By Jill Melton, Carrington Fox, Sarah Wilson and Olivia Escude
Ollè Korean Eats is my family’s newest obsession. This fast-casual spot—near Trader Joe’s on White Bridge—serves Korean comfort food that keeps us coming back. The first time we walked in, we were met with the smell of sizzling bulgogi, bright pops of color from fresh fruit drinks, and market shelves lined with pantry items and banchan.
We ordered a little bit of everything (naturally). Bibimbap is my personal favorite and came out vibrant and hearty. Japchae was glossy, perfectly chewy and slightly sweet. We tried multiple varieties of kimbap, each one fresh and tightly rolled, ideal for sharing—though we didn’t do much sharing.
What I love most about Ollè is that it’s family-owned. They honor classic Korean flavors while leaning into a modern, fast-casual style. They offer takeout, too, which is dangerous because we’ve already been twice and are plotting our next visit. @ollekoreaneats, SW
Originating in Florence, Italy, All’Antico Vinaio is one of the most joyful sandwich experiences in Nashville. With two locations—1915 Broadway and 622 8th Ave. S.— they always use a soft-yet-crispy freshly baked Tuscan schiacciata bread and delicious, sometimes surprising, ingredients. The menu features Florentine classics, along with a few Nashville-exclusive creations, but the global fan favorite is also my personal go-to: La Paradiso.
It’s stacked—truly—with thinly sliced mortadella, clouds of stracciatella cheese and a generous swipe of pistachio cream (plus crushed pistachios) that somehow ties everything together. It’s salty, creamy, nutty and just a little decadent. Basically, it’s dreamy.
Portions are huge, so sharing a sandwich is totally an option—though you may not want to. We love this spot for a quick lunch, a pre-concert bite or even a casual family dinner where everyone trades bites across the table. They also serve soft drinks and Sicilian sodas, which pair perfectly with all that glorious schiacciata. @allanticovinaiousa, SW
GreenHouse Nashville has become one of my go-to spots to grab drinks somewhere that feels both relaxed and a little magical. Tucked inside a lush, plant-filled space with twinkle lights, in the middle of bustling Green Hills, it’s a hidden gem that has been around for decades. Depending on the season, you’ll spot everything from blooming orchids to bright poinsettias among the hundreds of plants that live there year-round. A fiddle-leaf fig stretches across the entire dining room. It’s like sipping a cocktail inside the prettiest greenhouse you could imagine.
Happy hour is simple: classic cocktails and cold beers at great prices all day. And because no great drink is complete without something to nibble on, the food menu (from The Food Company) is full of easy, shareable options. On a recent girls’ night, we ordered the charcuterie board, and it was exactly what we needed: a little salty, a little savory and perfect alongside a round of cocktails.
They have a large, outside covered porch area with firepits and benches. They also serve breakfast Wednesday through Sunday until 1 p.m., which is now firmly on my must-try list with my kids in tow. @greenhousebarnash, SW
Edessa sits in that stretch of Nolensville Pike near Elysian Fields that locals call Little Kurdistan, and every time I go, it feels like I’ve stepped into a family gathering, warm with connection among staff and owners. I love going with a group, because everything is so easy to share. The first thing to hit the table is lavash bread—puffed up like a balloon, still steaming and impossible not to rip apart the second it lands. The Edessa appetizer platter always ends up in the middle, a mix of dips and small bites. And kebab skewers never fail to make the whole table pause before diving in. Everything feels fresh and authentic. @edessa.nashville, SW
Great to bump into Corrado Savarino and his shell-shaped sfogliatelle layered pastry in Columbia, where he relaunched in 2019, three years after his Cucina left Belcourt Avenue. Corrado and his family bought an old—really old—building at the quiet intersection of West 11th and Parker streets, where they began updating the 19th-century premises and rekindling their wholesale baking business. Now the retail side is back, too, with pastry cases of gem-colored cookies, refrigerators of prepared pastas, shelves of imported Italian ingredients and a roster of sandwiches named for Corrado’s friends who made the Belcourt store a Music City lunchtime legend. We caught up over some cookies and planned to return with a cooler to transport pastry sleeves of sweetened ricotta to stuff into Savarino’s cannoli shells once we get home. @savarinosmarket, CF
