Category: Hungry Memphis

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

They’re Back: Majestic Grille Weekend Brunch and Sunday Dinner

Crab Benedict at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue).

I’m on cloud nine. I ate the Crab Benedict at brunch this afternoon at The Majestic Grille.

It was fabulous. Not only the crab dish, made of toasted English muffins, sliced tomatoes, sliced avocados, poached eggs, hollandaise, and lump crabmeat, but the fact that The Majestic Grille, at 145 South Main Street, is relaunching its Ultimate Weekend Brunch as well as its Sunday Dining Service on September 16th.

Deni and Chef Patrick Reilly at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)

I was at a soft opening on September 10th at the restaurant, which is owned by chef Patrick Reilly and his wife, Deni. Fare at my table also included eggs Benedict with ham and hollandaise, cornmeal crusted calamari with cherry peppers and spicy marinara, beignets, and the soup of the day — chicken artichoke with bell pepper and touch of cream. “A nice, elegant, Sunday sort of soup,” Deni says.

Chicken artichoke soup at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)
Eggs Benedict at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)
Cornmeal crusted calamari at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)
Beignets at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)

According to the news release, Majestic Grille decided to reopen Sundays “after taking a much needed year-long break in response to staffing shortages, and supply chain issues.”

The brunch will include familiar dishes as well as new dishes and elevated classics. New dishes include “Harissa Chicken Hash, a Carbonara Flatbread, and an Asparagus, Roasted Red Pepper & Goat Cheese Frittata.”

And, according to the release, the classics are “Steak and Eggs, Eggs Benedict and Shrimp and Grits. And expect some changes to these as well.”

Diners will be able to choose cuts of steak. The release continues, “Sausage has been added to the Shrimp and Grits. And the chunky country potatoes of brunches past have been elevated to elegant, crispy Brabant potatoes. A selection of sweet and savory breads and pastries from new neighbor, Hive (Bagel & Deli) will also be available as a tasty accompaniment to your meal.”

The Sunday roast is “a nod to Patrick’s Irish roots and his time spent early in his career at Michelin-starred restaurants in London. This offering, which will change seasonally, will debut as a whole bone-in Newman Farms Pork Rack served with Yorkshire Pudding, Apple Sauce, Green Beans Almandine, and Roasted Potatoes.”

Also, the release states, “A robust cocktail and coffee and tea program will complement the food offerings, including Lavazza coffees and the return of the popular Majestic Mimosas and house made Bloody Mary.”

Other highlights include a “Vanilla Espresso Martini topped with chocolate espresso beans from Dinstuhl’s located next door, a Wicklow 75 — a twist on a French 75 with Glendalough Rose Gin, and No-Mosas, non-alcoholic, house made fruit spritzers for those looking for spirit free, yet still festive brunch beverage options.”

Asked how she thought the brunch’s soft opening went, Deni says, “It was so great. It cracked me up. I was constantly running around making sure everything was set. And I turned around and the entire bar was full of our brunch bar regulars.”

Among those at the restaurant at the soft opening were “friends who now live in Hernando, friends from Marion, friends who live out east, downtown, Midtown. Everybody was so happy to be back. And we had so many people thanking us, which was so gracious. But we thank them for supporting us through all this. It’s been a wild ride the past three years.”

The Majestic Grille, which serves lunch and dinner as well as the Weekend Brunch, will now be open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday. Brunch will be served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays with dinner from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. both days.

For more information, call 901-522-8555 or go to info@majesticgrille.com and www.majesticgrille.com.

Anne and Pat Halloran and Patrick Halloran and Melissa Dixon at the soft opening of Weekend Brunch at The Majestic Grille (Credit: Michael Donahue)
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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Banana Pudding Coming to Tops Bar-B-Que

Banana pudding is the newest addition to the menu at Tops Bar-B-Que. (Photo: Michael Donahue)

What means “South” as much as barbecue?

Banana pudding.

That’s why Tops Bar-B-Que is debuting its banana pudding Tuesday, August 29th, at all 17 of its locations. That includes the newest store, which will open September 8th at 7960 Cordova Road at Germantown Parkway.

“We’re a place in the South and it’s a requirement to have a banana pudding,” says Hunter Brown with Tops Operations LLC. “We wanted another dessert option outside of our apple turnover. It just makes a lot of sense to add this to our repertoire.”

While he was talking, Brown was driving to Tops locations to watch employees make the pudding. He wants to “make sure everybody is calibrated and doing it the right way.”

