A Visitor's Guide to Nashville

Since I've lived in the Nashville area, the past few years, I get a lot of folks who ask for my recommendations on what to see, do,  and eat when they're in town.  I usually draft up a list off the top of my head, but my friend Krista made a list on her blog recently that inspired me to do the same!

Hattie B's

If you want a literal taste of Nashville...

• Eat HOT CHICKEN.  This is what Nashville is famous for, not BBQ or anything like that.  I haven't been to the original, Prince's Hot Chicken, but I really love Hattie B's.  Both serve varying levels of spiciness.  The west side location of Hattie B's has less of a line and free parking, if you want to avoid the crowds.  Because when it's about hot chicken, there are lines.  That said, it's on the menu at lots of local spots, and if it's classic then it's served with pickles on white bread.
• Eat Southern food.  Especially if it's not prevalent where you live.  Try one of the Puckett's locations for a sure bet, where you can often enjoy some live music too.  Two classics still on my list to try?  Monell's and Arnold's Country Kitchen.  For BBQ, hit up Edley's Bar-B-Que, in either of it's locations.  For fancy Southern, get a reservation for Husk, Sean Brock's SoBro spot.  Or try The Southern downtown.  And if you see a sign that says "Meat & Three", what that means is you pick one of the daily main "meats" or dishes, then pick three sides... or two, or whatever floats your boat.
• Eat brunch.  In the Gulch, try Biscuit Love Brunch and order their "bonuts", which are biscuit donuts.  Yes, they're as amazing as they sound.  The Copper Kettle has a great buffet of the beaten tourist path, or you can tuck in for the buffet in the heart of downtown at Kitchen Notes.  Or, venture into the country for the classic Loveless Cafe.  No matter where you go for brunch (except Kitchen Notes, which takes reservations), go early or be prepared to wait in LONG lines.  I still haven't made it to Marché Artisan Foods (or Margot, for that matter) for brunch in East Nashville.  Goals, people!
• Eat fancy.  For steak, Kayne Prime.  For sushi and fusion, Virago.  For Italian, Moto.  And they're all on the same street!  If you're craving an upscale, delicious cocktail, The Patterson House is an unmarked Prohibition-style spot that fills up fast, but its pricey mixed drinks are worthwhile!
• If you're craving some staples... get burgers at Burger Republic, pizza at DeSano Pizza Bakery, and people tell me Rosepepper Cantina is good for Mexican fusion.  Favorite food truck: The Grilled Cheeserie.  Asian food isn't Nashville's strong suit, but there are ramen places popping up so I hope that is the next trend!

If you feel like browsing, here's my blog rollup of Nashville food posts, or check out my reviews on Yelp!

The Parthenon

If you love museums...

• We love Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art.  There are always new exhibits passing through, including big outdoor installations.
• You can experience a bit of history at The Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson.  It's an impressive, well-preserved estate.  I went with my family and it was a good spot!
• Check out a replica of The Parthenon, with a small art museum, in Centennial Park.
• I hear the Frist Center for the Visual Arts is wonderful, so it's on my list for sure!

CMA Fest

If you love music...

• I could have listed The Country Music Hall of Fame as a museum, but it's part of the overall music experience.  It's pricey but very nice, and they have moved Hatch Show Print under the same roof which is another classic.  There's also now a Johnny Cash Museum downtown too.
• If you want to hear live music, there's TONS everywhere.  Just walk up and down Broadway!  I enjoy catching some music at Acme Feed & Seed.
• If you plan ahead, you can catch some great concerts.  Bridgestone Arena has tons (as well as hockey games for the Nashville Predators), but my favorite venue is Ryman Auditorium.  You can tour the Ryman when there aren't events.
• CMA Fest and other events also bring people to town, and if you don't mind the crowds, they're pretty fun!  I recommend buying tickets a year in advance though, because it's a big event for tourists and out-of-towners to come into the city.

