EVERYTHING WE DID & LOVED IN NASHVILLE! 2019 NASHVILLE TRAVEL GUIDE

As I’m sure many of you saw on Instagram, Marcus and I recently visited Nashville, Tenessee and we absolutely LOVED it. From what I gathered in my DMs- a lot of you guys plan to visit or want to visit Nashville, so I thought a blog post breaking down what we did on our trip, loved, and recommend would be super helpful. (Yes, I shared every detail on my story- you can see pics on my “Nashville” highlight- but this will be easier to refer back to when you plan your future trips, send to your friends, etc.)

I’ll be breaking down everything into categories to make it easier to follow. There are still tons of things we want to do when we go back in the future, but this is what we squeezed into our 4-day trip.

Before we get into it, there are a few things to note that I think were key to our trip. 1. We went during the week (weds-sat) which was way less busy! I definitely recommend doing the same if you can swing it. Weekends get super packed. 2. We stayed in an Airbnb right on 12 South! Hotels were way overpriced, we got the whole stay at our Airbnb for almost the whole price of one night at a hotel we were considering. 12 South is a super unique, popular area- but you’re still away from the city (but not far by any means) and get that homey/cozy vibe. It took less than 5 mins to walk over to Bartaco and Frothy Monkey! 3. We rented a car. This was so major. We had the freedom to roam around and didn’t have to rely on Ubers. If you’re worried about the cost of a rental car, think about the amount you will be spending on getting rides back and forth- you might even save money by renting a car.

EATS

BARTACO

Wow… this place is worth ALL of the hype. This was our first stop when we landed and it was absolutely perfect! Aside from the food being incredible, the people are extremely friendly and welcoming. Both the atmosphere and decor are super cool- great way to start off your trip! Now let’s talk about the food… again I say, WOW. We ordered an insane amount of tacos but our favorites were hands down; the glazed pork belly (absolutely insane), baja fish, roasted duck, and rock shrimp. All of their tacos are completely gluten-free, even the breaded baja fish and shrimp- which was a pleasant surprise for me being gluten intolerant. We loved it so much that we went back for a second time before we left #NOSHAME (haha).

Tip: They’re always super busy, download their app before you go so you can put your name on the list ahead of time. We went to the one on 12 south.

FROTHY MONKEY

This is another must for your trip. Frothy Monkey seems to be a Nashville staple, it’s a popular restaurant and coffee house. There are a few locations you can go to, but we ate at the original one on 12 South (I’m not gonna lie, we also stopped by the one in Franklin to grab iced coffee real quick haha). We went for breakfast and coffee on Thursday morning and we both loved it. Like a lot of spots in Nashville, it is a house- turned business so it has a very cozy feeling. We each had the classic breakfasts and vanilla lattes- it was delicious. Don’t forget to check out their gift section while you’re there- I bought a cozy pullover hoodie, their peppermint coffee syrup, and local honey for my dad as a little souvenir to bring back home.

Tip: Go EARLY and DURING THE WEEK! We went around 8am on Thursday morning and didn’t wait for a table. We drove by on Saturday around 10:30am and the line was out the door all the way to the sidewalk.

MERIDEE’S

We went to Merdiee’s on Thursday when we spent most of the day in Franklin. It’s located right off the main street area that’s super quaint and fun to visit if you plan a day to head in that direction. I know this is a “Nashville” guide, but Franklin is only a few towns over and I definitely recommend exploring outside of the city. Meridee’s is a very popular lunch spot that seems to have been around for a while. I’d say they had the most “country- small town” feel out of all the spots we ate. The full name of the restaurant is Meridee’s Bread Basket, they bake a ton of different types of bread and pastries fresh. Their menu is mainly made up of sandwiches- it wasn’t the most gluten-free friendly place but that’s okay. I got the chili (because GF life), Marcus got the club sandwich and a cinnamon roll that supposedly was really good (“supposedly” because again, GF life). It’s a great local lunch spot.

