More than two dozen new restaurants opened in Memphis last year, thanks in part to new development in established neighborhoods. On Highland Row, the university district’s restaurant revival continued, and inside Midtown’s Crosstown Concourse, new restaurants brought variety to Cleveland Street, a longtime Asian stronghold for eating out. (Be sure to read more about Crosstown Concourse restaurants in “Eat Up,” on page 44 in this month’s issue.)
Along with the number of new eateries, the wide range of winners for Best New Restaurant proved that Memphis magazine readers are indeed a diverse lot. Preferences in food ranged from aromatic bowls of Japanese ramen to Southern-inspired chicken and chops. Restaurant locations showed similar diversity. In fact, four new restaurants in Germantown and Collierville — long underserved by independent restaurateurs — were among this year’s top-10 winners.
With the promise of a robust economy, additional new restaurants in Memphis seem guaranteed for 2018. Already this year, Carolina Watershed opened in the South Main warehouse district, and The Gray Canary, the latest venue from chefs Michael Hudman and Andy Ticer, is ready to roll out wood-fired cooking inside the Old Dominick Distillery building. We can hardly wait. — Pamela Denney
Southern Social
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The dining room at Southern Social is a beauty, with its crystal chandeliers and window view of the historic train depot. But the heart of the restaurant is the bar, a sprawling and well-appointed testament to how much people like to eat and drink together. Wildly popular with Germantown’s well-heeled professionals, the bar works for drinks — and there are many choices — or food if you are lucky enough to get a seat. With more than 200 choices, flights of wine are a good choice. I prefer martinis, expertly made and flavored with three fat olives.
Along with the bar, the restaurant’s aroma is what I remember from mid-century chop houses, a layered-in-butter smell that promises (like sports coats and padded menus) good things to come. Happily, the food at Southern Social does not disappoint. Try chilled shellfish or tropical crab Louie to start and one of a dozen entrees like braised Kobe short ribs or fried chicken and biscuits, some of the best in the city.
On a recent visit, I watched a couple eat a tomahawk pork chop with sweet potato casserole, Brussels sprouts, and herb butter. Although each serving is generously portioned, they explain that the entrée is shared, a smart justification for also ordering blackberry strudel or a slice of key lime pie. — Pamela Denney
Southern Social, 2285 S. Germantown Rd., Germantown (901-754-5555) $$-$$$. Open seven days a week for dinner and Sunday for brunch.
Railgarten Diner
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Sit inside the cozy restaurant, or order from the yard window and have your meal brought out to you. As chef Aaron Gardner described in a November 2017 Memphis interview, the restaurant serves a variety of “world-league flavors and American cuisine.” Breakfast offerings include a Gotta Get Up to Get Down waffle made with Wiseacre stout batter. The all-day diner menu also features such starters as Szechuan lettuce wraps, filled with kimchi and Szechuan chicken, and the decadent RG Poutine — crispy duck fat fries adorned with French Truck coffee-rubbed pulled pork, creamy slaw, and a generous dose of herbed gravy.
Among the entrees, short rib mac & cheese mixes penne pasta, luscious three-cheese pimento cheese, and milk stout braised short rib, while the Korean Crispy Chicken Sandwich, with a perfectly fried chicken thigh, kale kimchi, and Sriracha ginger chili aioli, is another popular choice. And don’t forget dessert. The ice cream parlor, adjacent to the diner, features unique flavors like Bourbon Burnt Sugar, in addition to vegan options. — Shara Clark
2158 Central (901-504-4342) $-$$. Open Sunday and Tuesday through Thursday for lunch and dinner. Service on Friday and Saturday also includes late-night.
Lucky Cat Ramen
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Luck has nothing over good ol’ hustle by the folks at Lucky Cat. Zach and Sarah Nicholson parlayed their popular ramen-heavy pop-ups into a hoppin’ brick-and-mortar space at the corner of Cooper and Peabody.
Part of the joy in Lucky Cat Ramen is the ritual of taking in the hearty steam. Working up your appetite with the deep, intoxicating smells just before digging in. Those wonderful soft-boiled eggs. The tangy, lemongrass/ginger broth of the Yuzu Veggie. Delicious! Get it with a dash of chili oil and you won’t be sorry at all.
Other offerings include the Shoyu 12 with pork bone broth, Chicken-Corn Miso, the Bacon Shio, and the 72-hour Hakata-style Tonkotsu 13. There’s not a dud in the bunch. Beyond the soups are the bao buns, wonderful little sandwiches with your choice of fried chicken skins, barbecue pork, pork belly, banh mi, or tempura avocado. This spring, they’ll be moving to the old Tart space in the Copper-Young neighborhood. It’s a bigger restaurant with a bigger menu. Lucky us! — Susan Ellis
247 S. Cooper (901-633-0300) $-$$. Open Wednesday through Sunday for dinner.
Sushi Jimmi
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In 2015, chef Jimmy Sinh showed Memphis just how good — and fresh — sushi served from a trailer could be, launching Sushi Jimmi at that year’s Mid-South Food Truck Fest. But it wasn’t just sushi that kept customers lining up, and food selling out, at each stop. The mobile restaurant’s fusion cuisine, like kimchi fries — savory and tangy and finished with a perfectly runny fried egg — and spicy crawfish nachos became increasingly popular. And so, with the help of Sinh’s brother David, he opened a brick-and-mortar location in a former Burger King spot on Poplar Avenue last year.
