My name is Missy Gigliotti. That's me and my husband Mike in the picture on the left. Together we run Marlowe's Ribs & Restaurant. My father, Tony, founded the restaurant when I was young and it's been our family's pride and joy since. That's him and my mom, Lucy, on the right. But I don't want to get ahead of myself. To truly get a sense of Marlowe's, we'll need to go back a bit in our family history...

For as long as I can remember, I have been in and around kitchens. Some of my earliest memories are of my Grandma's restaurant in Pittsburgh, PA. I would often perch on the counter, watching while she prepared her mouth-watering lasagna- a dish proudly featured on our menu to this day. I remember the sound of the pans banging together, the smell of fresh garlic being chopped and the sight of her hands squishing the ripe, juicy tomatoes into her signature marinara sauce. That's me and my Grandma in the picture to the right. She was an amazing cook and being in the kitchen at Marlowe's when we re-create her thick, rich sauce every day is like a trip down memory lane.

Of course, my dad has always been the greatest influence when it comes to my restaurant career. When I was small, we lived in Rockport, Maryland, where he was a hardworking executive with the Marriott Corporation. Shortly after my 9th birthday, he decided it was time to move to Memphis so he could live out his dream and start his own restaurant. He had his eye on a cute little place called The Whitehaven Ranch House (pictured above)- a local joint with a good base of regular customers. But what really attracted him to the place was his new neighbor. Any idea who that was? Here's a little hint: you ain't nothing but a Hound Dog if you can't figure this out.

So, in the picture on the left, you'll see me and my sisters- Marlo and Toni Lynn- shortly after moving to Memphis in 1973. Being the new kids in town can be tough, but we quickly fit in and and it soon felt like we had never lived anywhere else! The same can be said for my dad and the new restaurant. He was having a blast and making friends every day. On the right, you'll see one of his oldest friends, George Klein. George still comes by the restaurant when he's in the neighborhood. He's also kept in touch with many of his friends from back in the day. Below is a picture of Daddy's pals, Dr. George Nichopoulos and his son, Dean.

After a few years, my dad decided to put a new stamp on the restaurant and make it more his own. So in 1982, he changed the name to Marlowe's, expanded the dining room and added some of his favorite Italian family recipes. He also started experimenting with some new barbeque techniques and sauces. Little did he know that he had discovered what would later become the staple of our menu. After discovering the appeal of the scent of those cooking ribs, he built a barbeque pit in the kitchen and started putting sending that smoke to the street. We've tried to make sure the fans who came to pay homage to the King would be able to have a plate of the Memphis BBQ that he loved so much. I'd say it's worked out pretty well...

By the early 1990's, my dad and I worried there were still a few visitors coming to Memphis that weren't making it to Marlowe's and we set out to win them over. If they didn't come to us then we would find a way to go to them. We put our heads together and came up with the idea to offer delivery to the local hotels. This was instantly popular with visitors and hotel workers alike, especially when dad commissioned a local artist to paint a small bus with various porcine caricatures- a.k.a. pig 'toons- ranging from the members of KISS to Superman to Billy the Kid. The distinctive "Pig Bus" was a staple on the delivery scene and would cause quite a stir when it pulled into a hotel. That's when we started to notice that clever hotel workers were convincing their guests to catch a ride to the restaurant in the Pig Bus in lieu of waiting for cab, thus giving birth to the idea for the free shuttle service that still exists today.

Within a year, the shuttle service was so popular that the Pig Bus, exhausted and overused, had to be permanently retired. In a move that (at first) had many people scratching their heads, we purchased a giant limosine to take its place. One of dad's favorite stories had always been about the pink Cadillac that was purchased by Elvis for his mother with his first royalty check- even though she couldn't drive and didn't have a license. It seemed like the perfect way to enhance the Memphis experience and leave Marlowe's engrained in a fan's memory. So we refurbished the limo, painted it and the pink Cadillac shuttle was born and has been delighting Elvis fans for over 10 years. Here's the original limo and one of its many offsprings you would ride in today if you came to see us:

That single black limo has become a fleet of six bright pink cars that can be seen driving up and down Elvis Presley Boulevard on any given night, picking up and dropping off Elvis fans at the local hotel. The fleet has become almost as famous as the food, as it has been featured alongside the barbeque on travel and food segments at the local and national level,most notably the Food Network's Diners,Drive-ins and Dives. Visit our Latest News & Media page to watch this segment, as well as other television segments featuring Marlowe's.

And as for my dad? Well, while many years ago he claimed to "retire," he can still be found strolling around the restaurant singing Elvis songs, sharing his great stories with guests or working in the gift shop. When you walk in the door, just listen for:

"Hello my beautiful child- welcome to Marlowe's!!"

That's how you know you're in the right place!