Huey's (Poplar)

Huey's (Poplar)
4872 Poplar Ave
682-7729

A few weeks ago after visiting the new My Big Backyard exhibit at the Botanic Gardens, we found ourselves starving in East Memphis. (We had planned to eat tapas at the garden but ended up playing too long and missing them.) I'm not sure how we decided on Huey's much less the one on Poplar rather than the one in Midtown, but that's where we ended up.

Satchel (age 7) goes through serious burger kicks, but he wasn't currently on one. I told him that Huey's always wins best burger in the Memphis Flyer's Best of Memphis poll, thinking I might persuade him. "For real?" he said, impressed. "For real," I said. He still didn't seem sold, but then I remembered the potato soup. Satchel is always interested in potato soup! Jiro (age 5) is always interested in french fries. I'd been wanting to try the sliders (a.k.a. Little Miners). I figured we were golden.

It was about 7:30pm on a Thursday when we rolled in. The monkeys paused by the candy machines in the entry way to verify that they could indeed get a quarter after completing their meals before agreeing to sit down. The seat yourself sign was up, so we headed to a booth in the back.

As soon as we sat down, the monkeys noticed a sink attached to the wall, among other things. And of course they couldn't miss the frill picks in the ceiling. "This place is awesome!" they both agreed. (Had we sat next to the wall you can draw on, I'm sure they would have been beside themselves.) We were off to a good start!

Our drink orders were taken right away and I was very impressed by the way the kids' waters arrived. They were in the regular water glasses with a plastic top and straw added. A major improvement over the usual styrofoam.



It only took us a few minutes to decide what we wanted to eat. Potato soup for Satchel, potato skins for Jiro, a trio of Little Miners for me, and a Senor Huey for Warren. Since we had run the kids ragged at the Botanic Gardens, they were sitting quietly. Jiro requested a notebook to doodle in. (On a later visit the monkeys were presented with activity pages and crayons. Not sure if our waitress forgot this time or figured we were all set.)

Our food came out in about ten minutes, which was excellent. Satchel complained that I failed to order his soup without green onions, but they were easily removed. Despite having potato dishes of their own, the monkeys still liberally helped themselves to my french fries. Satchel was actually dipping french fries into his potato soup!


I thought for sure that someone would want one of my sliders, but both monkeys were content with the Potato Fest they created for themselves. The sliders were okay, but not great. I would definitely recommend sticking with the usual Huey burger.

The highlight of the meal came when we were done eating and the monkeys were given the go ahead to shoot their frill picks into the ceiling. Satchel was actually quite good at it and got three or four in. Jiro tried and tried, but never quite made it. (It was clearly more fun to try.) I laughed as they attempted this feat and I must have laughed a bit too hard, because they challenged me to do it. I failed miserably. It's way harder than it looks!


Once we were out of frill picks, and could no longer find any on the floor, we were able to get the monkeys out of the restaurant. On the way out they were both magnetically drawn to the ice bin which was wide open on the backside of the bar. Had I been two seconds slower they both would have had their hands in there. It was the one tiny crack in this super kid-friendly restaurant.

Satchel and Jiro talked about Huey's non-stop for the rest of the week. A few short days later we found ourselves back at the exact same one. (We sat next to the drawing wall on our second visit.) That still did not sate the children. Warren ended up making a whole vat of Huey's potato soup at home, which the boys ate for five days straight!

Here's the Huey's Potato Soup recipe--I clipped it out of a magazine six years ago!

Serves 8
1/2 stalk celery diced
1 small onion minced
1 stick butter
2 cups chicken base (16 oz)
2 cups half & half
2 1/2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
crumbled bacon, green onion, shredded cheddar to garnish

1. Peel potatoes, combine celery, onion, butter, chicken base, potatoes and top off with water.
2. Cook for about one hour or until potatoes are tender
3. Mash potatoes
4. Put in food processor and begin adding half & half while blending
5. Garnish with crumbled bacon, chopped green onion, and grated cheddar cheese

Finished product should be a nice, smooth puree, not thick or lumpy. When it gets too thick add half & half, not water.

Bagel Company of Memphis (Closed)

From the 10/13/10 CA: The Bagel Company has gotten a facelift, changed its name to City East Bagel and Grille, and is now also open for dinner 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday (and available for parties and special events on Friday and Saturday nights). Beer is being served, and you can take your own wine.

