Nightlife - Memphis, Tennessee



Nightlife

Memphis nightlife is centered on historic Beale Street, a 3-block stretch of clubs where music can be heard well into the wee hours seven days a week. The west end of Beale is one of the most lively blues centers you’ll find anywhere in the country, although there are also some chains such as Hard Rock Cafe.

Anchoring the street is B. B. King’s Blues Club, which consistently brings in first-rate and high-profile national blues and roots acts, in addition to having the strip’s best house acts, including diva Ruby Wilson. Other choice Beale venues are Rum Boogie Café, which boasts regular performances from Beale stalwarts James Govan and the Boogie Blues Band, and King’s Palace Café, where you can find dynamic jazz singer/pianist Charlie Wood most nights.

On Beale between Second and Fourth Streets, the clubs have sidewalk bars, and you can buy drinks there and carry them around with you. The bars can serve until 5:00 a.m. on weekends, although they rarely do. On Fridays and other nights, you can buy a wristband for $15 (or more on special nights), which gets you into many of the clubs. Things change regularly on Beale Street, so you might want to check local newspapers or log onto www.bealestreet.com for the latest information on the street.

The local blues scene, however, isn’t restricted to Beale Street. The finest venue for Memphis roots music may be the Center for Southern Folklore (CSF), an intimate club and folk-art gallery located in the Pembroke Square Building just north of Beale Street. (See the Attractions chapter for more information about CSF.) Inside the Gibson Guitar plant directly south of Beale, you’ll find The Lounge, which offers a good lineup of live music amid sophisticated uptown decor. Then, for the brave of heart, there are the juke joints, Delta remnants that still litter the city. Wild Bill’s in north Memphis has become a hip spot in recent years and boasts a house band, the Memphis Soul Survivors, which might be the city’s most authentic blues band.

The local rock scene is anchored by a handful of clubs in the midtown and downtown areas. The New Daisy Theatre on Beale Street books prominent national club acts as well as lots of local hard rock.

In midtown, the Hi-Tone Café specializes in roots, rock, and Americana acts and books a more consistently interesting lineup of national acts than any other small club in town. The Hi-Tone is also a favorite spot for local punk, garage, and roots bands. The Young Avenue Deli, also in midtown, books many of the same local bands as the Hi-Tone, as well as an uneven, if often impressive, lineup of national acts that tend more toward college-oriented jam bands and alternative rock. The Blue Monkey near Overton Square features a diverse lineup of local acts and occasional national ones that appeal to a more upscale, and more adult, crowd. The other major rock club in Memphis is Newby’s, the cornerstone of the University of Memphis–based Highland Strip, where the club books rock, roots, and blues acts.

Nightlife - Casinos

Tunica County, Mississippi, which calls itself the South’s casino capital, has grown into one of the largest gaming destinations in the United States. Eight casinos operate in this rural county 30 miles south of Memphis, including Bally’s, Grand Casino, and Sam’s Town. They offer 24-hour-a day Las Vegas–style gaming with no limits, 40 different restaurants, their own luxury hotels, and amenities that include nightly live entertainment, PGA golf courses, and health spas.

It has been more than a decade since the arrival of casinos transformed this quiet rural county. Yet longtime residents still occasionally rub their eyes when they behold the mini–Las Vegas in their midst, with its high-rise hotels and neon lights. After all, until the casinos started flocking to Robinsonville in the early and mid-1990s, Tunica County was an expanse of cotton and soybean fields, with a handful of restaurants and a rich blues history but little else to recommend it to visitors.

The situation changed, however, when authorities voted to allow riverboat gambling, and Splash Casino opened in October 1992, a few miles south of the present-day cluster of casinos. When locals and Memphians flocked here—standing in line and paying a cover to come in and lay their money down—it got the attention of the major casino operators, who quickly moved in. To date the casinos have invested more than $3 billion in their Tunica County operations.

The present clientele is a combination of locals, Memphians, and a growing number of out-of-towners, both people who drive from their hometowns and those on group tours. The crowd is pretty consistent from casino to casino, and during the week it consists mostly of retirees. On the weekends there’s usually a good crowd, with a steady stream of traffic pouring in from Memphis. Some come in for the evening or the day; others spend the night in one of the 6,300 hotel rooms in Tunica County.

To get here take U.S. Highway 61 from Memphis. You can take Interstate 240 to Interstate 55 north, then turn onto the US 61 South exit, or take Third Street from downtown Memphis going south (it will eventually turn into US 61). Or you can take I-55 South into Mississippi and turn west onto Mississippi Highway 304 at Hernando. The casino exits are well marked. Once here, you can take a shuttle between casinos for $1 per ride.

