Southland Mall is a well known shopping destination among the locals. Housing over sixty shops and restaurant one must see why it wont be one of a rarer kind, it was the 'first enclosed mall' to be built in Memphis. Accessories, apparel, gift shop, salons, restaurants, jewellery, electronic, name it and you will find it here. Southland Mall simply serves as a total shopping destination and offers its premises on rent for various events.
If the weather is too hot to get your exercise outside, come walk around this air conditioned mall a couple of times. Its one storey spreads out in three directions, with department stores (Sears, Goldsmith's and Dillard's) at the end of each leg. A circuit around the Hickory Ridge Mall takes you past a restored carousel from Italy, a stream and fountains in the atrium, and a sunken amphitheater with a moat. On the second trip around the mall, stop at the coffee bar in the middle of the atrium for a cappuccino or mocha freeze.
This small shopping mall in East Memphis is set in a park-like area with large trees shading the parking lot on the Poplar Avenue side. The upscale shops attract an older audience: this is not the teenage hangout that some malls have become. At Oak Court Mall, there are two anchor department stores, Goldsmith's and Dillard's, between them, you will find a number of speciality shops, including The Gap, The Disney Store, Godiva Chocolates and Victoria's Secret. The center of this two story mall contains several interesting sculptures, including one in which a 7,000 pound marble ball is suspended by a stream of water.
This mall has gone through a lot of changes as in the early 1990s, most of its stores were vacant. Now, the old Poplar Plaza Theater has been renovated and turned into a Bookstar super book store, with the cinema marquee and box office still intact. Other merchants in the mall include Old Navy and a pet supply store. However, the big draw here is the variety of restaurants: from the potato skins of Applebee's Neighborhood Bar and Grill to the enchiladas of El Porton to the pastrami sandwiches at McAlister's Gourmet Deli.
This is the perfect place for an evening or afternoon out. A lively neighborhood with theaters (both live and film), bars, restaurants and interesting shops, there is something for everyone here. Spend the day antique shopping, dine in an international restaurant and then catch a film or play. During holidays the square hosts parties with live music, drinks and dancing outside. Each December, Memphis artists host a show here where you can buy original artwork at very reasonable prices.
