New Owners @ Bar None

Bar None has been sold to two new owners who are planning to transform the bar/restaurant into something "really cool." Chef John Bragg announced this tonight on Facebook. Bragg will concentrate on Circa and plans on opening a second Circa in Nashville in 2012.

Look for an announcement from the new owners in the next few days.

Oktoberfest @ Bosco's, Best of Memphis

Bosco's is hosting a Oktoberfest Brewmaster's Dinner on Tuesday, October 18th. Seating is limited and reservations are required. The menu is looking pretty good.

Aperitif

~Boscos Biere de Garde(n) ~

Appetizer

Bratwurst & Cabbage

Authentic Nurnberg Bratwurst on a Bed of Braised Cabbage

~Boscos Weissbier ~

Soup

Beer Cheese with Brandy Duck Sausage

Flaming Stone Cheese Soup with Homemade Sausage

~ Boscos Famous Flaming Stone ~

Entrée

Pork Tenderloin

Roasted Pork Tenderloin Served with Roasted Red Pepper Polenta

Finished with Sun Dried Cherry and Balsamic Reduction

~Isle of Skye Scottish Ale ~

Stuffed Quail

Grilled Quail with a Bratwurst Stuffing served with Butternut Squash

Topped with an Apple Cider Glaze

~Boscos Midtown Brown ~

Dessert

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Served with a Praline and Marshmallow Cream Sauce

~Boscos Milk Stout ~

*Beers are Subject to Change*

Here is a better link to the 2011 Best of Memphis winners in the Memphis Flyer.

Best of Memphis, Memphis Football Ranked Again, Football

The Memphis Flyer's 2011 Best of Memphis awards came out today. If you can't find an issue around town, you can check it out electronically here.  (The issue should be available for download later today or tomorrow morning). Congrats to all the winners!

After a week of not being on the list, the University of Memphis football team has returned to ESPN's Bottom 10. This week the Tiger's come in at #2. At #1 on this week's list is New Mexico, who fired their coach earlier this week after another embarrassing loss. Falling out of the Bottom 10 this week is Mississippi. The Rebels/Black Bears are on the Waiting List. Middle Tennessee State checks in at #7 this week. The Blue Raiders face Memphis this weekend.

Speaking of the Tigers vs Blue Raiders match up, when is the last time anyone saw a 0-3 team favored to win by 20 plus points? Win-less MTSU comes into this week's game as a 22.5 favorite over Memphis (1-3). Fans of the losing school in this match up should be put on suicide watch.

Here's the picks for this week.

Last Week: 5-1
Season: 18-6 (75%)

Middle Tennessee State over Memphis
LaGrange over Rhodes
South Carolina over Auburn
Wisconsin over Nebraska
New Orleans Saints over Jacksonville Jaguars
Cleveland Browns over Tennessee Titans

Weekly Liberty Bowl Projection: Houston vs Tennessee-Knoxville

No change here. Houston looks to be the class of Conference USA and the Vols should finish in the middle or bottom of the pack in the SEC, securing their birth in the Liberty Bowl for the first time since 1986.

Memphis Dawgs, Paul Simon, Rosh Hashanah

I finally had the opportunity to grab lunch from Memphis Dawgs yesterday. Todd Bourne serves up 100% beef Nathan's 1/4 pound hot dogs and a mean, thick barbecue bologna sandwich. If you see Memphis Dawgs, break the monotony of your usual fast food chain lunch and grab a bite from this locally owned and operated lunch spot. To find out where Todd and Memphis Dawgs are setting up next, follow them on Twitter @MemphisDawgs or like them on Facebook here.

Memphis Dawgs Cart/Menu (photo from Memphis Dawgs)

Memphis Dawgs BBQ Bologna Sandwich

Tickets for Paul Simon's live show at Mud Island on October 29 go on sale Friday. Here's a little Paul Simon for your listening enjoyment.




