wing fest will go on as planned.

Should be a great day.  I’m going to head down to South Main in about an hour and poke around the Memphis Farmers Market for a little while, then head over to a friend’s condo for cocktails.  Around 11:30-noonish we’ll hit the festival.

My BBQ team the Ques Brothers is competing and using this as a warm-up for BBQ Fest.  We got lucky enough to get booths next to two friend teams, the South Main team (which I believe is going by “Pluck U”) and the Calhoun’s team, so it should be one big party.  Since this is a Ques Brothers event, I’ll bring my camera and create a photo album.  I have the spare camera batteries on the charger now.

Other notes… the famous manhole cover tour of Downtown will happen again this Tuesday at lunchtime.  It’s part of the Downtown Alive series.  Historian Jimmy Ogle will lead a tour of manhole covers along Union Avenue and talk about their part in the history of Memphis.  Tour is free; meet at Union and Wagner at 11:45 AM.

I’m seriously thinking about skipping trivia or showing up late on Tuesday, so I can check out Bardog Tavern’s air guitar contest.  It starts at 6:30 PM.

I did one of the “top 5” things on Facebook last night:  Pick your (5) all-time favorite bars.  The “all-time” thing made me think for a while… forced me to compare old bars (Hoop’s Bar, McGuinness) to bars at which I was once a big-time regular but am not so much anymore (Tap Room, Downtown Blue Monkey) to new favorites (Silly Goose, Bardog).  I also had to spend some time deciding whether Sleep Out Louie’s or the Flying Saucer should be in the #1 spot.  Maybe when I have more time I’ll do a post about this.

Time to put on my Ques Brothers polo shirt and head south.

Some of my friends made the CA this morning. CA dining reviewer Jennifer Biggs reviewed the Silly Goose, although she had more to say about the cheap Monday and Tuesday cocktails than the food. There were several photos and it looks like the whole gang was there, minus me – Mikey, Air Traffic Mike, Uncle Ray, and several others. Wonder if the photo was taken Monday, when I was doing my taxes and was late getting up there.

Biggs also listed Frank’s Market and Deli at Main and Vance as one of her “Best Finds” for sandwiches. I have yet to try one, perhaps because it’s slightly too far to walk and not far enough to justify a trolley ride (7 blocks from my front door). I’ve heard great reviews about Frank’s from my South Main friends though. That brisket sandwich sure looks good.

Kerry from The Memphis Blog e-mailed to tell me about a photo contest they’re doing. All you have to do is upload a photo or video of yourself doing what you usually do on a night out in Memphis, and readers will vote on the best photo or video. The prize is two tickets to the local $5 Cover premiere, and two VIP tickets to the Indie Memphis Film Fest later this year. More info here.

I’ve also been asked to remind everyone that the Memphis Farmers Market has its opening day tomorrow, in the parking lot next to Central Station on GE Patterson, 7 AM to 1 PM. Click the link to find out about all the food offerings, music, and kids’ entertainment. Note to whoever runs the MFM website – you ought to change the title of the main page to something other than “Home.” Page titles are one of the big things search engines look at when indexing sites. Could be missing out on some Google traffic.

I’ve been alerted to something disturbing on the Southern Hot Wing Fest website. It’s scheduled to happen Saturday, but the contact page lists Sunday as the rain date. And there’s a 60% chance of rain Saturday. If they push the hot wing fest back to Sunday, that would put it the same day as Rajun Cajun Crawfish Fest on the river. Which would SUCK. I’m really looking forward to both, but if both end up on Sunday and I’m forced to choose, Rajun Cajun will win, and nearly everyone I polled said the same thing. I hope the organizers of the hot wing fest will make every effort to go on with it Saturday as scheduled.

