Bear Creek Farms bistro steak
Quietly, Firefly Grille chef Kristen Gregory and owner Curt Cole have opened Fly South in the Leiper's Fork space that previously housed Country Boy. The 66-seat restaurant, which will grow when the downstairs portion opens in a few months, is open six days a week, with dinner Tuesday-Saturday and brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. Lunch will be added in the future.
Gregory described the menu to Bites as being similar to Firefly's, with six or seven appetizers and eight or nine seasonal entrees. A quick scan of the fall menu shows seared scallops with potato-herb knish and kale, Springer Mountain chicken stuffed with goat brie and caramelized bread pudding, and a Bear Creek Farms bistro steak with creme fraiche mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. Starters include steamed mussels in red curry coconut broth, a play on Firefly's original mac-and-cheese, and a pretty wicked-looking cheese plate with Spanish chorizo. For now, Fly South is serving only beer and wine.
It's a small staff, with she and chef John Smyth doing most of the heavy lifting themselves, including washing a few dishes. "I'm the highest paid line cook in all of Nashville," she said.
And given that she's looking in on Firefly in Green Hills and cooking every day at Fly South, Gregory is putting a lot of miles on her car. Bites asked about straddling two restaurants.
"I worked really hard to get the [Firefly Grille] staff ready for me not to be there," she said. "I like both places for their pros and cons. I feel like I've had two personalities [with the new place], but it's been nice to have a change of scenery."
There were a few people upset when Country Boy closed, but Gregory said the feedback from locals has been good. Firefly has a number of regulars from the area and she said they've been supportive of the new place.
With all of the back-and-forth and the two restaurants having different days off (Firefly on Sundays, Fly South on Mondays), Gregory said she was looking forward to a rare second day off coming up for a little personal time.
"I'm gonna get my hair done so I don't look like Courtney Love," she said, laughing.
