It’s been a few years since I’ve been to the famous Loveless Café just outside of Nashville, Tennessee.
The last time I was here it was for breakfast. This time I was there for lunch.
You can’t come to Loveless Café, and not order their homemade Buttermilk Biscuits. It doesn’t matter what time of day you visit, they serve these warm morsels with a selection of homemade jellies. These will be some of the best biscuits you will ever try. They are extremely light and fluffy.
The Hot Chicken was spectacular. It was crunchy and juicy. The spice was not overwhelming. You can pick two sides to enjoy with the chicken. The mac & cheese was rich and creamy. The cheesy grits were delicious. The cheese made the grits savory. Who says grits are just for breakfast.
The Pulled Pork Barbecue Sandwich was large. The smoky taste from the pork shined through. The barbecue sauce added sweetness. The sandwich came with French fries.
You can’t come to a southern restaurant without trying the classic Fried Chicken. This classic, southern staple was crispy and juicy with each bite. The two sides with this dish were green beans slow cooked with bacon to add a great smoky taste. The mashed potatoes were immensely creamy and the gravy that came on the side was very savory. It paired wonderfully with the mashed potatoes
The food at Loveless Café is made with such heart. You will enjoy each and every bite.
There was a cute little shop that opened on the east side of Nashville called Fatbelly Pretzel. They have a selection of pretzels, unique pastries, like pretzel danishes, along with sandwiches and salads.
I love pretzels, especially fresh made pretzels. I ordered the Classic Salted Pretzel. The dough was slightly sweet. The salt on the pretzel complemented the taste. It was soft and warm.
I wanted something a little more so I ordered a side of their Sesame Krab Noodles. This was a cold noodle, like a pasta salad. It was tossed in a soy sauce dressing with a rich, sesame taste. It was slightly salty with a great nutty flavor. The krab added nice texture to the soft noodles.
The 5 Points area of Nashville has a great selection of bars and restaurants. It was the weekend, and we were looking for a place to go for brunch. 5 Points Diner looked like a great spot.
The place was packed. There were no tables available, but we were able to get spots at the bar. We decided to get a brunch cocktail. We had great service at the bar from some of the friendliest bartenders.
It’s brunch time so a Bloody Mary was definitely ordered. It was their house bloody mix blended with Deep Eddy Vodka, lime juice, and hot sauce. It was tangy with just the right amount of heat.
The Let’s Have A Kiki was like a cherry limeade just for adults. They used Deep Eddy Lime Vodka, Sprite, and grenadine. It was not too sweet and had the right amount of cherry taste.
The Ain’t Easy Being Squeezy was a refreshing cocktail with lots of citrus flavor. They blended Absolute Citrone vodka with sugar, lime juice, and topped it off with soda.
The last cocktail ordered was the Yes We Do. This is their espresso martini. Clearly they get asked about this drink a lot so they named it for their answer. They use Borghetti, Tito’s vodka and a local coffee shop’s coffee. The shop is called Bongo check them out.
I am glad we got a chance to visit 5 Points Diner. Unfortunately they are now closed but hopefully they open somewhere else in the future.
Five Points in East Nashville is a great location where lots of unique shops and restaurants are popping up. There is a Mexican restaurant called Cilantro that I highly recommend.
They have a great bar area toward the back on the restaurant. It is decorated beautifully.
They serve ice cold beers, in giant mugs.
They have a selection of margarita flavors to choose from. And they can be ordered in pitchers. So, this is perfect for sharing. We ordered a strawberry margarita pitcher. It was sweet and tart, and very refreshing because it was so cold.
The chips and salsa were constantly flowing. The salsa was freshly made, and you could tell as soon as you tasted it. It was not too spicy but had a nice kick.
The loaded chicken nachos were amazing. It was a huge portion and was perfect for sharing. They used a ton of cheese and the chicken had an amazing grilled flavor.
Cilantro is great, authentic Mexican restaurant to check out when you are in Nashville.
Downtown Nashville seems to be growing every day. There are so many restaurants and bars to select from. City Tap is a great place to check out. They have a great bar area to watch you favorite team and a dining room area that is perfect for Sunday brunch.
My visit was for brunch. The table started with mimosas. They do mimosas a little different here. For a set price they bring you a whole bottle of champagne and a selection of juices so that you can make your own. It is great for the table. We go orange and pineapple juice.
We ordered a pepperonipizza for the table. It is big enough for sharing. The crust was fluffy and they put on a ton of pepperoni.
The grilled cheese and tomato soup was a classic dish that was so comforting. They used grilled sour dough bread with 3 cheeses: American, cheddar, and pepperjack. The homemade tomato soup was extremely creamy.
