What’s Memphis missing: Local restaurant edition

By , Daily Memphian Updated: April 21, 2022 11:03 AM CT | Published: April 20, 2022 1:07 PM CT

Last month, The Daily Memphian’s Jennifer Biggs and Chris Herrington chopped it up on their Sound Bites podcast to discuss what the Memphis food scene is lacking.

At one time, Biggs said she would have said a Spanish restaurant, but Pantà and Tonica have both moved into that gap. And commenters on the site suggested Memphis is missing out on more Thai restaurants, German food and a “pure” Greek restaurant. 

After that conversation, The Daily Memphian asked readers via social media what additions would make the local food scene better. 


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These are their responses, sorted by theme and edited for length and clarity: 

International cuisine

“Memphis needs another food hall similar to the Global Cafe, but with more options. There are numerous international students who attend school in Memphis and more should be done to make their stay as home-like as possible.” — @bigdc120

“Higher-end Latino — less food truck, more restaurant.” — Betsy Hood 

“More South Asian food would be nice. More African food. More Cajun. Definitely MORE SEAFOOD.” — Charles Van Tilburg 

“(More) Russian, Indonesian, Cuban, Peruvian.” — Charles Belenky

“Malaysian, Georgian, Singaporean (chili crab, laksa), but especially Malaysian. Fabulous food — hard to find in most places in the U.S.” — Emily A. Thrush 

“Memphis is missing really good Mediterranean food! ... We need something like Atlanta’s Persian restaurant, Rumi’s Kitchen.” — Mary Claire Solomon

“Fine dining Greek.” — Emily Trenholm

“I don’t understand why Memphis can’t have a legit French bistro. We are huge fans of Birmingham’s Chez Fonfon. It has all the French classics at reasonable prices.” — Tim Pierce

Healthy eats

“More plant-based restaurants with (a) full plant-based menu that does not include just some imitation meat items.” — @Sheri0716 

“Healthy foods. Tired of greasy, fatty, high-salt foods.” — Crystal Renee 

“Restaurants with cleaner, healthier food options such as farm to table, vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options.” — Shayslyric

“More healthy options like Zaka Bowl. Miss that place bad.” — Erin McCully 

“A really good salad restaurant. Ideally something along the lines of Chopt or Sweetgreen chains.” — Frances Ryan

Bakeries 

“A bakery with good breads and pastries. We have plenty of dessert stops, but not many places for great bread.” — Matthew Halt 

“An excellent bakery — big city quality.” — Christine Helmick 

“Local bagel shop.” — Ann Tipton Francis

Late-night spots

“More places where there is live music. I should be able to walk out and find live music any night of the week. It’s what the city is known for, and we have too many local artists for it to not be a reality.” — Erica Horton 



“Places that serve all-day breakfast and drinks. There is like none. Sometimes you want steak and eggs at 9 p.m. with a margarita. Like a dive bar that serves breakfast every day, all day.” — Shelbee 

Chicago style

“Chicago beef (Portillo’s), ditto for Chicago Italian sausage (Frankies) & authentic polish food.” — Shells Lavelle

“I would love a Portillo’s. They are looking to open 600 stores, I believe, in the U.S. by 2025, I think, is what I read. Maybe we will.” — C-Pher Bacon Mantia

BBQ

“Memphis needs to get more creative with our BBQ. There are so many ways to use pulled pork beyond nachos or sandwiches.” — Jordan Bernardini

“Texas barbecue.” — Randy Strickline

(Editor’s note: Really, Randy???)

And all the rest ... 

“I would love to see a pot pie/meat pie restaurant.” — @bigdc120 

“A good fried seafood platter like you used to be able to get at Anderson’s!” — Ally Luciano 

“Raleigh! I would love to have more than fast food! I would love to go to a locally owned, non-chain, sit-down restaurant in Raleigh!” — Marie Isbell

“A nice whiskey bar.” — ShadyLady 

“A giant burrito place like the ones in California and Texas.” — Tony Jones

“Shake Shack, Cava, Pappadeaux, and a quick/casual salad option like SweetGreen in Downtown/Midtown.” — Michael Fulton 

Topics

Casablanca Portillos Pappadeaux Shake Shack
Jasmine McCraven

Jasmine McCraven

Jasmine McCraven considers herself to be a music enthusiast and believes that she makes the best playlists ever. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State, but couldn’t wait to move back home to Memphis for the best food and culture in Tennessee.


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