Last summer, dining editor Jennifer Biggs and I spent a couple of months getting reacquainted with Summer Avenue in a four-part food tour. 

This summer, as a sequel, we’d intended to spend a little less time — and space — getting reacquainted with the culinary highlights of Germantown Parkway.

Along the nearly nine-mile stretch from the heart of old Germantown to the other side of U.S. Highway 64, Germantown Road becomes Germantown Parkway, expanding into a six-lane river of cars.

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In truth, when you’re in the middle of it and it’s flowing slowly, it’s a miserable place to be. But you’re also usually just a turn away from something good. 

Yes, national chains continue to descend on this suburban super highway, including, recently, two Whataburger franchises. 

And it’s increasingly sprinkled with new(er) locations of Memphis food-scene stalwarts. 

Along this stretch, you’ll find a Corky’s and a Gus’s. A Howard’s Donuts and a Dixie Queen. Two Huey’s, a Memphis Pizza Café and a La Michoacana. 

Nearly a decade ago, the last time Jennifer did a Germantown Parkway tour (and I edited it), if you looked hard you could also find great Brazilian, Colombian and Ethiopian places.

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Those are all gone now, but even as fast food and familiar spots bloom, there’s still gold to be mined in them there strip malls. 

Life is what happens while you’re busy making plans. John Lennon taught us that, and even if he may have borrowed it from Reader’s Digest, it remains true.

Between planning and execution, Jennifer got sick, and while she’s still on leave getting treatment, this summer tour has been scaled into a solo excursion. But her enthusiasm and curiosity guide it still.

This isn’t at all exhaustive. There are some fine or finer dining options as the Road turns to the Parkway, such as Southern Social, Moondance, the Butcher Shop and Villa Castrioti.

Our partial list leans more casual.

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And while there’s a bit of the familiar and a couple of second locations, it also leans toward the less ubiquitous. 

With apologies to a few honorable mentions (Pie Folks, Bombay House, Meddlesome Brewing, Cheesecake Boss, 901 Hot Pot), here are 15 Germantown Parkway places — on the main street or on cross streets — I’m likely to turn when looking to escape the automobile river for some nourishment.

Cedars Restaurant

This cozy spot tucked into the Trinity Commons Shopping Center next to what used to be a Malco Theatres location has been home to several Middle Eastern restaurants over the years. But Cedars, which opened in this spot nearly a decade ago, seems to have grown strong roots. 

It’s easy to see why. 

This friendly, locally owned Lebanese diner of sorts serves high-quality made-to-order staples. Kebobs hit the grill behind the counter seconds after you order while shawarma roasts on a spit a few feet away. A tender grilled chicken kebob plate with pita, hummus, rice, salad, roasted potatoes and pickled vegetables is a lunch feast you deserve. Jennifer has cited the falafel here as one of her favorites. (694 N. Germantown Parkway, 901-509-2784, more here.)

Cordova International Farmers Market/Café Cordova

This is the best place on Germantown Parkway for food-centric browsing, though the name is a bit of a misnomer. This isn’t a farmers market but a grocery store. And it might be the biggest international-oriented grocer in town, covering most of the Asian and Mexican specialty market bases and then some. Where else can you load your cart with Chinese eggplant, Korean melons, shark steaks, Mexican sodas, canned dolmas and West African egusi? And get all the implements you need to cook and serve your new finds?

Also, while many Kroger and Target stores have an in-house Starbucks, this oasis offers refreshment in the form of Café Cordova, its recently reopened coffee-and-more counter, with lattes, bubble teas, soft serve ice cream (vanilla or matcha) and mini taiyaki filled with red bean, custard or nutella. Café Cordova now has a walk-up window along the front of the building for pickup without having to go inside. (1150 N. Germantown Parkway, 901-417-8407, more here.)

