Memphis Flyer - 9.28.23

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023

FOOD + DRINK

NIGHTLIFE

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

MEDIA + PERSONALITIES

GOODS SERVICES

WELLNESS

WEDDINGS + EVENTS

STAFF PICKS

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

SHARA CLARK

Editor

SAMUEL X. CICCI

Managing Editor

JACKSON BAKER, BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN

Senior Editors

TOBY SELLS

Associate Editor

KAILYNN JOHNSON

News Reporter

CHRIS MCCOY

Film and TV Editor

ALEX GREENE

Music Editor

MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS

Staff Writers

ABIGAIL MORICI

Arts and Culture Editor

GENE GARD, EMILY GUENTHER, COCO JUNE, FRANK MURTAUGH

Contributing Columnists

SHARON BROWN, AIMEE STIEGEMEYER

Grizzlies Reporters

ANDREA FENISE

Fashion Editor

KENNETH NEILL

Founding Publisher

CARRIE BEASLEY

Senior Art Director

CHRISTOPHER MYERS

Advertising Art Director

NEIL WILLIAMS

Graphic Designer

JERRY D. SWIFT

Advertising Director Emeritus

KELLI DEWITT, CHIP GOOGE

Senior Account Executives

KALON AMBROSE

Account Executive

CHET HASTINGS

Warehouse and Delivery Manager

JANICE GRISSOM ELLISON, KAREN MILAM, DON MYNATT, TAMMY NASH, RANDY ROTZ, LEWIS TAYLOR, WILLIAM WIDEMAN

Distribution

THE MEMPHIS FLYER is published weekly by

Contemporary Media, Inc.,

P.O. Box 1738, Memphis, TN 38101

Phone: (901) 521-9000

Fax: (901) 521-0129 memphisflyer.com

CONTEMPORARY MEDIA, INC.

ANNA TRAVERSE FOGLE

Chief Executive O cer

LYNN SPARAGOWSKI

Controller/Circulation Manager

JEFFREY GOLDBERG

Chief Revenue Officer

MARGIE NEAL

Chief Operating Officer

KRISTIN PAWLOWSKI

Digital Services Director

MARIAH MCCABE

Circulation and Accounting Assistant

National Newspaper Association

Association of Alternative Newsmedia

OUR

Our biggest issue of the year is here — the annual Best of Memphis. In May, we asked you, our readers, to nominate your favorites in food, drink, retail, services, arts, and more. From those nominations, the ballot was created. is summer, our audience voted on their favorites among the many restaurants, salons, venues, parks, and so many things in between. And now … drumroll, please … the votes have been tallied and results can be found on the following pages.

ere are some long-standing beloved Memphis institutions that pull the top spot in their respective categories year a er year, but you’ll also notice some new names and faces among the 2023 winners. We hope you’ll enjoy browsing through these sections to see the people, places, and things that keep the Blu City thriving, stylish, entertained, informed, and fed. ese are the businesses, organizations, and service providers that make Memphis great, and we’re happy to feature them as the best among the best.

ere are, of course, mom-and-pops, startups, and small businesses that you may not see here in BOM. at doesn’t at all lessen their value or quality. So many more folks are out there creating, cooking, and o ering their time and skills to us day in and day out. If there’s something or someone you love but don’t see on the list this year, be sure to put their names in the running during the 2024 nomination season.

A lot goes into making this issue the biggest and best. Aside from all the outstanding nominees and winners, our sta spends countless hours working behind the scenes throughout the year to ensure the entire process goes smoothly. Kudos to our digital services director, Kristin Pawlowski, who works the website magic to build all of the BOM online components, including the massive task of managing nominations and voting; our art sta , Carrie Beasley, Christopher Myers, and Neil Williams, who design the promos, ads, layouts, and art elements that bring life to the many pages you see before you; the sales team, Kelli Dewitt, Chip Googe, and Kalon Ambrose, and our chief revenue o cer Je rey Goldberg, who hit the ground running with our nomination and voting promotions and party sponsorships to engage clients along the way in the Best of Memphis fun; Margie Neal, our chief operating o cer and woman of many, many hats, who handles much of the invaluable planning and organization backstage; our writers, Samuel X. Cicci, Michael Donahue, Alex Greene, Kailynn Johnson, Chris McCoy, Abigail Morici, Toby Sells, Jon W. Sparks, and Bruce VanWyngarden, who pen winner blurbs for the nearly 200 categories in the poll; and the copy editors, Cicci and Morici, who read these pages several times over to ensure no typos slip through the nal printed version. anks, as well, to Molly Willmott, who plans the annual BOM event hosted for winners to make it the biggest and best party of the year. And nally, to Chet Hastings and our delivery drivers who get this and every other issue out into the world and on the racks for you to pick up and enjoy. (Please take a look at our masthead to see the names and roles of all the valued members of our team who bring the Flyer to you in print and online, all year.)

NEWS & OPINION

THE FLY-BY - 4

POLITICS - 7

AT LARGE - 8

FINANCE - 9

COVER STORY

“BEST OF MEMPHIS”

BY FLYER STAFF - 11

WE RECOMMEND - 51

MUSIC - 52

AFTER DARK - 53

CALENDAR - 54

NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 54

NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 56

ASTROLOGY - 57

METAPHYSICAL CONNECTION - 59

FOOD - 59

TV - 60

CLASSIFIEDS - 62

We love Best of Memphis, not only because we’re able highlight so many of Memphis’ assets, but also because we have the opportunity to include our readers in what we do. Nearly 20,000 people took the time to nominate and vote — to make your voices heard by telling us your favorites among all things Memphis. As we celebrate the completion of the 2023 BOM issue, we celebrate not only the winners, but every person who reads the Memphis Flyer, every person whose talent contributes to the making of this ne publication, and every advertiser whose support keeps the Flyer free. We could not continue this dream without each and every one of you. ank you all for being the Best of Memphis!

Shara Clark shara@memphis yer.com

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

THE fly-by

MEM ernet

Memphis on the internet.

TRAIN ROBBED

Questions, Answers + Attitude

Edited by Toby Sells

WEEK THAT WAS

By Flyer staff

Brooks, Pregnancy, & Midtown Closings

A roo op park, arresting women, and Outdoors and Belly Acres.

PREGNANCY ARRESTS

In late August, YouTuber @atver600 caught a group in Memphis unlawfully unloading a boxcar by hand. is is not the group that robbed a boxcar in Boxtown, nor the duo arrested for li ing Nikes from another train last month.

ose were late at night and very early in the morning. e group @atver600 caught were brazenly operating in the full light of day.

TRICKY is image was posted to the Stop Memphis Crime Facebook group. What turned out to be trickier than the stunts pulled by the rider in the photo? Commenters wondered, “Where are his legs?”

WHO TO FOLLOW

You won’t regret following Memphis Jookin on X. The dance videos are mesmerizing and stoke that city pride. Don’t miss the funny one to the right on “how to workout in Memphis.”

Tennessee, Alabama, and South Carolina lead the nation in arresting and criminally punishing women for allegedly posing a danger to their fetuses, according to a report released by advocacy group Pregnancy Justice.

Nationwide, nearly 1,400 people were arrested or subject to disparate bail, sentencing, and probation for conduct related to their pregnancies between 2005 and the U.S. Supreme Court decision in June 2022 dismantling abortion rights, the report found. Tennessee accounted for 131 of those cases.

BROOKS ROOFTOP REVEALED

The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art designers unveiled the design for a free-to-access rooftop park last week that will be featured at the new riverfront location.

The pathway will offer views and vantage points previously unavailable. It also stretches “nearly a quarter of a mile” and is meant for “more than observing.” The space, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, will also feature connecting art, architecture, the Memphis skyline, and views of the Mississippi River.

“A continuous pathway connects discrete pavilions scattered across the roof, encouraging visitors to explore the museum’s unique location at the intersections of river, city, and art,” said the museum in a statement.

Museum board president, Carl Person, said the roof is designed to bring people together. “Nowhere else in Memphis can get you 360-degree views like this, and the roof is just one of the free civic spaces in the Memphis art museum,” said Person.

CAMPER BLASTS ABORTION BLOCK

Tennessee House Minority Leader Karen Camper (D-Memphis) is criticizing state Representative John Ragan’s (R-Oak Ridge) letter backing delays in key military appointments until the Pentagon relents on abortion policy.

Camper, who is also a Memphis mayoral candidate, issued a statement last Monday saying she was “shocked by the level of vitriol and carelessness for the men and women in uniform expressed” in the letter by Ragan.

Ragan’s letter to U.S. senators Bill Hagerty and Marsha Blackburn, both Republicans, urges them to support Senator Tommy Tuberville in blocking appointments

to top military leadership posts and also asks them to “remove wokeness” from the military.

Camper, a retired intelligence officer from the U.S. Army, contends it is “outrageous” for Ragan, a retired Air Force fighter pilot, to “insert his personal beliefs” into Pentagon policies.

OUTDOORS AND BELLY ACRES

Outdoors Inc. is closing its Midtown-famous Union location, and Belly Acres is closing its Overton Square site. Outdoors announced the store closure on social media last week, bidding farewell to the Union location “a er more than 35 wonderful years.”

“ is move allows us to invest more deeply in our agship store,” the store said on Facebook. Outdoors hosted a liquidation sale at the Union location last week.

Belly Acres announced on Facebook last week that its Midtown location will be “closed until further notice.” e post asked customers to visit its location in the Regalia Shopping Center instead. A note on the Overton Square location said the space was for lease.

Stories from Tennessee Lookout contributed to this report. Visit the News Blog at memphis yer.com for fuller versions of these stories and more local news.

POSTED TO YOUTUBE BY @ATVER600

PHOTO: OUTDOORS INC.

POSTED TO X BY MEMPHIS JOOKIN

POSTED TO FACEBOOK BY DAVID DAHLER

PHOTO: BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART e Memphis Brooks Museum of Art unveiled designs for a free roo op park.

By Kailynn Johnson

Abortion Review

Congressional Democrats said they are committed to investigating the consequences of abortion bans and restrictions imposed by Republican-led states.

Tennessee was not explicitly mentioned. But the state will likely be considered in the investigation, as the state passed a near-total abortion ban in the weeks following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

In a statement, Democratic members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce said that Republican-led states “passed a wave of laws imposing extreme restrictions.”

“Republicans’ abortion restrictions are endangering women’s health and imposing a dangerous chilling e ect on providers,” said the committee’s ranking member, Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ).

On August 25, 2022, a Tennessee law went into e ect that made providing abortions a felony. e Human Life Protection Act “was passed in 2019 just in case the U.S. Supreme Court ever overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade.”

e law only allows an abortion in Tennessee if giving birth would kill the pregnant woman or would prevent “serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function.”

“ e consequences of these laws have been heartbreaking,” said Pallone. “We’ve seen numerous reports of women forced to continue life-threatening pregnancies because doctors fear criminal prosecution for providing care.”

patients in Idaho, Tennessee, and Oklahoma, who were “denied abortion care despite grave pregnancy complications.”

“Blackmon v. State of Tennessee challenges the limited scope of the ‘emergent medical condition’ exception to Tennessee’s total abortion ban,” said the organization. ey said Tennessee’s abortion ban endangers the lives of pregnant people, and the medical condition exception “threatens doctors with arbitrary enforcement.”

Pallone also said that many doctors have had to ee their home states because “they fear for their safety and are disheartened by undue political interference with their practice.”

is promise of an investigation came shortly a er the Center for Reproductive Rights announced it would sue Tennessee over its ban.

e case, Blackmon v. State of Tennessee, was led on behalf of three women, Nicole Blackmon, Allyson Phillips, and Kaitlyn Dulong, who were “denied necessary and potentially lifesaving medical care.” e suit was one of three complaints led by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of

Plainti s also include two obstetricians/gynecologists, Dr. Heather Maune of Nashville and Dr. Laura Anderson of Franklin. e suit states that the medical condition exception has “put patients’ lives and doctors’ liberty and livelihoods at grave risk.”

According to state law, an emergency medical condition refers to a “medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of su cient severity, including severe pain, such that it could put the patient’s health in serious jeopardy, cause serious impairment to bodily function, or cause serious dysfunction of any body organ, system, or part without immediate medical attention.”

“Since then, pregnant people in Tennessee have su ered needless physical and emotional pain and harm, including loss of their fertility,” the lawsuit claims.

e suit also says abortion is “necessary healthcare being denied under Tennessee’s bans.”

“Tennessee’s abortion ban prevents pregnant people and those who may become pregnant from receiving the nationally recognized standard of care they need.”

“The consequences of these laws have been heartbreaking.”

{ CITY REPORTER

As Congress begins an abortion ban investigation, a lawsuit takes Tennessee’s post-Roe abortion laws to court.

PHOTO: GAYATRI MALHOTRA | UNSPLASH Congress begins its investigation into abortion bans.

POLITICS By Jackson Baker

September Surprises

e term “October Surprise” has long since been a part of the political lexicon as a way to describe last-minute campaign attacks directed by one candidate against another as an election cycle wends its way to its November conclusion.

ere were two such instances in the city election this past week — one which only arguably quali es and another which ts the de nition perfectly. (And since this election ends in October, not in November, the term “September Surprise” is a more accurate t.)

Certainly the revelation last Friday of an indictment by Nashville DA Glenn Funk of nine Shelby County Jail employees in the death last year of a Shelby County Jail inmate hit sheri and mayoral candidate Floyd Bonner between the eyes.

based on a collective call by numerous Memphians, including Kiel, to rethink public safety procedures in the wake of George Floyd’s 2020 death.

It remains to be seen what the e ect of either event will be on the election outcome.

A brief summary of mayoral endorsements:

Van Turner: State Rep. Justin J. Pearson; Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris; Congressman Steve Cohen; District Attorney Steve Mulroy; Stand for Children; Memphis For All; People for Fairness and Justice; Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood; AFSCME Local 1733

Paul Young: Shelby County Young Democrats; Gen Next PAC; Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood; People’s Convention; Tami Sawyer; Elliot Perry; Craig Brewer; NLE Choppa

Floyd Bonner: Memphis Police Association; Memphis Fire Fighters Association; Shelby County Deputy Sheri ’s Association; ACRE (Association of City Retired Employees);West Tennessee Home Builders Association; MAAR - Memphis Area Association of Realtors

As the city election winds down, next year’s elections for state and federal o ce are already stirring.

As one example, Jesse Huseth, the Memphis businessman who earlier this year lost a close race to Lexie Carter for local Democratic chair, has his sights set on the District 97 seat in the state House of Representatives.

And it may well have an impact on the election. At this point, to be sure, there is no directly traceable connection between any other candidate and Funk’s decision. ere is no doubt, however, that Bonner’s chief rivals may feel some satisfaction from it. For the record, Bonner stood by his employees and proclaimed their innocence.

e other case was clearly premeditated by an opponent. is was an instance whereby District 5 city council candidate Philip Spinosa openly accused rival candidate Meggan Wurzburg Kiel of having advocated for “defunding the police.”

Kiel and her supporters wasted no time in calling a press conference debunking the accusation, which was

at’s the seat currently held by Republican John Gillespie, who originally won it in a tight race two years ago against Democrat Gabby Salinas, who went on to serve as Carter’s predecessor as party chair.

District 97, on the suburban eastern edge of Memphis, is adjacent to District 96, a formerly Republican bailiwick which went over to Democratic control with the upset victory in 2016 of Democrat Dwayne ompson, who continues to hold it. Flipping 97 in like manner is now a Democratic priority. at may not be easy. Gillespie, who is known to have broken with his fellow Republicans on key issues, has achieved a somewhat moderate reputation during his tenure and has passed signi cant legislation to curb the excesses of drag racing.

PHOTO: POSTED TO X BY JESSE HUSETH

Jesse Huseth and Meggan Kiel

At the end, the gloves come all the way o .

NEIL DIAMOND:

THE LEGACY CONCERT TRIBUTE OCTOBER 7

3:00PM & 7:30PM

AT LARGE By Bruce VanWyngarden

The Church of Trump

“Good morning, folks, and welcome. We’ll begin today’s service with a passage from the scriptures.”

e pastor opens a thick red book, and begins to read:

“A very important deadline is approaching at the end of the month,” he intones. “Republicans in Congress can and must defund all aspects of Crooked Joe Biden’s weaponized Government that refuses to close the Border, and treats half the Country as Enemies of the State. is is also the last chance to defund these political prosecutions against me and other Patriots. ey failed on the debt limit, but they must not fail now. Use the power of the purse and defend the Country!”

“Amen,” says the pastor. “ us endeth the reading from the Book Truth Social according to President Trump. And thus sayeth our Lord.”

“AMEN!!” shouts the assembled multitude, resplendent in their goto-meeting best: T-shirts with slogans like “Let’s Go Brandon,” “Never Surrender,” and “F—k Joe Biden,” and red MAGA hats and American ag halter tops.

“Now, please turn to page 13 in your hymnals,” says the pastor. As the organist begins the familiar opening strains, the congregation joyously breaks into song:

“Young man, there’s no need to feel down

I said, young man, pick yourself o the ground

I said, young man, ’cause you’re in a new town

ere’s no need to be unhappy …”

You’ve probably seen the slogan that’s making the rounds in Democratic circles: “He Lost! And You’re in a Cult.” I saw it on a T-Shirt at Kroger the other day and hoped the wearer was ready for a possible confrontation from a true believer.

