Adventures of a Wandering Thirtysomething



Brother Juniper's



Year three is supposed to be the year you buy your spouse leather, or if you’re a modernist, crystal or glass. As usual, we threw tradition out the window and picked the two things that really crank our chain: travel and food.

Inside Gus's Fried Chicken

For the past three years, we’ve celebrated our anniversary with an international trip of some sort. First there was Jamaica. Then there was Mexico. Last year it was Europe. But given this year’s relocation and tight budget, international travel was out. So we did the next best thing and took a foodie trip to Memphis.

Rendezvous

Prior to coming to Tennessee and since relocating here, the reviews on Memphis have not exactly been stellar. We’ve heard all the stories: it’s old, it’s racist, it’s dangerous, it’s flat…basically, it sucks. Given the bad press, we weren’t exactly expecting much other than a taste of some good ol’ authentic Southern cuisine and a desire to get the heck out.
So, you can imagine our surprise when (gasp) we LOVED Memphis! Now, I will say that the stories we heard aren’t necessarily untrue. Memphis is an old city, it has its racial issues, it has big city crime and it is flat enough that tornadoes seem to like hanging out there, but what everyone failed to mention was some of the really awesome stuff the city has that Nashville and other neighboring cities don’t. Like an enormous park along the muddy Mississippi (the mud is no joke either – if you’ve seen the pie, you’ve seen the river), tons to do downtown from trendy pubs and eateries to sporting events to shopping to historic districts to music on Beale Street to museums and Civil War history, beautiful Southern style neighborhoods, and of course, delicious food.
 We walked off the chicken gut bomb with a tour of downtown, and then landed at the famous Rendezvous for Memphis style ribs. If you’re not familiar with the distinction, Memphis style ribs are known for being sauceless. Unlike their Texas, Carolina or Kansas City counterparts, Memphis ribs are flavored with a smoky dry rub and sauce on the side. If you’re like me and avoid eating anything that makes your hands messy, Memphis style ribs are where it’s at. For dessert (yes, dessert – what’s another 500 calories when you’ve already had three times your limit for the day?) we stopped by Muddy’s, a local bakery that supports the local food movement (our kind of people). We recommend the grasshopper cupcakes. Minty, chocolatey, delish!

Lorraine Hotel where MLK was assassinated

 When we awoke from our food coma the next morning, we hit up Sweetgrass. Rated as Memphis’s best new restaurant in 2010, it’s not easy to get a table, but we snagged a reservation for Easter brunch and celebrated Jesus’s resurrection with some awesome food. I got the crab cakes eggs benedict, which included crispy and lump crab cakes and two poached eggs on a bed of spinach with a lemon basil hollandaise sauce, while Matt enjoyed the BBQ duck confit hash with peppers and potatoes. And, because we couldn’t resist the sound of it, we asked for a taste of their banana bread French toast with strawberry butter and maple syrup. Holy trinity of food! It was a great way to end our anniversary weekend.

Here’s to many more years of travel, food and enjoying our lives together!







A wreath marks where MLK was shot and killed

 















My breakfast at Sweetgrass



Matt's duck confit

Banana bread French toast