Paul Ryburn's Journal

There will be a flip cup championship tournament at the Red Rooster on Saturday afternoon.  Here are the details I got from Facebook:  Gates open at 1 with cornhole and tricycle races, practice from 2 to 3, tournament draw at 3:30, and the Memphis Flip Cup Championship begins at 4.  Hmm… yep, there’s a very good possibility I’ll show up for this one.  For more details get on Facebook and search for “3rd Annual Memphis Flip Cup Championships.”

Updated list of what will be open Thanksgiving:

• Westy’s
• Wang’s
• Flying Saucer (at 5)
• Calhoun’s (at 5)
• Earnestine & Hazel’s (big party starting at 8; $5 cover to go to two charities)
• Green Beetle (I think the sign on the door said 8:30)
• Red Rooster (at 9).  They’re having a “dance off that turkey” party with Adrenaline, ladies free til 11, balloon drop with a chance to win free cover for the rest of the year.

The Rooster will also be open Wed. night for a big pre-Thanksgiving party with Yes, No, Maybe.  So that’s three big parties going on Wed. night (Bardog, Big Foot, Rooster) plus Turkey of the Year glass night at the Saucer.

Also, the Rooster carries Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka.  Maybe I can use that as leverage to get my favorite blogger/MILF to finally venture Downtown… she can drink sweet tea vodka and watch her stupid-ass Peyton on the Rooster’s gazillion HDTVs.

Hmmm tricycle races… wonder if I’ll get to see Sam on a tricycle Saturday.  Guess I better bring the extra battery for the camera.

Oh by the way… I first saw the Flip Cup Championship on one of my Facebook friends’ pages, who plans on attending.  Another Facebook friend followed up with a comment:  “Flip cup championship?  Really… there is nothing else better in Memphis going on?”  This second friend recently hosted a tea party.  Really?  You have tea parties and yet feel qualified to comment on the appeal of other people’s events?  Some people shouldn’t be allowed out of Cordova.

OK… gonna make the trip to the Hostess store and pick up those HoHos today.  Possibly back later this afternoon with another post.

More cool stuff upcoming at the Majestic Grille in the next month… for the next four Sundays, they’re going to do Sunday Supper and a Movie, with a special dinner menu at 6:30 PM and movie starting at 7 PM.  Here’s the lineup:

• November 30 – Miracle on 34th Street
• December 7 – Scrooge starring Albert Finney
• December 14 – The Thin Man (dinner at 7, movie at 7:30 for this one)
• December 21 – It’s a Wonderful Life

There will also be a special Thursday movie screening – National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation on Thursday, December 18 at 8 PM.

Also, make reservations for a special Brunch with Santa on Saturday, December 20 from 11 AM to 2 PM.  They’ll have brunch specials, Santa, holiday movies on the big screen, and hot chocolate.  Go to majesticgrille.com to sign up to attend.

Still more to come… if you think Wednesday-Friday is looking like a big party weekend Downtown, I have news that make cause you to extend it to Saturday.

This afternoon or tomorrow I’m going to visit an oft-forgotten gem in Downtown Memphis to do some shopping.  I’m going to head to the Wonder/Hostess thrift store at Danny Thomas and Monroe.

Although they’re best known for Hostess snack cakes, you can actually do quite a bit of your grocery shopping there.  They have really good breads, a selection of canned goods, and other household necessities.

In addition, instead of paying a dolla or more for Hostess Fruit Pies at Walgreen’s or Jack’s, you can pick them up at the thrift store for less than half that amount.  The only downside is that the expiration dates might be 10-12 days away rather than 3 weeks.  So what?  It’s been my experience that Hostess fruit pies don’t last very long in my household.  Plus you can find flavors (lemon, peach) rarely seen in stores.

I thought of the Hostess thrift store because a certain health guru is dragging her feet delivering a meal plan she promised me.  So, I’m going to create my own meal plan centered around Hostess HoHos.  Why HoHos?  Because the creator of the Hot Chicks with Douchebags site eats HoHos while he types and upload photos.  He’s known to be a PBR drinker, so clearly he’s a man of quality whose mannerisms should be emulated.

My health plan also includes lots of vitamin C, which is why I’m off to the Second Street branch office for a little while to squeeze lots of limes into pints of Dos Equis Lager.

It’s cheap to drink at Big Foot Lodge when Monday Night Football is on.  Just bring two dollars to drink on and a dog biscuit to leave as a tip for Meghan, and you’ve bought yourself a 34 oz. Super Cold Coors Light and a ringside seat for Monday Night Football on their 6 TVs.  They also have $3 blue kamikazes, $4 100 proof tequila shots, and 24 wings for $9.99 while the game is on.

Lots of other stuff to do Downtown tonight as well… Di Anne Price on the piano in the Westin lobby… $10 unlimited bowling at Jillian’s… team trivia at the Downtown Monkey (8:00) and Huey’s (9:00)… Calhoun’s usual $1.50 PBR all day, every day with MNF on its 5 TVs… the all day, every day $1 domestics at Hooters… the all day, every day $2.50 PBR at Bardog Tavern ($1.50 from 5 to 7)… and, of course, my favorite, Pint Nite at the Flying Saucer, with almost all pints $2.75.

Majestic and Rooster news still to come… will post later today or tomorrow.

After 4 hours of drinking at the Saucer this afternoon, I decided it was time to take a break before the Memphis vs. Xavier game.  So I wandered down the street to Rio Loco.  Pollo Loco Tapatio was the Sunday special, on sale for $9.99, and I decided to give it a try.

Pollo Loco Tapatio consists of chicken topped with mushrooms, bacon, and Rio Loco’s cheese sauce.  Look at all the bacon!  I love bacon.  Bacon makes me deliriously happy.  But that’s not all I got…

I also got flour tortillas (not shown, unless you’re a complete dumbass you know what they look like), and sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo as toppings, along with the standard Mexican sides of rice and beans.  All of this for under 10 bucks on Sunday is amazing.  Even at the regular price of $11.49 (I think, don’t hold me to that) it’s still one of the best dining deals Downtown.

The Majestic Grille will do its annual 50% off gift card sale Wednesday, December 3 beginning at 9 AM.  These things are a great deal.  You buy them in $50 increments, paying $25 for each increment.  The catch is, you can’t use them until January 2, 2009, but once it’s next year you’ll be able to enjoy Patrick’s amazing filet for an effective price in the low teens.  Or you can get one of the best burgers Downtown for an effective price of only four bucks.  Or their delicious whole roasted chicken with garlic mashed potatoes for an effective price under ten… you get the idea.

These things will sell out fast.  Last year I seem to remember them running out around 1 PM.  I predict it’ll happen even faster this year, now that the Majestic tied for Best Restaurant in the Flyer poll.  Best advice for those who don’t work Downtown:  Go in late to work and show up right at 9 to buy gift cards.  If that isn’t possible, take your lunch break right at 11 and hurry Downtown.

Last year, I took $125 down there and bought $250 in gift cards, and as a result was able to enjoy many good dinners there in 2008.  I still have about 80 bucks left on last year’s gift card sale.  Note that the gift cards can’t be used to purchase alcohol; if that were possible, there’s no way I’d still have $80 left to spend.  This is a rule made by the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission, not the owners of the Majestic.

This sale, by the way, is not affiliated with the Restaurant.com discount gift certificate program I sometimes mention. This is the Majestic’s in-house program, and to be honest, it’s better than Restaurant.com’s program because it’s simpler to use.

Back with more news about happenings at the Majestic, but this gift card program is one of the best things of the year and warranted a post of its own.  I’ll have news about an upcoming event at the Rooster too.

There’s still a lot of partying left to do in November, but yet, the clock is winding down on the month.  That means it’s time to seek nominations for my December BFF of the Month.

Right now Stephanie (pictured at left) is probably the front-runner for December, but she by no means has it locked up, and there’s still a week left to go.  Stephanie has had a string of BFF near-misses dating all the way back to June… are there any other contenders I should consider, capable of handing her yet another loss for the last month of 2008?

Winner to be announced Monday, December 1.

Friday afternoon I went to the “Flip-the-Switch” party to turn on the Christmas lights in Court Square.

The festivities started with children caroling in the gazebo.

Then they flipped the switch and the lights came on.  Here’s a pic of the fountain’s lighting.

Here’s a crowd shot.  You can see the lighting and holiday angels on the lamp posts in Court Square in this pic.

Congratulations to the CCC and all the volunteers they recruited… they have done an incredible job.  All of Downtown – from Auction to G.E. Patterson – is decorated for the holidays.  You may not know this, but there has been a committee of volunteers hard at work planning this all year, going all the way back to March or April I believe.  CCC President Jeff Sanford commented that this is the best Downtown has looked for the holidays in at least 25 years, and things are just going to keep getting better from here.

We’ve got more fun on the way too – don’t forget that the Downtown Holiday Parade will be on South Main next Friday, November 28, at 5 PM, followed by a Jolly Trolly Tour with all the galleries and shops in the area open.

Marketer Seth Godin did a blog post yesterday on what he thinks should happen regarding the impending failure of the Big Three automakers.  In my opinion he hit the nail right on the head:  Let them fail, then make it easy for new, innovative car manufacturers to go into business by removing as many regulatory roadblocks as possible.  A great post and worth forwarding to the people who represent you in Washington.  Read it here.

Last night we had a birthday party for our friend Jessica, which started at Bardog Tavern and ended at Ground Zero.  This pic from Ground Zero pretty much sums up what went on there:

It was the first time I’d been to Ground Zero at night to hear a band – previously I’d only been for happy hour.  I really enjoyed it.  Preston Shannon was playing some great blues, and the DJ spun all kinds of tunes when the band was on break.  Good-sized crowd – every table was occupied but the place was not overly packed.  If you’re looking to dance Downtown but want something a little more mature than the madness of Beale Street or the wildness of the Red Rooster, give Ground Zero a try.

By the way: I still have two “free appetizer with purchase of an entree” cards from Ground Zero to give away.  Ask me for one if you see me out.  I have them in my wallet so they’re always with me.

Party attendees:  I’ll upload pics to Facebook later today.  I’m going to have to do a lot of work on these in Picasa to see if I can salvage bad pics due to the less-than-ideal lighting.

I’ll be back later today with pics from the “Flip the Switch” Christmas lighting ceremony last night in Court Square.