Length: 3 Days | Budget: $
Oh Nashville, the Music City, how I love you so! If you’re in need for a good weekend destination that is easily accessible, has excellent food, and a hopping music scene, then Nashville is the place for you. My husband and I recently visited Nashville with friends and spent most of our time eating (and drinking) our way through the city. Check out the itinerary of our ‘DIY Nashville Food Tour‘ below. I’m warning you now that you will eat A LOT on this trip….but you will have NO REGRETS.
Day 1: Downtown Nashville
When I think of the South, I immediately think of good BBQ, fried chicken, and blissfully buttery biscuits. And NOBODY does buttery biscuits better than Biscuit Love (Bon Appetit agrees). Start your first day in Nashville by getting breakfast at Biscuit Love, a food truck-turned-restaurant in the new-and-upcoming Gulch neighborhood. Be prepared to wait for your food – we went on a Friday morning and STILL had to wait in a line that wrapped around the corner block. Don’t worry though, the line moves relatively quickly (we only waited 20-30 minutes but expected to wait an hour based on the length of the line). The most popular item on the menu are the ‘Bonuts’, a.k.a fried biscuit donuts. They sound heavy but actually tasted light and airy – the lemon mascarpone and blueberry syrup drizzled on the donuts provided a ‘tartness’ that balanced out the dish. Skip the Gertie (a biscuit covered with chocolate , peanut butter, banana jam, topped with pretzels), it was way too sweet and overwhelming.
Now that you’ve whet your appetite, balance out the sweetness by hitting up Hattie B’s Hot Chicken in Midtown (one of the highlights from our trip!). I’ve had a LOT of fried chicken in my life and I can honestly say that this was some of the BEST fried chicken I’ve ever had. We shared a Small Dark plate (leg + thigh) with Cole Slaw and the Pimento Mac and Cheese. I would highly recommend the Hot! heat level, it was the perfect amount of spice. Again, expect a line…but know that it’s worth the wait.
Take a break from food and take an Uber to the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge. The bridge is smack-in-the-middle of downtown Nashville, is only accessible by foot, and offers great views of the city. If you’re interested in country music, the Country Music Hall of Fame is only a few minutes walk away from the bridge. My husband and I are not big country fans so found that the experience to not be worth the $25/person admission fee, however, I could see it being an AWESOME activity for country music fans.
TIP: Utilize the free Nashville MTA Music City Circuit bus (departs every 10-15 minutes) to explore a larger portion of the downtown area. Other popular tourist sites include: Grand Ole Opry House, Ryman Auditorium, the Parthenon, and the Studio B Tour. We would have LOVED to see a show at the Grand Ole Opry but didn’t have enough time. If you have the chance, hop on it!
When in Nashville, you obviously have to get BBQ. There are 2 big ‘go-to’ spots for BBQ in Nashville: Peg Leg Porker and Martin’s. We tried both and found that while Peg Leg Porker had better sides (get the smoked green beans and the mac!), Martin’s had a fun atmosphere and more importantly, better meat! Grab dinner at Martin’s BBQ Joint in downtown Nashville. Their signature vinegar-based BBQ sauce is the perfect complement to a smoked, meaty plate of brisket. After dinner, hang around Martin’s for awhile…there’s plenty of space to relax and enjoy a beer, or if you want to work off the calories you just consumed, you can play shuffleboard, ping pong, or darts.
Then, head to the famous Honky Tonk Row (Broadway Historic District) to enjoy some live music (no cover charge!) 24/7, 365 days a week. Some of the local favorites include Honky Tonk Central, Tootsies Orchid Lounge, and Robert’s Western World.
Day 2: 12 South
The 12 South neighborhood used to be considered the ‘rougher part’ of Nashville. It has now become one of the hottest areas in Nashville with tons of bars, good food, and cute boutique shops. Kick off your second morning in Nashville by grabbing coffee and a pastry at The Five Daughters Bakery, a store that is in the middle of the 12 South neighborhood. Five Daughters is famous for their 100-layer Cronut, a delicious hybrid croissant/donut that supposedly takes 3 days to make! We shared a simple Vanilla Sugar Cronut…I don’t think my stomach could have handled a cream-filled one! The Vanilla Sugar was sweet, buttery, flaky, and tasted exactly how you’d expect something called a ‘Cronut’ to taste.
TIP: Want something healthier? The Five Daughters also offers vegan and paleo options so there’s something for everyone.
Explore the adorable shops in the area – some favorites include White’s Mercantile (a general store that features kitchen staples and home decor), Draper James (Reese Witherspoon’s lifestyle brand shop offering bright clothing and home accents), Sprinkles (a cupcake shop with a CUPCAKE ATM), and Craft South (a colorful fabric, yarn, and embroidery shop). Once you’re done shopping (or window-shopping like us), roam around Sevier Park and then end your stroll by grabbing a cool treat at Las Paletas, a shop featuring handmade Mexican popsicles in a variety of quirky flavors (for example, Hibiscus, Avocado, and Hot Chocolate with Chili). The popsicles are made without artificial ingredients or preservatives, and the menu changes daily based on what fruits are in season. My husband ordered the Coffee flavor and I ordered the Lemon Basil…both were extremely flavorful and wonderfully refreshing.
