When asking a southerner what their favorite season is, usually the answer isn’t summer or winter. It’s … college football season.That’s why Brookhaven Pub
, the go-to East Memphis sports bar, has been under major renovations all summer long.“Two days after the Final Four, we started,” co-owner Rick Spell told us on a recent tour of the impressively updated venue. “We intentionally chose the hottest months, when business is usually down.”
Spell then took a moment and joked, “Boy, did we blow it with the World Cup!”Of course the prominent restaurant owner is just being funny. Brookhaven Pub remained open through June and July, and Spell admitted they had major crowds during these usually calmer months, thanks to the 2026 FIFA World Cup becoming
a massive cultural event.The final – where Spain defeated Argentina - became themost-watched soccer telecast in American history. And here’s some good news: if World Cup fever continues when it returns in 2030, Brookhaven Pub’s new and improved dining room will be open for all the Memphis soccer enthusiasts.But let’s get back to college football.At this time of year, like clockwork, jerseys are emerging out of closets, fantasy leagues are choosing their top picks and sports bars are bracing for this season's ritual of rowdy fans, cold brew and games on every massive flat-screen.“We have 18 TVs in all,” Spell confirmed.Yes, the ritual arrives with the Tigers’ season opener just days away. And this year, Brookhaven Pub is getting its own fresh start.
After this summer’s round of extensive renovations, which include vaulted ceilings, improved TV locations and an expanded bar room for more seating, the East Memphis institution has a fantastic new look and feel just in time for the season’s first kickoff.
Located at 695 W. Brookhaven Circle, just off Poplar Avenue, Spell and his daughter Christy Spell Terry purchased Brookhaven Pub in 2004.“On a whim,” Spell explained. “I have a brother who is a bartender and I thought he could run it. Also, my daughter Christy was an accountant. She has become my partner and is really the most valuable member of the team.”This whim ended up spearheading the very successful Spell Restaurant Group, with a “portfolio spanning Memphis and Florida’s 30A corridor.”
Brookhaven Pub was just the beginning of the Spell family's Memphis restaurant story. In 2019 Spell Restaurant Group bought BABALU out of bankruptcy. It now owns and operates both its East Memphis location on Poplar and its flagship Overton Square one.
As far as their Florida culinary establishments goes, it's even more expansive, venturing through such favorite vacation areas as Rosemary Beach and Inlet Beach.
Beginning in 2015, the father-daughter duo purchased the upscale, coastal George's at Alys Beach and the Latin-inspired LaCo in Seacrest Beach. Additional eateries in the Sunshine State include Shades, a chef-driven sports bar which sounds like the Panhandle equivalent of Brookhaven Pub.
As far as additional restaurants in Memphis go, Brookhaven Pub is not the only chapter in the Spell family's Mid-South story.
So what motivated Spell to renovate Brookhaven Pub?
“We basically want an enhanced guest experience,” he explained. “The kitchen had already been redone. So we didn’t have to touch it. But the A frame was broken and needed to be repaired. That was the start of it.”
He then pointed to the newly vaulted ceilings.
“It’s a 1950’s building with low ceilings. Originally you could walk in here and raise your arms and touch them. It was only 7 feet tall. So we wanted to raise the ceiling and build steel beams that you now see.”
As someone who is pushing 6’4 I can attest, I can no longer touch the ceiling. This was the point where he gave us a quick tour, starting with the newly enhanced bar and then showing us the new “special events room” which is just to your right when you enter the front door.
It can accommodate small gatherings by closing the large glass doors. But if you open them, you have a large outdoor space that allows you to spill out onto the back patio.
“This area has three purposes: it can be an outdoor space, an indoor space or a spot for private parties.”
Then we moved past the indoor bar to a “new added nook with a large TV and two high tops” creating even more seating for customers.
Additional upgrades include a more "energy-efficient environment to keep guests cool in the summer and warm in the winter” and "new lighting complete with dimmers to create a cooler mood.”
Of course, as renovations go, there are still a few very small projects left to complete. But Spell hopes all will be finished by the end of the month.
“We initially had a deadline of Aug. 15. But we’re coming along. Over the last month business was down about 30%. And honestly – I was nervous. But then two days into the opening of our dining room and we were packed.”
And again, that’s all before the first kickoff. Once Memphis, Alabama, Ole Miss and the Vols take the field, then packed will likely become foam finger-to-foam finger.
In other words, Brookhaven Pub just created a whole lot more room for Rebel rhinestones, Tiger face paint and the occasional oversized Crimson cowboy hat.
So local football fans, bring whatever game-day superstition has gotten your team this far, Brookhaven Pub is ready. Now let the season begin.
Brian Strickland is the Food & Dining reporter at The Commercial Appeal. Contact him at brian.strickland@commercialappeal.com.
To keep up with the latest news from the Memphis food and dining scene, sign up here for our Eat Drink Memphis weekly newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Brookhaven Pub gets fresh look for football season with renovations
