Adventures in Music City; Nashville, TN, USA
Nashville’s draw is much more than just country music; the city has successfully rebranded itself as the music capital of the US. Its charm doesn’t stop with just music either. The city is filled with delightful, local shops and a thriving arts scene.
I made the trip here recently for a conference and decided to plan a few extra days to explore the city. As I usually do, I booked an Airbnb instead of a hotel and made a long list of local shops, interesting spots, and restaurants to try out. The city is pretty small so even while I was staying in one place, it was easy to get anywhere I wanted to go. I chose to stay near Belmont University and 12th Ave because there was a local park nearby on one side and lots of local places on the other.
Food
My first day there, I arrived at my lodging near dinnertime and immediately went for a walk to 12th Ave for tacos. Bartaco seems to be a staple for Nashville locals and attracts crowds every day of the week. Being a vegan, I specifically choose places to eat where they denote items as ‘vegan’ or ‘vegetarian’ right on the menu; I don’t like guessing or having to ask too many questions about ingredients.
The tacos at Bartaco were out of this world good! I had the cauliflower and the falafel options. There was a romesco sauce they put on the roasted cauliflower that was amazing. Even though I ordered extra tacos, I ended up eating them all as well as a chips and salsa appetizer. Then they offered me vegan horchata as a dessert. I’ve always liked horchata as a drink so I tried the version they made — which looked like a round, individual-sized cheesecake — and that was amazing too. They also give you free taco tokens for filling out comment cards about the restaurant.
I liked the place so much that I ended up going back two more times during my stay and dreaming about their tacos since then :). Eating tacos will never be the same after that.
Some breakfast places that I was impressed with were Five Daughters Bakery and Proper Bagel. The former has four or five varieties of vegan donuts (the Cinnamon frosted one is the best). While I usually avoid junk food, I like to indulge sometimes while traveling. I also didn’t feel too bad eating there since they only use high quality ingredients. Proper Bagel is a local shop that makes almost all of their bagels vegan. They also have vegan salads, jellies, and even cream cheeses. My favorites were the sourdough bagel with chive cream cheese and the spicy vegetable salad.
Every Wednesday and Saturday there is an indoor/outdoor farmer’s market near downtown. It’s probably the best spot to go for lunch or shopping for locally made gifts. They have many different ethnic options which is usually a good bet for vegan vs the typical American joint. The Jamaican place had several options and, while slightly greasy for my taste (I don’t cook with any oil at home), had delicious flavor. The plantains were also bomb.
I went back to the market and had bibimbap at a Korean place and bought some fresh jelly from a local shop. There was an outdoor garden shop next door and I picked out many plants that I wanted, but I couldn’t transport them back home so I just made notes of the ones I wanted for the future.
After walking by Jeni’s Ice Cream so many times, in two different locations, I decided to peep in and see what they had. Like so many local places, they had quite a few interesting vegan options; I tried them all. My favorite was the Cold Brew with Coconut Cream, but the PB&J was interesting too. Everything tasted really fresh.
The conference, held at Music City Center, was just a few blocks from a vegetarian spot called E+Rose Wellness Cafe. They make lots of smoothies and bowls and have fresh-made breakfast and lunch options as well. Whenever I was in a rush, I would go there and grab a pre-made wrap and a drink from their fridge. I ate there quite a few times and everything I had was delicious.
A few other places that were recommended to me were Avo Nashville, Veggie Village in Germantown, and The Southern V; but I didn’t have time to go to any of these. If you try them, let me know in the comments about your experience.
History
Nashville was settled in the late 1700s and has a rich history of evolving from a trading port to a publishing hub into ‘Music City USA’. Before visiting, I had studied some of the history so I knew where to look for signs of the evolution.
The Country Music Museum is a beatiful building, located in the middle of downtown, dedicated to celebrating the city’s tradition of country music. I learned a lot there: Elvis and Taylor Swift both had country roots. Country music has also seemingly evolved separately from society. They had all sorts of outrageous costumes on display from the actual shows of country musicians. From never having listened to country before, I have a new appreciation for it. One note about the museum: If you go an hour or less before they close, you can get discounted tickets.
The Grand Ole’ Opry is probably Nashville’s biggest destination. I really wanted to go, but by the time I went to get tickets, they only had standing room left. I am going to buy tickets much earlier on my next trip to Nashville.
There is a great state park across from the farmer’s market I mentioned above named Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park. The park is a monument of the history of Tennessee as a state since 1796. I walked around the ‘Pathway of History’ and got to see indigenous plant species from around the state. It’s a great use of 19 acres of the city, in my opinion.
Tripadvisor and Airbnb both offer tours given by locals now, so I think I will sign up for one next time. I did a few of these last time I was in Europe and they were all good and really personalized vs larger tour companies. Both websites boast a variety of options for exploring Nashville.
Shops
I’m a big fan of bookstores. I try not to buy too many souveniers when I travel, but I always end up coming home with at least one new book.
The bookshops I went to in Nashville were a mixed bag and I don’t want to trash any of them so I’m just going to mention the ones I liked best: Parnassus and Grimey’s. Parnassus was very organized and I liked that they had a section for local authors. I had a great conversation with the store owner and purchased a book that he recommended written by a Nashville native. Grimey’s is more of a music store but they have a decent selection of mostly music-related books downstairs. I spent quite a while browsing through their records and then, of course, ended up buying a few books.
I forgot to bring a pair of dress shoes with me on the trip so I went out for a long walk one day on 12th Ave to see what the local shops had (I started out near Bartaco and went up and down the street). I ended up browsing four different stores and I loved the styles they had. Items felt very Tennessee-like with checkered shirts and shoes; and lots of demin. If I hadn’t already been working on downsizing my closet for the last year, I probably would have bought so many things.
I collect magnets and my aunt collects spoons so I always try to look for both of those items whenever I travel. The shops at the farmer’s market I mentioned earlier are the best places that I found to buy local in Nashville. Batch was my favorite store in the market, carrying high-quality, locally made, artisanal goods. Among other things, I bought some smoked peach jam there that I couldn’t stop eating.
Entertainment
Of course, there is much more to Nashville than just food. It probably doesn’t surprise any of you that I experienced the best local music scene of my life here. Yes, there was lots of country, but also many other genres. Sometimes, I would be walking down a street downtown and multiple bands would be playing amazing music within feet of each other.
The clubs on lower Broadway seem to be where everyone wants to hang out but there are plenty of other good spots like the famous Printer’s Alley or 12th Ave. I don’t drink anymore so I enjoyed a more sedated scene in Nashville by mostly listening to street musicians or overhearing bands through open windows.
I sampled lots of music every day of my stay and I think my favorite of all were the jazz bands at Rudy’s Jazz Room. From the outside, you would never guess the quality of the jazz music being played inside Rudy’s. There was a trio playing on Sunday evening that just blew me away. They were funny and talented and, overall, very enjoyable to listen to. In between playing, they shared stories about the history of jazz and people they had played with in the past. This is one place I will not miss when I return to Nashville.
Nashville has professional hockey — Nashville Predators — and football — Tennessee Titans — teams that play right in town. I’ve been told they both have really good local followings so I was considering going to a hockey game but there wasn’t one I could attend during my stay. Oh well, maybe next time.
Wrap Up
I am definitely surprised at how much I enjoyed Nashville: the music, food, culture, vibe; everything was good. It seemed as though the city and buildings were carefully thought out to fit in with the surroundings. I had never considered moving to the south before but, I have to admit, it crossed my mind on a few occasions during that trip.
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Thanks for reading and have a great day!
