A Night(club) At Dish...

Location: 948 S. Cooper St. Memphis, TN 38104

Phone Number: 901.276.0002

Cover Charge: Nada.

Food: Yes

Entertainment: Music, Dancing, Karaoke (select nights), Wii Games (select nights), TV's, etc.

Crowd: Mostly a younger crowd - partially caters to the alternative crowds

Service: Decent

Drink Specials: Great drink pricing, especially for Cooper/Young District

Smoker Friendly: No - Balcony available for smoking

Review:

Dish - Tapas Bar & Sushi Restaurant

I've been wanting to go to this bar for a while because I'm pretty into House/Trance/Electronic music. Basically, there is no demand for this genre of music in Memphis, and this is the only place that regularly spins it. I have only heard two things about Dish since I've been living here:

1. Dish is a gay bar
   
2. DJs spin good House music at Dish
   

So after a couple years, I decided to try it with my friends. We arrived a little after 11:00 PM on a Saturday night and the music was bumpin'. I was intrigued at the furniture: the first thing I saw when I turned to my right as I walked in the door was a bed - yes a bed - with three people with drinks laying on it. Cool! I kept walking back and saw tables that used big pillows as seats. My coworker best described it when he went there. He said, "I thought I had walked into an opium den." The mood is definitely relaxed and chill. Everybody looked like they were having a really fun time.

The food menu looked yummy, and the beer menu was impressive. More impressive were the prices. I stuck to liquor that night and ordered a long island and then a rum and diet. I walked out with money still in my pocket. But I'm also obligated to say my drinks weren't very strong. This could be isolated to my bartender only, so only take it for what it's worth.

Let me stress though that this is a great place, especially if you enjoy good club music and a young atmosphere. I hear that Dish occasionally gets some big-name DJs, so I they will probably be seeing my face again - maybe they'll let me DJ sometime *wink-wink, nudge-nudge*

Website: http://www.dishmemphis.com

♫ Yosemite Sam's ♫ - If Cartoons Owned Bars...

Location: 2126 Madison Ave. Memphis, TN 38104

Phone Number: 901.726.6138

Cover Charge: nope!

Food: possibly during the day, not at night.

Entertainment: Karaoke, dancing, pool, bigscreen showing the game...

Crowd: Midtown-y Variety

Service: Great - Pleasant Bartenders

Cleanliness: Decently clean - the tables and chairs are always wiped down

Drink Specials: $10 domestic pitchers

Smoker Friendly: Yep

Review:

If I had to create a boring slogan for Yosemite Sam's, it would be, "Midtown Memphis' Karaoke Bar!" because it is just that - not boring, but it is a karaoke bar located on the edge of Overton Square, right on the corner of Cooper and Madison. You know, next to Bosco's? Honestly, you can't miss it since it has a picture of gun totin' Yosemite Sam himself smack-dab on the side of the building. Even though it sticks out fairly well, I am shocked at the number of people I talk to who have never been there or even heard about it. Pardon me, Mr. Sam, for not knowing your history, but it is my understanding the bar has been there for a while, and it has certainly stood the test of time.

During peak hours & nights, you will not be able to park directly behind the building. There are plenty of well-lit spaces to park within a block, so I would advise you just skip trying to fit behind the building and move right along to the parking lot farther behind Yosemite Sam's small lot, or even a block West across the street from Memphis Pizza Cafe.  

As you walk in the entrance, you are greeted by the stocked bar immediately on your left and amateur singers belting out their favorite Journey song towards the back right of the floor. Go ahead and grab a seat - there is usually plenty of seating. Yosemite Sam's has tables-for-two as well as tables-for-twenty which make this bar outstanding for groups. 

With the bar being situated in the middle of Midtown, you will encounter many different types of people such as the artsy-fartsies, the college kids, the bachelorette party, the middle-age mamma's, you might even catch granny and grandpa there as well! Yosemite Sam's brings in a perfect blend of different groups and ages and asks them pick from a decent list of songs to sing for each other. If you don't sing, you can dance to the music, and if you don't do that, they also have a pool table - it's rarely open due to high demand, so get your cue-balls in early.

