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1. Spicy Mayan Hot Chocolate |
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2. At The Coca Tree |
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3. Street Blues in Memphis |
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4. Memphis-Style BBQ Ribs |
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5. At Central BBQ |
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Quick stop from Nashville to Franklin, TN, at the recommendation of one of the women in the "wives of Christian ministers" group at Carolina bed-and-breakfast in Asheville. Indeed a cute place, worth a walk through the historic main street (all 3 blocks of it). But this [1] sign outside The Cocoa Tree (100 4th Av N, 877-MyCocoa) caught my idea (lucky I was walking in that direction, since the sign said something else on the other side): Come spice up your life with our Mayan Hot Chocolate!
[2] Ashley explained that it was hot chocolate with hot red chili pepper (the way they make it is to heat the hot chocolate with the dried hot pepper mixed in--for those who like it hotter, they crush the pepper first). By the way, if you think that Ashley is pretty, you're not the only one: she's a model and actress, successful in Franklin, but wants to do the same in Los Angeles some day. She was interested in my web journal too, since she would like to break the mold of the ultra-private model/actress and create a web resource for aspiring models and actresses to share her experiences. Go for it, Ashley!
And yes, we're still in the Bible belt, but even the secular amongst us can, after tasting the aforementioned Mayan Hot Chocolate, would be hard pressed to object to this little blurb at the back of The Cocoa Tree's mini-brochure: We believe the cocoa tree is evidence that God delights in our pleasure and longs for us to delight in His creation with love, laughter, and conspicuous consumption [emphasis theirs].
Straight to Memphis after that, another Tennessee city of music. But completely different from Nashville. Nashville is predominantly white, and all about country music, and Memphis is racially mixed and about blues and soul music (it's on the Mississippi and they don't call it "Mississippi Blues" for nothing). Walked down Beale Street and came across [3] Fred Sanders and the Beale Street Blues Band. I came back to Beale Street later at night too, and went into three of the clubs. The Rum Boogie Cafe was kind of touristy (playing too many "standards"), but two others seemed more like the real thing. The music really gets into you, though; if you aren't tapping your toes, you need to have your nervous system examined!
Dinner that night was the famous [4] Memphis Barbecued Ribs at [5] Central BBQ (2249 Central Av, 901-272-9377). Not quite a hole-in-the-wall place, but comfortably informal. You order at the counter and the bring you the food. Excellent food and inexpensive (and just enough out of the central area to be a "local" spot). The locals say it's better than the larger establishments frequented by tourists (and locals too) like Corky's or Rendezvous.
Normally, I don't bother to list chain hotels at places I stay since they're not especially interesting or personal like B&B's are. But the Sleep Inn at Court Square (40 North Front Street, Memphis, 901-522-9700) gets honorary mention for having great rooms and amenities (including WiFi access in each room) at a great Central location at a very good price.