Riverside Drive closes, as it has for decades, on April 22. But Tom Lee Park will be partially open between the Riverbeat and SmokeSlam events in May.

The Orpheum Theatre might get string lights, Hotel Pontotoc might have a new restaurant, a new construction trades space on Decatur Street and safety repairs and improvements to come at The Businessmen’s Club.

St. Paul and the Broken Bones will headline the inaugural SmokeSlam barbecue contest. The lineup also includes rap, rock and funk.

“We want to build this brand,” organizer Nick Barbian said. “It’s something that can be hopefully the launch of spring and summer event season here in Memphis.” 

“We pick up a lot of the nostalgic places in Memphis to try to keep them the same and a little bit of the history as much as we can,” said one of the new owners. 

“That’s the best thing about our job,” Craig Unger, Redbirds president and general manager said. “To see the excitement that kids and families have when they come to a game, and then to be able to do something like this, there’s no better feeling to see all those kids just lined up around the warning track.”

Greenhaus at 356 N. Main St. also added a hallway connecting to neighboring Comeback Coffee. The plant shop was formerly known as Golden Hour.

Memphis’ pro soccer club has a home “for the foreseeable future” while still pushing for a stadium of its own.

Redbirds leaders are talking with Memphis Mayor Paul Young and the city about stadium improvement. “Our commitment is to be here long-term,” Craig Unger said.

Presley was on hand for the announcement regarding the former Hard Rock Cafe site, which will house the Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum and Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

The former Commercial Appeal facility was recently split into two entities: an office building and a warehouse.

There are a litany of things that can cause a ship or barge to collide with a bridge, with “Mother Nature being a primary one,” according to a waterways management chief with the U.S. Coast Guard. 

This year’s NCAA weekend followed the previous weekend’s St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, when there were 95% more crimes reported.

“Today I don’t want to own (a restaurant), but I can never stop cooking,” Chef Tamra Patterson said. “Cooking is in my blood — it’s all I know to do.”

At the Memphis International Auto Show, eligible attendees got the chance to drive some of the latest car models on the main road outside the Renasant Convention Center.

The project, which received key approvals in 2019, ran into the buzzsaw of the pandemic, and then the developer blamed higher interest rates after the pandemic for delays. 

At Cole Jeanes’ Kinfolk restaurant, he’s blended the seemingly divergent influences of Japan and the American South on the menu and in his mind. For him, they are in culinary harmony.

Eight teams are in town, starting a journey to what they hope will be a 2024 Final Four appearance — and maybe a national championship. Follow reports on all eight here, updated regularly after representatives from each team speak.

Related stories:

Memphis Tigers guard Jayhlon Young enters transfer portal

You know the jersey: Mike Bibby’s nephew comes to Memphis for NCAA Tournament

The Terrace menu is also an indication of what’s to come with both Paulette’s Restaurant and Tug’s Casual Grill. 

For teams and their fans traveling to the Bluff City for the tournament — or locals heading Downtown for March Madness — here’s a guide to what to do and where to eat in Memphis. 

The basketball tournament comes nearly a week after two fatal altercations occurred Downtown amid St. Patrick’s Day celebrations and after the leader of the agency tasked with managing the entertainment district touted new security technology.

Wayne Tabor said Memphis Tourism had offered the city and county $30 million on Monday but “they keep wanting more and more.” 

The Genre, known for its musical atmosphere as well as its food, is one of the many local businesses participating in the ninth annual Memphis Black Restaurant Week. 

Attendees from Memphis and beyond headed Downtown for the 51st Annual Silky O’Sullivan’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade Saturday, March 16.

While I-55 bridge repairs are underway, the Tennessee and Arkansas departments of transportation are waiting to hear how much the federal government will contribute to the cost of replacing the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge.