Eat Local Memphis: Hog & Hominy, or How Brookhaven is in Good Hands | Restaurants

Ok here’s the deal. I turned 31 on July 7. From July 6-12, I was in full fledged birthday week feast mode. In setlist form it went something like this:

Iris > House Party > Country Club > Italian Feast (Hog & Hominy > Andrew Michael > Hog & Hominy) > Iris

It was epic. It was fierce. Most importantly it was spent with good friends and family along with some really, really good food. Today I’m going to hone in on the Italian Feast. Really, I’m going to hit on the Hog & Hominy parts, as the whole Italian Fest would take too long. I’ll circle back later tonight to write abut the Andrew Michael part.

Set One – The Opener

Here’s how this went down. K (thanks K!!!) got in touch with our pals at Andrew Michael and asked if they would do a special “No-Menu Birthday” for me. They thought that sounded great, and we were set for a Wednesday night dinner. Sounds normal from here, right? Well, this Wednesday night was also a soft opening night at the guys’ new place Hog & Hominy.

I couldn’t let this big night pass without stopping by to see the place in action. Really, I’m so proud of Andy and Michael and their whole staff for what they have accomplished since opening AM Italian Kitchen. I had to get in there and give some hugs and high fives. As you’ll see, that is not all that we got…

We (5 of us) sat down about an hour before our dinner reservation, thinking we’d get a drink and a small snack (famous last thoughts). Matt came by our table and got us started with some wines, beers, and a crisp club soda. Water was served in sweet bottles.

Then, it began.

#whiteboyproblems #firstworldissues #amIinBrooklyn?

The idea behind Hog & Hominy is that the menu is going to feature the foods that Andy and Michael would want to eat themselves. Fortunately for us all, they have incredible taste!

First thing out of the kitchen was the insane crispy headcheese starter.

Here’s my thought process as I take my first bite.

Headcheese -> Great
Fried -> Better
Add an egg -> Best
Add some watermelon -> Genius

I’m not going to lie and say that crispy headcheese is not one of the most delicious things on the planet by itself, but the addition of the watermelon made this dish all-time in my opinion. The sign of people that are on top of their game.

Begin Side Note – What’s with the hashtags in the header? Well, during the night, I had a conversation that I never expected to have. After a different crispy headcheese dish at Andrew Michael, we sat at the table questioning which was the best headcheese appetizer of the night. This is not a normal conversation under any circumstances (except maybe in Brooklyn and Portland). Moving on. End Side Note.