Great but Often Overlooked Nashville Restaurants

Since Sinema opened in 2014 in the historic Melrose Theater, it has garnered a reputation as a restaurant with selfie-worthy bathrooms, a rare whiskey list with more than 100 options, cozy velvet booths, and a menu befitting its Old Hollywood vibe.

A decade after opening, Sinema is making some changes, says co-owner Q Taylor. This month, thanks to new executive chef Shelby Briggs, the restaurant unveiled a new menu. It features dishes inspired by Briggs’ experiences studying in Italy, Thailand and Vietnam. It uses fresh herbs and produce in dishes that are flavorful and fit the Sinema vibe, but aren’t over-the-top or heavy-handed — such as perfect potato pierogi topped with crispy garlic, and the agnolotti in roasted miso butter. It all tastes like you’re dining at a friend’s house (albeit a very talented friend).

“The culture of the city has changed — the city has evolved in a lot of ways, and the expectations over the years have gotten higher,” Taylor says of Briggs’ hiring. “People are coming from a lot of places, and they have eaten in a lot of places in the world, so you have to evolve.”

Taylor knows that many locals love Sinema, coming in to celebrate special occasions. And folks who live in the neighborhood love to wander in for its first-rate happy hour. Visitors flock to its Bottomless Brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. But Taylor knows the restaurant isn’t necessarily reaching those who have moved to town recently or those who aren’t looking for the booze-heavy evening they had in Sinema’s booths a decade ago. He thinks Briggs’ menu and approach will help expand the restaurant’s audience.

Taylor and Sinema are not alone in their goal. Nashville has a lot of shiny new objects, and it’s very easy to get distracted by what’s gleaming and new. There are so many good new restaurants — Noko, iggy’s and Kisser, to name three — it can be easy to forget about solid favorites that have been around since before the phrase “it city” was uttered.

As business slows down for restaurants in January (when people tend to pull in the reins on both extravagant spending and lavish eating), this is a good time to give a second thought to some favorites that may have been forgotten. Instead of doing the dance to set a calendar reminder to jump on Tock or Resy when reservations open for those new restaurants, consider checking out one of these 16 time-honored spots instead.

Anatolia Turkish Restaurant

48 White Bridge Road

The city has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to Turkish restaurants, and Nashvillians count Anatolia among them. The family-owned restaurant, open more than two decades, serves flavorful meat and vegetable dishes, plus pastries in crispy phyllo dough. Lunchtime salads are particularly well-priced. Don’t miss the rose petal jam. Anatolia, which is located in Lion’s Head Village, is open for dinner seven days a week and for lunch on weekdays.

Butchertown Hall

1416 Fourth Ave. N.

Restaurateur Terry Raley has been busy opening new places, including Mercado by Butchertown, Ramones Citrus Club and Cherries on Dickerson Pike. Butchertown Hall is Raley’s reigning OG spot in Germantown. The idea is a modern barbecue with tacos made from meats and vegetables smoked on an open-hearth fire. While many traditional barbecue spots are short on aesthetics (if long on deliciousness), Butchertown Hall has Raley’s signature sleek, modern design along with the good-tasting tacos and cocktails.

Caffé Nonna

4427 Murphy Road

For 25 years, tiny Caffé Nonna has been one of Nashville’s beloved Italian spots. With just 900 square feet (and only 200 of those in the kitchen!), Nonna was the pasta favorite before there was iggy’s and Frankie’s and Il Forno and Luogo and Yolan and Pastaria and so many other options. Late last year, Will Spiva, previously of Taqueria del Sol and elsewhere, purchased Caffé Nonna, becoming the third owner in the Sylvan Park eatery’s history. Spiva is in the process of updating the menu. But the cooks have more than 29 years of combined experience in the kitchen of Caffé Nonna alone, so they will be sure to keep some longtime favorites, such as the Seafood Angelina. He plans to focus on Nonna’s neighborhood vibe, attracting more locals than visitors, and keeping that friendly, cozy feeling — befitting a restaurant of its size. Nonna is just down the block from Park Café, another longtime favorite with a solid American menu and a popular happy hour.

Chateau West

3408 West End Ave.

Perhaps you’ve noticed the unusual roof line next to the Dairy Queen near the I-440 and West End Avenue intersection. That’s not exactly the typical introductory line to an item about a fine-dining restaurant, but everything about Chateau West is a little unexpected. The menus at both lunch and dinner have lots of French and French-American favorites, including escargot in garlic butter, quiche, croque monsieur and croque madame, and boeuf bourguignon. It’s also a quiet enough space to have a conversation with your dining companion.

