Tapas at the Garden
Enjoy a relaxing evening walk through the gardens after your meal.
The Memphis Botanic Garden is currently featuring Tapas at the Garden on Wednesday and Thursday evenings from 5:00 – 9:00 pm. Guests enjoy mix and match tapas, gourmet cheese, and unique desserts along with a glass of wine, sangria, or tea. We were looking for a romantic dinner we hadn’t tried yet so we found ourselves eager to check out what Fratelli’s at the Garden was serving up!
Each guest chooses one item from 3 lists of tapas to create a unique sampler platter. Char and I each ordered three different selections from each other so we had 6 offerings to try, along with our cheese platter. It pays to share well! Each was flavorful and the portion size was just right for tapas. And what’s better… Fratelli’s brought out bread with our meal.
For dessert, we tried two different delicatessens to split, then afterward just sat and talked with other guests and each other. Fratelli’s enhances the atmosphere with light jazz being played.
I was able to take this shot just before Char slipped into the pond. Ok, not really.
After our meal, we took an evening stroll through the gardens. On the advice of our server, we took a walk down a path we hadn’t come across before and discovered an area of the garden previously unknown to us. It could have easily been a scene from a late 1970s horror film. “Go down that path in the woods, way in the back,” the server advised us as the sun was quickly setting… But there was no horror movie scene awaiting us – just a quiet, romantic walk after hours.
There’s something serene about walking through the gardens at dusk… a different kind of stillness. In some ways, it is the naturalist version of the Robert Bly poem, “Driving to Town Late to Mail a Letter.”
It is a cold and snowy night. The main street is deserted.
The only things moving are swirls of snow.
As I lift the mailbox door, I feel its cold iron.
There is a privacy I love in this snowy night.
Driving around, I will waste more time.
-Robert Bly
After leaving the gardens, we exited through the welcome center and noticed a display of Elvis art. It was August in Memphis, after all… and that can only mean one thing: Elvis Week. The halls were lined with artwork featuring Graceland and Elvis Presley. My favorites were a painting of the inside of the
Artwork involving Elvis Presley and Graceland lines the halls in celebration of Elvis Week 2009.
Automobile Museum at Graceland and a painting of the famous Graceland wall.
If you’re looking for a quiet, romantic night out, try Tapas at the Garden. We were glad we did!
Share
Sounds like a hot date!
Yes, it was! We are looking forward to going back there this spring.