Menu offerings, as the name suggests, include multi-ingredient sushi rolls — some deep-fried — but creative dishes stand out. Hefty sushi burritos filled with things like spicy tuna, salmon, or panko chicken, and the crawfish nachos — crawfish served atop a bed of nacho-cheese Doritos with pico de gallo, spicy mayo, and Sriracha — are customer favorites. And for a twist on traditional jalapeño poppers, halved jalapeños are lightly battered, pan-fried, and topped with crab mix, scallions, and other goodies. The heat from the peppers mingled with the fresh, cool accoutrements allows for a perfect pairing. — Shara Clark
2895 Poplar (901-729-6985) $. Open Tuesday through Friday and Sunday for lunch and dinner; Saturday for dinner and late-night.
City Silo Table + Pantry
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In Scott Tashie, we trust. About a year ago, when space next to the old Cosmic Coconut opened, Tashie had the vision to expand the vegan juice bar into something grander. Much to the dismay of vegans, City Silo Table & Pantry now offers chicken, but it remains true to its roots, offering a vast array of truly thoughtful vegetarian dishes under the direction of chef Will Byrd.
Try the Buffalo Tempeh & Sesame Cauliflower Bowl, and you’ll be a believer. With tangy, not too hot buffalo tempeh and expertly prepared cauliflower over a choice of rice, quinoa, or zucchini noodles, this bowl satisfies while filling you up. Good, too, are the build-your-own burgers with a black bean Silo burger, a beet and walnut burger, and a marinated Portobello burger. (Pro tip: Take that burger to-go and head to nearby Sear Shack for fries and a shake.)
If there’s perfection in sandwich form, it’s gotta be the Foxy BBQ, a collaboration with local photographer and cookbook author Justin Fox Burks. This is grilled spaghetti squash with local barbecue sauce. Is your mouth watering yet? Plus, Cosmic Coconut fans have no need to fret. City Silo still has a large menu of smoothies, kombucha cocktails, and juice shots. And for alcohol drinkers, there’s beer and wine. — Susan Ellis
5101 Sanderlin Center (901-729-7687) $-$$. Open Monday through Saturday for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Mama Gaia
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Memphis’ first all-organic, vegetarian restaurant is a groundbreaking spot. The first restaurant to open in the Crosstown Concourse adheres to the development’s motto “better together.” By “better,” we’re talking about paying attention to the ingredients, highlighting the flavors. This approach is best observed in Mama Gaia’s Asia pita with sesame-crusted tofu tucked inside pitas baked by the Jerusalem Market. (OMG!)
Superlatives extend to the restaurant’s recently added veggie burgers, available, like the pitas, as single items or combo meals. The Smokehouse is a divine thing with a house-made patty, a four-cheese blend, and a dang good, slightly tangy, roasted garlic aioli. The Petitzzas, Mama Gaia’s take on pizzas, are also tasty.
A few months ago, Mama Gaia, which means “Mother Earth” in ancient Greek, branched out to open a satellite space in the gorgeous new Ballet Memphis building in Overton Square. The menu is similar, though smaller. Especially recommended are the Gaia cocktails. The Crosstown Cooler with cucumber juice is as refreshing as any drink out there, and the Allegro, with organic orange juice and berry puree, is as pretty and seductive as a cocktail can get. — Susan Ellis
1350 Concourse, Suite 137 (901-203-3838) $-$$. Open seven days a week for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Next Door American Eatery
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All the way from Boulder comes Next Door Eatery, a new American restaurant from Kimbal Musk that prides itself on working directly with farmers to provide high-quality food. Setting up shop in an open, brightly lit space in the Crosstown Concourse, Next Door (not to be confused with the Sweet Grass affiliate of the same name) boasts a healthy-centric menu with enough options to satisfy both small and hearty appetites.
Appetizers range from kale chips to delectable salt-and-pepper chicken bites to calamari fritto miso, a much-touted favorite with lemon Sriracha aioli that deserves all the praise. A variety of salads can be customized with vegetarian, fish, and meat proteins. For the main course, Next Door offers sandwiches and burgers like Next Door 50/50, a scrumptious patty made with cremini mushrooms and beef. But the best options are specialty bowls, which mix grains and vegetables with Gulf shrimp, Alaskan salmon, ancho chili chicken, or slow-cooked meatballs. To round out the menu, Next Door also serves daily specials, such as mushroom ragout or shrimp ’n’ grits.
