The Breakfast Club: Thoughts on Six Nashville Breakfast Sandwiches

Breakfast outside the home often requires some element of expedience — maybe you’re on your way to work or an early engagement. Thus, for this roundup, convenience is our first scoring category, roughly defined as the ease with which the sandwich can be acquired.

As for the item itself, we note two scoring criteria: inside and outside. The inside includes egg, default toppings and available toppings, though sandwiches were ordered without any add-ons for simplicity and standardization. Outside is the bread, biscuit or bagel. For the fourth and final criterion, quality is weighed against price for a value score. Each category (convenience, inside, outside, value) is scored from 1 to 3: either lacking (1), sufficient (2) or exceptional (3). That means the review of a sandwich sufficiently convenient with excellent fillings on subpar bread for an absolute steal would end like this: 2/3/1/3. 

To qualify, the kitchen must be open by 8 a.m. and the order must have egg between bread. This categorically disqualifies popular and delicious morning choices like breakfast tacos and chicken biscuits.

Egg & Cheddar Biscuit

Dose

Car parking is a challenge during busy hours at either Dose location and nearly impossible at Murphy Road, where Grand Cru employees guard the wine store’s proprietary spots. Dose lines can slow down a quick morning, and the kitchen makes each sandwich to order, tacking on a wait that often hits 10 minutes. Even the heroic Murphy Road barista staff can barely stave off constant waves of coffee hounds from Vanderbilt and Sylvan Park. A modest square of egg, cooked evenly, comes melded to a fluffy fresh biscuit with an equally generous cheddar allowance. Additional points for the cheese-pull. It’s a full breakfast at $7.50, making the Dose biscuit a solid treat for those with a little extra time before work.1/2/2/2

Egg & Cheese Biscuit

Raise the Roost at 7-Eleven

Offering dozens of prewrapped sandwiches at a grab-and-go hot food display on one the city’s major commuter routes, Gallatin Avenue’s Raise the Roost — 7-Eleven’s in-house fast-food counter — could not be more convenient. Doors open at 5 a.m., and the Roost’s vast array of breakfast offerings can be cleared out in a few hours, implying a dedicated crowd of morning shoppers. Add-ons include sausage, bacon, even fried chicken, married to a passable egg mixture and melty orange cheese product most comparable to a Kraft single. The biscuit is moist and buttered with the pleasing density of dessert shortcake. One sandwich is typically near $4, but a fall combo offers two for $6, a ridiculously good deal. Be warned — what you save at the register you will likely pay for in long-term medical complications thanks to maxed-out calorie and fat stats; this is firmly fast food, and the Scene cannot ethically recommend this high-scoring sandwich for daily or even weekly consumption. 3/2/3/3

Focaccia Egg Sandwich

Dozen Bakery

Ample free car parking and decent neighborhood walkability offset Dozen’s made-to-order service and reliable traffic, securing passable convenience. The dense rectangle of baked egg comes dressed with a perfect romesco, sprigs of dill, fresh arugula and actual cheddar, all packed between a sweet and savory honey focaccia. An institution of Nashville’s baking scene, Dozen has hit on something of a cult classic with the Focaccia Egg, which frequently sells out before noon. A steep $8.50 makes this a firmly upmarket sandwich, but you pay for exactly what you get. 2/3/3/2

Egg & Cheese Sandwich

Nashville Biscuit House

A drive-thru lane gives patient patrons one window directly into the bighearted chaos that is the Nashville Biscuit House. Few Old Nashville staples are still this far down Gallatin Avenue, making Biscuit House an essential breakfast spot for transplants, longtime residents and tourists. Just because it has the trappings of a fast-food restaurant doesn’t mean it’s always fast (I waited 25 minutes in the car, including 15 at the order window) — that’s not because the staff doesn’t value service, but rather because a drive-thru window might not make sense when loyal customers pack your dining room nearly every morning. Color variations confirm that the egg is hand-scrambled, topped with molten orange American cheese and nestled between a mercifully petite golden-brown biscuit. The $6 biscuit comes with a complimentary side of hash browns or grits, an easy win on value. 2/2/3/3

Egg & Cheese Bagel

Crieve Hall Bagel Co.

Just a year into its spacious storefront, Crieve Hall Bagel Co. has become a go-to neighborhood meeting point for breakfast south of Nashville. Stop in on any given weekday morning and you get the sense that the strip malls dotting Nashville’s former suburbs could be made cool again. Car parking is easy, service is quick, and a to-go window scores convenience points for CHBC. As with other list peers, a baked egg balances consistency and efficiency while slightly sharp cheddar adds umami zing. Swiss (and vegan sausage) are other options at the register. Seeds drip off the chewy sourdough everything bagel, neatly wrapped for on-the-go eating. At $7.89 without add-ons after taxes, this substantial sandwich dares us to mark it as overvalued. Sourdough is expensive, though, and Crieve Hall likely set its prices amid the punishing inflation of 2022. 2/2/3/2

Egg & Cheese Bun

Hero

Newcomer Hero, which set up Charlotte and Wedgewood-Houston locations earlier this year,  built a regional reputation in various Georgia and Alabama suburban enclaves. Its menu puts simple flair on common staples, executing one step above fast food while dressed up in better marketing and intentional interior design. The Fourth Avenue outpost serves foot traffic while Charlotte hits West Side commuters. The kitchen flips orders around quickly, convenience partially born from sparse crowds as the brand builds a base in Nashville. The sandwich-of-choice combines a creamy scrambled egg — get it folded, like a French omelet — with pepper jam and a riff on Thousand Island dressing. Double-time condiments work well with the fluffy, buttery bun, leading to a quick and satisfying sandwich experience for under $6. 2/3/2/2

The roundup officially ends here, with a few comments on notable city breakfast sandwiches of the past and present. Such scrutiny on Nashville’s breakfast options started with a staff conversation following the abrupt retirement of Sweet 16th’s egg-and-cheese biscuit (aka “one to go”), which we honor with an emeritus 3/3/3/3. Butter, Eggs & Bakin, a stone breakfast cottage on Hart Street, boasts powerful biscuit recommendations but was closed on two attempts. Two Hands on Eighth Avenue would have earned a 0 on value, breaking the list’s scoring criteria with a $14 bacon, egg and kale roll.