Bagel Company of Memphis
6698 Poplar Avenue
754-2660


Remember when there was a bagel shop on every corner? Okay, maybe not every corner, but there was definitely a rash of bagel shops in the late nineties (?), and now there's just one--The Bagel Company of Memphis. If memory serves me right, it used to be called something else a little more Jewish sounding. Johan Sebastian Bagel? Regardless, despite growing up rather close to this place (in a Jewish household), I never set foot inside the door until last summer. I went with a couple of friends after skating at Shelby Farms and put it on my list of places to take the monkeys. A year later, we made it!

I took off a couple of Wednesdays ago to enjoy one last day of summer with the boys before sending them off to school. We planned to spend the bulk of the day swimming at the JCC, so I thought starting off with breakfast at the Bagel Company would be nice. Satchel (7) is a big fan of bagels, so I expected him to be especially excited.

When we pulled in to the parking lot, the monkeys couldn't help noticing the McDonald's next door. Jiro (5) thought I was going there and immediately started chanting "McDonald's! McDonald's!" I pointed towards the Bagel Company and informed him that was where we were eating. And surprisingly he didn't protest. (I took a moment to think of the last time we went to McDonald's and I couldn't remember. Thanks to the Sterns' we avoided fast food entirely on our 3200 mile road trip!)

The monkeys excitedly exited the car and began scaling the handicapped railing leading into the restaurant. I grabbed their collars and reminded them that we were going to a restaurant, not a playground, and to get it together. That's when Satchel spotted the Jabberblabber newsstand. "I love that magazine," he said. "Grab two," I instructed as I opened the door.

Satchel and Jiro, Jabberblabbers in hand, marched in and sat down at a table near the door. It was a little after eleven, so we had clearly missed the breakfast rush, but there were still quite a few full tables. The early lunchers, I presume. I looked around for a more secluded spot, but Satchel was insistent. We sat down and they immediately got to work on the photo search as I scanned the menu.

I tried to draw Satchel's attention to the numerous bagels behind me in the case (16, to be exact) and I listed off several food options to the both of them, but they only cared about the photo search. I managed to get Jiro to tell me he wanted eggs and Satchel muttered something about pancakes. "No bagel?" I asked, stunned. He just shook his head.

I ordered two waters for me and Satchel and an orange juice for Jiro. Then I had to figure out what I was going to order. On my initial visit I tried the Matzoh Brie thinking it was going to be something special, but found it hard to finish. (It's matzoh and scrambled eggs, served with jelly or syrup.) I was torn between an omelette (which could also be turned into a burrito) and the skillets. (I'm not a bagel and lox kinda girl, but I hear they are good.)

I decided to ask the waitress for her recommendation, and ended up going with the Farmer's Skillet with grilled sausage, veggies, and potatoes with a scrambled egg and melted cheese on top. It also came with a bagel of my choice so I went with jalepeno cheddar. I ordered Satchel's pancakes and the 2 Egg Breakfast for Jiro. "Does he usually eat two eggs?" she asked. I looked at her confused. "Do you want the kid's breakfast instead?" she clarified. Oh! I didn't even notice the kids' menu. Oops. A quick glance and I discovered that he could have a nearly identical meal (minus one egg) for $1.36 less. "Oh, okay," I said.

Once the ordering was out of the way, I was free to help the kids with their photo searches and whatnot. It was nice to have them focused on an activity that did not require batteries. In fact they were so focused it was difficult to get them to focus on their breakfast which came out amazingly fast.

Everything looked great, but Satchel immediately frowned. "Where's my bacon?" he asked. I tried to explain to him that he did not order bacon, but he could not be convinced. I kindly asked the waitress for some bacon and she returned with a giant plate of it two seconds later. "Wow, how did she do that?" Satchel asked, amazed.

"It was already cooked, I guess," I said, rather impressed myself.

