Eating in Knoxville, Tennessee

Maybe had we stopped in to visit the residents of Mountain City we could've had some authentic southern food, but through East Tennessee and Knoxville, we hadn't found much other than what Bush's Best Baked Beans was serving up in Chestnut Hill.

What it lacked in southern style homecooking, Knoxville made up for with the variety of restaurants and bars along Gay Street and Market Square.

A crowd gathered for Shakespeare on the Square in Knoxville's Market Square.

While we were in Knoxville, we tried two of the Market Square restaurants.

Soccer Taco was set up like a Mexican sports bar. The food was good, but of course, it was the soccer-themed decor that left the biggest impression.

The televisions on the wall betrayed that soccer theme, however, by showing some collegiate American football during our meal. Between this and the food, Soccer Taco was a fun place to grab a bite, but it couldn't top our earlier experience at Ole's Guacamoles in Johnson City.

Flow serves beer and coffee drinks to to the residents and locals in Knoxville.

Elsewhere in Knoxville, we found the small, trendy Flow Brew Parlor with its coffee, beer and espresso offerings. We enjoyed a Memphis-brewed coffee milk stout by Wiseacre.

Back at Market Square, Not Watson's offered a comfortable experience with big booths, dark lighting and interesting artwork. It also served up an awesome alligator po' boy sandwich.

The food at Not Watson's is served with style, including the alligator po' boy.

Checking out the menu, we learned the story behind the restaurant's peculiar name. Watson's was a renowned department store on Knoxville's Market Square one or two generations ago.

Whenever the restaurant owner's mother wanted to take her family to town, she'd suggest Watson's. They went so often that the kids would always answer the question of, "Where should we go today?" the same way:

"Not Watson's!"

When one of those kids grew up to own this Market Square restaurant, naming it was easy, and Not Watson's stands as a subtle tribute to Mom.

We didn't try this Market Square bar, but we did spot the man pulling a keg through the wall.

Just one block from Market Square, on Gay Street, we tried the Irish pub called Clancy's Tavern and found some good, but pricey versions of pub staples such as fish and chips. What set this place apart was its unique drink offerings, called beer-tails.

The cocktail version of a glass of beer, the bartenders created beer-tails by mixing together two complimentary beers. This sounded to me like it'd be awful, but the one we tried - called Snakebite, it tempered a hard cider with Harp's lager - was delicious.

Our final Knoxville dining experience came on a whim a little further along on Gay Street.

It was early afternooon, and we were headed to a beautiful, historic movie theater now owned by Regal Cinemas when we saw the Parisian-styled French Market Creperie.

The French Market Creperie in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Inside, we ordered a sugary dessert crepe and a savory ham-and-cheese crepe to go along with a couple cappuccinos. For that long moment, my wife and I sat in Knoxville, Tennessee, and reminisced over our honeymoon in Paris, France, just a few years earlier.

Taking a ride on Knoxville's free KAT trolley

We like to see as much of a new city as we can. One way to do that is to climb to the top of something like Knoxville's Sunsphere and take it all in at once. Another way to see Knoxville in a hurry is to hop on the free trolley and take a 15-minute lap around the downtown area.

A park between Gay Street and Market Square.

We spotted a couple waiting at a Gay Street station for one of Knoxville's free KAT (Knoxville Area Transit) trolleys, so we grabbed some shade on the edge of the adjacent park and waited there, too.

A few minutes later, the trolley arrived and we started down Gay Street. Around the first bend, we found ourselves overlooking the Tennessee River on one side, and passing the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame on the other.

The route eventually took us by the entrance of a downtown Hampton Inn & Suites hotel. More than anything, the free ride was perfect for tourists at this hotel who wanted a lift to Gay Street, Market Square or Knoxville's other downtown attractions.

The Rowing Man sculpture in Knoxville, Tennessee. Sculpted in 1988 by David L. Phelps.

A few minutes later, we were the only passengers left on board, and the friendly driver checked in with us and let us know the trolley wouldn't be running much longer.

