I had the pleasure and luck to visit Nashville TWICE this September.
The first was over Labor Day weekend for my birthday with girlfriends and the second was the end of the month for a friend's stunning wedding. I could go on for hours and hours about the city and my thoughts but I'll stick with my top spots and tips and why!
WHERE TO STAY
First and foremost, this is the perfect hotel to stay at for a girls trip. Hands down. The aesthetics, the attention to detail, THE PINK!, the Dolly Parton inspirations, the glittery wallpaper and cowboy boot carpets and light fixtures, and more. We were SO happy to have picked this hotel.
The lobby when you walk in. It's a tapestry- just so fun and unique.
Even the coffee shop in the lobby is "extra". I mean, the chandeliers. Can you even?!
The lobby decor is so unique and has such a fun twist on style.
These couches and loveseats set up as stadium seating were adorable and a very popular spot to sit.
The vintage signage when you walk in adds some fun character too.
Even at night it's just gorgeous!
We had a junior king suite and the attention to detail was so fun. Not only the painting of Dolly Parton over the bed, but there's a mini chandelier inside the headboard top. Different textures, stripes on floral on more stripes, and PINK, so much pink!!
Look closely at the mirror- under the bird, do you see the two guitars?! Everywhere there were hidden details. I don't think we found them all, although we surely tried!
The rooftop has the Governor's Pool. It's small, but if you have a few people, book (and pay!) for your pool time. They only allow 24 people in the 3 hour block of time. You either get lounge chairs, a day bed (we had this), or a bench (so glad we did NOT have that- it was tiny!)
The pool is not heated but you're greeted with a cocktail and have a $25 credit for food and drinks while you're there. Our server, Kent, made our morning pool time extra awesome!
You're greeted with a mimosa or beverage of your choice upon arrival. Terrible, just awful I tell ya. LOL.
We had a daybed for the four of us and it was perfect!
Important to note- the pool is not heated, so on a hot summer day it's glorious yet also refreshing.
We did this a lot. Cheers!
On my first trip, we stopped for drinks and to browse the stunning lobby.
On my second trip, we are staying here.
Stay tuned for a blog update after that trip!
WHERE TO EAT
THE SUPPER CLUB AT 1230
Dinner here was so fun and delicious! We had so many things we wanted to try and share but kept it simple. We were in the back dining room and were so glad- we could still talk AND enjoy the music from the band in the main section. Highly recommend that room if you want to talk at all, otherwise you can't hear anyone but the band.
All of our cocktails were amazing. We had the steak frites (delish), lobster lemon pasta (also delish but heavy) and several of the sushi rolls (the 1230 roll was the best!)
However, one dish I MUST recommend is their baked potato bread - we would've ordered one for each us if we knew how amazing it was ahead of time!!
I will be completely honest. It is absolutely gorgeous. It's stunning, The decor and aesthetic is just remarkable. The food is fine. The service is solid. The drinks are delish. BUT it is totally an instaworthy location. It is insanely difficult to get into (reservations open 14 days before your date at 6pmCST and you have to be ready at 5:59 or you're out of luck)
The outside is first come first served but if it's hot, you'll be miserable. The bar is also first come first served and its small. The entire place is not as big as it seems but it's adorable. We went once and checked it off the list. I'd only go back for a drink to sit on the roof deck. You also have a time limit and they are strict! Depending on where you sit it's either 90 minutes or 2 hours.
The patio that's first come first served is so cute. The attention to detail is amazing, I mean, the pink umbrellas with fringe, I can't even.
The inside includes a few tables and a LOT of adorable sitting areas like this. So be prepared you might not get a real table and chairs. We did, but that wasn't our original spot. I can't imagine eating eggs benedict on a large circle bed!
A Sean Brock restaurant, a James Beard award winner, and a dining experience. You have the choice between an 8 or 16 course tasting menu (we did the 8, it was plenty) and every step of your evening is memorable. You walk in to an introduction of the menu focal points and some information on each. That was the best part honestly!
Each course has that focal point and they were SO accommodating to my friend who's a pescatarian (they subbed out the meat in 2 courses for a fish/seafood/vegetarian focus)
It is a pricey dinner but it's not a dinner, it's a full dining experience. We were there for 3 and a half hours and probably could have stayed even longer!
The kitchen was right by our table so we could watch it all happen! The open format is just the icing on the cake!
I had easily one of the best steaks ever here. Hands down. And we go out A LOT.
Not only were the steaks fantastic, but the ambiance, the staff, the cocktails, everything about it was a 10 out of 10!
The views are 10 out of 10. Everyone said they have the best views of Nashville and it is 110% true!
Lots of cheersing!
The cocktails here were some of the best we've had.
How do you say no to a tableside old fashioned?!
More cheersing!
WHERE TO GO OUT
We weren't fans of the downstairs part, it was very young and since it's right on the street level of Broadway, on weekend nights you'll watch a lot of fights, brawls, and honestly things we're just past that stage for. HOWEVER, we loved loved LOVED The Supper Club, it's the second floor. You *should* have a reservation but you can walk in and hang in the bar area. There's also a dress code on that level so make note.
The live band was amazing and super fun and the food upstairs there was fantastic (see info above) I cannot wait to go back again. Was a top pick on our first trip and we were so glad it was our first night, it gave us a true taste of Nashville and the music scene.
CRITTERS
This is a fun bar/karaoke bar inside the Graduate Hotel. We had an absolute blast and we sooooo grateful it was in our hotel after a few failed attempts at other locations.
Get tickets ahead of time, they say you don't need tickets but you do.
WINNERS AND LOSERS
Don't. Just don't.
We were not able to go but it was one of the top spots recommended by every local we spoke to. It's in Painter's Alley and on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 11pm they have a burlesque show- you can get in starting at 9 and it's first come first serve. They also have live jazz other nights as well.
We absolutely loved our tour with Sean. When we got there, he customized it for our group and even gave us some spots we would never have thought of ourselves!! Cannot recommend doing this more. This was the top pick of one of my friends who came on the trip.
Our main man, Sean, he made our last day in the city so memorable. Entertaining by far, incredibly knowledgeable about the city, and so many random fun finds we'd never heard of!
A mural we absolutely loved, another Sean share!
Tennessee Whiskey & Jack Daniels tasting!
My favorite, Ole Smokey, has a full tasting room in Nashville. We LOVED our time there!
The Dolly mural with Miley Cyrus in her lap was one of our favorites, we'd never heard about it. Thanks to Sean we had a lot of these "never heard about" finds!
Did you really go to Nashville if you didn't take this pic?!
What are your go to spots in Nashville? I feel like you could visit every month for years and always find somewhere new and fantastic!
And I had a bunch of requests for links to my outfits from the trip... here's what I can share:
My white dress is from the Love Shack Fancy collection from Target a few years ago.
My colorful caftan is from Sara Joy.
My red lace blouse is from Tuckernuck.
My blue and white striped dress is from Banana Republic last year. This is the new version here.
My hot pink dress is about ten years old from Ted Baker that I stole from a friend.
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