They’ve never sold a banana pudding before, even though it’s a natural at barbecue cookouts across the South.

As for creating the banana pudding, Brown says the Tops banana pudding “definitely was designed for the South. It had to have real bananas in the ingredients.”

And, he adds, “We could have gone with a banana puree instead of using real bananas. I’m sure people do. It’s a less expensive way to get a banana pudding out there. We didn’t take any short cuts out there. And we’re real proud.”

In addition to real bananas, the pudding has the traditional vanilla wafers. “It had to have wafers. And then it has to be easy for QSR. It needs to come in containers so you can eat it through a drive-through-window.”

You might think you’re tasting whipped cream in it, but their banana pudding doesn’t have any in it, Brown says. “It’s very fluffy on its own.”

Like any new product, they “do a lot of testing” before it shows up at the Tops locations. “We try all different kinds and types of ways to do it. The main objective is that it’s good for the guests. Right? So, that’s got to be one of the boxes checked.

“But another box that has to be checked is, it’s not going to get in the way of important things we do like pork and burgers. It’s got to be operationally fitting for us as well. Not only do guests get what they deserve with a new product, but they get what they expect from all of our great products.”

For more than two years, Brown and Tops CEO Randy Hough talked about adding banana pudding to the menu.  “And then we prioritized things that we need. A smoked barbecue bologna sandwich was number one on our list.”

This was followed by a chicken option for their customers. Tops Fire Braised Chicken was born.

They then looked at their sides and came up with their macaroni and cheese.

And, like their mac and cheese, the banana pudding can be added to the Tops combo for $1 more.

Tops banana pudding is here to stay. “It’s a Southern thing. Absolutely.”

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Strawberry Cobbler at The Cupboard Restaurant

Strawberry cobbler at The Cupboard Restaurant (Credit: Michael Donahue)

I ate strawberry cobbler for dessert after breakfast the other day.

Don’t knock it. Who says you can’t eat dessert with breakfast?

I stopped by The Cupboard Restaurant to try the $6.99 breakfast anytime special: two eggs, biscuits or toast, and two pieces of sausage or bacon.

I remembered being told about The Cupboard’s strawberry cobbler and that it was only served on Wednesday — the day I was there. Hooray!

Cobbler is a favorite and I’ve had almost every flavor, including chocolate cobbler at Clancy’s Cafe in Red Banks, Mississippi. The peach cobbler at The Cupboard is delicious.

Well, The Cupboard’s strawberry cobbler is delicious, too. The server offered whipped cream on it, but I wanted to taste it without anything, including ice cream, although both toppings were so tempting (and even the idea of adding coffee creamer as my dad used to do).

I asked The Cupboard’s owner Charles Cavallo about the history of the strawberry cobbler. Cobbler was served at The Cupboard before he bought it in 1991, Cavallo says, but he expanded the flavors, which at one time included plum.

Peach cobbler is served on Sundays and Tuesdays, apple on Monday, blackberry on Tuesday, and strawberry on Wednesday. Friday is homemade banana pudding day.

Who makes the strawberry cobbler? “My cooks that have been there forever,” Cavallo says. “I told them I loved strawberry cobbler and they put it together and that’s what we got.”

But where did he come up with the idea for strawberry cobbler? His grandmother made it in Drew, Mississippi. “I had it years and years ago and I always loved it.”

So, how close is The Cupboard’s strawberry cobbler to Cavallo’s grandmother’s? “Tastes like my grandmother’s. Sure does. Absolutely.”

But what about the plum cobbler? They quit doing it because they couldn’t get plums anymore. In the meantime, I’ll just dream about what it might taste like. With or without whipping cream or ice cream. Or coffee cream.

The Cupboard Restaurant is at 1400 Union Avenue; (901) 276-8015

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Hungry Memphis

Tops Adds New Hamburger, New Location, Plus Mac & Cheese

The Southern Smokehouse Burger now at Tops Bar-B-Q (Credit; Isis Pinkston)

Tops Bar-B-Q is celebrating summer with two new items and a new location.

Meet the Southern Smokehouse Burger, which consists of a “cheeseburger, grilled onions, thick cut bacon, and a sweet Southern glaze,” says Hunter Brown with Tops Operations LLC.

And, if your mouth isn’t already watering, that glaze is a “smoky molasses-based glaze.”

Many people quickly answer “Tops” when asked to name their favorite hamburger. The dish, which they’ve sold for decades, is so popular, the company is adding “& Burgers” to their sign along with “Bar-B-Q.”

