elwood's shack

i was disappointed with the food at elkwood shack.  i expected to get mouth watering dry rub ribs, instead my ribs were dry and tasted like it had been heated several times.  the pecan pie, grilled cheese, and rueben sandwich were tastless.  my granddaughter enjoyed the barbeque pizza and cinammon roll.  it was our first and last visit.  i left a $5 tip at the register, which i shouldn't have because it was totally self served.  we had to go to the register for more ice and a carry out containter.  most people ordered thefishtacos, which looked good.

elwood is my new addiction. discovered this place just this week. i've been twice and already planning my next trip. i'm determined to make my way through the entire menu. thefishtaco was excellent and presented beautifully. (yes, i took a pic) the citrus salmon bagel sandwich was good. next visit,(tomorrow) i'm getting the smoked chicken and spinach pizza. clearly, i'll need an intervention in the near future.

sooo delicious. my dad mentioned this place to me today about how he always hears people raving about it. so we went and i got the troutfishtaco and he got the bbq pizza. i would like to say i've had freshfishtacos in florida and the ones here doesnt even compare! the ingredients are sooo fresh and the flavors work so well together! for the bbq pizza it was quite tasty as well! the sauce was sweet and a little spicy definitely a winner! i will most definetly be returning to try other things and get me somefishtacos soon! also i loved the old school music:)

as good as it gets. i went for the first time last month. i returned yesterday and got the same thing,fishtacos! i am no world traveler but have hadfishtacos in l.a., san diego, new orleans, etc and have never had any this good!! they are outstanding! a very quaint authentic place. would highly recommend!

really good food, but don't come after 7. like most good food in memphis, elwood's is in a weird place you wouldn't expect: the lowe's parking lot off summer avenue. it's small, a little cramped, and decorated with duck dynasty cutouts and license plates. the food, though. the bbq slaw dog with the blue cheese jalapeno slaw is hands down my favorite hot dog i've ever had. their potato salad is fresh, vinegary and crunchy, none of that terrible mayo-soaked stuff they scoop out of a tub. i've also had the steelhead trout tacos and sadly didn't love them, the topping were fresh and the tortilla was cheesy and amazing but thefishwas hella fishy. i think you just have to really like trout.

my only real complaint with this place is if you go near closing time (they close early, at 8) the long line and slow kitchen combine to make the wait excruciatingly long. we got there at 7:15 and didn't get our food until 8:30. we pretty much mobbed the guy when he finally brought our food out, we were starving.

true hole-in-the-wall gem. the restaurant is in a neighborhood that has become unappealing, but don't let it dissuade you from coming. for many who aren't nervous about the neighborhood, the outside appearance might. but don't stop now. inside is one of the true great local eateries you can find in town. thefishtacos are exceptional. it's also enough food for 2 people who don't want to gorge themselves. i've yet to split mine though. they're just too good. there isn't anything bad on the menu.
they only catch is you have to be prepared to wait for a table in the first come, first served seating unless you want to eat outside at their picnic tables. this place is always busy, but not so bad you'll regret it. if you're in memphis from out of town, this is a must stop lunch place.

divine food in the rough.. when the two guys from redleaf home solutions, who were customizing my pantry said, "wanna get some lunch at elwood's," i didn't hesitate because they had been bragging about how good it is. 
talk about tucked away, elwood's is hidden in the parking lot of a big box building materials store, which is how they found it.
there is a line, was a line, and probably always will be a line to place your food order. the three people in front of me all ordered the "steelhead troutfishtacos;" definitely a trend, so that's what i ordered. we found a seat at a picnic table outside and a friendly server brought out our food.
on the first bite i experienced culinary nirvana! a perfect balance of flavors that can only be described as umami. i could have rolled in this food; it was so good: flour tortilla which had been toasted in butter stuffed--i mean really stuffed with trout, mozzarella, cheddar, local field greens, avocado, pico de gallo, creamy horse radish sauce, and packed with goodness. i could only eat one of the two they served.
i had to go back the next day to try the "roast beef on a kaiser" roll: perfectly medium rare shaved prime rib sandwich which came with the very best horse radish sauce i've ever had.
memphis is stepping up it's food game, but elwood's is already up the stairs!

wonderful. it looks crappy from the outside, but it's amazing. great service. we got thefishtacos and pork bbq quesadilla. they were piping hot and delicious. highly recommend and will definitely come back if we find ourselves in memphis again.

everyone seems to love ellwood's. i have friends who go on and on about thefishtacos and the brisket. on and on. there are two people who are not fans, or at least reluctant ones--satchel (12) and jiro (10), aka the monkeys. the first time we went to ellwood's they were closing. at 7:00pm! (they have since extended their hours to 8:00pm.) the second time i took the monkeys they were in really bad moods. i have forgotten why, but it was bad enough that i didn't write up our visit. so, what i am getting at is, third time is the charm. we went last week and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. as you can see ellwood's shack is really a shack. it's adjacent to the lowe's parking lot. it mystifies me how anyone ever decided to put a restaurant here, but ellwood's is the third(?) to fill this spot. we arrived around 6:00pm and had no trouble getting a

thefishtacos are the best i've ever had! fresh, flavorful ingredients cooked to perfection!