The French toast was a beautiful dish, especially if you want breakfast. They used big slices of bread which helped make this dish large. They topped the bread with fresh fruit and whipped cream. It almost made it a dessert. The French toast had a nice, sweet taste.
City Tap is a great place. They get really busy on the weekends so I would recommend making a reservation.
So, it is graduation weekend from East Tennessee State University. It is a special day, and it was the graduate’s choice on where to go for dinner. Johnson City has many options, and it was the Label Restaurant that won the honor.
Label offered a great happy hour – even on a Saturday. If you like bourbons, then this is the place for you, they have over 200. Their food menu offers everything from burgers, steaks, and fresh sushi. So everyone in our party would find something they could enjoy.
Now we had just come from a three-hour graduation ceremony, needless to say we were all hangry. Before we even ordered drinks, we put in some orders for appetizers.
The first appetizer was Crab Rangoon. These were wontons stuffed with crab salad. They were fried up till the wontons were crispy. The cream cheese that was in the crab salad melted during the cooking process. This made each bite creamy and crispy. The filling flavor was perfect, there was a slight richness to it. They put a firecracker aioli and sweet chili sauce on the plate for dipping. It was the perfect combination of sweet and spicy.
The next appetizer was Edamame. There was a pile of freshly steamed edamame with some sea salt on the side. You could put on as much as you would like. As I popped out the edamame from the shells, I could not help but admire how fresh it all tasted.
Now the Garlic Fries were a hit at the table. There was a pound of fresh cut fries that were tossed with garlic, herbs, and parmesan cheese. These had an amazing salty taste that complemented the sweetness of the potato. They served a BBQ aioli on the side for dipping. Some folks at the table used it but I really enjoyed the flavor of the fries all on their own.
The final appetizer that we devoured was the PotStickers. These were pork and veggie filled and they were seared until the outside of the wonton wrapper was crispy, but still soft. They served soy ginger dipping sauce on the side. These pot stickers had a amazing savory flavor to them. The seasoning that they used on the pork and vegetables was amazing. I could taste garlic and ginger with perhaps a hint of cilantro.
Now those were enough appetizers to hold us over until our entrees arrived. It was an assortment of main dishes that we ordered. That was the beauty of Label.
To start with I ordered the Blackened Salmon. It was an 8oz salmon filet that was blackened perfectly with a slight salty taste. They put red pepper jam on top, that was amazing. It added more sweetness than heat. They also served asparagus and cheese grits on the plate. I really enjoyed the cheese grits. They were buttery and creamy.
The Bison Chopped Steak was a unique dish on the menu. The bison was tender and extremely savory. They served homemade brown gravy, mushrooms, and sauteed onions on top. This added even more intense savory flavor. The mashed potatoes helped make this a comfort food and a great way to use up all the extra gravy on the plate.
Another dish ordered was the Herb Chicken. This grilled chicken breast had wonderful seasoning on it. The carrots had a pesto cream sauce on top, which accented the chicken perfectly. The interesting side was the black rice. I had never seen black rice before. Black rice is apparently higher in nutrients compared to other rice. What gives the rice its color is anthocyanins (an antioxidant).
As I mentioned earlier, Label also has sushi on the menu. There were two rolls ordered. The Smoky Mountain Roll was unique. It was spicy tuna, cream cheese, and cucumber topped with smoked salmon, eel sauce, tobiko, green onions, tempura flakes, and firecracker aioli. There was a lot going on with this roll, but the elements definitely worked together. This was a filling roll.
The classic Spicy Tuna Roll was also ordered. The spicy tuna was blended with cucumber. It was topped with tobiko and togarashi.
Their list of burgers was extensive. Many, many choices. There were two Politician Burgers ordered at the table. This burger used Kobe beef for the patty. Truffle parmesan cheese was on top along with Southern craft house cured bacon, and sliced tomato. The burger was very juicy and tender. The Kobe beef just melted in your mouth.
The food was all amazing at Label. Everyone at the table ate so much, and everyone was satisfied. Our waitress was fantastic and took good care of the entire table. I would recommend everyone try Label Restaurant if they are in Johnson City.
A couple of years ago I visited Blackbird Bakery in Bristol, Virginia. Bristol is a about 45 minute drive from Johnson City, Tennessee. We were recently back in town for a college graduation and decided to take a road trip to Bristol to get some dessert. Half of the family had never been to the bakery before, so we were excited to share this wonderful place with them.
Blackbird offers a variety of sweet treats. They have homemade ice cream, donuts, muffins, cupcakes, and assorted pastries. Since there always is a line, you have plenty of time to decide what to order.
We ordered an assortment of things so we could try them all. The donuts seemed to be the most popular items during the visit. We grabbed a chocolate frosted and a chocolate sprinkle. They were nice size donuts. The donut itself was fluffy. It was not overly sweet because they did not put any glaze over the donut. The dough had its own subtle sweetness and the chocolate icing provided additional sweetness.