MARTIN’S BBQ

There’s no shortage of BBQ places in Nash, but Martin’s was highly recommended by my brother-in-law who loves barbeque so we knew it would be good. We first tried to go the one in downtown, but the line was out the door and we were starving. So we went to the next closest location in Midtown and we only had to wait a few minutes. Total score! We shared the rack of ribs and brisket and it was delicious! If you like smokey-bbq, you will love it.

VEGAN VEE BAKERY

A completely vegan and gluten-free bakery Marcus found for us. PRAISE BE! My dm’s were filled with “Go to Five Daughters Bakery!!” but after I checked their site and saw that they didn’t have any GF options- I knew it was a no go. I was a bit bummed but that completely changed once Marcus found this place! Vegan Vee isn’t as cutesy and Instagram worthy as Five Daughters is BUT if you’re a gluten-free gal like me (or just vegan) you will love it! We got a vanilla-vanilla donut (YUM!), chocolate bundt cake, and a lemon blueberry muffin. It was all amazing.

Tip: Check their hours online before you go. I believe they’re a family-owned business so their hours are a bit random and they’re closed on certain days.

RH CAFE

Located inside the massive Restoration Hardware flagship store in the Green Hills Mall, this place is STUNNING. As to be expected for a cafe inside of RH. The menu is super minimal and I didn’t love my order only because I ordered wrong (got a shrimp salad- wish I just got a burger & fries, ya know?). Marcus got a lobster roll with fries and he said it was very good (I can vouch for the fries- they were yum.) While I don’t think the cafe is a must, visting the store IS a must. It’s absolutely breathtaking. 4 stories of staged rooms filled with nothing but overpriced pieces of Restoration Hardware decor. It’s nice to roam around and dream of being able to afford it all one day (haha). They also have a 4th story patio that we would have hung out at with a cup of coffee if it wasn’t raining.

Tip: If you go to the cafe, wait for a table that’s inside of the courtyard. They have tables outside that feel like you’re literally in their lobby- wait for the good seats. You can walk around the store until your spot is ready. You can even make a reservation on Open Table.

STAY GOLDEN

This is a very unique, trendy spot in East Nashville. I originally thought it was just a coffee shop, but they have a full-service kitchen and menu. We went on Saturday morning and decided to share a plate for a small breakfast (we were planning to pig out later that day at Bartaco for the second time hehe) and it was delicious! We both had their Cuban iced lattes which were basically the alternative for the usual vanilla almond lattes we go for. It was a super cool spot and definitely instagram worthy.

JENN’S ICE CREAM

This ice cream shop was highly recommended by a lot of people and it was delicious! By the flood of people saying to visit Jenni’s, I assumed it was a local spot. But after some googling, I found that they actually have locations in LA and they’re originally from Columbus, Ohio. Still a yummy ice cream spot nonetheless!

 

Nashville is obviously filled with tons of amazing restaurants and spots to grab coffee. These are just a few of the places we visited and loved. We have tons of places our list to eat at next time we’re in town! One thing we didn’t get was hot chicken (not that I could have it anyways, but Marcus didn’t get to try any). A famous spot people recommended is Hattie B’s.

 

ACTIVITIES

12 SOUTH

This is where our Airbnb was and we absolutely LOVED this area! Cozy and family-friendly while still being trendy and cool. You can walk up and down this street and stop in at the many stores and boutiques. Summer Classics is a gorgeous furniture store to roam around in. Shopping includes a few local spots that are perfect to pick up some souvenirs to bring back home. White’s Mercantile is a must, filled with tons of local items like; candles, beauty products, home decor, t-shirts, cooking products, books, etc. It has a really cool feel inside. On 12 South you’ll also find; Bartaco, Frothy Monkey, and Jenni’s Ice Cream. We even saw the famous Amelia’s Flower Truck parked in front of White’s Mercantile which is just so cute for an Instagram photo. 12 South is home to one of the “I Believe in Nashville” murals that you see in everyone’s pictures as well. It has a lot to offer and definitely needs to be on your trip’s itinerary!

