Jimmy Johns is Jimmy Johns. We needed quick and easy and although they weren’t as quick as the Jimmy Johns in Ann Arbor, this was exactly what fit the situation.
Great late night spot in Indianapolis. They basically make ridiculous sub sandwiches on bagels and somehow it all stays together. This type of post-drinking food is not what you’d normally consider, but it is delicious. The place gets pretty busy around closing time for the bars, but everyone in there seemed like good people. As long as you can get to the counter and pick up the right order, you’re in business. This was the best late night food we had the whole trip. We imagine you can go there during the day, but we can’t speak to that.
Awesome fried chicken and side dishes. A little bit outside the city, but definitely worth it. The chicken is crispy and the spices are delicious. All the sides were great and they kept the sweet tea coming. The building that holds the restaurant is literally a cottage and is about as unassuming as they come. Papa Johns
We needed dinner the first night in Louisville and didn’t want to make a huge deal about it. There was a Papa John’s that shared the parking lot with our hotel and they had a good 2 pizza deal so we grabbed two pies and pregamed.
We watched the US-Canada Olympic hockey final here and ate lunch the first day in Memphis. We mainly stuck to appetizers, and everything was as expected. Service was weak since the bartender was also the only waiter at the time we were there. The place seemed to have a ton of entertaining stuff there in addition to the TVs, bar, and food including a bowling alley downstairs and the walls were lined with memorabilia. Primetime is part of Peabody Place which is kind of a mall. Double Tree Hotel
Our hotel in Memphis gives you cookies when you check in. They were full of chocolate but also had nuts. None of us had an issue with the nuts, but no one ever said there were nuts in the cookies, so heads up if you go there.
Probably the best meal of the trip. Incredible dry ribs, great wet ribs, amazing service, great sides, delicious sweet tea, great beer. Our server Evelyn was amazing and Broady was great too. We cannot highly recommend Corky’s enough. Dyer’s Burgers
Dyer’s makes burgers using oil that’s almost 100 years old. Sounds odd, but it works. They don’t use grills here at all, everything is deep fried, from the burgers to the Twinkies. We got burgers with a few patties on them and they were extremely satisfying. Their fried Twinkies are obviously delicious too. Service was very good here as well as our man Herbert was great. Located right on Beale. Interstate Bar-B-Q
Just outside Memphis, we went here for BBQ spaghetti. The restaurant itself looks like a fast food place and has a drive through/carryout side and a takeout side. The BBQ spaghetti and the cole slaw were delicious (don’t get the spaghetti dinner, its overpriced, just order some BBQ spaghetti and an order of cole slaw and you can thank me later, the dinner also comes with bread, but they give that to you if you want it), but we probably would have been better on the carry out side since the service was weak. There was a waitress and a half doing the whole room so everything took a while and they forgot one of the items we ordered but didn’t charge us. Food is great despite service. Blues City Cafe
The so-called “Best Meal on Beale” was our late night restaurant as we somehow had more room for food. Everything here was delicious and we even got to see the bartender get in a fight with other patrons. Good times all around.
We made an impromptu, Blackberry-planned, stop at Mama Hamils in the Jackson/Madison, Mississippi area. This place is awesome. It’s a huge cafeteria style setup with good southern food. Lots of buses and groups come through so the place can be packed. The bread pudding and peach cobbler are the best around. The hot food is amazing as they have all different kinds of chicken, BBQ, salads, whatever you want. If you’re passing through, you must stop.