I spread the cream cheese on Jiro's bagel and he tore right into his eggs. Oddly his potatoes did not interest him--they were like French fry squares--but Satchel offered (between bites of bacon) to help eat them. My skillet had the same potatoes, crumbled sausage, and onions and peppers. With the egg on top, it was quite hearty. I doused it with hot sauce and enjoyed eating it, but I think it might have been better with some sort of sauce, salsa maybe? Just a bit dry. I had no room for even one bite of my bagel! Satchel plowed through the bacon and ate one of his two pancakes, which he said were very good. Once everyone was done eating, Jiro convinced me to get a Diet Coke out of the cooler so he could have a sip. (I needed caffeine, so I agreed without much of a fight.)

In general we were all quite pleased with the food. Once they were done, the monkeys went right back to Jabberblabber. Had it not been the free lollipops for "good kids" by the register, I may never have dragged them away.

Our total was $20 plus tip. A little steep for just the three of us, but we had a decent amount of leftovers and probably could have eaten for a little less had we skipped the drinks and side of bacon. (Or had Satchel actually ordered a bagel!)

Lisa’s Lunchbox

The guest blogging continues! Thanks to Andria for demystifying a little slice of East Memphis.

Lisa’s Lunchbox
5885 Ridgeway Center Parkway

In the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that I do, sort of, work for Lisa’s Lunchbox. I discovered the restaurant a year ago, just after starting a new job in East Memphis. My biggest concern about my office location was that I wouldn’t be able to walk anywhere for lunch. During my first week, I pulled up a Google map of my work address and searched for “restaurants,” just to see what was closest. I was shocked and thrilled to see a listing that was just across the (shortest crosswalk-light ever) road, so I walked over.

What I found inside a non-descript, un-signaged office building was a little lunchtime oasis. With a staff of three – Lisa Clay, Lauren Gray and Laura Leike – the converted office space held an open kitchen, seating for about 30, and most importantly for me, a non-stop stream of friendly chatter. Still feeling awkward and unfamiliar in my new job, I entered a place where I instantly felt welcome. They took my name the first time I ordered, and when I came back a couple days later, they remembered it. Oh, and the food? It was really, really good. I was hooked.

So hooked, in fact, that when I couldn’t find their menu online to show a friend, I offered to create and keep up their website on a contract basis (the terms of our agreement are complex, but I can tell you that they involve at least one chocolate-peanut butter chess bar a month). But I swear to you that this review is not just another online marketing effort. Hey, did I mention the delicious chess bars? And that Laura is now managing their second location, conveniently located at 775 Ridge Lake Blvd?

So anyway, where were we? Ah yes, summer break. Miss M was home at the Compound while I was at work, so one day, Kristy generously and ingeniously offered to bring her over to my office so we could have a mother-daughter lunch. Although Lisa’s is frequented almost exclusively by the corporate crowd, I thought almost-6-year-old Miss M could handle herself well enough to get us through the meal without any askance glances.

I deliberately picked a post-rush lunchtime of 12:45, and most of the executives were heading back to their lairs as we came in. Lauren immediately asked Miss M’s name and said they’d be happy to make anything she wanted. This may sound like an extra accommodation for the company webslinger, but they offer the same service to every customer. If they have the parts to put it together, they’ll make it. Miss M’s tastes are pretty simple, though, so she went for a basic grilled cheese and I got my usual Baby Blues salad, which is a huge spinach salad loaded with grilled chicken, strawberries, oranges, bleu cheese, and seasoned pecans that I would happily eat all by themselves. I let Miss M pick the table, so of course we ended up at the one with the Spongebob Squarepants lunchbox.

After drinking most of the giant bottle of orange juice she picked from the drink cooler, Miss M wasn’t all that hungry when her panini-pressed grilled cheese came out. While she was checking out the room, however, she noticed the big stack of home-made sweets on the counter and started asking for cake. While I’d hoped we’d have some time to discuss the urgent issues of the day – the mayor’s resignation, health care reform, the nihilist vs. existentialist struggle displayed in the story arc of High School Musicals 1-3 – once she saw the dessert pile, there was really nothing to talk about except whether she could have some cake and how much real food she would have to eat in order to do so.

Because it was a special occasion, and because I didn’t want my eldest child to make a huge off-putting scene around people who regularly touch my food, I acquiesced after she ate one half of her grilled cheese. Okay, really, Lisa told her to help herself, but I’d already decided it was okay! As I expected, Miss M was able to eat about two bites of the giant treat (it was actually a big gooey brownie, not cake) before saying she was full, so we packed up the other half of her sandwich and 7/8ths of her dessert and headed on our way. (As evidence of how big the salads are, I offer Exhibit A: brownie leftovers.)

