Melanie's Fine Dining, Horn Lake, MS

Melanie's

Melanie's (Facebook page)

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Melanie's Fine Dining is a small cafe on Goodman Road in Horn Lake just west of Hurt Road next to La Petite Academy. I had seen the sign for at least a few weeks but did not get a chance to get over there until tonight. They are open until about 6:00 PM most nights.

Everybody was very friendly and the food was really good. Prices are very reasonable. I got one of the daily specials which was 3 pieces of catfish and two sides for only $10 and I chose macaroni and cheese and spaghetti and it was all very good. The spaghetti had a really good taste and I mention that specifically because at many places, spaghetti is nothing but noodles with sauce on it, but theirs was thick and had meat. My total with tax and a drink was around $14.00.

I really recommend them! They seem to do a pretty good take out business. I was there by myself at first and a lady and her daughter came in to eat inside while I was there, but during the time I was in there, 4 or 5 people came in to pick up their call in orders.

I also noticed a sign that said you got a free dessert if you checked in on Facebook so I did. I figured it would be ice cream or something like that, but the waitress said I could get any dessert so I got the chocolate cheesecake which was very good also.

Saki Endless Sushi, Southaven, MS

Saki

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Saki is a new Japanese restaurant on Goodman Road just east of Swinnea in the shopping center by Cici's Pizza and Walgreen's in the spot where La Siesta used to be. I heard about it a couple of days ago and went there last night after a rehearsal and was very pleased.

They have a regular menu but also an all you can eat menu. I didn't look at the regular menu but the all you can eat is $19 for adults and you can order as many items as you want including entrees, sushi, and sashimi within some limits. I got the General Tso chicken, a Crazy Roll, a spicy tuna roll, and two pieces of sashimi and everything was very good.

My total was around $22.00 with a drink and tax. Something to know is they charge a little extra for any sushi or sashimi that you order and then don't eat in order to keep people from ordering a bunch of food and then not eating it or asking for it to go.

I highly recommend it. At first it sounds a little expensive but it's well worth what you can get for your money.

I didn't include a link to their website yet as they don't seem to have one but I included a link to a Yelp review.

I went back today 7/24 for lunch and it was a much better deal. There are few things on the menu but there is still a very good selection of items and it's much cheaper, $12 instead of $19. Today I got the General Tso's Chicken, a Fuji Roll, and a Saki roll. All of them were very good and I will be back!

Elwood's Shells, Memphis, TN

Elwood's Shells

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Elwood's Shells is a mostly seafood restaurant on Cooper Street just north of Young Avenue in the Cooper/Young district. I went there today for lunch.

The food was good but to be honest, prices were more than I was expecting even for a mid-town restaurant. There are couple of items on the menu for $12 but most everything is $18 or more, even sandwiches. There was a separate lunch menu but nothing struck my fancy. Nothing sounded bad, I just didn't see anything that called out to me.

I ordered the Cajun Chicken Tenders which comes with Parmesan fries and they were both very good. I also ordered a side of the jalapeno slaw which was very good as well. My friend ordered an appetizer called Gator Eggs which was stuffed jalapenos and he said they were very good.

Prices aside, the food was really good and I recommend it. You will run into the typical Cooper/Young issue of parking. I happened to get there before the lunch rush and was able to park on the street very close to the building but I got lucky and got the only space that was left. The restaurant has its own parking lot but it's small. There were only four or five parking spaces and they were all taken. This isn't a fault of the restaurant; it's a mid-town Memphis problem.

All that side, the food was great so try it out if you're over that way.

Moe's Original Barbecue, Oxford, MS

Moe's Original BBQ

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Moe's Original is a regional chain with a location in Oxford, located on South Lamar Boulevard just north of Highway 6. I went there this past Thursday with the intention of going to a different restaurant but they were closed for the holiday. In fact, Moe's seemed to be the only place open so I went it and it was fantastic.

I got barbecue sandwich combo with baked beans and macaroni and cheese and everything tasted great. In particular, the beans had lots of flavor but the mac and cheese and the sandwich were great too.

I also wanted to try the nachos which my friend got that looked really good so after I ate my meal I ordered a half order which would have been enough for a meal itself and they were great also. The come loaded and the cheese sauce was particularly good. 

Prices were reasonable. The sandwich combo was just under $10 including a drink and tax. The nachos were around $7 if I remember correctly. I am definitely going to make a trip back there just to go to this place again.

Just for reference, as far as I know, they are not related to Moe's the Tex-Mex place.

Los Pilares, Bartlett, TN

Los Pilares

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Los Pilares is a Mexican restaurant on Stage Road in Bartlett just east of Elmore Road on the south side. They also have a location in Millington but I have never been to that one.

I had been there before but it's been several years ago. I went there today for lunch and it was really good. I got a chicken chimichanga lunch special. The prices were very reasonable. The lunch combo itself was about $8.00 and it came with rice and beans. I ordered a large queso and a drink and all together it was about $15.00 before tip which is about the same as most other Mexican places.

The chimichanga was large enough that I should have eaten just that and not ordered the queso, but everything was great.

I definitely recommend it if you're in the area.

Mash up time again

In no particular order

The Crazy Cactus - Pollo Alambres, chicken, chorizo, bacon, vegetables

Marlow's - Club Sandwich

Real Taste of Chicago - Sausage and beef sandwhich

Salsarita's - Chicken quesadilla

Santa Rosa - tamales and chicken chimichanga

Southaven Pizza - Chicken Cordon Blue sandwich

Wise Guy's Pizza - Sub sandwich and pepper jack bites

Fino's from the Hill, Memphis, TN

Fino's

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Fino's is a sandwich shop at the corner of Madison Avenue and McLean Boulevard. The closed last year but reopened a couple of months ago under new owners as I understand it. I had been there once before a few years and it is still as good as it used to be.

I got a half New York Club and a half tuna and both were very good. Prices are average for a cafe like this. I my total with a bottled soda was a little under a little under $20.

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Even though I got the half, I should have only picked one because the half is plenty of food. Next time, I'll get one to go instead.

Definitely give them a try.