Alnova XV owner Luis Rivas blends Mexican spices and recipes with the techniques he learned from working at Japanese restaurants. 

Holly Whitfield and Natalie Van Gundy talk about Le Bon Appetit and use the local chef lineup as a guide to talk their way through a list of standout chefs and restaurant history.

Also: Memphis’ first Waldo’s Chicken and Beer is now open and Plant Based Heat Express is making some changes at its Downtown location.

In this installment of our Memphis Pizza Guide, we tip our caps to the chains, including a few that didn’t originate locally, while also stopping for a slice (or two) at some of the New York-style pizza counters around town.

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As the name somewhat implies, everyone at Sai Biryani Point was eating biryani, but the paneer pakora is worth writing home — or Google Maps — about. 

Local pizza owes some of its origins to Coletta’s and the rest to three restaurants — Exlines’ Best Pizza in Town, Broadway Pizza and Fox Ridge Pizza — with a common ancestor.

A survey recently said Memphis pizza wasn’t very good. But that isn’t true. Over the next few days, we’ll bring you a list of the local places we love and a lot of very good pizza. 

In honor of our series on Memphis-style pizza, The Daily Memphian is asking our readers to choose the best Memphis restaurant to get pizza. 

Collierville filed a response to the trustee of the proposed Chick-fil-A site. Chick-fil-A sued the town in March.

The Bluff City is in the bottom spot in the worst-pizza-city list, according to an Associated Press article. It said, “Memphis is no stranger to the blues, which is fitting for its shortcomings as a pizza scene.” 

This week on Sound Bites, Chris Herrington and Holly Whitfield follow up with the Jerry’s Sno Cones rumors discussed last week and share impressions from last week’s dueling barbecue contests.

Chick-fil-A Uptown construction is moving forward, Villa Castrioti is expanding to Nashville, JamRack is now open and Belltower Coffee is serving food at Shelby Farms Park and introducing a membership program. 

At Zio Matto, American flavors such as peanut butter chocolate chip and honey vanilla ride sidesaddle to classic Italian flavors like stracciatella, pistachio, gianduia and fior di latte.

Within six years of graduating from culinary school, Terry Taylor had owned and operated two restaurants. But he also had almost 40 years of retail experience under his belt. 

The new location for the chicken tender chain would be the first in the area.

The upcoming Downtown game bar will feature 20 arcade games, an 8-foot Lite Brite and an authentic Philly, with rolls shipped from Philadelphia. 

In the final installment of our barbecue series, we’ve got a look at winners from SmokeSlam and Memphis in May’s contest. Plus, we share recipes to extend barbecue month out all year. 

Crosstown Concourse announced in a release on Monday, May 20, that a new restaurant highlighting Vietnamese culture and cuisine will take over the Wolf River Brisket space, which concluded its operations on Sunday, May 19. 

“Everything I have been studying tells me that we are definitely going to be, within my lifetime certainly, back in a place that chocolate is something you will have for a very special occasion,” said Muddy’s founder Kat Gordon. 

After a week of two simultaneous barbecue-cooking competitions, the victor is clear: hungry barbecue lovers and fans across the city of Memphis.

“We’re on top of the world,” Brooke Lewis said to a crowd of hundreds a few moments before fireworks erupted over the stage in Liberty Park. 

Organizers said the $250,000 in prize money is the biggest purse in barbecue contest history; the Grand Champion took home a $50,000 prize.

“Memphis in May is here to stay,” new President and CEO Mack Weaver told the crowd Saturday at Liberty Park.

One of only six Oscar Mayer Wienermobiles in the world is coming to two Memphis-area Krogers Sunday, May 19, and Monday, May 20.