Memphis has a mystical quality about it, a gentile shabbiness that feels a bit like a treasure hunt. Where one block might seem forgotten, the next will suddenly transform into a cultural oasis, where the creative class have turned beauty parlors into restaurants and abandoned warehouses into social clubs. There is a sense of pride in place, and a deep history that is rich and dynamic.
Take yourself on a treasure hunt in this place. Here is Georgia’s Weekend Guide to Memphis: all of her Eat, Drink, Stay, See, Acquire suggestions to help you along.
|Georgia Pellegrini Guide to Memphis|
Best Time of Year
Any time!
Recommended Number of Days
1 – 2 days
Recommended Number of People
2 or more, this would be a great girls trip too
Apps to Download
Google Maps – create a custom map ahead of time to mark your spots, then use it on your phone to help guide you along the way
Orbitz – they send discount codes to your email almost daily which you can use to book each night
Your favorite podcasts if you’re driving, some of ours include – Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday, Up and Vanished, How I Built This, True Crime Garage, Revisionist History
Eat, Drink, Stay, See, Acquire
Eat
Las Tortugas. We never go to Memphis without going here. It is a little bit out in Germantown but it is the best taco spot we have ever been to. It was started by Pepe Magallanes after he decided to retire from his job in Mexico City. He personally sources vibrant authentic ingredients that are so delicious they will knock your socks off. Some of our favorites on the menu include: the Tesoté, Eloté and a pork torta. This is a favorite spot among local Memphis chefs
If you want to take a Mexican food safari, Salsa a Tregalia, is an unassuming Mexican restaurant in a strip mall. The menu isn’t much to write home about, except their crispy beef tacos, which remain the best we have ever tasted. Our experts have tried and tried to find better tacos, going to place after place and we have never found better tacos than Salsa. It is combination #3 on their menu. While you are there try their cheese dip and homemade chips too
Paynes BBQ, is unquestionably the place to have barbecue in Memphis, a hole in the wall, as it should be
Beauty Shop Restaurant and Lounge is as you might expect, a converted beauty parlor where some of the seats at tables are the old hooded hair dryers, and apparently Priscilla Presley used to get her hair done there. It is great for brunch, lunch, and dinner and a fun date spot. A favorite is the cinnamon banana french toast, or the grilled bread (ricotta, mint, honey). Their cocktails and cakes are also excellent
- Craig’s BBQ on the way from Little Rock to Memphis, in De Valls Bluff (Get the chopped BBQ)
- Bob Barksdale’s, a no frills breakfast spot
- Hog and Hominy, a higher end dinner spot, where you might need reservations
- Bounty on Broad in the warehouse district, a funky neighborhood with a large plate family-style menu
- Porcellino’s Craft Butcher, a nice lunch spot with great pastry, coffee, meats, and famous for their cinnamon roll
- Catherine and Mary’s
- Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen
- Iris, a reservation only restaurant by Kelly English with beautiful farm-to-table Southern food
- Second Line, also by Kelly English serves up more casual fare like Burgers and Po Boys
- Felicia Suzanne’s is lovely, with a New Orleans twist, and they have $.25 Martinis for Friday Lunch!
Drink
Wiseacre Brewery, is a favorite local brewery (but there are a lot of great ones in Memphis)
Late Night
Mollie Fontaine, is a magical spot for late late night dinner and drinks. It is a Bar & lounge in an old victorian home with lots of interesting art. They usually have piano, or live music of some kind and you immediately feel transported
Stay
- Sheraton in Memphis is nice, especially if you have SPG points
- Peabody Hotel is historic and famous, but rooms can be priced high
See
- Graceland, the home of Elvis, is worth a stop off if you’re going to be in Memphis. Pro Tip: Go at 7pm, when you can walk up without having to pay to get on a tour bus
- STAX museum and Sun Studio tour for your soul music history
Acquire
South Front Antiques, is a mecca for architectural salvage with a and huge collection of doors and door hardware, not to mention fixtures galore. It is a feast for the eyes and you will love getting lost winding through 3 floors of rooms and fantasizing about the old Victorian house you are going to restore one day
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