Because that’s legitimately where we are: Anyone who is still carrying water for Donald Trump is either in a cult and blindly devoted to an authoritarian wannabe, or is a cynical hypocrite who knows Trump is a lying dirtbag but thinks backing the former president will somehow accrue to their bene t. is would include most GOP members of Congress and the Senate.

In a group email chain that I’m on, a Trumper wrote the following: “Liberals fear Donald Trump because he is a real man, not a ‘woke’ liberal wuss.”

Yes, we fear a “real man” who wears more makeup and hair spray than a Miami drag queen and lives in a fading golf club that looks like it was designed by Carmen Miranda on ’shrooms. Nobody fears Donald Trump, except Republicans. He’s a clown-show, a grammatically impaired, narcissistic man-child who recently said in a speech that President Obama was going to start World War II. is is not a man to fear.

What is to be feared is what would happen if this lunatic got back in the White House. at’s a truly terrifying prospect. Imagine having this deeply awed individual and his unbridled ego in charge of our military, our judiciary, the CDC, and/or anything else that catches his gold sh-level attention span. We’d have, in the highest o ce in the land, a man with virtually unlimited power, a man who wants to be president for life, a man who would surround himself with the kind of pandering con-men and yes-men who are currently facing indictments of several varieties — along with their former boss. ey would no doubt be pardoned. Attorney General Rudy Giuliani, anyone? Secretary of Defense Michael Flynn? Secretary of State Paul Manafort? A Secret Service made up of Proud Boys? Sure.

Yes, that’s where the true fear lies — in the nagging possibility that there are somehow enough idiots in this country to allow this guy to pull o another Electoral College miracle, à la 2016.

Trump never goes to church, but he has disciples, a oating congregation of deadhead sycophants who see him — almost literally — as the second coming. Even the evangelicals, of all people, see this adulterous, lying, cheating layabout as re ective of their faith — faith, in this case, apparently being the ability to totally ignore reality.

In the Truth Social post cited above, for example, e Donald implores Republicans in Congress to “defund these political prosecutions,” ignoring the fact that the Democratically controlled Senate and presidency would render moot any such bill passed by Congress. But such real-world details don’t matter in the Church of Trump. All that matters is that you click your heels together and believe he won — and that you’re not in a cult.

Starring Jay White — For 35 years, Jay has brought the music & charismatic stage presence of Neil Diamond to countless crowds. A lifelong fan himself, Jay White has received praise from Neil Diamond, even appearing on Neil’s Stages DVD Box Set. With songs like SWEET CAROLINE –AMERICA – CRACKLIN’ ROSIE –SONG SUNG BLUE, this show provides the quintessential Neil Diamond concert experience live on BPACC’s intimate stage!

PHOTO: TRIPLE I VENTURES LLC | DREAMSTIME.COM

He lost. And you’re in a cult.

Locating Lost Assets

How to nd forgotten retirement funds.

Losing track of retirement funds is a common and concerning trend that has worsened in recent years. According to a report from the rm Capitalize, as of May 2023, there were about 29.2 million forgotten 401k accounts in the United States that held approximately $1.65 trillion in assets. Due to recent increases in job switching, the number of forgotten 401ks has grown by more than 20 percent since May 2021.

Missing out on these retirement funds can put your retirement at risk, as you may end up losing signi cant assets. Fortunately, there are ways to locate and reclaim lost retirement accounts. e following tips can help.

address. When an employer or nancial institution is unable to reach an accountholder, it may turn over the account to the state’s unclaimed property o ce. Fortunately, you can search for your name on the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) website or your state-speci c unclaimed property o ce to nd any unclaimed retirement funds that may be waiting for you.

3. Check the Department of Labor (DOL) abandoned plan database. If your past employer’s plan was terminated, the DOL’s Employee Bene ts Security Administration consolidates information about unclaimed retirement bene ts and makes it easy to track down missing funds.

4. Contact the Pension Bene t Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).

e PBGC can be a great resource if you lost track of a de ned bene t pension plan at a previous employer. is organization is a government agency that insures the value of pension bene ts and helps individuals locate lost pension plans. Visit pbgc.gov for more information.

5. Track down forgotten IRAs.

couldn’t have done it without you.

In 1998, we started Independent Bank with a simple goal—to serve our customers heroically. We always knew at the end of the day, this business was not about us, it was all about you.

1. Check with past employers. If you’ve changed jobs throughout your career, it’s important to follow up with past employers to make sure you didn’t leave any money behind. Retirement plan administrators have several options for how to handle abandoned funds in an employer-sponsored account, based on the amount le in it.

$1,000 or less — e employer can issue a check and mail it to your last known address. If you’ve moved since leaving a job, you may need to request a new check.

Between $1,000 and $5,000 — Employers can move funds to an IRA without your consent. You’ll need to ask your past employer how to access the account.

More than $5,000 — ere’s a good chance your funds are still in the employer’s plan. It may be wise to roll over the account balance to an IRA that you control.

2. Search unclaimed property databases. Sometimes people lose track of their retirement savings when they move and forget to notify past employers of their new

If you think you may have abandoned an IRA along the way, take inventory of past bank and investment account statements for any evidence of the account. You can also reach out directly to any nancial institutions you’ve worked with in the past to inquire about any inactive or dormant IRAs associated with your name.

If you think you le behind retirement assets at some point, it may be worth the e ort of tracking them down. Even if you haven’t contributed to the accounts in many years, the power of compounding has the potential to signi cantly grow your retirement assets over time. Gene Gard, CFA, CFP, CFT-I, is a Partner and Private Wealth Manager with Creative Planning. Creative Planning is one of the nation’s largest Registered Investment Advisory rms providing comprehensive wealth management services to ensure all elements of a client’s nancial life are working together, including investments, taxes, estate planning, and risk management. For more information or to request a free, no-obligation consultation, visit CreativePlanning.com.

As we celebrate 25 years of serving heroically, we are proud to be the largest Memphis-headquartered community bank. You have been our priority as we grew, your goals have been our goals, and you are the reason for our success.

So, here’s to you! Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be part of your business and personal dreams. Thank you for trusting us with your financial needs, and giving us the opportunity to grow alongside you.

We truly couldn’t have done it without you!

Your friends at i-bank i-bankonline.com

PHOTO: JOSHUA HOEHNE | UNSPLASH Don’t lose track of your assets.

The Memphis Flyer’s annual Best of Memphis readers’ poll is back!

We love to celebrate all things Memphis, and it’s time to announce our winners. From restaurants, to spa days, to family outings, and everything in between, our readers have spoken, and you all chose your favorites.

Winners with “BOM” next to their name dominated the category, while ties have been noted.

Best of Memphis 2023 was written by Samuel X. Cicci, Shara Clark, Michael Donahue, Alex Greene, Kailynn Johnson, Chris McCoy, Abigail Morici, Toby Sells, Jon W. Sparks, and Bruce VanWyngarden. It was designed by Carrie Beasley with images by Justin Fox Burks.

Thanks to our readers for their nominations and votes. Your favorites are listed on the following pages, but we think you’re the Best of Memphis, too! We reserve special thanks for Colors Agency and Triniti Holliday for the excellent cover shot, and for our advertisers, who help to keep the Memphis Flyer a free publication.

Our heart rate increases to deliver more oxygen and nutrients to working muscles. As a result, it improves your aerobic fitness and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease and heart attacks.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

FOOD + DRINK

BEST BAKERY

1. Muddy’s Bake Shop

2. Frost Bake Shop

3. BluffCakes

Let them eat (cup)cakes … and pies … and cookies! What can we say? Muddy’s baked goods — all baked from scratch every day — are delightful gastronomic revolutions.

BEST RIBS

1. Central BBQ

2. Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous

3. Cozy Corner

BEST BARBECUE

1. Central BBQ

2. The Commissary

3. The Bar-B-Q Shop

Whether it’s the ribs, sandwiches, brisket, wings, nachos, smoked turkey, or even a pork barbecue chef salad(!), Central BBQ is Memphis’ favorite.

BEST BREAKFAST

Tie 1. Brother Juniper’s Sunrise Memphis

2. Bryant’s Breakfast

3. Another Broken Egg Cafe

It’s an argument as old as time: What do you want to eat? And when it comes to breakfast, the choice wasn’t easy for our readers, who landed our Best Breakfast in a tie between Brother Juniper’s and Sunrise Memphis. But how can we blame them? Both of these restaurants have diners starting their days with full, happy tummies.

BEST BRUNCH

1. The Beauty Shop

2. Owen Brennan’s

3. Sunrise Memphis

The problem with breakfast is that it’s too early, but brunch — well, that just hits the sweet spot. And The Beauty Shop’s weekend brunch — oh my, that’s on a whole ’nother level. With shrimp and grits, French toast, Benedicts, and more, this former beauty salon will have you eating good and feeling gorgeous.

BEST BAR FOOD

1. Huey’s

2. Young Avenue Deli

3. Slider Inn

BEST KID-FRIENDLY RESTAURANT

1. Huey’s

2. Belly Acres

3. Incredible Pizza Company

BEST RESTAURANT

1. Huey’s

2. Coastal Fish Company

3. Folk’s Folly Prime Steak House

BEST BURGER

1. Huey’s

2. Tops Bar-B-Q

3. Earnestine & Hazel’s Bow before your king! The Huey burger rules from its throne with an iron first, locking up yet another year of Best Burger (and the restaurant nabbed several other Food + Drink awards as well). The genius is in the simplicity of Huey’s signature dish, a comforting dinner option for hungry Memphians citywide.

BEST BLOODY MARY

1. Bayou Bar & Grill

2. The Beauty Shop

3. Sunrise Memphis

BEST CAJUN/CREOLE

1. Bayou Bar & Grill

2. The Second Line

3. Owen Brennan’s Whether you’re looking for a

Bloody Mary, a hearty bowl of duck and sausage gumbo, or a late-night, after-shift snack, the Overton Square stalwart is popular with everyone. As a bonus, it’s probably the only place in town that serves alligator meat on the regular.

BEST CHEF

1. Tamra Patterson, Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe

2. Andy Ticer and Michael Hudman, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen/Bishop/ Catherine & Mary’s/Hog & Hominy

3. Erling Jensen, Erling Jensen

The Restaurant

Chef Tam, as she’s known around town, has become one of the faces of Memphis cuisine both locally and nationally thanks to her popular Underground Cafe. In between serving delicious helpings of crawfish and shrimp mac-andcheese or jambalaya-stuffed catfish, she’s a regular on Food Network competitions.

BEST CHINESE

1. Mulan Asian Bistro

2. Wang’s Mandarin House

3. A-Tan Chicken fried rice? Lo mein?

Hot and sour soup? Szechuan beef? Mulan’s multiple locations have all sorts of delectable American-Chinese classics. And if you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, there are so many tasty treats on the

extensive authentic Szechuan menu.

BEST COFFEE ROASTER

1. French Truck Coffee

2. Comeback Coffee

3. Ugly Mug Coffee Roasters

Let your cup be filled with coffee from the best fresh beans, roasted in small batches and served with love. Two locations in town can be found by just following the aroma, and you’ll be more than a sipper, you’ll be part of a community.

BEST PATIO

1. Coastal Fish Company

2. Railgarten

3. Brookhaven Pub & Grill

BEST SEAFOOD

BOM 1. Coastal Fish Company

2. Soul Fish Cafe

3. Half Shell

BEST DATE-NIGHT RESTAURANT

1. Coastal Fish Company

2. Porch & Parlor Prime Steakhouse

3. Folk’s Folly Prime Steak House

Here is a thing of beauty, with outstanding seafood, a patio with a stunning view, and a perfect spot to go on a date. There’s standard fare but also

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Chef Tamra Patterson, Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe

Huey’s

scrumptious mixes, like oysters and sorbets. And so much more that’s rated Mmmmmm.

BEST DOG-FRIENDLY RESTAURANT/BAR

1. Loflin Yard

2. Railgarten

3. Slider Inn

When pups see the leash and harness come out, they know they’re in for a good time. When that trip involves a car ride and a walk around this veritable playground, plus a bunch of pets from new friends, dogs love Loflin Yard as much as their human counterparts.

BEST DONUT SHOP

BOM 1. Gibson’s Donuts

2. Howard’s Donuts

3. Midtown Donuts

Whether it’s a tried-and-true glazed, a plain cake, or the savory maple bacon donut, Memphis has a sweet tooth for Gibson’s.

BEST STEAK

1. Folk’s Folly Prime Steak House

2. Porch & Parlor Prime Steakhouse

3. Side Porch Steakhouse

BEST FINE DINING/ NEW AMERICAN

1. Folk’s Folly Prime Steak House

2. Porch & Parlor Prime Steakhouse

3. Southern Social Scrumptious is the word for this longtime favorite restaurant. The intimate, elegant place has been serving perfectly done dishes since 1977 and promises a well-done experience. Unless you prefer medium or rare.

BEST TACO

1. TACOnganas

2. Maciel’s Tortas & Taco

3. Las Delicias

BEST FOOD TRUCK

1. TACOnganas

2. El Mero Taco

3. New Wing Order

Winning two of the hardest fought BOM categories is an exceptional feat. TACOnganas’ food truck empire stretches from Midtown to Cordova, and their fans can’t get enough of Memphis’ favorite street food.

continued on page 14

PHOTO: SHARA CLARK Best Bar Food; Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant; Best Restaurant; Best Burger

continued from page 13

BEST FRIED CHICKEN

BOM 1. Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken

2. Superlo Foods

3. Uncle Lou’s Fried Chicken

Gus’ cast-iron skillet-cooked fried chicken is a Memphis legend whose renown has spread nationwide — or dare we say worldwide? The long lines outside tell the story of this culinary classic’s overwhelming popularity.

BEST HOME COOKING/ SOUL FOOD

1. Soul Fish Cafe

2. Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe

3. The Cupboard Restaurant

The fried catfish is the star attraction at Soul Fish. But don’t sleep on the rest of the menu, which has a full selection of Southern comfort food. We’re not sure if a Cuban sandwich counts as soul food; nevertheless, it’s delicious.

BEST HOT WINGS

1. Crumpy’s Hot Wings

2. Ching’s Hot Wings

3. The Wing Guru

In a competitive market, Donald Crump has served up some of the best wings in the city for more than three decades. Honey hot? Memphis Gold? Classic buffalo? Whatever the sauce, Crumpy’s wings will have you gnawing on

that bone until it’s ... bone dry.

BEST INDIAN

1. India Palace

2. Golden India

3. Bombay House

Open the door, and the warm scent of naan and basmati rice floats out of India Palace. The Midtown staple boasts a warm and inviting atmosphere with over 50 authentic Northern Indian dishes. And please don’t sleep on their famed lunch buffet. After loading up on lamb meatballs, leave room for kheer or gulab jamun.

BEST ITALIAN

1. Pete & Sam’s

2. Ciao Bella Italian Grill

3. Villa Castrioti

In addition to seeing your favorite Italian menu items, you’ll probably also see your favorite people at this iconic Memphis restaurant on Park Avenue. People have been known to wait over an hour if they don’t have a reservation just to eat at this popular restaurant. And try the steaks and fried or grilled chicken, too.

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • FOOD

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Fine Dining/ New American Folk’s Folly Prime Steak House

BEST LOCAL BREWERY

1. Wiseacre Brewing Co.

2. Ghost River Brewing Co.

3. Memphis Made Brewing Co.

The Bartosch Brothers (Davin and Kellan) and their dedicated Wiseacre team have helped Memphis drink local beer for a decade now. They also continue to push their brand (and name recognition for the city) into more and more markets across the U.S.

BEST LOCAL COFFEEHOUSE

1. Otherlands Coffee Bar

2. Muggin Coffeehouse

3. City & State Otherlands is Otherlands. It doesn’t need to change in the trendy winds. It’s a bedrock staple in keeping Midtown “funky.” Solid coffee? Check. Incense and hippy handbags? Also check.

BEST MARGARITA

1. Molly’s La Casita

Tie 2. Babalu Las Delicias

3. Frida’s Restaurante Mexicano

For more than 40 years now, Molly’s La Casita has been serving up delicious Tex-Mex and its signature margarita in the bright peach, adobe building on Madison Avenue.

Thanks to its legion of dedicated fans, it stands to reason that Molly’s could be there for 40 more.

BEST MEXICAN

1. Las Delicias

2. El Mezcal

3. Los Comales

How would you describe everything at Las Delicias? Why, delicious, of course! It’s right there in the name at Antonio Martinez’s authentic Mexican restaurant, serving up delicious plates of everything from tamales to burritos.

BEST MIDDLE EASTERN

1. Casablanca

2. Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe

3. Queen of Sheba

Come for the super sandwich, and stay for Casablanca’s renowned tea. It seems I stayed too long for the tea, with servers bringing the kettle back to my table for refills until it was completely empty. But that’s the generosity Flyer readers love at Casablanca, shawarma and all.

BEST NEW RESTAURANT

1. Bog & Barley

2. The Lobbyist

3. Supper Club on 2nd

With everything imported straight form Ireland, DJ Naylor’s new East Memphis restaurant dazzles with upscale

continued on page 16

PHOTO: COURTESY WISEACRE BREWING CO. Best Local Brewery Wiseacre Brewing Co.

