My 2025 Nashville and Beyond Restaurant Journal

I wouldn’t necessarily say I have a refined palate. No, in fact, I tell people all the time that I actually have the palate of a raccoon. I remember being a kid and my mom telling me, “now, you have to tell me if you don’t like this,” and replying, “you shouldn’t ask me because I’ll eat anything.” Now, I say that to my wife when she tries something new in the kitchen. So, maybe I’m not the foremost expert on culinary technique and preparation. I think that’s fair to say.

But, what I am is a writer. What I’m confident in is my ability to try out a new restaurant, get something insane off the menu, snap a photo of it, and write about my experience. That’s ultimately what I’m in the business of – telling stories and sharing experiences. This is how I write about food, and with that in mind, let’s hit some highlights from the new restaurants I tried last year from Nashville and beyond.

The 2025 SoBros Nashville Restaurant Recap

• Del Frisco’s Grille – We celebrated McCash’s birthday at Del Frisco’s back in January. To be right downtown, where I passed it a million times, we had never stopped to try it before. Service was great. Cocktails were perfect. And, the meal was solid – really underrated spot for steak in town.
• Bagelshop (Donelson) – Discovering Bagelshop in Donelson changed my life. It’s become our favorite spot for weekend breakfasts. That bagel you see in this post’s featured image is “The Plaza.” It doesn’t look like it’s currently on the menu, but it could just be a summer seasonal because of the ripe ass tomatoes on it. Tomatoes, cucumber, dill, and a schmear of cream cheese of your choice. It’s fantastic – one of the most refreshing breakfast items I’ve ever had. I’ll vouch for the Ham’n Jam too.
• Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe – Sure, there are several Taziki’s around town and it is just a…well…I don’t know what Taziki’s is…would you call it fast dining? Casual dining? What’s in between those two? Anyway, I love gyros and I love whipped feta. That’s all that really matters here. I will say Taziki’s gets points added for being lighter, less greasy, and not making me feel like shit after we eat it.
• Tim Hortons – Yes, Tim Hortons made its way to the South. Good coffee and a good breakfast burrito. I mean…it is very much just fast food coffee and breakfast, but be careful who you say that around.
• Main Street Mercantile & Creamery (Lebanon) – They’re really ramping things up down on the square in Lebanon. No better way to spend an afternoon than by drinking beer at Cedar City Brewing, perusing the shelves at Harper’s Books, and then topping it off with a hearty rich milkshake from Main Street Mercantile & Creamery.
• Saltgrass Steak House – My wife and I ventured out on a rainy night to try Saltgrass in celebration of my promotion at the day job. It had been around for awhile in the old Claim Jumper space in Opry Mills (I forget what it was before Claim Jumper – I digress), and I’d heard some friends say it was a surprisingly good meal. So, I went and ordered a steak. It was cooked exactly as I wanted with a mound of onions and mushrooms. It wasn’t really anymore pricey than your local Longhorn either. It’s a good midrange spot for when you want something a little elevated but not “downtown steakhouse” elevated.
• Los Toritos – Not that I would know from experience or anything like that, but Los Toritos is the perfect place to kill some time and some giant Modelos before you talk about the Tennessee Titans. Damn good burritos too.
• Redheaded Stranger – A popular East Nashville spot that had slipped through the cracks for me for what felt like years before we stopped by one afternoon for lunch. Some of the best tacos in the city – I still think about that #7 (chopped brisket, American cheese, and Dr. Pepper hot sauce). Wide array of sauces that burst with flavor and ice cold beer too.
• Neighbors – Maybe I’m not a true Nashvillian, but alas, I admit that I have not had Neighbors until this year. Love the wings. Love the buffalo chicken quesadilla. And, I’m a SUCKER for hot fresh tater tots. Ice cold beer doesn’t hurt either.
• Flour Your Dreams (Hermitage) – You know the mark of a good bakery is when you pull up to the spot and there’s a massive line out the front door. That’s been the case any time we’ve tried to stop by Flour Your Dreams – A++ croissants.
• Honky Tonk Creamery (Mount Juliet) – Step into The Twilight Zone where you can get a milkshake on the other side of the wall from a bar and live country music. What a weird spot.
• Sweetmilk (Donelson) – We need more breakfast spots east of town. Lot of people. Not a lot of breakfast options out here. Sweetmilk does the classics just right and boasts a damn good strong cup of coffee to boot.
• The Glade Scoops and Sweets (Gladeville) – We’ve needed an ice cream shop on the Gladeville side of Mount Juliet forever. Long live The Glade Scoops and Sweets! Home of the best milkshakes in town! And, don’t be afraid to try that oatmeal creme pie shake.
• Keke’s Breakfast Cafe (Mount Juliet) – Again, for the people in the back, “KEEP OPENING MORE BREAKFAST SPOTS EAST OF NASHVILLE!” Keke’s is like an upscale Denny’s and I am absolutely here for it.
• Condado Tacos – A fantastic mango jalapeño margarita with a damn good “Crave Bowl,” which was a bowl of roasted chicken, rice, and the ingredients that combine for street corn. It popped. It was hearty. And yet, I didn’t feel miserable afterwards.
• Vibes – The hookah and the gin and tonics are one thing. The vibes (no pun intended) are one thing…but those Hennessy wings….man, those are an entirely different stratosphere. That’s some good good shit.
• The Goat – I’m including The Goat in Mount Juliet (among other locations) here because we discovered their brunch menu this year, and their hot chicken biscuit bene was a revelation. So much so that I wrote this ode to it.
• Twilight Tavern – I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say these are the best wings I’ve had in this city. The meat itself was tender and juicy, but that dry rub had a zesty flavor with a hint of heat to it. A pretty unique rub and good quality chicken. If you want to crown them for the best wings in Nashville, go right ahead. I won’t stop you.