This worked for us, though, because we soon turned the corner back onto Gay Street, passed the Knoxville Visitor's Center and arrived back at the station where our tour began.

Making ourselves sick in the Sunsphere

The first thing we noticed as we drove up to the city of Knoxville was the iconic Sunsphere in its skyline.

Welcome to Knoxville, home of the Sunsphere.

We had plans to visit it, but as we walked around downtown, we were surprised to find out how close it was. We walked the handful of blocks to the Knoxville Convention Center, which stands watch over the Sunsphere and World's Fair Park.

The Tennessee Amphitheather sits in the shadow of the Sunsphere.

The Sunsphere has an observation deck that lets tourists look over all of Knoxville, and we were surprised to find out that we could check it out at no charge.

Overlooking part of World's Fair Park and beyond.

The view from inside was as cool as we expected on a clear day, and there were murals and information posted to provide more insight on the city.

We walked up to the angled windows and peered down to get the sensation of floating in place.

Lean over far enough and you feel like you're floating in air.

There were a handful of tourists in there with us when we arrived, but after a few minutes, we had the place to ourselves, and that's when I came up with the brilliant idea that almost got my wife sick.

We were about to head out when I suggested we walk really quickly around the observation deck and take in all of Knoxville in just a couple seconds. Off we went. It turned out to be a trippy experience where it felt like we were walking down a normal corridor as the city spun around us.

Successfully fending off motion sickness for all of our road trip, it was this 30-second lark that nearly put my wife over the edge.

Back on safe ground, a view of the park and its fountains.

Somehow, she kept it together, and we headed out to the nearby World's Fair Park where we played some Frisbee and checked out the beautiful East Tennessee Veterans Memorial, all with our feet firmly planted on solid ground.

The Veterans Memorial honors soldiers who gave their lives from World War I to the present.

Where to discover country's next-generation stars

Every weekday morning, Knoxville provides one of the best values in all of Tennessee. In a state that's so proud of its musical roots, the Knoxville visitor's center offers a free hour-long concert every day featuring two up-and-coming country acts.

The mural on the side of the Knoxville visitor's center.

The visitor's center doubles as the home of WDVX 89.9 FM, and we joined the regular crowd on hand for two live sets by new artists Brandy Zdan and Big Shoals.

The daily performance is part of the radio station's Blue Plate Special broadcast, and not every performer promises to be great, but the price is right, and it's a great way to discover new acts and original music.

Brandy Zdan impresses us at the Blue Plate Special.

On the day of our visit, Brandy Zdan opened. Speaking with a soft, almost raspy voice, Brandy Zdan surprised us by belting out a few of her original songs. Originally from Canada, Brandy now lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and she impressed us with her look, her voice and her talent on guitar.

Not to be outdone, Big Shoals left a big impression on us, too.

Big Shoals added a drummer, a bassist and a little harmonica to the small stage. Compared to Brandy Zdan, this band's material was darker (listen to "12 Steps" on the Big Shoals website), and we were impressed by the singer's confidence and emotion.

If Brandy Zdan or Big Shoals are ever pushed to the national stage, we won't be surprised, and we'll remember the time we saw them at the WDVX Blue Plate Special in Knoxville, Tennessee.

You won't believe what we found in this alleyway

Knoxville is a fun city in central Tennessee.

It's got some well-known attractions, but you get the impression that it's more for locals than tourists. We tested out our new Bush's Best Baked Beans Frisbee in the park next to the Sunsphere and were surrounded by a group of local athletes running laps, probably to prepare for some cross-country race.

Downtown, Market Square is one block from the visitor's center and its shops, restaurants and bars pack a lot of personality and cater to the nearby college crowd.

Surprise! Sharks and much more await in this Knoxville alleyway.

We browsed the shops, poked our heads in two of the bars, and tried a couple restaurants while we were in town, but the biggest surprise for us came that first evening as we were walking back toward our car to leave.