Happy New Year to all of our Jewish friends. Rosh Hashanah begins tonight at sunset tonight and goes through nightfall on Friday, September 30. L'Shana Tova! Chag Sameach!Gut Yontiff!

Beale Street Shooting, Tiger Football, Soul Burger

Most of you have heard about the shooting on Beale Street Saturday night outside Club Crave. When is the city finally going to shut the building (not just the business) down for being a public nuisance? The Plush Club was bad enough. Just knock the thing down.

Here is some of Fox 13's coverage of the event. The lady in the parking lot screams class.

Six Injured in Beale Street Shooting: MyFoxMEMPHIS.com

Painful Memphis/Porter related quote of the week: "LSU has obviously been able to overcome the loss of Coach Porter."

The failing project some may call the Johnson-Porter era reared its ugly head again the Liberty Bowl over the weekend. As usual, the Tigers looked over-matched and the coaches had no answer to SMU's game plan. Why schedule a team like SMU for homecoming? Yes, there's a good chance that Memphis may only win one game, but Austin Peay, UAB or Marshall would have been more evenly matched or closer losses.

Remember that attendance is one of the factors being considered for conference expansion. The chances are getting more slim every day that the Tigers will be included in the next wave, but having people in the stands or at least tickets sold may help the cause. It's a long shot, but there's not much else fans can do with the way the Tigers are sucking it up on the field. On this note, Conference USA and Mountain West officials will get together this evening in Dallas to discuss a possible football-only merger.

Who will be the next scapegoat let go at the Billy J. Murphy Athletic Complex? A random position coach, Pouncer or a golf graduate assistant? New Mexico made the right choice yesterday. When will boosters and alumni finally pull the plug on this dying experiment?

Earnestine & Hazel's is getting some recognition in the latest issue of Garden & Gun magazine. The Soul Burger has been named one of the 50 Best Southern Foods. Chef Martha Foose of Greenwood, MS also mentioned that breakfast at the Beauty Shop in Cooper Young would be her choice for her last meal. It looks like it's time to check out breakfast at the Beauty Shop.

The dry rub wings from Central BBQ also had a mention in the issue.

Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions Week of 9/26/2011

Now in its 6th season, Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions are published weekly to show a possible college football playoff format. Similar to the NCAA basketball tournament, 11 conference champions receive automatic bids. 5 additional spots are available for at large bids.

Round 1 games would be hosted by the higher ranked seeds. Rounds 2 - 4 would incorporate the bowl system with host cities/bowls bidding to host the games. The "Big 4" BCS bowls would be permanent playoff hosts on a round-rotating basis (Championship, semi-finals and 1 round 2 game).

For the week of September 26, 2011:

1. LSU (SEC Champion)
2. Oklahoma (Big 12 Champion)
3. Alabama (At Large SEC)
4. Boise State (Mountain West Champion)
5. Oklahoma State (At Large Big 12)
6. Stanford (PAC 12 Champion)
7. Wisconsin (Big 10 Champion)
8. Nebraska (At Large Big 10)
9. Oregon (At Large PAC 12)
10. South Carolina (At Large SEC)
11. Virginia Tech (ACC Champion)
12. South Florida (Big East Champion)
13. Houston (C-USA Champion)
14. Temple (MAC Champion)
15. Nevada (WAC Champion)
16. Louisiana-Lafayette (Sun Belt Champion)

Dropped out: Texas A&M (#8, At Large Big 12), Florida State (#11, ACC Champion), West Virginia (#12, Big East Champion), Florida International (#14, Sun Belt Champion), Ohio (#15, MAC Champion)


Number Of Teams by Conference:
SEC (3), Big 12 (2), Big 10 (2), PAC 12 (2), ACC (1), Big East (1), C-USA (1), MAC (1), Mountain West (1), Sun Belt (1), WAC (1), Independent (0)

Match ups round by round assuming higher seeds win.