MEXICAN RESTAURANT

2006 Madison Ave.•726-1873

Open everyday at 11am

Order online and DoorDash mollyslacasita.com

continued from page 15

eats and old Irish classics like fish and chips. The Guinness taps are always flowing, and there’s plenty of whiskey for everyone. Another round!

BEST PIZZA

1. Memphis Pizza Cafe

2. Aldo’s Pizza Pies

3. Broadway Pizza

Go with the standard plain cheese, vegetable supreme, or barbecue chicken — our readers pick this Memphis staple as tops, no matter how you top it.

BEST SANDWICHES

1. Elwood’s Shack

2. Young Avenue Deli

3. Huey’s

The hype has been real for 10 years. Sandwich lovers from across the Mid-South have flocked to the humble shack in the Lowe’s parking lot since it opened in 2013. They haven’t stopped. The new Elwood’s on Park is slated to open this month.

BEST SERVER

1. Calvin Bell, Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous

2. Taylor Pfohl, Bayou Bar & Grill

3. Matt Doyle, Villa Castrioti Calvin Bell wins “Best Server” year after year. And it’s easy to see why. He’s the perfect server as well as a great guy. He goes

the extra mile. And you want to be one of his “regulars.” He’s what makes Rendezvous a classic Memphis restaurant.

BEST SMOOTHIE

1. Smoothie King

2. City Silo Table + Pantry

3. Tropical Smoothie Cafe

Whether you’re searching for a treat after an intensive Pilates session or the tastiest meal replacement, Smoothie King has you covered. From smoothie classics to the innovative acai bowls, Smoothie King provides the ultimate treat.

BEST THAI

BOM 1. Bangkok Alley

2. Thai Bistro

3. Mosa Asian Bistro Flyer readers love Bangkok Alley’s Thai classics (think chicken satay and massaman curry), and … hold on, they’ve got top-notch Thai food and sushi? Well, guess there’s something for everyone at Bangkok Alley.

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE Best Server Calvin Bell, Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous

BEST VEGETARIAN/VEGAN

1. City Silo Table + Pantry

2. Pho Binh

3. Café Eclectic

When this writer’s boyfriend suggests City Silo for dinner, this vegetarian says, “Hell yeah!” And so do our readers. With a menu packed with sandwiches, salads, bowls, smoothies, and more, this eatery has something for everyone — vegans, vegetarians, and omnivore boyfriends.

BEST VIETNAMESE

1. Pho Binh

2. Pho Saigon

3. Tuyen’s Asian Bistro

What exactly is the secret for their perfectly crispy yet soft lemongrass tofu? How about the seasoned batter on those chicken wings? And that nectar of the gods that is a bowl of Pho Binh’s pho? Flyer readers get it.

PHOTO: SAMUEL X. CICCI

Best Vegetarian/Vegan City Silo Table + Pantry

NIGHTLIFE

BEST BAR

1. Lafayette’s Music Room

2. Bardog Tavern

3. Huey’s

This Overton Square mainstay serves up great music and great food in a relaxed and intimate atmosphere.

BEST BARTENDER

1. Leslie Gadd, Huey’s Tie 2. Amber Carey, Brookhaven Pub & Grill Bradley Moore, Dru’s Place

3. Colton Elliott, Cameo

Bartenders are different. People love their intense hustle and their relaxed attitudes. People love a bartender’s attention but not too much of it. For this and much more, Huey’s fans love Leslie Gadd behind the bar.

BEST BEER SELECTION (IN A BAR)

1. Flying Saucer Draught Emporium

2. Young Avenue Deli

3. Lucchesi’s Beer Garden

The Saucer was craft beer before craft beer was cool. When it landed at Peabody Place in 1997, the restaurant’s mighty wall of taps likely looked alien to consumers expecting only Bud, Miller, or Coors. It remains an epicenter for the craft curious.

BEST COLLEGE HANGOUT

1. RP Tracks

2. Young Avenue Deli

3. Newby’s

A lunch stop between classes, a gathering place for professors and students alike, and a cool place to unwind with a beer

and a round of pool. The train’s a comin’ and blowin’ its horn for RP Tracks roaring (again) into this top spot.

BEST CRAFT COCKTAILS

1. Alchemy

2. Hog & Hominy

3. Cameo

Alchemy does have a transformational magic. Its never-satisfied bartenders are always mixing up something new. The space itself can transform from business lunch, to happy hour, to a chic afterhours spot with the turn of the sun. The new Salt | Soy kitchen just changed the menu completely.

BEST KARAOKE

1. Dru’s Place

2. The Cove

3. Blind Bear

BEST GAY BAR

1. Dru’s Place

2. Atomic Rose

3. The Pumping Station

Dru’s Place has been a staple in Memphis nightlife for years. Not only has it served as a safe space for the LGBTQ community, but it is also the setting for some of the hottest events of the city such as drag shows, trivia, and of course … karaoke.

BEST SPORTS BAR

1. Brookhaven Pub & Grill

2. Huey’s

3. The Skybox Grill

BEST HAPPY HOUR

1. Brookhaven Pub & Grill

2. Huey’s

3. Alchemy

It’s called happy hour for a reason. And Flyer readers are happy as heck to hop into Brookhaven when there’s a $1 off beer, well drinks, and house wine (4-7 p.m. daily).

BEST AFTER-HOURS SPOT

1. Earnestine & Hazel’s

2. Paula Raiford’s Disco

3. Alex’s Tavern

BEST HOLE-IN-THE-WALL

1. Earnestine & Hazel’s

2. Alex’s Tavern

3. The Cove

Earnestine & Hazel’s is a bona fide Memphis icon and institution. It’s the soul of Memphis. Peeling paint and uneven floors don’t matter as long as there’s a killer jukebox. It’s “ragged but right.”

BEST NEW BAR

1. Bog & Barley

2. Cameo

3. Inkwell

Celtic Crossing owner DJ Naylor opened his new bar in East Memphis this year, and it’s a treat. Interior craftsmanship from a Dublin firm, Irish antiques and artwork everywhere, and, most importantly, lots and lots of beer, whiskey, and every other drink you might need when out on the town.

BEST NIGHTCLUB

1. Paula Raiford’s Disco

2. Lafayette’s Music Room

3. Atomic Rose

The smoke machines. The light-up dance floor. The disco vibe. The dance pole. The drum set. The paint handprints that

PHOTO: COURTESY HUEY’S Best Bartender Leslie Gadd, Huey’s

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Bar Lafayette’s Music Room

line the walls. There’s no doubt Paula Raiford took an iconic torch from her father to carry on the magic that is Raiford’s.

BEST PLACE TO SEE STAND-UP

1. Chuckles Comedy House

2. The Orpheum Theatre

3. Hi Tone

Both national touring acts and hometown comedians can be found on the Chuckles stage every weekend, more proof that comedy is thriving in the Bluff City.

BEST PLACE TO SHOOT POOL

1. Young Avenue Deli

2. Blue Monkey

3. HighPockets

Kids learned to play, college students learned to flirt, and untold eons of idle hours have been spent around the Deli’s pool tables. The CooperYoung anchor upped its pool profile last year with the firstever Midtown World Billiards Championship.

BEST STRIP CLUB

1. Purple Diamond

2. Gold Club

3. The Pony

Here’s the naked truth: This Macon Road gentleman’s establishment tops the always hot competition for best strip club. We know where we’ll be for Big Rack Week!

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

BEST CASINO

1. Southland Casino Hotel

2. Gold Strike Casino Resort

3. Horseshoe Tunica Casino & Hotel

Feeling lucky? After a recent $320 million expansion project, including a new 20-story hotel, an 113,000-square-foot gaming floor, 2,400 slot machines, and 50 live table games, our readers take the ride to Southland for their gaming thrills.

BEST DOG PARK

1. The Outback at Shelby Farms

2. Overton Bark

3. Sea Isle Dog Park

The pawty don’t start ’til the pups walk in, and, boy, do they raise the woof at The Outback. Named after all dogs’ favorite chain restaurant (just kidding), this dog park offers more than 100 acres of open fields, ponds, and unpaved trails for off-leash fun and a pawsitively good time.

BEST FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT

BOM 1. Memphis Zoo

2. Shelby Farms Park

3. Overton Park Shell

Do you ever look at your family

at dinner and think they’re a bunch of animals? Well, bring them where they belong: the Memphis Zoo. Not only does the zoo have fellow animals galore (more than 3,500 of them), but you can always count on the award-winning, state-of-the-art operation for a good time, whether that’s during regular hours or at any of their special events, from Zoo Boo to Zoo Lights and everything in between.

BEST FESTIVAL

1. Cooper-Young Festival

2. Beale Street Music Festival

3. World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest

According to you, our faithful readers, the Cooper-Young Festival is where it’s at. What is “it”? Perhaps, it’s the live Memphis-grown music, or maybe it’s the 435 artisans

from around the country who set up shop, or maybe it’s the people and the memories. Whatever “it” is, we can say this festival has had the it-factor for the last 35 years.

BEST GALLERY

1. Memphis Botanic Garden

2. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

Tie 3. Dixon Gallery & Gardens Crosstown Arts

Stop and smell the roses — and check out the bomb (or should we say, “BOM”?) artwork at Memphis Botanic Garden. With an indoor gallery always full of paintings and drawings (usually by local artists) and this year’s spectacular “Rich Soil” by Kristine Mays bringing the art outside, MBG never disappoints.

BEST GOLF COURSE

1. TPC Southwind

2. Overton Park 9

3. The Links at Galloway

The site of the annual FedEx St. Jude PGA tour event takes home another trophy for the best links in Memphis.

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PHOTO: CHRIS MCCOY Best Festival Cooper-Young Festival

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Gallery Memphis Botanic Garden

Kerry Kennedy

HONOREE President Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

Stacey Abrams

HONOREE

Bestselling author, entrepreneur, and political leader

HONOREE

Dr. Clayborne Carson

Martin Luther King, Jr., Centennial Professor of History, emeritus Stanford University

BEST LOCAL BAND

1. Almost Famous

2. Memphis Funk-N-Horns

3. Seeing Red

Oddly, there are bands named Almost Famous in several U.S. cities, all specializing in recreating classic radio hits. But the Memphis version has an edge: its members, as world-class players, have played on 23 gold and platinum records, having participated in projects garnering nine Grammy nominations and three Emmy wins.

BEST LOCAL RAPPER/ HIP-HOP ARTIST

1. Three 6 Mafia

2. GloRilla

3. Moneybagg Yo When brothers Project Pat and

Juicy J co-founded Three 6 Mafia with DJ Paul in 1991, they couldn’t have guessed they’d be headlining the Beale Street Music Festival as recently as 2022. And while the sudden loss of Gangsta Boo this year shook the Three 6 community, they carry on.

BEST LOCAL SINGER

1. Alexis Grace

2. Joyce Cobb

3. Marcella Simien

Having been a top 13 finalist for the eighth season of American Idol in 2009, Grace has pursued

continued on page 24

PHOTO: COURTESY ALEXIS GRACE

Best Local Singer Alexis Grace

continued from page 20

PHOTO: CREATION STUDIOS Best Local Band Almost Famous

continued from page 22

her own star resolutely. That’s also included acting in Trailer Park Boys and Hallmark’s Wedding at Graceland, but she really shines in her live musical performances.

BEST MUSEUM

1. National Civil Rights Museum

2. Children’s Museum of Memphis

3. Stax Museum of American Soul Music

Our readers have once again voted the National Civil Rights Museum as the Best Museum in Memphis, and our readers aren’t the only ones with this opinion. The museum’s unflinching look at the Civil Rights Movement, through

Museum

interactive exhibits, historic collections, dynamic speakers, and special events, has earned it national recognition.

BEST PARK

1. Shelby Farms Park

2. Overton Park

3. Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park

Oh, give me a park where the buffalo roam, where runners, kayakers, and families play,

continued on page 26

PHOTO: CALVIN L. LEAKE | DREAMSTIME.COM Best Park Shelby Farms Park

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

PHOTO: BLAKE BILLINGS | DREAMSTIME.COM Best Museum National Civil Rights

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

continued from page 24

where seldom is heard a discouraging word, and the skies are not cloudy all day. We could sing high praises for Shelby Farms Park all the day long, no wonder Memphis has voted it the best of the best.

BEST LIVE THEATER

BOM 1. The Orpheum Theatre

2. Playhouse on the Square

3. Hattiloo Theatre

BEST PERFORMING

ARTS VENUE

1. The Orpheum Theatre

2. Overton Park Shell

3. Germantown Performing Arts Center

Let’s just state the obvious: The Orpheum Theatre is gorgeous — chandeliers, gilded moldings, so much architectural beauty that you could spend all day just looking at — if not for the many Broadway shows, concerts, comedy acts, family entertainment, magic shows, ballets, and more taking place on the stage.

BEST PLACE TO SEE LIVE MUSIC

1. Overton Park Shell

2. Live at the Garden

3. Lafayette’s Music Room

The area occupied by the Shell has always hosted open-air performances, even before the Shell was built in 1936. It’s the perfect setting for music, with a historical legacy of timeless musical performances over the decades that elevates every new artist appearing there.

PHOTO (ABOVE): CRAIG THOMPSON Best Place to See Live Music Overton Park Shell

PHOTO (LEFT): PAUL MCKINNON | DREAMSTIME.COM Best Live eater; Best

MEDIA + PERSONALITIES

BEST TV NEWS ANCHOR

1. Jeremy Pierre

2. Joe Birch

3. Ernie Freeman

BEST BROADCAST REPORTER

1. Jeremy Pierre

2. Chelsea Chandler

3. Joe Birch

Scroll through FOX 13 broadcaster Jeremy Pierre’s Facebook, and it’s easy to see why he’s endeared himself to Memphians. Wade through the horrors of violent crime news stories, and Pierre (who’s not from Memphis) beams with positivity and love for the city. For example, he knows Crumpy’s chicken is best “fried HARDT!”

BEST LOCAL ATHLETE

1. Ja Morant

2. Penny Hardaway

3. Jaren Jackson Jr.

One of the most talented players to ever grace the Grizzlies jersey, Ja Morant takes the organization to new heights every season. Almost literally, when he keeps trying to dunk over his 7-foot opponents. We can’t wait for his return to the court in December.

BEST LOCAL INSTAGRAM

1. Unapologetically Memphis

2. Choose901

3. I Love Memphis Blog

Aye mane, say mane, it’s your favorite Instagram account, mane. With its viral and authentic content, it’s no surprise that Unapologetically Memphis has become a staple in Memphis’ social media culture. Whether it’s a shout-out to your favorite neighborhood or a Dixie Queen meme, this page has got you covered.

BEST LOCAL RADIO SHOW

1. Ron Olson and Karen Perrin

2. South Main Soul Club

3. Drake Digital Ron and Karen (and typically not one without the other) are household names in Memphis. They woke up the city for over 12 years on FM 100. Fans rejoiced when the duo reunited for mornings on 104.5 The River.

BEST NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST

1. Geoff Calkins

2. Michael Donahue

3. Jennifer Chandler

The Daily Memphian’s Geoff Calkins is a perennial winner in this category, and he’s written his way into being number one in your hearts again this year.

BEST RADIO PERSONALITY

1. Stan Bell

2. Ron Olson

3. Drake Hall

V101’s Stan Bell has long been one of Memphis’ most beloved radio personalities. He’s also a teacher at Wooddale High School and number one on your dial.

BEST RADIO STATION

1. 95.7 Hallelujah FM

2. 104.5 The River

3. WEVL FM 89.9

Praise the Lord, Christianoriented radio station 95.7

Hallelujah FM has taken the title of Best Radio Station.

BEST SPORTS TEAM

1. Memphis Grizzlies

2. Memphis Tigers Men’s Basketball

3. Memphis Tigers Football

It’s the sporting heartbeat of the city, the high-octane core of young basketball players that grew out of grit and grind, led by stars Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Desmond Bane, Aquamane, and so many other important characters. And don’t forget Super Grizz!

BEST TV SPORTSCASTER

1. Doc Holliday

2. Tim Van Horn

3. Mike Ceide

He’s been sports director at Action News 5 for a year and has already made an impression. He knows his stuff having played football at the University of Memphis and also in the NFL and CFL, so let him tell you the score and more.

BEST TV WEATHERPERSON

1. Chelsea Chandler

2. Ron Childers

3. Tim Simpson

FOX 13 meteorologist Chelsea Chandler has weathered the storm and walked into the sunlight of the winner’s circle like a fast-moving warm front.

BEST WRITTEN REPORTER

1. Otis Sanford

2. Geoff Calkins

3. Jennifer Biggs

Daily Memphian columnist Otis Sanford has been an outspoken mainstay of Memphis journalism for decades, and Flyer readers appreciate his candor.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best News Anchor; Best Broadcast Reporter Jeremy Pierre (le )

Best TV Weatherperson Chelsea Chandler (right)

Best Local Instagram Unapologetically Memphis

GOODS

BEST ALTERNATIVE SMOKE SHOP

1. Whatever Shop

2. Ounce of Hope

3. Wizard’s Tapestries, incense, T-shirts — oh, and all the alternative smoking accessories your heart desires? The shop’s literally got whatever you’re looking for — seriously, not just, like, whatever, man.

