Wordless Wednesday: Good Eats!
Stir fry and Potstickers. Yummy!
Stir Fry
Potstickers
Healthy dinner!
The Quest Continues For The Best Memphis BBQ
My hubby is back with another travel post from our trip to Memphis….
On a recent road trip to Memphis, my wife and I attended our first Duran Duran concert. It was an awesome experience and I was thrilled that we had the opportunity to go. Check out my review of that show here.
Since we were going to Memphis for the first time, I thought we would sample some of that famous BBQ that I always hear people talking about. Prior to going, I knew very little about Memphis, let alone its BBQ. I knew that Corky’s Ribs and BBQ hailed from Memphis because we previously sampled its ribs after purchasing them via QVC.com. I was not impressed with the ribs. I thought they were fatty and had very little meat. We decided to skip Corky’s and searched out other possible restaurants.
In my search I discovered Neely’s BBQ had a couple of locations in Memphis. Having sporadically watched Down Home with the Neelys on the Food Network, my wife and I were impressed with their food selections. We decided that we would try their BBQ while in Memphis. We selected their location on Mount Moriah Avenue because the location was close to our hotel and close to the Memphis Botanic Garden where the Duran Duran concert was going to be. After checking in at our hotel, we traveled to the restaurant.
Dinner at Neely’s BBQ in Memphis
As I drove down the street, I envisioned a big and fancy restaurant to match the big and fancy style that I see on the Neely’s show. When the GPS announced that we had arrived, I looked around, asking “Where’s it at? I don’t see it!” As I looked back, I realized that I had passed it up. The building was much smaller and much plainer than I had thought, painted all in yellow. Seeing this didn’t deter me from wanting to go in.
As we stepped inside, I realized that this wasn’t going to be the big and fancy restaurant that I had thought. It was quite small. It looked like the decor had not been updated in the twenty years. The ceiling tiles looked like they were coming apart. The booth seats were held together by duck-tape. And the photographs on the walls of the Neelys with the celebrities were faded and in cheap frames you would find at a dollar store.
But still I kept an open mind, thinking that this will not matter if the BBQ is awesome. The menu selections offered traditional BBQ selections without any unique choices. My wife ordered the the BBQ Chicken Platter with Mac and Cheese and Green Beans. I ordered the Pulled Pork Platter with BBQ Beans and Mac and Cheese. The food arrived fairly quickly and we eagerly got to eating.
We soon realized that the BBQ was not knock over special. It was good; but I knew we had much better. My pulled pork had gristle and bones throughout it and not enough sauce. My wife’s chicken was somewhat dry with too much sauce. The BBQ beans were just beans and BBQ sauce. No onions or peppers. The Mac and Cheese was a classic any creamy recipe. The green beans were good, but the portion size was rather small. My food was on a plastic plate reminiscent of a school cafeteria; while my wife’s platter was in a plastic basket with a paper liner.
Overall, I was not impressed with the food or the building’s decor.I must say that the waitresses were very nice and the service was good. Maybe the other menu items would have been a better choice. But for our experience, we would not recommend it. If the food tasted pretty good it wouldn’t necessarily matter what the restaurant looked like. Next time maybe we will try the Neely’s in New York.
Maybe next time, we will try Corky’s or another restaurant. Leave us a comment with your recommendations on your favorite Memphis BBQ restaurant.
All You Need Is …. Duran Duran! Live in Memphis
Hi Elegant Readers,
I would like to introduce my new travel writer, my hubby, J. He will be writing on upcoming travel plans, past trips and concerts that we have been to. J is a cool guy and my best friend so welcome aboard honey. In this post he will be writing about the fun times we had in Memphis.
Enjoy!
Last year, Duran Duran began a tour the United States with the release of the latest album “All You Need Is Now”. My wife had always wanted to go to one of their concerts; but never had the chance to go. I began checking out the tour information, I found that the concerts were far away from the Gateway City and the venues were quite small. Getting tickets seemed to be almost impossible. I thought that the tour had finished and that the dream would have to wait again. Until last month I found that the wild boys were playing in Memphis and the tickets were still available. My wife and I decided that this would be our chance. I quickly purchased the tickets and started planning our road trip to Memphis to see Duran Duran at the Live at the Garden concert series.
Waiting for the concert to begin!
Duran Duran put on an awesome show. The two hour concert was jammed packed with hits that made them popular in the 1980s; with a few from their latest album. They knew what people wanted to hear and they didn’t disappoint. They made sure that the playlist included hits like Reflex, Hungry Like The Wolf, and Save a Prayer. It was great to look over at my wife and seeing her singing along, as if she was a back-up singer. I must admit, I too liked Duran Duran. So when they played Wild Boys, Come Undone and Ordinary World, I too was singing along and jamming.
The line up of songs for the night.
