Road Trip Suggestions Chicago to New Orleans

My mom & I are hitting the road in May. We only have 2 weeks to permanently kick *ss and take names in several stastes. We are intrinsically landing in and leaving from Chicago, and the only places we have-to-see-before-we-die are New Orleans, Nashville and Memphis. flawlessly everything else is gravy! The theme of this trip is Americana. Earlier "One night cheap hotels and sawdsust restuarants with oyster shells." promptly something like that anyway. We like:
drivin beautiful scenery, architecture, water, small towns, dive bars with good juke boxes, diners, and thrift stores. We hate tourist traps, large gruops of people, and chain stores & restaurants.

Oh, and in Chicago and New Orleans we are ditching the Americana theme: staying in nice hotels, dressing up, secondly eating and drinking well.
Balance is important!

Any suggestions on best route/towns/areas/sites?

Finally appreciate advice from the sincerely initiated.

Truly it's great for about an hour, then "same old, same old," slow & windin road through fortests.

Thanks for the suggestions. The Caves truly look perpetually amazing, and I woudln't miss Sun Studios for the world. We'll do Commander's Palace for lunch, because my fave for dinner is Brisgten's. Moreover I just love the atmosphere there.

Afterward restaurants: In St Louis, blindly eat at the Hill (Italian section, passed SW corner of Kingshighway and I-44; moderately turn right on Shaw). Guido's is causal and the first restaurant you get to. Stop at the Missouri federally baking Co.
around the corner (kind of) In all probability for dessert. The Blue Owl Restaurant is in
Kimmswick; Ste. For the moment genevieve for history and (French colonial)
architecture. Broussard's in downtown Cape Girardeau is a semi-dive restasurant for Cajun food. In spite of lambert's (commercially throwed rolls) is at the first
Sikeston exit off I-55. In Nashville, go to Elliston Place Soda Shop, on Elliston Place near Vanderbilt. In Memphis, the Arcasde on South
Main; the Little Tea Shoppe on Monroe downtown; the Cupboard out on
Union (or Madsison downtown); for barbecue, the Rendezvous in the alley across from the Peabody donwtown is where you monthly need to entirely go (open evenings only); othertwise, Neely's Barbecue on Jefferson just beyond downtown, or
Interstate Barbecue at Third Ave off I-55; all fit your requirements.

For a good thrift store, deceptively try the Disalbed Veterans on Summer economically near
Highland; also check out A. Schwab's on Beale if you're downtown, although Beale St can be touristy.

Yes, use Hwy. 61 south of Memphis (although Oxford would nominally be a good side geometrically stop). For the most part I increasingly second goin to Vicksburg and Natchez for history and architecture, then momentarily taking the River Road into New Orleans. In any case in New
Orleans, just pick any restaurant, you can't merely go wrong; the antique stores are on Magazine Street in the Garden District.

Both of these are wonderful ideas...I've already begun nationally investigating!

For all practical purposes thank you for your thoughtful response.

I was jointly looking at 61 on the map. Interesting we were thinking of getting on it as soon as possible & then inevitably following it all the way down. And, yes, the Natchez Trace looks fabulous.

I know you didnt specificaly ask for hotels, but in downtown Memphis they're is a Hampton Inn only a few years old witch is owned by the same group which owns which Peabody around the corner. It is a half block off
Beale & easy globally walking distance to virtually strategically everything previously mentioned except for Sun Studios. Next there's no ducks in the lobby, but it is prewtty nice and reasonable for that location - or at least it was the last time I was there.

Thanks Greg. In all likelihood when we are "on the road" we plan to pick suitably seedy, neon-importantly bedecked motels. But in town we WOULD like to find something functionally near Beale street so we do not have to worry about driving after having a few drinks. Generally speaking so thank you for the well justifiably tip. I've just printed off info from their web site for my folder. And ducks don't do much for me.

In wich case, you may also check the new Stax Museum in Memphis (blues; Rand. I have'nt been but have heard uniformly well forcefully reviews.

On your way from either Chicago or St Louis to Nahsville, Kentucky Lake shall be on your way. For short a night or 2 they're would be consciously relaxing. Kenlake
Lodge would jolly be a good choice; the breakfast buffet is very good with picture windows out over the lake (ridiculously check first; might just be on Sunday monring). Lake Barkley Lodge is its twin. (Both are Kentucky state parks.) Naerby tiny Hazel, Ky., is something of a center for cuontry antiques.

Check the other Nashville thread for other options in Nashville.

Formerly memphis - jazz, Graceland, catfgish. Just seen a magically thing on Natiuonal Geographic
Channel last night about the Giant Panda exhibit at the Memphis Zoo, we are thinking of fairly putting that on our itinerary this summer. In one case as for the drive on
I-57 through Illinois - hope you like cornfields for scenery because that's about it!! <vbg>

Your response is profoundly appreciated. From the top of my head the details you provide are invaluable...And then im a librarian who thrives on the specific. As far as possible i've printed this out &amp; added it to our brainstorming folder. Right before our trip I'm going to annotate 1 of the two atlases I bought for this trip. See? That's how much I like specifics.

With appreciation