Where We're Eating in Sept and Oct

LUNCH Café

When Chef Mallory Grimm moved from Nashville to Sewanee, Tennessee, a couple years ago to open LUNCH, she elevated the food offerings on Monteagle Mountain. With a focus on local ingredients, the baked goods and quiches practically outnumber the tables in this quaint café. Mallory’s cakes, pies, cookies and muffins are amazing, as are her quiches, frittatas (available by the slice) and soups. We would travel the 50 miles south on I-24 for LUNCH’s tomato pie alone.

@lunch.sewanee
Sewanee, 24 University Ave.

Mr. J’s Original

Hands down the best onion rings in town. With a little spit and polish, Jason Flores has turned the iconic Hermitage Cafe into a shining retro burger joint complete with beer and shakes. The menu is simple and straightforward. We enjoyed the corned beef sandwich, as well as the burger, which shows real restraint in a town with everything but the kitchen sink piled on a bun.

@mrjsoriginal
Downtown, 45 Hermitage Ave.

Mi Kitchen

We’ve been at it long enough to know that a restaurant’s location doesn’t tell its whole story, which is definitely the case at this dazzling Asian eatery tucked in a shopping strip off Carothers Parkway. We loved every element of Mi Kitchen’s menu of Asian-style tapas, including the crispy, spicy tuna and K-pop chicken. We’ll be back for the donburi bowl.

@mikitchen.franklin
Franklin, 9050 Carothers Pkwy.

Redheaded Stranger

With tortillas made in the corner of the restaurant, this crowded East Nashville eatery is a haven for anyone looking for unique, clever taco combinations, such as the green chile cheeseburger taco, whipped feta taco and crunchwrap.

@redheadedstrngr
East Nashville, 305 Arrington St.

PennePazze

Fortunately, ordering through a QR code went the “way of the hoop skirt” in most restaurants after the pandemic. So we were surprised to see it utilized at PennePazze, an Italian restaurant on the bottom of L&L Market. But despite this bad start to our meal, the pizza was absolutely terrific. Perfectly fire-grilled. We ordered the pepperoni with honey drizzle, and added burrata and arugula. If there had been anyone to talk to, we would have told them how much we enjoyed it.

@pennepazzenashville
Sylvan Park, 3826 Charlotte Ave.

Streetcar Taps & Garden

Lots of familiar local brews on tap at this beer garden/restaurant on Charlotte Pike that is heavy on smoked and grilled meats. Dine on brats, wings, sliders and salads under umbrellas in the rear garden. Or huddle in the shady dining room, a cool retreat before or after a Saturday shopping stroll at the Richland Park Farmers Market across the road.

@streetcar_nashville
Sylvan Park, 4916 Charlotte Pike

Toastique

You can see the Sounds’ guitar-shaped scoreboard from the dining room window, but don’t look for hot dogs in Toastique’s lineup of fresh juices, smoothies, bowls and gourmet toasts. We loved the open-face pile-ons with smoked salmon, smashed avocado and burrata. And the bowl of acai, bananas, blueberries, peanut butter and almond milk was a home run.

@toastique
Germantown, 820 4th Ave. N.

Sadie’s

With a landmark covered patio at the corner of Edgehill Village, Sadie’s also offers a cheerful open dining room and clean menu of Mediterranean-inspired fare: seared salmon, hummus, tomato salad, fried artichokes in tangy lemon sauce, peas pureed with mint and tangy sorbet. Nothing tops the whipped feta laced with honey, flower petals and pomegranate seeds and served with warm pita.

@sadiesnashville
Edgehill, 1200 Villa Pl.

Bobbie’s Dairy Dip

Founded in 1951, the original Harper's Dairy Dip was renamed by Bobbie McWright in 1986 and now features burgers, dogs, shakes, hot fudge cake and dipped cones, along with picnic table seating, 1950s nostalgia and a line across the parking lot. More than just a landmark on Nashville’s food map, the takeout window at the pink and green house anchors the résumés of generations of industrious teenagers who spend the summer manning the soft serve machine and grill top.

@bobbiesdairydip
Sylvan Park, 5301 Charlotte Ave.

Dumpling House

This Belcourt Avenue eatery churns out 1,500 delicately folded and crimped dumplings a day, available boiled, steamed or pan-fried, and filled with traditional combos such as pork and chive and creative options such as peanut butter shrimp. Sit indoors or on the porch, or order takeout for dumplings, sides and a variety of milk and fruit teas with or without boba.

@dumplinghousenashville
Hillsboro Village, 2117 Belcourt Ave.