Drinks are, well, expect to pay a little extra for your drinks. They certainly won't rob you, but they do charge $10 for a pitcher of domestic beer which is a couple bucks more than they charge down the street. But the pitchers are nice and big - perfect for my group of friends since we like to make sure everybody keeps a full glass. The bartenders are very friendly and I get the impression that they have been working at Yosemite Sam's for a while. They certainly know what they're doing!

Though it's a great bar, I only have one complaint - when it is "the guy" who is taking requests and working the karaoke equipment, expect to wait a long time if you put a request in unless: a) you hand him a good tip, or b) you can push your cleavage together. I refuse to spend $20 to have my chance at a song, and since I'm a male, "b)" isn't an option, so it usually is a long wait until my name is called. But, I suppose this is good news for those hardcore karaoke'ers or well-endowed women who pretty much demand that it is their turn next...

Overall, this is a great bar located in a fun part of the city. You'll enjoy singing your favorite tunes while being able to knock back a few cold beverages. Bring yourself and serenade a stranger, or bring a big group of friends and put on your own little concert - see if you can inspire the entire crowd to dance and sing to your song. I promise you'll have fun, and you'll probably end up wanting to stay longer than you anticipated.

The Windjammer Restaurant and Lounge

Location: 786 E Brookhaven Cir. Memphis, TN 38117
Phone Number: (901) 683-9044
Cover Charge: None with my experience, carry a $5 just in case.
Food: Pub Food
Entertainment: Karaoke (Wed-Mon), Darts, Shuffleboard, TVs
Crowd: Variable. Young and Old
Service: Good, Friendly Service
Cleanliness: Decent
Drink Specials: $5.00 domestic pitchers (!!!)
Smoker Friendly: Yes
Review:
If you love Karaoke and need it more than once a week, you'll love Windjammer. It's located in what appears to be a renovated single-story house a few blocks from Poplar and Whitestation in East Memphis, so it's a pretty convenient location for both the Midtown hippies and the Suburb stiffs. The crowd reflects this. You will see college kids there, and you might even find your grandma singing her favorite song. There is plenty of parking available in front, too.

By day, Windjammer is a restaurant, and judging from the menu, it seems to be a pretty good one too. Though I cannot comment much about the day-scene aspect of the bar, my friend (who loves the place) can. He made a comment that he drove by the place one day and it looked like it had burned. It hadn't, but that may give you an idea on its outward appearance. Don't let this discourage you.

At night is when this place really starts to come alive. Walking up to the building, you can see lights through the windows and you can hear the faint sound of the bass of the karaoke speakers seeping through the walls. Upon opening the front door, you are greeted with the sounds of somebody singing or attempting to sing, which could be a good or bad thing. During the weekend, this place can get relatively crowded. There is a front room, a side room, a back room, (all of which are open to each other), and a back porch. Most of the time, you'll be able to easily find a place that suits you best without any problems.

The front room has booths and tables for sitting, a karake stage, and a nicely sized tv for projecting the lyrics of a song for all to follow. The side room has a few tables as well as a shuffleboard table for your entertainment. The back room has dart boards and larger tables for larger groups. The bar is located in the area between the front and back room and has a good number of barstools. The back porch is really nice if you want to get away from the singers for a little bit. It's covered and resembles your typical homely back deck.

The servers are incredibly nice. Usually, they'll come around and give you what you need, but if it's a really busy night, don't count on them to make it to you with promptness. It's usually best to go to the bar and order your own drinks when it's really crowded, unless you don't mind waiting. My favorite part about Windjammer, and I'm sure all my friends will agree with me, is their $5.00 domestic pitchers. It's a great place to end the work week with cheap beer, karaoke with a really nice song selection, and a friendly environment. This place is really fun, and it's extremely easy to waste an entire night here without even realizing it.

Anything Else: The blonde waitress can talk anyone into drinking a beer.
Website: N/A