Pyro's Fire Fresh Pizza in Cordova runs Memphis-born fast-casual pizza, blistered in 90 seconds in a wood-fired oven with build-your-own toppings east of Memphis.
Signature dishes: Build-your-own pizza, Wood-fired Margherita
Must order: Wood-fired Margherita with house red sauce and fresh basil.
Tip: Counter service; ready in under five minutes. The Collierville branch on Houston Levee runs the same menu.
Address: 2286 N Germantown Pkwy, Cordova, TN 38016, Memphis
Central BBQ's Poplar Avenue East Memphis room runs the same dry-rub ribs and pulled pork as the original Midtown branch in a larger dining room with easy parking.
Signature: Dry ribs, Pulled pork nachos
Order: Half slab of dry ribs and a basket of pulled pork nachos.
Tip: Easier seat than Midtown or Downtown locations; Sunday lunches fill the room first.
Speros Zepatos's South Main Memphis diner is the city's oldest restaurant, open since 1919 and once Elvis Presley's regular booth. Breakfast and lunch daily.
Signature: Fried peanut butter and banana sandwich, Sweet potato pancakes
Order: Fried peanut butter and banana sandwich; sit at Elvis's marked booth.
Tip: Counter service from 07:00 to 15:00 daily. Cash and card both fine; no reservations.
Hattie B's Cooper-Young Memphis hot chicken counter, the Nashville import's second outpost, runs heat levels from Southern to Shut the Cluck Up.
Signature: Hot chicken, Pimento mac and cheese
Order: Hot quarter, dark; pimento mac and cheese on the side.
Tip: Counter service, no reservations. Lunch lines move; Saturdays can run thirty minutes after 12:30.
Pete and Sam's East Memphis Park Avenue room has run red-sauce Italian for the Bomarito family since 1948. White tablecloths, vinyl booths and a steady clientele.
Signature: Spaghetti and meatballs, Pizza bianca
Order: Spaghetti and meatballs, garlic bread, a pitcher of house red.
Tip: Open Tuesday to Sunday for dinner; closed Mondays. Reservations advised on Friday and Saturday.
Coletta's is Memphis's oldest restaurant on South Parkway since 1923, Elvis Presley's South Parkway haunt and the home of Memphis BBQ pizza topped with pork.
Signature: BBQ pizza, Spaghetti
Order: BBQ pizza with the side spaghetti.
Tip: Ask for the Elvis Room dining area. Closed Sundays and Mondays. The Appling Road location runs the same menu.
Young Avenue Deli has anchored the Cooper-Young Memphis corner since 1995 with cold beer, deli sandwiches and the city's deepest tap lists, plus live music.
Signature: Deli Club, Philly cheesesteak
Order: Deli Club on sourdough with a cold pint of Wiseacre Tiny Bomb.
Tip: Counter service for food, table service for drinks. The patio fills first on game days.