“We’ve been the top hamburger in Memphis for 60 years,” Brown says.  “So, as popular as it was, we wanted to focus on a limited-time offer of celebrating the burger.”

The Southern Smokehouse Burger will be available “through the bulk of the summer,” Brown says.

As to maybe adding it to the menu one day, Brown says “time will tell.” They also offered their Barbecued Bologna and Fire-Braised Chicken as limited time offers. But, he says, “The feedback was so overwhelming and positive on both of those items, we had no choice but to make them permanent fixtures on our menu.”

A limited time offer is a chance for Tops customers to get “a great extra opportunity on a meal that’s available only a certain amount of time at a good value, as well.”

The Southern Smokehouse Burger is $5.99.

Tops Bar-B-Q (Credit: Michael Donahue)

Tops recently introduced the Southern Smokehouse Burger in a soft launch. It’s now available at all locations, including its upcoming new location. A new Tops will open in about 30 days near Cordova Road and North Germantown Parkway. It will be on an outparcel location in the parking lot of the University of Memphis Kemmons Wilson Culinary Institute and Incredible Pizza.

As for that other new Tops item, customers can now get macaroni and cheese as a side. “A brand new addition to our combos,” Brown says.

According to Tops, their mac and cheese is made with “fresh whole milk, tender macaroni, and real cheese (no powder stuff here).”

And, Brown adds, “Mac and cheese is definitely here to stay.”

Mac & Cheese at Tops Bar-B-Q (Credit: Michael Donahue)
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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Memphis Beer Blog Shines a Light on the Memphis Craft Scene

Credit: Mike Erskine/Memphis Beer Blog

Mike Erskine knows beer.

He’s explored its many styles over the years. He’s made plenty of it himself. He’s written about it before. And he’s writing about it again, this time with a fresh approach and a laser focus on the Memphis craft scene. 

Erskine, a veteran (and now former) Memphis newspaper reporter, launched the Memphis Beer Blog in January. The launch comes years after shutting down shop on FuzzyBrew, a must-read blog for Memphis craft beer buds that ran from 2010 to around 2017. Erskine ran the blog with his pal Grant Smith, and only stopped when Smith moved away.

FuzzyBrew was “a blog about homebrewing, craft beer, and beer news in Memphis, and beyond,” to quote its (still live) Twitter description. Erskine has focused the Memphis Beer Blog on local breweries, their beers, their events, and their stories. 

His motives are simple. 

“I want to expose more people to good beer,” Erskine said, “and I want to see our local breweries succeed.”

We caught up with Erskine to learn more about the blog, craft beer’s progression in Memphis over the past decade, and what’s next. — Toby Sells

Memphis Flyer: How did the Memphis Beer Blog come about?

Mike Erskine: I ran into Davin Bartosch at Mempho Music Festival last year. Davin is one of the two brothers behind Wiseacre. He suggested that I resurrect FuzzyBrew because there really was no resource for news about local breweries and local beers. 

So, it took me a while to warm to the idea, but I decided that I needed a new creative project and I launched memphisbeerblog.com in January of this year.

It’s everything that I’ve always kind of wanted to do, but never had time to do it. It’s everything from different breweries to a roundup of all of them to different projects they’re working on to individual beers that they’re releasing. There are features on what I think are some of the tastiest beers in town and events happening at local breweries in the community. 

I want to expose more people to good beer, and I want see our local breweries succeed. 

We’re about 10 years into a craft beer boom in Memphis. What do you think about the progression and where we are now?

Yes, this is a big anniversary year for beer in Memphis. 2023 marks 10 years since Wiseacre, High Cotton, and Memphis Made opened.

So, Ghost River was the only game in town prior to that. I think it opened around 2007. But it was really an extension of Boscos — same ownership. It was a way to get Boscos beer in bars around town and on store shelves without using the Boscos name. 

So, when Wiseacre, High Cotton, and Memphis Made opened that year, that really launched a new era of craft beer in Memphis and paved the way for the vibrant scene that we have now. 

Prior to 2013 for fans of craft beer, what you could buy in Memphis was really limited. Back then you might head to Walgreens in West Memphis to get beers that are not sold in Memphis. You might travel to Nashville and bring home beers from breweries that didn’t distribute in Memphis. 

So, when those three breweries opened in 2013, there was a shift, and all of a sudden you had options for a good, local beer.

Memphis is not gonna make it on a list of best craft beer cities in the U.S. anytime soon. But the beer scene in Memphis is healthy. It’s still growing, which is great. 

