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Portraits of the four men hang in the old library, with original floors intact, one room of what is now one of the city's top restaurants. A more informal second restaurant serves from the same kitchen, but has views of the gardens and spills out onto a patio, where a jazz band performs and a fountain is lit at night. The cuisine is described as "southern with a French Creole twist," but options get a bit more standard for the popular Sunday champagne brunch.

Suites start at $240 per night, so this is no budget B&B. The restoration won the property 19 different awards, including one from The American Society of Interior Design. The 12 rooms are all different, but sport impressive antiques, heavy reproduction period furniture, king 4-poster or canopy beds, and wallpaper or faux paint jobs designed to match what was available in 1828, when the mansion was finished. Some might find it all too frilly, but Antique Roadshow fans and Gone with the Wind lovers will swoon. The Chef Suite is a standout: it has a bathroom larger than most hotel rooms, plus two interior rooms and a separate entrance from the outside.

Although the address is Beale Street, the grounds are a few blocks away from the partying and late-night blues sessions. For southern refinement and service matching a bygone era, this is a welcome upscale addition to the Memphis lodging scene.

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Tags: Memphis Hotel Reviews

by Tim L.