I’ve never been on a cruise, nor do I have any intention of going on one. I can accept the necessity of using a boat as transportation for getting from point A to point B if no other alternatives exist, but just the idea of being held captive on a vessel surrounded by miles and miles of water is enough to make me seasick.
Cruise devotees often cite the quantity, variety, and availability of food—expansive buffets that stretch as far as the eye can see—while extolling the virtues of a vacation aboard the Good Ship Lollipop. That appeals to me about as much as Opryland Hotel’s Sunday Brunch feed line. I adhere to the less-is-more theory, which puts me at odds with most American feeding institutions, whether it be Thanksgiving dinner or super-sized fast-food meal deals.
After nearly two weeks away, I’ve just returned from producing an annual fund-raising event, held for the first time at a new, all-inclusive resort in Colorado. I suspect that this resort very closely resembles a cruise, minus the water. Three times a day, a huge staff of chefs and cooks laid out a spread that was absolutely overwhelming in size and spectacle. Dinners were always themed: Italian, Asian, Mexican, All-American. Everyone raved, but I pretty much confined my selections to the salad, cheese, and bread sections. With so many options arrayed before me—eight starches, six meats, a dozen different cakes—I found myself struck by choice paralysis, unable to make a decision. I’d prefer one small portion of risotto cooked just for me to heaps of mashed potatoes, French fries, rice, and pasta piled in warming trays to be dished out by Paul Bunyan-size serving spoons.
Following is a select portion of tasty tidbits from the Nashville dining scene. If there’s an embarrassment of riches here, remember that they’re meant to whet the appetite, not overwhelm it.
Free Willie
Chef Willie Thomas—formally known as Guillermo—made a splash back in 1995 when he opened the Capitol Grille restaurant in the basement of the newly refurbished Hermitage Hotel. His sophisticated new American menu gained him not only a ravenous local following, but led to the Capitol Grille being named one of Esquire magazine’s top 25 new restaurants in the country that year. Soon after the Hermitage was acquired by a national hotel chain, Thomas departed that kitchen and landed at Bound’ry, where he has been ever since.
Berenice Denton, the queen of estate sales, first met Thomas while he was cooking at the Grille and became a devoted fan. A few years ago, she purchased a couple of old houses on Murphy Road in Sylvan Park and turned the properties into a retail consortium of small shops and a Southern-style lunchroom called Yogi’s. Denton stayed in touch with Thomas and continued to eat his food at Bound’ry, where his cooking took on a more international flair; in turn, he occasionally dropped by Yogi’s for a sandwich and a visit with Denton.
Last month, their friendship turned professional when Thomas left Bound’ry to take over the lease for the entire bottom floor of Denton’s buildings, where he will open his own restaurant. Park Cafe will seat about 100 in 3,000 square feet of space. Thomas’ goal is to open for dinner, Mondays through Saturdays, on March 1. Park Cafe will have a cozy, Old World bistro ambiance with dark wood, warm shades of amber and red, and a menu that leans more toward the original, contemporary-American Capitol Grille repast than Bound’ry’s global cuisine.
The opening of Park Cafe at 4403 Murphy Rd. adds another dining option to the delectable curve of Sylvan Park that also includes Caffe Nonna, Star Bagel, McCabe Pub, and Sylvan Park Restaurant. “I love this neighborhood,” Thomas says. “I’d rather be here than the West End area or Green Hills. I’m not trying to compete with anyone, but to add another element to what is already here.”
Stamps of approval
Is there room in this town for two cooking Marthas? There will be this weekend, when the locally beloved Martha Stamps—the chef/caterer/cookbook author and, with husband John Reed, owner of Food for Thought take-out/delivery service and the recently opened Martha’s at the Plantation restaurant—meets up with national icon Martha Stewart, in Nashville for the Antiques & Garden Show. There will be several occasions for close encounters of the culinary kind between the two kitchen goddesses. Stamps will provide box lunches for Stewart’s lecture on Garden Collectibles Friday at the show. (The lecture has already sold out.) In the lunch boxes will be Stamps’ black-eyed pea salad, fried turkey made by Reed, and beaten biscuits with country ham contributed by Stamps’ mother. Stamps will also cater a reception for the lecture series’ speakers at Cheekwood.
