Comment Archives: stories: Restaurants: Bites
Re: “First Bite: Husk Nashville”
My two cents:
Not a fan of the decor at all. I ate in the purple dining room on the street level, and wasn't particularly taken with the art or purple walls. I do love the exterior of the building, and the downstairs dining room looked nice.
Went for lunch last week. My grouper was overcooked. The accouterments with it were good. The fried green tomatoes were unremarkable. Lockeland Table's version is considerably better. I tried someone else's catfish BLT, not impressed. I did enjoy the Benton's ham plate, and i had a bite of a pretty tasty burger. I'll definitely give it another chance at dinner in the near future.
At this point, it may be a victim of its own hype. I must admit, my expectations were pretty high.
Re: “First Bite: Husk Nashville”
Yammer,
I guess you can look forward to that cicada special in 12-15 years...
Re: “Pie It Forward: Free Pie in Downtown Nashville Tomorrow”
The old man told me to take any rug in the house.
Re: “Pie It Forward: Free Pie in Downtown Nashville Tomorrow”
What a coincidence- O'Charley's has free* pie on Wednesdays too.
* w/purchase of entree
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
for restaurants that don't use open table, I've started using an app called TalkTo. I've used it for LT and worked great. Works especially well when you want to make a reservation but the restaurant isn't open when you want to make the call.
http://talkto.com/faq
Re: “First Bite: Husk Nashville”
Off-topic, but just have to reply to Jody's words: "you could serve that with cicadas & 2 pieces of bark, and it would still be phenomenal".
During the last big cicada emergence, a friend of mine (working in an asian restaurant) grabbed some and threw them in a wok, with just a touch of oil and nothing else. I ate one.
The flavor itself was really unexpectedly delicious -- a lot like pistachios. I could see that becoming a gourmet thing, aside from any aversion to eating from that part of the food chain....
Re: “Pie It Forward: Free Pie in Downtown Nashville Tomorrow”
Condolences. The bums lost. My advice is to do what your parents did; get a job, sir. The bums will always lose. Do you hear me?
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
City House
Arnold's
Woodlands
Hattie B's
El Tapatio
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
To Chris's point, $1 on a $15 tab is 7%. That is not insignificant.
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
1. Lockeland Table
2. flyte
3. Samurai
4. Kien Giang
5. Jim & Nick's
Re: “Taste of Music City Invades Downtown for 11th Year”
Come down and see us Nashville. We have a real cool summer treat for you.
Re: “Cookbook Review: The Big Book of Gluten-Free Recipes”
ooh! putting this on the "to peruse at some point" list. wonder if our library system might get their hands on it at some point.
Re: “First Bite: Husk Nashville”
We went for brunch last Sunday; it was only their 2nd day of brunch service, but there was more than a few kinks.
We ordered: Fried Green Tomatoes with Pimento Cheese, Benton's ham & soft rolls, shrimp & octopus & grits, the monte cristo, and french toast for dessert (yes, we're pigs). I had a bloody mary & a coffee, my wife had a non-alcoholic cocktail.
Both cocktails were great. My bloody mary tasted strong, fresh, and had a bit of a spicy kick. My wife asked for something light and refreshing, but not sweet, and she was very pleased. My 2nd cup of coffee was totally bitter. I sent it back, but didn't get a replacement until I was nearly finished my meal. I know that sounds picky, but for me, great coffee is an integral part of brunch.
3 out of 5 dishes were poor to fair. The Tomatoes were drenched in vinegar, which was a shame, because the pimento cheese was excellent. The batter was fairly bland, but I think with a few tweaks it could be a great dish. The Monte Cristo was a mess - first of all, if includes an egg, its a croque madam. It was served open faced, with a about a pound of cooked ham (baked? steamed? it had nothing going for it) on top of a piece of soggy french toast. A "farm fresh" egg on top. I'm accustomed to the yoke sitting high up, as if it wants to be as far away as possible from the less delicious egg white. Sadly, not the case here. The shrimp, octopus & grits could have very good, except for one fatal flaw. If you're going to remove the head, tail, and peel the shrimp, then roughly chop it to incorporate it with the other ingredients- WHY WOULDN'T YOU ALSO DE-VEIN IT! THAT MAKES NO SENSE! Sorry for yelling.