All in all, we had a delicious and mostly-pleasant lunch, and the ladies at Lisa’s did everything to make us happy, but I do feel the need to make a monkey caveat. When you walk into Lisa’s Lunchbox, you won’t see any high chairs or booster seats. You won’t see a changing table in the bathroom; in fact, there is no bathroom, not unless you go out into the office building itself. So although I won’t say it’s a kid-unfriendly place (the jars of free candy on the counter exist specifically to lure orthodontia patients), it certainly isn’t designed for children, especially small ones. I’ve been there with my baby and with my big kid, and felt welcome both times, but I also was a little wary of the suited masses and how they might feel if a sticky face passed too closely by their tables. If this doesn’t worry you, or you happen to be one of those masses yourself, dig out the Google map and come on over.

Salsa Mexican Restaurant

Stephanie found an independently owned restaurant in East Memphis that serves chicken nuggets!

Salsa Mexican Restaurant
6150 Poplar Ave # 129
683-6325

Wednesday night I was feeling worn out and decided that I would take a night off from cooking. I considered the places in our neighborhood where my family likes to eat, and unilaterally picked Mexican. Hey- I plan the menus at the house. Why should that night be any different?

Now, when I think about going out for “Mexican” food, I take a number of things into account. Am I in the mood for real Mexican, or Tex Mex? Do I want a chain? A good margarita? Empanadas from On the Border? (I have a weakness, what can I say.) And on a night when I need dinner to be easy with no fights, I think, “Will Connor eat anything there?” Taking my extremely picky six-year-old son into consideration removes Swanky’s and Las Tortugas from the mix. (Sad, but true.) My need for a margarita takes the chains (OtB, Cozymel’s) out of the mix. (Too sweet.) Taking Chip into consideration removes El Porton from the mix (great margaritas, but he tires of their food.) I remembered that we had never checked Salsa for a kids’ menu, so I called and got the thumbs up on chicken fingers and fries. And just like that, we were off.

Salsa has long been a favorite of ours. The owner, Caesar Para, has done a great job maintaining the quality of the food and atmosphere over the years. It is one of the great locally-owned shops in the Regalia Center at Poplar and Ridgeway, a shopping center that is a real asset for us East Memphians. I don’t know why we had never been to Salsa with the kids- I guess we’ve managed to put it into the “date-night restaurant” category and forgot to consider it beyond that. In fact, Salsa is the very first place we ever went as a couple without Connor. (The week after he was born, Mom insisted we get out of the house and go have lunch somewhere without the baby. It was a good call on her part, even though I cried pretty much the whole time we were there. It will always be a fond memory for me, because now I can look back and laugh at how crazy those first few weeks are.)

Although there is some outdoor seating at Salsa, we chose to go inside because of the alarming number of bug bites my three-year-old, Chloe, had already received in the car on the way to the restaurant (but that’s another story altogether). We passed a sign announcing live music at 7:00, but we didn’t think much of it. It was 6:15 and we didn’t plan to be there all night. We were seated quickly and noticed that the wrap-around bar was already completely full of middle-aged East Memphis folks. I guess Wednesday is the night this crowd hangs at Salsa. (I understand from a bartender friend that all the restaurant bars in that area have an unofficial “night.”) No matter, they were all well-behaved and there was plenty of room for us, along with the several other families I noticed who were already there and eating.

I saw right away that the appetizer menu featured a spinach/cheese dip but not a Connor-approved “plain” cheese dip. I figured I’d order it anyway and see if I could trick him into it. However, when taking our drink order (two margaritas, two Sprites), the server asked, “Would you like some cheese dip while you look at the menu?” The kids both immediately exclaimed, “YES!” so that was that. And it was good white cheese dip- not as good as their spinach and cheese dip, but still good. The salsa at Salsa is also excellent- very fresh, very well flavored, and served with good crispy chips which aren’t too heavy. Between the dips and the margarita, I was satisfied before even considering a main course!