In general, there are some great restaurants and boutiques in a few different neighborhoods in Nashville...  12 South, The Gulch, East Nashville, Germantown, and Hillsboro Village to name a few!  It's a town of many small enclaves and pockets, so you definitely have a lot to explore.  There are so many places, you could spend weeks here and not feel satisfied.  I've been here over three years, and there are still a ton of places we need to go!

And I haven't even touched on Franklin (where I live) or the surrounding areas yet...  I'll save that for another guide, another post.

What are your favorite places in Nashville?

Where would you most like to visit?

Wedding: Announcements and Thank You Notes

Last wedding post, you guys!  :)

Since we had such a small wedding, we wanted to send announcements out to folks who would want to know (you know, outside of it being Facebook official and stuff).  Basically we sent them to our Christmas card list, so we could make them a part of the celebration!  We used Shutterfly and I stacked discount codes to get a good deal.

I chose the Sparkling Union tri-fold card to share photos and a quick note about the ceremony.

For our Thank You cards, I used the Embellished Frames design and left the back side writeable for a custom note.  I tried to make them tie together with look/script fonts.  I really liked using photo cards to share our ceremony pictures.  The only downside to photo Thank You notes is that we received a bunch of gifts in advance of the ceremony, so it took us a few weeks to get photos and printed cards back.  That said, I was told that etiquette says I have a year after the wedding to write thank yous for the gifts (someone told me that, I swear!)...  so getting them out 4 weeks after the wedding isn't too bad, right?

Stitch Fix Review: 6th Fix

Disclosure:  I paid for my own Stitch Fix; all opinions are my own.  If you're interested in trying Stitch Fix, I'd love for you to use my referral link so I can get $25 towards my next Fix!

It's been a minute since my last Stitch Fix, but I'm back...  Here's what I got in my Fix, and my thoughts on each item.

This top wasn't love at first sight, but once I put it on I realized that with a cami, I kind of liked it for a contrasting weekend look.  I'm really into tops that have mixed patterns and "media" for visual interest, so I asked (and received) with this Fix.  I was on the fence about keeping this one, overall, and I thought it looked okay, and the price is a little high for a sleeveless knit top.

I wasn't in love with this top from the get-go either, but the fabric was so soft!  I really liked it once I put it on, and I wore it first out of all the items in the box.  It was great for a casual Friday at work.  I would have kept this top no matter what!  It was comfortable too for a road trip home that we took too.

You can't see the details on this scallop top very well, and I was on the fence because it felt a little dressy.  Then I realized that I liked having a dressier top that I could mix with a blazer for work and still have a little detail.  I was not a fan of the open back, until I realized that I could still wear a regular bra and have coverage.

This top was one of my favorites from the time the box opened!  It's like wearing pajamas, but with some visual interest like it's a layered piece.  I would buy this in all the colors because it suits my lifestyle pretty perfectly.  It wouldn't work that well in a more formal office, but it works for mine.  It is nice and loose too, but not in a sack-like way.  Looks better than the photos.

I found this jacket to be a little disappointing.  I wanted a blue denim jacket and loved the white one from a previous fix, so I requested blue.  This one isn't my favorite color denim wash, and the buttons are black instead of gold or silver toned.  Hrm.  It felt a little old lady to me at first with the lighter wash, but I love the fabric and fit so I think I need to lay it out with some outfits to see what works.

Why?  Because when I did the math, everything in this fix added up to $296, and when you factored in the styling fee and 25% discount for keeping everything, the total came to $202.  That means that sending back the jacket (and possibly the other top) wouldn't save me that much in my mind, and I got more value by keeping the items since I liked them all even if it wasn't immediate love.  If I don't wear the scallop top or jacket, I'll probably resell on Poshmark.  But for now I'm going to see how I can incorporate these into my outfits.  If I can't, they'll go.

My next Fix is coming in November, so stay tuned!  Did any of you get a Fix this month?

Disclosure:  I paid for my own Stitch Fix; all opinions are my own.  If you're interested in trying Stitch Fix, I'd love for you to use my referral link so I can get $25 towards my next Fix!