Jef Hicks – Memphis Flyer

Memphis Whistle Slated to Open for To-Go Orders December 17th in Cooper-Young

Memphis Whistle is slated to open December 17th for to-go orders at its first brick-and-mortar location at 2299 Young Avenue. The space is slated to open as a restaurant/bar by the end of 2021.

What began as a drink delivery service during the pandemic blossomed into a space that owner Jef Hicks describes as a “quaint little house” with four rooms. He describes Memphis Whistle, which features a lounge space, dining space, and bar, as “lounge comfortable.”

“One of the rooms has a couch, a couple of chairs, and a little settee. That is super loungey. Another room has three tables, a little more of a standard look. Everything will be lower lighting from lamps,” Hicks adds.

As for the decor, Hicks says, “Most of the colors are very rich, royal, jewel tone, romantic colors — so you could look beautiful in there at all times, especially in the evening.”

Memphis Whistle dining area (Credit: Amanda Hicks)

Memphis Whistle lounge area (Credit: Jef Hicks)

The exterior of Memphis Whistle is a rich purple, accented with turquoise. “You won’t miss it,” says Hicks. “You would have to try really hard to miss it.”

Also working with Hicks at Memphis Whistle are his wife, Amanda Hicks, who handles the office duties, IT, and accounting; and Winifred Henry, who Jef says, is “in charge of it all.” Jef and David Parks began the original Memphis Whistle. Parks will be bartending at the soon-to-open McEwen’s Memphis.

Describing the drinks, Jef says, “Mine are more the Prohibition-style cocktails.” These would be “the old typically heavier booze” drinks like the Boulevardier and the Vieux Carre.

And, Hicks says, “I will be continuing to feature the Memphis Whistle cocktail recipes that brought us notoriety.”
He described the drinks as “seasonal fruit forward with herbal tastiness and plenty of booze.”

Kyle Gairhan is executive chef. “We are concentrating on smaller fare along with sandwiches and burgers,” Jef says. “And finger foods and tater tots. We are going to make our own chips to go with all the sandwiches. We make our own barbecue sauce. We cook our own pork. We’re going to be making our own brisket. We’re trying to do as much as we can in house.”

And, Jef says, “We will try to support local farms or small businesses as much as possible. That’s really important. To keep the dollars local.”

Even the art on the walls is local. Featured artist Celeste Rachele did the pieces, which are for sale. “I want to support local art, food, drinks, produce,” says Jef.

Wet your whistle with Memphis Whistle — a new Memphis drinks-and-food-to-go service.

“‘Memphis Whistle’ is a slang term for moonshine,” says David Parks, who, along with Jef Hicks, operate seven days a week at The Liquor Store restaurant on Broad Avenue.

They were approached by The Liquor Store owners Luis and Lisa Toro. “They were curious when we were going to get back up and running,” Parks says.

The Liquor Store had not been operating at night several months before the quarantine, Parks says. “We’ll take over their bar and turn it into a cool little bar and nightspot. Until we feel safe enough to do this, we’re going to do this cocktails to-go and make us all some money.”

Parks and Hicks started a Facebook group, which they called “Memphis Whistle.” “We do a lot of interaction with people on the page. A lot of back and forth. We take suggestions. We do polls about, ‘We’re thinking about doing a new cocktail. Here are two we’re thinking about. You guys write which one you want and that’s the one we do.’

“Memphis Whistle,” which also is slang for a sex position, is “just a way to promote The Liquor Store and the to-go and delivery that is just fun and is just silly. And nobody gets bent out of shape when I make an off-color joke or say something obnoxious. They know I’m a sick and twisted individual.”

They moved into The Liquor Store about a month ago, Parks says. “Luis literally carved out space for us to store all our gear and supplies we need.”

Jef Hicks and David Parks of Memphis Whistle

The Liquor Store is open for breakfast and lunch in-house dining. “At 3 or 4 [p.m.], their people go on about their business except two kitchen staff. They stick around and cook and we come in and we get everything staged up for delivery and pickup. They’ve got a pickup window. We’ll bring it to your car. We deliver.”

They have a “fairly limited menu” at night, Parks says. “Because some things don’t travel well. You go to the website [thebroadliquorstore.com] and that’s how you do your ordering.”

And, Parks says, “I put on enough drivers that we can do ‘on demand.’ If you order something at 3, unless we’re super busy, we can have it to you by 4 or 4:30.”

Customers no longer have to give 48 hours notice if they’re ordering.

Parks describes the food as having “a real Cuban influence to it.”

They now offer seven cocktails, which are served in Mason jars, on the menu. “But of those seven, three of them you can have your choice of the spirit you want. Vodka, gin, and bourbon.”

Raspberry Sage Sipper, Blackberry Bramble, and Blueberry Lemonade are among their most popular cocktails.

“A lot of people ask for most of the recipes. The Tequila Mockingbird is usually popular. And the Purple Drank.”

Cocktails to go are available all day for pickup. But customers must order food if they order drinks to-go, Parks says.

Joining Parks and Hicks at Memphis Whistle are Justin Wells and Jordan Hester. “They kind of keep the books, and they respond to emails and keep up with orders.”

Memphis Whistle has been in operation for two weeks. “People are starting to discover us. I had 68 new people trying to join the group yesterday.”

“The community” is what makes Memphis Whistle special, Hicks says. “In the sense that we all banded together to make sure we all took care of each other in this pandemic time,” he says. “And the fact that we’re trying to look out for others.”

“As soon as we feel safe enough, we’ll start opening at night,” Parks says. “Let people come in. At first, we’ll let people come sit on the patio. And then we’ll open up the inside. But I don’t feel it’s prudent to do that right now.”

And if you’re thinking about ordering Memphis Whistle drinks out of Tennessee, Parks says, “Even though I am the sheriff of The Twilight Zone, I cannot deliver across Tennessee state lines. I don’t care if you want my cocktails in Michigan or in Arkansas or in Virginia, I cannot deliver across Tennessee state lines.”

The Liquor Store is at 2655 Broad Avenue; (901) 405-5477. Email is memphiswhistle@gmail.com for special orders.