Setsun East
“Where are we going for dinner?”
In my experience, any conversation that starts with that question goes one of two ways: A) You know exactly where you want to go, and you go there; or B) You only know what you don’t want, so you get in the car and start driving. That’s where it all goes wrong.
The hungrier you get, the dumber every idea sounds. Then you realize it’s 8:45 p.m. and the only things you swallowed all day were a Luna Bar and a load of BS from Brenda in PR about “aligning on verticals.” Suddenly you find yourself screaming something like: “Seriously, Todd? I did 300 sit-ups at boot camp and you expect me to eat hot chicken? I guess you do want me to be fat.”
While that is a totally made-up example, my point is real: The “I Spy Dinner” game can only end in tears or an empty Sackful of Krystals. But there is a better way. Food and drink deals abound in Nashville, and savvy diners can use specials to narrow their options and fend off the hangry hag within. Here are 14 places you can drink and dine for less. And if you can’t decide between two … well, Krystal is always on Postmates.
Sunday
Twilight Tavern: game-day menu; half-price beer, mimosas and bloodys
On Sundays, eating arguments start early, and West Nashville’s Twilight Tavern is here to quash them with half-price drafts, mimosas and bloodys all day. Add some football-friendly finger foods ($10 nachos, $7 pigs-in-a-blanket), a ton of TVs and a laid-back vibe, and you may find yourself there for more than one meal.
STK Nashville: $2-$8 bar bites, half-price cocktails, $10 select wines
If you prefer a fancy game day with a later start time, hit the Gulch at 3:30 p.m. While I know Nashville passed its steakhouse quota about 23 restaurants ago, I also know that I like bite-size food, and that includes $5 sliders, $8 tuna tacos. STK also has half-price girly drinks named things like the Cucumber Stiletto. (It’s real. I drank it. I am not sorry.)
Monday
Setsun East: $2 oysters, $1 off half-glasses of wine
If you call foul on half-glasses of wine, I respect your skepticism, but smaller pours are good at former Treehouse chef Jason Zygmont’s stellar East Nashville pop-up. Taste a bunch of natural wines and find your favorite — mine’s the bubbly João Pato sparkling rosé — and pair it with $2 oysters dressed in an explosive umami-packed black vinegar sauce. The East Asian dressing is so smoky and addictive, I could easily eat 20 of these oysters. And at this price, I will.
The Original Corner Pub
The Original Corner Pub: Smokin’ Monday meal deals, drink deals until 6 p.m.
If bubbly isn’t your speed, rest assured that The Original Corner Pub is smoking something that probably is: bologna, ribs, chicken, sirloin. Grab a $7.50 bushwacker and hunker down on a smoked bologna and cheese plate ($8.25) or perfectly seasoned drummies ($12). If none of that strikes your fancy, add smoked meat to anything on the menu. If all of that strikes your fancy, order the $24 poo poo platter. (Note: Smokin’ Monday only happens in Green Hills and The Nations.)
Tuesday
The Centennial Taco Tuesday: $2 tacos, $2.50 Tecates, $3.50 tequila
At The Centennial pub in The Nations, the spicy grilled chicken sandwich has long been my go-to dinner, and the only time that changes is on Tuesdays, when chef Boogie Soto slings special $2 tacos. Caribbean beef, chicken enchilada, Korean barbecue, Philly cheesesteak — there’s only one per week, so there’s only one decision you have to make: Tecate or tequila?
The Centennial
Mafiaoza’s 2-for-1 Tuesday: 2-for-1 beers and pizza slices, double liquor drinks
This deal in the heart of 12South has been around since I moved to Nashville 15 years ago, and it’s still a crowd-pleaser. Starting at 4 p.m., you can double up on beer and enormous slices of pie. All we longtimers ask is that you keep it simple: If you can only eat vegan, gluten-free, half-kale, half-quinoa, Paleo pizza, please come any day but Tuesday.
