The Best Restaurants in Memphis

Most 'best restaurants in Memphis' lists are review averages written by nobody in particular. This one's different in both directions: the picks are mine — where I actually eat and send people — and the facts underneath are verified the way we verify everything, at each restaurant's own page, most recently in August 2026.

It's organized the way real recommendations happen: by the question you're actually asking. Date night? Visitor in town? Tuesday and nobody wants to cook? Here's my answer each time — then the Michelin selections and the institutions that make this the best eating city of its size in America. (What just opened is its own rolling page, the pre-dinner move is in happy hours, the white-tablecloth splurges get their own fine-dining guide, and the plant-based version is in vegan restaurants.) Once you've eaten, things to do in Memphis covers the rest of the night. — Josh

My picks, by occasion

Eight questions people actually ask me, eight honest answers.

• Date night: Folk's FollyEast Memphis

  My date night. The prime steakhouse Memphis has trusted since 1977 — white tablecloths, the Cellar Lounge piano bar, and a room that makes any evening feel like an occasion. Dinner only, from 5:30 (5 on Sundays); book on OpenTable. (The full steak map is in our steakhouse guide.)

• BBQ: Central BBQMidtown + citywide

  My one true barbecue answer. Hickory-and-pecan smoke, no sauce in the pit, and the ribs and nachos that settle arguments. Start at the original on Central Avenue in Midtown; the downtown location sits right by the Civil Rights Museum. (For the whole pit scene, see our best BBQ in Memphis guide.)

• Out-of-towners: Gus's Fried ChickenDowntown

  The one dinner that says Memphis. Cayenne-laced hot fried chicken on Front Street in a room that hasn't needed to change — when friends visit, this is the table. Daily from 11am; expect a line and accept it as part of the experience. (The full bird map is our best fried chicken guide.)

• Cheap weeknight: Petals of a PeonyOverton Square + 4 more

  My random-Tuesday answer — and it's Michelin-recommended. Real Chengdu Sichuan (the founder trained there three years): dan dan noodles, mapo tofu, the Peony fried chicken. The 2025 Michelin Guide flagged the Cordova original, and they're up to five rooms now — Overton Square plus three Little Petal spots — with a sixth coming on Highland. Reserve through their site. A weeknight this good shouldn't be this affordable.

• Brunch: The ArcadeSouth Main

  Saturday morning, solved. Memphis's longest-billed 'oldest cafe' — pouring since 1919 — where the sweet potato pancakes and Eggs Redneck justify every minute of the wait. Daily 7am–3pm, Resy for the impatient. (The whole morning lineup lives in our Memphis brunch guide.)

• The splurge: FlightDowntown

  Anniversary mode. Everything comes in flights — the beef three ways, the wine, even dessert — so the big-night meal becomes a dozen small discoveries. Nightly from 4:30 on South Main; OpenTable, and book ahead. (Making a whole evening of it downtown? The downtown restaurant guide maps the rest of the block.)

• The suburbs: Josephine EstelleGermantown

  The pride of the 385 corridor. Ticer and Hudman — Memphis's most-nominated chef duo — brought their Italian flagship home this spring, with Rosie's Tavern pouring upstairs. Lunch Tue–Fri, dinner nightly except Monday; the hardest Resy in the metro right now, worth the refresh-clicking.

• The wildcard: Blue Honey BistroGermantown

  My 'trust me' pick. A husband-and-wife bistro on Poplar in Germantown that out-cooks its own modesty — lunch, Saturday brunch, and dinners that feel like a secret. Closed Sunday–Monday; call ahead. (Watch this space: their second act, The Clark, lands in Clark Tower in 2027.)

What Michelin says

The inaugural 2025 Michelin Guide to the American South picked five Memphis rooms — a badge no other local list is leading with. Two are already above; here are the rest.

• Hog & Hominy — Bib GourmandEast Memphis

  The metro's only Bib Gourmand — Ticer and Hudman's playful Italian-Southern spot, where the pizzas hide serious technique.

• Andrew Michael Italian KitchenEast Memphis

  The duo's original — the room that earned the James Beard finalist runs — Michelin Recommended and still the tasting-menu benchmark.

• Felicia Suzanne'sDowntown

  Michelin Recommended — Flo's Creole-Southern institution, two decades strong and now at home on South Main. Dinner Tue–Sat.

• The LobbyistSouth Main

  Michelin Recommended — chef Jimmy Gentry's room at the Chisca (its patio hour made our happy hour list too).

The institutions

The rooms that made Memphis a food city — every one verified still open.

• Charlie Vergos' RendezvousDowntown

  Charcoal-broiled dry-rub ribs in the alley across from the Peabody since 1948 — the most famous basement in barbecue.

• The Four WaySoulsville

  Soul food since 1946 — turnip greens, fried chicken, and history: Dr. King ate here. Wed–Sun 11am–5pm, with a Saturday jazz brunch. As essential as Memphis restaurants get. (The whole tradition lives in our soul food guide.)

• Cozy CornerUptown

  The Cornish-hen-and-ribs cult since 1977 — matriarch Desiree Robinson was the first Black woman inducted into the American Royal BBQ Hall of Fame. Tue–Sat.

• Payne's Bar-B-QueLamar Ave

  Since 1972: the chopped-pork sandwich with mustard slaw that ends every 'best sandwich in Memphis' debate. Lunch hours only, cash-minded, worth planning around.

• Chez PhilippeThe Peabody

  French-Asian grandeur inside the hotel — the old-school special-occasion room, polished to Forbes-star standards. Dinner Thu–Sun; afternoon tea Wed–Sun.

• Erling JensenEast Memphis

  The chef's eponymous fine-dining room since 1996 — a decade of 'best restaurant' wins in its trophy case and rack of lamb that explains why.

More I'll vouch for

The rest of the rotation — each verified open, each worth the trip.

• The Beauty ShopCooper-Young

  Karen Blockman Carrier's restaurant inside Priscilla Presley's former hair salon — dryer chairs and all. Memphis's most only-in-Memphis dining room.

• Alcenia'sThe Pinch

  B.J. Chester-Tamayo's soul food and the warmest welcome downtown — the fried chicken and bread pudding carry decades of love.

• Global CaféCrosstown

  Three immigrant- and refugee-run kitchens under one Concourse roof — Venezuelan arepas to Sudanese stews. Eat generously, feel better about everything.

• Restaurant IrisLaurelwood

  Kelly English's French-Creole flagship — a Food & Wine Best New Chef and Beard semifinalist — now at its Laurelwood home on Poplar. Resy.

• Soul Fish CafeCooper-Young + 3 more

  The catfish-and-hushpuppies standby that never misses — casual, quick, and open daily across the metro.

• Coastal Fish CompanyShelby Farms

  Oysters and Gulf fish overlooking Hyde Lake — the prettiest dinner view in the county, inside the park.

The honest answers