Germantown Commissary

On the south side of Poplar before it explodes into a six-lane parkway, Germantown Road is a comparatively quaint, shady suburban street, and it’s anchored by the Germantown Commissary, likely the municipality’s oldest restaurant. 

The Commissary feels tucked away, and that sensation doubles inside where the dark wooden interior feels like a series of welcoming nooks. It’s one of the best barbecue spots in a city riddled with top-notch ones, and the ribs are a sure shot. The thick sweet sauce is a little too lacking in vinegar and heat for my taste, but that’s more of a me problem. The burgers and tamales have fans. But I’m more likely to go for the nachos or, even more likely, a barbecue-stuffed baked potato as an alternative to ribs or sandwiches. Brunswick stew and banana pudding are core contributors. (2290 S. Germantown Road, 901-754-5540, more here.)

Golden City Chinese Cuisine

Get past the nondescript storefront in one of the most nondescript suburban strip centers you’ll ever see, and you’ll find a strong candidate for Memphis’ best Chinese restaurant. 

The spacious but homey interior has booths along the wall, but the middle is filled with round tables topped with rotating trays to abet traditional Chinese family-style dining. There are two menus here, a Chinese one and a Chinese-American one, and be prepared to be profiled. If you get the green menu, ask for the red one, too, or just grab one yourself from the counter.

Try anything, but some highlights of past visits: Crispy stuffed tofu, Yung Chow and Hong Kong fried rice, Peking-style pork, beef short ribs, French steak (a Jennifer favorite) and steamed oysters in black bean sauce. (815 Exocet Drive, 901-590-0063)

Green Bamboo Noodle House

A few years ago, Grizzlies executive Rich Cho, under his globe-trotting culinary connoisseur social media alter ego “Big Time Bites,” highlighted Green Bamboo’s Spicy Beef Noodle Soup — heir version of the classic bun bo hue — as the best version he’s had in the U.S. 

More recently, this longtime Germantown Parkway staple has scaled down its menu. I wonder if it’s also pulled back on the intensity of this dish, which was good on a recent visit, but not as compelling as I’ve had at Midtown’s Vietnam Restaurant or as, apparently, Jennifer has had at nearby Pho 4Ever (see below). 

Still, this is a serene environment to commune with some steaming pho, and while the dish generally tends to be beef-oriented, I enjoyed a lighter restorative bowl of Pho Ga — chicken soup — on a recent visit. (990 N. Germantown Parkway, 901-753-5488, more here.)

Jerry’s Sno Cones

Perhaps you scoff at the notion of two-timing the classic original Jerry’s location on Wells Station, north of Summer Avenue, with this comparatively still-new suburban outpost. 

I did for years, but when I finally deigned to visit, it exceeded expectations. It doesn’t feel new. It feels like it’s been there for decades hidden a block back behind the Parkway so that you can almost forget all that is still there. Having actual seating at this location is nice, but crucially, it’s not too nice. It’s all fresh air with the worn-in vibe of a small-town Little-League ball-field concession. Like the Downtown location of Gus’s Fried Chicken, you might think it was the original if you didn’t know better. 

And those snow cones, in the same endless varieties, are still miraculous cups of flavor clouds. Everyone has their favorite. It’s Blackberry Supreme for me. (1601 Bonnie Lane, 901-249-8718, more here.)

JoJo’s Espresso

This sleek but comfortable addition to the still-rising Thornwood development opened in November, finally giving Germantown a piece of the locally owned coffee shop boom. 

The well-composed lattes use locally roasted coffee from Vice & Virtue, including their bourbon-barrel-aged variety. A bourbon latte (not alcoholic) pairs well with one of the best ham and biscuits you’ll find, bringing together biscuits from Palmer House Bakery (which also supplies other shop pastries) and the beloved ham from Canale’s in Eads (now “Home of the Hams”). You can also get Canale’s ham as a bagel sandwich lunch special with bagels from Hive. (1730 S. Germantown Road, 901-207-7942, more here.)

