Inspired and ingenious, taste Nashville's best bites of 2022
In considering this year in Nashville dining, I’ve felt a mixture of emotions. The sheer volume of new hotels offering chef-driven restaurants is exciting, yet worrisome. Will they dominate our city’s food and dining culture? Facing exorbitant rents and shrinking labor market, will smaller, independently owned restaurants succeed? Will there be those still willing to take the risk to open their own businesses, be it bistro, taqueria, bakery or bar? These are the places that create community, the soul of a city.
There are bright spots, to be sure. Vivek Surti’s Tailor has returned, more lovely and welcoming than ever. The Wash is an ingenious repurposing of a defunct car wash into six bays of independent eateries. Levon Wallace recently moved from pop-up (created in pandemic) to bricks-and-mortar, opening Fat Belly Pretzel Bakery on Gallatin Pike. Aron and Christen Clemins are poised to transition their pop-up, Bill’s Sandwich Palace, to permanent home in the former Sweet 16 Bakery. And, more – some noted in the following roster of my “bests” at new restaurants.
This year, I arranged my faves in a series of meals and courses. Of the 11 that I’ve listed, the independent restaurants edged out those in hotels, six to five. Let’s hope in the future, that number will be greater.
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Stellar morning eye-opener
Cafe con leche and tostada at Soy Cubano
Jump-start your day the Cuban way, with a cup of Javier Salado’s Cafe con Leche. Pair his rich, creamy sweet coffee, a most luscious form of rocket fuel, with his tostadas—liberally buttered, pressed and griddled Cuban bread, cut into cunning triangles to dunk into the brew.
Soy Cubano, eatsoycubano.com, 1101 McKennie Ave., Nashville, 37206
Amazing laminations
Twice-baked almond croissant at The Butter Milk Ranch
A croissant’s allure relies on the lamination technique: the folding and rolling of butter into dough, creating uber-flaky layers. At The Butter Milk Ranch, you’ll gaze with childlike wonder on the array of fabulous laminations by pastry chef Alyssa Gangeri, and you’ll be hard pressed to choose. Guess what? There are no wrong choices. Try the twice-baked almond croissant, with custard filling or the babka, with its gorgeous spin of chocolate.
The Butter Milk Ranch, buttermilkranch.com, 2407 12th Ave S., Nashville, 37212
A brunch for celebration
French omelet and crepe Suzette cake at The Continental
Recently launched weekend brunch at The Continental is replete with old world inspired offerings and posh, informed service. Revel in the butter-rich French omelet, shaved burgundy truffles cascading over its sides, and a slice of the crepe Suzette cake, a tower of umpteen cream-spread crepe layers plated with warm orange-caramel sauce, a treat flambéed before your eyes.
The Continental, thecontinentalnashville.com, (in Grand Hyatt Nashville), 1000 Broadway, Nashville, 37203
Soulful soup and sandwich
Gumbo and Benny and Clovis po’boy at Spicy Boys
Raised in Louisiana’s Ascension Parish, Justin Cheney knows bonafide Louisiana cuisine. His gumbo, made lustrous brown from toasty roux, brims with chunks of roast chicken and his own andouille sausage. His Benny and Clovis po’boy, is packed with tender roast beef in gravy, fixin’s and fries. Both deliver true Cajun comfort.
Spicy Boys, spicyboysnashville.com, 924 McFerrin Ave., Nashville, 37206
Sophisticated lunch
Warm shrimp salad at Drusie & Darr by Jean-Georges
The stunning transformation of the Capitol Grille and Oak Bar into Drusie & Darr ushers the historic hotel dining room and bar into the 21st century, while honoring its architectural elements, juxtaposing opposites. With its just-poached shrimp napped in champagne beurre blanc and perched on chilled lettuces, warm shrimp salad follows suit, a compelling contrast of textures and temperatures.
Drusie & Darr by Jean-Georges (in The Hermitage Hotel), 231 6th Ave. N., Nashville, 37219
Salad and pizza perfection
Porlezza and margherita at Il Forno
Because I couldn’t choose just one dish from Edigio and Jannah Franciosa’s charming restaurant, I’ve paired the porlezza salad—cuts of Little Gem lettuces dressed in Gorgonzola vinaigrette atop warm, crisp slabs of polenta— with their spot-on wood-fired, leopard-spotted margherita pizza, prepared in the Neapolitan manner, where Edigio was born and raised.
Il Forno, ilfornowoodfired.com,1414 3rd Ave. S., Nashville, 37210
Most delicious appetizer to share
Okonomyaki at Xiao Bao
Okonomyaki, Japanese for “how you want it”, is a popular vegetable-based pancake from Osaka. When Xiao Bao owners Joshua Walker and Duolan Li worked on a farm in Japan, they learned this version. More hash brown than pancake, and combining cabbage, onions and carrots, their “oko” is oh-so light and delicate, yet prepared in a way that amplifies the vegetables’ inherent sweetness. It is finished in a criss-cross striping of sauces, and while you may embellish it by adding an egg, or pork candy, it is absolutely delicious just as it is.
Xiao Bao, xiaobaonashville.com, 830 Meridian St., Nashville, 37207
Dreamiest pasta
Caviar linguine at Mimo
When creating his Southern Italian menu for the Four Seasons Nashville’s premier restaurant, Mimo, executive chef Aniello “Nello” Turco wanted to include his specialty caviar linguine, yet reimagined in a way to honor the American South. His inclusion of crispy okra slivers folded throughout the pasta is genius—adding compelling crunch and earthy bite to the velvety dish.
Mimo, mimorestaurant.com, (in Four Seasons Nashville), 100 Demonbreun St., Nashville, 37201
Sublime entree
Salt-baked Florida red snapper at Carne Mare
Tableside dishes, presented and served with panache, can make a meal memorable. Chef Andrew Carmellini’s preparation of red snapper, salt-crusted and baked over lemon leaves, arrives on a covered platter, which, on opening, releases citrusy aromatics. Then, your server makes a sauce of pink peppercorns, green olives, orange and lemon to bathe the mild and succulent fillet.
Carne Mare, carnemarenashville.com, (in West Nashville), 300 12th Ave. S., Nashville, 37203
Favorite side
Jimmy Red grits at Audrey
Jimmy Red dent corn was almost extinct by the early 2000s, but has survived and thrived, thanks in large part to chef Sean Brock, who made it his first seed-saving project. Now, he highlights the heirloom at Audrey with his preparation of the naturally sweet maroon-flecked grits imbued with bay laurel and capped with a sorghum-cured egg yolk. Break and stir in the yolk, enriching the grits and deepening the flavors.
Audrey, audreynashville.com, 809 Meridian St., Nashville, 37207
Dessert delight
Banana trifle at Blue Aster
What a pleasure to dip your spoon into this etched glass goblet, beautifully layered with house-made vanilla wafer crumbles, silken custard, crushed bits of toffee and bruléed banana. It takes the homey goodness of banana pudding and elevates it to the elegance of a trifle.
Blue Aster, blueasternashville.com, (in The Conrad), 1620 West End Ave., Nashville, 37203
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville restaurants served up inspired and ingenious bites in 2022