THE GULCH

Another popular spot that is likely packed on the weekends. We visited on a Thursday and it wasn’t too busy at all. Aside from the line at Biscuit Love that was wrapped around the building- we weren’t even about to bother with that. The Gulch is an area between Music Row and Downtown Nashville. This is where you’ll find Uncommon James (Kristin Cavallari’s jewelry store), Kittenish (Jessie James Decker’s boutique), and Two Old Hippies (lots of vintage, souvineers and they sometimes have live music). We stopped in at all three- didn’t buy anything but they were all fun to walk around in! The Gulch is filled with shopping and popular restaurants.

EXPLORING OUTSIDE OF THE CITY

Again, I know this is a Nashville guide but I think it’s great to roam around the towns outside of the city you’re visiting! Especially in Tenessee, we wanted to see more of the countryside and drive around some of the gorgeous neighborhoods! And we are so glad that we did! We had so much fun looking at all the beautiful houses and properties. Some of the areas we drove through were Oak Hill, Brentwood, and Franklin. We stopped for lunch in Franklin (info above) and we spent some time in the Downtown area, it was a really cute place to walk around. The town is really rich in history and kind of feels like you stepped into Hallmark movie town (haha).

EAST NASHVILLE

We spent our last day in this area of Nashville and it was really fun! Totally different vibe from downtown Nash. It seemed a bit more hipster-y, but it still had some of that southern feel. This is where we had breakfast at Stay Golden (info above) followed by shopping at some local spots. First stop was Molly Green where we were literally greeted by a White Lab at the door, she was the store manager’s dog. You guys know I freaked out, she really reminded me of my Ellie girl who I was missing on this trip! Molly Green is a really cute affordably priced boutique. The building is also painted somewhat, watercolor/ tye-dye. It’s really cute and I would have taken a picture in front of it if I wasn’t so exhausted from the night before to bother wearing a cute outfit (very off-brand I know). I bought a distressed cropped flannel that I cannot wait to wear. They also had this little sign with a list of all the things to do in East Nashville (above) that I snapped a photo of because I thought it would be helpful. East Nashville has lots of vintage shops but we spent most of our time at The Shoppes at Fatherland which like the rest of the area, was very unique and cool. All of the shops were local small businesses, we picked up some gifts to take back home to our families. We bought some Nashville seasonings at Galena Garlic Company and a few candles at Abode Mercantile.

BROADWAY

Probably one of the most obvious spots to hang out if you’re visiting Nash and you like to drink or watch live music. There are tons of bars to check out on Broadway, we didn’t go to them all so I can’t tell you which is the best out of the bunch- but I would say just walk up and down the downtown area and stop in at whatever looks interesting. Jason Aldean’s has an awesome view on the rooftop and Ole Red’s (Blake Shelton’s bar) has a really cool vibe. Of course, they are all packed but one of our uber drivers said that Saturdays are the craziest day. So I would probably go out any other night besides then haha.

CONCERT AT BRIDGESTONE ARENA

This was an awesome addition to our trip. We went to the Kacey Musgraves and Maggie Rogers concert at the Bridgestone Arena on Friday night. We saw that she was going to be in town while we were there and it was such a cool setting to see her in. There’s no shortage of live music in Nashville, but it was really special to see Kacey in a southern town. It made the trip that much more special! We also had no idea it was the closeout to her tour beforehand and that she broke the record for attendance at the arena! You guys, she brought out Harry Styles. That’s all I’ll say. So go ahead and check out who will be performing while you’re in town if this sounds like something you’d be interested in.

 

We absolutely loved Nashville and we will for sure be back. I hope this post was helpful for planning your trip. & if this post made you want to plan a trip- DO IT! Traveling is good for the soul and life is too short to not visit new places. Enjoy!

xx