Culinary Crossroads

Café 1912 serves bistro comfort food to a neighborhood cast of Midtown regulars.

by Bruce VanWyngarden

It was very late and everyone had left the café except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light. In the daytime the street was dusty, but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference. ...

— Ernest Hemingway, “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place”

When I go to Café 1912, which is often, I think sometimes of my favorite Hemingway short story, because it is a clean, well-lighted place that Glenn and Martha Hays have created at 1912 South Cooper — a home bar for a rotating crew of regulars and an ever-reliable restaurant of choice for so many who live nearby. It may be the quintessential Midtown bistro — warm and comfortable, utterly without pretension.

As you first enter, a smoky aroma drifts from the open kitchen, where chef Keith Riley and his crew make the magic happen. The staff — Tyler, Justin, Sara, Erin — greets most customers by name. They know what you drink, where you like to sit — and probably your politics.

If you get there before 6 p.m., you’ll find proprietor Glenn Hays in his corner seat at the bar, drinking a negroni and reading The New York Times. But it’s easy to interrupt him and easy to get him talking, especially if the subject is France. Or French food. Or politics. Or the University or Memphis. Or whatever the Times is about today.

Glenn and Martha Hays are Memphis restaurant legends, Francophiles, and long-time foodies — since before that was even a word. They were the founders of the late, great La Tourelle — for years, the only place for fine French dining in the city. The list of prominent chefs who plied — and learned — their trade at La Tourelle is most impressive.

“I’ve had quite a few good chefs come through,” Glenn says. “And maybe a couple who weren’t so good. But they didn’t last long.”

Café 1912, on the other hand, has lasted for 16 years — and counting. In 2002, Glenn bought the building at the intersection of Cooper and Peabody, and ever since, 1912 (as everyone calls it) has been serving excellent food that satisfies without showing off or trying too hard: a solid gourmet cheeseburger with pomme frites; lemon and thyme roasted chicken; pork tenderloin with an apricot glaze; a bacon-laced Lyonnaise salad; a bowl of tender mussels; a French onion soup that will have you longing for Provence.

It’s not soul food, but it feeds the souls of Midtowners who come in week after week to talk and gossip and wave at friends across the room sitting under the Cinzano poster. Husbands and wives, old lovers and old friends, ex-husbands and ex-wives, gay, straight, and in-between — all is forgiven and forgotten and remembered again.

Oh, and try the grouper.

The barman looked at him but did not answer. It was too late at night for conversation. “You want another copita?” the barman asked. “No, thank you,” said the waiter and went out. He disliked bars and bodegas. A clean, well-lighted café was a very different thing.

243 S. Cooper St. (901-722-2700)

With country cooking and a staff who cares, Bob’s Barksdale carries on without Bob.

by Reagan Andrews

Regular customers at Bob’s Barksdale cram into worn leather booths to eat oversized Western omelets stuffed with cheddar, ham, tomato, bell pepper, and onion with a heaping side of hash browns. Others opt for slices of country ham so large that a bowl of homestyle cheese grits barely fits on the plate.

Kids drench their Mickey Mouse-shaped hotcakes in syrup while their parents drink cups of hot black coffee out of mugs with a chip on the rim. On the table is a napkin dispenser bookended by pepper sauce, hot sauce, ketchup, and sugar packets — a true Southern diner centerpiece.

On a busy weekend, the small restaurant on South Cooper can serve as many as 550 breakfasts. But behind the breakfast plates and paneled walls decked out in sports and Elvis memorabilia is something much more essential: a makeshift family spearheaded by owner Beth Henry.

Beth took over the diner after the unexpected death of her husband and longtime Barksdale owner, Bob Henry.

So, how has the Midtown staple fared since her husband’s passing?

“I’m trying to keep his legacy alive,” Beth says. “I never thought I would be running this place, but I had to really dig in and learn how it worked.”

Beth credits the restaurant’s success to her staff — a group of servers and cooks who even kept the restaurant open on the day of Bob’s funeral in 2014 — and their many supportive customers.

“We felt that he wouldn’t have wanted us to close, so we didn’t,” says Beth. “On the day of his service, we had people lined up outside of the building to come eat and show us support.”

When Beth suggested the idea of remodeling to her crew and loyal customers, she was met with shocked eyes and sharp protest. “Everyone requested that I do nothing to the place,” she says.

One of those advocates was Ron McGhee, a longtime Barksdale cook. He started working in the kitchen more than 20 years ago and has been slinging breakfast and meat-and-threes ever since.

