Where the Chefs Eat

Local restaurateurs dish on where they dine when away from the stove.

The restaurant business is a demanding, high-pressure environment for chefs and their staff. Managing inventory, prepping food, and creating dishes all day doesn’t leave much room for recreation. But after spending all day with their own food, kitchen workers want a change of pace when they sit down to enjoy a meal. Memphis chefs are dialed into the Mid-South food scene, and are often supportive of their peers in the industry. So where do they like to eat? We asked several of our city’s culinary captains where they sit down when their shifts are over. And if their picks sound enticing, check out our monthly dining listings for more information.

Eric Vernon | The Bar-B-Q Shop

"I’ve got a lot of favorite spots, so hang with me here. If anybody asks me what my favorite place to go has been in the last 10 or 15 years, I would easily say Tsunami. I’m honestly not a big meat-and-potatoes guy — it’s a little heavy for me. So I’m all about fish. And no one in town does fish like Ben Smith. He gets all his stuff fresh daily. Anything that he does with fish is going to be good, and you have to look at the sea bass in particular. Honestly, pretty much anything that’s on his menu is good. There’s been pasta, and he had duck at one point. He’s had a gamut of different items and most things that he tries, it’s dead on.

“But my guilty pleasure, when I need some comfort food, I’m going to shout out another barbecue restaurant. I love getting the smoked sausage sandwich with cole slaw at Payne’s BBQ. That’s what I get when I need to feel better, or I’m cheating on my diet. That place is royalty; they’ve been around longer than we have.

“If we’re talking breakfast, everything at Brother Juniper’s is good. But if it comes to brunch, I love going to Boscos. They have the best options; before Covid, it was stuff like chicken mesquite, and salmon and cream cheese, just delicious. Plus there’s the added bonus that Joyce Cobb has been performing there every Sunday for a long time. It’s just the combination of all those things together.

“Finally, for soul food, I love Alcenia’s. And then Four Way is special to me. That’s where my dad used to take my mom for lunch before they were married. And what I love about the Four Way is that they don’t over-season anything. With some soul food places, there’s a heaviness that goes with it, but there, it’s perfect. They’ve got their seasoning technique down.

“And as a final note for dessert, go hit up Cheesecake Corner. When I’m allowing myself some dessert, it’s something that makes me feel totally amazing. And their lemon pound cheesecake, which is half lemon pound cake with icing and half cheesecake, is awesome. But when you go in, don’t ask them what the best cheesecake is! They’ll yell that they’re all good, and that’s an easy way to get kicked out.”

Kelly English | Pantà, Restaurant Iris, Second Line

"When I get a night away from work, my go-to move is Bala’s Bistro on Elvis Presley Blvd. in Whitehaven. I dig everything about that place, but I especially love their chicken or lamb maafe — a traditional stew from Mali — where [chef/owner] Bala Tounkara was raised — that is based around the peanut.

“What I love the most about Bala’s maafe (besides the flavor) is that it teaches me something about both Bala personally and shows me a distinct root of the food that we consider our own in this region. He used to operate a small spot on Raines Road until moving to his present location last November. Bala’s Bistro offers a hot bar that includes curry pepper chicken, jollof rice, and seafood okra stew, all of which are available by the pound.

“Most of Bala’s meals come in vegan varieties. He also serves more traditional American options, including hamburgers and barbecue.”

Erling Jensen | Erling Jensen: The Restaurant, Erling Jensen Small Bites

The chef/owner of Erling Jensen: The Restaurant does get out of his own kitchen, on occasion, and dines at someone else’s restaurant. “Once every two, three months,” he says. “Whenever I can get a day off. But that isn’t very often.”

When he does, he usually has a taste for elevated Italian, and frequents one of the restaurants owned by Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, with his favorites including Bishop and Hog & Hominy. But he’ll also make it over to a couple of Ticer and Hudman’s other restaurants, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen and The Gray Canary.