For more information about Tunica and its casinos, call the Tunica Convention and Visitors Bureau at (888) 4-TUNICA or check out www.tunicamiss.com.

This chapter describes what the Tunica casinos have to offer in terms of gaming, dining, lodging, and amenities.

Overview

Each casino issues comp cards, which it uses to calculate how much time and money you’ve spent there. Free meals, hotel rooms, and other comps are based on those amounts, although drinks are free to anyone who’s playing. Points can also be used in gift shops, and some casinos will cash out the points. You can ask the casino’s hostess about its policies (for example, how much you have to play to get a free meal).

Another draw is live entertainment. The casinos bring in a variety of musicians, comedians, and other entertainers, from Mr. Las Vegas himself, Wayne Newton, to country legend George Jones and the Temptations. Although much of the entertainment consists of acts on the casino circuit, others are touring performers who in years past would have gone to Memphis instead of Tunica. The casinos advertise lavishly in Memphis newspapers, so it’s not hard to find out who’s playing down in the Delta.

Each casino also has at least three restaurants, including a buffet and a steak house or upscale eatery, and sometimes gives away meals to players. Reservations are generally recommended for fine-dining restaurants only.

The hotels at the casinos are popular among Memphians for a quick weekend or overnight getaway. Tunica County is in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, which produced the blues and many of its legends, including Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson. It’s just half an hour away from Clarksdale, where you’ll find the Delta Blues Museum. Other Mississippi day-trip destinations are nearby, notably Oxford, Holly Springs, and Tupelo.

1. Alfred’S

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 525-3711
Address: 197 Beale Street

Description: With its prime location at the corner of Beale and Third Streets and a huge, two-story outdoor patio, Alfred’s is the prime people-watching spot on Beale. The nighttime crowds tend toward the young and the yuppie, and you won’t hear any of the street’s trademark blues among the club’s regular musical stable, which ranges from pop to salsa to “classic-rock” covers. There’s also a dance floor. Open until 3:00 a.m. weekdays, 5:00 a.m. weekends.


2. B. B. King’S Blues Club

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 524-5464
Address: 143 Beale Street

Description: Blues legend B. B. King doesn’t actually own this club—Beale’s cornerstone venue—but he does play here at least once a year. The club’s regular stable of performers—most recently Beale diva Ruby Wilson—may be the street’s best. But what makes B. B.’s special is that it may be the only club on the street that regularly draws A-list touring-blues talent. Open until 12:00 a.m. during the week, 2:00 a.m. on weekends. Cover is usually $5 to $7.

3. Blues City Café

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 526-3637
Address: 138 Beale Street

Description: With a large kitchen and dining area connected to the music side, the ultracasual Blues City Café is the best spot on Beale for late-night dining, with steaks, ribs, shrimp, and catfish available into the wee hours. The musical lineup is mostly local. Sunday nights feature FreeWorld, a local jazz and jam band that has been together longer than just about any other local act. Sometimes well-known musicians or Beale Street regulars will sit in for a set. Open until 3:00 a.m. on weekdays and 5:00 a.m. on weekends, with a $5 to $10 cover charge.

4. Coyote Ugly

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Address: 326 Beale Street

Description: This famous bar opened its Memphis doors in May 2006 and it has been popular with the young set ever since. Every night there’s a different special, like Ladies Night on Thursday and Salute to Uniforms on Friday. But happy hour, with drink specials like $1 kamakazis and $6 margaritas, happens every day from 4 to 8 p.m. The kitchen is open late every night and the bar stays open until 1:00 a.m. during the week, 3:00 a.m. on the weekend.

5. Hard Rock Cafe

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 529-0007
Address: 315 Beale Street

Description: You probably already know what to expect from this celebrated chain—loads of choice rock memorabilia, overpriced burgers, and plenty of T-shirts in the souvenir shop. The Hard Rock’s music bookings are mostly local bands and, befitting the name, mostly hard rock. Open until around 10:00 p.m. during the week, until 1:00 a.m. on weekends. Cover is sometimes more than $5.

6. King’S Palace Cafe

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 521-1851
Address: 162 Beale Street

Description: One of the older clubs on Beale, King’s Palace features a New Orleans–oriented menu that’s considered one of the strip’s most reliable dining options. As for music, local jazz keyboard player and vocalist Charlie Wood plays at King’s Palace almost every night. Often compared to Mose Allison, Wood is one of the city’s finest acts. Open 11:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. weekdays, later on weekends, and there’s never a cover for live music.

