By Kay West
Eddie’s Sports Grille
Hilton Suites Nashville, Fifth Ave. S. 620-1000.
Dining hours: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sun.-Thurs., until midnight Fri.-Sat.; bar remains open until 2 a.m. Sun.-Thurs., until 3 a.m. Fri.-Sat.
What’s in a name? If your signature reads “Eddie George,” plenty. For starters, there’s the $42 million contract the star running back signed with the Tennessee Titans last summer. There’s the more than $1.5 million worth of endorsement deals that were signed between Super Bowl XXXIV and the 2000 season. And most recently, there’s Eddie’s Sports Grille, an upscale sports bar and restaurant that opened this past fall in the new Hilton Suites Nashville downtown. The 1995 Heisman Trophy winner and four-time Pro Bowler did not put any money into the venture, which is a partnership, but he gave it his name, which many consider priceless. Let’s face it: Eddie’s Sports Grille will probably draw a few more customers than if it had been named Mark’s Sports Grille, after one of the investors, Mark Bloom.
What’s in a sports bar? Eddie’s has the usual stuff: loads of sports memorabilia, both his and items collected from other star athletes in many sports; great views of lots of televisions from any seat in the room; a big wraparound bar; two dining areas; several action-packed video games; and a menu with typical sports-bar munchies like nachos, wings, fries, pizza, and burgers, along with more substantial and ambitious dinner items.
Besides the name recognition, Eddie’s Sports Grille has another unique calling card, and that’s Eddie’s Room. Within the restaurant, there is a room reserved specifically for No. 27. Decorated with Eddie artifacts and outfitted with a sofa, several chairs, tables, audio and visual equipment, and video games, it is not open to the public. But customers can get a gander at the room and its occasional celebrity occupants through one of two glass walls. When Eddie visits the restaurant, I understand he goes to his room, where he dines and entertains friends and family, and is observed doing so by his legion of fans. I am told that when he does visit, he nearly always comes out of his room to sign autographs.
Unfortunately, Eddie was not in the building on either of our two visits to his Sports Grille. Our first visit was the Thursday afternoon prior to the Titans-Ravens game. While we were looking through the glass into his room, Eddie was on the screen of the television inside, conducting a live press conference with ESPN. Our second visit was the Monday night after the Titans-Ravens game; by that time, Eddie and the rest of the Titans had cleaned out their lockers and had probably flown the coop.
The layout and ambiance of the restaurant, which includes a fireplace, are perfectly suited to catching a game on the tube in the company of friends. It seems a particularly good idea to place the sports bar in a hotel, so that visitors to our city can find some camaraderie and common ground among strangers.
Service on both visits was excellent, particularly on the night we brought along 10 children, all faithfully garbed in Titans jerseys. Floor managers went out of their way to move tables and accommodate our large party, which also included seven adults. Our server Lakesha did a fantastic job of keeping our five tables full of drink and food without once losing the smile on her face.
When it comes to the food, Eddie’s scores some points and also makes a few notable fumbles. Although the athlete is reported to have had input on the menu, I doubt he contributed any recipes or spends much time manning the stoves. I have it on good authority that he has a personal chef at home attending to his dietary and culinary needs.
But none of the menu is haute cuisine, to say the least, and it should be manageable by a good crew of reliable utility players. The kitchen does best with ball-park and stadium-type food like the aforementioned wings, nachos, fries, burgers, and pizza. All were well prepared, tasty, and a notch above the usual sports-bar fare.
Everyone liked the wings; the mild were mild enough for the little leaguers, and the hot hit the spot with the seasoned veterans at the table. The children were especially taken with the humongous stack of fries smothered in melted cheese and bacon, at least after they picked off the offending bits of chopped green onion. The grown-ups preferred to make appetizers of the pizzas; the veggie was piled high with sliced red and green peppers, strips of portabella mushroom, red onion, and black olives. The shrimp and creamy boursin pizza was the all-star, with fresh spinach as a bonus.
