5 of the Best Restaurants in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee

I first visited Nashville in 2011, as a stop on a foodie road trip that I was making through the Deep South. I fell for the city immediately: the country music pouring out of every bar, the legendary southern hospitality, the deeply fabulous cowboy boots (of which I bought a pair from Betty’s Boots that I still wear with pride today). I knew that to return to Nashville was to risk tainting that memory, but it was a risk I desperately wanted to take.

And yes, the city has changed immeasurably in the last decade: downtown is now overrun with hordes of bachelorette parties riding booze-fuelled floats made from tractors and army trucks. Hotels are wickedly expensive as a result of the massive gentrification that’s occurred and the influx of richer Americans from the coast. Nashville felt more cool, less country. But still: I loved it. Music City still guarantees a ready supply of catchy melodies at all times and in all places. That southern hospitality has been augmented by a far more cosmopolitan wave of international restaurants. And the fabulous cowboy boots still abound – albeit this time I hit the thrift stores instead of the downtown shops. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).