Complement one of the restaurant’s many offerings with a craft beer or zero proof cocktail, and definitely don’t miss happy hour drinks and snacks from 3 to 6 p.m. For those with dietary restrictions, Next Door also offers a wide range of vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, and dairy-free dishes. — Samuel X. Cicci
1350 Concourse, Suite 165(901-779-1512) $$. Open every day for lunch, dinner, and happy hour.
148 North
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Chef Brian Thurmond’s 148 North in Collierville is a gem of a place and not easily described by typical restaurant labels. Like its rustic contemporary space — half bar, half dining room — the menu is a Southern hybrid of casual eats and more elevated fine dining. There are 14-ounce rib-eyes with loaded potato sides and a fixed three-course dinner built — in the winter — around a braised pork shank entree. And in the bar, plates are eclectic: pork belly sliders with curry and slaw; Japanese ramen with redfish; and a comforting but unique interpretation of fried chicken pot pie.
Thurmond’s expertise, honed as the chef de cuisine at Kelly English’s Restaurant Iris, shines through in small details and conceptualized plates. On a recent visit, we try four dishes, and three are shoo-in contenders for my annual top-10: deep-fried pickles in an oversized bowl, sliced wafer thin; lobster knuckle, wrapped inside puff pastry and dipped in tarragon butter; and filet mignon burger (filet mignon is not a typo) ground in-house and served with mustard and romaine on a lightly grilled bun. Skinny fries, tossed with truffle oil and toasted Parmesan crumbles, fill out the plate.
Cocktails at 148 North are boozy and flavorful. Try “Pink Lady,” a mule updated with grapefruit juice in a chilled sterling tumbler, or an icy Paloma in a tall Tom Collins glass. — Pamela Denney
148 North, Collierville (901-610-3096) $-$$$. Open seven days a week for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch.
Blue Honey Bistro
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Since my first visit to this charming and intimate restaurant in Germantown, proprietors Drew and Courtney Bryan have added a comprehensive wine list, and I learn about interesting whites from Spain. Craft beers also come on strong, including favorites from Tennessee’s own Blackberry Farm Brewery. And for cocktails, the Blue Honey sounds lovely, mixing Barr Hill gin, Cointreau, lemon, and honey.
While for me the drinks are new, the restaurant’s service and kitchen finesse duplicate the skill I remember from previous meals. In the dining room, Courtney is informed and attentive, welcoming customers like family members. In the kitchen, Drew is masterful, mingling textures and tastes into exquisite bowls like flounder and micro-greens on a mushroom-spiked mix of farro, quinoa, kale, and caramelized onions. For a starter, rich enough to share, order short rib lasagna layered in a mini Le Creuset — warm and bubbly — with jus, Gruyere, and house-made pasta. And to finish? Almond nut and brown butter cake, lovingly cradled between spiced applesauce and a turret of whipped cream.
Open since June, the restaurant is small — about two dozen seats — so call ahead for reservations, especially at dinner. Brunch lovers should visit Saturdays, when the menu includes frittatas, beef tip hash with over-easy eggs, and steel-cut oats dressed up with roasted peaches and pumpkin seeds. — Pamela Denney
Blue Honey Bistro, 9155 Poplar Ave., Suite 17 in Germantown (901-552-3041). Open Monday through Saturday for dinner, Wednesday through Friday for lunch, and Saturday for brunch.
Brooks Pharm2Fork
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Brooks Pharm2Fork (a clever riff on the farm-to-table style restaurant that’s situated inside a former pharmacy on Collierville’s town square) welcomes you to its table for a feast of food responsibly grown and raised by local and regional farmers. The lunch menu, served from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., has a delicious lineup of soups, salads, and sandwiches, plus some enticing entrees featuring catfish, salmon patties, and various roasts. The options should delight fans of owner Mac Edwards’ cooking style, whose other restaurant The Farmer regrettably closed early last year.
Once dinner time starts at 5:30 p.m., Brooks Pharm2Fork brings out its big guns. Soups, salads, and charcuterie plates transition into specialty fish options, including pan-seared scallops or Lake’s catfish, as well as daily fresh fish specials. Diners looking for meat-centric options can’t go wrong with pork triangle steak, country fried steak, or Prime New York strip served with lobster compound butter. If Southern comfort is more your thing, try the shrimp-n-grits plated with tasso ham, braised greens, and original Grit Girl grits.
In addition to an extensive beer and wine list, Brooks Pharm2Fork goes one step past The Farmer with a full-service bar. There’s even been talk of quick breakfast options down the road, so stay tuned. — Samuel X. Cicci
120 E. Mulberry, Collierville (901-853-7511) $-$$. Open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Saturday and lunch/brunch Sunday and Monday.
(Editor's Note: Brooks Pharm2Fork closed in late January, after Memphis magazine had gone to press. Owner Mac Edwards said he is undecided about his future plans.)