There’s about a dozen breweries in Shelby County now. I think four of them have opened since 2021. There are more on the way. There are two that I know that are either opening or planning to open soon. 

The growth of breweries in Memphis has been slow relative to places like Asheville, Boulder, Portland, and San Diego, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Other cities have seen many local breweries open and close in the last decade. 

So far, everyone here has made it, and even more new breweries are opening. It will be interesting to watch how the beer scene in Memphis evolves in the next 10 years.

What is next for the Memphis Beer Blog?

With new breweries opening, new beers coming out, and events happening all the time, I have plenty to write about. But I’m also planning to expand the site to feature some of the best beer bars in town, as well as the best places to buy good beer on store shelves.

Also, one of my favorite things to do when I was writing on FuzzyBrew was to share stories about the breweries I visited when I traveled outside of Memphis. I’m planning to do that for Memphis Beer Blog, as well.

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Hungry Memphis

David Grisanti’s on Main to Open in Collierville

David and Robyn Grisanti in front of the upcoming David Grisanti's on Main

David Grisanti will open his new restaurant, “David Grisanti’s on Main,” but it’s not Main Street, Memphis. It’s going to be on Main Street, Collierville.

The Italian restaurant, which will be located at 148 North Main Street, is slated to open in “two or three months,” says Grisanti, who is part of the Grisanti lineage of Memphis chefs. 

“My grandfather had the restaurant downtown and it was on Main, too,” Grisanti says, referring to downtown Memphis. David’s dad was the late restaurateur John “Big John” Grisanti.

As for the fare, Grisanti says, “I’m still going to do my traditional family recipes. I’m still going to do my fish. Still do my prime ribs and all that. And my olive, cheese, and prosciutto appetizer. A lot of people love manicotti.  And I’m still going to do my Elfo.” He added that he will also be doing a lot of fish specials.

Grisanti, who formerly had a restaurant at Sheffield Antiques Mall in Collierville, says,”I love Collierville. Everyone’s been great. That whole Sheffield mall was really a good start for me.”

His new restaurant will be bigger, seating 122, as opposed to about 75 people at Sheffield’s. And, he says,  “It’s going to have a bar.”

David and Robyn Grisanti
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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Belle Meade Social to Open May 9th

Paul Stephens and Jules Jordan are the founding partners of the new Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)

Founding partners Paul Stephens, 31, and Jules Jordan, 29, will open Belle Meade Social on Tuesday, May 9th.

It’s almost like their restaurant had to open at 518 Perkins Extended.

Jordan’s dad, Trey Jordan, opened his first restaurant, Holiday Deli & Ham, at that location 30 years ago when he was 29 years old. Trey now owns Pimento’s Burgers, Bar & Grill, in addition to the Holiday Deli & Ham restaurants. His father, Don “Papa” Jordan, 93, also was in the restaurant business. He owned the Wendy’s Franchise in Central Texas from 1972 to 1973.

Jules and Stephens met 17 years ago in a devotional group lead by her dad. Stephens “became part of the family and never left,” she says.

Stephens and Jules originally thought about opening a sports bar in the space. But it was “so elevated” they decided to turn it into a fine dining restaurant, Jules says.

But they also wanted the elegant restaurant to be approachable. “Country club casual” is how Stephens describes the place. 

It will serve as a great place for a “date night” or a “guy’s night,” Jules adds.

Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)
Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)

Customers “could make it whatever they wanted it to be,” she says. “And know their hospitality is going to be on point.”

“We ‘care’ is what it comes down to,” Stephens adds.

 “That is the bottom line,” Jules says.

Jules is on the operations side of the restaurant and Stephens is is administration.

The name Belle Meade comes from the nearby residential neighborhood. “Paul grew up in that neighborhood,” Jules says. “I lived down the street.”

They want the restaurant to be a “neighborhood spot” for people to enjoy, she says. As the menu states, “Welcome to the neighborhood.”

As for decor, she and Stephens gave the space a makeover, but they didn’t really have to change much, Jules says. “We put our flair on the bones that were already here.”

And those were “great bones,” Stephens adds.

The restaurant had formerly held the Jim’s Place and Strano by Chef Josh restaurants. Most of the original decor dates to when Jim’s Place was housed there, Jules says. “We re-did the bar top. Put new tile under the bar.”

They also recovered all the seats in the restaurant with brown leather.

The “Tuckahoe Room” is one room they completely created. They wanted a “speakeasy vibe” in the room, which includes comfortable chairs and a contemporary chandelier, Jules says. It’s a place where people can have a drink while waiting for their table. 

