The day that Westjet started selling direct flight tickets from Vancouver to Nasvhille, I jumped and booked. I’ve written a lot about my love for Nashville over the years, the food and drink scene is incredible and I always have a blast hanging with “Cousin” Alex. I’ve often said, if there was a direct flight, I be there more, well my wish came true!
Immediately after booking the flights, I searched “Locust Nashville reservations”. My double visit to Locust the last time I was in the city has stuck with as one of the bests ever, and I was ecstatic to return.
Leading up to the trip, news. of a Westjet pilots strike loomed and it was hard to be excited about the trip. The deadline for the strike was just 3 days before my flight and just hours before I needed to start cancelling accommodations, etc. I went. to bed the night of the deadline, completely convinced I wasn’t going to Nashville, only to wake up to news the contract had been settled and things were a go.
With so much uncertainty, I hadn’t finalized by choices for meals, but being familiar with Nashville, I knew I wouldn’t go wrong with anything I’d picked. I have my Nashville favorites but on this trip, other than Locust, I was determined not to re-visit the ones I visited last trip.
My first night in Nashville usually means a visit to Rolf & Daughters but on this trip, I booked another Germantown staple, Tandy Wilson’s City House. It’s been 6 years ago since I’d been there, and I remembered their pizzas were awesome, so I thought it was time to return.
We had time for a quick cocktail before dinner so we popped into Geist just down the street from City House. We were lucky there were just enough seats at the bar for us and we quickly ordered from their creative but accessible cocktail menu. I’m usually a purest when it comes to margaritas, but their Pandan Margarita was a great take on the classic.
Eating with Alex is always an indulgence as often you end up with one of everything on the menu. The menu at City House is long, so we got her to choose some of her favorites from the menu (which of course ended up being way too much food).The pizzas were outstanding, but so were the pastas, and well, everything else, Both the country ham with strawberries and our dessert ice box strawberry cake with strawberry preserves made me so happy to be back in Nashville again.
I’ve been following Maíz de la Vida since my last visit in 2021 but didn’t have time then to visit their taco truck that sits outside of Chopper Tiki. When I learned they had just opened a tortilla shop & served food, I knew it would be a great choice for lunch.
In the days leading up to my visit , they posted an Instagram photo of a shrimp special had me sold, no matter that the server warned us several times that it was REALLY spicy, I still had to order it along with a pork belly sope and quesabirria. The shrimp were messy delicious (and not that spicy) but the winner was the quesabirria with its delightful mix of flavours and textures.
If there’s anyone who captured my attention in the south it’s Chef Sean Brock. Many years ago, I watched his Mind of a Chef episodes and learned the history about the ingredients he’s so passionate about. I’ve eaten multiple meals at Husk (Charleston & Nashville) before he left and followed along curiously at the construction of his new Audrey/June spot in East Nashville.
Walking into Audrey, I was giddy with excitement. I loved the modern country design of the restaurant and the many attentions to detail.
The menu was filled with beautiful southern ingredients, unlike anything I’m able to taste at home. Alongside the menu was a booklet that told the story of each of the dishes. It was the perfect compliment to the outstanding service at the restaurant.
We started with Southern Oysters served with bourbon mignonette and Appalachian horseradish. Then came country ham topped with peanuts that we were recommended to order with the fried Appalachian apples, pan-fried on butter and glazed in an apple cider vinegar and foie gras sauce. The star of the show were the Jimmy Red Grits topped with a cured egg yolk and finished with a bay leaf oil.
We’d arranged to go see some live music but had time to kill before it started so we pulled up at the bar of Pinewood Social, a walkable distance from the venue.
The plan on this trip was to finally try to get to the Bluebird Cafe to listen to live music in an intimate setting. Unfortunately because I wasn’t sure I would actually be in Nashville when the hard to get tickets went. ons sale, that visit will have to be save for another trip.