The Benton's Ham was incredible- you could serve that with cicadas & 2 pieces of bark, and it would still be phenomenal. The French Toast was very good, it was served with macerated peaches & chantilly cream. But it was a dish that a any of Nashville's great restaurants could bang out in their sleep.
Our server was welcoming and attentive, and we loved the space. I really wanted to love our meal; I know I definitely got caught up in the hype when I heard that Husk was opening. And (Full Disclosure) we had eaten at Catbird Seat the night before, so maybe any meal was going to be disappointing. We will be back for dinner later on this month.
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
Here are my current top places, in the order in which I think of them:
1. City House
2. Lockeland Table
3. J. Alexander
4. El Sombrero
5. Burger Republic
Also, some kudos. I am looking for some insider insight into the food scene in Denver, my next travel destination, so I checked out the blog of the local alt weekly. Reading its coverage and comments, I was reinforced in my opinion on how excellent the content and commentary are on this site. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I appreciate y'all. Dissent, discussion, and dissatisfaction with the status quo create positive change. That, and our local entrepreneurs have sure been bringing their A-games the last couple of years.
Re: “Jay Luther's Family Suing Cooler Company, Metro Nashville Police Over Luther's Death in Restaurant”
>>The latch release didn’t work, according to both the lawsuit and police investigation of the incident.<<
Seems to me THIS would be the responsibility of the one running the restaurant? As well as ensuring a MSDS were accurate & in place.
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
Chris: Thank you for the intelligent observations above
Re: “This Week's Dining Column: The New, Revamped O'Charley's”
Well i like the food there. I dont think Ive had a bad meal there ever really. I LOVE the chicken harvest soup although im not sure its still there since the changes. I think the chicken tenders are still great. They have great prime rib and wonderful rolls. They have a pleasing choice of sides and are cheerful in substituting and suggesting. Ive had a variety of burgers and salads without anything under par. I really enjoy the french dip sandwich which is tender. The fish is also nice - served hot and crisp -tender and mild inside. The tuscan chicken is also wonderfully cooked and nicely seasoned. The fried chicken is a wonderful surprise for a chain. Their dips and sauces are always spicey and fresh. I especially honey mustard. They offer a nice variety and offer both bar and restaurant options. They offer a nice lunch and a great supper.
I was very sad they changed the happy hour as it was really good.
I find OC to be in the tops of its category.
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
From Open Table's website:
"Restaurants pay a $199 monthly subscription fee, which includes our software, unlimited upgrades, the touch-screen computer system, and customer support. In addition, there’s a one-time installation fee, which covers on-site installation and training and custom configuration of the system.
For online reservations, we charge a pay-for-performance fee of $1.00 per seated diner booked on OpenTable.com or $0.25 per seated diner booked via the restaurant’s website. And for the typical restaurant, it takes only three incremental reservations to break even on the complete monthly OpenTable cost."
I've been known to use Open Table to find a restaurant and to check to see when a table is available. Then I'll call to make the reservation in person to save them the money. I know, I know, that's a bad thing coming from someone who writes for an online food blog that has its own revenue model. But I figure if I'm going to lunch at Etch where my bill might only be $10-15 and they are valet parking my car for me for free, the least I can do is make a phone call to save them a buck.
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
1. The Catbird Seat
2. City House
3. Flyte World Dining & Wine Bar
4. Rolf N' Daughters
5. Arnold's Country Kitchen
Re: “The Weekly Open Thread: Give Us Your Top 5 Restaurants”
Etch
Yellow Porch
Flyte
Cafe Fundamental (brunch)
Catbird Seat
Bonus to the person who said Calypso, because I probably eat there more often than anywhere.