A cannoli was also ordered. The shell was crispy. They used a generous amount of the filling, which was extra creamy. The chocolate chips mixed throughout the filling added a nice crunch and texture.
We ordered a cheesecake as well. They had a few to choose from and we got the raspberry cheesecake. There was a raspberry puree drizzled on top. Mixed throughout the cheesecake was raspberry filling. It was creamy and very rich. It was the perfect dessert for sharing. The graham cracker crust added texture to each bite. The fresh strawberry on top was a good treat.
The final dessert was the brownie bar. This was the richest and most decadent dessert. Not only was there a brownie, but there was a layer of chocolate ganache and a chocolate icing shell on top. Each bite was so rich. It was a good thing I had some coffee, it helped with the richness. If you love chocolate, this is the dessert to order.
The line stayed consistently long while we were sitting there. The tables outside were also packed. Clearly this bakery is one popular place.
Bristol is a town where half of the town is in Tennessee and the other half is in Virginia. There is an awesome sign down State Street that you have to check out before leaving.
If you are anywhere in the Tri-City area (Bristol, Kingsport, Johnson City) you need to make a stop to Blackbird Bakery. You will not be disappointed.
North Italia is a small restaurant chain that I have seen during my travels. I had never visited one until a recent trip to Franklin, Tennessee. There is a newer area of town that has been developing over the last few years and North Italia opened. I made a reservation to check them out.
The place was packed inside, every table was taken. Even with how busy they were, our waitress was very attentive to our table.
For my dinner I ordered the scallops. It was a special for the night. These were jumbo size scallops that were grilled with crab meat and placed on top of a vegetable rice. The scallops were tremendously soft and tender. They were cooked to perfection. The crab meat was sweet and added great texture to the scallops The butter sauce that the scallops were cooked in drizzled onto the rice and made it even better than it was by itself.
Another dish that was ordered was the chicken pesto. The tender chicken was tossed with gigli pasta. Gigli pasta is a small, fluted pasta rolled into the shape of a cone. The pesto sauce was made with sweet basil, shaved garlic, toasted pine nuts and crispy capers. It was a strong, herby flavor that had a fresh taste. It was bold and went well with the thick pasta.
A pizza was a must to order as well. They cook them in a wood fire oven and I could smell the pizzas cooking when I first walked in. We ordered The Pig. This was a meat lovers pizza. It had a salumi, sopressatta, spicy pepperoni, and Italian sausage all on top of the sweet dough. It was a good balance between sweet and salty with this pizza. The crust was slightly overcooked, it was a little too burnt for my liking; however, outside of that the pizza was good.
I can see why the restaurant was busy. The food was good. I would like to check out another North Italia to try something else on the menu. Check the out at www.northitalia.com
I absolutely love Nashville Hot Chicken. So naturally when I was visiting Nashville, I had to get their namesake dish. There are many places I have been to plus more I haven’t even tried yet. However, since this visit was a short one, I just focused in on Hattie B’s. I have been there many times and knew they would not disappoint.
I ordered the chicken breast meal with a medium heat. Don’t let the word medium fool you, this is still pretty spicy. I can’t do much hotter than this for right now. The chicken is fried up so that the skin and breading is extra crispy. This allows the juices to stay locked in. The heat is contained in the breading and the extra seasoning they sprinkle on top once the chicken has completed cooking. The heat hits you as soon as you take a bite. But it does cool down after that, at least until you take another bite.
During this visit I ordered a couple of extra sides to try. Normally I get the mac and cheese and this visit was no exception. It is wonderfully creamy. The cheese can help tame down the burning sensation caused by the heat of the chicken.
Another side I tried was the cheesy grits. This is a true Southern dish. Normally I get these for breakfast. They were a salty treat for lunch too. The creaminess also helped tame the heat.
The baked beans were sweet. Normally served with BBQ, it was a nice complement to the chicken. It almost acted like a dessert because of the sweetness.
The last side was the black-eyed peas. I customarily have these on New Years Day for good luck. To have them here was a surprise. They were cooked flawlessly. There was ab immensely savory flavor that was perfect with the spicy chicken.
All of these sides really helped make the hot chicken a complete meal.
If you have never tried hot chicken, Hattie B’s is the perfect place to try it. However, if hot, spicy food is not your thing it is ok., they do offer their fried chicken with no heat. The chicken is just as good that way too.
They have a couple of location and starting to open outside of Tennessee so check them out at www.hattieb.com
French Fries are the perfect food to munch on or share with friends. They are great plain with a little salt or even smothered with chili and cheese. Today is National French Fry Day so I had to celebrate. I headed over to Neighbors in Franklin, Tennessee for some fries, but also some pickle chips and a cold sour beer.
