Designed To Gather
The first Tennessee location of Earls Kitchen + Bar arrived at Nashville Yards this spring with all the polish and energy expected from a North American hospitality brand with 70 locations. But rather than importing a one-size-fits-all concept, the design team approached Nashville as something far more nuanced — a city balancing heritage and rapid […]
Vintage Treasure
Judith, a regular, grabs her perch at the front bar inside Golden Sound, the stylish, cocktail-slinging sister to Nashville’s member of the Sushi | Bar family. The food isn’t the main draw on this side of the historic Gulch space, necessarily, but the smashburger is a must, she says. It keeps Judith coming back, as […]
Gilded Arrival
Like many buildings finding a second—or third, or even fourth—act amid Nashville’s near-constant revitalization, Cummins Station began life in 1906 decidedly blue-collar: a railway warehouse and commercial hub serving the city’s trade and industry. Now, 120 years later, the historic structure has entered a far more bourgeois era as one of its newest tenants, Philippe […]
Aba Arrives
Aba, the Mediterranean restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants, is one of many new spots in Wedgewood-Houston that have opened in the past year. It’s the first restaurant in Tennessee for the Chicago-based restaurant group. Their second project in the state, Sushi-san, opened in the Gulch a few months later. “The innovative food scene in […]
Reimagining A Classic
John Burns Paterson grew up in his family’s restaurant in Montgomery, Alabama, and sometimes, with roots that deep, there’s no way to truly escape them. Hospitality is in his blood. While attending the College of Charleston Tourism and Hospitality Management, Paterson was also working at one of the South’s most revered fine dining establishments, now-closed […]
Refined Rebellion
Culinary Dropout, a modern restaurant concept from Arizona-based restaurateur Sam Fox and Fox Restaurant Concepts, recently opened in Franklin, showcasing live music, creative cocktails, and comfort food made from scratch. Marking Culinary Dropout’s 15th location nationwide, Franklin is the first outpost in Tennessee. It is the latest highlight of the hospitality group’s continued investment and […]
A Welcome Debut
Set inside the historic Boat House on Main Street, Perenn, an all-day bakery, rotisserie and grocery concept from husband-and-wife owners Aubrey and Tyler O’Laskey made its Tennessee debut in Franklin in May. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America and private cheffing and catering, the O’Laskeys opened their first Perenn in 2018 with a […]
Restoration & Reverence
When Brenda and Dan Cook bought the old West Nashville United Methodist Church, it didn’t inspire many design hosannas. Look heavenward inside the sanctuary: pockmarked, office-grade drop-ceiling tiles. Down: greasy red shag carpeting. But the Cooks felt prepared to change its tune, having successfully rehabbed a run-down Primitive Baptist Church into Ruby, another stylish boutique […]
Seeing Stars
At a ceremony in Greenville, S.C., on Nov. 3, 2025, the inaugural Michelin Guide for the American South debuted, covering Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. The 2025 guide also includes the pre-existing Atlanta restaurant selection as part of this first regional edition in North America. “The cuisine of the American South […]
A Dazzling Display
Famed floral designer Laura Dowling returns to Cheekwood for the second year in a row to create elaborate custom decorations inside the historic mansion as part of the estate’s annual Holiday Lights display, this time with a look inspired by visions of sugarplums, candy-colored hues and chestnuts roasting over an open fire. “I’m thrilled to […]