What makes the “Andy/Michael” restaurants special for Jensen? “Their food, service — that’s all I’m going for. I always expect a really, really good meal.”

He and his wife, Jaquila, also like to eat at Dory, which is owned by chef David Krog and his wife, Amanda. “The most beautiful food presentation, tasty,” he says. “And, of course, they are good people.”

Ralph Johnson | Plant Based Heat

"I don’t get out much, because I’m always working! I’m either in the kitchen at Plant Based Heat, or traveling because we’re still exploring some expansion and franchise options, so I unfortunately haven’t had a ton of time to explore a lot of our new restaurants. But if I get some free time, I’m definitely going to shoot down to Slim & Husky’s on Union. They have a vegan pizza option, called the ‘Nothin’ But A ‘V’ Thang,’ which is delicious.

“It’s got vegan cheese — everything’s vegan about this pizza. You’ve got some red sauce, spinach, some plant-based pepperoni and sausages, and then some mushrooms and red onions. It’s not a vegan restaurant, but I just love the vegan option they have there. Even if you’re not a vegan, I’d recommend you head down there and check it out, they’ve got some really good stuff.

“On another note, I do say that I like to stop in to Carraba’s. I have them make one of their pasta dishes for me as a vegan dish. I ask them for pasta, some sauce without meat, and then sauté a lot of vegetables like spinach and mushrooms.”

Suhair Lauck | The Little Tea Shop

Suhair Lauck is the owner of the legendary lunch spot, The Little Tea Shop, which currently is closed. She eats out “every once in a while. I don’t go out to eat a lot.” But, she says, McEwen’s is one of her favorite spots. “Since they reopened it, it’s just comfortable. Wonderful. The service is incredible. The food and presentation.”

She “especially” loves McEwen’s for another reason: “I don’t have to cook.”

What does Lauck order? “Anything that comes in front of me that looks wonderful and someone else prepared for me. I appreciate that and I love it. After you take one bite you can tell it’s cooked with love.” That would include “anything on special, their chicken salad, their desserts.”

But when not in the mood for McEwen’s, Lauck also loves to support some of her Downtown neighbors for a bite, stopping by at Maciel’s Tortas & Tacos, The Majestic Grille, and Flight Restaurant & Wine Bar.

Jonathan Magallanes | Las Tortugas Deli Mexicana

"If I think locally and what’s close by me, the Blue Honey Bistro in Germantown. It’s amazing. They have something called ‘Mushroom Toast.’ It’s the most beautiful, thick piece of country bread. Sort of a rustic loaf. Crispy on the outside, but it soaks up all this jus. Almost like a mushroom jus. There’s sauce on the mushrooms. And it’s cheesy. The dish makes a fine and perfect shareable meal. It’s indulgent. Where else in the city can you do this?

“As for some of my other favorite places, I really like to have a barbecue sandwich at Tops with all the dark, crispy meat. I think that’s delicious. And I think the oysters at The Gray Canary are really the best in the city.”

Kelcie Zepatos | The Arcade

"When dining out, I like to go to Evelyn and Olive for the fact it takes me back to the flavors of Jamaica. Jamaica is one of my favorite places to visit because of how friendly the people are in their country. You can tell the owners here really love and take care of their staff for how friendly they are.

“I love to start with their jerk chicken wings as an appetizer. These are coated in jerk spices and are grilled. Under their dutch pots section of the menu, I love the Jamaican traditional dish — oxtails — marinated in Jamaican spices, slow cooked to perfection, served with rice and peas, steamed cabbage, seasoned cucumber, and a fried plantain. This reminds me of a Southern pot roast with a unique flair. I also love to order a side of jama jama, which is essentially sauteed spinach.

“Memphis is known for having a lot of soul and my goodness, does Evelyn and Olive have some great Jamaican soul food! The flavors of Jamaican meals are highly underrated. You really cannot go wrong with anything on the menu, and it is very different from what you would find at other restaurants here in the city.”