Playlist for the Memphis concert / Duran Duran FB page
I had been to several big-name concerts, but this concert at the Memphis Botanic Garden was a unique experience.
For the first time, I had to purchase general admission tickets. Typically, I want to be as close to the stage as possible. However, by the time we found out about the concert, there were only general admission/lawn seat tickets left. Considering that we found out about the concert three months after the tickets went on sale, I feel fortunate that we were able even get tickets.
As we parked on the grounds of the Memphis Botanic Garden, I expected to have to pay $15 or $20. But parking didn’t cost a dime, it was free. This was the first time I had been a large concert like this and didn’t have to pay for parking.
Since we had general admission tickets, we arrived at the Garden an hour and a half prior to start time. We didn’t know what to expect so we wanted to make sure we could get a good spot to view the concert. There looked to be only a few hundred actual seats, while the rest were lawn seats. When we arrived, most of the lawn seats closest to the stage were already filled up, so we stayed towards the middle of the field. We were not crammed in; and we felt free to set up our blanket and chairs under a tree.
The setup for the lawn seating worked well except for the Italian Ice food stand on the left side of the lawn section. Because of the placement of this large tent, it prevented people from sitting behind it because they could not see the show. If this tent was not there, the people in the lawn section could have spread out and prevented people from having to sit close together.
Duran Duran Concert
I never had been to a concert where people brought in their own food and drinks. Maybe because the concerts were mostly inside where you had to pay for your food. I witnessed people eating baked chicken, salads, and deserts; all on fine china. They were popping open wine bottles and sipping champagne. I thought people came to concerts to jam, to rock, to dance and to get their groove on. This crowd was much different. While some danced to the hits, others sat there; looking like they were at a movie or just there because their spouse wanted to go. My wife and I do like to people watch so to see the vast array of expressions was quite interesting.
Although my wife and I didn’t stand up and dance to all the songs, we were definitely jamming. We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at the Duran Duran concert in Memphis. Seeing my wife singing along with all the hits at a concert that she wanted to go to for many years, made me feel good. I would do it all over again, in a second.
Now, if anyone knows how my wife can be a back up singer for Duran Duran, that would fulfill another one her dreams. So Simon, if you are reading this, just let me know how we can make that happen.
BlueGlori: My Dream For My Own Fashion Line
Hi Bubbling Readers,
I hope your day is going well!
I designed and sewed a capelet and reversible skirt for a Product Development graduate class a few years back. I had to come up with an outline for the type of personalized woven labels that I wanted to be included in each garment if it was sold in the stores. I am now starting to get the plan going for deciding what I want to include on my label. I would like to include the labels on garments that I sew from now on.
At the time I was taking the class I felt like a true designer, I had to look up label requirements and find out why having a label was so important. My game plan was to name the label after my mother. The label would be called, BlueGlori, which is a mixture of my mother’s first name and maiden name.
Below is my graphic draft of the label so it’s a work in process.
The background of the label:
My grandmother would call my mother Glori as her nickname and Blue is my mother’s maiden name. So I reverse the names and came up with BlueGlori. In my class I decided to market reversible skirts and capelets. Having the label on my reversible skirts and accessories was a way to pay homage to my mother. Well, I am revisiting this idea from that class and resurrecting this idea again. This was so cool to me because my mother who is in heaven now has always been my style icon. To me, she represents beauty and elegance. A fashion designer has more to incorporate in a label than merely only picking out a name there’s meaning behind that name and the combinations of fabric play an important part on comfort, wear and care of the apparel in the line.
This picture below is the other side of the reversible skirt. The material is 100% silk so the skirt would be dry clean only. The capelet is made out of silk also so the fabric information is important to include on the label because you wouldn’t want the customer to put this in the washing machine.
The wrap around reversible skirt goes on effortlessly and is a timeless classic. Tie- in the timeless elegance that represents my mother which encompasses the label BlueGlori.
A pic with me in the finished garments.
This look:
A holiday party look or a night out with my husband after work by simply adding a satin tank and the capelet.
So I have the plan now to keep working on the label.
Loving the Coral: Fashion and Fun!
I am really enjoying coral, the color lights up the face. Coral gives off energy and vivaciousness.
This blouse I actually bought brand new, at a consignment shop, great find.
My skirt is from Louis Del Olio and I know it’s at least five years old. I so like the hand embroidery in the skirt, makes it look so different and beyond the norm.
My shoes are from Ciao Bella and they are so comfortable and perfect with skirts or pants.
I have fun when we take photos because it’s fun to where clothes that I enjoy wearing. My doggie has to get in the shot.
My purse from Dooney and Bourke has become one of my favorites. It goes with everything. I can wear it as a satchel or cross body, it works both ways.
Have fun with your fashion!
This post is linked to Not Dead Yet Style.
Please do not copy my work!
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