In the sandwich competition, the Buffalo Zinger Wrap—spicy chicken tenders with bleu cheese and shredded lettuce in a tomato-basil flour tortilla—led the pack. Salads include the standard house and ubiquitous Caesar—both adequate renditions—but try the arugula salad with walnuts and bleu cheese for a change of pace, though I would forgo the sweet raspberry dressing for a lighter vinaigrette. The dish is large enough for an entrée if you are striving to duplicate Eddie’s remarkable fat-free physique.
The fumbles occurred in the specialty and pasta sections of the menu. The fresh salmon filet was anything but, with an intense fishy odor detectable from 10 yards out; it was so salty it was inedible. The fried catfish was spongy, an indication of its recent stay in a deep-freeze. The pork tenderloin, on the other hand, was dry and overcooked. The Classico pasta, angel hair with chopped canned Roma tomatoes, garlic, basil, and olive oil, was so bland it left no discernable taste on the tongue. The Thai chicken pasta tasted like a peanut butter sandwich with chicken strips—not a combo I would have thought of.
The hungriest member of our team dug enthusiastically into the Eddie George porterhouse steak, a 27-ounce piece of certified Angus beef that is branded with the number 27. Diners who finish the whole thing are promised a certificate attesting to their accomplishment. Though he went all the way to the bone, our contestant was not rewarded with proof of porterhouse, as the restaurant was out of certificates. Though it was certainly big in size, the steak was skimpy on flavor, particularly considering the hefty price tag of $39.95, a portion of which reportedly goes to the Eddie George Foundation. If you have beef cravings, I’d recommend The Palm next door.
As the Titans’ most recognized and bankable player, Eddie George can take a lot of credit for their glorious season; he also willingly shoulders a share of the blame for the loss to the Ravens on Sunday. In giving his name to Eddie’s Sports Grille, he likewise shares the credit and the blame for its successes and shortcomings.
When a fan buys a ticket to a game, he’s not guaranteed a win. But when a diner buys a meal in a restaurant, he should come out a winner. Eddie’s Sports Grille is good, but since when has Eddie George been satisfied with just being good? We expect better from such a big name.
More dough
Terry Carr-Hall, who opened Provence Breads & Café in Hillsboro Village nearly six years ago, is expanding his operation. He has just signed a lease on the former Farber building on 12th Avenue South, next door to the newly opened 6º restaurant, thus becoming the latest tenant in the ambitious $350 million plan to redevelop the area known as The Gulch.
Manuel Zeitlin is serving as architect for the 8,000-square-foot building, which will house wholesale, delivery, and distribution functions, as well as all bread-baking operations. As part of that expansion, a new, state-of-the-art brick and stone French oven will be built on the site by craftsmen from France. In addition, there will be a small retail area that will initially serve breads, pastries, and coffee. Once the baking operations are moved to the 12th Avenue location, the Hillsboro Village store will expand its food operations under the guidance of executive chef Heath Williams.
Carr-Hall has been looking for more room for some time, but was not attracted to the industrial spaces he encountered during his search. “I was seeing a lot of big metal buildings out by the airport, and that was not what I was looking for, or the type of place I thought my employees would be happy in. We really loved the character of the building and were attracted to being part of an urban renewal project.” Construction is expected to take about four months.
Village people
It will be an all-new ball game at 1803 21st Ave. S. since Al Thomas and Sam Sanchez have taken over the lease of Jonathan’s, the popular student watering hole that closed its doors three months ago. Thomas, a restaurant veteran who purchased Sperry’s from his father and uncle about a year ago, and Sanchez, former area director for Princeton’s Grille, are teaming up to run Sam’s Place, a sports bar and grill. They plan to refurbish the 150-seat room with new paint, woodwork, and equipment. The menu will include pizzas, oven-baked subs, wings, and daily specials. By the end of February, they will be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.
It will be an all-new ball game at 1803 21st Ave. S. since Al Thomas and Sam Sanchez have taken over the lease of Jonathan’s, the popular student watering hole that closed its doors three months ago. Thomas, a restaurant veteran who purchased Sperry’s from his father and uncle about a year ago, and Sanchez, former area director for Princeton’s Grille, are teaming up to run Sam’s Place, a sports bar and grill. They plan to refurbish the 150-seat room with new paint, woodwork, and equipment. The menu will include pizzas, oven-baked subs, wings, and daily specials. By the end of February, they will be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.
