— TheToothfish

★★★★★

Once in a blue moon, I come across a great up-scale restaurant that’s not in downtown Memphis. Too many times have east Memphis restaurants such as Erling Jensens and Flemings deceived me with their so-called “reputation” and chic atmosphere. At the end of these meals, I find myself going home with an unsatisfied stomach and an emaciated wallet. With the hopes of breaking this bad streak, I decided to give Interim a chance. Across from the Racquet Club and Lucchesi’s, Interim is pretty much located in the heart of east Memphis. Before Interim opened up, the place was Wally Joe’s. Unfortunately, this high-end restaurant didn’t attract enough customers and was forced to close. As for Interim though, this place should be around for a while.

From the moment I walked into Interim, I was impressed. The restaurant had this attractive, modern look to it. As I entered the dining room, I was confronted by a mesmerizing sight: the kitchen. From any table, you can see the open kitchen in all its glory as it’s completely decked out with stainless-steel Viking equipment valued at two-million dollars. Within minutes of being seated, I was greeted by my waiter. Satisfied with water, I asked only for some lemons and a straw, two things which she forgot at first but eventually brought. For starters I ordered gazpacho. I had been having bad luck with cold soups and was hunting for a good one. Having never tried gazpacho, I was curious as to the taste of it. The gazpacho was basically a tomato-based puree with crème fraiche and avocado oil. Despite there being a bit too much crème, the soup was quite good! It was spicy, slightly sweet, and full of different flavors and twists. I occasionally dipped some French bread into the soup. The bread was okay since the first batch was warm and crunchy, while the next batch was cold and less satisfying. For my entrée, I ordered the bone-in pork chop served with garlic mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach with grape tomatoes all accompanied by a vinaigrette similar to Italian dressing. The pork chop was the best pork chop I have ever eaten! It was seared perfectly and was very tender. Most pork chops are either too salty or too dry, but this chop wasn’t over salted, and every bite was tender. The mashed potatoes went along well with the pork chop and had just the right amount of cream, butter, and salt. The spinach was sautéed very well and carried a clean and light taste, a nice contrast from the filling meat. The vinaigrette for the entire dish wasn’t overpowering either, as it added an appropriate acidic element to the dish. The soup cost $6 while the pork chop cost $28. The portions were large so I didn’t go home hungry. I also noticed that half the people in the restaurant ordered the “Interim Burger.” My two friends ordered it that night and said it was the best burger they had ever eaten.

To sum it all up, Interim is a breath of fresh air for east Memphis. Beautiful interior, good service, excellent food- Interim is a place that you just can’t ignore.

-Reviewed December of ’07