Moving from Market Square toward the visitor's center, we noticed an amazing piece of graffiti artwork in an alley we were passing. It caught our eye, so we stopped, and that's when we noticed another amazing piece, then another and another.

We turned in and headed down the alleyway, which isn't something we'd normally advise when visiting a new city, but we were rewarded in Knoxville by a block-long street gallery. We spotted the Kool-Aid man, we saw the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a piranha plant from Super Mario Bros. and a host of other scenes, some of which defied description.

When we visited the visitor's center the next day to catch the Blue Plate Special, we saw that this alley is a known attraction, but for us, it was a surprise, and that made it even more special.

At the end of "Graffiti Alley," it seems not every landlord is as appreciative of the arts.

An introduction to drinking in Tennessee

In the course of our Tennessee adventure, we came across a variety of locally made drinks, including beer, wine, whisky, bourbon and moonshine.

Our self-guided tasting tour of Tennessee started at a local liquor store near Johnson City.

We'd passed a number of vineyards along the nearby highways, so we asked about Tennessee wine. This store offered one variety, and we took home a bottle of Tennessee-made apple peach wine. The peach flavor was strong, the apple was subtle, and overall, this sweet wine was fun to drink, though I'm still not sure if it was best suited to go along with dinner or to stand alone afterward as dessert.

In that same store, we found an entire selection of moonshine. It's weird to think of moonshine as a commercially packaged drink, but we went along and I picked out the most traditional looking bottle (glass jug) I could find, which ended up being Roberson's Tennessee Mellomoon.

At first sip, this drink was rough. I had it just after dinner, and maybe having another taste involved made it a lot harder to swallow. Later on, I was able to appreciate it's subdued sweetness and the little jug was empty after another week or so.

Bourbon, moonshine and whisky at Corky's in Memphis.

Later on in our trip, we found a hip, but empty place called Flow in the bottom of an old, downtown residential building in Knoxville. Flow serves coffee drinks and local beer to the residents. I ordered a coffee-flavored oatmeal stout by Memphis's Wiseacre brewery and enjoyed it from one of a couple sofa chairs on the far end of the room.

The staff at the Belle Meade Plantation in Nashville surprised us with a wine tasting at the end of its tour. The plantation was once known for thoroughbred horses, but today it offers its own selection of wine, which is where I discovered muscadine wine.

Muscadine wine is a southern staple, apparently, because I heard about later in country songs such as Jason Aldean's "Country Boy's World" and Canaan Smith's "Love You Like That":

Muscadine grapes are larger than other grapes, with stronger skins, and they grow individually on the vine as opposed to in clusters. Of the Belle Meade wines we tried, the muscadine wine was my favorite. At home, we paired the sweet wine with a spicy dish, and it was perfect.

Finally, in Memphis, Tennessee, we sought out Corky's Ribs & BBQ where part of its offering was a custom flight of bourbon, whisky and moonshine.

I tried a sweet tea moonshine that tasted like a spiked iced tea. The Jack Daniel's Fire whisky is Tennessee's answer to Fireball, and it offers a delicious cinnamon flavor. Calling back to our plantation experience, the third drink I tried was the Belle Meade bourbon. As the most traditional flavor of the bunch, this was my favorite, but the novelty of the other two drinks made it a tough call.

Image courtesy of trndmonitor.com.

One last note: it was in a Tennessee discount liquor store that we first spotted Tennessee's own Dr. Enuf soda as well as the above curiosity, courtesy of Budweiser. We purchased a can of this hideous-sounding, light beer concoction, but to this day, we haven't found the courage to try it.

Discovering the home of Bush's Best Baked Beans

We're big fans of places like Hershey's Chocolate World and the Turkey Hill Experience, so when we passed signs for Bush's Baked Beans, we made the quick (long) detour to check it out.

The Bush's factory, seen from the nearby visitor's center.

Pulling up, we first spotted the Bush's factory. We'd eventually find out it was a magical place, but for now, we met a friendly guard at the entrance who directed us to a visitor's center a little further down the road.