Really good Cajun food, we had the jambalaya and the sampler. We also drank here. This food was incredible and every time we were hungry while in New Orleans we all said we wished we had the food from Coop’s Place. Cafe Dumonde
A New Orleans staple. We went here for breakfast on the first full day in New Orleans and loved the beignets. The coffee here was delicious as well. Johnny's Po Boys
You need a Po Boy while you’re in New Orleans, and Johnny’s is the place to go: lots of options and a very popular place. We had a shrimp po boy, a catfish po boy, and a pulled pork one and they were all delicious. New Orleans Arena
We went to the Hornets-Grizzlies game and grabbed dinner at the arena. Not the greatest food, but they have lots of options from southern to sushi, everyone can find something to eat even if its not the greatest. Mr. Chubbys
While Mr. Chubby’s best feature is the all day, all you can drink option, there food was delicious. They specialize in cheese steaks but they interpret cheese steaks pretty liberally. We had ones with pulled pork and shrimp. Unbelievable. And the people who work there could not be nicer or funnier. Pizza on Bourbon Street
Like every street where people come to drink their asses off, Bourbon Street has plenty of pizza options. The quality varies from place to place, but the going rate for a slice is the not so cheap $3. Prince Conti Hotel
Our hotel, the Prince Conti offered a very European pastry based breakfast. They were nothing to write home about. New Orleans School of Cooking
The New Orleans School of Cooking is awesome. You and 60 of your closest friends cram into this kitchen/dining room/TV set and hear someone explain how to cook New Orleans food. They also feed you a ton. We had Chef Michael who was funny, engaging, and a great chef. He taught everyone about New Orleans and made some amazing dishes including the best bisque we had ever had (it was a corn and crab bisque). We sat at a table with some Australians who were traveling the US and were the only other people in our age range. Needless to say, we were the only table consistently getting up for seconds and the first table to grab beers.
Birmingham
The Mill The Mill was located next to our hotel in the Music and Entertainment district. The shrimp and grits were delicious. The restaurant also has a microbrewery and we tried some of their beers which were pretty good.
They roast and boil peanuts here. We had never had Cajun peanuts or boiled peanuts. The boiled ones tasted like beans, but the Cajun roasted peanuts were delicious and we regretted not bringing pounds back with us. Pete's Famous Hot Dogs
Pete’s was delicious. Order the Special Hot Dog All the Way to get the full Pete’s experience and you won’t regret it. Everything about the dog was delicious, the bun, the meat, the meat sauce, the mustard, everything. A can’t miss.
Nice restaurant on the Strip at UT. After 9pm, on the Friday we were there, they had 99 cent beers which worked for us. The wings here are spectacular and the burgers are a solid choice. They had some nice deals on the food, but the wings are definitely where this place shines. Our waiter James was cool and really helpful and funny, however he kept coming over at the worst part of our conversations which out of context are horrible. Taco Bell
We grabbed food at Taco Bell on the Strip. We can’t deny this happened. We won a free taco. McDonalds
We somehow also ate at McDonalds (fries and ice cream). This and Taco Bell represent the low point of our gastronomical tour.
Their market saturation got to us and we had to find one. Under normal circumstances, delicious. After everything above this, mundane. Still though, it’s clear why people love this place.
This restaurant is located in the Mount Adams area. We got here late, so some of their menu was finished, but we had a round of beers and ate. The food was pretty good. The burgers and sandwiches were probably the play, but we were a little burned out on that type of food. Skyline Chili
Cincinnati is supposedly known for its chili. Skyline is apparently THE Cincinatti chili. So, obviously we had to check it out. We went to the original location and ordered some combination of 1 bowl of chili, 3 chili dogs, 2 3-way chilis (chili over spaghetti with cheese), and chili cheese fries. The chili isn’t the sort of chili most people are used to: it’s more of a meat sauce. As our waiter put it “this is what we have,” which was a perfect description. The chili isn’t spectacular, but it complements the other food really well.
The following is a complete and exhaustive list of all the food from Chevron Adventure Week.
Jimmy Johns
Broad Ripple Bagel Deli
Cottage Inn
Papa Johns
Primetime Sports Bar
Double Tree Hotel
Corky's Ribs and BBQ
Dyer’s Burgers
Interstate Bar-B-Q
Blues City Cafe
Mama Hamils
Coop's Place
Cafe Dumonde
Johnny's Po Boys
New Orleans Arena
Mr. Chubbys
Pizza on Bourbon Street
Prince Conti Hotel
New Orleans School of Cooking
The Mill
The Mill was located next to our hotel in the Music and Entertainment district. The shrimp and grits were delicious. The restaurant also has a microbrewery and we tried some of their beers which were pretty good.
Peanut Depot
Pete's Famous Hot Dogs
Copper Cellar
Taco Bell
McDonalds
Chik-Fil-A
KFC
Tavern on the Hill
Skyline Chili