BEST ANTIQUES STORE

1. Sheffield Antiques Mall

2. Antique Warehouse Mall

3. Palladio Home & Garden

Give yourself an afternoon if you’re going treasure hunting at Sheffield’s. This isn’t a rush-in-rush-out place. It’s enormous. Aisle after aisle of antiques and decor items. In fact, give yourself all morning and afternoon.

BEST LOCAL ATHLETICGOODS STORE

1. Outdoors Inc.

2. Fleet Feet

3. Breakaway Running

BEST BICYCLE SHOP

1. Outdoors Inc.

Tie 2. Victory Bicycle Studio

All About Bikes

3. Bikes Plus Memphians just call it “Outdoors” and the shop has

gotten the city on two wheels for nearly 50 years. Outdoors can outfit the elite athlete for a competition and kids looking to peddle the Greenway.

BEST BOOKSTORE

1. Novel

2. Burke’s Book Store

3. Barnes & Noble

Here’s a Novel idea: Go have lunch and then browse the shelves of this East Memphis treasure. Or browse the shelves first. Either way, like Novel, you’re a winner.

BEST CAR DEALERSHIP

1. Jim Keras Subaru

Tie 2. Wolfchase Honda Gossett Motor Cars

3. Lexus of Memphis

We were Impreza-ed when we went Outback to Crosstrek the winner of Best Car Dealership: Jim Keras Subaru!

BEST CBD STORE

1. Ounce of Hope

2. Whatever Shop

3. Your CBD Store

Ounce of Hope is more than just a CBD dispensary; it’s an

ever-evolving experiment in new hemp-based products. They grow their own, using an innovative aquaculture system, and refine it into a constantly changing lineup of legal medicinal and recreational uses.

BEST FARMERS MARKET

Tie 1. Agricenter Farmers Market

Memphis Farmers Market

2. Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market

3. Jones Orchard Farm Markets

Two venues at opposite ends of the city tied for the title of Best Farmers Market, proving that East and West can both, er, produce great produce.

continued on page 30

PHOTOS: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Farmers Market

Agricenter Farmers Market; Memphis Farmers Market (below)

PHOTO (LEFT): COURTESY NOVEL Best Bookstore Novel

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • GOODS

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BEST GARDEN CENTER

1. Dan West Garden Center

2. Urban Earth

3. Midtown Nursery

For more than 70 years, Dan West Garden Center has offered the best in plants, trees, shrubs, and gardening supplies. And they’re still growing!

BEST HOME DECOR

1. Palladio Home & Garden

2. Southern Vintage Co.

3. Paradox at PeCo

Palladio offers a great selection of fountains, planters, urns, statuary, architectural antiques, gates, and much more. That’s why they’re the best.

BEST HOME FURNISHINGS

1. The Great American Home Store Tie 2. Palladio Home & Garden

The Find

3. Bartlett Home Furnishings

Got rooms? This place has furniture and décor for anyplace in your home and there’s a lot of it. The inventory is huge and has a variety of

looks and collections. You’ll be comfortable and delighted no matter where you go in your house.

BEST LINGERIE

1. Coco & Lola’s Lingerie

2. Trousseau

3. A Fitting Place

What does it mean when your thoughts turn to bustiers, baby dolls, waist cinchers, chemises, fishnets, garters, and steel boned corsets? Gracious, don’t make us spell it out for you. But Coco & Lola’s will gladly guide you through things sheer and lacy to bring about the desired result.

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PHOTO: BRIAN BEASLEY Best Garden Center Dan West Garden Center

Kimbrough Wine Tasting at Historic James Lee House

October 5, 2023 | 6:00 until 10:00pm

Come explore the magic of California Wines with us. Tickets are $85. Prices include food catered by Another Roadside Attraction, valet provided Southern Valet, and some light music to fit the occasion.

We will be choosing two lucky winners to spend the night of the event at the James Lee House.

Use QR code below or visit kimbroughwines.com to purchase tickets.

Wines Represented

Hess | Black Stallion | Gamble | Duckhorn | Stolpman | Orin Swift | Blue Rock | Sean Minor | Chandon | Justin Landmark | Goldschmidt | Trione | Bodega de Edgar | Alma de Cattleya | Cruse Wine Company | Pisoni | Seabold | Timbre | Wrath | Robert Foley Paul Hobbs | Wagner Family | Copper Cane | Cornerstone Demeine Estates | Foley Wine Group | Rockmere

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Best Beer Selection (in a store); Best Liquor Store Buster’s Liquors & Wines

BEST LOCAL FINE JEWELRY STORE

1. Mednikow Jewelers

BEST LIQUOR STORE

1. Buster’s Liquors & Wines

2. Joe’s Wines & Liquor

3. Gaslight Wine & Spirits Buster’s was already a destination spirits shop before its 2015 expansion. If Buster’s doesn’t have what you’re looking for now, you probably don’t need it. (If you still do, though, they can probably order it.)

2. Sissy’s Log Cabin

3. Robert Irwin Jewelers

Since 1891, this store has been dripping Memphis with bling. Getting engaged? Going to a gala? Granny of a graduate? Their famous personal service will help you find what you’re looking for.

BEST LOCAL GROCERY STORE

1. Superlo Foods

2. High Point Grocery

3. Cordelia’s Market

Founded in Memphis by the Stepherson brothers in 1944,

PHOTO: BRIAN BEASLEY

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Local Grocery Store Superlo Foods

GOODS

Superlo today is employeeowned and locally operated — and still the community favorite.

BEST LOCAL STORE FOR MEN’S CLOTHING

1. Oak Hall

2. Oxbeau

3. Lansky Bros.

Having opened its doors in 1859, Oak Hall has long been a trailblazer in ready-to-wear menswear. Today, they offer women’s clothes as well, not to mention custom tailoring, and Oak Hall now stands as one of the oldest family-owned businesses in the nation.

BEST LOCAL STORE FOR SHOES

1. Kaufman Shoes

2. Breakaway Running

3. Joseph

The same family has owned and operated Kaufman Shoes since 1947, making it a local institution among fashionsavvy customers. They’re also dedicated to community

continued on page 34

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Local Store for Shoes Kaufman Shoes

4,

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • GOODS

continued from page 33

service, hosting shoe drives, teddy bear drives, and food drives to benefit local charities.

BEST LOCAL STORE FOR WOMEN’S CLOTHING

1. Indigo

2. Stock & Belle

3. Oak Hall

A wise woman once said that she liked her money where she could see it: in her closet. If you’re looking to curate a wardrobe that could rival that of Carrie Bradshaw, look no further than Indigo. With stylish pieces for every season, Indigo promises to never disappoint.

BEST MUSIC EQUIPMENT STORE

1. Amro Music

2. Memphis Drum Shop

3. Yarbrough’s Music

Having served the Memphis area for over a century, Amro connects customers directly to local musical history. They’re living proof that traditional musicianship lives on here, offering lessons, maintenance,

and a staff that includes some of the city’s finest players.

BEST PET STORE

BOM 1. Hollywood Feed

2. Petco

3. Three Dog Bakery

Memphis’ cats and dogs have ruled Hollywood Feed as the reigning Best Pet Store. With several convenient locations, a friendly staff, and shop pups, Hollywood Feed is the place to get whatever your pet needs. (And, yes, your pup needs that cupcake-shaped treat from the bakery.)

BEST PLACE TO GET VINTAGE/USED CLOTHING

1. Goodwill

2. Flashback

3. Southern Vintage Co.

If you’re looking for a vintage shirt that looks like something Desi Arnaz’s Ricky Ricardo would wear on I Love Lucy or some platform shoes like John Travolta’s Tony Manero wore in Saturday Night Fever, Goodwill is your place. Everything comes through their stores.

Memphis Goodwill has served the Mid-South for 100 years. When you shop or donate at Goodwill, you are supporting our mission to change the lives of people with disabilities and other barriers to employment through the power of work, education and empowerment.

PHOTO: COURTESY HOLLYWOOD FEED Best Pet Store Hollywood Feed

BEST RECORD STORE

1. Goner Records

2. Shangri-La records

3. River City Records

The instincts of the tastemakers at Goner Records are uncanny: They just have a knack for finding inventive bands. That makes them a force of nature here, from records released on the Goner label, to the collectibles and new obscurities they sell, to bands brought to town via Gonerfest.

BEST SHOPPING CENTER

1. Shops of Saddle Creek

2. Laurelwood Shopping Center

3. Crosstown Concourse

Shopping is exercise. Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy, and happy people voted the Shops of Saddle Creek as the best shopping center in town. With its trendy shops unique to Memphis and iconic

brands sold worldwide, it’s no wonder Saddle Creek is the one-stop shop for all your fashion, beauty, home, and technology needs.

BEST SPECIALTY TREAT SHOP

1. Dinstuhl’s Fine Candy Company

2. Muddy’s Bake Shop

3. Frost Bake Shop

You don’t need a golden ticket to gain access to the city’s favorite candy shop. Founded in 1902, Dinstuhl’s has had our readers coming back for chocolate, fudge, cashew crunch, and more, for over a century.

PHOTO: COURTESY DINSTUHL’S Best Specialty Treat Shop Dinstuhl’s Fine Candy Company

BEST AUTO REPAIR

1. Gateway Tire & Service Center

2. Christian Brothers Automotive

3. Steve’s Tire & Auto

There are lots of dangers out there on the Memphis roads: potholes, Memphis drivers, more Memphis drivers. Your car can take a beating getting from point A to B, but the folks at Gateway Tire & Service Center will make sure your vehicle is in tip-top shape and that everything under the hood keeps humming along nicely.

BEST BARBER SHOP

BOM 1. 1776 Men’s Grooming Parlor

2. Gould’s Salon Spa

3. Memphis Professional Barbers

A comb holder at this salon sports the slogan, “You Rock,” and that’s indicative of the confidence their expert stylists will bring to anyone they work with. Part of that comes from their mastery of old-world hair-care, like hand-whipped shaving cream from a mug and a straight-edge razor shave.

BEST HOME IMPROVEMENT SERVICES

1. Bluff City Exteriors

2. RKA Construction

Tie 3. Bin There Dump That Renovate Memphis

Remember driving down that road and seeing that house with the really pretty facade? There’s a good chance Bluff City Exteriors did that. Flyer readers know they’re the best

around when it comes to creating a picturesque (and durable) abode.

BEST HOTEL

1. The Peabody

2. The Memphian, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel

3. Central Station Hotel

There was little mourning when the original Peabody Hotel was demolished in 1923; plans for a new building were already underway. By 1925 it was complete, and the grandeur of its fine decor still endures. Throw in some ducks, and you’ve got a posh home away from home in Memphis.

BEST HVAC

1. Choate’s HVAC and Plumbing

2. Conway Services Heating & Cooling

3. Best Care Home Services

You know you can breathe easy — and comfortably — when your air-conditioning, heating, and plumbing needs are taken care of by Choate’s. Family owned since 1958, it aims for customer satisfaction and peace of mind about the air in your abode.

BEST INSURANCE AGENT

1. Steve Womack, State Farm Insurance

2. Matt Haaga, State Farm Insurance

3. Elizabeth Rook, Elizabeth Rook Insurance

How well are you covered? If

you’re not sure, or if you want to revisit your insurance setup, this guy will help you out with auto, home, and life coverage needs. Good planning will leave you assured insurance-wise, and Steve Womack will work with you.

BEST LAW FIRM

1. Baker Donelson

2. Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz

3. The Pickler Law Firm

Need a lawyer? How about 650 of ’em? The firm has been around for some 130 years and earned a sound national

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PHOTO: JDPPHOTO12 | DREAMSTIME.COM

Best Hotel e Peabody

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • SERVICES

continued from page 36

reputation and a presence throughout the Southeast. The verdict is that you don’t have a legal issue that they can’t handle.

BEST LAWN CARE/ LANDSCAPING

1. Pettit’s Lawnscapes

2. English Garden

3. Russell’s Lawn Service

Let your yard have a good time with this locally owned and operated landscaper that has been nurturing beautiful lawns for more than 30 years. They’re the pros, from lighting to water features to landscape design and installation.

BEST LOCAL BANK OR CREDIT UNION

1. Orion Federal Credit Union

2. First Horizon Bank

3. Independent Bank

The community-focused institution, which got its start in 1957, is now the largest credit union in the Mid-South. It has more than 70,000 members and more than $1 billion in

assets. Locations are all over the city and it has services to handle any banking need.

BEST MOVING COMPANY

1. Two Men and a Truck

2. Big League Movers

3. Black Tie Moving

What you see is what you get with Two Men and a Truck. The veteran movers are a perennial favorite for those who need help getting their couch to the new place.

BEST PET BOARDING/DAY CARE

1. BrownDog Lodge

Tie 2. Camp Bow Wow Walnut Grove Animal Clinic

3. Dogs Rule Day Care and School

If you don’t want your dog whining to the tune of Sarah McLachlan’s “In the Arms of an Angel” while you’re out and about, our readers say you gotta bring them to BrownDog Lodge. The only downside is that they might not want to leave.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Private School Christian Brothers High School

BEST PIERCER

1. Sydney Barakat, Trilogy Tattoos & Piercing

2. Jaime Russell, Lucky Devil Tattoo

3. Ricardo Hernandez, Trilogy Tattoos & Piercing

A defiant teenager wearing Princess Leia buns taught us it’s best to leave the piercings to the professionals. Lucky for you, Sydney Barakat has proven, once again, to be one of the best in the piercing game. From ears to septums to belly buttons, Sydney has you trusted!

BEST TATTOO STUDIO

1. Trilogy Tattoos & Piercing

Tie 2. No Regrets Tattoo Emporium

Underground Art, Inc.

3. Lucky Devil Tattoo

BEST PIERCING STUDIO

1. Trilogy Tattoos & Piercing

Tie 2. Lucky Devil Tattoo

No Regrets Tattoo Emporium

3. Rose Quartz Body Adornment

Trilogy is your one-stop shop for your local tattoo and piercing fix. Since 1998, Trilogy has provided a number of tattoo and piercing services to the Memphis community. Whether you’re new to the game or looking for the perfect piece to complete your sleeve, Trilogy is the place to go.

BEST PLUMBER

1. Smith’s Plumbing Services

2. Choate’s HVAC and Plumbing

3. Chris Underhill

Any homeowner knows, when the sink’s leaking, the toilet clogged, or the pipes burst, you gotta have a guy to call. For our readers, Smith’s Plumbing is the guy.

BEST PRIVATE SCHOOL

1. Christian Brothers High School

2. Briarcrest Christian School

Tie 3. Memphis University School

Lausanne Collegiate School

Did you know CBHS was the first integrated high school in Memphis? Their alumni include folks like music producer

“Boo” Mitchell and Mayor Jim Strickland.

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PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Tattoo Studio; Best Piercing Studio Trilogy Tattoos & Piercing

continued from page 39

BEST REALTOR

1. Todd “Too Tall” Adams, Keller Williams Realty

2. Judy McLellan, Crye-Leike Realtors

3. Allison Holden, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

What does Todd “Too Tall” Adams have to do to put you in a house today? Our readers’ favorite realtor has stratospheric sales statistics to match his allegedly excessive height. (Who is to say how tall is “too” tall, anyway?)

BEST REGIONAL COLLEGE

1. University of Memphis

2. Rhodes College

3. Christian Brothers University

That local lawyer you know? The teacher, the accountant, the journalist? There’s a good chance they’re a product of the University of Memphis, a school whose alumni are all over the city making a difference. The school may fly under the radar nationally, but Memphians appreciate all the good stuff going on there. Go Tigers!

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PHOTO: CALVIN L. LEAKE | DREAMSTIME.COM

PHOTO: COURTESY TODD ADAMS Best Realtor Todd “Too Tall” Adams, Keller Williams Realty

continued from page 40

BEST TATTOO ARTIST

1. Vanessa Waites, Underground Art, Inc.

2. Chris Russell, Lucky Devil Tattoo

3. Jordan Epperson, Bluff City Tattoo

With 20 years of tattoo experience, Vanessa Waites has proven to be the master of ink. From intricate portraits of RBG to Broad Avenue’s water tower, Vanessa’s artistic talents run the gamut.

BEST TREE TRIMMING SERVICE

1. Woodland Tree Service

2. Jones Bros. Tree & Landscape

3. Robinson Tree Service

The fact that these tree experts are members of the West Tennessee Urban Forestry Council demonstrates their commitment to the proper techniques required for a healthy urban forest environment. But don’t wait until after the next ice storm to call them! Their ISACertified Arborists provide free consultations and estimates.

BEST VET

1. The Pet Hospitals

2. Walnut Grove Animal Clinic

3. Germantown Animal Hospital

With seven locations, including one in Lakeland, The Pet Hospitals make finding care for your critters easy. And they’re community-minded: Their Good Samaritan Program focuses on care for strays, free vaccines and exams that encourage shelter pet adoption, and donations of food, medication, and care to rescue organizations.

PHOTO: COURTESY WOODLAND TREE SERVICE Best Tree Trimming Service Woodland Tree Service

BEST CLINIC INJECTABLES/ FILLERS

1. Germantown Day Spa

2. SkinBody Memphis

Tie 3. Gould’s Salon Spa

Beauty Bar Aesthetics

It can take a lot of trust to let someone work on your face. But staff at Germantown Day Spa know their stuff and want you looking like your best self every time you step outside.

