The Luau…Captain Bilbo’s…Jeffrey’s…Gertrude and Gonzales… Vieux Chalet…Ferguson’s…The Hungry Fisherman…Boston Sea Party…The Magic Pan…oh, this is making me so nostalgic!!!!

The past couple years have been pretty difficult with a number of institutions closing, from the recent news of Lulu, La Tourelle, Cielo and Marena’s (which should really be mourned twice since it hasn’t been the same since the ownership swap) to the closings of Melos, Cafe Samovar, Erika’s and Anderton’s. Boy, do I miss that garlicky slaw and the borscht from Samovar!

I’m still not over the closing of Koto (though it’s not in the same category as all those long-time establishments).

The original Buntyn is a place I miss. A lot of it had to do w/the nostalgia of having eaten there when I was growing up. The subsequent locations were just not the same. I also enjoyed the original Giovanni’s on Cleveland, but the “newer” version on Park (in the same spot as a subsequent Buntyn location, ironically) was never as good. I also miss Justine’s, Erika’s, Anderton’s, Gonzales & Gertrude’s, Ferguson’s, Fish Farmer, Bill & Jim’s, Bell Tavern, Four Flames, Big John Grisanti’s, Britling’s Cafeteria, Caramba, Pig & Whistle on Union, Gerber Tearoom, George & David’s, Black Eyed Pea, The Knickerbocker, The Salad Bar, The Loft, Kublai Khan, & Doebler’s Dock, not necessarily in that order. On the fast food side, I miss Sister’s Chicken & Biscuits, Burger Chef, & Hardee’s. You can see why I told the server at Buntyn when we went there on its last day at the original location that I came by this body honestly.

Ah, that slaw… The waitress at Samovar, last time I was there, told me that it was called kapusta. So I scoured kapusta recipes only to find out that it wasn’t kapusta at all.

I finally came up with something close by making a sauerkraut salad–adding onion, a little sugar, maybe carrot (I can’t really remember all the ingredients). One day I was at the International Grocery on Germantown Pkwy., which specializes in Russian and Eastern European food. I told the proprietor what I wanted and he sold me a delicious “homemade” fresh sauerkraut (shipped in from New York) and I was hooked. At first I made the salad and then I just ate it on its own.

Man, I’m craving it now! I’ll try to get by there this week and see if I can duplicate the recipe to share with you.

Sister’s chicken and Biscuits on Union was great. Good chicken and excellent side dishes. They also had fried catfish. I always wondered why all chicken places don’t also fry fish-especially in the South.
Sister’s was always busy, but closed suddenly. It was a Wendy’s operation, and the closing was a corporate decision and had nothing to do with sales at that location. Too bad.

Unfortunately Marena’s stopped serving North African food long before it closed or even changed hands. I loved that rotating nationality food premise the restaurant had the first couple of years I was aware of it (starting in 2000). And Rena Franklin was responsible for the most exotic and tasty desserts I’ve ever had in Memphis. Still, I thought it was a great restaurant even after the changeover.

I too miss Cafe Roux. I used to make the drive over from Arkansas in my college and post-college years to enjoy their Acadian spiced shrimp and other treats.

In Limbo on Cooper Ave. was another of my favorites back in the day. I loved that combo of spiced butter and fiery relish that they used to serve with their bread. The food was so unusual there, it made every meal an adventure.

I have a book, Memphis Menus, from 25 years ago. Of the 48 restaurants featured, only 6 remain! One is a national chain place-Steak and Ale. Four are neiborhood places-Huey’s, Molly’s, Moffatt’s, and East End. The only two upscale places are Jim’s Place and Paulette’s. Here are some 1982 prices from the book:
Crabmeat and spinach crepes from Paulette’s: $9.95
BBQ dinner from the Public Eye: $3.95
Steak sandwich from Midway Cafe: $6.50
Ribeye steak dinner from the Loft: $9.95
Pompano ala Claudet from Justine’s: $12.00
Complete N.Y. strip dinner from Jim’s: $13.25
Burger with fries from Huey’s: $3.05
Elfo Special from Grisanti’s: $9.50
BBQ oysters appetizer from Four Flames: $2.50
Trout almondine from the Country Squire: $9.95
Key lime pie from Captain Bilbo’s: $1.95
Minestrone from Anthony’s: $1.85
Window’s (Rivermont) Sun. Champagne brunch: $13.95
Baked potato from Wink Martindale’s: $1.50
Crab and shrimp Marguery from Vieux Chalet: $9.95
Veal Piccata from Swiss Manor: $11.75
Mussels & lobster stew from River Terrace: $17.50
Fried shrimp from Bombay Bicycle Club: $7.95
Eggs Benedict w/ fries from No. 1 Beale: $3.95
Crabmeat Justine (appetizer)$6.00 (and worth $20)
Glass of house wine at J.P. Seafield’s: $1.85
French dip w/ fries from Blue Goose Cafe: $3.65
Seafood platter from The Baron: $10.50
Clam Chowder from Willie Moffatt’s: $2.25
Veal Saltimbocca from Giovanni’s: $14.95 (pricey!)
Frog legs from Dearmont’s Resort (W. Mem.): $8.95

Jim, I had forgotten Anthony’s. Weren’t they where the Blue Plate is now on Poplar. Then there was Aubergine. I had dinner there the night of the ice storm of, I believe, 1994. Great meal, lousy weather.

