What I Ate in Memphis

Hello loves and Happy Wednesday!

I know I left you guys hanging on the foodie front yesterday, but in an attempt to not have a 2000 word post, I thought I’d save the Memphis munchies for today. Besides, it’s Wednesday and we ALL know what Wednesdays are for…

WIAW Teal

After you get a good look at what the man-friend and I filled our bellies with while on vacation in Elvisland, be sure to head on over to Peas & Crayons, give our hostess Jenn a little shout, and then check out all the other delicious link ups for the week!

Our first meal at The Bayou actually turned out to the BEST of the whole trip…

The Bayou Chicken Wings

We started with a plate of chicken wings…but not just ANY chicken wings…the man-friend has been going on and on and ON about the sauce they use on these basically since the day we met. I have to admit, I was just as excited to see this plate come out as he was. And the verdict???

Omg, BEST WINGS EVER!!!

Seriously, we sat there sloooooooowly savoring each and every bite trying to pinpoint all the flavors in the sauce! I tried my best to get it out of the waiter, but the only thing he would give up was that there was white wine…you know, because THAT tells us a lot! Lol

I will say that our waiter was absolutely amazing! He had a great personality (happy and energetic without being all “let me shoot rainbows out of my ass” or anything ;)) and he loaded me up with extra lemon for my water (love)!

As for our entrees, I ordered the soup sampler…

The Bayou Soup SamplerClockwise from the top:
Seafood gumbo, duck and sausage gumbo, alligator chili, shrimp and crawfish bisque, and red beans and rice

They were all pretty tasty (first time trying alligator…it’s a bit umm, chewy!), but my absolute favorite was the bisque! I always forget how much I LOVE cream-based soups…especially with a good bread for dunkin’! 🙂

The man-friend went with the Shrimp Po’Boy…

The Bayou Shrimp Po' Boy

Hand-breaded fried shrimp with lettuce, tomato, Cajun mayo and cocktail sauce with Cajun fries on the side.

The flavors in the sandwich were amazing (not too spicy) and the crusty bread it was served on was fantastic, but the fries were a bit soggy.

Luckily the fries from our lunch at Young Ave Deli the next day made up for it…

Young Ave Deli Burger

The man-friend’s bacon cheeseburger with some of the BEST friggin’ fries I’ve ever ninja’d off his plate! Oh and the burger was pretty epic too! 😉

As for my plate basket, I ordered the “Sonoma Sandwich”…

Young Ave Deli Veggie Sandwich & Sweet Potato Fries

Sun-dried tomatoes, cream cheese, tomato, avocado and red onions with sweet potato fries on the side.

Unforrrrrtunately…

Young Ave Deli Veggie Sandwich

They used like half a friggin’ BLOCK of cream cheese to make my sandwich…and about half a POUND of sugar on the fries!

I swear, I am going to become the most obnoxious customer from now on whenever I’m ordering out…what is it with menus that don’t specify things like adding SUGAR to SWEET potato fries?! Ick!

I managed to salvage the meal by scraping the cream cheese off the sandwich(not only was it just too much, but it totally took away from all the other flavors) and then stealing one or two or TEN more fries from the man-friend! To top it off, I’m pretty sure our waitress was high on drugs or something. She kept forgetting to bring us stuff we asked for and pretty much just looked like she was about to fall asleep the whole time! All I have to say is, it’s a good thing the man-friend and I had good company! 🙂

For dinner that night, we had some authentic Memphis barbecue at Central BBQ

Central BBQ Nachos

After seeing the BBQ Nachos on Best Food Ever, we knew we had to give them a try!

Central BBQ Nachos Bite

The flavor of the meat and the BBQ sauce was fantastic, but I have to say I was a little bummed to see they were served at room temperature. Isn’t the POINT of nachos is to have warm, melted cheese?

Central BBQ Baby Back RibsThe man-friend ordered a rack of ribs with baked beans and coleslaw and enjoyed them well enough, but I’m pretty sure he’d say dessert was well, the icing on the cake…

Central BBQ Caramel CakeCaramel layer cake, that is!

Of course, it was a bit too sweet for me, but the man-friend had NO trouble picking up the slack…what can I say, he LOVES his desserts!