BEST MEDICAL AESTHETIC SPA

1. Levy Dermatology

Cosmetic Center

2. Germantown Day Spa

3. SkinBody Memphis

BEST COSMETIC SURGERY CENTER

1. Levy Dermatology

Cosmetic Center

2. Plastic Surgery Group of Memphis

3. NuBody Concepts

Levy Dermatology Cosmetic Center provides a number of

services to help you look and feel your best. The cosmetic center specializes in medical dermatology, cosmetic aesthetics, and more. With the help of their friendly staff, you’re bound to have a pleasant experience.

BEST HAIR STYLIST

1. Wallis Ashley, Sage+Honey Hair Co.

2. Meg Casey Tippett, Pavo Salon

3. Nichole DaSilva, Gould’s Salon Spa

Wallis Ashley, owner of Sage+Honey Hair Co., has been in the beauty industry for more than 16 years. Whether you’re coming in for routine maintenance or ready for a transformation, your tresses are in good hands with Wallis.

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PHOTO: MIRANDA GARAVELLI Best Medical Aesthetic Spa; Best Cosmetic Surgery Center Levy Dermatology Cosmetic Center

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • WELLNESS

THANKSMEMPHIS

FOR YOUR VOTES AS BEST INJECTABLES/FILLERS

2023

continued from page 43

BEST HEALTH/FITNESS CLUB

1. YMCA

2. Kroc Center

3. ATC Fitness

The YMCA has something for everyone. The communityfocused fitness club not only promotes healthy living but a variety of classes for the whole family. From aquatics to nutrition to childcare, the Y has it all!

BEST NAIL SALON

1. Gloss Nail Bar

2. Nail Bar & Co

3. Envy Nail Bar

Nail care is self-care, and the team at Gloss Nail Bar is in the business of satisfying. From french tips to full sets, Gloss Nail Bar offers a number of services at your fingertips. Life may not always be perfect, but your nails can be!

BEST DAY SPA

1. Gould’s Salon Spa

2. Germantown Day Spa

3. The Well by Pavo

BEST PLACE TO GET A FACIAL

1. Gould’s Salon Spa

2. Pavo Salon

3. GIRLMAKESFACE

When it comes to making you look your best, Gould’s comes out on top with Flyer readers year after year.

BEST PLACE TO GET A TAN

1. Palm Beach Tan

2. Honey Skin and Body Bar

3. SkinBody Memphis

Skin is in and your face is the place, so treat it beautifully.

PBT, with several locations, can provide sunbed tanning and spray tanning along with all the skin care products you need to glow just right.

BEST PLACE TO GET WAXED

1. European Wax Center

2. By the Root Wax

3. Sage+Honey Hair Co.

Long hair, don’t care. European Wax Center has hair removal down to an art form, from bikini to Brazilian.

BEST HAIR SALON

1. Pavo Salon

2. Gould’s Salon Spa

3. Sage+Honey Hair Co.

BEST SALON FOR HAIR COLOR

1. Pavo Salon

2. Sage+Honey Hair Co.

3. Gould’s Salon Spa

Blowouts, blunt cuts, balayage, and more — Pavo Salon is your stop for all things hair. Whether you’re dying to try a new color, or ready to try that viral cut on #hairtok, the stylists at Pavo can do it all.

BEST SALON FOR HAIR EXTENSIONS

1. Sage+Honey Hair Co.

2. Pavo Salon

3. Gould’s Salon Spa

Looking to add some length and volume to your vivacious locks? Let the team at Sage+Honey Hair Co. do their thing. With a staff that has a combined 15 years of experience, Sage+Honey Hair Co. is the perfect destination to add a little spice to your life (or hair).

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PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Nail Salon Gloss Nail Bar

EAST MEMPHIS

561 Erin Dr

Memphis, TN 38117 901 - 791 - 4539

CROSSTOWN CONCOURSE 1350 Concourse Ave Suite 129

Memphis, TN 38104 901 - 249 - 5839

HIGHLAND ROW 431 S Highland St Suite 111

Memphis, TN 38111 901 - 779 - 7406

THANK YOU

LAKELAND LAKE DISTRICT 9845 Lake District N Suite 109

Lakeland, TN 38002 901 - 249 - 7469

SALON HOURS

Monday - Saturday 9:30 a m - 7:30 p m

Sunday 12:00 p m - 6:00 p,m

WELLNESS

continued from page 44

BEST SPECIALTY FITNESS STUDIO

1. Hotworx

2. Pure Barre

3. CycleBar

Prominently located on the Highland strip, Hotworx specializes in infrared sauna workouts. Whether it’s yoga, cycling, or Pilates, they know you gotta get hot to look hot.

BEST SPECIALTY MEDICAL SERVICES

1. Campbell Clinic

Orthopaedics

2. MOJO Pelvic Health

3. SkinBody Memphis

Your musculoskeletal self is probably going to need some special attention during your life, and this is where you want to get it. The full-service orthopedic clinic has several locations in the region and can gently handle your bones and joints up to and including surgery and rehab. Get better!

THANKS FOR VOTING US THE BEST!

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

Best Specialty Fitness Studio Hotworx

WEDDINGS + EVENTS

BEST CATERING COMPANY

1. Pink Flamingo Catering

2. Hog Wild Catering

3. Draper’s Catering of Memphis

Do you need a gourmet grilled cheese station? How about a mashed potato bar? What about breakfast or box lunches for dozens of people? If so, Pink Flamingo Catering has you covered. Need to feed 100 for a wedding? They do that, too.

BEST DJ

1. DJ A.D.

2. DJ 1Love

3. DeepBlu Entertainment

From house parties to Memphis’ own celebration of Queen Bey herself, DJ A.D. has proven to facilitate the ultimate DJ experience. With class reunions and weddings under her belt, DJ A.D. provides immaculate vibes to any (and every) event they book.

BEST EVENT PLANNER

1. Cynthia Daniels & Co.

2. Lynn Doyle Flowers & Events

3. Pineapple Processions

Whether you need to set up an intimate dinner, a crucial meeting, or a sprawling convention, this full-service event company is innovative and professional. Example: the hugely successful — and delicious — annual Memphis Black Restaurant Week. Plan away!

BEST EVENT RENTAL VENUE

1. Memphis Botanic Garden

2. The Cadre Building

3. The Robinshaw

If the day has to be perfect or the event has to impress, there’s no better backdrop for it than the Memphis Botanic Garden. With huge gathering spaces, both indoors and outdoors, there’s a place for your next event somewhere on the Garden’s gorgeous 96 acres.

BEST FLORIST

1. Pugh’s Flowers

2. John Mark’s

3. Lynn Doyle Flowers & Events

Another family business success story, Pugh’s is run by the sons of Bill Pugh, who cofounded the business in 1976. Known for their service, they’ll deliver seven days a week. As for reliability, Teleflora ranks Pugh’s as one of the nation’s 100 largest floral order senders.

BEST GIFT SHOP

1. Bella Vita

2. Babcock Gifts

3. Cooper-Young Gallery + Gift Shop

For 25 years, Bella Vita has become the byword for quality gifts in the region. Says coowner Stephanie, “I’m so blessed to be able to do what I actually have a passion for. We dig deep. I refuse to go backwards — probably why we are where we are today.”

BEST PLACE FOR HAIR STYLING

1. Gould’s Salon Spa

2. Pavo Salon

3. Sage+Honey Hair Co.

When it comes to making you look your best, Gould’s comes out on top with Flyer readers, year after year.

BEST PLACE FOR MAKEUP ARTISTRY

1. Kasey Acuff

2. Matt Gossett

3. Isabella Allen

Hello Gorgeous! Kasey Acuff has glammed those glamorous Grizz Girls and some of the most beautiful brides. Kasey’s glam skills are guaranteed to give a flawless face, no filter needed.

BEST PLACE FOR REHEARSAL DINNER

1. The Majestic Grille

2. Old Dominick Distillery

Tie 3. Jim’s Place Grille

The Butcher Shop

“We are really bullish on Downtown,” said Patrick Reilly, who owns The Majestic Grille with his wife Deni, when speaking to WREG News recently. “We feel like we’re on the way up.” They’ve embraced the new Tom Lee Park design and have even resumed their Sunday brunch menu lately.

BEST WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

1. Kelly Ginn Photography

2. Shelby Renee Photo

3. BN Photo and Video

The best endorsement of Kelly and Madi’s work at Kelly Ginn

Photography are the sample images of their clients. The relaxation of the couples portrayed is palpable, and leads to some of the warmest, most intimate moments any two people in love could hope for.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Event Planner Cynthia Daniels & Co.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS Best Place for Rehearsal Dinner e Majestic Grille

PHOTO: MARCUS JONES | DREAMSTIME.COM Best Event Rental Venue Memphis Botanic Garden

STAFF PICKS

BEST CAMARONES AL MOJO

Okay, granted, El Toro Loco isn’t the kind of hipster-beloved “authentico” Mexican joint you find on Summer Avenue, but if you can find a tastier dish than this grilled shrimp, garlic, rice, melted cheese(!), onions, tomatoes, avocado, peppers, etc. concoction, well, go for it. For my money, a frosty margarita and ETL’s camarones al mojo is hard to beat.

— Bruce VanWyngarden

according to one mayoral candidate who shall remain unnamed, the root cause of all these out of control drivers is … the movie Grease?

BEST MOVIE REFERENCE

It’s been dangerous out on these roads the past couple years, what with the reckless driving, drag racing, and donuts being spun around intersections and in the middle of the street. Surely there’s a reason for this ceaseless vehicular tension. Well,

Watch out for those Memphis youth, adorned with pompadours and black T-shirts, cigarettes rolled up in their sleeves, taking to the roads in their pink 1948 Ford

De Luxe “Greased Lightning” convertibles. It’s chaos out there, I tell ya!

— Samuel X. Cicci

BEST INDICTMENT

The Brian Kelsey circus continues. After a federal indictment by a grand jury for violating campaign finance

laws, the former Tennessee senator eventually pleaded guilty, was sentenced to jail time, and had his law license revoked. But then he pointed the blame at his original attorneys, before firing them, and hiring new representation, and then this month claiming prosecutors violated his plea deal. Lots of finger-pointing going around, but who is really

at fault here? Hopefully there’s a mirror in his cell.

— SXC

BEST SPELLING

Earlier this year, the 36th annual Africa in April Cultural Awareness Festival decided to honor the Republic of … Rawanda? That big ol’ typo was front and center on a festival billboard, with the people of Rwanda left to rue the fact that no one conducted a spell-check. To double down, the billboard featured the green, yellow, and red colors of the country’s old flag, which had been discontinued in 2001. — SXC

BEST BEER

The best craft brewers come up with some interesting concoctions, and Memphis has some of the best breweries around. But Meddlesome takes the cake this year with its Mashed Potato & Gravy black and tan, basically a Thanksgiving side dish in a can, that released on April 1st. The only downside is that this beer isn’t, well, real. Oh well, April Fools! — SXC

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PHOTO: MEDDLESOME BREWING VIA FACEBOOK

Too bad these mashed potato beers by Meddlesome aren’t real.

PHOTO: REDDIT BY U/HUNGRY-INFLUENCE3108 Rwanda really got a raw deal from this billboard.

PHOTO: COURTESY EL TORO LOCO Bruce VanWyngarden sure loves him some camarones al mojo.

ese hooligans are behind all the reckless driving in Memphis.

PHOTO: JUSTIN FOX BURKS

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BEST SOLO DEBUT

A lifelong musician — and member of local bands Spacer and Magik Hours — multiinstrumentalist Cheyenne Marrs released his solo debut in late August. While upon first rotation, moments may give a reminiscent glimmer of The Beatles, Elliott Smith, The Strokes, or The Beach Boys, Everybody Wants to Go Home carries a depth and breadth all its own.

A pensive lyrical exploration of isolation and loss, it simultaneously encompasses loneliness and connection, melancholy and hope. The listener is set adrift with sleepy, sweeping guitar riffs that circle like a carousel and build into raucous fits like mood swings, dragging us low only to lift us up again. There’s a playfulness that eases the weight of it, brought in with shimmery synth, the stray jingle of bells, the clang of a xylophone, or the floaty flit of a flute.

In the opening track, Marrs commiserates, “You don’t have to stay down in your hell all alone.” And throughout the

album, he muses on the state of not knowing — upon wrestling with the void left when processing a death, fighting one’s way through the darker parts of life, or navigating the shifting landscapes of our innermost thoughts and emotions.

The catchy melodies on standout tracks, “Tweedy Bird,” “Fortune Faded,” and “Call Out” (they’re all standouts, tbh), implanted themselves as earworms for me, and as I write this, the line “I don’t have it all together, but you do — ain’t that what it seems?” is on a loop in my head.

After a few playthroughs, I’m reminded of the not-directlytranslatable Welsh word, “hiraeth,” which embodies a grief and longing for a home that no longer exists, or maybe never did — a nostalgic yearning for a time, place, or feeling that cannot be reached.

Recorded in longtime Memphis musician/producer Graham Winchester’s home studio and released on Memphis-based Red Curtain Records, Everybody Wants to Go Home is both a lullaby and an alarm call that takes us on a journey from confusion and desperation to consolation and acceptance as we dig through the shadows and find the light.

— Shara Clark

BEST OF MEMPHIS 2023 • STAFF PICKS

PHOTO: ANNA ROSE WILLIAMS Our editor listened to this full album three times in a row without interruption.

We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews

“Bluff City Chinese”

By Abigail Morici

In 1873, Sam Gee, an immigrant from China, advertised his laundry business on ird Street and Beale in the Memphis Daily Appeal. According to the Chinese Historical Society of Memphis and the Mid-South, Gee’s advertisement made him the rst recorded Chinese-American in Memphis. is year marks the 150th anniversary since that advertisement, and so the Chinese Historical Society thought it prudent to celebrate with a photo exhibit, titled “ e Blu City Chinese: A 150-Year Photo Retrospective.”

About six years ago, members of the Chinese Historical Society began researching this history, says the group’s vice president, Dr. William Lee. “ e rst generation was dying, and we wanted to save the history because everybody’s got these stories,” he says. is exhibition, sponsored by a grant from the He Family Foundation, represents a culmination of that ongoing e ort. e photographs, most of which come from private and personal collections, o er a composite, but not comprehensive, history of the complicated Chinese-American experience in Memphis. Indeed, for the rst generation of Chinese immigrants, photographic documentation was limited, Lee says. “ ey weren’t really in photographs,” he says. “Like if you look at [historical] images of the transcontinental railroad, there’s no Chinese in the picture, even though they were actually the ones that did most of the work.”

us, an exhibition like this seeks to recognize and honor the long-standing presence of Chinese Americans in Memphis, especially as later generations were able to photograph themselves, documenting their own lives when the mainstream historical record neglected to do so. As Jinliang Cai, president of the Chinese Historical Society, adds in a press release, “ is is not only Chinese history, but also Memphis history.”

“People need to know that we’re here in the community,” Lee says when speaking to the Flyer. “So we just want people to get a better understanding of who we are, what are doing, and how did we get here. History is important because you never know where you’re headed until you know where you came from. A lot of people say that, of course, but if you don’t learn from the past, you’re going to repeat it in the future. We need to understand the sacri ces that the Chinese had to make just to get here, the prejudice and hatred, the Yellow Peril, they had to overcome. Even during Covid, they had Asian hate crimes. So that’s why we’re trying to do this is. I guess, education trumps prejudice.”

As such, all are invited to the exhibit’s opening reception on Friday, which will include opening words by Cai and Jimmy Rout III, historian for the Shelby County Historical Commission. Refreshments will be provided. Following its opening, the exhibition will be on display at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library through October 31st.

OPENING RECEPTION FOR “THE BLUFF CITY CHINESE: A 150-YEAR PHOTO RETROSPECTIVE,” BENJAMIN L.

LIBRARY, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 4-6 P.M., FREE.

VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES September 28th - October 4th

Mempho Music Festival

Radians Ampitheater at Memphis

Botanic Garden, Friday-Sunday, September 29-October 1, $95-$650

e sixth annual Mempho Music Festival jumps into action this weekend, bringing rst-rate entertainment, mouth-watering food, and plenty of soul to Radians Amphitheater. Leading this year’s lineup are e Black Crowes, My Morning Jacket, and Turnpike Troubadours, with additional performances by Ween, Lake Street Dive, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, Band of Horses, Tash Sultana, Dinosaur Jr., and more, with daily schedules out now at memphofest.com.

New for 2023, Mempho Fest is pleased to announce the addition of the Overton Park Shell on Wheels Stage. Festival-goers can also look forward to the return of silent disco in the eye-catching Incendia Dome.

Mental Health Awareness Day

Wolf River Greenway - Epping Way Section, Saturday, September 30, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., free e Wolf River Conservancy kicks o its fall season with the 3rd Annual Mental Health Awareness Day. Mental health experts and partners will be on hand to help folks explore how to better navigate mental health issues, in addition to food trucks, family-friendly activities, and more.

O erings include kayaking, soundcapes and a sound bath, yoga classes, free healthy food, guided nature walks, goat snuggles, nature journaling, school supplies and activities for kids ( re truck and police car exploration, cra s, nature scavenger hunt contest), and more.

All event activities are free, and any necessary equipment will be provided to participants. Register at wolfriver.org/mhad.