Classic Southern-style lunch specials begin every day at 11 a.m. There’s a lot of variety on the lunch menu — meatloaf, fried chicken, catfish fillets — but my personal favorite is the huge country-fried steak swimming in brown gravy with salty turnip greens, carrots, and gooey mac and cheese on the side.

It seems like the corner diner is running business a certain way after Bob’s death — exactly the same. “I like my job, and Bob was a good man and boss,” McGhee says. “But we just gotta keep on doing what he wanted us to do. We can’t stop now.”

237 S. Cooper St. (901-722-2193)

At I Love Juice, smoothie bowls add an alternative to fresh-squeezed juices.

by Jessica Holmes

At first glance, a smoothie in a bowl seems like a menu oxymoron, especially for a juice bar that specializes in fresh-squeezed drinks.

But at I Love Juice Bar, smoothie bowls are invigorating a menu with more hearty options made with the same kinds of fresh and healthy ingredients as the bar’s signature juices.

Instead of combining all the ingredients into a blender and pouring them into a glass, bartenders blend only 50 percent of the bowl’s ingredients and place the other half — granola, banana, strawberries, almond butter, hemp seed, and honey — on top as garnishes.

The Acai Bowl, a fun and more filling alternative to juice-based smoothies, started the bowls’ popularity at the South Cooper Street store, says manager Adam Maldonado.

“It was so popular they decided to make five other bowls,” he says. “So, they could kind of reach every person for what they like.”

While smoothie bowls are new to Memphis, their introduction follows a national trend that started in 1999, when Ryan Black, then a college student, and his friend Ed Nichols were introduced to the Acai Bowl while vacationing in Brazil. The friends were so impressed with the bowl’s flavors and nutritional power punch of vitamins and antioxidants, they brought the art of smoothie bowl-making back to the U.S. and shared the idea.

Maldonado tried his first smoothie bowl at a juice bar in California back in 2011. “I used to survive on those smoothie bowls,” says Maldonado. “I had a punch card. I would get one almost every day.”

Owner Scott Tashie says the Acai Bowl is popular nationwide. “I’ve seen them everywhere,” he says. “I went to San Diego just a little over a year ago; it was crazy how many Acai Bowls you saw, even at burger restaurants.”

At I Love Juice Bar, another refreshing energy-based breakfast bowl is the Go Green Bowl, a blend of apple juice, avocado, spinach, and plant-based protein powder topped with granola, fresh fruit, almond butter, local honey, and chia seeds.

For less sugar, customers can build smoothie bowls with an almond milk base without sacrificing flavor. Consider the Chocolate Bowl. Almond milk, avocado, banana, and raw cacao make up the blend base, and on top, generous scoops of cacao nibs mingle with granola, bananas, and strawberries.

553 S. Cooper St. (901-612-2720)

For more than 25 years, Otherlands has brewed coffee and creativity in the heart of Midtown.

by Emily Zachry

Owner Karen Lebovitz used her background in natural food and restaurants to transform her futon and gift store on South Cooper into the neighborhood’s first coffeehouse.

But her inspiration for Otherlands Coffee Bar and Exotic Gifts came from the popular television show Cheers.

“I fell asleep to that show every night, and I wanted to create a place where people walked in and they knew your name,” Lebovitz says.

An eclectic establishment reminiscent of the early 1970s, Otherlands brought coffee shop culture to Midtown in 1994. The shop’s ambience, fashioned by Lebovitz and longtime regulars, could be the main reason for Otherlands’ longevity.

“I wanted to recreate European coffeehouses in Midtown because after I worked in the natural food business, I knew there was a real lack of places for people to just hang out,”says Lebovitz.

Twenty years ago, coffeehouse culture in Memphis was rare. “Coffee was exploding at the seams, not in Memphis, but in cities all over the country,” Lebovitz says. “We actually preceded Starbucks in the Memphis marketplace.”

Likewise, Overton Square and Cooper-Young offered only a handful of businesses at that time. Still, Lebovitz wanted to position her business in between these two emerging Midtown neighborhoods.

“This was an industrial area,” she says. “I was on the edge of really great neighborhoods. I could see that this would be the crossover between the two.”

Over the years, Otherlands has remained in its original location, but other popular restaurants, such as Muddy’s Bake Shop, Railgarten, and Hattie B’s Hot Chicken, have opened near the intersection of Central and Cooper.

