Actor Parker Posey popped up in a few places in East Memphis last weekend, and while Chef Kelly English had no idea she would be dining at his Restaurant Iris, he was happy to meet her — and let her “photobomb” him during lunch service.

English is the guest on this week’s Sound Bites podcast, so I asked him about meeting Posey, who stars in season three of HBO’s hit show “White Lotus.” 

I also asked for (and received) a status report on his businesses — Iris, Second Line, Swamp Bar, Fino’s from the Hill and the new Rocket Greens & More food truck.

As Sophia Surrett reported in Food Files last week, the New Orleans-inspired Second Line restaurant is undergoing renovations and English’s team is hosting a limited-time pop-up with Hawaiian-inspired cuisine and boat drinks. 

Sound Bites: Bari’s ‘Bacchus’ on drink trends, digestifs and Memphis gin

“I have a lot of Spam in house right now,” he said.

We talk more about the food and inspiration for the pop-up menu, which is only available on the back patio and also includes kalua pork belly and loco moco, a fusion dish made with sushi rice, a hamburger steak and a fried egg.

Mostly, though, we talk about food, from roast beef po’boys to Korean fried chicken to salads (from a food truck, even) to crawfish boil tarts.

The conversation felt like an open and honest discussion about how things have changed for English, for restaurants and for the city since the original Iris opened in 2008.

“One of the things I learned in the pandemic is, ‘You should just try,’” he said. 

Sound Bites: Gina Neely talks food, family and SmokeSlam

We finish out the podcast with a series of semi-rapid questions, talking about underrated dishes, FX’s “The Bear”, his local food recommendations, his problems with Kroger and of course, what he thinks of the “because of crime” reason sometimes given for local restaurants closing. 

Listen for the full interview.