Posted by Adam
If you’re wondering what Taste of Nashville was like, and you weren’t lucky winner Gabe who scored free tickets to the event, we wanted to give you a sense of the scene. Hosted at theCannery Ballroom attached to Mercy Lounge in downtown Nashville, visitors are first greeted by complimentary valet parking. Upon entering the main area, you’ll be greeted by several twenty-something yuppies, the majority of which would fit perfectly into the late night music crowd so commonly seen at the Mercy Lounge. These are exactly the type of people these restaurants are hoping to attract – young professionals with discretionary income to enjoy. These people know how to throw a party. Just know this isn’t a sit-down thing – you’ll scramble to find a table to lean on due to the hundreds of people who were there all evening. Bring your A-game for this social fluttering, which characterizes the evening, and has earned the event the nickname we heard from somewhere “the Steeplechase of the Fall.”
And then switch gears and focus on the food. Concentrate. There are a lot of options, and the obsessive-compulsive foodie can plan an avenue of attack that rivals some strategy guides to theme parks. Because we freely admit our addictions to fun food, it became an easy conversation starter with the bright-eyed staff of the attending establishments, that is, if you could carry on a conversation with the blaring band in the background. Choose wisely, don’t get bogged down with a full sandwich if you can avoid it, and watch for those single-bite specialties which are easy to snag. As we ate and observed and drank, it occurred to us to take some pictures and try and make it worth these charitable-venue’s while to be there. Several of these places opened up to a casual inquiry, and we can highlight some of the interesting gossip and knowledge we gained.
The hands-down winner for best food came from the GreenLight Market + Deli, which locates itself a few doors down from recently-honored Burger Up on 12th South. The two gents happily explained their philosophy on heirloom seeded tomatoes and local produce, and produced the coolest contraption of the evening. It was a smoked tomato bisque which, alone, would have been hard to resist, but also included a fun twist – they had us self-stir in a small helping of their local soft cheese (maybe a goat cheese, didn’t catch the specifics). This additional flair stole my heart, as the fresh power of local vine ripened tomatoes told my tastebuds I was in the right place. Foodie friends, I’m sure you’re familiar with the difference between a farmer’s market tomato and a run-of-the-mill store-bought version. Think of that difference when you imagine the flavor of this smoked bisque. Add on top of that the soft-cheese mellower that lets you feel a part of the process; the combination was fetching. Here’s a picture of our friends at Greenlight, who gave off a natural impression that they were enjoying themselves as much as I was. Another nice touch – they donate all unused orders to the Campus for Human Development.
A close second was Lime’s take on culinary bite-sized flair. Lime offered a banana mango shrimp ceviche – which had the foodie team making several returns. Shrimp on a chip doesn’t instinctively strike me as a winning combination, but this offering had strong inspiration behind it. The shrimp were lightly covered in the fruit topping, generating a quick-and-easy bite size accessibility which helped with the number of drinks we were carrying. I can’t say that I could distinquish the banana, but the mango and shrimp tag-team put this little chip near the top of the evening’s selections. Given Lime’s recent accolade of being a place in Nashville that makes you think you’re not in Nashville, this twist is an out-of-the-ordinary gemstone which speaks well of Lime’s adventures and creativity.
Lime, Virago, and Whiskey Kitchen tag-teamed it up for the evening, as they enjoy the same ownership, and all three establishments had steady traffic. We had the chance to talk with Ali, the General Manager of Virago – whose team put together a quickly-disappearing sushi roll that Emily and Wes continued to steal – and heard about their plans to change locations. Virago is in the process of moving nearer to Whiskey Kitchen on McGavock Street in the Gulch, and when completed, Virago will host the only Japanese style hardwood fire grill in Nashville (if I heard her right). A Robata Grill is what it’s called, and from the sound of it, it will replicate a century-old open-flame tradition that is native to Japan. The foodie team was intrigued, and in our constant quest to highlight unique cuisine in Nashville, this could prove to be a special addition to our foodie landscape. This move is a part of the M Street development that owner Chris Hyndman is orchestrating. We got a hint that we’ll be able to join them for their grand opening, so look for a later review of the new Virago.
Local Taco and La Paz tied in my book for third place, with Local Taco offering a thin-sliced Korean beef soft taco and La Paz pulling off excellent small-shell taco salads with guacamole and many other additions should someone be interested. The Local Taco, while lackluster upon opening, but seems to have improved in the last Groupon inspired visit, and continues to make good strides with their offerings here. La Paz is, of course, a new resident of the Elliston Ave location, and the foodie team learned about a common trend: skyrocketing rent in Green Hills. We heard that rent sits at around 30 grand per month for that location on the back side of the Green Hills Mall – so that’s why those meals cost so much at the old location! Our trip to the new location generated very positive vibes, and our sense of things is that La Paz is a good match for the Elliston cruiser.
Finally, some honorable mentions. Puckett’s Grocery and Restaurant offers made-from-scratch meals and is opening a new location downtown at 500 Church Street – on schedule for November 5th for you downtowners. We thought their barbecue was the strongest of the night, and we hope to hear more about their plans soon. They are a family-owned restaurant and there’s nothing worth supporting more in our books. And it would be totally wrong to fail to mention Noshville, our institution, which is always a reminder of how we do things right down here.
Others included The Standard at the Stockhouse, Melrose Pub, QponDay (local Groupon competitor) McDougal’s. And of course the open bar the whole evening.
Bravo to the organization team that put this fine event together. We hope it will continue to grow throughout the years… look forward to more foodie adventures!
