The Best Nashville Restaurants Residents Don't Want You to Know About
The Best Nashville Restaurants Residents Don't Want You to Know About
Nashville, Tennessee, is known for its vibrant music scene and Southern charm, but it's also a city quickly gaining recognition for its diverse and innovative culinary scene. From farm-to-table restaurants to modern takes on classic Southern cuisine, Nashville has something to offer for every taste and budget. Whether you're a local or a visitor, knowing where to start when choosing a restaurant can be hard. That's why we've rounded up some of the best restaurants in Music City. Whether you're looking for a romantic dinner or a casual night out with the kids, we've got you covered.
1) Tansuo
Celeb chef Maneet Chauhan opened her highly anticipated Asian eatery, Tansuo (it means "to explore" in Cantonese), in 2017. "It's a special occasion place," says Chauhan. Here, acclaimed executive chef Chris Cheung is elevating traditional Chinese and Chinese-American dishes with fresh ingredients and lots of whimsical touches. Peking duck is a house specialty (a special oven was built to cook the Long Island-sourced birds), as are other delicacies, like chicken feet and 1,000-year-old eggs.
2) The Catbird Seat
If you want to feel like you are on an episode of Iron Chef, try dinner at the Catbird Seat, one of Nashville's most buzzed-about restaurants. Here's how it works: there are 22 bar seats surrounding a U-shaped kitchen. Chef Ryan Poli and his team prepare a 7-to 10-course tasting meal as you watch, placing the perfectly-timed dishes right in front of you. All the while, the chefs are chatting away about ingredients, techniques, or perhaps Poli's world travels, which heavily influence the menu.
3) City Winery
Created by Michael Dorf, the founder of New York's iconic music venue the Knitting Factory, City Winery is a unique establishment: part concert venue, part restaurant, and the first fully functioning winery in the city. A Mediterranean-inspired menu can be found in the Barrel Room Wine Bar & Restaurant, but full food and beverage service is also available during concerts. The best way to sample some of the many wines? Venture out on a Monday for "Flight Night!" and sample four perfectly paired wines.
4) Bastion
At this tiny 24-seat restaurant, you can dine at the bar while watching the chefs prepare a highly acclaimed and ever-changing a la carte menu. Next door at the Bastion Bar, you can get creative with your cocktails (check out the extensive bitters collection), although many opt for the punch of the day. The only food at the bar? Nachos. And while they don't look as sumptuous as your greasy pub grub, we hear one bite and you'll be singing a new tune.
5) Pinewood Social
While many restaurants are narrowing their offerings, Pinewood Social is proving that you can enjoy super success by being all things to all people. A six-lane bowling alley, two outside dipping pools (with their own light sandwich/taco menu served up via an Airstream trailer), and a bar are connected to a happening restaurant that starts serving up food at 7 a.m. (everything from whole wheat waffles to chickens and biscuits) and doesn't stop until 1:00 a.m. And don't worry: the "jack of all trades, master of none" conundrum doesn't apply here. Chef Andrew Rodriguez cut his teeth at the Catbird Seat, so all dishes, even simple-sounding ones, are executed in excellent fashion.
6) Henrietta Red
This gorgeous, breezy eatery in Germantown is heavily focused on seafood and veggies. But the true star is the oyster bar, which currently serves up more than a dozen different types of mollusks from the East and West coasts. Check out the action with the open-air kitchen, where you can also view the impressive brick oven. Innovative flourishes, including fresh bread with anchovy butter and cauliflower steak, keep the locals happy.
9) Husk
Another Charleston transplant, Husk is known for its charming mansion setting and unfailing dedication to Southern food. As they say, “if it doesn’t come from the South, it’s not coming through the door.” Open for dinner and weekend brunch, Husk’s menu changes daily depending on what’s fresh; however, staples include the famous Husk cheeseburger and pimento cheese with chow-chow and benne seed wafers.
