The app features an event calendar loaded with things to do, coupons and deals for local businesses and a map that shows you which restaurants, attractions and events are near you.

What I like most about it is that while the app is useful for visitors, it’s even better for locals (especially ones who are visiting a neighborhood for the first time). Also – you can read I Love Memphis on it, and it looks much better than the mobile site.

If you’re an Android user, don’t worry – the CVB is in the process of working on a version of the app that will work with your phones.

The app is free and you can get it here.
Kerry Crawford, aka the I Love Memphis girl, is the social media specialist for the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau. She runs the I Love Memphis blog, which is a one-stop shop for the best of Memphis music, food, arts, events and culture.

How Does LaunchMemphis 501(c)3 do this? 

Project Green Fork

Loving Local Fall Fundraiser
Sunday, October 2 at Central Station
3-6pm; $30 per ticket
Enjoy local food, local beer, organic wine, a live and silent auction, and local merch from Victory Bicycle Studio, Apothecary Fairy and Memphis Threat. All proceeds benefit Project Green Fork.

Margot McNeeley is one of my very favorite Memphians. One of my favorite people, even. I had the chance to get to know Margot better when I took yoga from her when pregnant with Flannery. Although she didn’t win me over to the idea of a water birth, you can count me in on just about any other idea or initiative she’s behind.

Of course, it’s pretty hard not to support Project Green Fork, her brainchild founded on the idea that a significant way to contribute to a community’s sustainability is to focus on its restaurants. The average restaurant produces 25 tons of garbage per year, roughly 95% of it recyclable or compostable. Margot set up a 6-step certification process that involves sustainable products, kitchen composting, recycling, non-toxic cleaning products, reduced energy and water consumption, and pollution prevention. To date, 36 locally-owned Memphis restaurants have been Project Green Fork certified, with 6 more currently in process.

And the results are impressive. Thanks to committed restaurant owners, donors and volunteers – and PGF – 600,000 gallons of plastic, aluminum and glass, and 79,000 gallons of food waste, have been recycled locally. For our part, Ian and I always check the latest PGF restaurants when it’s time for a special occasion dinner, and the habit is catching on even when looking for a random family dinner out.

Some of our favorites are Tsunami (try the Asian Nachos on the Izakaya menu), Cafe Eclectic (cheddar grits with fresh jalapeno slices!), Felicia Suzanne’s, McEwen’s and Fuel Cafe. When we do BBQ, it’s Central BBQ, although a huge coup to PGF is certification of the world-famous Rendezvous (Central still wins our vote because it’s around the corner, offers vinegar and spicy sauce options, has killer sides like their homemade chips AND includes a barbecued portobello sandwich for vegetarians). Ripley’s favorite PGF spots are Huey’s Midtown and RP Tracks- also huge wins for certification- as their burgers are on her short list. And she loved her birthday cupcakes from Muddy’s. Flannery is a huge fan of YoLo frozen yogurt, sorbet and gelato. Okay, perhaps we are all fans of YoLo.

Back to my support of all things Margot, do check out this weekend’s Loving Local fundraiser – yummy food from locally owned sustainable restaurants, local beer (hm, Ghost River?), and some very cool merchandise from local vendors. Like Memphis Threat. Another personal favorite connected to a favorite person (my husband Ian!)… BUT I’ll save that one for another day. See you Sunday!

Please join us at the Memphis Botanic Garden's My Big Back Yard on October 2 from 2-5 p.m. for the first ever Cookie Carnival benefiting the FedExFamilyHouse

On  Sunday, October 2, the Memphis Botanic Garden’s My Big Backyard will be transformed into the first ever Cookie Carnival benefiting the FedExFamilyHouse.  For only $5 a ticket, this cookie extravaganza will be fun for the whole family. From 2-5 p.m. on Sunday, October 2, you kids will be able to enjoy all of these fun activities.

At Hardin Hall, there will be lots of cookies to eat and the whole family can participate in cookie contests and games like:

• Cookie Decorating Contest
• Cookie Walk
• Cookie Stacking Contest
• Cookie LICK-DOWN!

We have a distinguished panel of judges for the Cookie Decorating Contest:

• Miss Tennessee, Erin Hatley
• Deidre Shores, TODAY Show Teen Reporter
• Frank Allen, Shoemaker Financial
• Tanya Dely, Chef at Viking Cooking School

And there will be other fun events for families:

• Build A Bear onsite
• Family Portraits in the beautiful Memphis Botanic Garden
• Face painting
• Sandy Kaye the Clown, U of M Tiger Mascot
• Great Prize drawings too!

