Tag: Memphis Whistle

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Food & Wine Food & Drink

Mane St. Provisions’ Main Man

Kyle Gairhan (Photo: Michael Donahue)

Kyle Gairhan is in a pickle when he’s not in a jam.

Gairhan, executive chef at Memphis Whistle, also is founder of Mane St. Provisions, his line of pickles, jams, sausages, and sauces.

“‘Mane’ is a common term here in Memphis,” Gairhan says. “Like ‘What’s up, mane?’”

What’s up with Gairhan is the 36-year-old native Memphian is starting out with his products, which only are available at Memphis Whistle, and he hopes to expand with his own store “where everything is made in-house.”

“I pickle everything. I have spicy pickled okra, sunchokes, and pizza pickles — they’re cucumbers spiced with my Italian seasoning.”

For now, he is only selling his barbecue sauce and spaghetti sauce. “I have some sauces I do at Memphis Whistle that I haven’t started to market — beer mustard and buffalo sauce.”

He makes seasonal jams. “Right now, I have available strawberry lemonade jam, blackberry merlot, and passion fruit mango.”

Growing up, Gairhan liked to hang out in the kitchen when his mom was cooking. “Anything that I could do in there my mom was willing to let me do ’cause she didn’t really want to do it.”

Barbecued chicken was his first effort, but he didn’t make his own barbecue sauce. “I used Kraft sauce we had at the house. But then every time I made it after that, I started doctoring it up to make it better.

“I just really wanted to feed myself. I made a lot of sandwiches. I would just make whatever we had in the house into a sandwich, [even] spaghetti sandwiches.”

A McDonald’s in Alabama when he was majoring in music education at Jacksonville State University was his first foray into restaurant cooking. Gairhan hated working there, but, he says, “It made me realize I like being in the kitchen.”

He then went to work as a cook at Struts of Jacksonville. “It was mostly like fried chicken and chicken wings.”

Gairhan left school six months later because he realized it was going to take too long to get his degree and become a band director. He moved to San Diego, where he worked in a pizza shop for a year. He missed Memphis, so he moved back and went to work at Central BBQ.

Gairhan then read an article in Food & Wine magazine about Alpine Beer Company wanting to put a barbecue restaurant in its brew pub. “So, I hit them up,” he says. He returned to San Diego and made barbecue for them. “Everyone loved it.”

He got married while he was working there and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where he became head chef at the old Not a Burger Stand in Burbank. “While I was there, I was getting into the cannabis industry. I left to start my own cannabis business, Pissing Excellence Extracts. Pissing Excellence is still my Instagram handle. I won the High Times Cannabis Cup a few times doing extracts and topicals.”

He sold the business and moved back to Memphis, where he became half owner of RAWK’n Grub. “Then the pandemic chilled that,” he says, “and I started the pickle company.”

Gairhan taught himself how to make pickles. “I just read books about it. I just really like pickles.”

He was head chef at The Backlot Sandwich Shop before he took the job at Memphis Whistle. “I have some unique vegan items. Our Buffalo Lion’s Mane is lion’s mane mushrooms deep-fried like boneless wings and covered in buffalo lemon pepper or buffalo sauce.”

Gairhan’s ultimate goal is to open his Mane St. Provisions grocery store, where everything will be made in-house. “Like anything you’d find at a grocery store: pancake mix, cereal, everything.”

But for now, Gairhan will be selling his products and whipping up unique meals at Memphis Whistle, where he says, “I’m going to wow people with my creativity.”

Memphis Whistle is at 2299 Young Avenue; (901) 236-7136.

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

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

Memphis Whistle with edible flowers bed in Cooper-Young (Credit: Jef Hicks)

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.

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Hungry Memphis

Memphis Whistle to Open in Cooper Young as “a Restaurant that Serves Alcohol”

Memphis Whistle's David Parks at the restaurant/bar slated to open in Cooper-Young. (Photo by Jef Hicks).

If you wanted to reach Margaritaville on June 11th, you headed east on Madison Avenue, took a right on Cooper and another right on Trimble, and you were there.

 Except it was called “Memphis Flyer’s Margarita Festival.”

Memphis Whistle, which participated in the festival for the first time this year and came in third place in audience voting, is slated to open as a restaurant in Cooper Young.

 “We’re opening our own space soon,” says Jef Hicks, who, along with David Parks, owns Memphis Whistle. says, “We’re waiting for licensing and permitting.”

And, he says, they’re hoping to open “within the next few weeks.”

Jef Hicks, Justin Wells, and David Parks at Memphis Flyer’s Margarita Festival. (Photo by Michael Donahue).

Memphis Whistle, which will be located at 2299 Young, will be “a restaurant that serves alcohol. This is in a little house. We’re going to make it all lounge-comfortable and relaxed.”

Asked what the interior colors will be, Hicks says, “It makes you look pretty. I used a lot of dark plum, almost like a burgundy, amber, and dusty blue.”

Memphis Whistle, which began as a drink delivery service during the pandemic, will feature a full bar. As for the food, Parks says, “We’re going to be really eclectic. We’re going to work with people we know in the business who are chefs and line cooks. Mostly chefs who were impacted by the pandemic and were displaced.”

“We’re probably leaning more towards grab-and-go and finger food, just for simplicity,” Lewis says.

They also might serve their Margarita Festival-winning margarita — the Wicked Strawberry Elixir. “This is made with fresh strawberries,” Hicks says. “And we use heirloom oranges, fresh lime, and serrano-infused agave. I would describe it as a little bit spicy, a little bit festive.”

Just like the new restaurant is going to be.

About 600 people attended this year’s Margarita Festival (tickets sold out 10 days prior to the event), which was held in Overton Square.

Rachel Anderson and Kieana Smith at Margarita Fest. (Photo by Michael Donahue).
Elizabeth Avery and Michael Lowery at Margarita Fest. (Photo by Michael Donahue).

A total of 11 margarita sampling stations were featured along with food stations.

 Agavos took top honors in the audience voting, followed by Moe’s, which came in second place; and Memphis Whistle.

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Memphis Whistle Delivers Cocktails and Food to Your Door



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.