10) The Farm House
This SoBro restaurant is warm and approachable, just like chef-owner Trey Cioccia’s creative Southern cooking. Cioccia sources most of his ingredients locally and then uses them to perfectly meld Nashville’s Southern flair with his own Italian roots. On any given day, you might find fried cheese curds with chorizo aioli or a roaster buttermilk chicken atop mushroom risotto. The location makes it a great spot to check out before a Preds game at Bridgestone Arena.
11) Martin's Bar-B-Que Joint
This celebrated Nashville barbecue joint has a few different locations in the city, but the downtown location is home to four bars, a sprawling beer garden, and comfortable indoor-outdoor seating. Whichever location you end up at, you’ll love pitmaster Pat Martin’s Tennessee whole hog barbecue and equally scrumptious sides—think baked beans, broccoli salad, hoecakes, and more.
12) Biscuit Love
True to its name, Biscuit Love is a biscuit lover's dream. The menu offers a selection of different buttermilk biscuits topped with everything from hot chicken to peanut butter frosting. Other Southern favorites like shrimp and grits and meatloaf—which they proudly proclaim isn’t your mother's meatloaf—round out the menu.
13) Gray & Dudley
Inside the trendy 21c Museum Hotel, Gray & Dudley feels more like a restaurant in an art gallery, thanks to the adjacent gallery space featuring a rotating selection of artists. The menu at Gray & Dudley is a mix of American and Southern comfort foods, and the bar features a large selection of local beers.
14) Hugh Baby's
Barbecue and burger lovers will be at home at Hugh Baby’s, with a menu featuring everything from a classic cheeseburger to ‘shroom burgers and, of course, barbecue burgers piled high with pulled pork. Hugh Baby’s also features fried catfish sandwiches, pulled pork sandwiches, hot dogs, and other classic American staples. Be sure to pair that burger and fries with a classic hand-spun milkshake.
15) The Electric Jane
The Electric Jane serves as both a restaurant and a live music venue, and the menu here offers up just as much over-the-top energy as the acts on stage. The menu has something for all tastes, from charcuterie boards and shrimp cocktail to surf & turf and Korean short ribs. The restaurant also frequently hosts themed brunches with live entertainment on weekends.
16) Etch
Etch is a sleek, modern restaurant located downtown. Known for its contemporary American cuisine, Etch also focuses on using seasonal and locally sourced ingredients to create innovative, beautiful, and delicious dishes. Some of the standout dishes at Etch include the venison with smoked potato puree and the confit duck leg with ginger lemongrass white bean cassoulet and duck sausage. The restaurant also offers an impressive selection of wines, focusing on small producers and unique varietals from around the world.
17) Butcher & Bee
A transplant from Charleston, Butcher & Bee has a cozy and casual vibe, great for families. The eclectic menu here runs the gamut, including a traditional double smashburger and a unique BBQ "pulled squash" sandwich. With its delicious food, laid-back atmosphere, and excellent service, Butcher & Bee is a beloved destination for foodies and locals in Nashville.
18) Lockeland Table
Lockeland Table’s innovative and modern take on Southern cuisine has made it a favorite among locals and visitors alike. A grilled bone-in pork chop steals the show here, accompanied by Tennessee smoked cheddar mac and cheese and braised local greens, but don’t sleep on the wood-fired pizzas, especially the carbonara loaded with Gifford’s bacon and a farm-fresh egg. Cocktails are creative and tasty, and there’s a kids’ menu as well.
19) Rolf and Daughters
Known for its creative and modern approach to Italian cuisine—notably pasta—Rolf and Daughters has garnered countless accolades since its opening in 2012. The housemade pasta, like rigatoni with a heritage pork ragu, are all standouts. Still, meatier dishes, like the juicy chicken served alongside preserved lemon and garlic confit, are also worth mentioning. Rolf and Daughters is only open for dinner, and reservations are a must.
