What goes down in the South in terms of bachelor parties?

May 30, 2007 9:57 AM

Memphis Bachelor Party: Need some ideas for things to do as well as details on activities from TN residents.

I've got to organize a bachelor party in Memphis. However, I've never been there in my life and know no one who has. I need some ideas of 1) things to do and 2) places to eat. Here's my rough outline:

morning: Graceland (Is there anything I need to know about this?)

afternoon: Riverboat Gambling (where do I get on? Is it overrated?)

early evening: Strip Club (I have no idea about the establishments there. I want something nice and fun. Not extremely sleazy and not extremely hands off)

prime time: Beale Street (I'm thinking we're just gonna show up and this will be autopilot. Are there places to definitely go? Places to definitely avoid?)

I need filler items like good bbq joints, places I absolutely need to eat, fun stuff we can do hungover (like bowling), etc. I'm not thinking that we'll be interested in museums and stuff, but if there's something cool to see that is within our roaming area those suggestions are welcome as well.

BTW, we've got hotel rooms about 2 blocks north of Beale Street. I'm assuming that's pretty central.

posted by kookywon to travel & transportation around Memphis, TN (6 answers total)

Rendezvous
posted by Pollomacho at 10:17 AM on May 30, 2007

Graceland takes a long time. Doing it in a half day is ambitious. If you're staying off Beale, here's what I recommend: Rendezvous ribs for dinner, Raiford's for late night, I think a lot of the strip clubs were shut down earlier this year, but they could have reopened. On Beale, I like Silky O'Sullivans for a big group (and b/c they have goats that drink beer). The gambling is in Mississippi, about 30 minutes south of Memphis. They're not really riverboats. They are hotels and casinos with water around them. They don't move. Bowling and shooting ranges are good for your hungover time.
posted by Frank Grimes at 10:18 AM on May 30, 2007

Rendezvous is shit. Your hotel probably has better bbq. There is another askme thread about this somewhere - there are recommendations in there.

Raiford's just closed. The Goat died.

There is a bowling alley next to the Walmart in West Memphis that should do well for hungover bowling. It has cheap beer and no smoking.

I think the casinos operate busses from downtown, that way you won't have to bother with a designated driver. Gold Dust is allegedly the best with the best payouts and freeest flowing booze.

Beale will mostly be autopilot, you'll be able to find floozies and big assed beers most anywhere.

I can't really recommend a strip club as I've only heard stories about how ridiculously sleazy and dangerous they are. Maybe you could hire a dancer?
posted by jmgorman at 11:06 AM on May 30, 2007

Thirding the Rendezvous.

Also, the Arcade Restaurant.

And, anything in Cooper-Young.
posted by The Giant Squid at 11:09 AM on May 30, 2007

A good, casual place for beers is The Flying Saucer, which is just a block from Beale Street. They have a million things on tap. In the Cooper-Young neighborhood, there's also Young Avenue Deli (actually, more of a bar than a deli), which also has a ton of stuff on tap. Both the Flying Saucer and Young Avenue Deli have pool tables if you're interested in that.

It's been years since I have been there, but there was a really cool indoor, black-lit "cosmic mini golf" inside the mall at Peabody Place (which is a block from Beale Street). That was kind of fun.

To the chagrin of bachelor party planners everywhere, Platinum Plus, the strip club that was home of the (NSFW) "world-famous pussy-eating contest" has apparently been shut down.
posted by jayder at 3:44 PM on May 30, 2007

I just called the platinum plus. Number was disconnected. I'm definitely going to need a stripclub though. Any other suggestions? It seems like the forums are very... biased about white/black strip clubs. This is completely foreign to me.

What about "graceland too"? This seems like something that might interest my crew. Some are creative types and the others are just crazy. This looks like it would peak their interests. Anyone have any information about it?
posted by kookywon at 9:49 AM on May 31, 2007