City House

1222 Fourth Ave. N.

Germantown’s plethora of restaurants makes it hard to visit all of them — even if you limited yourself just to the neighborhood. And if you’re expanding your culinary tour to the whole city, it’s easy to see how a few Germantown places get forgotten. (See also: Butchertown Hall, Henrietta Red and Monell’s.) But no one should ever forget how chef Tandy Wilson transformed Nashville’s culinary experience. He’s still making beautiful food with local ingredients that change with seasonality and availability. December featured gems such as a cauliflower satsuma dish, plus the selection of pizzas for which City House is beloved.

Duke’s

1000 Main St.

This East Nashville bar doubles as one of the city’s best sandwich spots. Build your own with Boar’s Head meats or Be-Hive vegan seitan or choose a Duke’s deli signature. The owners are also the team behind Babo Korean Bar, a laid-back, also oft-overlooked spot on Riverside Drive.

Gojo Ethiopian Cafe and Restaurant

415 W. Thompson Lane

This South Nashville restaurant offers beef stews, vegetarian and vegan combos and other Ethiopian dishes that you eat by scooping them up with a piece of sticky injera bread. The end-of-meal coffee service is a presentation in and of itself. The staff loves to help first-timers navigate the menu, and they welcome regulars back again and again.

Hathorne

4708 Charlotte Ave.

This West Side restaurant is located inside what was once a church fellowship hall, and that directs its community-focused vibe. Even the name is a hat-tip to its efforts to bring people together. In Irish folklore, the hawthorn tree is a symbol of love and protection, and it’s used in the restaurant’s logo. It is spelled without the “w” after owner John Stephenson’s grandmother, Mary Ruth Hathorn. Show up for “Joyful Hour” (aka happy hour), weekend brunch or dinner. Tuesday night is burger night.

Henrietta Red

1200 Fourth Ave. N.

Nashvillian Julia Sullivan cultivates a menu of ethically sourced meats and seafood for her restaurant in Germantown. Dining at Henrietta Red feels like being seated in a jewelry box, with pretty gems popping up on the table and on the walls. Check out the happy hour Tuesday through Sunday, the weekend brunch or dinner any time you crave oysters.

Lou

1304 McGavock Pike

From a small white house in Inglewood’s Riverside Village, Lou takes its food, but not itself, seriously. The vibe is French, but the ingredients are of the American South. The menu is crafted from ethically and sustainably sourced ingredients, with an emphasis on natural wines and shared plates. As a result, the menu changes with the seasons, and includes options such as braised cabbage, winter lettuces and trout from Bucksnort Trout Ranch.

Miel

343 53rd Ave. N.

Few people have been as active and outspoken about reducing food waste and looking at sustainability through a holistic lens as Miel owner Seema Prasad. For 15 years Miel has served ingredient-forward food in a quiet, intimate space just steps off of Charlotte Avenue. In addition to its thoughtful meals, Miel offers wine classes to help students learn about various fruits of the vine.

Monell’s

1235 Sixth Ave. N.

Family-style meals with hot vegetables, fried chicken and Southern classics are passed around the table at this mainstay. But it’s not only for meals that are appropriate for bringing Grandma. Starting at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday night/Sunday Morning, the Germantown restaurant is open until 3 a.m., so you can feast on a big, possibly hangover-preventing breakfast after a night on the town.

Roy Meat Service

605 S. 19th St.

It’s a meat market, a convenience store and an East Nashville lunch spot. In recent weeks it’s become public knowledge that owner Jeff Roy has been battling a neighbor over concerns about property lines, signage and even the smell of smoked meats. The business has been on 19th Street since 2008, so locals know it as a great place for a tasty sandwich with smoked turkey, salami, ham or other meat and a side of friendly conversation. Other dishes include meatloaf (a Roy family recipe), quesadillas, brisket chili, burgers, pulled pork and cherry cobbler for dessert. Plus, if you are a fan of Jim’s Spaghetti Sauce, this is the place to pick it up on the East Side.

Sinema

2600 Eighth Ave. S.

The Melrose restaurant offers American cuisine from inside a stylish old movie theater. “As soon as you walk in the front doors, it is Old Hollywood,” says executive chef Shelby Briggs. “It is exciting, so I think the food needs to match.” Her dishes, inspired by her travels, are available at dinner, brunch and happy hour.