photograph by gary walpole
Tucked away in a clapboard house at 3264 Summer, Vieux Chalet was one of our city’s most popular restaurants, and a good place to dine on New Orleans-style cuisine.
But it didn’t start out that way. In 1973, Dave Pierson and Jim Shannon decided to open a tiny, private restaurant and share their self-taught culinary skills with their friends. Pierson, a striking-looking fellow with a dark goatee, who had recently graduated from Southwestern at Memphis (now, of course, Rhodes College), was the primary chef. Well, word got out that the dishes and desserts these fellows were serving up were truly special, so they turned their venture into a full-fledged restaurant, open five nights a week instead of three, and Vieux Chalet — “old cottage,” more or less — soon became the talk of the town.
In 1983, our magazine’s dining critic, Tom Martin, proclaimed Vieux Chalet one of his favorite eateries and had this to say about its rather eclectic ambience: “The food is always dependable and well-prepared. The service is refined, yet friendly. When I’m there I really do feel like I’m dining at a friend’s home. I keep expecting someone to suggest retiring to the den for Trivial Pursuit over coffee and dessert.”
“Vieux Chalet may not be Memphis’ most imaginative or daring restaurant, and it certainly isn’t the most elaborate. But what it lacks in imagination, it more than makes up in sheer charm.” — Dining critic Tom Martin
But of course it was the food that drew the crowds and accolades, with a New Orleans-inspired menu. “While I avoid eating steak at most restaurants,” wrote Martin, “I almost always order it at Vieux Chalet. The filets and entrecotes are cooked over real charcoal, which accounts for the crusty exteriors and the buttery-tender centers. While the aged beef is its star attraction, Vieux Chalet also does a fine job with its seafood offerings; the nightly specials are usually the freshest and most interesting dishes.”
photograph by erik calonius
Owner and chef Dave Pierson
And of course, there was the dessert: “Bananas Foster is the dessert of choice at Vieux Chalet,” he wrote. “Prepared tableside, it provides a perfect New Orleans-brand flourish to an evening of indulgence.”
Martin concluded: “Vieux Chalet may not be Memphis’ most imaginative or daring restaurant, and it certainly isn’t the most elaborate. But what it lacks in imagination, it more than makes up in sheer charm.”
A year later, the owners expanded the kitchen and dining room. On the morning of May 19, 1986, however, everything came to an end when the building caught fire. Pierson and Shannon decided it was too much trouble to repair, since that would involve bringing the entire structure up to code — it had originally been constructed as a private residence, remember — so they closed. Pierson considered other suitable properties in town, including the old Four Flames restaurant on Poplar, but nothing ever worked out, and instead he took over Chip n’ Dale’s Antique Mall on Summer. With that keeping him busy, Vieux Chalet became only a fond memory. Pierson passed away in 2017.
These days, a Church’s chicken franchise stands on the site of Vieux Chalet, at the corner of Summer and Atlantic. Something tells me you can’t get Pousson Grand Père or Trout Nantua there.