Admission Price: $5 per person (includes entrance to My Big Backyard). Tickets are available at the door or you can purchase in advance at Gwatney Mazda of Germantown and Shoemaker Financial in Germantown.

All funds raised will benefit FedExFamilyHouse.  The FedExFamily house is a home away from home for the families of patients at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital.  Opened in December 2010, the house was designed with families in mind and using “best practice” examples from sister institutions across the country. The facility offers a home-like setting with an open floor plan, gathering places for family groups, teens and children as well as secluded areas for quiet reflection. The FedExFamilyHouse is one of the first sustainable, green pediatric residence facilities in the U.S. and will be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified. LEED is the country’s benchmark for green building design and construction.

Guests will indulge in cuisine prepared by some of Memphis’ finest restaurants, including Restaurant Iris, Felicia Suzanne’s, Interim,  and Erling Jensen.

The Taste of Jubilee will offer live music throughout the event from the Gerry Finney Band and will feature a silent auction full of trips, sports memorabilia and art work.

The cost of the event is $75 per person prior to the day of the event or $85 at the door. Click here for additional details or to purchase your tickets. The Hyde Family Foundation will again generously match funds raised at the event.

Blue Streak Scholarship fund, Inc. is a non-profit organization devoted to giving inner-city Memphis children the benefit of a Catholic school education. Students receiving Blue Streak scholarships attend Diocese of Memphis Jubilee Schools — schools located in our city’s poorest zip codes. Created by area Catholic school alums as a grassroots project, Blue Streak has in less than nine years raised and distributed over $800,000 in scholarships to Jubilee School students.

Thanks to Kim and Steve Fracchia for letting us know about this incredible event!

Ripley and I have volunteered with Feast for Friends in the past (through Volunteer Mid-South). While always an incredibly rewarding experience, there are a number of ways to support FFL including:

• Volunteer for the Food Pantry, Feast for Friends, the Positive Living Center or other special projects
• Make a tax-deductible donation; $25 pays for an HIV test, $100 pays for one month’s transportation for medical appointments, and $1500 completely pays for one Feast for Friends dinner
• Dine out for life!

Dining Out for Life is an annual fundraiser started in Philadelphia in 1991, that has now spread to 55 cities throughout the United States and Canada. For one night, nearly 3,500 restaurants donate a portion of their proceeds to AIDS service organizations. Dining Out for Life 2011 is Thursday, April 28- and all you have to do is enjoy dinner at one of the participating, locally owned restaurants! Memphis restaurants that will be donating to Friends for Life this year are:

• Café Eclectic
• Café Society
• Central BBQ (Central)
• Central BBQ (Summer)
• Felicia Suzanne’s
• Molly’s LaCasita
• Molly Fontaine Lounge
• RP Tracks
• SkiMo’s
• Sweet Grass
• The Beauty Shop

Here are some helpful options.

1. Lee’s Sushi

Lee’s is an anomaly because it is a to-go sushi option at a gas station. That’s right, at a gas station in East Memphis. Oh, and did I also mention that it is owned by a Korean, and not Japanese as one would expect? Despite the odds being stacked against this place, the sushi is good and reasonably priced. Quelle surprise!

One of my favorite things to do is to buy up a storm, sit by the MS River and mindlessly chomp away with the wind in my hair.

2. Sekisui Pacific Rim

They close at midnight Mondays through Thursdays, and at 1am on Fridays and Saturdays.

Not only do they serve up fantastic sushi, there is also a plethora of other options, such as….

Fried calamari – light & fluffy!

A dozen freshly-shucked oysters… Mmm

Our newly discovered roll is called the St. Louis, and it is truly mouthwatering and I am craving it as I blog

3. Blue Fin

Mon-Thu 5 pm – 12 am

Tue 11 am – 2 pm

Wed-Fri 11:30 am – 2 pm

Fri-Sat 5 pm – 1 am

Sun 5 pm – 10 pm

The food, however, isn’t as good as SPR or Lee’s. It is a really fun atmosphere, definitely aimed at the yuppie urban crowd. It is pretty pricey for its sometimes lackluster sushi… but hey, you pay for the neon blue lights, flashy seats and ‘cool’ factor!

There you go! Now you know exactly where to go when the sushi bug bites Happy eating!