Roses, Dust, & Ashes: An Oracle Deck Premiere

Elmwood Cemetery, Sunday, October 1, 2-3 p.m., $20 Join Elmwood for a presentation by Memphis artist and writer Stacey Williams-Ng, author of the new cemetery-themed card deck, “Roses, Dust, & Ashes.” ese are not ordinary cards. is deck of hand-illustrated cards features headstones you might recognize from Elmwood and other historic cemeteries around the U.S. Williams-Ng will discuss the creative spark that led her to make such a unique deck of cards and what oracle cards are for. She will demonstrate how they’re used, and a erward, attendees will be invited to sit for personal oracle card readings. Stacey’s decks, expansion packs, and more will be available for sale. Refreshments are included; register at elmwoodcemetery.org.

HOOKS CENTRAL

PHOTO: COURTESY CHINESE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MEMPHIS AND THE MID-SOUTH

Gonerfest Alchemy

As Gonerfest heats up this week, and fans, bands, and friends catch up throughout the city, there’s another universe unfolding as well, a zone where musicians hear other musicians and some kind of alchemy occurs. Any resulting collaborations can cause great new works of art to blossom. Case in point: the new LP by Optic Sink, Glass Blocks

e group’s 2020 debut took the bold step, not o en heard in Memphis, of pairing Natalie Ho mann’s dry, disa ected vocals (more restrained than her work in Nots) with her ingenious old-school synth lines and drum machine beats from Ben Bauermeister (Magic Kids, Toxie). “I really like the tension of a more human voice that is sounding pretty machine-like, but mixed with these actual machines,” Ho mann told the Memphis Flyer at the time. Meanwhile, it turned out a band in faraway Boston was simultaneously treading adjacent territory.

“Sweeping Promises are amazing!” says Ho man today. “When that rst album came out in the middle of lockdown, I heard it on WYXR and thought, ‘What is this? is is phenomenal.’” As it turned out, Sweeping Promises were also a duo of sorts (bringing in a drummer for live sets), its principal members being Lira Mondal and Cau eld Schnug, both focused on their own variety of post-punk minimalism. eir debut, Hunger for a Way Out, was “written and recorded with a patented ‘single mic technique’ just before quarantine,” as their Bandcamp page states.

Ho man wasn’t alone in her love of the band’s debut. Jenn Pelly of e New Yorker recently wrote, “ ough written before the pandemic, the record’s anthemic title song became a timely underground hit last year, bursting at its own taut edges.” Finally, at Gonerfest 18 in 2021, Ho man was able to see Sweeping Promises live only hours a er Optic Sink played. at, in turn, led to the two bands sharing a bill a year later.

“We played a show together last August at Growlers and they stayed at my house,” Ho man recalls. “We had a really fun time and all became friends immediately. And then they asked if they could record the next Optic Sink album, which we hadn’t even started writing! Of course I said yes.”

By then Mondal and Schnug had resettled in Lawrence, Kansas, and a er some time well spent cooking up

new material, Optic Sink made their way north in the heart of winter. By then, the Memphis group was a trio, with Keith Cooper (Sheiks, Tennessee Screamers) on bass. He leapt into his new role as the group readied material. Unlike many synth artists who construct beats and skronks “in the box” of a computer screen, Optic Sink composes and performs on actual hardware in the moment, as three humans, and record their basic tracks live as such. at makes preparation crucial.

“We were working so hard to get all the songs on the record almost nished before we went to record it,” says Bauermeister. “Yeah, but we didn’t,” he laughs. “ ere were still one or two that were not fully eshed out. But those might have been the best ones in the end. at’s a good strategy. Going into a studio to record something, and having only 70 percent of the material ready. If you only have some of it done, that leaves more room for magic.”

Being in Mondal and Schnug’s new space encouraged that magic, not only due to the choice gear of the studio, but also via the charms of the Upper

Midwest in January. “We knew it was freezing cold up there. So we knew we were up there just to record. It was snowing and we were away from home. And the room we recorded in was previously a painting studio, a beautiful window- lled room that had this amazing energy.”

On the end result, with Schnug producing, engineering, and adding the odd part here and there, Optic Sink seems to have achieved a new level of cohesion and richness in their sound with Glass Blocks. With the new LP out since last week, and a new Sweeping Promises album, Good Living is Coming for You, out as well, this year’s Gonerfest sees both groups coming full circle when they each take the stage at Railgarten this Friday. And who knows what other alchemy this festival may yet conjure up?

Gonerfest 20 runs from ursday, September 28th, through Sunday, October 1st, at Railgarten. For details, visit gonerfest.com.

PHOTO: SHAWN BRACKBILL Optic Sink

MUSIC By Alex Greene

Optic Sink’s band pals spark a new LP.

AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule September 28 - October 4

Sky Ride, Shorty and the Grooves

$10. Wednesday, Oct. 4, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

After Hours Sundays

NYCELYFE and friends will be hitting you with your favorite music all night long!

Sunday, Oct. 1, 9 p.m.-4 a.m.

JERRY LEE LEWIS’ CAFE & HONKY

TONK

Chris Gales

Friday, Sept. 29, 12:30-3:30 p.m.;

Saturday, Sept. 30, 4-7 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Divercity

ursday, Sept. 28, 4:30 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Donna Padgett Bowers

Presents

Variety show of Memphis talent. Free. Friday, Sept. 29, 9 p.m.

WESTY’S

Dueling Pianos

ursday, Sept. 28, 7-11 p.m.;

Friday, Sept. 29, 7-11 p.m.;

Saturday, Sept. 30, 7-11 p.m.

SILKY O’SULLIVAN’S

Flic’s Pic’s Band

Saturday, Sept. 30, 4:30 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Live At The Tracks:

Doug MacLeod

Thursday, Sept. 28, 6:309:30 p.m.

CENTRAL STATION HOTEL

Memphis Songwriters Series

Discover your next favorite artist at the Memphis Songwriters Series, hosted by Memphis songwriter Mark Edgar Stuart. is night’s guests are John Nemeth, Sarah Spain, and Deion Corley. $10.

ursday, Sept. 28, 7 p.m.

THE HALLORAN CENTRE

Memphis Symphony Orchestra: Pictures at an Exhibition & Chris Brubeck Guitar Concerto

Memphis Symphony Orchestra brings you the world premiere of Chris Brubeck’s double guitar concerto, featuring both classical and blues guitar.

Saturday, Sept. 30, 7:30 p.m.

CANNON CENTER FOR THE PER-

FORMING ARTS

Rice Drewry, Gerry Finney and Friends

Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

SOUTH MAIN SOUNDS

Robbie Bletscher

A singing waiter with talent.

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 5-8 p.m.

WESTY’S

Shelley Brown and Lee

Holliday

Saturday, Sept. 30, 6-8:30 p.m.

CENTRAL BBQ

The Beach Boys

e Beach Boys, who have become synonymous with the California lifestyle and an American icon, are bringing their “America’s Band” tour to fans around the world. $45$175. Tuesday, Oct. 3, 7:30 p.m.

ORPHEUM THEATRE

Elmo & the Shades, Eddie Harrison

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 7-11 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Escher Quartet in Concert

e Escher String Quartet has received acclaim for its profound musical insight and rare tonal beauty. $60.

Tuesday, Oct. 3, 7:30 p.m.

HARRIS CONCERT HALL, UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS

Justin Moore and Matt Stell Concert

KIX 106 is celebrating 40 years strong with KIX106’s 40th birthday bash with Matt Stell and Justin Moore. $30-$75. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7:30-10:30 p.m.

AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL

Keepin It Memphis

Keepin It Memphis is a weekly concert series that promotes Memphis culture and highlights the works of the Memphis underground arts scene. $20/general admission, $10/admission with a local I.D. Wednesday, Oct. 4, 7:30-10:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS MUSIC ROOM

LaserLive with Tropical Fusion Latin Band

Laser Live features Memphis musicians live in the fulldome planetarium, accompanied by an original laser light show. $15/members, $18/ nonmembers. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7-9:30 p.m.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

“Lights, Camera, Music” presented by the University Wind Ensemble

e University of Memphis

Wind Ensemble’s exploration of the musical world of John Williams is a fantastic event for fans of lm music and orchestral performances. $20.

Friday, Sept. 29, 7:30-9 p.m.

RUDI E. SCHEIDT SCHOOL OF MUSIC

Memphis Symphony Orchestra: Pictures at an Exhibition & Chris Brubeck Guitar Concerto

Memphis Symphony Orchestra brings you the world premiere of Chris Brubeck’s double guitar concerto, featuring both classical and blues guitar.

Sunday, Oct. 1, 2:30 p.m.

SCHEIDT FAMILY PERFORMING ARTS

CENTER

The Fast Mothers, Fevertree

$10. Friday, Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Aftergoner Saturday with Virvon Varvon, The Pop Ritual, General Labor

Saturday, Sept. 30, 10:30 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Alexis Jade

ursday, Sept. 28, 7-10 p.m.

THE SLIDER INN

Area 51

Sunday, Oct. 1, 8 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Basketcase

Friday, Sept. 29, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Blueberry Pool

Saturday, Sept. 30, 4 p.m.

HAMMER & ALE

Bluff City Backsliders

Saturday, Sept. 30

BAR DKDC

Bobby Edge’s Family Vacation

$10. Sunday, Oct. 1, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Devil Train

ursday, Sept. 28, 9:30 p.m.

B-SIDE

DOA: The Rock Show With Champ, Mon.E, Renee Rose, SvmDvde, and Tayy ePro. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7:30 p.m.

GROWLERS

Emo Night Live (Grand Theft Autumn) e band Grand e Autumn will be on stage providing live versions of all of your favorite emo hits, so dress in your best goth attire and be ready to dance the night away. $5. Saturday, Sept. 30, 9 p.m.midnight.

YOUNG AVENUE DELI

First WednesdaysHappy Hour and Live Music October

Join the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art and Overton Park Conservancy for a party on the plaza with music by DJ Bizzle Bluebland. Wednesday, Oct. 4, 5:30-7:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

Aftergoner Friday with Shitty Stones, Jack Oblivian Band

Friday, Sept. 29, 10 p.m.

Wendell Wells & The Big Americans

Saturday, Sept. 30, 9 p.m.

WESTY’S

Flavor Crystals, Plot, Cult of Lip, Another Heaven $10. ursday, Sept. 28, 11 p.m.

HI TONE

Formerly Known As

Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Frankie Hollie

Saturday, Sept. 30, 2 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Goner Aftershow

With Electric Outlet, C.O.F.F.I.N., Snoorer, Silecone Prairie, Teevee Repairman, and Real People. $20. Saturday, Sept. 30, 11 p.m.

HI TONE

Gonerfest After Party

- Total Punk Presents

Timmys Organism, Alien Nose Job, Curleys, Eviltree

Saturday, Sept. 30, 11 p.m.

B-SIDE

Gonerfest After PartyTrue Sons of Thunder, AAAA, New Memphis Legs, Danny & the Stools, Zirvon Zivran

Friday, Sept. 29, 11 p.m.

B-SIDE

Gonerfest After-Show

With Sweet Knives, Pet Mosquito, Fake, and Still Animals. ursday, Sept. 28, 10:15 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Gonerfest Come Down

DJ Party

Sunday, Oct. 1, 8 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Gonerfest Friday

Afterparty

Featuring performances from Dana, Werewolf Jones, Whippets, Little Baby Tendencies, and Wesley and the Boys. $10. Friday, Sept. 29, 10 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Gonerfest Thursday

Afterparty

With D.Sablue, Hartle Road, and Big Clow. $7. ursday, Sept. 28, 11 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Harley Poe, The Homeless Gospel Choir, The Wailing Banshees

$20-$25. Friday, Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Indigo Avenue

Tuesday, Oct. 3, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

James McMurtry

ursday, Sept. 28, 7 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Jay Jones Band

Saturday, Sept. 30, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

JD Westmoreland Band

Monday, Oct. 2, 10 p.m.

B-SIDE

Joe Restivo

Saturday, Sept. 30, 11 a.m.;

Sunday, Oct. 1, 11 a.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Kafe Kirk with Kirk

Whalum & Keiko Matsui

$59. Sunday, Oct. 1, 6 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

Lo Fi Friday

With Qemist. Friday, Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

MEMPHIS CURRENT

Lucky 7 Brass Band

Friday, Sept. 29, 8:30 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Mademoiselle 66

Gonerfest After Party

DJ 5&Dime, YeYe/French Pop

Night. Saturday, Sept. 30, 11 p.m.-2 a.m.

BAR KEOUGH

Murphy’s Law,The Rumjacks,The Bar Stool

Preachers with Grade 2

$20-$25. Tuesday, Oct. 3, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Music From the Masses

Music From the Masses is back again. is time, bigger and better. Friday, Sept. 29, 6-9 p.m.

NEW SALEM MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Overton Square Music Series: The Bugaloos Free. Friday, Sept. 29, 7-9 p.m.

OVERTON SQUARE

PEZZ – Free album listening event

PEZZ has been rockin’ Memphis and the world since 1989 and is still going strong. Hear their latest recordings. Free.

ursday, Sept. 28, 6:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB

Pure Guava: A Tribute to Ween 18+. $10. Saturday, Sept. 30, 11:30 p.m.

GROWLERS

Pure Guava: A Tribute to Ween

Sunday, Oct. 1, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Rick Camp and the Suburban Trunk

Monkeys

Sunday, Oct. 1, 3:30 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Speedy Ortiz with Foyer Red

$16-$18. Sunday, Oct. 1, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Spree Wilson (Orion Free Concert Series)

Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

OVERTON PARK SHELL

Tab Benoit

$40.55. Monday, Oct. 2, 7 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Tav Falco & the Panther Burns

Wednesday, Oct. 4, 7 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Telmary (Orion Free Concert Series)

Saturday, Sept. 30, 7 p.m.

OVERTON PARK SHELL

The Death of Summer With Stay Fashionable, Accept. It!, and e Writer/ e Signal. $5. Friday, Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

The Love Light Orchestra featuring John Nemeth

$25-$30. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7:30-9:30 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

Todrick Hall

Internet sensation, television superstar, Broadway showstopper, and self-proclaimed “baddest bitch alive,” Todrick Hall returns to the stage with his ninth and most electric tour to date. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

True Widow with SRSQ $15. ursday, Sept. 28, 8 p.m.

ZEN HOUSE

Twin Soul

Friday, Sept. 29, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Unofficial Panther Burns After Party

With music by River City Boppers. Wednesday, Oct. 4, 10 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Wendell Wells & The Big Americans

Friday, Sept. 29, 9 p.m.

TJ MULLIGAN’S, MIDTOWN

Sky King Songwriter Round with Rowdy Franks & the Strays

Plus Benjamin Gilbreath, Troy Highland, Oakwalker, and Sky King. $8. Friday, Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Third Coast Percussion

Grammy Award-winning percussion ensemble. $20-$30.

Monday, Oct. 2, 7:30-9 p.m.

HEINDL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

Zach Williams

Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

THE SOUNDSTAGE AT GRACELAND

PHOTO: COURTESY ORPHEUM THEATRE Mark Edgar Stuart

CALENDAR of EVENTS: Sept. 28Oct.

4

Send the date, time, place, cost, info, phone number, a brief description, and photos — two weeks in advance — to calendar@memphisflyer.com.

DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, ONGOING WEEKLY EVENTS WILL APPEAR IN THE FLYER’S ONLINE CALENDAR ONLY. FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, VISIT EVENTS. MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL.

ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS

“Expression Accelerating: mid-career paintings”

This exhibition showcases paintings by Mary Sims during the 1970s, the middle section of her long career. Through Oct. 7.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

“Forms Meet Functions: From Trash to Treasure”

Featuring the painted trash receptacles and hanging artwork of local artists. Through Oct. 1.

THE MARTHA AND ROBERT FOGELMAN GALLERIES OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

“Hued”

El Paso-based artist Rachelle Thiewes creates jewelry that empowers its wearer through her careful use of rhythmic repetition, architectural forms, and vibrant auto paint. Sunday, Oct. 1-Jan. 28.

METAL MUSEUM

“Isomorphism and Objectivity”

A solo exhibition of new work by Lance Turner. Through Oct. 6.

BEVERLY + SAM ROSS GALLERY

“Rich Soil”

Created by American artist Kristine Mays, these 29 sculptures are inspired by the movements and gestures of Alvin Ailey’s dance composition Revelations. Through Oct. 1.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

“Sally Hughes Smith: Adrenaline Rush”

Plein-air painter Sally Hughes Smith seeks in-

Crossword

David Lusk Gallery highlights the middle section of artist Mary Sims’ long career.

spiration from the landscapes of the American South as well as locations she has observed while traveling in Europe. Through Oct. 1.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS `

ART HAPPENINGS

“Caliginous” Opening Reception

Opening reception for a photography exhibit by Max Malcolms. Friday, Sept. 29, 6-9 p.m.

MEDICINE FACTORY

Edited by Will Shortz No. 0112

Creative Works Conference

A transformative three-day experience that will connect you to your creative peers and heroes, teach you to leverage your creative skills, and more. Thursday, Sept. 28-Sept. 30.

