Nashville has great energy, lots to see, lots of activity. It’s a friendly town, it’s all about music, but the best thing about Nashville is the people there – open, interested, interesting. If you enjoy people when you travel, put Nashville on your list. You’ll love it.
I visited Nashville twice this year; my early Spring visit was fun and I returned for Thanksgiving weekend. I started out in Nolensville, just outside Nashville. Comfortable and scenic – Nolensville’s a nice place to live. Thanksgiving Day was a family day – my favorite cousins, great food, great conversation. The next day my cousin brought me to two places well worth a visit. The Nolensville Feed Mill (www.NolensvilleFeedMill.com) is filled with Amish food and crafts – great for gifts. Just across the street I made a ‘find’ at Three French Hens (www.3hens.com), an antiques and collectibles shop filled with wonderful items at really good prices. A ‘find’ when you’re visiting someplace is the best, and this was a really good one. The owners are helpful and friendly and I’ll definitely return.
Friday night we went out on the town. First, dinner at Tayst (www.taysterestaurant.com) – the only green certified restaurant in Nashville. Chef Jeremy Barlow’s got a sense of humor and has some local items on the menu – Sausage, Biscuits and Gravy, Chicken Fricasee – created in his own style. I had Wild Salmon on a bed of pearl onions – it was perfection, along with Beef Short Ribs and Foie Gras appetizer and Flourless Chocolate Cake. Great wine list as well and attentive, knowledgeable waiters. I look forward to other dinners there.
You can’t go out for an evening in Nashville without going honky tonkin’ on Broadway, and that’s where we headed after dinner. On our way we swung by The Hermitage Hotel (www.preferredhotels.com) just a few blocks from Broadway in downtown Nashville. I’m a huge historic hotel fan, and I’d heard about their renovation. Opened in 1910, it truly is a jewel . The quiet elegance of the lobby with oriental touches beckons you to sit and relax near the fireplace, fire burning.
Finally on to Broadway and the honky tonks – the street crowded with people leaving a hockey game at the nearby stadium, music everywhere, people everywhere, alive, friendly, a night on Broadway. Robert’s Western World (www.robertswesternworld.com is a local favorite. We walked in and sure enough my cousins knew the band leader. We nodded to him, walked through the packed bar, got our drinks and looked around for a place to sit. A man walked by and nodded to my cousin’s husband, who told me that gentleman used to play for Johnny Cash. Sitting in the balcony, the band played classic songs, and in between cajoled the crowd for tips with jokes like ‘We’ve got a $13,000 bar bill and the owners won’t let us stop playing until we pay up.’ Robert’s Western World has great music and great hamburgers, and the boots and clothing on display are for sale; this honky tonk started as western clothing store. A back door takes you to the alley between Ryman’s Auditorium (the original Grand Ole Opry building) and the honky tonks – a passage where musicians and singers slipped in for a drink in between sets at the Grand Old Opry.
In the morning, my cousin called The Loveless Café (www.lovelesscafe.com) to ask when the lines would shorten; it’s always mobbed. ‘They say it should thin out around three o’clock. Alan Jackson was just there for breakfast,’ my cousin said. The Loveless has the best biscuits anywhere made by Carol Fay, aka The Biscuit Lady. I had to try those biscuits and fried chicken before getting on the plane. At three o’clock when we pulled up they were still mobbed. We went inside to order takeout and there she was – Carol Fay in a Got Biscuits? T-shirt. What a thrill to meet the legend herself! The food was fantastic and Carol’s biscuits don’t disappoint; they are the best.
On the plane heading home I thought about Nashville, the people, the music, the friendly mood. It’s a town that knows who they are and loves who they are, and in two short visits Nashville’s become a place that I love. I look forward to my return.
What do you love about Nashville? Tell us!
