Nashville is famous for three things: great music, warm hospitality, and inventive cuisine. When one thinks of Tennessee meals, food like barbecue and fried chicken come to mind. Yet, Nashville is more than just meat and top chefs are reinventing this Southern cuisine. But where are the smartest, savviest diners eating out? Welcome to the Tastemaker Lists. We’ve pulled data from thousands of restaurants to find the top spots among OpenTable's most expert, seasoned diners. Iconic Nashville dishes like “meat and three,” fried catfish, cornbread, mac 'n' cheese, and country ham all get a chance in the limelight, but so do some more exotic plates. Book a table and get eating at some of these Nashville icons.
| Restaurants: | Opry Backstage Grill at The Inn at Opryland, Park Cafe, Giovanni's Ristorante - Mid Town… |
|---|---|
| Price Range: | $$ - $$ |
| Cuisines: | Southern, Contemporary American, Italian… |
| Neighborhoods: | Nashville, West End… |
In Nashville, high-end cuisine is constantly fused with down-home cooking and traditional techniques. Yet the relationship between food and music is also just as important as the relationship between ...
This minimalist bistro is a great example of how Nashville chefs are succeeding in soul fusion. There’s nothing more “Nashville” than the smoked Springer Mountain chicken. It’s served alongside house ...
This high-end restaurant specializes in Italian cuisine with a Southern twist. The ambiance is rustic — drawing both on Nashville and Northern Italy. The mac and cheese with ham and peas is a dish tha...
Possibly one of Nashville’s most beloved restaurants, the Yellow Porch allows Southern ingredients to shine. You’ll notice some of the most popular Southern dishes have gotten an update here — dishes ...
You might forget you’re in such a laid-back city while sitting at a booth at Il Mulino. The Nashville outpost of this Italian restaurant screams class while embracing the flavors of the South. Here, y...
Another famed high-end steak chain that’s made its way to Nashville is the Palm. The décor is just as interesting as the Palm’s locations in other cities (full of caricatures of celebrities and memora...
Possibly one of Nashville’s most iconic dishes (and exports) is hot chicken. Not for the faint of heart, hot chicken is an eye-watering dish that one might guess was a dare (it was actually a revenge ...
GRAYS on Main is the place you go when you want to imagine you’re a guest in a classy Nashville home. This down-to-earth spot is trendy as all get out — and has a menu to match. They're another one of...
There are few “true” Southern restaurants on this list, but the ones included know how to elevate iconic Nashville cuisine and make each ingredient shine. If you’re going to order Nashville’s famous m...
Ruth's Chris might be famous across the country as the place for meat, but in Nashville (where meat is king) it’s an even bigger deal. Since bigger is better when it comes to meat in the South, the to...
The Old Hickory Steakhouse is set in an antebellum mansion — the perfect environment for elevated Southern fare. This fine dining restaurant has not only managed to elevate classic Southern cuisine, b...