The “what’s going on Thursday night” post

Today’s Thursday, so it’s once again time to survey what’s going on Downtown this week.

  • The Ugli Stick on the Peabody rooftop.  6 to 10 PM, $5 cover, ladies free until 8.
  • Joyce Cobb on the Madison rooftop, 5:30 to 10:30 PM
  • For the second week in a row… THE DEMPSEYS AT THE FLYING SAUCER!!!!!  You better believe I’ll be there again!  First time they’ve ever scheduled the Dempseys back-to-back weeks.  Wish Downtown Huey’s would give this a try sometime on Sunday nights.  When’s the last time we had a Dempseys show there… December?
  • Not sure who’s at the Red Rooster… their website says Chris Sturt and their MySpace page says Rocky4Phoenix.  Not that it matters… I go for the beer specials more than the music.  The Rooster rocks!
  • Q107.5 patio party with Garry Goin and G3 at EP Delta Kitchen, 8:30-til.  They updated the calendar on their website!  Finally!
  • Ladies’ night at Tug’s in the River Inn of Harbor Town.  Ladies receive half price drinks all evening.

The Rooster, by the way, has a very good band tomorrow night, Friday, May 2… Kings of the Delta will play there.  I’ve heard them many times at the Saucer, and they’re going to sound great on the Rooster’s stage.  Something to keep in mind for post-Music Fest entertainment.

I’ve already received several “THANK GOODNESS YOU FINALLY KICKED YOUR BFF TO THE CURB!” e-mails this morning.  Yep, it was time for her to go.

Coming soon… a post about Circa’s new summer cocktails and beer specials.  Chef John Bragg is now a member of our BBQ team.

Speaking of BBQ… fighting the temptation to hit Leonard’s BBQ Buffet for lunch.

A new month, a new beginning: BFF kicked to curb. Also: Bloody Marys @ Rooster, Grizzlies Foundation, Kentucky Derby

I’ve decided it’s time to listen to the collective voice of my readers.  This BS has gone on long enough.  As of this moment, my BFF is officially kicked to the curb. She’s dumped, she’s finished, she is no longer my Best Friend Forever.  I will appoint a new BFF on Monday and I think I’ll do the “BFF of the Month” thing that AL suggested.  If you have suggestions on who my new BFF should be e-mail me at paul@paulryburn.com.

Had a great time at Downtown Night at Itta Bena last night.  They had shrimp cocktails as the free appetizer and I had several of the $5 well drinks served by Sam.  I’ve been told they will have a miniature version of Downtown Night next Wednesday, as the entire building (BB’s and Itta Bena) has been bought out from 6:30 on.

From there I went on to the Saucer, where the featured “Buy the Beer, Keep the Glass” glass was a DOS EQUIS glass!  So I had a Dos Equis Lager and picked one up… very cool glass, hand-blown with a green tint.  From there it was on to Big Foot, where I had my last beer served by my BFF while still my BFF.  Big Foot is now off my Wednesday night schedule, so I’ll be going back to my old habit of closing the Saucer and possibly hitting McGuinness afterward.

The Red Rooster’s latest ad mentions “The biggest Bloody Mary party in town!” on Sundays.  Hmmmmmmm.  I’ll have to talk to the people there and get more details.  I won’t be there this Sunday (I’ll be at McGuinness – Amy needs the support – and then Music Fest) but definitely soon.

Mpact Memphis is hosting a special After Hours with former Tiger basketball star Elliot Perry and the Grizzlies Foundation Tuesday, May 13 from 6 to 8 PM in the FedExForum’s Blue Note Lounge.  Perry will talk about his work with the Grizzlies’ charitable arm and how you can get involved with the foundation.  Complimentary food, wine, and beer for Mpact members.

Yesterday I asked on behalf of a reader where the Kentucky Derby will be shown Downtown on Saturday… not surprisingly, Calhoun’s responded and said they’d have the Derby on.

That’s all for this morning… got to get to work.  Later today I’ll do a “what’s happening on Thursday night” post.

Wed update: Two new patios, bake sale, BFF, parking scammer, veggie wrap, and who’s showing the Kentucky Derby?

The Rapscallions took second in trivia last night, bringing our total gift certificate stash to $50.  Afterward I headed south to Calhoun’s.  I got an advance look at their new patio, which is not open yet but will be very, very soon… really, all that remains is acquiring furniture.  Should be a very nice spot to hang out and will add another 20 people or so to the place’s capacity.

The Red Rooster has also added a patio.  There’s an exit door to the right of the stage which leads outside to 6-8 tables of patio seating.  I can envision myself sitting out there sometime very soon, enjoying a Yuengling and the Rooster’s mountainous order of nachos.

