Are there any basics I should know before I visit Memphis?  I have no clue about the area.
I would appreciate any info on where to stay, where to advertise,  areas to avoid, local expectations and of course the best Memphis BBQ

....the other stuff i'm sure local ladies & gents as well as traveling ladies who have experience w/ Memphis will help soon.  

Hi Ms Heidi,
I would recommend two areas in Memphis; east Memphis close to the I-240/Poplar interchange and downtown on N. Main where parking is available. In terms of BBQ watch out - I may start a war here. First of all my likes: the Bar-B-Que Shop on Madison, great Boston Butt and the best sauce going (check out the bbq bologna and beans as well);  Payne's on Lamar, excellent chopped shoulder and Ms Flora always puts some finely chopped skin for flavor for me (also a killer smoked sausage sandwich!); Cozy Corner downtown on N. Parkway, best ribs and Cornish Hen; and finally, you should hit the Rendezvous downtown just for the ambiance and their dry ribs are pretty good. Now, for the dislikes and let the battle begin: Corky's, overblown but a good marketing team; and the worst is Central BBQ which is about the most flavor less piece of meat I have ever experienced and I have given this place plenty of chances - a terrible waste of pigs.

Restaurants: Hard to go wrong in the Cooper/Young area. My favorites are The Beauty Shop, Tsunami and Stone Soup Cafe which is breakfast and lunch only but has excellent veggies. I like Next Door in the same area for good bar food and the TV locations for sporting events. Speaking of sporting events and bars, Jack MaGoo's on Broad is my favorite haunt - before I sit down whoever the barkeep is has already got my PBR pouring and right down the street from them is the Cove which has a great happy hour special on oysters during the week - half off on a dozen. Oh, right beside MaGoo's is Broadway Pizza - the best. One of the best restaurant/bars downtown is Spindini's, great kitchen and an excellent bar with a well appointed  wine list which is half off/bottle on Mondays. Just a word of caution, when the Grizzlies play in Memphis downtown is jammed - I would cab it and not try to find a parking place.

Hope this helps. Enjoy. gf60

Wow, thanks for the good intel.  I'm hungry now, lol.

We all appreciate the info ! Thanks buddy !

Someone else suggested Germentown (probably spelled that wrong)
Is that more of the locals' preferred hobby spot?

Better areas in Memphis .

I second the BBQ Shop.  Great Q.

I'd echo what others have said.  Hotel either east or downtown.  The food is great all over.  

What dates are you going to be here?  

Still working on travel details.  Thanks again for the tips everyone.

Dude! You're either a Midtown boy or a connoisseur of some of the best "Q" around. PM me soon, we're working on getting a serious Meet and Greet thing going here in Memphis and I know there are a lot of "utr" mongers out there. Let's make this happen. gf60

I think the welcome mat has been rolled out Ms Heidi. Work out the travel details and let us know. gf60

No doubt.  I posted my visiting dates in the ad section.
SHould be fun!