I, for one, miss J.C. Hardaway’s barbecue sandwich and The Big S Grill, but I doubt it would live up to Fredric’s high standards of nostalgia-worthiness.

Fredric, you forgot Overton Square Friday’s and The Public Eye. Great BBQ at the Publicv Eye! A college era favorite for music and eats was the High Cotton.

What was that obscure Natural food eatery that became Squash Blossom later??

Morrison’s in the mid City Building.

I will always miss Britlings downtown Poplar-highland and Laurelwood!

Mark Twain Cafeteria and Wilmonth’s Cafeteria were two local cafeterias

Okay, I’ll risk it: I miss L & N Seafood, Captain Bilbos, Gertrude & Gonzales and I really, really miss Cafe Roux.

okay, i’m going to bring the nostalgia back to the 2000s….I really liked Hattley’s Garage.

Well, I’ll put my bid in for Blue Moon (where Elfo’s is now @ Chickasaw Square)…oh the mussells in vanilla rum-down sauce…the oversized chairs…I really miss that place!!!

Midtown was AWESOME, thanks for reminding me.

I also have warm memories of Babylon Cafe, hidden behind the Trousseau building on Union.

I’m surprised no one has mentioned the greatest Mexican restaurant this city ever had, El Jardin. Over a decade since its demise and I have yet to find a Mexican restaurant here to equal it.

Other long forgotten places that I miss include the Shanti Steakhouse,

Congestoga (Ashlar Hall and Bullfrog Corner) Steakhouse Anybody remeber throwing the butter pats on the Ceiling??

Britling’s Lobster Feast

Howard Johnson Restaurant

Gridleys on Summer

Anna’s Steakhouse

The Danver’s on Highland (first one)

Super Submarine Shop

Mustard’s Last Stand near the UofM.

El Guale’s In Southbrok and Kirby Woods Mall

Mr B’s Cajun food on Millbranch

Any Loeb or Coleman BBQ location

Krystal Chicken (They were little booths seperate from the Krystal Hamburgers in the same restaurant.

Ohman House, Dobbs House, Toddle House (last revival)

Brady & Lil’s BBQ on South Parkway

Carole, I had completely forgotten about Joy Young…thanks for bringing it back to me! Do you remember the little bowls of sweet-and -sour sauce with the big yellow moon of hot mustard floating in them? And remember the original Peking in Poplar Plaza? And Johann Sebastian Bagel?

Yes, Marsha…those Joy Young people were artistic w/their condiments as well as being the only Chinese restaurant in town! I wonder if Johann Sebastian Bagel’s location might have had something to do w/its demise…it was kind of inconvenient to get to back behind the railroad track on Poplar near Mt. Moriah. I remembered after I made my lists that I forgot John Wills BBQ, both the original location on Central where Burger Chef was prior to then, & I think that’s where the Dollar General store is now. And then they moved to Sanderlin where Fox & Hound is now. John Wills claimed that Romeo’s Pizza pork BBQ was his, but I could never make it taste as good. I used to get the combo plate & I would eat the chopped BBQ & sausage there & bring the beef brisket home for sandwiches. It was too much food for one sitting, but nice to have leftovers to look forward to later. And how about the old Fortune’s Jungle Garden? My friend’s dad owned it & for many yrs. it was THE hot spot in Midtown for cruisin’ thru to see who was there. Memphis has fed us well all these yrs.

Looking way back, my dad used to take me to Tom Dwyer’s Barbeque on Jackson for really great BBQ. The malts and shakes at Garber’s ice cream Sunday afternoons on Jackson. My first taste of Pizza at Coletta’s on S. Parkway. Real dress up restaurants like the Embers on Park and later St. Clair’s on Summer for great prime rib. Robilio’s on Summer wasn’t exactly fine dining but I spent many a Friday or Saturday night at the drive in eating burgers or BBQ and listening to Dewey Phillips Red, Hot & Blue. Boy, talking about nostalgia!

The Embers (Getwell & Park), now that is a fond childhood memory! They had the best Thousand Island Dressing!

Cafe St Clair on Summer, another great place.

Fortune’s was on Union where the midtown expressway crosses.

Hey, I thought everybody went to the Summer Shoneys as a kid!!!!!!!

How about Grisanti on Airways, or Thornton’s Doughnuts on Lamar…….

Another missed restaurant is Shakey’s Pizza. I really miss going there.

In the 70’s Pasquali’s Pizza in Whitehaven had the coldest beer.

Fred, I got excited when I saw there was a Shakey’s in Bartlett, but it was an ice cream place, not a pizza parlor. I miss Shakey’s pizza too - it was so good. I gained 15 lbs. dating my high school boyfriend because we ate pepperoni pizza there after every date.

Marsha, I was afraid of that…nobody makes petit fours much anymore. They are pretty labor intensive. But I have always loved them too.