Despite changes in the neighborhood, the coffee culture at Lebovitz’s shop is much the same: Patrons not only drink coffee, but congregate to read, draw, work, and talk.

Lebovitz wanted to create a place where different types of people feel comfortable. Nearly 25 years later, she has accomplished just that.

“We’ve got 80-year-old and 2-month-old customers,” she says. “I’m on my second, if not third, generation of customers. A lot of people who came in here as teenagers are now adults with children, and those kids are now coming in.”

She cites her “sheer stubbornness” as the reason Otherlands has remained a long-standing pillar in the Midtown community, and as her goals as a businesswoman have evolved, so have Otherlands’ offerings and retail mix.

“Any time I go anywhere, I take inspiration,” Lebovitz says. “I’ve also been lucky enough to have some really cool people come here to work, and they brought things that they discovered in other places — like our Ginger Lemonade Zinger.”

Today, Otherlands’ menu consists of an array of coffee beverages, such as mochas, lattes, and blended frozen drinks. However, they also offer coffee alternatives like a French soda or fruit punch.

In addition, the shop’s “Otherfood” menu offers a variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes for both breakfast and lunch. Notably, their secret sauce is featured in almost all of their dishes, such as the Bagel Sandwich Thing, pimento cheese sandwich, and tuna melt.

Grace John has worked at Otherlands for more than a year, and she assists in making both food and drinks.

“We’ve got a lot of vegetarian options, so it’s a pretty nice place to go if you’re looking for something light as a vegetarian,” John says. “It’s a pretty accommodating menu. We’ve got a little bit of everything.”

As Otherlands’ menu has developed, so has the culture of the shop itself, especially with the advent of technology.

“People used to come in here and meet their friends and talk,” says Lebovitz. “Now they look at their devices. The world has changed, and we’ve changed with it.”

641 S. Cooper St. (901-278-4994)

At Midtown Muddy’s, manager Emily Wickliff and barista Leah Chaney talk customer service and the welcoming warmth of a cup of coffee.

by Paige Walter

Memphis magazine: What makes working as a barista different from any other job?

Manager Emily Wickliff: Working as a barista is unique and rewarding because you’re essentially getting to work in customer service and production at the same time. Very rarely in food or in retail do you get to make something and interact face-to-face with the person you are making it for. Watching someone get excited about something you just made for them never gets old.

Why did you choose to work at Muddy’s over other coffee shops in the Memphis area?

EW: I was nervous to start my training at first, but the coffee culture at Muddy’s is very approachable, and I learned a lot. Now that I’ve been doing this for a couple of years, I really enjoy sharing my coffee knowledge with others. And I love the days I get to work behind the counter using those skills.

What is your favorite drink on the menu?

Barista Leah Chaney: Cold Brew Latte! It’s basically just a good foundation for all the drinks I like. I can have it hot, I can have it iced, I can have it with just honey, or with caramel. It’s just a very smooth cup of coffee and it is always great, no matter how you dress it up.

So, tell me the secret to concocting a unique specialty drink?

LC: My coworker Noah and I really wanted a drink that used Cubano espresso. We came up with a drink that combines that with honey, hazelnut, and cinnamon, and it is fantastic. It tastes like warm blankets feel.

What is the key to making a coffee shop great?

LC: I love our coffee shop for the same reason I love going to my mom’s house for a cup of coffee. I know the coffee is going to be good, and I’m in a welcoming environment, surrounded by people I enjoy being around. Someone’s always going to ask me how my day is going.

585 S. Cooper St. (901-443-4144)

Aldo’s Pizza Pies brings a slice of New York to South Cooper Street.

by Catherine Levasseur

Aldo Dean had a clear vision when he opened the first pizza restaurant in downtown Memphis six years ago: a New York-style pizzeria with an open kitchen.

There was only one problem. He did not know one thing about making pizza.

“I pitched my idea to investors, and they said, ‘All right, how do we go about it?’” recalls Dean, affectionately called Aldo by most people in Memphis. He told them, “I don’t know, but we are going to learn how to make pizza.”

Later that year, Dean and dough master John Pearson traveled to the American Institution of Baking in Manhattan, Kansas. They enrolled in a pizza class and learned how to make different types of dough, from cracker crust and thin crust New York-style to Chicago’s signature deep-dish pie.

For Aldo’s Pizza Pies, the duo crafted a hybrid dough with a unique flour blend. Traditional pizza from Naples is made with 100 percent antimo caputo 00 flour, and New York-style pizza is 100 percent high-gluten flour.