On Monday, Stamps will fly to Connecticut to cook caramel cake and chicken and dumplings for a segment of Stewart’s television show, Martha Stewart Living.
Meanwhile, Nashville romantics in the mood for love but wary of crowded restaurants on Valentine’s Day can indulge their passions privately with Food for Thought’s first Valentine’s take-out menu. Four courses are $65 a couple. Call 353-2828 for a menu; reservations must be made by Feb. 9.
As the world turns
Mirror, the restaurant on 12th Avenue South owned by husband/wife chefs Colleen and Michael DeGregory, continues to offer a selection of tapas daily, along with a set menu of appetizers and large plates. In addition, each month the chefs explore the cuisines of different countries by offering appetizers and entrees from a particular region.
Currently, Mirror is reflecting Germany, the perfect choice for chilly nights. Start with chicken croquettes with caper rémoulade, or small meatballs and mustard spätzle. Hearty entrees include chicken schnitzel with warm potato salad and caper lemon sauce; house-made bratwurst with sweet-and-sauerkraut, thick-cut potatoes, and homemade mustard; and dark-beer-battered vegetables with whipped potatoes and two sauces.
Mirror is at 2317 12th Ave. S. Phone: 383-8330.
Value added
Clayton-Blackmon, A Bistro, the Green Hills restaurant owned by Anne Clayton and Mary Blackmon, has pumped up its lunch menu by adding several selections from its dinner menu. “We’re not just chicken salad anymore!” Clayton promises. Entree additions include pan-seared pork chops, a grilled petit filet with red bliss mashers, herb-roasted chicken with wild-mushroom-cream couscous, and grilled salmon. Ladies who lunch will still find chicken salad, pimento cheese, egg salad, and that Nashville classic, Faucon salad, on the midday menu.
Clayton-Blackmon, A Bistro, is located at 4014 Hillsboro Circle. Phone: 297-7855.
Deep freeze
Bobbie’s Dairy Dip, the 50-year-old Nashville ice cream tradition on Charlotte Pike, is closed, but only for the season. Owner Claire Mullally, a New York native who purchased Bobbie’s last year, promises that she will reopen with the daffodils, which could be anywhere from mid-February to early March. Mullally reports that she is using the time off to tinker with the menu—which last summer included chargrilled burgers, bratwurst with sweet-and-sour onions, kielbasa sandwiches, and Belgian fries. She is also perfecting her techniques with ice cream and desserts.
Bobbie’s is at 5301 Charlotte Ave. Phone: 292-2112.
Welcome wagon
Several restaurants have opened in the last few months in and around Nashville, but have not yet been visited by the Scene.
♦ Sam Kapakura has opened Sam’s Sushi Bar at the corner of Printers Alley and Church Street. Kapakura was most recently the sushi chef at Virago and before that spent 10 years at different sushi restaurants in Nashville and Middle Tennessee. Sam’s Sushi Bar has 16 seats and is open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 3-10 p.m. Sat.-Sun. He doesn’t have a license for wine, though customers can bring their own. Phone: 726-1700.
♦ Rio Grande Marisquera, a Mexican-Salvadoran restaurant with an emphasis on seafood, has opened at 957 Richards Rd. in Antioch. Open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. seven days a week, they also feature pupusas, a Salvadoran specialty; beer is available as well. Phone: 831-9204.
♦ Reader Michelle Tongratanasiri touts a new Thai restaurant: Authentic Orient is at 5270D Murfreesboro Rd. in La Vergne. Phone: 793-6216. She recommends the som tum (papaya salad), tom yung goong, and pad ped seafood combination. In addition to regular dining hours, the restaurant is open until midnight on Friday and Saturday nights with live entertainment.
♦ Yamamoto, a new Japanese steakhouse and sushi bar, has opened at the corner of Bell Road and Murfreesboro Pike, offering lunch 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and dinner 5-10 p.m. daily. Phone: 360-1216.
♦ Massimo Esposito, a native Italian, has opened Massimo’s at 75 N. Lowry St. in Smyrna. A lunch buffet is available for $5.50 per person; dinner is served 4-9:30 p.m. weekdays, until 10 p.m. on weekends. Beer is available, but not wine, though customers can bring their own. Phone: 220-9505.