Thankfully, The Listening Room Cafe had tickets available and we were able to catch a show there. Their Singer/Songwriter night featuring 3 artists that rotate through singing their songs, some very recognizable. For a $15 ticket plus $15 minimum f&b spend, it’s one of the most entertaining & affordable night out I can remember
Barbecue is high on most people’s lists when coming to the south, but with so much incredible eating in Nashville, it’s been many years since I’ve eaten barbecue in the city. Martin’s has been my choice on other visits, but I wanted to try something new.
Peg Leg Porker is a bbq haven in the Gulch where Pitmater Carey Bringle and team smoke up delicious meats. The place was packed with tourists , but it didn’t deter me. The ribs, were coated with a great dry rub and dipped into the sauce I was in barbecue heaven.
Putting on a bikini may not be my first choice of things to do after. a big barbecue lunch, but when Cousin Alex invites you to hang poolside with a margarita in hand at (Nashville’s new) Soho Club, it’s hard to say no.
It’s been a few visits since I’d last been to Urban Cowboy and my last was in the middle of the winter where we drank cocktails around a barrel fire pit. This time we sat into the warmth of the evening on their expanded patio space with live jazz playing to the side. We started the evening with some delicious cocktails and then I moved on to wine from their great selection of naturals. Dinner was Roberta’s where we ordered a selection of wood-fired pizzas, cucumber & Caesar salads and a decadent Straciattela with pizza bread all served out of a trailer onsite. It was a perfect Nashville evening.
I’ve seen the food scene in Nashville change over the last 10 years, with more diverse flavours being presented throughout the city. Had it not been for Locust blowing me away with its amazing dumplings on my last visit, I never would have given Kisser, a Japanese-esque spot at Highland Yards a chance. But I’m trying to be open minded and listen to suggestions by trusted sources, so I booked Kisser for lunch.
Bon Appetit named Kisser as one of its most anticipated restaurant openings of 2023 and their menu filled with Japanese comfort foods was intriguing to me. All of the dishes we tried were good but the standouts included the beef tartare with avocado on crispy rice cakes and the big salad with giant shavings of bonito and a white miso dressing.
I wanted to revisit Peninsula for my last dinner in Nashville for this trip. I’d been years ago for an incredible dinner and tried to return on my previous trip but an electrical mishap cancelled that opportunity. Peninsula serves Spanish/Portuguese influenced Iberian cuisine in its cozy spacce in East Nashville.
We let the restaurant choose our dishes so without thought we could enjoy the dinner. Each plate delivered was beautifully presented with wonderful flavours. I don’t know much about Iberian cuisine, but Peninsula makes me want to learn more.
I say it in every Nashville post I’ve done, but no trip to would be complete without visiting Dino’s. I was super bummed to have missed their Las Jaras wine event with Eric Warheim by a day, but happy that Alex had set aside their lineup for me to sample that night (and bring home). All the wines paired delightfully with a side of Animal-style & Joes Hot fries.
An early evening flight back to Vancouver meant I had just enough time to go back to the restaurant I was most was most excited about revisiting on this trip to Nashville. Trevor Morain’s Locust blew my mind when I first visited in 2021 and I haven’t stopped thinking (and raving) about it since. Locust is the kind of place where you have to try to order one of everything from the menu, while keeping in mind you should leave room for ordering seconds of whatever amazing tastes you have round 1.
I was happy to see their beef tartare, served temaki-style still on the menu, but was equally wow’d by the razor clams and incredible peekytoe crab dip (so much so we ordered a 2nd).The presentation of the dumplings (this time lamb) was different, and although I missed the original pork dumplings served in a steamer basket from my first 2 visits, everything we were served was as memorable.
Of course we couldn’t leave without having a kakigori (shaved ice), this one was with honeycomb and passionfruit cream, I normally don’t love kakigori, but at Locust it’s a must order and the perfect ending to another whirlwind trip to Nashville.
The places I visited in this post:
Call Me a Food Lover... 