Speaking of too sweet, one of these days (I hope) I’ll learn my lesson…leave the sweet desserts and breakfasts to the kitchen at home. For breakfast the next day, I couldn’t help but be lured in by the Brioche French toast from the menu at Perkins

Perkins Brioche French Toast

Unfortunately, after one bite, I realized (even without syrup) it was just too much for me. FORTUNATELY though, we had an AMAZING waiter who happened to notice me eyeing my plate with disdain picking at my food and quickly (and I do mean QUICK!) swapped me for something savory…

Perkins Biscuits & Gravy

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m a total sucker for biscuits and gravy…and I may or may not have mixed all of it up and then drizzled on a bit of maple syrup!

#strangebutSOgood!

So maybe now, after seeing all the fried, creamy, plastic-y?, cheesy, saucy, and gravy-covered food you understand why there just HAD to be some Whole Foods frolicking during our last few hours in town! 😉

Whole Foods Salad Bar

Must. Eat. All. The. VEGGIEEEEEES!

ZeviaAND then wash them down with a new-to-me-and-oh-so-delicious-yet-not-quite-as-grapefruitty-as-I-expected-flavor Zevia! 😀

Oh and say hello to Jay Jay (the man-friend’s pooch)! He tagged along for the trip but camped out with his doggie cousins over at a friend’s house for the weekend!

What do you typically order for breakfast when dining out?

What are your favorite kind of fries?

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35 Responses to What I Ate in Memphis

  1. Jessie says:

    So your telling me sugar on swt potatoes don’t go together? Hmm… who would’ve thought. Thanks for the heads up for the future. What would we all do without you???? .. well probably end up with a sugar overload on sweet potatoes which wouldn’t be cool

  2. Robyn says:

    Young Ave Deli had some bomb fries! Their sweet potato fries used to not come with sugar on them…guess they changed it. Next time you eat there get a pizza with hummus in place of sauce. Also, you MUST try the wings at Molly’s la Casita. BEST WINGS. I swear. I will take you there myself and buy you a margarita.

  3. Screw watching the mass quantity of cooking shows on Australian screens at the moment for my foodgasm ogling- I’m just going to stick your WIAW!! Amazing eats, each look just as appealing as the other! Never heard of a soup sampler before, thats such a great way to have a bit of everything on offer! If you think alligator is chewy, try kangaroo 😉

  4. Ok I’m super intrigued by that alligator soup… that’s definitely something I’ve never tried before! The idea of it grosses me out a bit, but I would definitely try it if given the opportunity.

    That seems kind of weird to put sugar on sweet potato fries. It sounds like overkill to me. Crispy and salty is totally the way to go. 😉

    When I go out to breakfast I love just getting the standard greasy egg/bacon/hash brown/toast combo with some fruit on the side. Or if I want something healthier, I like getting oatmeal.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      I was too curious NOT to try the alligator! It was a bit chewy (which I hear is typical) but not too bad…the chili itself had a great flavor!

  5. Juli says:

    These fries make my mouth water!!!!! I haven’t had fries in ages…. Thank god we’re going out for supper tonight! 🙂

  6. I love to have poached eggs with avocado, goats cheese and smoked salmon it is my go to brunch favourite by far 🙂

    So many delicious eats there!! We can barely get sweet potato fries here so I am hoping they become more popular, that adding sugar though is so WTF and very unhealthy!

  7. Dana says:

    I love to get a giant veggie filled egg white omelet… with cheese. Can’t give up cheese in my eggs! And usually some rye toast!

    Those nachos though…Look so good!

  8. Let’s take a foodie road trip together. We’ll eat our way through every state in the country.

    My faves fries will always be regular ol’ potato fries, extra crisy, extra ketchup!

  9. Umm, why have I never seen a soup flight like that before?! I love soup, so that is genius! I’ve never tried alligator before, but I think I would give it a shot.

    Usual breakfast order is usually pretty standard diner food: if I can order it, I like pancakes, eggs, and peameal (Canadian) bacon. Once in a while I’ll do an omelet, or I’ll go the opposite route and do french toast or a Belgian waffle.

    If given the opportunity, I’ll bypass fries entirely for onion rings. Sweet potato fries would be my second choice though!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Right?! I think all restaurants should start doing this! The alligator was a bit chewy, but not bad…at least I can say I’ve tried it now! 🙂

  10. Eric says:

    Worst thing ever to open first thing at work!

    So hungry now! Fooooooood!!!!

    For lunch today I will be having ribs, nachos, cake, biscuits & gravy, and a soda. Thanks for the heart attack!

