Birthday Trip: Memphis

We just came back from a great birthday trip in Memphis. We've been there a few times before, so we have our favorite places, but we wanted to branch out too and try some new spots.

 When we go to Memphis, it always seems like we end up at Soul Fish in Cooper Young. So good. I got the catfish basket with sweet potato fries, hush puppies, and mac and cheese. I didn't finish even half of this!

 I had never been to the National Civil Rights Museum and knew that was something I wanted to do. 

 This is the view from a window ten feet to the right from where James Earl Ray shot Martin Luther King, Jr. from a hostel bathroom window towards the Lorraine Motel. Unbelievable.

Paul wanted to look all serious for you guys. I'm not buying it.

 After checking into our hotel, we started walking about Main Street and ended up at Slim's near the Peabody for happy hour. After a few drinks on the patio, we rode the riverwalk loop of the trolley.

Later that night, we ended up at a tasty gastropub called Local. Great food.

 The highlight was probably these pretzels and cheese sauce. The sauce wasn't thick and the pretzels had the perfect amount of salt.

 Great atmosphere. I ended up with a Lobster BLT, but was full by then and ate the bacon and lobster off the sandwich!

 I've heard awesome things about Bluff City Coffee and have passed by it on the trolley loop several times now. The owner is a pastry chef and he's renowned for his baked goods. He definitely didn't disappoint. We tried a cherry yogurt roll (which almost tasted like cobbler) and an orange cinnamon roll. Very tasty!

We headed back to Cooper Young and stopped at their community farmers market for peaches. I wish I had a photo of where we went next - a fair trade store inside a church. UCC in denomination, this church has opened their doors to the community to fill the giant building. The church has a community bike shop, yoga classes, home birth midwives, dance classes, and the fair trade store, among others. I bought some really cool pieces there. I think my favorite part about this church is the sign that says "We teach acceptance, forgiveness and bike repair." 

 After looking around some shops, we headed to Overton Square in Midtown (Cooper Young is part of a greater Midtown area) and found ourselves at Chiwawa. We tried Juan-Tons and split a foot long corn dog, one of their specialties.

 After lunch, we walked off our meal and headed to the other side of Overton Square for gelato. At YoLo I tried half a scoop of nutella and half a scoop of avocado. Very tasty!

Then, we headed back to Jackson. I have to say, while I love and appreciate Memphis, there's no place like home! We had some good times that night back here in the neighborhood. More on that in the next post!