DOWNTOWN

BOOK EVENTS

Banned Books Week with Maureen Corrigan

The Memphis Library Foundation is honoring Banned Books Week by hosting Maureen Corrigan to lead a discussion about the history of banned books. $35/general admission, $50/drink special. Tuesday, Oct. 3, 5:30 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

I Read That Movie: Little Women

Participants are invited to read the book, then come for a screening of the recent 2019 film adaptation directed by Greta Gerwig. Saturday, Sept. 30, 2-5 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

This Must Be The Place: How Music Can Make Your City Better: Book Launch

Shain Shapiro launches his new book, This Must Be the Place: How Music Can Make Your City Better, in conversation with Music Export Memphis’ Elizabeth Cawein. Free. Monday, Oct. 2, 6 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

COMEDY

Jerry Seinfeld

Jerry Seinfeld comes to Memphis to perform his newest stand-up routine. $67.50, $195. Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

ORPHEUM THEATRE

Jomarius Purse featuring Marcus Cox

$10. Saturday, Sept. 30, 8-10 p.m.

THE COMEDY JUNT

COMMUNITY

Ales for ALL

ALLMemphis, a local organization dedicated to ensuring all Memphis students attain a level of literacy that allows them to reach their fullest potential, kicks off the school year with a celebration. $15/kids, $25/adults.

Thursday, Sept. 28, 5-8 p.m.

WISEACRE BREWERY

Paw Prints Party

The Humane Society celebrates 90 years of saving animal lives with a party, complete with entertainment by DJ Alpha Whiskey, unlimited food and drinks, and a live and silent auction. $100+. Saturday, Sept. 30, 6-11 p.m.

HUMANE SOCIETY OF MEMPHIS AND SHELBY COUNTY

FESTIVAL

Gonerfest 20

Gonerfest is Goner’s premier festival, where exciting music from Memphis and around the world collides in four days of nonstop action, drawing fans from across the U.S. and around the globe. Thursday, Sept. 28-Oct. 1.

RAILGARTEN

Mempho Music Festival

Headlining are The Black Crowes, My Morning Jacket, and Turnpike Troubadours. Friday, Sept. 29-Oct. 1.

RADIANS AMPHITHEATER AT MEMPHIS BOTANIC

GARDEN

Mid-Autumn Festival

There will be a lion dance, a youth performance, a soccer game, a magic show, arts, crafts, and more. Friday, Sept. 29, 6-9 p.m.

CROSSTOWN CONCOURSE

Mid-South Fair at Landers Center

Enjoy an array of family-fun activities and more than 50 rides. Through Oct. 1.

LANDERS CENTER

Podbox Memphis Festival

Celebrate International Podcast Day at this festival. Saturday, Sept. 30, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

COSSITT LIBRARY

The Black Child Book Fair

The Black Child Book Fair brings Black authors from across the country with stories that star African-American characters. Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

FILM

Dinner & A Movie: Hook

Experience this beloved rethinking of the Peter Pan tale, as you enjoy a special five-course meal. $35. Thursday, Sept. 28, 5 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

Orange Mound Bound Exclusive Premiere

The new animation, Orange Mound Bound, has begun! Be the first to see episode 1 of the first cartoon about kids from Memphis. $15$40. Saturday, Sept. 30, 4-6:30 p.m.

ORANGE MOUND COMMUNITY CENTER REAR PARKING LOT

Overton Square Movie Nights: Walk the Line

Blankets and folding chairs welcome. Free.

Thursday, Sept. 28, 7-9 p.m.

OVERTON SQUARE

Time Warp Drive-In: Gothic Dreams: The Surreal Fairy-Tale Worlds of Tim Burton

Descend into the eccentric, bizarre cinema of a cult film master. Screening Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, and Batman. Saturday, Sept. 30, 7:45 p.m.

MALCO SUMMER 4 DRIVE-IN

FOOD AND DRINK

10 Years of Beer Anniversary Party

Memphis Made celebrates it 10th anniversary with live music, special beers, a food truck, and more. Saturday, Sept. 30, 4 p.m.

MEMPHIS MADE BREWING COMPANY

Taste of the District

Taste of the District is an annual tasting event that celebrates the Medical District. Free.

Tuesday, Oct. 3, 4-6 p.m.

HEALTH SCIENCES PARK

HEALTH AND FITNESS

A Journey to You, Yoga with Amah Wellness

Start your weekend off right with free yoga to renew your body and mind for the week to come. Free. Saturday, Sept. 30, 9-10 a.m.

TOM LEE PARK

Mental Health Awareness Day

Mental health experts and partners will be on hand to help folks explore how to better navigate mental health issues, in addition to kayaking, food trucks, family-friendly activities, and more. Saturday, Sept. 30, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

WOLF RIVER GREENWAY - EPPING WAY SECTION

Mindfulness Walk with Greg Graber

These short and slow walks are to help participants take advantage of the physical, mental, and emotional benefits from spending time in nature. Tuesday, Oct. 3, 5-5:40 p.m.

OVERTON PARK

St. Jude Walk/Run

Making memories. Supporting a mission. Saturday, Sept. 30, 8 a.m.

TOM LEE PARK

PERFORMING ARTS

Big Top Tease: Good vs. Evil

Join Dru’s as they answer the age-old question, “Do opposites attract?” There will be aerial acts, light shows, fire dancing, drag performances, and more. $10-$30. Saturday, Sept. 30, 9 p.m.

DRU’S PLACE

Bluff City Liars presents Kevin McDonald Superstar

A rock opera starring and written by Kevin McDonald of The Kids in the Hall, with support from the Liars and music by HEELS. $25-$126. Saturday, Sept. 30, 8 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

Ron Jewell’s Mark Twain At-Large

A special fundraiser benefiting the Halloran

Centre. Tickets include the one-man show starring Ron Jewell, plus a party afterward with open bar and food. $100. Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

THE HALLORAN CENTRE

SPECIAL EVENTS

Back to the ’80s! Flashback Dance Party

Dance under the lights to a decade of legendary music, including new wave, pop, dance, rock, hair metal, and hip-hop. 18+. $10. Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

MEMPHEX 2023 Stamp & Postcard

Show Stamps, postcards, exhibits, and dealers. Free admission, free stamp packet for children.

Saturday, Sept. 30-Oct. 1.

BARTLETT STATION MUNICIPAL CENTER

Neon Demons Rave

It’s time again for Black Lodge to unleash another of their neon-drenched, candy-colored psychedelic dance raves. 18+. $5, $10. Friday, Sept. 29, 9 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

Roses, Dust, & Ashes: An Oracle Deck

Premiere

A presentation by Memphis artist and writer Stacey Williams-Ng, author of the new cemetery-themed card deck, “Roses, Dust, & Ashes.” $20/general admission. Sunday, Oct. 1, 2-3 p.m.

ELMWOOD CEMETERY

SPORTS

Memphis 901 FC vs. Birmingham

Legion FC

Saturday, Sept. 30, 7 p.m.

AUTOZONE PARK

THEATER

Fat Ham

Fat Ham is a deliciously funny retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet set in the American South. William returns home after his father’s death and must confront corruption and betrayal, deciding whether to seek revenge or forge a new path. Through Oct. 8.

PLAYHOUSE ON THE SQUARE

Father Comes Home From the Wars

An explosively powerful drama about the mess of war, the cost of freedom, and the heartbreak of love. Friday, Sept. 29-Oct. 22.

HATTILOO THEATRE

The Crucible

Based on events which took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, this tragedy tells the story of a village that becomes embroiled in a witch hunt. Through Oct. 1.

THEATRE MEMPHIS

UP TO $450,000

FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS IN OCTOBER 7PM – 10PM*

Over 500 winners will take home their share of up to $450,000 in PENN Slot Play & Prizes, including electronics by Apple, Sonos, HP and Sony!

Earn 3X entries on Tuesdays and Thursdays, plus 5X entries on Saturdays!

GRAND PRIZE DRAWINGS: October 14 | October 28

32 winners per drawing day!

10 tier points = 1 drawing entry.

* October 28th drawings will be from 9pm - 11pm, all other Saturdays are 7pm - 10pm

NEWS OF THE WEIRD

By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

Police Report

In news from Paris, an “experienced climber” got to the top of the Eiffel Tower early on Aug. 17 and parachuted off before guards could stop him, The Guardian reported. The unnamed man landed safely after the leap from about 1,100 feet and was promptly arrested for endangering the lives of others. “This kind of irresponsible action puts people working at or near the tower in danger,” scolded SETE, the tower’s management company. [Guardian, 8/17/2023]

Least Competent Criminal

Sure, Mountain Dew has been compared to battery acid, but one suspect thought a can of the stuff could save her from being fingered as a killer. Fox35-TV reported that on Aug. 5, Nichole Maks, 35, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of her 79-year-old roommate, Michael Cerasoli. Cerasoli was discovered beaten and stabbed in the home they shared in Daytona Beach, Florida, on July 1. Officers tracked down Maks around 3:30 the next morning at a Krystal’s restaurant, where she had blood on the side of her leg and part of her shirt had been torn or cut away. As they approached, she dropped a knife and hammer she’d been carrying; she told officers she often carried such items. Police said that as they questioned her about her roommate, she became “agitated” and asked for a drink; they gave her a can of Diet Mountain Dew, which she poured over her body and hair, hoping to eliminate any evidence on her person. Unsurprisingly, that stunt didn’t work, and her DNA was found on the knife used to kill Cerasoli. She currently resides at the Volusia County Jail. [Fox35, 8/14/2023]

The Weirdo-American Community TikToker Michaela Witter was on Day 20 of a series she was posting about “100 solo dates” — activities like reading in the park or buying herself flowers. On Aug. 7, as she browsed in Barnes & Noble in Burbank, California, Witter inadvertently captured a stalker on video as he followed her, kneeled behind her, and sniffed her (and another woman) repeatedly. Fox News reported that Witter’s post unleashed a torrent of similar experiences — even with the same stalker. “Bro that same

man was crouching behind me and following me thru Marshalls today,” one commenter posted. “The same thing happened to me at Ralph’s in Burbank,” another said. One TikToker had the same experience in the same bookstore. Glendale police arrested Calese Carron Crowder, 37, on Aug. 11, but a judge placed him on probation and released him on Aug. 15. Los Angeles County Jail records show Crowder has been booked there 41 times. [Fox News, 8/16/2023]

Ummmmmm

• Street performer Lino Tomasen, 32, of Havana, Cuba, retired from boxing after a blow delivered to his opponent fractured the man’s skull and killed him instantly, he told Reuters. Tomasen gave all his fight winnings to that man’s family and took to the streets, where the “Ironman” now beats on himself and collects tips. He uses a sledgehammer to slam his wrists, elbows, and forearms for horrified onlookers, but seems to be unharmed by the abuse. “It’s all real, nothing fabricated,” said Edward Carbonell, who watched Tomasen’s “show.” “I want to be remembered as someone who pushed the limits of what was possible,” Tomasen said. [Reuters, 8/15/2023]

• At a sunset “furmeet” on Aug. 12 in Huntington Beach, California, one furry took offense when a man in street clothes started filming the spectacle on his phone, the Toronto Sun reported. Someone in a black wolf costume asked the filmer to stop, then amplified his message with a megaphone: “Leave or we will make you leave.” When the filmer didn’t budge, the wolf hit him over the head with the megaphone. Others jumped into the brawl, which was finally broken up by California State Parks officers. [Toronto Sun, 8/16/2023]

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

News of the Weird is now a podcast on all major platforms! To find out more, visit newsoftheweirdpodcast.com.

NEWS OF THE WEIRD

© 2023 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Author Diane Ackerman says it’s inevitable that each of us sometimes “looks clumsy or gets dirty or asks stupid questions or reveals our ignorance or says the wrong thing.” Knowing how often I do those things, I’m extremely tolerant of everyone I meet. I’m compassionate, not judgmental, when I see people who “try too hard, are awkward, care for one another too deeply, or are too open to experience.” I myself commit such acts, so I’d be foolish to criticize them in others. During the coming weeks, Aries, you will generate good fortune for yourself if you suspend all disparagement. Yes, be accepting, tolerant, and forgiving — but go even further. Be downright welcoming and amiable. Love the human comedy exactly as it is.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Taurus comedian Kevin James confesses, “I discovered I scream the same way whether I’m about to be devoured by a great white shark or if a piece of seaweed touches my foot.” Many of us could make a similar admission. The good news, Taurus, is that your anxieties in the coming weeks will be the “piece of seaweed” variety, not the great white shark. Go ahead and scream if you need to — hey, we all need to unleash a boisterous yelp or howl now and then — but then relax.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Here are famous people with whom I have had personal connections: actor Marisa Tomei, rockstar Courtney Love, filmmaker Miranda July, playwright David Mamet, actor William Macy, philosopher Robert Anton Wilson, rockstar Paul Kantor, rock impresario Bill Graham, and author Clare Cavanagh. What? You never heard of Clare Cavanagh? She is the brilliant and renowned translator of Nobel Prize Laureate poet Wisława Szymborska and the authorized biographer of Nobel Prize Laureate author Czesław Miłosz. As much as I appreciate the other celebrities I named, I am most enamored of Cavanagh’s work. As a Gemini, she expresses your sign’s highest potential: the ability to wield beautiful language to communicate soulful truths. I suggest you make her your inspirational role model for now. It’s time to dazzle and persuade and entertain and beguile with your words.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): I cheer you on when you identify what you want. I exult when you devise smart plans to seek what you want, and I celebrate when you go off in high spirits to obtain and enjoy what you want. I am gleeful when you aggressively create the life you envision for yourself, and I do everything in my power to help you manifest it. But now and then, like now, I share Cancerian author Franz Kafka’s perspective. He said this: “You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and

listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quite still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked. It has no choice. It will roll in ecstasy at your feet.”

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Let’s talk about changing your mind. In some quarters, that’s seen as weak, even embarrassing. But I regard it as a noble necessity, and I recommend you consider it in the near future. Here are four guiding thoughts.

1. “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything” — George Bernard Shaw. 2. “Only the strongest people have the pluck to change their minds, and say so, if they see they have been wrong in their ideas” — Enid Blyton.

3. “Sometimes, being true to yourself means changing your mind. Self changes, and you follow” — Vera Nazarian. 4. “The willingness to change one’s mind in the light of new evidence is a sign of rationality, not weakness” — Stuart Sutherland.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): “The soul moves in circles,” psychologist James Hillman told us. “Hence our lives are not moving straight ahead; instead, hovering, wavering, returning, renewing, repeating.” In recent months, Virgo, your soul’s destiny has been intensely characterized by swerves and swoops. And I believe the rollicking motion will continue for many months. Is that bad or good? Mostly good — especially if you welcome its poetry and beauty. The more you learn to love the spiral dance, the more delightful the dance will be.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Have you been sensing a phantom itch that’s impossible to scratch? Are you feeling less like your real self lately and more like an AI version of yourself? Has your heart been experiencing a prickly tickle? If so, I advise you not to worry. These phenomena have a different meaning from the implications you may fear. I suspect they are signs you will soon undertake the equivalent of what snakes do: molting their skins to make way for a fresh layer. This is a good thing! Afterward, you will feel fresh and new.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

According to legend, fifth-century Pope Leo I convinced the conquering army of Attila the Hun to refrain from launching a full-scale invasion of Italy. There may have been other reasons in addition to Leo’s persuasiveness. For example, some evidence suggests Attila’s troops were superstitious because a previous marauder died soon after attacking Rome. But historians agree that Pope Leo was a potent leader whose words carried great authority. You, Sagittarius, won’t need to be quite as fervently compelling as the ancient pope in the coming weeks. But you will have an enhanced ability to influence and

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): If you have ever contemplated launching a career as a spy, the coming months will be a favorable time to do so. Likewise if you have considered getting trained as a detective, investigative journalist, scientific researcher, or private eye. Your affinity for getting to the bottom of the truth will be at a peak, and so will your discerning curiosity. You will be able to dig up secrets no one else has discovered. You will have an extraordinary knack for homing in on the heart of every matter. Start now to make maximum use of your superpowers!

entice people. I hope you use your powers for good!

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Singersongwriter Joan Baez has the longevity and endurance typical of many Capricorns. Her last album in 2018 was released 59 years after her career began. An article in The New Yorker describes her style as “elegant and fierce, defiant and maternal.” It also noted that though she is mostly retired from music, she is “making poignant and unpredictable art,” creating weird, hilarious line drawings with her nondominant hand. I propose we make Baez your inspirational role model. May she inspire you to be elegant and fierce, bold and compassionate, as you deepen and refine your excellence in the work you’ve been tenaciously plying for a long time. For extra credit, add some unexpected new flair to your game.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Aquarian author and activist Mary Frances Berry has won numerous awards for her service on behalf of racial justice. One accomplishment: She was instrumental in raising global awareness of South Africa’s apartheid system, helping to end its gross injustice. “The time when you need to do something,” she writes, “is when no one else is willing to do it, when people are saying it can’t be done.” You are now in a phase when that motto will serve you well, Aquarius.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I invite you to spend quality time gazing into the darkness. I mean that literally and figuratively. Get started by turning off the lights at night and staring, with your eyes open, into the space in front of you. After a while, you may see flashes of light. While these might be your optical nerves trying to fill in the blanks, they could also be bright spirit messages arriving from out of the void. Something similar could happen on a metaphorical level, too. As you explore parts of your psyche and your life that are opaque and unknown, you will be visited by luminous revelations.

