CITY GUIDE.rom the rooftop bar of boutiqueHu Hotel we see the mightyMississippi River flow and the bones ofMemphis. The hotel’s Lifestyle manager,Chad West, says with a Southern drawlthat “Memphis is a city of serendipity”where spirited millennials are carving outa city beyond blues and the legacy ofElvis. West talks of buildings vacant fordecades springing back to life, and thenear demolition of icons like thePeabody Hotel, famed for its dailyduck parade.We’re in Memphis as it turns 200.In a few short days the city captivates usas much for the people and theirenthusiasm, as for the history. WC Handyfathered the Blues here. From a brickstudio storefront, Sun Studios, ElvisPresley cut discs: his music and his hipsshook a generation. Graceland, the BluesHall of Fame, Stax and Sun Studios are allpart of musical pilgrimages. Beale Streetis touristic, but still pumping, and you’llfind music clubs all over the city. Pickingup a copy of the street press, we enlistelderly bluesmen at the Blues Hall ofFame, circling clubs and scribbling actsin the margin.Gus’s World Famous Chicken, a squatsingle-storey building in the South MainArts District, is a constant echo. “Youbeen to Gus’s yet?” To answer “yes”draws satisfied nods. Now franchised,this is the original. White tiled walls, apressed-tin ceiling, gingham tableclothsand well-worn chairs are all part of apatina of decades. The waitresses, adeptat drawing a healthy tip, are another partof Gus’s charm. Fried green tomatoes,battered, thick and salty are hot andcrisp, and an order of dark thigh meatforges a new benchmark, the crispcoating tenders a lasting burn.Back at the Hu Diner, the hotel’sstreet-level bar and restaurant, there aremodern takes on Southern staples suchas octopus and grits, fried chicken livers,catfish and lots of fried chicken. A laidbackvibe pervades at this diner, and it’svery much like the hotel itself – one ofmany refurbished buildings that are partof this wave of change.Around South Main, galleries andstores tell new and old stories of theneighbourhood. Eric Nielsen, owner ofSouth Front Antiques, recounts hisfather’s decision to set up here in theaftermath of Dr Martin Luther King’sassassination, a few blocks over at theLorraine Motel (now the powerfulNational Civil Rights Museum). Peoplethought it brave, if not foolish. Dr King’sdeath set in motion a rapid and lastingdecline of Downtown, along a racial faultline. Downtown gentrification is, forsome, Lazarus-like.South Main Market, a destination foryoung Memphians, houses a cohort offood and drink businesses, a casual foodhall and established names like cocktailbar, Civil Pour. On the adjacent cornersits contemporary retailer, Stock & Belle,which supports Southern creatives, and isalso home to Lo Fi Coffee. OwnersDavid Pender and Bailey Biggers fell forMemphis back in 2017, and before longput down roots and staked their place inthe hearts of Downtown coffee loversmax_brearley@maxbrearley
CLOCKWISE: Hu Diner;iconic rock’n’roll stop,Sun Studio; Hu Hotel’s stylishlounge area; where you cansip on a cocktail (inset);the very hip South Maindistrict; Memphis staple:fried chicken and waffles;Lo Fi Coffee’s David Penderand Bailey Biggers.
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