Wednesday
Frothy Monkey Wine Down Wednesday: three pours of wine or six of beer + snacks for $15
Frothy Monkey
Wine Down Wednesday is nothing new, but a beer option is, and from 5-7 p.m. at Frothy Monkey, $15 gets you a small snack plate (cheese, charcuterie, fresh Frothy bread) plus tasters of three wines or six beers. Try a French sauvignon, Napa Valley rosé and Spanish tempranillo, or mix and match beers like local Bearded Iris and Brightwood Cider with regional taps like Louisville’s Braxton Brewing Company or Birmingham’s Good People.
O-Ku: half-price sushi rolls on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5-7 p.m.
While O-Ku, Germantown’s glossy new sushi spot, doesn’t have drink deals, their half-price sushi merits mention on its own. For $5 you get staples like spicy tuna, and for a few more, you get the light, floral Yama: spicy tuna and sea bass with cucumber, lemon, ginger, citrus soy, shiso (a leaf in the mint family) and yuzu kosho (chili peppers, yuzu peel, salt). Getting that delicate, delectable roll for just $8, you won’t feel a bit guilty about dropping $11 on the sublime Shiso Fine, a vodka-cherry-mint cocktail.
Thursday
O-Ku
Nicky’s Coal Fired: $10 pizzas, $5 spritzes and house wines and free kids’ pizzas from 5-6:30 p.m.
If the words “free kids’ pizza” makes you think personal pan, think again. At Nicky’s in The Nations, kids get full-size pies — with top-quality ingredients — that are so big I’ve had to “help” my niece finish hers every time we’ve gone. If you eat in the bar, all pizzas are $10 during this magic timeframe, and spritz cocktails are $5. I like the Enrico, an effervescent mix of bitter Cocchi Rosa, soda, lemon and Braulio amaro, a woodsy, berry liqueur.
Lyra Happy Hour: $4-$6 bar bites; $6 wine, beer and cocktails from 4-6 p.m.
Lyra in East Nashville has a Monday-Saturday happy hour you can easily make a meal out of, especially if you start with the $6 lamb butter fries: crispy potatoes, tangy feta and creamy garlic sauce. Add the $4 citrus olives, $7 lamb kefta sandwich and $6 drink menu, and you’re set any day of the week except Sunday.
Friday
Park Cafe Happy Hour: $6 cocktails, $5 wines, $3 draft beers, $4-$12 bar bites
Park Cafe in Sylvan Park has long hosted one of the city’s best happy hours, and that extends to Friday’s 4:30-6 p.m. iteration. Get the $6 green chile mac-and-cheese or $7 mussel special, or keep it classic with a $10 pepperoni pizza. Wash it down with whatever you want — they’ve got deals on All. The. Booze. Just be sure to get there by 4:45 to score a coveted bar table.
Kawai Poké Happy Hour: $2 off poke bowls and $1 off Kona beer
When I think of happy hour, I don’t typically think of poke, but East Nashville’s Kawai is changing that. From 3-6 p.m. on weekdays, Kawai knocks $2 off every bowl, which means anything you fancy will cost you just north of $10. Complete your early supper with $1 off Kona beers like Big Wave Golden Ale, and bask in the tropical vibes.
Saturday
Black Rabbit BBQ in the Alley: $10 barbecue, burgers and dogs; $4 sides; beer specials
The small-plate menu at Black Rabbit downtown is a steal anytime — $12 rabbit rolls, $10 taco plates — but come fall, it’s all about the barbecue. On Saturdays they smoke house-made goodies alley-side (andouille dogs, baked beans, burgers), and October is truly the perfect time to enjoy Nashville’s fanciest tailgate.
Hathorne’s Joyful Hour: $8-$10 cocktails, $2 off draft beer and wine, $10 off bottles of wine, $5 bar bites
After Hathorne in Sylvan Park made the short list of Bon Appetit’s 50 Best New Restaurants in America, they made a smart move: switching “Joyful Hour” from its peculiar late-night timeframe to the happy hour it always should have been (Monday through Saturday, 5-7 p.m). On Saturdays, you can mix and match: an $8 caipirinha (cachaça, sugar, lime) with $5 pork cracklins, or a $10 Samuel (rye, black cherry, Amaro) with boiled peanuts? Choose your own adventure.
