Living in Midtown for 1.5 years allowed me to frequent restaurants and shops that I had long since been going to from my college days. I knew many places in that part of town and had no problem keeping my eating out diverse.
Well last July my wife and I moved to the Eastern part of Memphis. It's not quite Memphis, but it's not quite Cordova or Bartlett either. Since I rarely did much out in these parts I had to reacquaint myself with the area. Something that took me a while to do was to find a new favorite Chinese restaurant.
I love Chinese and I often eat it (not only at restaurants, but my wife cooks some great Chinese too). Since moving we hadn't gone out for Chinese in a long time so I decided it was time we hunted about. We first tried China Moon, a place located on Stage and Elmore. It wasn't even worth a negative review. We then tried China Wok over on Dexter near Germantown Pkwy (around the corner from the Kroger there).
First off, the service was great. The guy behind the counter was friendly and courteous. He made polite chit chat and gave some good recommendations. He also gave me a free two litre of soft drink since I spent more than $30. The other staff members I interacted with were also very nice and polite. The speed of this place was great. I was in the restaurant for maybe 10 minutes. My order was taken and my food was in my hand in a blink of an eye. I have never had such speedy service.
Having such quick service meant that my food was piping hot when I got it and still extremely hot when I got home a few minutes later. Not only was it hot, but it was very tasty (although the General Tso's could be a little spicier). I have absolutely no complaints about this place. It's all around great. Something else I liked was that if you have a large order they will give you a cardboard box for it.
If you look for prices online you will find cheaper, outdated prices. Don't get mad with the staff though. It's not their website that has the old prices and the new prices aren't that more expensive.
Monday, January 21, 2013
The Memphis Historical Trail
I've lived in Memphis for about 13 years, since the fall of 2000 (really only 8 years as I spent 5 in Japan). Needless to say I learned quite a bit about my city in those years. I know that it sits on top of an aquifer that provides excellent quality drinking water. I know that it was an important city in the early development of the nation and I know that it was a focal point in music for a very long time and saw the rise of many music stars. But there was a lot I did not know and didn't even think to think about.
I never really thought about the actual development of the city and what made it the way it is today. Sure I knew Memphis has been around for a long time, but never thought on exactly what happened since its founding or what historic events may have happened here. I love history and now that I look back on myself I'm a bit disappointed in myself that I never took the time to really get to know my home. That all changed this past weekend.
I went on a hike throughout downtown Memphis. The hike is commonly referred to as the Memphis Historic Trail. It winds through downtown to the outskirts of Midtown and back. As with most historical trails you walk from point to point answering questions and reading plaques and reading from the trail guide. The points range from the founding of Memphis to the Civil War to the Golden Age of Memphis music.
The walk is long and covers a lot of ground and goes into several different areas of downtown. You need to be prepared with water, food, good boots/shoes and the hike guide. You may also want a map and a compass if you are not familiar with Memphis. One nice thing is that you pass by several restaurants and shops so that if you are not 100% ready your equipped you can easily get food and other previsions while on the trail. I actually wished my group had stopped at a restaurant cause my feet were pretty tired and I could've used the rest. The hike covers about 12 miles so be ready to go that far.
You do go through some dodgy areas so you should use caution while hiking through. You also have to cross some busy streets so be smart about it. I didn't feel too worried, but there were some instances that were a bit sketchy. You will encounter homeless folk. Most of them are harmless, but still exercise caution when dealing with them. It's probably best not to give handouts.
You start the hike at the I-40 visitor center and finishes back there. You can find the PDF file of the trail guide here.
Overall it's a great hike. If you want to learn more about Memphis, this is where you can do it. Good luck and happy trails.
I never really thought about the actual development of the city and what made it the way it is today. Sure I knew Memphis has been around for a long time, but never thought on exactly what happened since its founding or what historic events may have happened here. I love history and now that I look back on myself I'm a bit disappointed in myself that I never took the time to really get to know my home. That all changed this past weekend.
I went on a hike throughout downtown Memphis. The hike is commonly referred to as the Memphis Historic Trail. It winds through downtown to the outskirts of Midtown and back. As with most historical trails you walk from point to point answering questions and reading plaques and reading from the trail guide. The points range from the founding of Memphis to the Civil War to the Golden Age of Memphis music.
The walk is long and covers a lot of ground and goes into several different areas of downtown. You need to be prepared with water, food, good boots/shoes and the hike guide. You may also want a map and a compass if you are not familiar with Memphis. One nice thing is that you pass by several restaurants and shops so that if you are not 100% ready your equipped you can easily get food and other previsions while on the trail. I actually wished my group had stopped at a restaurant cause my feet were pretty tired and I could've used the rest. The hike covers about 12 miles so be ready to go that far.
You do go through some dodgy areas so you should use caution while hiking through. You also have to cross some busy streets so be smart about it. I didn't feel too worried, but there were some instances that were a bit sketchy. You will encounter homeless folk. Most of them are harmless, but still exercise caution when dealing with them. It's probably best not to give handouts.
You start the hike at the I-40 visitor center and finishes back there. You can find the PDF file of the trail guide here.
Overall it's a great hike. If you want to learn more about Memphis, this is where you can do it. Good luck and happy trails.
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