Does anyone remember the nightclub on Poplar in the 80s. Not Confetti or Elan. It stood in a one story building by itself.

I was in Memphis this weekend. We ate lunch at Elfo’s, which was a great dining experience. Elfo’s is a little pricy, but really good.

I was thinking of places long gone. You know the small (usually Italian grocer “Weowna Stores” that had sandwiches sold in the deli. Sessels was a part of the cul;ture, but So was Monteisi In the early 80, there was next to Sun Studios a place called the Sun Studio Cafe (they added another location in the Mall of Memphis) that had these great banana fried pies. Is there anyplace that still has those banana pies?

Regarding the nightclub: Maybe you’re thinking of Outlaw? That would’ve been early ’80s. There were so many in the same area–Ernie’s, Elan, Outlaw (which went by a couple of names over the years;I think one of them had Wellington in the name).

Oh yes–I remember Miss Donna Summer! If you wanted to dance, you went out in East Memphis. Mid-town was for hanging with friends (Huey’s or Fantasia–the classical music bar, not the dance club that came along later, after I was over all that); meeting people (Bombay–and I agree with Fredric that it was the best bar ever); and where we went on the nights we wanted to stay out past last-call. The gay bars on Marshall were open for everyone and they’d put liquor on the bar; you bought the set-up and poured your own drink.

And to think, these days I want to be in bed by 10!

Another great place for drinking and hanging out, also long gone: Jefferson Square. Even though people were just starting to move downtown in those days (1980 or so), it always seemed like a neighborhood pub. Do places like that still exist? Do you still stop in for a beer where everybody knows your name?

And I also loved and miss Lupe and Bea’s…

I am so glad someone remembered St. Claire and the Embers. Had my wedding dinner at the embers 48 years ago. By the way Tom Dwyer was ny great uncle.

It hadn’t been very good for several years before it closed, but I miss the Unicorn. Back in the day, they had the best spanakopita.

And sorry, but I still miss Justine’s. Yes the food sucked, but going to the same restaurant that my mother worked at as a teenager was a nice feeling.

Michael, do you remember that HUGE chandelier that was in Britling’s downtown location? It was so elegant, you wouldn’t have known it was a cafeteria!

There were actually two downtown Britling Cafeterias. One was on Union and the other was on (I believe) Madison. the one on Madison was closed closed in the early 60’s to make way for the First Tennessee Bank Building (completed in 1964).

Gladys Presley worked at the Britlings on Union. I think Graceland has a display about her and Britlings.

Other Britling locations were Laurelwood and Poplar Plaza. There were Britling Buffets in Frayser, Raliegh and Whitehaven.

Britlings also had the Cafeteria for the workers in the Memphis IRS center.

Britlings was a part of a larger chain of B&W Cafeteria in Nashville and The Blue Boar Cafeteria in Louisville.

Britlings also had a restaurant in Clark Tower called The Lobster Feast. This was one of the best seafood buffet in Memphis.

Many people had favorite items from the Britlings. My favorite items were the Meatloaf, chess pie the special cheese sauce on the broccolli, the great coffee, and their soda drinks. The had a lot of uniquew recipe items.

I personally enjoyed the old dowtown Picadilly On Madison, as well.

btw, The S & S Cafeteria still has locations in Knoxville, TN Georgia and South Carolina. The S & S cafeteria is experimenting with an automated cafetreia design

That whole Curb Market thing was fun. It’s too bad it had to be leveled in the name of progress. I used to enjoy going to the florist there too - I believe it was called The Daisy Shop.

How about Admiral Benbow’s shrimp…we’re talking really big shrimp…at or near the Peabody Hotel Skyway where my parents took me dancing.

I miss:

The Minuteman (Summer Ave.)

Cenral Park (various locations)

Shakey’s Pizza (Summer Ave.)

Fred Gang’s (Airways, I think)

‘Round The Corner (2 locations on Poplar Ave.)

Obleo’s (Main St.)

Formosa (Summer Ave.)

Friar Tuck’s (Macon Rd. near Sycamore View)

…and King Burger on the street behind the old Crosstown Theater.

I used to have the chicken-n-dressing at The Claybrook-huge serving and delicious. However, once there I ordered the fried scallops with fries and slaw. I received four (!) scallops each about the size of a quarter. The whole meal wouldn’t have looked crowded on a coffee cup saucer. Oh well.
Didn’t an Italian restaurant occupy the old Claybrook location in the 90s? Was it a Grisanti operation or maybe run by Rudy Cerrito from the old Giovanni’s? Anybody know?

Glad to see Lamb’s mentioned, even if the joint always god D’s from the health dept. The chunky, never chopped! pork ‘whiches were outstanding. 1.79$ back in the late 70’s. I actually worked at KingBurger (Donahue must live in M-Town) It later became the beloved Lupe & Bea’s, first and best cubano food in Memphis. Oh the Paella!

Earlier post speaks of Sid Selvidge and Jefferson Square, but you gotta go back to Procape on Madison when Sid played with Crosswaite and Dickinson. The waitress of choice was Pam McGaha, of later VW Bus Fame. God Forbid we fail to mention Solomon Alfred’s as well.