The Tuckahoe Room at Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The room also can be used when people use the upcoming private dining space, which will seat 20 to 30 people, that adjoins the lounge, Stephens says.

They also have plans for the spacious patio that runs along the south side of the restaurant.

Eric Ingraham is Belle Meade Social’s executive chef. George Newton is sous chef.

Eric Ingraham and George Newton at Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)

The restaurant will serve classic American cuisine at lunch and dinner.

Reagan Wood and Steve Gill with fare from Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)

Appetizers include “Honey Whipped Feta Dip” with feta cheese, honey, mixed olives, and warm pita bread; and a “Spicy Tuna Stack” with Ahi tuna, cucumber, tomato, avocado, pineapple, spicy vinaigrette, and house wontons.

Entrees include a 14-ounce New York strip, roasted chicken, lamb lollipops, Kung Pao salmon, and blackened grouper.

Pizzas are available. The pizza menu offers “Pesto Chicken,” “BBQ Chicken,” and “Fig & Pig” with fig spread, grated parmesan, mozzarella, prosciutto, arugula, and balsamic glaze.

Jules’s dad, by the way, raves about the “Belle Meade Burger,” which includes ground beef, tomato bacon jam, caramelized onions, and gruyere cheese with lettuce and tomato on a brioche bun.

Customers will see a lot of smiles at Belle Meade Social. That includes friendly servers Reagan Wood and Steve Gill, food and beverage/bar manager Daniel Faulk, and hostess manager Maddy Marshall. 

That’s a reflection of the owners.

“We both love people,” Jules says.

Daniel Faulk at Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)
Maddy Marshall at Belle Meade Social (Credit: Michael Donahue)
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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Phillip Ashley Chocolates Teams Up With Miller High Life

Miller High Life Bar Snack Truffles (Credit: Justin Fox Burks / ICF Next)

Memphians love a good lemon pepper chicken wing. But have they tried lemon-pepper-chicken-wing-flavored … chocolate?

If there’s anyone who can pull it off, it’s Phillip Ashley Rix, owner of Phillip Ashley Chocolates. And a recent partnership with Miller High Life means that Rix will be bringing an intriguing selection of six bar-snack-inspired truffles to Memphis next month.

“Miller reached out to me, and their objective was to create an ode to bar food and bar culture,” says Rix. “The group asked, ‘How do we capture the flavor and sensory experience of being in a dive bar and washing some snacks down with a Miller High Life?’ So I started telling them about how I used to enjoy a grilled cheese and wash it down with a Miller High Life, and the ideas just started flowing from there.”

Starting May 2nd, Phillip Ashley Chocolates will produce 1,000 limited-run boxes of Miller High Life Bar Snack Truffles. No stranger to incorporating fascinating flavors into his creations, Rix will include six different truffle varieties in each box.

“This is our wheelhouse,” he says. “I’ve always sought to do avant-garde-centric flavor profiles. Not for the sake of being sensational, but to create something sensational, to create something that has a great flavor profile, tastes good, and is also something that piques the imagination of the consumer.”

Phillip Ashley Rix (Credit: Justin Fox Burks / ICF Next)

Rix hopes that the creative flavors will make buyers curious about his new styles. The aforementioned grilled cheese and lemon pepper flavors are two of his favorites, but the others cover a broad range of bar snacks. There’s the “beernut,” which is Rix’s take on a peanut butter cup, while he calls the pretzel praline truffle a perfect mix of “sweet and salty.” The buttery popcorn truffle is infused with the flavors of movie-theater-style popcorn, while the sweet potato fry blends a sweet potato mash with blond chocolate.

“The ingredients really live in the chocolate,” says Rix. “With the lemon pepper, we have a cool way of making cracklin out of chicken skin. Then I have a background in chemistry, so we turn it into a format where we can infuse it into the ganache. So you’ll get all the chicken flavor without all the unpleasant texture.

“And we infuse the ‘champagne of beer’ in the truffles as well. It’s a collaborative effort because my goal is to design and deliver a product that Miller will be pleased with, but also to create something that encapsulates my experience with Miller as a consumer of theirs. And the memories I have of enjoying snacks in dive bar with a Miller, maybe munching on some popcorn or sweet potato fries, I synthesize those with my expertise in science and food, and the result is a really fun exercise in two brands coming together.”