Let me get the kids’ meal discussion out of the way first. Chloe wanted both a quesadilla and chicken fingers. (Other choices were tacos or a junior burrito.) The last time I was conned into ordering one of each for them to share, there weren’t enough chicken fingers to go around (and of course Connor wouldn’t touch the quesadilla) so it wasn’t a pleasant experience. I said to Chloe, “It’s one or the other, not both.” Of course she chose chicken- if her brother had chosen “jump off a bridge” then that would have been her choice too. She’s in full brother-worship mode right now. So long story short, I came home with two full orders of kids’ chicken fingers and fries. I’ll assume it’s because they filled up on cheese dip and Sprite, since it all tasted fine. In fact, the chicken actually tasted like chicken, which might have been the problem- not processed enough! Which is one of the reasons it was so good. Kids!

Chip got the Tostada Regalia, a large flour tortilla with layers of refried beans, seasoned beef, shredded lettuce, mixed cheeses, diced tomato, sour cream and guacamole. Everything was flavored perfectly, which is one of the things we like about Salsa. They aren’t afraid to give a spicy little kick to their foods, and they never under-season the meat. I ordered a combo plate with a cheese enchilada and a beef burrito. The burrito had the same beef as Chip’s tostada, and was topped with Ranchero sauce. It was wonderful. The enchilada was topped with what I believe is salsa Colorado- it was red but smokier than the Ranchero. It was fantastic- I could eat a whole plate of those! Again, it’s impressive how much flavor Salsa packs into a regular ol’ cheese enchilada. Yum. My plate also had refried beans and rice, which were better than average and were enjoyed by both Chloe and me.

Chip and I enjoyed our second margaritas as we lingered to see if the kids would ever eat any of their chicken. By then, it was 7:00, which meant the band was starting and the bar was officially PACKED! It was crazy! The middle-aged East Memphians were serious about their night out, too- they were dressed to the nines, hair and makeup perfect, they all seemed to know each other, and many of them were really dancing, right from the first song! It was fun to see. While my guys finished paying and boxing up the chicken (in Styrofoam, just like the kids’ drinks- sigh), Chloe and I pushed our way through the crowd to the area where the dancers were. And we danced, and mingled. Soon the guys came up and watched the end of a song with us, and we finally made our exit. It was a fun night! Great food, and a little bit of entertainment, at a reasonable cost (if you don’t factor in the margaritas).

However- I could tell that around 7:00 our server was anxious to move us along and get us out of there. I didn’t feel uncomfortable about it, or particularly pressured, I could just see that she knew where the night was headed. So although I love Salsa and recommend it for a family outing, if you go on a Wednesday you might want to plan it so you are out of there by 7:30. But one way or another, you should plan to go see Caesar and the crew and enjoy some good Mexican food out in my neck of the woods.

The Buckhorn Exchange (Denver, CO)

The Buckhorn Exchange
1000 Osage Street
Denver, Colorado
303-534-9505

Between Columbia, MO and Denver, CO we continued to follow the Sterns' suggestions. We were particularly disappointed when we discovered that the nearby lodge they suggested in Wapiti, Wyoming was in foreclosure. Why the disappointment? We were going to try Rocky Mountain Oysters for the first time. After a little reading ahead, I discovered that we could also try RMOs at the Buckhorn Exchange in Denver, along with rattlesnake and a variety of other rare meats.

The Buckhorn Exchange is Denver's oldest restaurant. It's origins date back to 1893 and it is actually considered to be a restaurant/museum. It was opened by Henry Zietz, who was a member of Buffalo Bill Cody's famed band of scouts. The restaurant/museum is filled with over 500 feats of taxidermy, including buffalo, elk, moose, bear, and even a zebra. (Warren and I joked that all that was missing was a nine foot long giraffe head!)

We arrived around 2:30 after a nice morning at the Sierra Nevada Outlet in Laramie, Wyoming. "I hope they're still open," I wished out loud, knowing that 2:30pm can sometimes be a strange time to eat lunch. As we approached the door, I looked at their hours. Lunch ended at 2:30pm. "Dangit!" I lamented.

Warren, however, read the fine print. "It says the upstairs bar is open."

"Think we can take the kids to the bar?" I asked no one in particular, and then opened the door. "Maybe we can still get a seat," I said optimistically.

I could see several tables of diners and a nice man approached me. "You can have a seat upstairs and order from the bar menu," he said, pointing me toward the stairs.