7. Mr. Handy’S Blues Hall

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 528-0150
Address: 182 Beale Street

Description: This tiny club—it only fits up to 60 people—makes for an intimate musical experience. The walls are decorated with music memorabilia, including original paintings and autographed guitars. The club has its own entrance on Beale but is also connected to the Rum Boogie Café by an adjoining entrance. Mr. Handy’s is open seasonally and then only on weekends or for special events, but when it’s open it’s the place to be. Call ahead to check the schedule.

8. Pat O’Brien’S

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 529-0900
Address: 310 Beale Street

Description: Pat O’Brien’s brings a piece of New Orleans to Beale Street. This is a replica of the famous New Orleans French Quarter bar, and it is one of the newest hot spots on the street. Depending on your mood, you can relax inside in Pat O’s piano bar or hang out on the back patio (covered and heated during winter), which features a flaming fountain. New Orleans–style cuisine, steaks, and seafood are the more popular items on the menu, and brunch is served on Sunday. Be sure to try a Hurricane, Pat O’Brien’s famous ruby-red cocktail.

9. Rum Boogie Café

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 528-0150
Address: 182 Beale Street

Description: Rum Boogie is the longest-operating bar on Beale, which began serving up blues to appreciative crowds way before urban renewal transformed the rest of the strip. Now the Boogie is a well-worn respite on a street marked by neon newness. James Govan and the Blues Boogie Band can be heard here most nights and may be the best house band on Beale. Govan is more soul than blues and is equally talented at pleasing tourists with such sing-alongs as “Mustang Sally” and showing off his deep-soul vocal chops with strong renditions of classics such as Sam Cooke’s “Bring It on Home to Me.” Open from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 a.m. daily.

10. Silky O’Sullivan’S

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 522-9596
Address: 183 Beale Street

Description: A standard rite of passage for area fraternity and sorority types is the “Diver” at Silky’s. Billed as “a gallon of Southern fun,” the Diver is a big yellow plastic bucket filled with some type of alcoholic concoction and multiple straws. You can see tipsy young things lugging Divers up and down Beale on most nights. Inside, Silky’s is more a social hangout than a serious blues club. The human jukebox act by local chanteuse Barbara Blue and a crowd-participation-friendly dueling pianos act is the most common entertainment. Silky’s also has a huge outdoor patio where you can party with the bar’s pet goat. Open until 3:00 a.m.

11. Automatic Slim’S Tonga Club

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 525-7948
Address: 83 South Second Street

Description: With a great location right across the street from The Peabody hotel, chic decor, and a polished, adventurous menu, Slim’s is one of downtown’s finest restaurants. Its bar is also one of downtown’s prime “see-and-be-seen” locales, where dress is a step above casual and the drinks of choice tend toward martinis and cosmopolitans. There’s often live music on Friday nights, and sometimes on Saturday nights. The bar is usually open at least until 11:00 p.m.

12. Center For Southern Folklore

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Address: 119 and 123 South Main Street

13. Dan Mcguinness

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 527-8500
Address: 150 Peabody Place

Description: The best meet-and-drink spot in the downtown Peabody Place entertainment complex, Dan McGuinness boasts a full Irish menu and first-rate service. The bar also features a popular pub quiz every Wednesday night. Despite the Peabody Place address, the pub faces Second Street. Open until 1:00 a.m. during the week, 3:00 a.m. on weekends. The pub has another location in East Memphis.

14. Earnestine & Hazel’S

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 523-9754
Address: 531 South Main Street

Description: This one-time brothel is one of the hot spots in downtown’s recently resurgent South Main neighborhood. A funky two-story bar with loads of character, Earnestine & Hazel’s is a favorite spot for young, hip Memphians to wind up a night of partying, dancing to tunes on the bar’s first-rate jukebox and downing a “soulburger,” one of the city’s most heralded late-night snacks. The bar occasionally has live music. Open until 3:00 a.m. or later on weekends.

15. Felicia Suzanne’S

City: Memphis, TN
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (901) 523-0877
Address: 80 Monroe Avenue

Description: The bar and patio of this New Orleans–wannabe restaurant have become a popular spot among Memphians to splurge on pricey cocktails and bar fare that’s better than the norm. The bar menu includes truffle grilled cheese, crab cakes, and desserts. Popular cocktails include Jack Daniels mint juleps and sazeracs, the rye whiskey drink made famous by Tennessee Williams. The patio is particularly pleasant during nice weather. The bar is open until 11:00 p.m. during the week and until midnight on weekends. Closed Sunday and Monday.
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