With or without ice cream, Neuhoff District in Germantown tops the list for a cool family outing, whether to explore retail and restaurants or just ramble through the restored ruin of a former meatpacking plant. Add in a cone or shake of egg-yolk-rich, French-style ice cream with an out-of-the-box flavor, such as mango sticky rice, peanut butter brownie honeycomb or Earl Grey tea, from this NYC-founded food truck, which has storefronts in more than a dozen states, including shops in Edgehill and the Gulch, and you’ve got a memory in the making. @vanleeuwenicecream, CF
Every day brings more reasons to visit downtown’s Arcade, which has been enjoying a renaissance since new owners bought the 1902 Italian-inspired landmark in 2021 and started refreshing the iconic corridor and its 50 or so retail storefronts. R Slice by Roberta’s Pizza, the Brooklyn-born pie shop partner of Urban Cowboy Lounge in both its East Nashville and Arcade settings, offers a hand-tossed, 18-inch reason to check out the updates. Grab a seat inside Urban Cowboy’s Arcade outpost and order a full-size Bee Sting—with mozzarella, soppressata, basil, chili oil and honey. Or grab a slice and amble upstairs to an art crawl of the dozen artists in residence under the Arcade Alley skylight. @rslicepizza, CF
I’m sure some things have changed in the dozen years since we last ventured to Santa Fe for the gold-painted cinderblock building on the sleepy side of Fly Road. But fortunately, nothing was noticeably different, because it was darn-near perfect back then. This time, we dared to arrive on Saturday at 4 p.m., sans reservation, and were lucky to grab a patio table in front of the restaurant, now run by Papa and son Drew. About the time our early-bird étouffée, jambalaya and chocolate bread pudding arrived, SUVs started pulling up with game-day coolers and SEC swag. Realizing our fortunate timing, we resolved to make a reservation next time, which will be much sooner than 12 years from now. @papaboudreauxs, CF
Lately, when the whole family gathers for dinner, we’ve been ordering takeout from Lemongrass Thai. Our particular pattern is to order a pan of pad Thai, which is conveniently gluten-free and so voluminous that we can be loosey-goosey with the headcount of siblings, cousins and in-laws. It seems that no matter what number we order for, we invariably end up with so much stir-fried chicken in brown sweet-and-sour sauce with egg, bean sprouts, peanuts and green onions that some cousins wonder if the rice noodles are actually multiplying over the course of conversation…which would be fine with me, because the leftovers might even taste better the next day. @lemongrassthaiwb, CF
In addition to serving “damn fine Tennessee spirits,” Old Glory delivers a downright delightful dining experience. Its bright-red marquee letters and towering silo beckon I-24 drivers in search of locally crafted libations and hearty fare. Inside, the distillery itself becomes part of the décor—industrial but warm, with live music and the hum of merrymaking drifting in from the courtyard and firepits. The menu boasts tender, slow-smoked brisket, barbecue and burgers, and while I’ve yet to meet an OG dish I didn’t like, my order rarely deviates from Mexican street corn dip, a honey Old Fashioned with Tennessee barrel-aged whiskey and topped with a chunk of honeycomb, and an 8-ounce slice of tender, delectable prime rib with horseradish cream. I have to unbutton my pants on the drive home every time—a sure sign of a good meal. @oldglorydistillingco, OE
Located in East Nashville and 12th South, this Austin-based taco shop is a sheer delight. The staff is as nice as they come and super helpful when ordering. The thing here is homemade soft flour tortillas rolled and cooked front and center as you walk in. You can’t go wrong with any of them. We particularly loved the breakfast #4 chorizo, egg and cheese, and the #10 lunch tacos with grilled queso fresco, rajas, cabbage and pico. @ladybirdtaco, JM
“It’s Shabu weather,” said Chef Nick Aguilar as we settled in with the hot pot and began dunking paper-thin strips of beautiful Wagyu beef and crisp vegetables into boiling miso broth. We munched on seared hamachi and koshō garlic noodles made with fresh ramen and dashi sake butter. But the Japanese hot pot with choice of broth (kombu, miso or sukiyaki) is the star and a great interactive experience. We took home the remaining broth, which concentrated the deep flavors into a rich follow-up meal. @koshobytabu