Best Laid Plans…

Monday, I had deliberately left Knoxville early so I would arrive in Memphis at lunchtime. I was excited to try the ribs, the Food Network had declared, “The best ribs in America”. The restaurant is The BBQ Shop and it has a long standing tradition in Memphis. Memphis BBQ is known mostly for pork, the ribs are either served wet or dry. Wet ribs have sauce put on them before, during and after the smoking process, while dry ribs have a spiced dry rub applied to them before the smoking begins. Memphis is home to World Championship BBQ Contest, which is recognized in the Guiness Book Of World Records as being the largest BBQ pork championship in the world. There are many amazing bbq restaurants in Memphis and you pretty much can’t go wrong with any of them. I’ve eaten at Central BBQ, Corky’s, Payne’s and Vernon’s all were equally delicious. Today however was going to be The BBQ Shop, and I couldn’t wait! There’s been a lot of hype surrounding this place and I had to see if it was really worth the crown of “Best ribs in America.”

I pulled up and was feeling so lucky I actually found a spot to park right in front of the restaurant! This didn’t strike me as odd until I got out of the car and noticed the restaurant was dark. A small sign hung on the door saying, “Sorry closed on Monday’s due to Covid”. The reality of our times hit me and I was once again aware of changes everyone in the world was having to make. Being the optimistic guy that I am, I set off to find another BBQ joint nearby. Up ahead I saw the sign, yet as I got closer I could see no cars in the parking lot, this restaurant was also closed on Monday. Up Ahead was the sign for Interstate 40 which I took as a sign to get back on the road and find another BBQ place in Arkansas across the Mississippi River. I plugged in BBQ restaurants in my gps and headed back on to the highway. One, two, three BBQ places on the way to Little Rock and each one closed today. I know a sign when I see it! Change of plans , it doesn’t seen like BBQ is in my cards for today, so what else does the universe have in store for me?

About an hour later I got my answer, Chester Fried Chicken! I only have had Chester Fried Chicken one other time somewhere in the middle of nowhere Texas. I was driving and saw a sign that said last gas for 124 miles. Now when you’re out in the middle of Texas and you see a sign like that, I don’t care if you have 3/4 of a tank of gas you stop and fill up. Who knows if the other gas station is open or not? The day I did that I was pleasantly surprised by the most delicious chicken and biscuits I had ever had west of the Mississippi! I don’t normally go for the fast food spots but it smelled amazing, I was hungry and according to the sign there wasn’t anything for another two hours. All these memories flashed back to me as I drove deeper into Arkansas and when the exit came I took it. Stepping out of my car and stretching I could already smell the chicken frying.

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I was in luck there wasn’t anyone in line and I jumped to it ordering 2 chicken and biscuits to go. The one thing I did notice was that they had gone up in price considerably, maybe it was their popularity or the pandemic, either way I wasn’t going to be stopped by a couple of bucks! What makes these biscuits so good is the butter and honey glaze they spread on the top. It’s not so much to make it too sweet but just enough to enhance the flavor of the chicken. The chicken is also a real piece of boneless breast, it’s not a formed piece made to fit the biscuit, it’s slightly bigger than the biscuit so you get bites of plain chicken too. It is a little messy but done with care it can be eaten while on the road. The biscuit is crunchy and flaky and a good 2 inches thick. This makes the chicken and biscuit a perfect complement to one another. By the time I had finished the first one I had already forgotten my disappointment in the BBQ shutdown.

I pulled into Little Rock in the early afternoon and checked into my BNB for a little nap before heading out to see what I could find. I had asked my host for dinner recommendations and when a list of fast food places hit my ear I knew it wasn’t going to be my night. I know in Nyack many places are closed on Monday’s so I guess it’s a thing across most of the county, especially right now. I did the only sensible thing I could think of when in Little Rock, the home of Walmart. I decided to go explore one and see what I could find.

I know many people have their own opinions about Walmart and so do I but I’ll keep these to myself. I wanted to see how big a super Walmart really is. I wanted to see if I could understand why so many flock to these stores. Here in the birthplace of the conglomerate I saw Neighborhood Walmarts, which are like mini express Walmarts, one block away from the huge SuperCenter Walmarts which wasn’t far away from Sam’s Club, which is Walmart’s big box store. I was in Walmart county, que the music…

The first thing that grabbed me was of course the size. I walked to one end by the tire section and looked down the isle. I couldn’t see the other end of the store! I’m going to say it must have been almost 1/4 mile in length. Even more astonishing was the fact that there weren’t any empty shelves. There was stuff everywhere! Walmart Super Centers can be anywhere from 69,000 – 260,000 square feet! This one had to be the later. These are the epitome of American consumerism. I felt a little uneasy and certainly overwhelmed simply by choices. I knew I wasn’t going to be buying any merchandise there and I surely wasn’t going to buy any prepared foods. I also knew I wasn’t going to be eating fast food after my chicken and biscuit soirée. I went looking for something I thought my stomach would like, some organic fruit and yogurt. I found what I was looking for and turned to the checkout as soon as I could. I think I walked about 2 miles just inside the store so I figured that was enough workout for the day.

I can say I see why so many people do shop there. They have a huge selection and every so often there is a sign saying rollback, where they appear to have slashed a price on a certain item. I do know a store that size with that much buying power can offer more deals than a smaller supermarket. But I did find that they seem to push many of the more unhealthy items like soda and chips and prepared snacks. I choose to spend my money elsewhere ,but overall it was an experience I won’t soon forget. Where do you stand on Walmart? In some places it might be the only game in town so you may have to shop there. Please tell us your experiences good or bad. Stay tuned because my next stop is Austin! I’m excited and I hope you’ll tune in to read all about it. Until next time Boone Appétit!