Heading there tomorrow with the wife for our 20th Anniversary! Any suggestions on food and or the best bars for live music? I appreciate it!
Nashville
- Thread starter Manofsteel200
- Start date
Just walk down Broadway and hit as many little bars as you can. Every one will have the best live music you've ever heard by artists you've never heard of. I'd love to spend about a month there doing nothing but seeing live stuff. Congrats on the anniversary and have a blast. I'm jealous (of the trip).
IMO Hattie B's is a must for their 'hot' fried chicken (spice not temp)!! just a casual place . The other thing I noticed relative to the bands/music was, the more crowded the place, the poorer the musicians were!! For example Rippy's was slammed but the 2 guys singing sucked , across the street I think was Layla's ,not nearly as crowded and there was a band of studio musicians that were very good!
Remember though Nashville aint cheap, a bucket of 6 Miller lights was $50 including some tip money
I was just there in September for a concert and had blast!! As others said just wonder down the street!! For me though I'll walk around the corp type places Margaritaville etc.
Remember though Nashville aint cheap, a bucket of 6 Miller lights was $50 including some tip money
I was just there in September for a concert and had blast!! As others said just wonder down the street!! For me though I'll walk around the corp type places Margaritaville etc.
Welcome to Nashville. I’ve lived here 8 years now so I’m more local than tourist. Broadway is where you will find all the tourists and the famous spots. Bars will be crowded here starting around 5 or 6, depending on weather. Suggestion is to go during the day - much less crowded and the live music is just as good. Also a trendy area but much better food quality is The Gulch. Take your pick of restaurants - Whiskey Kitchen is a good bar with pretty good bar food. There is an English pub there as well that we have found to be good. Mexican, Asian, Hot Chicken. Head toward the West End (Vanderbilt area). Some good bars there - ‘Winners’ and ‘Losers’. Be prepared for crowds. This place is always crowded. If you’d like a nice anniversary spot I suggest Char for brunch or dinner. It’s about a 10 minute Uber from downtown in Green Hills and won’t break the bank but is quieter and much more upscale than most places you’ll find within a block or 2 of Broadway. Enjoy your visit.
We just got back from a trip there. Check out my post. Plenty of suggestions. You’re in for a great time. We loved it!
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Highly recommend The Stillery in Nashville (2 locations). Food is phenomenal!
I don’t believe it’s a published dress code. I’ve worn nice jeans and a polo or button up shirt before as well as dress slacks and dress shirt. You’ll probably see some t-shirts and jeans there too though. Not a coat and tie place.
Just a suggestion - get the BBQ shrimp. As close as I’ve had in Nashville to New Orleans BBQ shrimp.
Fantastic. We explored the entire city and ate, drank and listened as much as we could. We quickly realized that parenthood has taken it’s toll on us and we were in bed by 9:30pm each night(...but we start day drinking at2pm)
We would walk 2 miles in the AM to our restaurant of choice for breakfast(Sun Diner was the winner. WOW)
We would then walk 2 miles back to the hotel and head out for the day.
We also realized that Broadway is fun but a little too much for our liking. We went to Printers alley and had a first row seat at the whiskey shot. Great young singer there. We Also loved Smokey row. Again front row seat for Josh Hughett. He was our favorite singer of the week.
We went to the Hampton Social for dinner. Cool vibe and good seafood. Other nights just grabbed snacks at the establishments we were visiting.
I appreciate all the recommendations and insights!!!
We would walk 2 miles in the AM to our restaurant of choice for breakfast(Sun Diner was the winner. WOW)
We would then walk 2 miles back to the hotel and head out for the day.
We also realized that Broadway is fun but a little too much for our liking. We went to Printers alley and had a first row seat at the whiskey shot. Great young singer there. We Also loved Smokey row. Again front row seat for Josh Hughett. He was our favorite singer of the week.
We went to the Hampton Social for dinner. Cool vibe and good seafood. Other nights just grabbed snacks at the establishments we were visiting.
I appreciate all the recommendations and insights!!!
Really enjoyed reading through this thread, as I'll be going to Nashville next May for the 60th birthday of a friend who loves country music. It's not my musical cup of tea, though. I really like some musical groups that have a southern/country flavor to their music (Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, NRPS, Poco, Marshall Tucker Band, etc.), but once the vocals in a song get really twangy (as in Southern twangy accent) and the lyrics start focusing on the singer's truck/farm/horse, I lose interest. Wonder if there are some bars in Nashville where the music is more likely to combine country and rock, as opposed to full-on country twang.
We just got back from a trip there. Check out my post. Plenty of suggestions. You’re in for a great time. We loved it!
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Traveling to an NFL game is about so much more than the 3-1/2 hours you spend inside the stadium. Experiencing the sites, sounds, and smells are what I love about traveling – and Nashville di…
Yo - love your travel blog; really good stuff and full of good, useful information. Thanks for sharing!
Too late for the OP, but I wanted to chime in on Char. I stumbled across it in January earlier this year (as it was walking distance from the Courtyard in Green Hills and I didn't want to drive). Definitely recommended. And casual dress was not a problem. I was in jeans and an uncollared shirt.
We made a reservation for char but cancelled it as we weren’t sure of the dress code and just wanted a relaxing evening. Will definitely try it next time!
Every bar on Broadway has multiple entertainers. And most of them sing a wide variety of music so you aren’t subjected to seven songs about a guys dog(lol).
Broadway can really be intense, that’s why we tended to stay at Printers alley/Smokey Row.
If you have any questions, let me know. We really did our research and the above travel blog was perfect!
Is Broadway in Nashville kind of a "must see" for first time visitors? Kinda like going to Beringer Vineyards is for people who have never been to the Napa Valley (you go once, and that is enough) ?
Broadway is a must see as well as a must go back. Walking down going into a bar you will probably find some of the finest musicians you’ve never heard of These aren’t just ‘guys’ There are other places to see but this is the heart beat
If you’re a golf fan, TopGolf is a few blocks from downtown. Very fun and able to be enjoyed in any weather. Wait times can be very long so if you’re interested in that
If you tell someone you went to Nashville as a tourist but skipped Broadway, you’ll get some funny looks. Like going to Paris and not seeing the Eiffel Tower. Or Pittsburgh and not seeing the Cathedral of Learning. just kidding, it falls in the middle somewhere
It’s a bucket list thing. You either love it, or leave it. Generally, very crowded and loud. But you have to do it at least once. It’s definitely a tourist spot. Rare to find too many locals there. We go other places. But the musicians there are as good as you’ll find anywhere. Many ‘stars’ took their turn on those stages breaking into the business. My advice - go and if you like it, keep going. If not, there are a ton of other great spots that have great music but a much less intense atmosphere.
My wife described it as “if the Vegas Strip and Bourbon St. had a baby.”
Great people watching and music. Some love it. Some hate it. Some, like me, can take it in small doses.
For me, I can handle all three for 48 hours max.
Great people watching and music. Some love it. Some hate it. Some, like me, can take it in small doses.
For me, I can handle all three for 48 hours max.
This. It was nuts on Saturday. Reminded me of Bourbon Street. But we went to the rooftop bar at Ole Reds and had some cocktails while listening to a fantastic young lady. We stayed there for a couple of hours. Then we went to Doc Hollidays and listened to another singer who sounded as good as Chris Stapleton. You just need to find your spot....
No....but he was the early act on 11/6. He was finished playing at around 7pm. You probably call them and find out! Josh Hughett was the other singer who blew us away. He was at Cerveza Jacks.