Outside of Nashville

• The Hummingbird Way (Mobile, Alabama) – The Mobile food scene is truly underrated. Fresh low country fare with a fine dining flare.
• Southern Tré Steakhouse (Columbia, Tennessee) – A great spot to stop and get a cocktail with a few appetizers. Big fan of the wings. We didn’t do the full restaurant experience here because we were just passing through, but it certainly felt like a good spot to do that in.
• Metro Diner (Murfreesboro, Tennessee) – It’s probably the closest thing we have to an actual classic diner around Nashville. We’ve eaten breakfast and lunch both here now, and both have been rock solid. I love the omelets and I love the bacon grilled cheese.
• Nicholas Barrel & Roost (Red Bank, New Jersey) – Full Review – “A good meal for a special occasion means much more than simply eating good food. It’s a big part of it – don’t get me wrong. But, it’s more than that, too. It’s the ability to slow down. It’s the gratitude of good company and conversations that nourish the soul. It’s the chance to leave the worries of the real world behind, if only for a couple of hours. I left Nicholas Barrel & Roost with a relaxed buzz (don’t worry – I wasn’t driving) and a full belly. That was all well and good, but where this restaurant really excelled was in the care of the service and the quality of the environment. I didn’t just feel satisfied. I felt restored. For a guy that works a lot and typically runs pretty hot, that’s important to me. It was one of the best meals I’ve had in quite a long time.“
• The White Alligator (Franklin, Tennessee) – A hidden gem in Franklin because of its classic bar, good cocktails, and unique menu.
• Wickford on the Water (Wickford Village, Rhode Island) – Rhode Island Travel Guide –
• Linda’s Diner (Narragansett, Rhode Island) – Rhode Island Travel Guide – A fantastic, true old school diner experience. Good diner coffee and a menu that would take you five hours to read. I went with an omelet and was not disappointed.
• Buskers Pub (Newport, Rhode Island) – Rhode Island Travel Guide – Always judge an Irish pub by the quality of their Scotch eggs. Buskers passes the test.
• The Mooring (Newport, Rhode Island) – Rhode Island Travel Guide – When you’re in New England, you have to get a healthy dose of seafood. The Mooring was a nice setting, right on the water, that offered favorites we don’t get too often down here in Nashville – real New England clam chowder, shrimp and lobster fritters, crab toast.
• Hennen’s (Chattanooga, Tennessee) – A real surprise gem I found simply by Googling “Chattanooga steakhouses” when my wife asked me to as we hit about 20 miles outside of the Scenic City on a quick overnighter we took back at Labor Day. I had the truffle parmesan meat loaf. My wife had the filet. Two glasses of wine and an order of sweet chili calamari preceded the main entrees, which were bookended by a vanilla bean cheesecake with chocolate caramel drizzle and a glass of port to wash it all down. One of our favorite full meal experiences in Chattanooga.
• The Bluegrass Grille (Chattanooga, Tennessee) – A tiny little breakfast spot in a trendy area of Chattanooga, The Bluegrass Grille offers fresh-squeezed juice, sweets, and hearty breakfast favorites.
• Top of the Rock (Kimball, Tennessee) – The scenic views are worth the drive up that mountain. The beer was okay. The burger was okay. But, man…what a spot to spend a golden hour.

My Personal Power Rankings of these Restaurants:

1. Nicholas Barrel & Roost
2. The Hummingbird Way
3. The Mooring
4. Hennen’s
5. Metro Diner
6. Redheaded Stranger
7. Bagelshop
8. The White Alligator
9. Twilight Tavern
10. Del Frisco’s Grille

Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, second on Football & Other F Words, analyst for Stacking The Inbox, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, the NFL Draft, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.

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