The Bush's factory is set in the beautiful, green hills of Chestnut Hill, Tennessee, and the visitor's center is an amazing museum/gift shop/restaurant combo.

Everything is immaculate, the staff is friendly, and the featured video inside taught us about the factory's lightning-fast bean canning assembly line.

This was the magical part.

The assembly line is perfectly automated, and it's a good thing since most of it moves faster than our eyes and brains can keep track of what's happening. Factory workers unload entire tractor trailers in seconds and at the touch of a button. The water used to wash the beans and cans is recycled by a sprinkler system that waters the vast rolling hills nearby where a herd of Bush's cows keep the grass neatly mowed.

It's worth the trip for a photo like this alone.

We also learned that I weigh the same as 145,154 beans. That is, I did before we sat down to lunch.

The chili dog I ordered was overloaded to such an awesome degree that I had to eat it with a fork and knife. The appetizer was the baked bean of the day, and on that day was southern bbq flavor. Bush's also provided us our first glasses of southern sweet tea.

There's more here than you'd expect from a baked bean factory.

Bush's baked bean recipe is still a secret, but there's one thing we know for sure:

If you have any passing interest at all in American grilling food, Bush's dog mascot Duke, or standing inside a seven-foot-tall can of Bush's Best Original Baked Beans, the Bush's Beans Visitors Center is worth the trip.

The second oldest town in Tennessee

We were putting a few more miles on the car when we passed this sign for Dandridge, Tennessee, and had to stop for a photo.

The town of Dandridge, aspiring to near greatness.

Not quite as significant as historic Jonesborough, it's Dandridge.

Tennessee's second oldest city represents itself well on the state's fourth tallest welcome sign.

"We saved a place for you," they proclaim, and you'll find it the third most affordable in the tri-city area, and very nearly in accord with your slightly tempered expectations for service and ammenities.

My smile in this photo was the fourth or fifth most genuine of our Tennessee adventure.

We love you, Dandridge.

We have our run of the Allandale Mansion

On the list of attractions we wanted to see in Kingsport, Allandale Mansion was next, so we got our directions and hit the road.

We've seen a handful of mansions in our travels, and we thought it'd be cool to get a tour of this one in east Tennessee.

But, I guess, it doesn't work that way.

Out front of Allandale Mansion in Kingsport, Tennessee.

We pulled up the long driveway and were impressed by the front of the mansion with its covered steps and stately columns.

We found parking around back, and with the help of the nearby grounds crew, we made our way to the office entrance.

Inside, a woman was busy preparing for her appointment with a local bride-to-be - mansions like this are great for weddings - and she burst our tourist bubble by telling us the mansion was only really open to the public twice a year.

But then she surprised us by saying we could go through a door on the other side of her office and let ourselves around the mansion anyway.

Inside the front door of Allandale Mansion.

We took our own private, guide-less tour. We loved the working kitchen, marveled at the staircase in the front hall and checked out the bedrooms upstairs.

We didn't learn a thing about the history of the place, its residents, or its importance.

Upstairs in someone's important, probably historic bedroom at Allandale Mansion.

We took our pictures, resisted the urge to pose in funny ways with the mansion property and eventually saw ourselves out.

We snapped a few more pics out front and drove off. Who knows what goes on at Allandale Mansion, but at least the trustworthy staff saw fit not to deny a couple curious travelers.

Authentic southern food (deep, deep south)

Main Street in Johnson City shows a lot of promise. There are one or two late night bars, some shops, some restaurants, and, of course, almost all of this was closed in the middle of a weekday, which is when we showed up.

Our choices for food were pizza or nothing else, so we drove down Roan St. toward a more residential area and came across authentic Mexican food by Ole's Guacamoles.

Mexican counts as southern food, right? Deep, deep south?

From the Ole's Guacamoles Facebook page.

We've had authentic Mexican before, so this wasn't the very best we've tried, but the food was tasty and they surprised us by providing an awesome bean dip with our free tortilla chips.

