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How to turn 80 with Grace and StyleCelebrate with The Memphis Peabody HotelEdited by Madelyn Miller, the TravelLadyTHE PEABODY MEMPHIS CELEBRATES 80 YEARS AS THE “SOUTH’S GRAND HOTEL” WITH A VACATION PACKAGE AND SPECIAL EVENTS
The Peabody opened its doors in 1925 in the heart of downtown Memphis and immediately became the place to see and be seen for everyone from steamboat captains to Delta planters, socialites to professional gamblers, celebrities to political dignitaries. In 1935, author/historian David Cohn wrote “the Mississippi Delta begins in the lobby of The Peabody Hotel.” Known throughout the South as the finest of hotels, The Peabody would eventually become world-famous for its twice-daily tradition of the March of the Peabody Ducks and its role as the catalyst for the current redevelopment renaissance of downtown Memphis.
The Peabody will also honor its 80 years of fine dining through a series of events aimed at turning back the clock on taste buds. Events include anniversary dinners in Chez Philippe and Capriccio Grill and an anniversary Sunday Brunch. The hotel will also offer month-long “specials” in its restaurants and bars. The Peabody’s culinary team, led by executive chef Andreas Kisler, looked to archived Peabody Hotel menus from the 1930s for inspiration and created dishes that offer flavors from the hotel’s past. “Early menus at The Peabody offered many, many choices for each course, including plenty of Southern specialties, seafood and beef. Dishes were simple and traditional. For the 80th anniversary, we chose entrees, side dishes and sauces that made frequent appearances on historic menus and modernized them to appeal to today’s more sophisticated palate,” said Kisler.
Meanwhile, The Peabody’s beverage manager Darrell Norman and his staff of bartenders have created two 80th Anniversary cocktails to appeal to different tastes. The “Mad Mallard” combines Jack Daniels and Southern Comfort with cranberry juice, a splash of sweet and sour mix and a dash of grenadine. It draws its inspiration from the Legend of The Peabody Ducks, which tells the tale of how the ducks came to reside in The Peabody’s Lobby Fountain after a prank that involved Tennessee sippin’ whiskey. The “Happy Hen” is a fruitier concoction that combines mango rum and light rum with pineapple and cranberry juices. Both drinks will be offered in The Peabody’s Grand Lobby Bar and the Corner Bar. The Peabody Memphis recently completed a multi-million dollar restoration that began more than three years ago. The project includes renovation and redecoration of all 464 guestrooms and suites, the restoration of historic meeting rooms and public spaces like the famous Grand Lobby, and the launch of a new restaurant concept called Capriccio Grill. The Peabody Memphis is a Four Diamond property of Peabody Hotels within the portfolio of the Peabody Hotel Group, Memphis, Tennessee, and is a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. AT A GLANCE:Peabody 80th Anniversary Package includes:
Available: September 1 – December 31, 2005 Peabody 80th Anniversary Events: Sept. 9: Capriccio
Grill’s 80th Anniversary Dinner Sept. 16: Chez Philippe’s 80th Anniversary Dinner Sept. 25: 80th Anniversary Sunday Brunch September Reservations: 901-529-4000 MORE ABOUT MEMPHISBest wine to drink in Memphis MOST FAMOUS TOURIST TRAP BEST FREE TOURIST ATTRACTION BEST THEMED RESTAURANT MOST UNDISCOVERED MUSEUM BEST LUNCH DEAL BEST BRUNCH BEST COFFEEHOUSE MUSIC TO GET YOU IN THE MEMPHIS MOOD
Mali to Memphis American Blues Mississippi Blues READ ABOUT MEMPHIS MUSIC Great GUIDEBOOKS MOON HANDBOOKS TENNESSEE LEARN TO COOK WITH THE TASTE OF TENNESSEE |
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The Peabody Memphis will celebrate its 80th anniversary
this September. In honor of the National Historic Landmark’s eight decades as
the “South’s Grand Hotel,” The Peabody is offering an 80th Anniversary Package
and a series of events and special menu items that capture the hotel’s flavorful
past.
The Peabody 80th Anniversary Package includes one night’s
accommodations, welcome champagne in the Corner Bar and dinner in Chez Philippe
(excluding alcohol, tax and gratuity), plus tickets to the Peabody Place Museum
and complimentary valet parking. Keepsakes included in the package are an 80th
Anniversary drink coaster and a commemorative wall poster. The 80th Anniversary
Package is available September 1 – December 31, 2005, and is priced at $280. The
package is based on double occupancy, and subject to room and package
availability.
Capriccio Grill, an Italian steakhouse that specializes in
prime steaks and chops, will hold its 80th Anniversary dinner on September 9.
The four-course menu includes Oysters Peabody, Cold Smoked Salmon Salad, Braised
Short Ribs and a White Cheddar Apple Tart. Capriccio Grill’s chef Jeffrey Quasha
derived the Oysters Peabody from a dish of the same name on a 1939 menu and gave
it an Oysters Rockefeller twist. The three-hour braised prime beef ribs are
served over a creamy soft polenta, Swiss chard and au Jus and inspired by a
version of Prime Ribs of Beef au Jus served on the same 1939 menu. The 80th
Anniversary dinner in Capriccio Grill is $50 per person, excluding alcohol, tax
and gratuity. 
Sunday Brunch in The Peabody’s Skyway is a long-standing
family tradition in Memphis, and the myriad of dishes served has always been a
product of the hotel’s Southern location and generous hospitality. The menu for
the 80th Anniversary Sunday Brunch, to be served on September 25, from 10:30
a.m. to 2 p.m. with champagne after noon, will offer an even longer list of
Southern specialties and traditional dishes. While many customary brunch items
remain, special made-to-order “action stations” have been given an old-fashioned
overhaul. A Potato Pancake Station will offer choices of Golden Potato and Apple
Pancakes served with Dried Fruit Chutney, Purple Potato and Smoked Whitefish
Pancakes with Tartar Sauce, and Sweet Potato Pancakes with Crab Meat and Bercy
Sauce. Other “action stations” will serve Calf’s Liver with Onions, Cured Smoked
Bone-in Ham with Pineapple Glace, Prime Rib with Rosemary Roasted Root
Vegetables and Yorkshire Pudding, Steamed King Crab Legs with Roasted Garlic
Drawn Butter, and Seared Sea Scallops with Supreme Sauce, plus Rotisserie
Chicken, Roasted Corn and Fried Okra. The Dessert Station will offer Sweet
Potato Pie, Custard Caramel Pie, Chocolate Layer Cake, Vanilla Muffins and Date
Pudding, all of which were served on Peabody luncheon menus in the 1930s. Sunday
Brunch at the Skyway is $29.95 for adults and $12.95 for children, excluding tax
and gratuity. 
Throughout the month of September, The Peabody will also
offer 80th Anniversary entrée, dessert and drink “specials” in its restaurants
and bars. Capriccio Grill will offer a 14-ounce bone-in prime rib served over
three-cheese mashed potatoes, sautéed havi covert and finished with a wild
mushroom demi-glace. Chez Philippe will offer fresh trout cake with smoked
shallot a la meuniere and potato basket of mixed greens. In addition, The
Peabody’s executive pastry chef Erika Davis whipped up a dessert that will be
offered in both Capriccio Grill and Chez Philippe throughout the month. The
White Cheddar Apple Tart is served with The Peabody’s famous vanilla ice cream
and is inspired by the more traditional versions of apple pie a la mode served
at the hotel in its early years.