memphis or nashville
 

Hi all - taking my husband away for his 40th birthday, first time leaving the baby with my parents - we live in NYC and i was thinking Nashville or Memphis since he loves beer, bbq and music. Which one do you suggest, we only have 2 nights??
Thanks!!!
Lori

Nashville, without a doubt. It has more to offer and is a "nicer" place to stay.

Search this forum for info.

For BBQ-definitely Memphis

For music-either/or

For BBQ and Music-Memphis!!

If he likes beer, bbq and music, I'd suggest Memphis. I've lived in both and they're both great cities to visit, but Memphis is *known* for it's bbq! Stay downtown near Beale street and visit there in the evening for blues and other music. Be sure to tour Sun Studios, see the Civil Rights Museum, hang out in the lobby of the Peabody, eat some great bbq (several threads on this site on that topic), etc.

The barbeque at South Street in Nashville (near Vanderbilt) is better than any in Memphis.

While I find that hard to believe, Gekko, there may be one good (or even great) bbq restaurant in Nashville, but there are dozens in Memphis.

I like both cities. If I had a choice of which to live in, it would be Nashville all the way. But for how the OP describes her DH, I think Memphis is the ticket!

Gekko, one thing I learned early in my youthful 4H Club days was .........once you cross the Tennessee River leaving Memphis headed toward Nashville and/or Knoxville, do NOT order bbq! It just ain't the same, babe! Maybe it's good if you don't know any better or never had Memphis Q.

have to agree with lisette....I grew up in the Memphis area, but went to school near Nashville and love love love Nashville.

But for BBQ and Music - it's BBQ & Blues, baby and that's in Memphis.

I lived in TN for many years and have dined at many bbq places in both Memphis & Nashville ... and South Street in Nashville is the best, in my opinion.

The OP is going for 2 nights ... how many places can they eat bbq???

Nashville has better microbrew & music options, as well.

Wrong gekko........you are so wrong on this one.

You can eat bbq for 2 days a plenty..

Wrong about what?

BBQ -- that's clearly a matter of opinion.

Music options? There's no debate that Nashville has more (and better) options.

Microbrews? Again, no debate that Nashville has more options.

The OP said nothing about microbrew....just let him drink beer.

ummmmm, thanks for the responses but now i'm really confused :) re: how much bbq, oh yeah we can eat a lot if its good! Re: beer, doesn't matter microbrew or not, just some nice cold beer. Re: music, we love blues. What we're looking to do is be somewhere in an awesome hotel that right outside our door (figuratively) is easy access bars/music/food, so we can really hang and make those 2 nights seem longer......
it seems like the consensus is leaning towards memphis?? we will def. be back to hit the other one someday, so really i just want him to have an incredibly fun 40th b-day party weekend.

Ok, with that post, Lori, there is no doubt that you should DEFINITELY go to Memphis!

re: how much bbq, oh yeah we can eat a lot if its good! -- Memphis. Lots of options.

Re: beer, doesn't matter microbrew or not, just some nice cold beer. -- Plenty of that in either city.

Re: music, we love blues. -- If you love the blues, Memphis it is.

What we're looking to do is be somewhere in an awesome hotel that right outside our door (figuratively) is easy access bars/music/food, so we can really hang and make those 2 nights seem longer...... -- that perfectly describes the Peabody hotel, steps away from Beale street and its dozens of bars with live music/food.

2 nights is the perfect amount of time for Memphis, too.

Have a great time!!

Given the new information, I have to agree ... if cold Coors Light, blues & barbeque are your focus, then Memphis is the choice.

But Nashville is still the nicer place to visit, in my opinion.

Lori, if you stay at The Peabody, you can just cross the street to the alley and have some fabulous ribs at The Rendevous....Now, they use a dry rub and many don't care for that ...my sister does not like the ribs there, but I love them.

For just a good old bbq sandwich, you can get that in about a million zillion places.

You will love seeing the ducks do their parade at The Peabody. Remember the cocktail party in the movie "The Firm"? It was filmed on top of the terrace at The Peabody.

Gekko, you are priceless...what new info?....Geez louise. And, whoever heard of "dining" at a BBQ place...Man, you chow down at a bbq place...you don't dine.

What's the majority as far as music scene in Nashville? Country or Blues?

I've a friend whose thinking of going down .. she's hoping to do some singing to "get her first big break" and I'm thinking she should be thinking blues instead of country; but I don't know.

She's only 19 & will be travelling with 22 yr old boyfriend. Will she even be able to get into bars & clubs?? Thanks.

Have you considered New Orleans? Certainly has the beer and music steps from great hotels.

rb -- more country than blues in Nashville, but the production companies that are there are all the big names (Sony, BMG, Warner, etc) and they produce all kinds of music. If she wants to get discovered, there are many more opportunities for that in Nashville. She should try to sing at open mike night at the Bluebird Cafe where many up and coming singers and writers get their start. She will likely not be able to get into any clubs for recreation, though, if she is under 21.

I live in Memphis and work downtown. If you stay around the Peabody hotel downtown (there are many other hotels within blocks if this is too high), you can walk most places you need to go. Beale Street has Blues City Cafe- a small, smokey joint on Beale with great steaks, ribs, etc. (Pres. Clinton ate there!) At lunch you can see the Memphis Grizzlies coaches and managers at the front table.

i finally gave up on the surprise and asked my husband which he preferred, he read all the posts and wants Memphis for our first trip to TN!

has anyone heard of the Madison hotel? since this is his big 40th, i have a decent budget for a room (up to $250) and they were willing to give me a suite for that much (which was weird, i basically told them that $340 was too much and they said, how much do you want to pay?).