Last night: Walked down to the Main/Peabody Place block party. Of course, the Saucer was on the way there, so I stopped in for a beer. Then my friend Lee showed up and I had a second beer. So I didn’t get to the block party until 7:00, where my friend Susie told me “MAJOR, MAJOR FAIL” for not showing up early. Susie uses the word “fail” about as often as Brittney from the Saucer uses a variant of the word “fuck” in conversation. Which is to say, nearly every sentence. Anyway, due to the weather the block party wasn’t all that exciting. The Majestic’s patio was packed and there was a band, but not that many people were on the street. I decided to hit the Silly Goose instead, then back to the Saucer.

At the Saucer’s bar I found myself next to Boscos/Ghost River brewmaster Chuck Skypeck. He told be about a new beer he’d been brewing for the Arkansas Travelers baseball team over in Little Rock – Hook Slide Ale. I immediately knew how it got its name. I grew up in Little Rock, and in the ’80s I went to Travelers games all the time (they were then the St. Louis Cardinals’ AA affiliate). There was this guy named Willie who would do baseball slides – feet first, so they were called “hook slides” – down the aisle in front of the third-base bleachers. He’d set up a popcorn box as a makeshift base, and then people in the stands would buy him beers to do his hook slide. He was as much of an attraction as the team itself. He died sometime around 1985. He’d be thrilled to know there’s now a beer named after him that is being sold at Travelers games.

Then I went on to the Peabody rooftop party, but it was about 60 and windy and I only had a T-shirt on (my “NO BUMS” T-shirt, in case anyone cares to know). So I didn’t stay long – headed back to the Saucer for the Dempseys, where I only made it through one set before I decided to call it a night.

Plans for tonight: I’m going to take it very easy and get some rest, assuming I have a hot wing festival to attend tomorrow at 10. Maybe a few beers at the Saucer or the Goose, but I plan on being in bed by 11.

Ladies, if you’re going to the Peabody rooftop party tonight, don’t forget to bring your cameras… if some of the same dudes who were there last week show back up, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to take pics to submit to the Hot Chicks with Douchebags website.

Also, don’t forget that the Red Rooster has a great after-party. Every week they select a “Chicklette of the Week” and award her a prize. This week’s Chicklette gets a pair of True Religion jeans. All ladies get in free all night, and the Mudflap Kings will be on stage.

I’ve been so busy talking about the Peabody rooftop party that I forget to mention that the Madison Hotel will also have one tonight… Joyce Cobb will be the entertainment.

I heard from several people that Sawaddii, the Thai restaurant on Union, served its last meal last night. It will reopen as Bangkok Alley next month, with the same staff but a different menu. Sad to see them go… I will miss their dancing-man-hot Salmon Green Curry, their Thai beef salad, and their lettuce wraps. They always had great service there… I’ll never forget the time I ordered to-go and there was a 30-minute wait. It was about to storm and I resigned myself to running home in the rain with my food. They knew I was walking, had it ready in 9 minutes, and I beat the storm. Thanks to the folks at Sawaddii for all the great times.

Susan Marshall will celebrate the release of her third CD, Little Red, with a release party at The Warehouse at Front and GE Patterson on Friday, April 24. Susan, the regular piano player at Itta Bena, will perform with a full band, including Sam Shoup on bass, Dave Cousar on guitar, Ryan Peel on drumps, Scott Thompson on trumpet, and Jim Spake on sax. $5 cover, doors open at 8, music begins at 9. This is also a Trolley Tour night, so you can hit South Main for Trolley Tour, then walk over to the Warehouse.

Eating Taco Bell as I type this… for those who work in Whitehaven, anyone been to that restaurant on Winchester that serves “authentic African cuisine?”  It’s on Winchester between Elvis Presley and Mill Branch.  Curious what type of cuisine… Ethiopian?  Morroccan?  Africa’s a rather large place.

My routine seems to be a long night of sleep followed by a late night… last night I was in bed by 9:30.  Tonight, on the other hand, with the block party, rooftop party, and the Dempseys, I’m sure to be up late.  May stop at Bardog as well… they had a large post-rooftop crowd last Thursday that was still going strong when I left at 1 AM.  I’ll catch up on sleep Friday night and be ready to go for Hot Wing Fest and Rajun Cajun this weekend.