Grab an Uber and head towards Belle Meade Plantation to get a glimpse into life in Nashville at an earlier time. Belle Meade (also known as the Queen of the Tennessee Plantations) is a beautifully restored, historic plantation that is most famous for breeding prized race horses for the Kentucky Derby. Take a self-guided tour of the grounds or a $20/person guided tour of the main house (the guides are all in period costume and character!) to get your fill of history and culture. After the tour, take advantage of the complimentary wine tasting and relax on the grounds by playing some bocce ball, corn hole, or croquet. I’ll admit, I felt a little conflicted while touring the grounds and viewing the slave quarters, but I was glad that I had the opportunity to learn some history about the slaves who had worked on the plantation.
After Belle Meade, head to The Bluebird Cafe, a small club and restaurant that showcases original country and acoustic music every evening. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to make it to the Bluebird Cafe so I can’t actually speak to the experience…BUT, I’ve heard rave reviews from several friends and it’s only a 10-minute drive away from Belle Meade. Skip the food and just order drinks since the food is supposedly ‘average’.
TIP: The Bluebird Cafe is small and only seats ~100 people. Try to get reservations in advance… it’s frequently featured on the crazy popular ABC TV show ‘Nashville’, so it’s been increasingly difficult to get into the venue for a show.
Day 3: East Nashville
Your last day in Nashville should be spent exploring the hip and funky neighborhood of East Nashville, which was recently named Nashville’s ‘coolest’ neighborhood by Vogue. We stayed in an AirBnB in East Nashville and felt that the area was far enough away from downtown to feel local and neighborly, but was still convenient and a $5-$6 Uber drive away from all of the sites we visited.
Grab an early lunch and coffee at Mas Tacos Por Favor, another Nashville food truck-turned-restaurant that was described to us by MANY locals (Uber drivers, AirBnB hosts) as the “best tacos” in the world. Were they the best tacos I’ve ever had? Probably not. But they were pretty delicious and only $3/piece (cash only). They were also featured on an episode of the Food Network’s show, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. We ordered an iced coffee with horchata, a Spicy Carne Molida (ground beef with habanero), a Skillet Chicken, a Pulled Pork, a Fried Avocado, and the sweet plantains for dessert. Skip the Skillet Chicken, get the Spicy Carne Molida and the Fried Avocado.
Tour East Nashville’s shopping scene on Fatherland Street, a new crop of eclectic stores featuring vintage/artsy finds, gourmet delicatessens, and locally-made apparel. If you need a break from walking, or want some relief from the hot Nashville sun, grab some ice cream from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream. There were SO many wonderful flavors available at Jeni’s that we couldn’t make up our mind – we ended up ordering 6 different flavors/scoops (talk about true happiness). The 6 flavors we ordered were: 1) Birch and Marshmallow, 2) Creamiest Chocolate, 3) Riesling Poached Pear, 4) Butter Cake, 5) Churro, and 6) Goat Cheese and Cherry. All of them were great, but our favorite was surprisingly the quirky Birch and Marshmallow flavor…it tasted like a root beer float!
TIP: Best part of Jeni’s? They WANT you to try all the different flavors. Don’t be shy when asking for samples….they’re super friendly about it!
Next, explore the Five Points area and don’t miss the Idea Hatchery which is a cluster of micro-shops of small, local businesses. Then, head to The Pharmacy for dinner (right across the street from Mas Tacos), known as the best place in Nashville to get a burger. Go early because you’ll have to wait in line – they don’t take reservations. Ask for a table in the Beer Garden – the outdoor space is covered in Italian string lights and you’ll ACTUALLY be able to have a conversation with your group (the restaurant inside is super noisy)! We shared a standard Pharmacy Burger with goat cheese and bacon add-ons, and ordered sweet potato fries on the side. The Pharmacy makes a huge selection of their own flavored aiolis so make sure to order some Tabasco and/or Garlic aioli to dip your sweet potato fries in. Yum!
TIP: Download the NoWait app on your phone to check the wait times for The Pharmacy. The trick to reducing your wait time for the restaurant is by downloading the app, checking the wait times, and adding yourself to the wait list.
End the night by grabbing some margaritas at a local hot-spot, Rosepepper Cantina. Mango margaritas all the way! If you’re lucky, you might get serenaded by a local mariachi band on the covered patio.
Want more details or a full day-by-day itinerary of this trip? Need help planning your trip to Nashville? Sign-up for my e-mail list or shoot me a comment/question below!
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