Chris in the Evening

John Corbett live at Tin Roof! Tickets are only $10 and are available online. You've seen him on Sex and the City, Northern Exposure, My Big Fat Greek Wedding and now catch him live in an intimate show at the Roof performing songs off his billboard charting self-titled debut album and his new release, Leaving Nothin' Behind.  Show begins at 8 PM. More details here.

Tin Roof, Redbull Play and Destroy

Play and Destroy is a collegiate student vs. student music battle where all you need is an iPod, creativity, and a solid song list. Competitors are given categories ex. best make out song, stripper anthems, singing in the shower, etc.


RULES:

-Build a playlist with your best song for each category and battle your opponent for the grand prize.
-You'll get to play each song for 30 seconds, so cue it up to the good part.
-Winners are judged by crowd response, ties are decided by playing an additional song.
-You must create a DJ Name for yourself in order to compete.
-You can't use the same song twice.

Play and Destroy will take place November 27th at Tin Roof Knoxville on the Strip
Event begins at 10:30 pm - 21+
For more information and to register to compete visit - www.RedBullPlayAndDestroy.com

Tin Roof Expansion

The other day I was driving along Northshore Drive and noticed a sign on the “old” Roux Barbecue restaurant across from Rooster’s. Apparently Tin Roof is expanding and taking over the former place that Roux never really got off the ground. It looks like a no-brainer since the entire building features tin roofing all over, and the building should be up to date and ready to go soon since it was totally remodeled during its last stint as a restaurant. I’m not sure if arrangements have been made to address the parking situation that ultimately afflicted Roux, but maybe they can come up with a good idea that will avoid tension with their neighbors. We’ll see. Good luck Tin Roof!

Last Minute New Year's Eve

If you’re anything like the rest of us around here you already know what doing on New Year’s Eve: Drinking. That doesn’t mean you know Where you’re drinking, just that you’ll be drinking somewhere. There are many ways to drink away the last night of the year, and below is a variety of last minute ideas to get you into 2010. (Sorry north, south and east Knoxville) Who knows, maybe we can all get together for that drink we’ve been talking about? Uh, no, I’ll be staying home watching the Vols and drinking bourbon. Feel free to comment on your plans or other options. Thanks to everyone for stopping by to check us out throughout the year. Here’s to more fun in 2010, cheers!

Downtown/Market Sq.
Club Le Conte – Society Only
Downtown Grill & Brewery – The rest of us
Le Parigo - Wonder if the duck was shipped in from Alsace?
Preservation Pub – Tiki party
Valarium & Cider House – VooDoo NY10 with downtown Hilton hotel package

The Old City
Barley’s Taproom – The usual, live music and good beer selection
Patrick Sullivan’s – Live music and the bar is open
The Crown & Goose – The Old City’s fanciest gastropub!
The Melting Pot – Someone tell Tony there’s a reservation on line 2.

The Strip
BAR Knoxville – Er, maybe not?
Tin Roof – UT Basketball, UT Football. Let’s face it, there’s no way you’re sober at midnight.
Level 10 – Short West

West Knoxville
Baker Peters Jazz Club – Damn that chicken entrée sounds delicious
Northshore Brasserie – Everything looks delicious
Paul’s Oasis – WTF
Ray’s ESG – Scarlett O’Harlot, where are you?

Tin Roof – Sober Recon

I haven’t had an opportunity to visit the Tin Roof during prime drinking hours but I did some daytime recon to get an idea of what they have to offer. I went for lunch during their second week of business and to be honest the place was pretty empty. There were two tables with diners inside and a group on the patio. I grabbed a spot near the bar and ordered a sandwich then took a look around the place while I waited for my food.

They’ve definitely done a lot of redecorating that transforms the place into something completely different from O’Charleys. The space is very open presumably for the crowds they expect with live music performances. I can’t exactly put my finger on it but the décor falls somewhere between Joe’s Crab Shack and maybe Hooters. At the entrance you see a banner promoting the game day experience with big gulp specials and “after class” specials (aka happy hour) from 2 – 7 pm every day except UT home games.

I particularly like the welcome sign that encourages you quench your thirst with cold beer. Thanks for the reminder, too bad I wasn’t able to sample any drinks but they do appear to have a large draft selection with a fully stocked bar of booze. I don’t think anybody would have a problem finding a suitable beverage to get their fix.

The shrimp po’ boy I ordered arrived and I must admit that it was better than expected. The picture doesn’t do it justice but as you can see there were ample shrimp on the sandwich and the bread was especially good. The rest of the menu reads like any other casual restaurant around town: fried appetizers, salads, sandwiches and quesadillas. Nothing on the menu is going to stand out for uniqueness but based on the quality of the meal I had it seems they do a good job with these standards. I plan to go back for another visit and have some adult drinks to complete the experience.

Quick Shots!

The Tin Roof is making progress. I snapped these photos using my cell phone during lunch.

Just the other day there was a banner with their name but I guess they took it down during construction/demolition. From what I saw it looks like they’re gutting that mofo. On the front you can see the new “shingle” panels – no word on the actual roof yet.

I think I read somewhere that their target opening date is in September and hope they make it in time for game days. We’re long overdue for a good UT victory spot on the strip following football games, but of course we haven’t had a whole lot of victories to celebrate the past few years either.

Big Surprise Tour at World’s Fair Park is happening Friday, 8/14. Gates open at 5:30 show begins at 7:00, cost is $35. Headliners are Old Crow Medicine Show with 3-4 supporting acts so it should be a full night of music. I’m not sure what the concert name means but it couldn’t be more appropriate because I didn’t hear about this until last week. However the security guard who stopped me at the gate where this picture was taken could actually be protecting the big surprise that concert goers will witness tomorrow night. Now I’m dying to know.

And I almost forgot, the Tin Roof staff needs to be prepared to face off against the homeless ranks for one of the most coveted drinking nooks off the strip. It’s not another bar. The stairwell from their lower parking lot to the upper lots has lots of history in this regard – many bars and restaurants have come and gone on the strip, yet the bums remain.

Finally After 4 Years…

Something has begun to stir the wasteland that O’Charley’s once occupied on the Strip. A couple of weeks ago I noticed the semi-permanent realty sign had been replaced by that of a construction company with a 615 area code. A friend told me that she had heard a Nashville based company was opening a new restaurant location but I forgot the name. Since that time there has been ongoing progress as they remove debris, old equipment and I’m sure a bunch of dusty, useless furnishings left to rot when O’Chuck’s split town.

I phoned my friend to get the name and after minimal searching online I found their website and it appears this rumor is about to become reality. Tin Roof (they have a Knoxville tab that says they are under construction) is set to open their newest location right smack in the middle of Cumberland Avenue in Knoxville by September – an early timeline but hopefully they can get the job done. I’ve been wishing something good would move in that location for years and for the sake of my liver I hope they don’t disappoint.

From the information on their website it looks like we’re in for another casual, live music venue that will appeal to college students and young professionals. Their menu has all the staple bar foods even though they claim not to do the usual “bar food”. I think they mean to say they do it fresh and better, we’ll see. Some of the items look good and I’m interested in trying a deep-fried hot dog just because I haven’t heard of that one before and I need to expand my culinary horizons. The “Del Sol” and “Sunny” quesadillas sound good but everything else looks pretty standard. I will give them a chance, for sure. There wasn’t a bar/drink menu but if you look at the pictures on their site there is plenty of evidence showing they know how to serve up the booze and good times. I’m fired up and look forward to their success!