"Is it okay to take kids up there?" I asked.

"Sure, no problem," he said. "And feel free to look around down here if you like."

We all got an eyeful of the taxidermic triumphs before heading up the stairs. The bar was actually a Victorian parlor with tables made from poker tables made in Germany. Colorado liquor license #1 was proudly displayed over the old oak bar. It definitely felt like we had walked into the old west.


The bartender greeted us and told us to sit where ever we wanted and handed us the bar menu. I glanced at it quickly and then my heart sank. "They don't have what we want on the bar menu," I said sadly.

The bartender overheard me and asked what it was we were looking for. I sheepishly answered, "Rocky Mountain Oysters and rattlesnake."

"No problem," he said.

Happy again, we set off to find a place to sit. Soon after we settled in, another group came in with a small child, and then four men came and sat on some sofas nearby. The bartender took our drink order and we examined the menu more closely to find something for the boys to eat. That’s when we noticed that the rattlesnake cost $16. Yikes.

“When else will we get a chance to eat rattlesnake?” we reasoned. The RMOs were $12. We never saw the kids menu, so we ordered a buffalo burger for them to split. It came with a choice of saratoga chips, beans, or a little of both. We went with a little of both. Satchel, who was freezing, requested a bowl of soup. Navy bean and ham was the soup of the day, so we ordered that. Warren also noticed that they had a Samurai rice beer, so we ordered one of those too, even though it was a bit random.

When our drinks came out, the boys got theirs in little boots, which was just precious. (They are probably in a lot of westerny restaurants, but this was our first experience with them, so we were impressed.) Lest the boys get too excited, Warren said, “I hope that doesn’t mean it’s going to taste like feet.”

Even the bartender laughed at that remark. “Now, that’s one I’ve never heard before,” he said.

While we waited for our food, we did a little exploring. First, the restrooms. (Very nice, with swinging old west doors.) Second, the taxidermy. I spotted a jackalope across the room, so we had to check it out. Next, the boys noticed some squirrels outside the window on a tree branch. They were busy collecting nuts and building a nest. (Or something.) Satchel asked, “Do they have squirrel on the menu?” Warren and I looked at each other, shrugged, and answered not too confidently, “No.”

We noticed the bartender coming in through the back with something for another table and the monkeys said, “Let’s look outside.” I followed them and soon found myself in the beer garden of my dreams. Their second story enclosed patio was just awesome. A chuckwagon was parked in one corner and had a separate little kitchen space, sparkly lights decorated the ceiling, and the overall atmosphere was super cozy.

Back inside, it was chow time. Everything came out at once and we suddenly realized just how much food we ordered. The bartender brought over a couple of TV trays for our overflow and we looked in amazement at the feast before us. The rattlesnake was served on top of a cream cheese/chili lime dip with multi-colored tortilla chips. (We were expecting it to actually look like a rattlesnake, I think.) The RMOs just looked like, well, fried oysters. They came with tartar and cocktail sauce.

I made Warren try a RMO first. Hesitantly, he put it in his mouth. “It’s good,” he assured me. I tried one, dipped in a generous amount of cocktail sauce. It was good. In fact, I might have thought it was a regular old oyster had I not known better. Next, we convinced Jiro to try one. He loved it and proceeded to eat several. Satchel, who was quite happy with his soup and burger, could not be swayed.
The rattlesnake, get ready for it, kind of tasted like chicken. The dip it came with was very tangy and spicy, and we easily ate it all up. Again, Jiro was happy to try it, but not Satchel, a complete reversal from our ordinary experiences.

While we were enjoying our meal, Warren had one great one liner after the next, and the funniest part was that he really wasn’t trying to be funny.

“I wonder if it is one testicle or two?” he asked me. (I asked the bartender, and he answered “two” between giant gasps of air and audible laughter.)

RMOs are traditionally made from the young calfs, Warren told me, then explained, “You probably don’t want the adult ones...because of the semen.”

While encouraging me to keep up with my half of the order, he said, “Eat more, I’ve been stuffing myself with the big ones!”

Finally, he suggested that should we ever order RMOs again, we get them with bratwurst.

