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.

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.