Nashville 2018: The One With All The Food

I’m going to warn you right now – if you are hungry don’t continue any further. In fact, even if you aren’t all that hungry, I’m going to predict that this post will make you hungry. So. Go get a snack – a good snack – and then come back before you read. Don’t worry, I’ll wait.

Okay, we good now? Because I’m about to flood your screen with pictures of all the great stuff we ate (and drank) while we were in Nashville.

First up? Fried brussels sprouts and beer at Embers Ski Lodge on Sunday afternoon. It was very close to our airbnb and it was a great place to grab a snack and a burger. And it reminded me of being in Park City with Margene.

Monday morning. Donuts from Five Daughters Bakery. Chamomile Creme Brulee, King Kong (that’s the one with all that bacon and maple frosting), Lemon Blueberry and The Purist. We split the King Kong and Lemon Blueberry on Monday morning and ate the other two on Tuesday morning. They were fab.

Monday night. Hot chicken and cheesy grits from The Row. Hot chicken is a Nashville thing and it’s good. Real good. We never made it to Hattie B’s, which is supposed to have the best hot chicken around, but this was excellent. Honestly, though, I think I prefer my fried chicken without the heat.

Tuesday afternoon. Fried green tomatoes at Acme Feed & Seed. This was also accompanied by shrimp and grits but I don’t have a picture of that. I truly could have eaten fried chicken and shrimp and grits every day. Oh wait. I think I did.

Tuesday night. The Loveless Cafe. First up? Biscuits accompanied by their own jams: blackberry, peach and strawberry. So light and fluffy and so good for breakfast the next day, too.

My fried chicken, accompanied by fried okra and hash brown casserole. Is it pretty? Nope. But tasty? Oh my yes. It was probably the best fried chicken I’ve had since my mother’s and that’s really saying something.

Dale had chicken fried steak (so tender he could cut it with his fork) and macaroni ‘n cheese and fried green tomatoes. Again I say, pretty? Nah. But delicious and comforting and just like having Sunday dinner at your grandma’s.

Wednesday afternoon. Fried Pimento Cheese Balls at GRAY’s On Main in Franklin. This was my reward for tromping across a battlefield. Believe me when I say that I researched where to eat in Franklin the minute Dale said he wanted to go there to see the Civil War sites. It was pretty funny when he looked at the menu and said, “oh boy, those fried pimento cheese balls sound great.” That’s when I looked at him and said, “that’s why we’re here, honey.” Heh.

My shrimp and grits with his burger in the background. This place was wonderful and I’m glad we went even if I did have to tromp that battlefield first.

Thursday morning. The Big Fix at the Flipside. It’s a Bloody Mary that comes complete with crab claws, fried chicken, tater tots, a gigantic pickle, bacon, olives, pepperoncini and celery. It was a cocktail AND lunch and we both had one. It was fun and quite the experience!

Friday late afternoon. Ice cream from Jeni’s on our way to the airport. Vicki had mentioned Jeni’s and I’m glad we made time to stop before we left. Dale had the ice cream flight with wild Brown Butter Almond, Salty Caramel and Wildberry Lavender. I had Brambleberry Crisp and Bangkok Peanut. So flavorful. So smooth and creamy. So worth the stop!

And there you have it! Of course there were things not pictured like dinner at Puckett’s on Thursday night and lunch at Pinewood Social on Friday afternoon. Nashville has great music but it also has some really fabulous food, too!