Downtown Memphis just got a fresh jolt of old-school charm. A 120-year-old brick beauty on Pontotoc Avenue, vacant for years and quietly collecting dust, is now back in circulation as the Hotel Pontotoc, complete with a basement cocktail room called The Dame. The overhaul brought back ornate masonry, new windows, and a landscaped garden patio that the owners say are meant to create a calmer, more intimate pocket of the downtown scene. City boosters see the project as a small but telling example of the boutique investments they hope will better connect South Main, Front Street and the riverfront into a tighter retail and entertainment loop.
According to the Memphis Business Journal, developers turned the long-vacant structure into a boutique destination that blends guest rooms, public bar space and an activated courtyard. The outlet notes that the Pontotoc joins a growing list of downtown rehabs intended to bring more nighttime foot traffic and fresh hotel options to the central business district.
City Support and Design Work
City documents show the Downtown Memphis Commission's Center City Development Corporation signed off on a $30,000 Retail Tenant Improvement grant for The Dame, on top of an earlier $60,000 Exterior Improvement grant that helped cover roof and window replacement. The Center City Development Corporation report notes the three-story building dates to 1906 and spells out work such as masonry tuckpointing, more window replacement, a new monumental stair and construction to better connect the basement restaurant to the sidewalk.
Owners, Restoration and the Rooms
Owners Joseph Lewis and Tony Kuhn, who bought the property in 2022, told the Memphis Flyer they spent three years peeling the building back to a sound core and saving as many original details as possible. "This building was my favorite building in Memphis," Lewis said in that interview, as he walked through asbestos and lead abatement, floor replacement and painstaking carpentry. The Flyer reports the finished hotel holds seven suites and three studios, a deliberate decision to keep the stay intimate instead of restoring the building's earlier, higher room count.
Bar Programs and Neighborhood Activation
The Dame takes over the basement as a den-like cocktail bar and wine lounge focused on craft drinks, small plates and a garden patio that can host live music and private events, according to Hotel Pontotoc. The Downtown Memphis project page lists both The Dame and Hotel Pontotoc as completed projects designed to serve hotel guests and the pedestrian corridor threading between South Main and Front Street. Coverage from StyleBlueprint has highlighted the hotel's interiors and the property's spot in a broader wave of boutique openings meant to broaden downtown's evening options.
Located at 69 E Pontotoc Ave, the 10-room Hotel Pontotoc and The Dame offer a low-capacity, high-design option for travelers and locals, and hint that targeted, small-scale investment can change how people use downtown blocks after dark. As Lewis told the Memphis Flyer, "We feel we've done it justice, and given something back to Memphis that we're proud of." For a city intent on reconnecting historic fabric with modern hospitality, the Pontotoc's comeback reads as both a preservation win and a practical boost to street-level life.
