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The Jonas Brothers' Memphis memories

By Mark Richens on July 3, 2009 5:01 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
Today-Show-Jonas-Brothers.jpgGearing up for a July 4 show in Provo, Utah, Disney tween-pop superstars the Jonas Brothers tell the Salt Lake Tribune about some of their fondest memories of playing shows on Independence Day. It turns out the boys had a blast a few years back in Memphis (I haven't been able to figure out what year this was; can anyone help?):

Joe: We have one big memory when we first started touring. We were actually in --where were we, in Tennessee?

Nick: We were in Memphis.

Joe: We spent the whole day walking around, having barbecue. Just one of those memories that you kind of never forget.


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L.A. Times travel blogger follows Elvis' ghost

By Mark Richens on June 29, 2009 7:55 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
Mark Milian, who hosts a travel blog on the Los Angeles times Web site, added Memphis as a last-minute stop on his "two-week, music-inspired road trip." As a result, he ended up in town fairly late on a Sunday, which is not the ideal time to get the measure of the place -- for example, he found a lot of restaurants and attractions closed, and left unimpressed with what he found:

Readers hyped it up as a cornerstone of American music, but it felt more like a history class field trip. Then again, I might just be bitter about missing some of the classic barbecue joints.

Kudos to Milian for tweaking the unbearable song "Walking in Memphis" by Marc Cohn:

Just as I was driving into the city on Sunday, the teeth-grinding country ditty "Walking in Memphis" by Marc Cohn started playing on the radio. The song basically references the titles of Elvis songs along with places around Memphis to create an overarching story that doesn't make much sense. For example, Cohn says he "saw the ghost of Elvis on Union Avenue / Followed him up to the gates of Graceland." OK, that's a two-hour walk, dude.

Follow Milian's travels here, and keep up with him on Twitter here.

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Justin Timberlake's Southern Hospitality

By Mark Richens on June 11, 2009 4:54 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
Fashion-Geek-Chic.jpgThe New York Press checks in from Justin Timberlake's "Memphis-style" barbecue restaurant Southern Hospitality on Manhattan's Upper East Side, where the new summer cocktail menu was introduced Wednesday night. Judging from the blogger's description, I might describe the restaurant's ambiance as Craig Brewer chic ...

The waitresses scurried around in ironic trucker hats, flannel shirts and (designer) cut-off jean shorts under glowing beer signs as country music blared through the speakers.

The summer cocktail menu features Timberlake's new signature tequila 901, though the NY Press complains that the margaritas are made with sour mix instead of lime juice, and some drinks featured gummy worms.

Nor is the blogger impressed with Southern Hospitality's barbecue selections, which include pineapple-flavored chicken strips. Last year, the restaurant hired the noted Ray "Dr. BBQ" Lampe to improve the program, which New York magazine called "awful." Lampe specifically promised to introduce "competition-style" ribs, though the NY Press tuts that they were "served with a fork and knife, no bib included."

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Corky's, a Memphis airport secret

By Mark Richens on June 8, 2009 8:05 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
Brand management guru Bruce Turkel mentions Corky's barbecue as one of his "secret airport vices" in this little Q&A on The New York Times Web site. This short discussion from a couple of years ago on Chowhound weighs Corky's airport store vs. its other locations, and vs. other Memphis barbecue favorites.

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Tropical Nut & Fruit wins safety award

By Mark Richens on June 4, 2009 7:49 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
784204_TropicalLogo_01_06_[Converted][1].jpgI just ran across this news release about Tropical Nut & Fruit Co.'s distribution plant in Memphis earning the 2008 Audit Platinum Award from the food-testing company Silliker Inc.  Tropical Nut & Fruit has more than 3,000 products, including nuts, snack mixes, dried fruit and the like. Silliker VP Rena M. Pierami praised "the preparedness of their highly dedicated safety teams and the outstanding integration of their quality assurance systems." Recent news has shown that nut-packing plants that don't follow safety guidelines can cause major problems, so kudos to all the workers in the Memphis plant for doing their job so well.

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The Neelys in St. Louis

By Mark Richens on May 27, 2009 7:42 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
Food Network stars Gina and Patrick Neely, of the famous Memphis barbecue family, are making the rounds for their new cookbook, "Down Home With the Neelys: A Southern Family Cookbook." They will be in St. Louis on Saturday, and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch caught up with the couple. Of interest in this particular interview, Gina says she doesn't exercise, and Pat has a cousin who runs a barbecue restaurant in St. Peters, Mo., out in St. Charles County.

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Where do the vegetarians go?

By Mark Richens on May 27, 2009 4:02 PM Share: submit to reddit Share on Facebook StumbleUpon Toolbar
 
A user from Los Angeles on the food site Chowhound asks for recommendations on vegetarian dining in Memphis. It reminds me of Jennifer Biggs' story last week on the veggie options at University of Memphis-area watering hole R.P. Tracks. This thread on the always-useful Goner Records Message Board also could help point the reader in the right direction. 

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