Tupelo, Mississippi is Fit for a King

Tupelo beckons with great bites and beverages, plus plenty of Elvis lore

Just off the Natchez Trace Parkway, Tupelo, Mississippi, is situated between Memphis, Tennessee, and Birmingham, Alabama, and is an easy drive from Oxford or Starkville. Tupelo is best known as Elvis’ birthplace—but this charming city is also a culinary treasure trove. To kick off a weekend there, check into Hotel Tupelo downtown in the center of the action—the 79-room lone boutique hotel, newly opened in 2021, pays homage to the King with mid-century modern flair.

Eat

Start your morning at Connie’s Fried Chicken. Opened by Constantine Asters in 1979, this fast-casual Tupelo delicacy is renowned throughout town for its blueberry donuts and chicken biscuits slathered in homemade gravy. Or you can caffeinate at Strange Brew Coffeehouse inside a converted service station, or Lost + Found Coffee Co. If it’s the weekend, the upscale sports bar Fairpark Grill is adjacent to Hotel Tupelo and serves brunch until midafternoon, complete with a bloody mary bar.

For the middle of the day, get to know Mitch McCamey, a protagonist in Tupelo’s food scene who is behind Jobos, Neon Pig, and King Chicken Fillin’ Station (the town’s best gas station fried chicken). Home to Tupelo’s most notable smash burger, Neon Pig presents a patty of aged filet, ribeye, sirloin, New York strip, and Benton’s bacon ground together. Inspired by a surfing trip to Playa Jobos in Puerto Rico, Jobos serves coastal cuisine with a Southern twist inside Hotel Tupelo. Order the ginger scallion noodles with pork belly and pork bao buns.

Revel in craft cocktails and elevated Southern staples from chef Cooper Miller, who specializes in Mississippi seafood at Forklift in the Jackson West neighborhood. Across the way, CharCutie offers specialty charcuterie boards, grab-and-go boxes (perfect for a picnic on the Natchez Trace), charcuterie classes, and Saturday brunch at their storefront. Inside a bait and tackle shop, Clay’s House of Pig delivers some of the best barbecue in the Southeast, emphasizing slow-cooked meats and an array of homegrown sauces. Order the brisket and half tater. And you can’t miss a stop at Johnnie’s Drive-In, Tupelo’s oldest restaurant. Sit in the Elvis Booth and try the doughburger, a North Mississippi delicacy.

For a sweet reward, stop by Crave downtown for a skillet cookie. Or end the day with blueberry donut bread pudding, made with Connie’s leftovers, at Blue Canoe—a live music venue, restaurant, and five-star dive bar. Tyler Childers, Sturgill Simpson, Leon Bridges, Ryan Bingham, and the Alabama Shakes have graced the stage here, and you can pick from 48 rotating beers off the largest tap list in North Mississippi. Must-try dishes include pot roast, crack dip fries, and duck quesadillas.

Drink

Founded in 2016, Queen’s Reward is Mississippi’s only meadery and sources all of its honey within the state. Stop in for a tasting of award-winning, wine-style mead varieties, like Chocolate Covered Cherry and Rubee, or a flight of mead slushies.

You can imbibe your way through downtown across seven watering holes on Tupelo’s Cocktail Trail (Jobos, Downunder, Park Heights, Nautical Whimsey, Amsterdam Deli, Fairpark Grill, and The Grillehouse). Once you’ve hit every stop (maybe not all in one shot), redeem your card at the visitors center for a free cocktail shaker. The downtown entertainment district has an open-container zone during specified hours.

Do

Magnolia trees line Tupelo’s quaint downtown district—stroll through it to get to know the pop star who made this town famous. The Elvis Self-Guided Tour takes you to 14 influential places in Elvis’ life growing up in Tupelo. Use the online map at tupelo.net and drive or borrow a bike
from Hotel Tupelo. Watch for various Elvis-themed guitars and murals throughout downtown and be sure to visit Tupelo Hardware Company where Elvis’s mother purchased his first guitar. You can also visit the Elvis Presley Birthplace and Museum to see the shotgun house where the King came to be. For a take-home treat, find a tchotchke at Relics Antique Marketplace in the former garment factory where Gladys Presley worked while pregnant with Elvis. Peruse two floors with more than 117 booths at one of Mississippi’s largest antique stores.

There’s more to this town than the King, though. Since 1905, Reed’s Department Store has been a fixture in Northeast Mississippi, spanning three buildings, with a local bookstore, state-of-the-art gift shop, and extensive men’s and women’s selections. The Caron Gallery spotlights 50 Mississippi artisans, highlighting works created in the rural, quiet communities they call home. You can also upgrade your wardrobe with a pair of bespoke blue jeans worn by the likes of Eli Manning and Morgan Wallen. Hotel Tupelo offers a Blue Delta Jeans package with an on-site fitting appointment—a tailor takes 16 measurements, and then you select the cut, fit, fabric, and thread. If you’re inspired, there’s live music to be found at quintessential local hotspots like Blue Canoe, Steele’s Dive, and Romie’s Grocery.

Before leaving town, take a drive along the Natchez Trace Parkway—a 444-mile scenic road that winds from Nashville, Tennessee, to Natchez, Mississippi, maintained by the National Park Service. The meandering byway will leave you wanting to drive this stretch again soon.

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