“What we did with ours is that we blended the two together,” Dean says. “We made our own proprietary dough blend.”

The popularity of the first Aldo’s, on South Main, spurred the second location on South Cooper, in the building that formerly housed the beloved Two-Way Inn. With the help of the landlord, Aldo’s remodeled the interior, opened up the kitchen, and added a larger dining area, a bar, and a patio on the roof.

Along with the proprietary dough, both Aldo’s locations use a deck oven to cook the pizza instead of an air impingement oven used by many other pizza makers.

“It is a longer process because you have to be actively involved in turning the pizzas in the oven,” says Dean. “The pizzas take roughly 12 minutes to cook.”

Authenticity is important for Dean and his employees, which is why most of the food served is made in-house. Ashley McEntire, the general manager at Aldo’s on Cooper, says they make their own sauces and mozzarella. Coming up soon: Aldo’s branded cheese blend.

People from all over the Memphis area come to eat Aldo’s signature pizzas. They all sell well, but the Vodka pie is a favorite.

“Our Vodka sauce is something nobody else does,” McEntire says.

Other restaurant developments at Aldo’s include a new building that will serve as a commissary kitchen, a possible expansion to East Memphis, and more synergistic menus between the downtown and Cooper locations.

“We are doing panini sandwiches here, and we are going to do them downtown,” Dean says. “We just got a griddle here, so I think we are going to start doing cheesesteaks here, as well.”

752 S. Cooper St. (901-725-7437)

Best Bets

Pumpkin Chili at Raw Girls

Don’t be misled by Raw Girls, the name of two popular vegetarian food trucks parked at South Cooper and Poplar. Yes, the adorable converted campers sell cold-pressed juices, and my citrusy favorite — Antioxidant Bliss — is a must-try. But the trucks also sell seasonal soups, cooked in the Raw Girls catering kitchen under chef/owner Amy Pickle’s expert eye.

I discovered the pumpkin chili on a dreary Tuesday afternoon when I needed a hearty but healthy lunch. Warm, rich, and delicious, the chili — nut-, gluten-, and meat-free — satisfied my appetite like its beef-and-bean cousins. Roasted vegetables (pumpkin, carrots, celery, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and Yukon Golds) are key, along with spices (fresh ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves) and Pickle’s secret ingredient: raw chocolate from Ecuador.

The chocolate, a tip she picked up from Mexican chef Rick Bayless, deepens the chili’s flavor profile, and is also high in magnesium, an essential feel-good nutrient. “Magnesium is a wonderful mineral for the body,” Pickle explains, “and we are all deficient in it.” 

— Pamela Denney

242 S. Cooper St., in the Eclectic Eye/Midtown Yoga parking lot

Peach Cobbler at Hattie B’s

The hot chicken destination from Nashville has successfully tackled another regional classic: peach cobbler, for only $3 a slice. Gooey, ooey, and just peachy enough, the cobbler is a bowl full of soft yellow peaches and crumbly crust.

Made from scratch, cooks start with a slurry for thickening, then add in the peaches and end with the crust. Served with vanilla ice cream, the dessert combines hot and cold for a glorious ending to a damn hot chicken plate.

General manager Ariel Owens says the cobbler is especially popular in the fall and winter. Customers like to get their banana pudding in the summer and their cobbler in the winter.

“It’s actually my favorite dessert,” Owens says. “The slurry is the most important part. It’s a very fine line of perfection, so our cooks really, really spend a lot of time getting it just right.” 

— Hira Qureshi and Frank Ramirez

596 S. Cooper St. (901-424-5900)

Tiny Bomb BBQ Shrimp and Grits at Railgarten Diner

In November, Bounty on Broad chef Russell Casey revamped the menu at Railgarten, the sprawling entertainment complex at the corner of Central and Cooper. His goal? A polished menu with healthier options, shared plates, and more handheld items like vegetarian bánh mìs (excellent!) and Cuban sandwiches with voodoo mustard on French baguettes.

For more serious fare, the menu also features half-a-dozen entrees, including a stand-out shrimp and grits starring seven large Gulf shrimp, heads-and-tails-on. Casey describes the sauce’s preparation as traditional New Orleans-style made with Worcestershire, chicken stock, and Wiseacre’s beer. Ham and bacon help out, too, along with lemon, bay leaves, and thyme. “We also add cold butter at the end, after the sauce is strained, which makes it nice and creamy,” Casey explains.