I've read some decent posts - not big on chain hotels, so it seems to be between Peabody and Madison.

I've never heard of it, but visited their website and it looks beautiful. The Peabody is the big "name," but by some accounts the rooms are small and some may need renovation. You might want to check out reviews on tripadvisor. The public spaces in the Peabody are beautiful, though.

You've totally made the right decision! Memphis has MUCH better food and music! Music choices in Nashville are extremely limited. Though there are a few decent high-end restaurants in Nashville, most mid-range are awful. And most restaurants close EARLY. And you have to drive around -- can't walk from your hotel to a variety of places and no mass transit to speak of. For a fun weekend, Memphis is the place!! (Before I get blasted, I lived in TN for 11 years! Don't really see why anyone wants to go there at all.)
If you really want the best choice of music, bbq (and Mexican food), and of course beer, come to AUSTIN TEXAS!

when's his birthday?

Lori25j, you and your husband have made a good choice. Speaking just to the BBQ side of the debate, I consider myself something of a connoiseur. I am part of a group of BBQ'alholics who over the past 13 years have gone on 6 trips devoted to consuming the best BBQ this country has to offer. We're talking 4 day trips where we average 1500 miles of total driving and between 4-7 different BBQ joints PER DAY. And we eat nothing but Q. No sides, no buns, etc. Just give us the Q, and a little beer to wash it down.... We'll supply the Tums. We've done the Carolinas, Texas, Alabamy, KC, Nashville and, of course, Memphis, among others. No offense Gekko, but Nashville is in the BBQ minor leagues while Memphis is in the major leagues. No comparison. Dave

Lori, you made the right choice. I'm from California and have only visited Nashville and Memphis as a tourist. For what you and your husband want, Memphis is the way to go.

We stayed at the Peabody and really enjoyed it (we were upgraded to the an Executive Club level room, so the room had definitely been renovated). It had an old Memphis feel and we walked everywhere. If you can get a "good" room, I'd recommend it.

For the record, I liked Nashville, too. I was there for a music festival week, though, so there were many offerings all over town every night.

Have a great time.

Lori, good choice for the Blues & Q in Memphis.

dcd, I would certainly be interested in checking out some of your Q joints. Is there a place you have posted your findings and scores?

Just an fyi, my dh grew up in NC and I grew up in West Tennessee. In the beginning, we thought our tastes would clash in BBQ, but found out we both like each others area for Q. Oh, for yumo........gonna see my sister in 2 weeks in Nashville...maybe I will ask her to bring me some good ole BBQ from Memphis!

Lori, have fun!

iceeu2, I haven't done any trip reports on those BBQ binges. No score card either, altho some in the group keep one. But I have a picture of every joint we've ever sampled so I could recreate where we've been. And I do have some favorite memories. The Ridgeways in eastern TN was as good as it gets. Don't know if it's still around. Wilbur's in Goldsboro, NC was outstanding. Lexington, NC, oh my god.... Take your pick. Texas had some real all stars--Kruetz, Southside Market, Black's to name a few. Big Bob Gibson's in Decatur, AL. Memphis was all pretty good. We ate at The Interstate around midnight and, as usual, came in with our cameras flashing away. Some of the workers dove for cover, thinking it was a police raid!! Bozo's in Mason was excellent. I remember struggling to find BBQ joints in Nashville, much less good ones. But in all fairness, that trip was about 8 years ago so the BBQ landscape may have changed.

Oh wow, I forgot about Bozo's. That place has around for a very long time. I remember stopping there as a child (and that was..a while back). Do you have your photos posted on worldisround.com or any place where I can see them?

If you only have 2 days, I would do Memphis. You can enjoy some BBQ and enjoy Beale Street downtown. Nashville is kind of spread out.
Have Fun!

Thank you for the comments about Nashville music scene. They booked for Aug 16-21 and will stay at Comfort Inn "Opryland Area" = 2516 Music Valley Dr.

Don't know how good this area is, but they get a "family" discount at hotel, and the Enterprise car (will they need one?) will cost $185/5 days OFF-airport rental, even with the "under-25" surcharge. Thanks again for the help.

iceeu2, the pics are at home in albums.... One of these days I'll have to figure out how to use one of these photo websites to post pics. So far, I have not gone digital. Dave

rb, they most definitely will need a car to get around Nashville.

Why???
Is the flight to Memphis from NYC more than double the flight cost to Nashville from NYC??? it is over $300!!!! any ideas???

The flight to Memphis is more expensive because Memphis is a much smaller airport and isn't a regional "hub" for any airline. Nashville used to be an American hub (although I'm not sure if it still is).

rbtraveler -- your friends will *definitely* need a car in Nashville, especially if they're staying in the "Opryland area," which is several miles from downtown Nashville. The only thing out there really is the Opry and several hotels and chain restaurants.

i agree with the comments about the car. just stay near beale street and it's all right there for you. drink, walk around, listen to music and enjoy the time away from responsibilities.

nashville seemed to have more "temples" to music rather than real places to just relax and listen to music. an easy decision in my opinion. have fun.

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lisettemac said "The flight to Memphis is more expensive because Memphis is a much smaller airport and isn't a regional "hub" for any airline"
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Memphis is a Hub for Northwest Airlines.

You're so right, Hunter! I forgot about them. Thanks for the correction.

rb...how did your reply help with Lori's question? Why didn't you start your own thread and ask the questions, or did you think no one would reply when they saw who was asking?

Southwest Airlines serves Nashville and not Memphis. Maybe that is why fares to and from Memphis are so much more.

I live between the two cities. I find the Memphis airport much more convenient (and I get a kick out of seeing all those FedEx planes) but almost always fly out of Nashville because it is so much cheaper.