  11. the south certainly knows their food!! some of that you could just never find in the north east. (which i guess is ok when it comes to sugar on fries) but those wings look amazing and im legit drooling over those ribs!! i lovvvve ribs.

  12. A soup sampler sounds brilliant. It solves the problem of getting tired of a bowl of soup after a few bites, and all of your picks sound so good! Chili, gumbo, rice, bisque… Swoon.

    Wow. You had a great waiter. Hope you gave him a good tip 😉 I know what you mean about taking a bite of something and just knowing it was too much. That french toast looks really decadent.

    It was basically a rule of mine when I was younger that if a restaurant had a breakfast menu then I’d always order breakfast no matter the time. And if they had pancakes or waffles I would always get them.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Haha! I’m the same way (though I’m much too picky when it comes to pancakes)…I can never understand the people who go to places like Cracker Barrel and don’t order breakfast! I mean, I’m sure they have some good country cookin’, but HOW can you resist biscuits, gravy, grits?!?! Must eat all the breakfast items! Lol

  13. Wow, looks like you had a tasty trip!! That French toast looks unbelievably good. And if I go to Memphis, I’ll have to try those wings – I love wings!

  14. That is the first time that I have ever heard of a soup sampler, but that is seriously genius. I am pretty sure that all restaurants should offer that!

  15. I love the idea of a soup sampler for a dinner plate, so fun! It looks like a lot of the foods you guys had were tasty, other than the soggy fries.

  16. When it comes to eating out I generally prefer to make my own concoctions, so I know I’m getting a good breakfast. But if there is no other option I love Mcdonalds Sausage and Egg Muffins with hash browns. Yep if I am eating out I can’t resist a hash brown or two 😀

    And my favourite fries are the curly or crinkled ones with some kind of hot and spicy seasoning!

  17. That all looks amazing! Really, you have to eat well when you’re traveling. There is no point in depriving yourself of delicious food when you’re in a place you may never be again. I was in a bad place ED-wise when I was in India and I missed out on so much. If I could go back and eat all of the samosas, lassies, sweets and butter naan in the world, I would. I love the idea of a soup sampler; It looks like a Memphis-style thali!

  18. We talked about this already but I get SO PISSED when they add sugar to sweet potato fries. It totally ruins them!

    However, that cake would have been eaten in about 2 bites. 🙂

  19. jeri says:

    I just made some oven fried sweet potatoes with cinnamon and cayenne. I would totally recommend that combo.

  20. Ugh, sorry about your bad dining experience with the pile ‘o cream cheese & sugary fries. It really sucks when the service is bad too. Such a bummer. Glad you had good company & enjoyed other tasty eats though! I totally would have eaten your french toast… looked awesome!! I love to order sweet breakfasts like french toasts or pancakes. Yum!! 🙂

  21. Anie U says:

    A soup sampler?!? First time I’ve heard of that one, but it would make a great theme for a little party this fall – oh, the ideas are flowing already 🙂

  22. Ttrockwood says:

    I never eat breakfast out, but i go to brunch with friends every sunday around 1-2pm. As long as the bloody mary is not made from a mix (eew!) i get one of those, and usually a tofu veggie scramble with toast, or if at a not at all vegan friendly place i can always find a salad with nuts and order another bloody 🙂

  23. Lisa says:

    A soup sampler – LOVE that idea! 🙂

  24. Becca says:

    a soup SAMPLER?! that is pure genius. It’s currently 4:30 and I have 30 minutes left of work but dinner isn’t until 7 pm tonight… and now I’m starving. Loving your eats!

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  26. I saw the pepper on man-friend’s fries and wanted to dive right in! Once I saw sugar and cinnamon-ed sweet potato fries served at a restaurant, but I DO think they should warn you about that….

    Can we PLEASE talk about the soup sampler? I wish more restaurants would just offer a taste of everything. It’s probably not profitable, but it would certainly help out the indecisive and totally curious foodies among us.

    Although I can handle sugar quite well, I usually can NOT deal with it for breakfast. I rarely go out to eat in the morning, but if I do, I won’t order anything pancake or waffle or French toast related.

    P.S. I was shockingly surprised at how much I liked that Zevia!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Right!? I think there should be a special spot on the menu JUST for us indecisive foodies! I’d even pay a bit more if I could just have a smaller portion of like two or three dishes! Lol

      And as for breakfast, I go back and forth on craving sweet and savory at home, but for the most part I almost always crave savory whenever I go out…now I see why…totally learned my lesson with this!

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