Even after the Miller box goes on sale, Rix will continue to push the envelope when it comes to chocolate, as his passion for the craft keeps him eager to unlock new taste combinations. “I’ve always made it a point to be an encyclopedia of flavor, always staying up on trends and then just having ideas in the locker, so that when someone like Miller calls, I have something to work through. I hadn’t done grilled cheese before, but I had incorporated cheeses into my chocolates. And I hadn’t done chicken wings, but I did pioneer a fried chicken chocolate. So they are natural evolutions of the ideas I’ve had before.”

Boxes will be available to order on the Phillip Ashley Chocolates website for $35 starting May 2nd.

(Credit: Phillip Ashley Chocolates)
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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Little Italy Opening an East Memphis Location

Italian restaurant slated to open in late May (Credit: Michael Donahue)

If you love Little Italy on Union Avenue, you’re going to love Little Italy at Poplar Avenue and Massey Road.

The restaurant, which is slated to open in late May, will be at 6300 Poplar Avenue, Suite 113.

The owners refer to it as “Little Italy East,” says Molly McDonald Marciano, who, along with her husband, Riccardo Marciano, and Giovanni and Brooke Caravello, are the restaurant owners.

The Caravellos are the owners of the Union Avenue Little Italy location. Giovanni, who is from Sicily, and Riccardo, who is from Calabria, met in Memphis, says Molly, who is from here. “They met through an Italian group here.”

According to Brooke, all the Little Italy restaurants are under the Little Italy franchise umbrella, but the Bartlett and Downtown locations are independently owned and operated. They might have slight differences, but they maintain the same core menu and the same standard of fresh homemade ingredients, she says.

The new restaurant is “being run and owned by two guys that moved to the United States 15 years ago who couldn’t speak a word of English and, by way of New York, both got married and, for different reasons, moved to Memphis,” Molly says.

“One thing they both love about the South vs. New York is the idea of Southern hospitality that rings through in Italy. As far South as you go in Italy, the warmer the hospitality becomes.”

The new Little Italy menu will be “for the most part” like the Little Italy on Union Avenue, Molly says. “We’re definitely adding and taking away a few things.”

And, she says, there will be “some really good tweaks.”

For instance, Riccardo will make a Calabrian-style panino and Giovanni will make a Sicilian-style panino.

They’ll serve “New York-style pizza with a little flair.”

And they’ll offer a Nutella Pizza.

Pasta dishes, which are not on the menu at the Union Avenue location, include dishes with carbonara and amatriciana sauces.

They’ll serve beer, but they’ll also serve wine, which is something that’s not available at the Union Avenue location, Molly says.

Like Little Italy on Union, the east location will be a pick-up-and-go spot, but they also will have about 40 seats, Molly says.

They will string patio lights across the top of the restaurant to help give it an “Italian piazza-type feel,” Molly says. They want Little Italy to be a “warm place to come and eat comfort food.”

She knows Giovanni will be playing “all the soccer games” on TV. So, it will be a “very family-friendly environment. But also a fun place for me to go with girlfriends and have a glass of wine.”

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Belle Meade Social to Open in East Memphis

Rendering of the Belle Meade Social entrance (Credit: DCA)

Anyone need an extra order of Parmesan truffle fries for the table? The upcoming Belle Meade Social has you covered, alongside plenty of other refined American favorites.

Named for the surrounding residential neighborhood, Belle Meade Social plans to open this spring at 518 Perkins Extended. The menu aims to deliver contemporary and elevated takes on classic American cuisine; look out for the Belle Meade burger, a spicy tuna stack, Asian chopped salad, and brick chicken.

Founding partners Jules Jordan and Paul Stephens are leading the effort alongside executive chef Eric Ingraham, who most recently has worked with Pimento’s for the better part of a decade. “We’re excited to add to the energy of the Poplar-Perkins corridor and serve as a destination for everyday yet upscale dining,” said Jordan in a statement. “Whether for business lunch, happy hour, a special occasion, or family dinner, we’re creating a space that can authentically serve as everyone’s neighborhood spot.”

Belle Meade Social will feature lunch, dinner, and late-night dining. The Garden Room can accomodate fine dining for a nice evening meal, while the expansive bar is perfect for a more casual night out. Meanwhile, the Tuckahoe Room is available for private receptions and cocktails.

More info, such as the full menu and hours, will be available closer to opening, so stay tuned.

The Brick Chicken (top) is one of Belle Meade Social’s featured dishes. (Credit: DCA)
Steak Noodle Salad (Credit: DCA)
Tuna Salad (Credit: DCA)