Las Tortugas Deli Mexicana

Deli Mexicana has been a Germantown staple for more than 20 years now, but one imagines it still throws new visitors for a loop. First, there is the Soup Nazi-style signage, pontificating on the true nature of Mexican food. Charming or annoying? Mileage varies. Then there are the prices, higher than you expect from an order-at-the-counter “deli” where sandwiches and tacos come out in plastic trays. Then there’s the food, which is still unlike anything else in Memphis — except for its sibling restaurant on Poplar Avenue — and still perhaps as good as anything in Memphis. Impossibly fresh, with high attention to ingredient quality and preparation detail.

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A recent visit, for the first time in too long, was a reminder. Five-spice pork belly tacos with pomegranate salsa. Impossibly tender sliced shrimp tacos. Caramelized salsa verde. One assumes standing-menu favorites such as the tilapia torta, queso fundido and chicken tortilla soup are similarly undiminished. 

The agua frescas are a signature Memphis summer treat, the citrus-and-mint teosote and bracing limonada, in particular, with dedicated fans. A recent special: A slushy-style guava fresca. 

Check the board. If owner Jonathan Magallanes is at the register, advice will be plentiful. (1215 S. Germantown Road, 901-751-1200, more here.)

Le Delights Banh Mi & Pho

While “Pho” is in the restaurant name, the banh mi co-billing is what beckons here, the closest Memphis currently has to a specialty shop dedicated to that French-influenced Vietnamese sandwich, which uses a crusty short baguette. 

A standard banh mi adorns multiple varieties of cold pork with crunchy jalapeno, pickled carrots, cilantro, cucumber and mayo, and that’s usually my preference. But Le Delights has eight varieties, with spicy stone-grilled short rib and char-grilled lemongrass chicken getting the nod. 

There’s also a larger than usual variety of rolls. Try the beef jerky rolls with dried beef, green papaya and mango all shredded and packed with peanuts in soft rice paper. (8095 Macon Road, 901-207-2746, more here.)

Pho 4Ever

A real hidden gem on or near the strip is this Vietnamese restaurant just down the lane, literally, from Jerry’s Snow Cones and snuggled between an auto shop and karate studio. 

Pho 4ever opened last August and recently reopened after a monthlong closure for renovation and staff training back in Vietnam. Jennifer last visited in January when she was impressed by a bowl of bun bo hue, the spicy beef soup that here also included pork knuckles and congealed blood in a traditional treatment. On a more recent visit, I was knocked out by their banh xeo, a crepe dish stuffed with shrimp, pork and vegetables we both loved at now-gone Midtown restaurant Phuong Long.

The banh xeo here is even better, lighter and more crisp. Its thinly sliced pork melded with the bottom layer of the crepe, which paired nicely with an excellent traditional banh mi, a double-shot of the French influence in Vietnamese cooking. 

The dark festive atmosphere of the space has a transporting quality, considering the office-park vibe of the immediate surroundings, and while the menu has the standard array of pho, vermicelli bowls and steamed rice plates, it also suggests more novel avenues of exploration: oxtail hot pot? Green mussels? Fish in a house-made tomato sauce? I’m making a checklist. (1645 Bonnie Lane, 901-474-7831, more here.)

Queen of Sheba Imperial Restaurant

One of the culinary highlights of Summer Avenue is now also one of the culinary highlights of Germantown Parkway, but this time in “Imperial” form. 

The younger but bigger sibling of Summer Avenue’s humble Yemini food haunt has a similar but expanded menu in a much larger, comparatively lavish, setting, which opened in late 2022. 

But the lamb and chicken haneeth, roasted on bone to tender perfection and served over a fragrant basmati rice with potatoes and carrots, is the same kind of delicious. And platter-sized tandoori bread with assorted dips — hummus, labneh or, recently, an off-menu mutabal shawander (roasted beet hummus) — is a meal unto itself. 