The Residence Inn (formerly the Wm. Len) at Main and Monroe is having a bake sale Friday, May 2 in support of Make-A-Wish.  Sale will run from 10 to 2, so those who work Downtown will be able to hit it in their lunch hour.

So, earlier this month I asked my readers to advise me on whether to kick my BFF to the curb and get a better one, or keep her.  So far my BFF has managed to survive being kicked, despite the votes going over 90% against her.  And they keep coming in.  Last night Sunday brunch crew member Air Traffic Mike was out in East Memphis, and someone who describes herself as “an avid reader of my blog” asked Mike to get this to me:

This is a person I’ve never even met.  Wow.  No one likes my BFF.  She’s still very close to being kicked, but I can’t do it to her so close to her birthday.

The Downtown safety patrol and the Handling-Panhandling forum got a trophy recently.  The patrol caught one of the area’s worst parking scammers charging people to park cars on Beale Street near Main.  He had a credential/badge on him issued by a business on Pontotoc near Third.  That didn’t add up.  A parking credential from a business several blocks away does not entitle a panhandler to charge people to park in public metered spaces, although it could be used to confuse out-of-towners enough to cause them to fork over some money.  Handling-Panhandling co-founder Mike King went to the business that issued the credential to investigate.  Turns out they had hired the panhandler one time, several years ago, to park cars on their lot (Pontotoc is near the FedExForum, so they can make money on game nights).  However, he is now not allowed on their lot, they’ve filed two Authorizations of Agency against him to make it illegal for him to trespass on their lot, and he is definitely not their representative in any way.  Proof positive that the guy is a scammer.  Needless to say he is no longer in possession of the parking credential.  Congratulations to the safety patrol and to Mike King – great job!  More evidence that we need to keep the patrol past the 90-day trial period.

Is anyplace Downtown having a special screening of the Kentucky Derby?  I have a blog reader who wants to know.

I’ve had several people who read my Majestic new menu post inquire as to what’s in the veggie wrap.  It’s hummus, grilled artichokes, roasted peppers, goat cheese, and tomatoes in a whole grain tortilla.  Sorry, guess I should’ve included the ingredients in my earlier post… guess I need to make the blog vegetarian-friendly.  The wrap does sound good, although it would sound even better with some tasty dead animals added.

Time to get some work done.  The thing is, I enjoy my job, but when people ask, “How was work today?”, it’s hard to come up with anything interesting to tell them.  “I revised some C# methods in our product’s business logic layer to eliminate bugs” is not exactly stimulating conversation.  I used to tell people I skate in Sesame Street on Ice and play the role of Big Bird.  Maybe I’ll go back to doing that.

Oh.  Speaking of Big Bird… one more thing before I go.  I’ve been told the new Downtown Blue Monkey (which is STILL not open) building has been painted bright, bright, bright yellow.  Really, really bright.

Okay… now I’m outta here.

 

A few pics from Hot Wing Fest

Hey, YouTube took down my bum video that I posted last night!  Rats.

My friend AL e-mailed about the Acai Plus Smoothie, her favorite at Bluff City Coffee, which I tried Friday night.  She said she was glad I liked it and recommended adding a scoop of chocolate protein powder next time I have one (you have to bring your own, Bluff City doesn’t have it).  I too was thinking about additives to the smoothie, but I was thinking more in terms of vodka.

Here are some pics from Saturday’s Hot Wing Festival on South Main:

Here’s a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.

This team went low-tech on their booth’s sign, but they won the contest.  I saw our BBQ team captain Chuck, who is currently working out the team budget, looking at this sign and taking notes.

A shot of the crowd, looking toward the stage.

A shot from in front of the stage, looking back toward the entrance.  This festival was in Poplar Lounge’s parking lot for its first five years, but outgrew it and moved to South Main.  It was well attended and I have a feeling it will get even bigger next year.

Only in Memphis will you see spinner rims on Segways.

CA writer Michael Donohue taking pics for his column.

Cup on the left:  “I only have a drinking problem when the cup is empty.”  Cup on the right:  “Well-behaved women rarely make history.”

Tonight:  The usual Tuesday night stuff.  Trivia at the Saucer.  After that I’ll probably head south to Calhoun’s for $1.50 PBR.

For the first time in years…

… I’m going to Music Fest.  I bought my 3-day pass this morning online.

Normally I’m not a fan of Music Fest, due to lousy weather, a crowded park, and amateur drunks.  However, this year, thanks to connections I have at the Memphis Flyer, I got access to their tent.  Free food and beer all weekend, plus I’ll know a lot of people in the tent.  Looking at it that way, the $76 ticket fee (after all of Ticketmaster’s stupid charges are added on) looks like a pretty good deal – less than I’d pay to eat and drink on a normal weekend.

