Memphis Overnight

One trip that my wife and I often talk about with smiles, was a short overnight in Memphis, Tennessee. Sure, global jaunts from one continent are exciting. But one cannot always ignore their own country. In fact, this place is pretty great. So many aspects of American culture don’t always stand out to me, probably because I grew up with American culture. I’m used to it. It is easy to take it for granted.

But you’d be hard pressed to find a better location for Americana than Memphis, Tennessee. It’s the home of Elvis, for crying out loud. Johnny Cash recorded music here. Memphis has a great zoo. And it was an integral part of the Civil Rights Movement—Dr. King was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel, which now serves as the National Civil Rights Museum.

Whether it’s music or history, Memphis has it all—barbeque notwithstanding.

We only had a short amount of time, an overnight. But we wanted barbeque. My wife and I walked down to the hotel lobby and found out from the receptionist that Memphis is home of some fantastic food. Right next to Graceland is Marlowe’s Ribs and Restaurant. It’s been around for over 45 years. The King of Rock and Roll himself ate there. And it has been featured on numerous TV shows.

“They’ll even pick you up,” said the hotel lobby receptionist, “for free!”

Ride to and from a barbeque place for free?

“Perfect!” I said.

Ten minutes later, we looked out the window to see a bright, Pepto-Bismol colored, pink limousine pulling into the parking lot.

That’s right, Marlowe’s Ribs and Restaurant will pick you up in a pink limo. And though it was a little rickety and a 1984 Cadillac, we still like were riding in style.

The walls at Marlowe’s are covered in Elvis posters. And the tables are covered in ribs. We ate our fill that day, of ribs, cornbread, slaw, and all the sweet tea we could handle.

Though we only had one night, even a short jaunt to this classic Americana city was well worth it.

anthony forrest