Round 1
(16) Louisiana-Lafayette at (1) LSU
(9) Oregon  at (8) Nebraska
(12) South Florida at (5) Oklahoma State
(13) Houston at (4) Boise State
(11) Virginia Tech at (6) Stanford
(14) Temple at (3) Alabama
(10) South Carolina at (7) Wisconsin
(15) Nevada at (2) Oklahoma

Round 2
(8) Nebraska vs (1) LSU
(5) Oklahoma State vs (4) Boise State
(6) Stanford vs (3) Alabama
(7) Wisconsin vs (2) Oklahoma

Round 3
(4) Boise State vs (1) LSU
(3) Alabama vs (2)Oklahoma

Championship Game
(2) Oklahoma vs (1) LSU

ESPN Bottom 10, Gould's On TMZ, Fire Safety

For the first time in this short college football season, the Memphis Tigers are not in ESPN's Bottom 10. After beating Austin Peay last week, the Tigers aren't completely out of the woods with a spot on the waiting list. Another Mid-South program did make it on the list this week. Mississippi came in at #5 after the Rebels (or Black Bears) embarrassing loss to Vanderbilt last week. If Tigers fans are calling for Larry Porter's firing, how is there not as much heat on one the of most overrated coaches in college football history, Houston Nutt.

Gould's Salon is getting some national pub on TMZ. It looks like a "D list" celebrity skipped out on a bill  last week while at a Gould's location, guessing at the Peabody Hotel.

Not to get preachy about safety, but after reading about a fire fatality in Memphis yesterday, it doesn't hurt to talk about the importance of smoke detectors. If you have them - awesome. If you don't, buy one or two. If you can't afford them, you can get a free smoke detector from the Memphis Fire Department. The MFD will even install free batteries if your battery has lost its charge. All Memphis homeowners are eligible. Call 320-5338 for more information.

Early Voting, Memphis Dawgs, Football

Early voting for the October 6th election kicked off last week. Next time you are on your lunch break or on your way to/from work, stop by one of the Memphis early voting locations. The most important race is for city mayor. A.C. Wharton should be easily re-elected, but there are a handful of candidates who think they have a shot, including Prince Mongo. The other elections will be easy for voters, since a majority of the races for city council have incumbents running unopposed. Early voting ends on October 1, 2011.

Has anyone had a hot dog from Memphis Dawgs? Wondering if its worth the drive out east (or where ever the daily location may be) to grab one.

All of the talk this week in the college football world  has been about conference realignment. The timing is almost perfect, changing the focus of Memphis fans from the hapless Tigers to which conference they may be playing in the future. If this was a basketball driven move, Memphis might be near the top of the list. Unfortunately, football is driving this bus. Yes, Memphis football is poor, but fans need to show their support, go to games (win or lose) and show the "bigger" conferences that Memphis has the fan base and potential to thrive in greener pastures. Too bad the losing streak starts again this week against SMU.

Here's the picks for this week.

Last Week: 5-1
Season: 13-5 (72%)

SMU over Memphis
DePauw over Rhodes
Alabama over Arkansas
LSU over West Virginia
New Orleans Saints over Houston Texans
Tennessee Titans over Denver Broncos

Weekly Liberty Bowl Projection: Houston vs Tennessee-Knoxville

No change here. Houston looks to be the class of Conference USA and the Vols should finish in the middle or bottom of the pack in the SEC, securing their birth in the Liberty Bowl for the first time since 1986.

Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions Week of 9/19/2011

Now in its 6th season, Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions are published weekly to show a possible college football playoff format. Similar to the NCAA basketball tournament, 11 conference champions receive automatic bids. 5 additional spots are available for at large bids.

Round 1 games would be hosted by the higher ranked seeds. Rounds 2 - 4 would incorporate the bowl system with host cities/bowls bidding to host the games. The "Big 4" BCS bowls would be permanent playoff hosts on a round-rotating basis (Championship, semi-finals and 1 round 2 game).