I don’t really get into the music that much… the only act I plan to make an effort to see is Lord T and Eloise at 6:05 Friday.  Otherwise, I’m there just to hang out.

All right… time to get some work done.  More posts to come today.

Hey mayne I gots a 3-pack of underwear I’m trying to sell. It’s 5 dolla at Target but I’ll sell it to you for a dolla and seventy-five cent

Panhandling hit a new all-time low tonight. I was at the Saucer window and this guy comes up and asks if I want to buy some underwear. No kidding, he was holding a 3-pack of men’s underwear, still in the plastic container, in his hand.

We called the bum patrol and had him run off. Here’s a video of him making a graceful exit:

In other news:  I reported that my BFF tried to get me to drive and pick up her roommate after selling me three 34 oz. beers.  I WAS JUST KIDDING.  Number one, I don’t drive after that many beers (after even one beer, really, anymore).  Number two, my BFF knows I don’t drive after that many beers.  Number three, she wouldn’t let me anyway, because my BFF cares about me (way more than she’ll ever admit).  Okay?  Chill out.  Damn people take my drunk posts too seriously.  Not that she doesn’t need to be talked to about “responsibility” but not because of yesterday’s post.

Tons more to post about but once again I’m too drunk and have to call it a night.

Robert Plant and Allison Krauss to play Mud Island in July

An announcement on the Memphis Business Journal’s website indicates that Robert Plant and bluegrass musician Allison Krauss will play the Mud Island Ampitheatre on July 8.

The show better be good… Plant turned down a $200 million Led Zeppelin reunion tour to tour instead with Krauss.  A lot of people were disappointed by that, but Plant doesn’t need the money and is free to do what he wants.

Hmmm, that’s a Tuesday.  May have to miss trivia that week.

New menu at Majestic Grille

The Majestic Grille has updated its menu, and there are a lot of items I can’t wait to try.  Some of the new items on the menu:

  • Crab and crawfish dip
  • Tempura fried shrimp.  I had these at their private party a couple of weeks ago and they are GOOD!
  • Chicken liver mousse with homemade apple jelly
  • A duck confit flatbread with caramelized onions, sun-dried cranberries, mixed greens, and goat cheese
  • A salmon flatbread with red onions, spinach, and mozzarella
  • Seared tuna sandwich with wasabi mayo
  • Cajun grilled chicken sandwich with bacon, aged cheddar and Creole mustard
  • Creole chicken salad wrap
  • Veggie wrap
  • Smoked chicken penne with shittake mushrooms, scallions, and parmesan cream
  • Shrimp and scallop linguini
  • A “nice” cheese and “mean” sausage platter
  • A 12-ounce filet mignon for those who have bigger appetites than the 8-ounce.  Many people have said the filets at the Majestic are the best in town.

Last year, I bought $250 in gift cards at a one-day half-off sale they ran.  I still have about $180 left to spend, and it looks like I now have a lot of new menu items to try.

You can view the entire menu on the Majestic Grille’s website.  Note in particular that local celebrity John D has his own item named after him on the brunch menu.  John recommends that you wash down his breakfast with his beverage of choice, a Bud Light.

Major concert info to come later today.

Poetry slam tonight in Cooper-Young

Local poet IQ sent me the following information about a poetry slam to be held tonight in Cooper-Young:

At Last IT is Here!!
 
7pm tonight @ Galloway in Cooper Young, 1015 S. Cooper!!!
 
Tonight the Galloway stage welcomes the cream of the crop from Memphis poetry slammers in the last ten years to Galloway in Cooper Young for a live recording and one great cause.  2000 Southern Fried Southeastern Slam Grand Champion, Adam White (3 time regionals team member & NPS 2000) Iasia (two-time regionals) IQ (NPS ’99-2000, ’02 & 5-time Southern Fried Regionals) and more will come together to raise money for two great schools keeping creative writing and art alive in Memphis, TN.
 
Continuing to support the writing community at large, The Trolleyline Poetry Slam is giving part of the proceeds from tonight’s slam to benefit The Scribbler, the literary and visual art journal of White Station High, and the recently established Central High School English Honors Society.
 
The special guest features for tonight’s slam are Jerri & Kirk Hardesty, legendary SlamMasters of Montevallo, AL and publishers of New Dawn Unlimited Press.
 
In addition to a great slam, a fantastic concert by RUSTY LEMON is on tap tonight too.
See You Tonight @7pm, 1015 South Cooper, across the street from First Congo in Cooper Young.