20) City House
This buzzy Germantown joint has a dynamic menu that changes daily, relying on market produce and other local ingredients for its pizzas and Italian-influenced small plates. In addition to the aforementioned pies (try the chicken sausage and roasted cauliflower, topped with jalape?o crema), there’s a truly all-encompassing drinks menu featuring creative, layered cocktails as well as a top-tier list of bourbon.
21) Josephine
The elegant and upscale Josephine is run by a husband and wife team—chef Andy Little brings his Pennsylvania Dutch-inspired cooking to the Music City. At the same time, Karen Little curates a top-notch wine list with selections from around the world. Stand-out dishes here include duck fat hash browns with black truffle dip and a smoked beef cheek with kicky mustard spaetzle.
22) Germantown Café
This elegant, creative restaurant has been a neighborhood staple for more than two decades. You won’t find any gimmicks on this menu—just reliably solid comfort food. Try the famous French onion soup, or come for brunch when mimosas, bloody marys, and frosé are all served “topless.”
23) The Southern Steak & Oyster
This chophouse in Nashville's up-and-coming SoBro neighborhood combines classic steakhouse fare, like filet mignon and dry-aged strip steak, with new favorites like Nashville hot fried chicken salad. Meanwhile, the bar offers many craft cocktails that riff on classic drinks like the Old Fashioned and Moscow Mule.
24) Moto
At Moto, high-end Italian dishes are served in an industrial-chic space with an equally hip bar. Snack on plates of burrata and wagyu carpaccio before trying their signature black spaghetti. Pair all that with an Italian wine from their expansive list featuring bottles from all over the country.
25) June
From celebrated chef Sean Brock comes June—an intimate restaurant seating just 37 guests. June aims to be an experimental journey featuring an extended tasting menu—you’ll get dinner with a show. Brock calls each course an “act,” and says that all five acts in the dinner include somewhere between 18 and 20 dishes.
26) Folk
This innovative Italian restaurant in McFerrin Park features a rustic space filled with plants, exposed brick, and marble countertops while the menu includes fresh pizza topped with everything from nettles to littleneck clams. Befitting of the space, the restaurant also specializes in rustic Italian plates like marinated olives and anchovies, alongside a selection of seafood and meat entrées. Folk also has a full cocktail menu of inventive drinks and, in addition to local beers, even offers sherry on tap.
27) Chauhan Ale & Masala House
Creative Indian cuisine is on offer at this hotspot located in a former garage. The menu features both traditional Indian as well as Indian-inspired takes on southern favorites like Nashville hot chicken pakoras and Malabar crab cakes. Fans of the restaurant have even dubbed the menu “Indian fusion,” while the pub-like atmosphere helps continue to draw even more people in to experience the unique flavors of chef Maneet Chauhan.
28) Joyland
This new counter service spot from Sean Brock is his ode to classic fast-food restaurants of yesterday, featuring burgers, fried chicken, and other traditional comfort food. All the food at Joyland is designed to be takeout, and you can skip the line by ordering online. Come early for the breakfast biscuit sandwiches.
29) The 404 Kitchen
Southern cooking meets European techniques at this restaurant in the Gulch, which emphasizes fresh and local ingredients. The space is modern and inviting, featuring a seasonal terrace for sipping drinks on warm nights. After dinner, head downstairs to Gertie’s Whiskey Bar for a rare whiskey and bourbon selection.
30) Emmy Squared
By way of Brooklyn, this Detroit-style pizzeria specializes in square pies and a much-hyped burger that keeps people returning to their three Nashville locations. In addition to a regular menu of pies, Emmy Squared allows guests to make their own creations with a “build your own” menu. The child-friendly restaurant even has a kids' menu featuring chicken strips and meatballs if pizza isn’t enticing enough for your little ones.
The Nashville dining scene has never been hotter. From new restaurants to longtime favorites, here's what you don't want to miss in Music City.