For the week of September 19, 2011:

1. Oklahoma (Big 12 Champion)
2. LSU (SEC Champion)
3. Alabama (At Large SEC)
4. Boise State (Mountain West Champion)
5. Stanford (PAC 12 Champion)
6. Wisconsin (Big 10 Champion)
7. Oklahoma State (At Large Big 12)
8. Texas A&M (At Large Big 12 )
9. Nebraska (At Large Big 10)
10. Oregon (At Large PAC 12)
11. Florida State (ACC Champion)
12. West Virginia (Big East Champion)
13. Houston (C-USA Champion)
14. Florida International (Sun Belt Champion)
15. Ohio (MAC Champion)
16. Nevada (WAC Champion)

Dropped out: South Carolina (#11, At Large SEC), Temple (#14, MAC Champion), Hawaii (#15, WAC Champion)


Number Of Teams by Conference:
Big 12 (3), Big 10 (2), PAC 12 (2), SEC (2), ACC (1), Big East (1), C-USA (1), MAC (1), Mountain West (1), Sun Belt (1), WAC (1), Independent (0)

Match ups round by round assuming higher seeds win.

Round 1
(16) Nevada at (1) Oklahoma
(9) Nebraska  at (8) Texas A&M
(12) West Virginia at (5) Stanford
(13) Houston at (4) Boise State
(11) Florida State at (6) Wisconsin
(14) Florida International at (3) Alabama
(10) Oregon at (7) Oklahoma State
(15) Ohio at (2) LSU

Round 2
(8) Texas A&M vs (1) Oklahoma
(5) Stanford vs (4) Boise State
(6) Wisconsin vs (3) Alabama
(7) Oklahoma State vs (2) LSU

Round 3
(4) Boise State vs (1) Oklahoma
(3) Alabama vs (2) LSU

Championship Game
(2) LSU vs (1) Oklahoma

Book Sale @ Cooper Young Fest, BBQ Festivals, Zac Brown

If you are going to Cooper Young Festival tomorrow, stop by Literacy Mid-South for their annual book sale. Over 5,000 new books will be available for purchase from 9am - 5pm.

There are a couple of barbeque festivals going on this weekend in the Memphis Area. The biggest will be the Smokin' Aces Festival at Harrah's in Tunica. If pork isn't your thing, the ASBEE World Kosher BBQ Championship is Sunday.

Tickets for the Zac Brown Band's show on November 10 at FedEx  Forum went on sale today. Great to see ZBB back in Memphis.

3rd Thursday, Downtown Parks, Football

Tonight's 3rd Thursday at Main and Peabody will feature live music Deborah Swiney, Blind Mississippi Morris and Sufflegrit. In addition to the free music, there will be drink and food specials and retail discounts at participating businesses. The weather should be perfect for this event in addition to all outdoor activities in the Memphis area this weekend.

If you are Downtown tomorrow, try and check out the 16 mini-parks that will be set up on Peabody Place between Front and Second from 11am to 6pm.


Not much to say about FBS football in Memphis this weekend. It will be nice to have fans show up and support the Tigers, but everyone knows the focus will be on the Volunteers and Gators this weekend. Heck, going to the Rhodes game against Trinity might be more entertaining.

Here's the picks for this week.

Last Week: 3-3
Season: 8-4 (67%) 

Memphis over Austin Peay
Trinity over Rhodes
Florida over Tennessee-Knoxville
Oklahoma over Florida State
Baltimore Ravens over Tennessee Titans
New Orleans Saints over Chicago Bears


Weekly Liberty Bowl Projection: Houston vs Tennessee-Knoxville

With Case Keenum leading the offense for Houston, the Cougars will be tough to beat in Conference USA. Having a built in fan base in the Memphis area, the Vols appear to be a no-brainer.

New Midtown Sports Bar, Memphis #1 Again

The Midtown area is gaining a new sports bar this weekend. Jack Magoo's will open this Friday (September 16) in the Broad Avenue Arts District. Located at 2583 Broad Avenue, the two level bar will have more than 20 TV's and upscale pub grub. It's good to have another sports bar option in the city.Will definitely check it out this weekend.