With a starter like that, we should've known we wouldn't be leaving hungry.

There was a complimentary salsa bar with different flavors, too, as if the bean dip wasn't enough.

It may not be southern fried chicken and biscuits, but Ole's Guacamoles is awesome and Johnson City locals should be excited that it's in their backyard.

It looks like there are only two Ole's Guacamoles out there (the other one is in North Carolina), so show this local restaurant some love when you're in town, and help keep them going strong.

Exploring Mountain City

We spent the next part of our trip getting lost on our way to Mountain City.

A lake at the foot of Mountain City.

As we criss-crossed the long county highways of east Tennessee, we passed a few breath-taking views, a public swimming area at the foot of the mountains, and one cow in a lake.

A Mountain City cow. In a lake.

We finally made it to the main strip of Mountain City. It's a quiet, old town with some thrift stores and a local gift shop that was home to another new souvenir, the Appalachian Candle Company's High Octane jar candle, a candle that offers an authentic motor oil and gasoline fragrance, and one that my wife would never allow me to actually light at home.

The locally-owned Coffee House Cafe is a great place to stop in Mountain City, but it's hard to spot since it looks like a residential building. The fried bologna sandwich was worth it, the coffee was good and it felt like we were having lunch at a neighbor's house.

There's not a lot going on in Mountain City, but that kind of laid-back atmosphere is as comforting as it is charming.

Want to know why it's called Mountain City? Try driving across the border to Boone, North Carolina. Those roads are so hilly, twisting and never-ending, they put most rollercoasters to shame.

You won't believe what this pop-up shop was called

There's no escaping the confederate flag in Tennessee.

It's for sale at the Tri-Cities Flea Market in east Tennessee, and it's all over the General Lee at the Dukes of Hazzard Museum in Nashville. In between, it's occasionally waiting to be found hanging in front of a house, and more often it can be seen waving from the back of a passing pickup truck.

If you buy into the "heritage, not hate" mantra, it's easier to get used to. But, then we found this frighteningly named pop-up shop in a supermarket parking lot, and we couldn't even find the will to get out of the car to snap these pictures:

Confederate flags and more for sale.

K & K Kollectables. Really.

Please, tell me that's just a k-k-koincidence.

K & K... Kollectables?

No thanks! One of those flags for sale reads, "Don't tread on me," so we didn't. We left. In a hurry.

This historic town still has some life, sort of

Not far from where we were staying in Johnson City, the historic town of Jonesborough continues to thrive as a quirky, shopping destination with parks, storytelling and live music... or, that is, it would if you visited when it was open.

Our experience with Jonesborough was pleasant.

Main street in historic Jonesborough, Tennessee.

It's a beautiful area surrounded by a couple parks before giving out to a quiet, residential area. But, we showed up on Monday morning (Sunday is right out, too), and everything from the gift shops to the fudge shop was closed.

Still, the town is a beautiful place for some exercise, and we walked along its streets and branched off down some of the residential roads.

The few people we saw greeted us without fail, including the man cooking an early lunch on a grill the size of his front porch. Passing drivers all waved from their cars, and we got the feeling that we had traveled back in time when we visited Jonesborough - either that, or maybe the south really is as slow-paced and friendly as it's sometimes rumored to be.

Is this the scariest attraction in Tennessee?

It's called "Backyard Terrors." Aside from the name, we knew there were some dinosaurs to be seen, free to the public, and that was good enough for us to make the drive to Bluff City, Tennessee.

We knew this wasn't some mainstream, corporate attraction, and the length of the winding, rural road leading to this curiosity was unsettling on its own.

We parked in an adjacent lot - or was it the neighbor's front lawn? - and apprehensively approached the one, lonely dinosaur that we saw from the road. It stood behind a few picnic tables, and one of the tables was in use. Were these people eating lunch at their own home, or was this a terrifying Jurassic park?

Luckily, a path led through some trees and bushes to the backyard, where there was thankfully more to this place. Much more!