It’s great food for sharing, and the various two- and four-person combo platters make it easy. This expanded version of an old favorite also now includes a separate coffee bar, though there’s still serve-yourself spiced hot tea for all diners. (1250 Germantown Parkway, 901-454-3144, more here.)

Taco Cat

TacoNGanas, which also has a location on Germantown Parkway, has earned its spot as the city’s seemingly favorite taco truck, but if you haven’t, check out the single-location setup of Taco Cat, which has covered seating connected to their inviting truck in an Exxon station lot at Germantown Parkway and Trinity Road.

The tacos and burritos are excellent, and yes, you can get birria tacos with consome for dipping. But the wider menu corrals some less-standard taco truck items, including “Mexican corn in a cup” and a little bag of churros rellenos for some sweet to go with the savory. Taco Cat opens at 10 a.m. most days and often has a chorizo breakfast burrito on its specials board. 

And a pro tip for dog owners: This truck is just around the corner from the off-leash area at Shelby Farms, which makes for a good quick meal after a long walk with your four-legged friend. (610 N. Germantown Parkway, 901-326-4818, more here.)

Tavern 018

Tavern 018 is another off-the-Parkway gem, tucked way back amid a strip-mall maze. It’s nearly hidden, and they seem to like it that way. This may be a neighborhood bar in search of a neighborhood, but it seems to have found its regulars with various solo customers chatting at the bar on a recent weekday, live music on weekends and weekly karaoke and trivia nights. The bar is about to celebrate its fifth year. 

When Jennifer visited a few years ago, they were doing daily plate-lunch specials. That’s no more, at least right now, but the elevated bar food has a home-kitchen feel with very good red beans and rice coming with large slices of andouille sausage. Try the Tavern Melt with chicken breast, cheddar, bacon and barbecue sauce on buttered toast accompanied by lightly seasoned fries. (8130 Macon Station Road, 901-321-5949, more here.)

Team Car Café/El Mero Taco

A food truck before expanding into this brick-and-mortar location, El Mero brought Tex-Mex tacos to Memphis years before the Austin-based Torchy’s chain showed up. The southern-fried chicken tacos with queso blanco and the smoked brisket quesadilla with fresh chimichurri sauce have become Memphis staples on a menu on which pretty much anything gets a green light.

Team Car Café has some of the city’s best coffee, using local roasts from Ethnos, and some of the most artful coffee-based drinks, somehow tucked inside the high-end Latting Speed Shop, a cycling store. 

But it’s the interaction between those two adjacent shops that’s particularly novel. Team Car and El Mero share an interior door that links the two bars. During the lunch hour, you can have your El Mero order sent next door to pair with coffee if you like. But during the mornings, before El Mero is open, there’s a separate El Mero breakfast menu available only in the coffee shop with breakfast tacos, excellent chilaquiles, smoked grits and more. (8100 Macon Station, suites 101-102, 901-413-9118 and 901-308-1661, more here and here.)

Two Empanadas

The ocean of asphalt around the Cordova International Farmer’s Market is becoming a kind of complementary food truck court with the Cordova location of TacoNGanas at the far end and a La Guadalupana truck on the near side, flanked recently by a new yet-to-open truck advertising a European theme. 

And then there’s Two Empanadas, which opened in the spring of 2021. “Two empanadas” is exactly what you’ll get in seven of the truck’s nine listed combos with sauces and a drink. Two of these — about the size of a typical Southern fried pie and filled with options including chicken, beef and/or cheese — are more than a meal. 

Empanadas, generally speaking, are a kind of hand pie ubiquitous in Latin America and the Caribbean with different characteristics based on the region. Two Empanadas serves Venezuelan-style, made with corn — which I prefer to flour — and fried to order. Expect to wait 10 minutes, even if there’s no line. It’s worth it.

The name of the truck itself isn’t the only truth in advertising. So is the menu exclamation: “Crunch!! Crunch!!” (1150 N. Germantown Parkway, 901-246-6438)