elwood shack is one of those one of a kind places. the food was great, the service friendly and warm, and what a caul for your $. while i would not call it a true bbq joint ( they don't serve ribs) i can say the brisket and the pulled pork are on par or better than hundreds of others i have tasted. thefishtacos are truly impressive and unlike any others i have seen.(a must try)! while i look back at the experience i can not identify any one thing that makes me want to return ... i just know i am wishing i was back at the shack now and i will return to try the breakfast , the bbq pizza, the cinnamon rolls, the smoked trout, etc. just wish they were open for dinner since i have to travel 1000 miles to get to the shack.. food10 service 10 atmosphere 10 (comfortable in a suit or in shorts and tee shirt)

a new favorite. i've wanted to eat here for a while, owing to the great reviews. i had my chance a few days ago and i wasn't disappointed. the food we tried is fantastic.

i orderedfishtacos and my date got the sliders. we were both impressed. tender meat, excellent barbecue sauce and fixings.

we'll be back to try the pizza.

the only negative i found was the cost of our meal. order of twofishtacos with a side of cole slaw, three sliders, and two drinks. the total was almost $30. oh, and it's really hard to find. easiest way to get there is to park on the north side of the lowe's parking lot.

i ordered thefishtacos. they were 2 hugefishtacos, i mean huge. they were made with a 10 inch long flash fried flour tortilla. my mom got a brisket wrap sandwich but she had lunch envy. thefishwas steel head trout, it had nice a texture. it also gave the taco a fresh taste. they had it seasoned and topped with fresh avocado and salad stuff. there was a rea

never judge a shack by its name .. even if 'shack' is in its name.... my first impressions of elwoods shack was not based on its appearance (i had been to this location when hollywood pizza occupied it) - i knew what to expect ... sorta.

my true first impression of the place was not exactly pleasant ... the girl taking orders behind the counter was pushing the 'maple bacon cupcakes' to the fellows in front of me and in her spiel she told them not to go to muddy's for a less tasty five dollar cupcake. i found this little speech had given me a bad taste in my mouth ... i piped up and said 'but they are tasty'. i happen to love muddy's. she was young i told myself and not really thinking what she said ... though i wanted to just walk out thinking on how many times she told people that... in my opinion local businesses should not do that ... i stuck around and ordered anyway. i mean she was just an employee right, and i have heard great things about the nice guys that run elwoods.

i ordered the citrus smoked salmon sandwich, a side of pimiento and cheese, and a side of their potato salad.

the way elwoods shack works (for newbies like i was) is you walk in and immediately bypass the dining room to enter the room off to the left and place your order at a counter in front if the kitchen. after you order and pay turn directly around and gather whatever utensils, napkins (i recommend a lot), straws, and etc. you may need and return to either the small dining area or outside and have a seat.

i had ordered the potato salad which was handed to me immediately from a cooler. it was not your typical potato salad ... it was kinda vinegary and very tasty, i took only a few bites saving room for my sandwich, it had came in a resealable little container - very convenient.

the pimiento and cheese was more like cheese spread. i took one bite and was a little disappointed. it was good ... i mean its shredded cheese, how could it be bad! it was not pimiento cheese ... i could see one little pepper piece in the container but even after letting it sit in the fridge overnight - still tastes just like a shredded cheese spread not at all pimiento'y'.

the smoked salmon sandwich came out on a sesame seed beagle looking bun, creamy tasty saucy stuff, capers, and an entire fillet of chilled smoked salmon. now the board advertised it as citrus smoked salmon. i detected nothing citrus about it ... but let me tell you ... oh me oh me oh my ... was that sandwich good. if you like cold smoked salmon ... you are gonna love this sandwich. i would only change one tiny thing next time i order ... a little less capers. i love capers, just not quite so many.

i was so into that sandwich that i had forgotten my new doctor who episode was running on my phone ... not many things can make me forget doctor who (yeah i'm that kinda nerd).

the sandwich itself was huge (hence the necessity of a mound of napkins) ... i had to not eat some of the bread as i had already decided i was bringing my sister back for supper.

that night we ordered the margherita pizza... and i just had to have a taste of that blue cheese coleslaw. oh and an ibc root beer ... seriously i was like a kid in a candy store when i saw they carried those!

two bottles of water, a pizza that could easily feed three it four people (unless one is my mom - she'd have to get her own), and a thing of spicy coleslaw was only about sixteen dollars. guess who just found her new pizza place??!!??

the coleslaw was all i'd been told and perhaps more ... sweet, spicy, tangy, earthy, yummy, scrumptious, and umm well you get the point. can't wait to get home and finish it for supper.

the pizza? fantastic. could have used some more basil ... but that's just personal preference. is it absolutely the best pizza i've ever had ... no ... is it easily one of the top ten ... yes!

a true test of good pizza to me is in the leftovers ... we had half a pizza left ... so i definitely had leftovers today. it held up beautifully and flavor wise - even better.

we had a slice of pecan pie ... i only had a few bites. it was pretty and yummy. came to the table all drizzled with sauces and surrounded by a fanned strawberry and a scattering off raspberries.

actually when i think about it ... all of their food is aesthetically pleasing. before you take a bite your brain says 'this is gonna be good' ... and boy is it!

i don't really need another reason to enter into lowe's parking lot (having purchased a foreclosure in constant transformation by us do-it-yourselfers) ... but in the future i just may start using lowe's as an excuse to go to elwoods.
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*update*

it is about time i update my previous review ... why?fishtacos. yes it's that simple. in fact, that's pretty much my entire review ... hurry to elwood's and partake of the yumminess that is theirfishtacos! not exactly typical but perfectly scrumptious none-the-less!

be sure to tell them torri sent ya.

a hidden gem. we orderedfishtacos, bbq brisket sandwich and blueberry cobbler. this food was out of this world. we eat out a lot and love unique farm to table and this is some of the best i've found!