For the second straight week, the University of Memphis football team has the number one ranking in ESPN's Bottom 10. The Tigers' best chance for a victory will be this weekend against FCS member Austin Peay. If they lose this one, the entire staff should be wiped out. With or without a win, RC Johnson should retire or be fired. The Calipari fiasco occurred under Johnson's watch (as well as probation in other sports) and the Porter hire is looking like an extremely poor decision. It's time for new blood to take control of the athletic department and get things back on track. You can't get to the next level until the current problems are fixed. Once Johnson is gone, the next person to go should be Dr. Shirley Raines.

Cooper Young Fest, Air Show, Bottom 10

One of the better festivals in Memphis will be this Saturday with the annual Cooper Young Festival. This event is always great for people watching and free live music. Let's hope the weather stays nice for this can't miss festival.


If Cooper Young isn't your cup of tea, you may enjoy the Memphis Airshow this Saturday and Sunday at the Millington Regional Jetport. In addition to the common airshow activities (flight demonstrations, skydiving and wing walking), the Blue Angels will appear.

With their embarrassing 47-3 loss to Arkansas State over the weekend, the Memphis Tigers should be a lock to retain their #1 ranking in ESPN's  Bottom 10. The entire coaching staff should be dusting off their resumes and putting their houses on the market.

Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions Week of 9/12/2011

Now in its 6th season, Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions are published weekly to show a possible college football playoff format. Similar to the NCAA basketball tournament, 11 conference champions receive automatic bids. 5 additional spots are available for at large bids.

Round 1 games would be hosted by the higher ranked seeds. Rounds 2 - 4 would incorporate the bowl system with host cities/bowls bidding to host the games. The "Big 4" BCS bowls would be permanent playoff hosts on a round-rotating basis (Championship, semi-finals and 1 round 2 game).

For the week of September 12, 2011:

1. Oklahoma (Big 12 Champion)
2. Alabama (SEC Champion)
3. LSU (At Large SEC)
4. Boise State (Mountain West Champion)
5. Florida State (ACC Champion)
6. Stanford (PAC 12 Champion)
7. Wisconsin (Big 10 Champion)
8. Oklahoma State (At Large Big 12)
9. Texas A&M (At Large Big 12)
10. Nebraska (At Large Big 10)
11. South Carolina (At Large SEC)
12. West Virginia (Big East Champion)
13. Houston (C-USA Champion)
14. Temple (MAC Champion)
15. Hawaii (WAC Champion)
16. Florida International (Sun Belt Champion)

Dropped out: Virginia Tech (#11, At Large ACC), Northern Illinois (#14, MAC Champion)


Number Of Teams by Conference:
Big 12 (3), SEC (3), Big 10 (2), ACC (1), Big East (1), C-USA (1), MAC (1), Mountain West (1), PAC 12 (1), Sun Belt (1), WAC (1), Independent (0)

Match ups round by round assuming higher seeds win.

Round 1
(16) Florida International at (1) Oklahoma
(9) Texas A&M  at (8) Oklahoma State
(12) West Virginia at (5) Florida State
(13) Houston at (4) Boise State
(11) South Carolina at (6) Stanford
(14) Temple at (3) LSU
(10) Nebraska at (7) Wisconsin
(15) Hawaii at (2) Alabama

Round 2
(8) Oklahoma State vs (1) Oklahoma
(5) Florida State vs (4) Boise State
(6) Stanford vs (3) LSU
(7) Wisconsin vs (2) Alabama

Round 3
(4) Boise State vs (1) Oklahoma
(3) LSU vs (2) Alabama

Championship Game
(2) Alabama vs (1) Oklahoma

Shell Out For The Arts, Mid-South Fair, Football

Shell Out for the Arts will be Friday, October 7th from 6:30 to 9:30pm at the Levitt Shell. $20 will get you into a private tent before the Gary Clark, Jr. concert. Included in the price is beer, wine and dinner from Fratelli's. You must make reservations in advance. All proceeds will go to ArtsMemphis.