When we were all done, we paid up, took one more gander at the patio, then went downstairs to check out the decor there. We ran into a few other staffers there, and like the ones we had already encountered, they were super friendly and very tolerant/accustomed to tourists. We snapped a few pics and then headed back to the car and our next adventure. We all agreed that the stop at the Buckhorn was the highlight of our culinary tour. Thanks Jane and Michael!

Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream (Columbia, MO)

Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream
21 S. Ninth St.
Columbia, MO
(573) 443-7400

After dining at Booches, we decided to walk around Columbia's charming town square for a bit to let the monkeys get their ya-yas out before hitting the road again. As we strolled down Ninth, we came across a little dog.


And then we saw this sign:


Shakes, sundaes, splits, boozey drinks, and kids eat free! What could be better than that? "Let's get some ice cream!" I said.



Sparky's is one of those funky, homegrown places with a lot of personality, like Otherlands. Inside the chairs were all hand-painted and mismatched. The walls featured local art--crocheted Papa Smurfs, Garfields, and Elvis. There was a flavor suggestion board overflowing with tiny pieces of paper, pictures of customers, etc. And yes, it was packed with people, both young and old.

This is my kind of place. In fact, I once had dreams of opening my own ice cream shop. I was going to call it The Purple Cow and I was going to sell kids' consignment clothes in the back. (And I suppose I was going to serve ice cream with Satchel slung onto my body.)

It's probably best that I kept my day job.

Anyways, the ice cream flavors were all as fun as the decor--coconut chocolate chip, green tea, white russian, mango, coffee, blueberry, etc. However, what Warren immediately noticed was the "Adult Beverage" section. (In real life, it isn't blurry!)


"I want a Guiness shake!" he said excitedly. However, when it came time to order, he opted for a scoop of green tea. I went for the coconut chocolate chip and Jiro ordered cinnamon. Satchel, inexplicably, wanted nothing.

"Whatever, dude," I said.

The servers were all college aged and hippified, and I had no doubt that Sparky's was the coolest place in town. Because it was bustling we went outside to eat our ice cream. Jiro ate about half of his before giving it to Satchel and demanding mine. Then he gave mine to Satchel and I inherited the cinnamon. "Mmm, it tastes like Cinnamon Toast Crunch," I said, relating to the monkeys on their level.

We walked around a bit and then headed to the car. I noticed the YouZeum and told Warren we should come back through Columbia on our way back to Memphis. It seemed like it would be pretty easy to spend several days in Columbia without ever getting bored (or hungry)!

Ten days later, we did return, thanks to the siren call of the Guiness Float. (Sadly, we did not have time for the YouZeum.) It was about 8pm on Friday night and Sparky's was REALLY packed this time. Satchel decided he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice and immediately said, "I want what you had last time." Unfortunately they didn't have coconut chocolate chip this time, so he opted for the cookies and cream. Jiro got his all time favorite, vanilla. (Whatever.) Me? Chocolate chip peanut butter. Mmmm.

Warren asked the girl behind the counter what flavor came with the Guinness Float and she said it was his choice. He asked for a recommendation and she said, "I don't like Guiness, but a lot of people get it with chocolate." (Personally, I would have taken a cue from Jiro and gone with vanilla.) The sign clearly said that adult beverages had to be consumed on the premises, so we took a seat by the window.

The kids discussed Pokemon strategies...


And Warren slurped down his Guiness Float like it was the best thing ever. (I had a sip, but I'm not a big fan of Guiness.)


I enjoyed just sitting back and taking in the ambiance. The crocheted dolls were hilarious and there were lots of posters stuck to the window--including one for local faves, Jeffrey James and the Haul who were playing the next day! If we weren't en route to the fabulous City Museum in St. Louis, I would have insisted on staying the night.

Once we all finished our ice cream, we decided to make a bathroom run. They had a single unit for both men and women and on the door was a sign saying they had won "Best Restroom" in a local poll. I'm not sure who the other contenders were, but it was a pretty cool bathroom. It too had lots of local art and interesting things to look at like an old TV and another stone Sparky dog. It did not, however, have a changing table. That might be the one thing I'd say is bad about Sparky's. Overall, it is my dream place. Good, homemade ice cream, welcoming atmosphere, locally owned, and affordable. (I suppose people not receiving free kids' cones might find it a bit pricier than I did.)

If you are ever in the area, check it out!