THURSDAY, SEP 28

6:30 PM, Gates Open at 5:30 PM

SOUND FUZION

THURSDAY OCT 5

6:30 PM, Gates open at 5:30 PM

FRIDAY OCT 6 7:00 PM

The hottest little jazz club around is GPAC’s Jazz in the Box!

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At our annual Memphis Bacon & Bourbon Festival we'll have creative bacon-inspired dishes of all kinds from some great Memphis restaurants, plus a vast array of distilled spirits to tempt your tastebuds.

We'll have music and all sorts of merriment and party activities... and did we mention a whole lot of bacon and bourbon?

6

A Rune for Autumn

Last weekend marked the o cial start of autumn. Each season has its blessings, but many of us are partial to fall. Why is that?

For Southerners, it probably has to do with the weather. It’s nally safe to be outside without the risk of melting into a puddle. But there is some psychology behind it. We were conditioned as children to get excited about fall because we associate it with starting school, getting new clothes, and being able to see school friends for the rst time in a while. Even the changing of the leaves from green to warmer colors triggers feelings of comfort.

Autumn gives many of us the warm and fuzzies, and in my mind is associated with home. Fall is the time of year I want to curl up with a pile of books and cook warm foods. ere are tarot cards that represent autumn and the feelings it can bring — Justice, Temperance, Death, the 10 of Pentacles, and most of the Cups cards — but the divination tool I feel most closely represents it are the runes.

Runes can be anything. One of the de nitions of the word is a mark or letter of mysterious or magic signi cance. ere are multiple runic systems from across the world, but typically when people think of runes, they are thinking of Nordic runes.

ere are many Nordic rune systems as well, but the most commonly used in modern times is the Elder Futhark.

Each rune has a divinatory meaning that encompasses concepts from Nordic cultures and belief systems. Runes might look like simple line drawings, but the ancestors knew how to pack a lot of meaning into little things. One of my favorites is Othala, and that is the rune I associate

Othala is the rune of home and hearth. It represents prosperity and abundance through property or the home, as well as ancestral and spiritual legacy. Othala is stability and well-being, as well as growth. If autumn makes us want to go home and nest, Othala is here to encourage that. Othala represents the distinction between the protected and organized world of home and family and the astral world into which we go to obtain knowledge. Othala is a state of balance between these two worlds, as autumn seems to be a time of balance in the seasons.

Both the autumnal and spring equinoxes are noted as being times of balance. e daylight hours and nighttime hours on these days are equal, and spiritual practitioners o en focus on

balance and harmony during these times. Autumn also sits between summer and winter, balancing the orderly chaos that o en accompanies summer time with friends, family, and vacations with the more actual chaos of winter weather and the holiday season.

Othala is a rune of protection and defense. It represents lawful ownership and what you have the right to protect and guard. If autumn encourages us to spend more time at home, we might nd ourselves feeling more protective of our space or feel the need to improve it and spruce up its spiritual protection. Othala is a rune that you could work into your home protection if it speaks to you.

But possession and ownership also imply the need for responsibility. What is in our possession that needs to be xed, worked on, or taken care of? You may notice minor home repairs catching your attention or you may nd yourself with the grudging need to tackle your to-do list. Although Othala focuses on the physical, it also concerns matters of spirit. What spiritual gi s do you have that need attention and practice?

Autumn is also a time when we think more about our ancestors, and Othala relates to our ancestral heritage, reminding us to honor them and their legacies. As we head into Halloween and winter, let the blessings and protection of Othala warm your home and heart. Happy fall, y’all!

Emily Guenther is a co-owner of e Broom Closet metaphysical shop. She is a Memphis native, professional tarot reader, ordained Pagan clergy, and dog mom.

PHOTO: EMILY GUENTHER Othala rune card from the Viking Oracle deck by Stacey Demarco

e rune of home and hearth is the divinatory tool of the season.

METAPHYSICAL CONNECTION By Emily Guenther

FOOD By Michael Donahue

Sammy of the Month

Look for intriguing o eat ingredients at Lucchesi’s Beer Garden.

The sandwich of the month began in September at Lucchesi’s Beer Garden: Deli, Package & Parlor.

“We tried to get it started in June, but we ended up having a baby,” says Tony Lucchesi, 41. “He was born July 7th. Giovanni.”

Tony, who co-owns the business with his wife, Basma, often combines eclectic ingredients for his sammies. Like September’s offering: The Memphisto.

“It’s a take on the Monte Cristo, but it’s not quite a Monte Cristo. I’ve been on a John Prine kick lately. And he has a song, ‘ e Sins of Memphisto.’ It’s Italian rye bread with blackberry jam, ham, turkey, and Swiss cheese. But it’s pressed on a panini press. When we pull it o , it’s topped with powdered sugar.”

making sandwiches and making Kra blue box macaroni and cheese, I didn’t start getting into a bunch of stu until college when I had to start making stu for myself: ‘Yeah. I’ll try this out.’”

Tony worked at Old Venice Pizza Co. while attending Mississippi State University in Starkville, Mississippi. He and his roommate also did a lot of cooking. “We would ip through random cookbooks and if we saw something we liked or something that seemed appealing, we’d give it a shot.”

Tony graduated from University of Memphis with a degree in music. “I was in a band [Antique Curtains]. And I played guitar and piano, but my concentration was in record industry operations.”

He met Basma when he began working for her dad at the old Ra e’s Deli, where he had his rst gyro. Basma’s dad also introduced him to tabouli and hummus.

In 2009, Tony and Basma moved to Orange County, California, where he worked at Five Crowns, a ne dining restaurant. He credits the restaurant for teaching him “the whole concept of hitting di erent avor pro les, where you have ve tastes: sweet, savory, salty, sour, and tart.”

In 2012, Tony and Basma took over Lucchesi’s Beer Garden, which Basma’s parents opened in addition to the deli.

Tony began using “higher quality ingredients” in the food. “I wanted to bring people natural deli meats that had no llers or anything.”

For October, Tony will feature his I’m From Memphis sandwich. “It’s a sub roll with peanut butter, pulled pork and a halfpound hot dog, and banana honey puree. And it’s pressed on the panini press.”

As for the logic behind his sandwich-making, Tony says, “We come up with stu randomly here and there. And, eventually, they make it on the menu.

“I’ve never considered myself a chef. But I think I’m good at avor combinations.”

Growing up, Tony made sandwiches. “I was obsessed with bologna and mayonnaise sandwiches. Simple, thick-cut bologna, mayonnaise, and bread. I was a very plain eater when I was younger.”

But not that plain. “I used to always make just turkey and ham sandwiches. With Doritos on them.”

en there was his “fried Spam with peanut butter sandwich on toast. Peanut butter goes oddly well with pork.”

Cooking came later. “Outside of just

He also introduced his sandwiches, including the Grizzle — a panini with mayonnaise, hot sweet mustard, turkey, roast beef, pepper jack cheese, jalapeños, and bruschetta.

e Grizzle is their top-selling sandwich, but Tony says, “I think we have one of the best vegetarian sandwiches you can get in the city. It’s the Spicy Little Burger: toasted wheat bread with hummus, tabouli, a falafel burger patty, jalapeños, hot sweet mustard, and a pickled-turnipsand-beets relish.”

Tony plans to debut more of his cuisine at Lucchesi’s Beer Garden. “ is winter, I think I’m going to introduce at least maybe a soup or a chili. But I think at some point in time I want to make spaghetti gravy from my grandmother’s recipe. I don’t know if I’m going to do a traditional spaghetti with gravy or if I’m going to work it into a gyro. I have not decided yet.”

It might even include an o eat ingredient. “I’m not opposed to adding honey to anything.”

Lucchesi’s Beer Garden is at 3358 Poplar Avenue.

Kick off Spooky Season at this spirited fest with 50+ types of tequila & mezcal available for tasting, photo booth, costume contest, tasty local food trucks, a DJ dance party and more!

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE Tony Lucchesi

The Problem with the Jedi

With the Disney+ series Ahsoka, Star Wars shows its age.

hsoka Tano was the best new Star Wars character introduced during the prequel era of 19992013. She was introduced in e Clone Wars animated series as Anakin Skywalker’s padawan apprentice. Ashley Eckstein voiced the head-tailed Togruta hero as she grew up on-screen during the show’s seven seasons. As the war, the contradictory demands of the Jedi Council, his secret romance with Padmé, and the malign in uence of Senator Palpatine slowly changed Anakin from gung ho Jedi to genocidal Sith Lord Darth Vader, it was his relationship with Ahsoka that kept him balanced. But Ahsoka could see what Anakin could not, and she became disillusioned with both the war and Jedi idealism. When she was falsely framed for war crimes in season 5, she became one of the few Jedi to ever resign from the order — as it turned out, just in time to avoid Order 66.

When e Clone Wars returned a er cancellation in 2017, showrun-

ner David Filoni spent most of his time wrapping up Ahsoka’s story. But then she returned, 20 years older and much wiser, as Fulcrum, the nascent Rebellion’s most valuable intelligence asset, in Rebels. e character makes her live action debut in the limited series Ahsoka, now portrayed by Rosario Dawson. Filoni, who has been integral to e Mandalorian and other Disney+ live action Star Wars series, returns to oversee the fate of his most beloved creation.

Ahsoka is set in the same era as e Mandalorian. e Empire has been defeated, and the New Republic is struggling to rebuild as much of the galaxy slips into warlordism. Ahsoka and her comrades Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) and Hera (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) survived the war. But nascent Jedi Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi) is missing, having apparently sacri ced himself in the nal operation which sent Imperial Grand Admiral rawn (Lars Mikkelsen) into exile in a galaxy far, far away. Sabine, who had

previously been training with Ahsoka, feels heartbroken and betrayed in the a ermath of the war, while Hera, an ace pilot who fought with the Rebellion, is now a New Republic general. Ahsoka travels with Huyang (voiced by David Tennant), a thousand-year-old droid rescued from the ruins of the Jedi Temple, but her own attitude towards the Jedi remains ambivalent. But she does suspect that a group of defeated Imperials is trying to rescue rawn from exile, which is con rmed when Jedi-turned-mercenary Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) rescues Nightsister Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) from New Republic captivity. Meanwhile, Sabine is convinced that tracking the Force witch’s movements are the

best way to get Ezra back, if he is still alive. Hera is unable to convince the war-weary New Republic to commit assets to the search, so she, Ahsoka, and Sabine set out alone to track down a star map to the distant space whale graveyard where they suspect rawn and Ezra have gone.

If all that sounds confusing (Space whales? Yes, they’re a thing.), then you’ve identi ed the rst problem with Ahsoka. A er 40 years of movies, comics, novels, and TV series, Star Wars is currently su ering from a bad case of Marvel-itis, where the needs of main-

PRESENTED BY

Rosario Dawson plays Star Wars fan favorite Ahsoka Tano

taining the increasingly convoluted continuity take up all available narrative time between the wham-bam space battles and lightsaber duels. Much of the charm of The Mandalorian was that it positioned itself as a monster-of-theweek series apart from the main story. In later seasons, when Luke Skywalker showed up, things went downhill fast.

Ahsoka and Thrawn are both genuinely great characters, but the series gets bogged down in Easter eggs and barely comprehensible lore. Dawson, a legend in her own right, gives an uncharacteristically reserved performance as Ahsoka. (In flashbacks, Ariana Greenblatt portrays young Ahsoka and nails the mischievous spirit Eckstein brought to the role.) Winstead is, as usual, the best thing on-screen, while

Stevenson (in his last role before dying in May) understands the level of camp required of a serial villain.

But the biggest problem with Ahsoka is the direction. ILM’s special effects and production design are, as usual, absolutely top-notch, and with the level of acting firepower at his fingertips, Filoni should be able to craft some quality space opera. Yet the bread resolutely fails to rise. The patient, indie-film-inspired editing that works in the political thriller Andor sucks the life out of Ahsoka. The dialogue has been bad even by Star Wars standards. Things liven up when Thrawn arrives in episode 6, but with only two episodes left, it might be too little, too late. Maybe Ahsoka is right, and the Jedi are the problem. Ahsoka is streaming on Disney+.

Qualified blood donors may be compensated up to $500 per donation for their time and effort participating in important research.

We are currently seeking blood donors with the following conditions in the Memphis area:

TV By Chris McCoy

By Ren Brabenec

The ‘Conspiracy Industrial Complex’

Distrust in pro t-hungry institutions is key to America’s hiatus from reality.

When humans organize into societies, the foundational cement upon which they build them is as strong as their shared conviction in what they should look like. Principles like “Every child should receive an education,” “Quality healthcare is a right,” and “Justice should be fairly meted out regardless of class,” are just a few ingredients mixed by mortar and pestle to produce the basis for American institutions and the society they help create.

Polls show that most Americans still share the same convictions on issues such as healthcare, housing, labor relations, the economy, civil liberties, foreign policy, and education. However, the institutions created to build that society are failing. According to a 2022 Gallup poll, Americans’ trust in institutions has never been lower, with signi cant declines in trust in 11 of 16 institutions tested. From 2021 to 2022, the percentage of Americans declaring they had a “great deal” of con dence in the public education system fell from 32 percent to 28 percent. Con dence in healthcare declined from 44 percent to 38 percent, and con dence in the justice system eroded from 20 percent to 14 percent. Trust in the presidency, the Supreme Court, and Congress declined by 15, 11, and 7 points, respectively. From a wider historical lens, the percentage of Americans saying they had a great deal of trust in institutions declined from 48 percent in 1979 to 27 percent in 2022.

Who’s to blame for conspiracy theories?

Americans rely on institutions to form the framework of their society. But to the degree that institutions shi from providing Americans with what they need to what the institutions think will make money, Americans will lose trust in them, disbelieve them, and seek other “credible sources” for information and support.

Just a few examples of institutions losing American support due in part to pro t-seeking and corruption include:

• Education: From 1981 to 2021, the cost of attending a four-year college skyrocketed from $11,840/year to $30,031/year, a 153 percent increase over 40 years. Soaring costs of public universities and fraud committed by private colleges landed Generation X and millennials in $1.77 trillion in debt, even as their degrees increasingly failed to provide the quality of life those same degrees secured for their Baby Boomer parents. A er experiencing this, is it any surprise today’s Gen X and millennial parents distrust the educational system, thus giving rise to conspiracy theories about what’s “really being taught” in our schools and universities?

• Healthcare: In the early-2000s, Purdue Pharma saw an opportunity to strike it big. ey encouraged (and sometimes bribed) doctors to prescribe the opioid painkiller OxyContin under the farce that it was the non-addictive solution to acute and chronic pain. Purdue raked in billions of dollars while 280,000 Americans died from overdoses on prescription painkillers between 1999 and 2021. e Sackler family, owners of Purdue, are currently negotiating a multi-billion dollar settlement that would grant them immunity from all future civil litigation despite thousands dead in the name of Purdue’s “contribution to healthcare.” A er Americans watched that crisis play out, is it any surprise some have turned to conspiracy theorists who o er “alternative healthcare,” like Alex Jones and his inventory of “health products’?

• Justice: e courts may still be public institutions, but they increasingly favor business interests over non-business interests. Data shows today’s Supreme Court is the most pro-business of all time, even more pro-business than the courts of the Gilded Age. Today’s court rules in favor of business interests 83 percent of the time, siding with big business to the detriment of the environment, civil liberties, and voting rights. Add to that the recent breaking news of conservative justices bene ting from the largesse of billionaire business tycoons who o en have cases before those same justices, and it’s no surprise only one in four Americans has a great deal of con dence in SCOTUS.

• Politics: Politicians may be public o cials, but o en in name only. Case in point, researchers at Princeton University found that one’s wealth is a direct barometer for political representation. e bottom 90 percent of income earners in the U.S. see their preferred legislation pushed for and passed by their elected representatives just 30 percent of the time. Meanwhile, the top 10 percent of income earners see their preferred legislation pushed for and passed 61 percent of the time. A er watching candidates make grandiose promises on the campaign trail and immediately forgo those promises once elected so they can serve the interests of their big donors, is it any wonder many Americans have attached themselves to conspiracy theories about politicians and elections?

A population rife with conspiracy theories is not a feature of a healthy society. However, Americans do themselves a disservice when they ostracize people who believe in such theories. For one thing, conspiracy theories occasionally prove to be true, as in the case of MK-Ultra, the Gulf of Tonkin incident, or the Tuskegee experiments. But even when they don’t, Americans’ collective ire should never be solely directed at the conspiracy theorists or the and fame-seeking hucksters who are o en behind the scenes peddling such theories for personal gain.

Rather, Americans must demand accountability from the institutions whose consummate failures led to the growth of the Conspiracy Industrial Complex. U.S. institutions exist to serve the Americans who formed them, not the interests of private capital or the wealthy elites who see every aspect of American society as something to pro t from.

Returning America from the brink of a dystopian nightmare where millions wander a landscape of their own invented reality will only occur when trust in institutions is restored. And that can only happen if those institutions are returned to their foundational purpose of serving regular Americans, not Wall Street investors and billionaire business executives.

Ren Brabenec is a Nashville-based freelance writer and journalist. He reports on politics, local issues, environmental stories, foreign policy, and the economy. is commentary originally appeared in Tennessee Lookout (tennesseelookout.com).

PHOTO: ALEXSKOPJE | DREAMSTIME.COM