Speaking of Fratelli's, does anyone else think of The Goonies when they hear the restaurant name? One of funniest scenes from the movie.





With the emergence of the Delta Fair and its relocation to Southaven, the Mid-South Fair has almost turned into a forgotten middle child. Fair organizers are offering a sweet deal to get you and your family down to Mississippi  to enjoy the rides, music and other events.


Ugly. That's probably the easiest and most polite way  to describe the opening game of the season for the Memphis Tigers. Everyone knew that Mississippi State would in, but the Tigers looked unprepared, over matched and uninspired. The Tigers have an easier opponent this week when they visit Arkansas State, but until Memphis proves otherwise, fans should expect another not-so-pretty outing. A few more games like last week's will have Larry Porter looking for a new gig later this year.

Here's the picks for this week.

Last Week: 5-1
Season: 5-1 (83%)

Green Bay Packers over New Orleans Saints
Rhodes over Washington University (St. Louis)
Arkansas State over Memphis
Michigan over Notre Dame
Jackson State over Tennessee State
Tennessee Titans over Jacksonville Jaguars

Weekly Liberty Bowl Projection: Houston vs Tennessee-Knoxville

With Case Keenum leading the offense for Houston, the Cougars will be tough to beat in Conference USA. Having a built in fan base in the Memphis area, the Vols appear to be a no-brainer.

Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions Week of 9/5/2011

Now in its 6th season, Memphis Lagniappe's Fabled College Football Playoff Predictions are published weekly to show a possible college football playoff format. Similar to the NCAA basketball tournament, 11 conference champions receive automatic bids. 5 additional spots are available for at large bids.

Round 1 games would be hosted by the higher ranked seeds. Rounds 2 - 4 would incorporate the bowl system with host cities/bowls bidding to host the games. The "Big 4" BCS bowls would be permanent playoff hosts on a round-rotating basis (Championship, semi-finals and 1 round 2 game).

For the week of September 5, 2011:

1. Oklahoma (Big 12 Champion)
2. LSU (SEC Champion)
3. Alabama (At Large SEC)
4. Boise State (Mountain West Champion)
5. Florida State (ACC Champion)
6. Stanford (PAC 12 Champion)
7. Texas A&M (At Large Big 12)
8. Wisconsin (Big 10 Champion)
9. Oklahoma State (At Large Big 12)
10. Nebraska (At Large Big 10)
11. Virginia Tech (At Large ACC)
12. West Virginia (Big East Champion)
13. Houston (C-USA Champion)
14. Northern Illinois (MAC Champion)
15. Hawaii (WAC Champion)
16. Florida International (Sun Belt Champion)

Dropped out: Oregon (#3, PAC 12 Champion), UCF (#13, C-USA Champion), Ohio (#14, MAC Champion)


Number Of Teams by Conference:
Big 12 (3), ACC (2), Big 10 (2), SEC (2), Big East (1), C-USA (1), MAC (1), Mountain West (1), PAC 12 (1), Sun Belt (1), WAC (1), Independent (0)

Match ups round by round assuming higher seeds win.

Round 1
(16) Florida International at (1) Oklahoma
(9) Oklahoma State  at (8) Wisconsin
(12) West Virginia at (5) Florida State
(13) Houston at (4) Boise State
(11) Virginia Tech at (6) Stanford
(14) Northern Illinois at (3) Alabama
(10) Nebraska at (7) Texas A&M
(15) Hawaii at (2) LSU

Round 2
(8) Wisconsin vs (1) Oklahoma
(5) Florida State vs (4) Boise State
(6) Stanford vs (3) Alabama
(7) Texas A&M vs (2) LSU

Round 3
(4) Boise State vs (1) Oklahoma
(3) Alabama vs (2) LSU

Championship Game
(2) LSU vs (1) Oklahoma