Butter and cream, along with smoked Gouda and white cheddar, also build up the entree’s grits, locally sourced from Hanna Farm, a favorite purveyor for Casey. He explains why: “Their grits are coarser than most, which gives more texture.” 

— Pamela Denney

2166 Central Ave. (901-504-4342)

A grab bag of local brews at Memphis Made Brewing Co.

Regulars call Memphis Made’s taproom the “Cooper-Young Community Center.”

Opened during the Memphis Great Craft Beer Rush of 2013 (during which Wiseacre, High Cotton, and Memphis Made all opened within six months of one another), Memphis Made has established itself with a loyal following in the taproom, in the more than 100 bars and restaurants that pour its beers, and in stores across town that carry the company’s cans.

In the taproom, you’ll find a constantly rotating menu with everything from Prince Mango (which the company calls a mango-infused “Zambodian IPA”) to Orange Drewlius, an oatmeal stout brewed with orange peel. You also can find three Memphis Made beers on tap or in stores year-round: Junt, a cream ale; Fireside, an amber ale; and Cat Nap, an IPA. 

— Toby Sells

768 S. Cooper St. (901-207-5343)

Coconut Cake at Cafe Palladio

Made with a secret family recipe, the coconut cake at Cafe Palladio is a Southern staple enhanced with extra details.

Coconut flavored and topped with Cool Whip and coconut shavings, the two-layer cake is light and moist. A labor-intensive dessert, it has multiple processes. The cake is first baked, then chilled overnight and embellished with toppings.

The dessert is a rendition from owner Mindy Roberts’ sister-in-law. Roberts included some of her own embellishments, as well, like doubling the cake to make two layers.

“Normally coconut is made with one layer, but we doubled the recipe for two layers,” Roberts says. “When you are selling it in a restaurant, something that’s not grandiose is not going to sell as well.” 

— Hira Qureshi and Frank Ramirez

2179 Central Ave. (901-278-0129)

Mystery Train Latte at Java Cabana

Java Cabana is known for its unique drinks and homemade baked goods, and one of the quirkier drinks is the Mystery Train latte: 16 ounces of vanilla and hazelnut syrup, two shots of espresso, steamed milk, and whip cream. It is best paired with the coffee shop’s warm, chocolate brownie for just $6.95.

Owner Mary Burns said most of the drinks at Java Cabana are named after artists, movies, and musicians.

“Mystery Train is a fun drink,” Burns said. “It’s named after Jim Jarmusch’s film, ‘Mystery Train,’ which takes place in Memphis, Tennessee.”

— Hira Qureshi and Frank Ramirez

2170 Young Ave. (901) 272-7210

Black Bean Chili at Cooper Street 20/20

Customers at Cooper Street 20/20 call owner Kathy Katz the “Soup Lady,” and for good reason. Her black bean chili marries spicy, sour, and savory into heavenly umami bliss.

Katz is an experienced cook. Before opening her takeout restaurant in Cooper-Young, she owned a restaurant in the Southern College of Optometry in the Medical Center. And until recently, she was a fixture at local farmers markets, selling soups and other prepared foods such as caponata, hot tamale pie, and tarragon chicken salad.

She says the soups are mostly her ideas, but combinations also riff off recipes she finds in magazines. “A lot of our recipes we just made up,” Katz says. “Or, I’d see coconut curry soup or roasted carrot soup, and I would tear out the article and bring it in to make.” 

— Dima Amro

800 S. Cooper St. (901-871-6879)

Mix & Match Sliders at Slider Inn

At Slider Inn, customers love the restaurant’s mix-and-match option, and no wonder. The menu offers more than 15 different sliders along with daily specials like meatball Mondays and on Thursdays, an excellent fried green tomato BLT.

Customer Kyle Cardwell is a big fan of mix and match, which includes any three sliders plus shoestring fries for $10.99. Typically, his picks include Buffalo chicken, which starts with chicken breast soaked in Buffalo wing sauce before it is grilled or fried.

Many first-timers also can’t resist the Big Deuce and its impressive stack of two beef patties, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, ketchup, mayo, mustard, and two cheeses: American and Swiss. “Mainly guys order it,” says server Kat Martinez. “It’s funny to see them bite into it because it’s so tall.”

Located at the corner of Peabody and Cooper, the Slider Inn will soon have a second location downtown following an extensive renovation of the Kisber Auto Parts building on Mulberry Street. Look for an opening date sometime in April. 

— Max Vincent and Pamela Denney

2117 Peabody Ave. (901-725-1155)