Juan and Tammy Edgerton
I like chicken wings, and I like to eat lunch at meat-and-three restaurants, so I was intrigued to hear about a restaurant billing itself as a “wing and three.” But when I heard it was The Peach Cobbler Factory, I’ll admit that I went into my first visit to their new location at 319 Peabody St. with an eyebrow at least half raised. Not that I had any doubts about TPCF, having purchased and devoured several varieties of their cobbler at various pop-ups at the Nashville Farmers' Market and knowing that their bricks-and-mortar location in Woodbine is proving to be quite popular.
But wings? On the plus side, I saw that they had replaced an outlet of J. Gumbo’s, a development that I can get behind. So I headed down to the little food court at the corner of Fourth and Peabody in SoBro and, get this, PARKED FOR FREE IN A DOWNTOWN LOT. Score one for the Cobbler folks. I used to work near Peabody Place, but I usually walked down to get a sandwich or some hot chicken from 400 Degrees when Aqui Simpson was selling her fantastic fare there.
The Peach Cobbler Factory is owned and operated by a husband-and-wife team who moved to Nashville from New Orleans after Katrina. With a name that sounds like what a Southern food writer would call their La Liga fantasy soccer league, Juan Edgerton and his wife Tammy have worked in hospitality on and off for years. Armed with a recipe from Tammy’s mother, the couple started selling cobblers out of the Nashville Farmers' Market since 2013 before opening their Woodbine spot and a permanent tent location in Marathon Village to sell their baked goods.
Not as sweet as some cobblers, the Edgertons' cobblers are more fruit-forward, and the public apparently approves, as demand for the couple's products has grown steadily. In their first full-service eatery project, they still have an eye toward creating healthier foods. In addition to a rotating roster of cobblers for dessert, they offer a selection of eight flavors of wings that have been baked instead of fried. In fact, there isn’t a fryer in the restaurant.
Customers can mix and match flavors (since the wings are tossed in sauces to order), and then choose from five or six sides. Again aiming to create a healthier option to traditional meat-and-three dishes, TPCF strives to avoid oversalting their veggies, flavoring their greens with smoked turkey instead of pork. Wing flavor options include choices such as peach habanero, hot lemon pepper and Nashville Hot (a decent approximation of medium-hot chicken), while sides range from greens to mac-and-cheese to bourbon candied yams. OK, so maybe not everything on the menu is completely healthy …
They are also developing an offering of waffles to pair with their wings, including buttermilk, blueberry/lavender, sweet potato, peaches-and-cream and red velvet. Another project is a fresh juice bar, which represents a personal interest for the Edgertons — they both lost a bunch of weight in a conscious effort to eat better, including visits to many juice companies around town.
Does it sound like The Peach Cobbler Factory is all over the board? Sure, but as part of a food court that also contains a Quizno’s and the last outpost of Nuvo Burrito, they are up against some pretty eclectic competition. With quick service and a wide variety of tasty food options, they are worth a visit if you are having trouble figuring out what you need for lunch downtown and are seeking some convenient parking. They are open from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. every day of the week except Sunday, when they start serving an hour later, at noon. Give them a try and let us know what you think in the comments.
The Peach Cobbler Factory
319 Peabody St.
Nashville
615-592-5170