Yeah. Welcome to Backyard Terrors.

The adorable, kid-friendly dinos quickly gave way to monstrosities like the one pictured above, an enormous Apatosaurus, and others.

The trees and plants were invasive, so guests weren't walking through a park as much as they were walking through a habitat. The dinosaurs were in the trees, flying in the air, feeding by the running stream.

See the tarped off entrance to the right? That's not for the feint of heart.

Then, it got better. Just before the park gives way to a long nature trail, a heavy, black tarp conceals an area that puts the word "Terror" in Backyard Terrors.

Hesitantly, we pulled back the opening flap and stepped into the darkness. It was so dark, we weren't sure if there was a path to follow. It was hot in there. It was humid.

Single file in the cramped darkness - in the middle of the woods, in the middle of east Tennessee - we inched forward. At times, we moved along the path, but in the darkness, we were just as likely to walk into the walls of this scary enclosure.

A faint glow in the distance called us forward through the darkness. Around a pitch black corner, we turned our heads and there, glowing in the waters, just feet away, swam the most vile dinosaur-shark creature we could have ever imagined.

We were startled. We were disoriented.

Our fearful march continued through what turned out to be an amazingly realistic and genuinely scary look at underwater dinosaurs. The darkness was lit only by the bluish mood lighting on these terrifying, floating exhibits. The first pair of eyes and the first set of teeth are permanently etched on my memory.

Visit the backyard, honor-system gift shop and leave a donation on the way out. The people who put together this awesome attraction deserve some love. Go out of your way (you'll have to) to see this one!

Tri-Cities Flea Market welcomes us to the south

We didn't have a plan for our first day in east Tennessee, so when we saw the billboards hyping up the Tri-Cities Flea Market, that seemed like a fine place to kick things off.

The Tri-Cities (Johnson City, Kingsport and Bristol) Flea Market is pretty wild. It's situated in what appears to be an old quarry. The parking lot gives way to rows of long, matching buildings, each with dozens of vendors inside.

It wasn't long before we were surrounded by confederate flags, NASCAR tees, children's toys and rifles. Welcome to the south!

After shuffling through all the buildings we could find, we spotted a downhill bend in the road. There were more vendors in the next parking area down! From there, we found stairs leading further down to another spread of matching buildings. Even more vendors!

The Tri-Cities Flea Market, photo courtesy of the official website.

We got some cheap soda to help beat the heat, and continued on.

At $5 apiece, we found the first batch of Donald Trump for President tees that we'd ever seen. A little further on, a long-time sci-fi collector showed us around his collection of Star Wars action figures and other oddities. We found a fish scale and tape measure concealed as a can of Skoal chewing tobacco and took it home as a souvenir.

Elsewhere, a man was selling antiques that included real segregation-era signage and shackles that would've been used on women or children who were slaves. It was crazy to feel just how heavy a single leg shackle was.

We tried to explore every corner of the massive market, and we ended up closing the place down. By the time we made it back up to our car, the area was mostly deserted, but before we left, we made note of an unusual sign: it was an ad for a place called "Backyard Terrors," and it promised life-sized dinosaurs to anyone brave enough to visit.

I've been everywhere...

I've been to Blountville, Nashville, Knoxville, Jackson, l'il Mountain City, Johnson City, Jerry Lee's bar was gritty...

My wife and I just took a 16-day road trip through Tennessee, and I couldn't help trying to rewrite that Johnny Cash hit, "I've Been Everywhere."

Sunrise heading east through Tennessee with the Appalachian Mountains in the distance.

Tennessee was an amazing experience. From east to west and back again, we saw everything we could from the tri-cities in the east, to Knoxville, Nashville and Memphis in the west. We went as far as Mud Island on the Mississippi and made sure to catch a NASCAR race in Bristol on our way back across the state.

In this blog, I'll revisit some of the most memorable places and experiences that Tennessee had for us. From the truly scary exhibit found in Backyard Terrors to the amazing experience of Elvis Presley's Graceland, we went everywhere.