My favorite street food stand is in New York, known simply as the 53rd and 6th Halal Guys Food Cart. They have quite the following, and it is not unusual to see a winding line down the block. I was just in NYC a month back, and got my fix of the magic white sauce

I’m really hoping that Memphis hops on the food truck bandwagon, just think about how much diversity, vibrancy and excitement it will bring to the foodie scene! There’s just something so exciting about uncovering a hidden gem, especially in the most unlikely of places… and what more unlikely can you get than a food truck!?

From the facebook event description

“As the Memphis City Council prepares to vote on the proposed food truck ordinance, head down to Court Square to enjoy a meal on wheels! Fuel, YoLo, a Square Meal on Wheels, the Rolling Pit, and the CrepeMake will be in attendance, selling yummy items for lunch.”

So… be there at 11am-2pm, Downtown Memphis’ Court Square, kay? Mmkay.

Happy Monday!

I took my closest friends out this weekend for dinner at Molly’s because we had two hours to kill before watching Limitless (it really bamboozled my mind, but I felt like it was trying to ride on Inception’s warm reception… but deviation!).

Fajitas Nachos – I tried some of it and it was.. alright.

The sizzling fajitas, on the other hand, looked SO AWESOME and would be what I would come back to Molly’s for.

She has been raving about the hot wings forever! It isn’t dripping in hot sauce, unlike most hot wing places. It  is done more Gus’s-style, i.e. seasoned. I tried a smidgen of it and it was pretty good, although Gus’s is wayyyy better.

I was craving beef tacos so I got the Tres Tacos plate – three chicken or beef tacos served with a less-than-generous helping of rice, salad and refried beans.

My verdict? No bueno. I’m of the camp that quite dislikes Molly’s. The service wasn’t as quick as it could be (although they do offer kids free ice cream! Makes me wish I was young again), and the food is very, very average. If I wanted Tex Mex, I would go to El Mezcal or Los Compadres instead.

The pricing was typical.. the three of us ate for about $35 incl. tax and tip.

I also have a strong aversion to places that make you reek of oil and food after you emerge, and Molly’s is sadly one of those places. I couldn’t wait to soak myself for eternity just to get rid of the permeation of scents. In conclusion, I probably wouldn’t be gunning to return, unless I was in the area!

If I want beef tacos in the future, I will go to Swanky’s… which, weirdly enough, was where my friends and I ended up that night to watch local band Star & Micey play!

Sadly, I was all taco-ed out and my cravings had been quenched so I couldn’t go for round 2! Next time

One of my biggest foodie desires is to visit Masa in New York! However, I would have to say that one of my favorite places for sushi in Memphis is Sekisui Humphreys.

Located in the Baptist hospital area, Sekisui Humphreys boasts a really authentic atmosphere, with a really healthy bar, sushi and sashimi selection. You know the food is good when a group of 60-something year old Japanese ladies walk in, evidently on their little girls’ night out!

We went on a Friday night, and the restaurant was super busy! As I was waiting on friends (I have a punctuality problem, i.e. I’m always TOO punctual), I decided to warm my belly with some sake at the bar.

This is known as a Sake Bomb, which is not unlike a Jager Bomb. I’m pretty sure it’s an affront to true Sake aficionados, but it is a fun time! You drop a shot glass worth of warm sake into a mug of beer.

A fellow customer looks on in amazement as I try to demonstrate how to Sake Bomb. Don’t worry if you don’t know what to order, the bartender Andrew is extremely helpful. BTW, Happy Hour ends at 7pm so get there early and get your fill in! You can also order food at the bar, which is what I witnessed several folks do.

Since we had a pretty sizeable group, we were given one of the private rooms with tatami mats, and soon ordered up a storm.

We ordered nine rolls. For four very, very hungry people. My favorite is the Jacksonville roll – crawfish, spicy mayo, cilantro and crunchy white tuna on top. Mmmmm.

“Hold up, guys! Let me take a picture for my food blog before we dig in!”

Squid seaweed salad…. mmm Next time, I’ll order it without cucumber!

Toasting with Purple Haze, which is a raspberry flavored beer with only a slight hint of alcohol (4.75%)

We were all out in full force to celebrate my girl’s good news! Congrats, Love! I’m so proud and happy for you!

The staff there are the sweetest, the food is always fresh, and although it errs on the pricey side, you do get what you pay for.

Menu, directions and hours are here. Oh, and I also saw that they have an all-you-can-eat hibachi special for lunch for just $11.95! Anyone game enough to take me on a challenge?

And… as your resident self-appointed foodie, I also have to point out that RAJUN CAJUN IS HAPPENING THIS WEEKEND!!! Be there, or be forever condemned to having missed THE crawfish event of the year!

Till my next post, keep eating yall!