I grew up in Nashville. There are 7 things I wish tourists knew before they visited.

Having great Southern food in Nashville is a must — you don’t want to miss the James Beard Award-winning meat and three (a plate typically filled with meat and three vegetables) at Arnold’s Country Kitchen.

Still, Nashville is pretty diverse and has restaurants with expertly prepared cuisines from around the globe.

Venture out to a Charlotte Pike strip mall for bubbling bowls of soundbar jjigae and steaming bibimbap at Korea House. Head east to try the stewed beef tibs on spongy injera at Gojo Ethiopian, or charred lamb shank at its Persian neighbor, House of Kabob.

You can’t miss the sweet and salty coconut custard at The Smiling Elephant, one of Nashville’s most beloved Thai spots, or the lengua tacos at La Juquilita.

Not only will these stops inspire your taste buds, but you’ll also get to see more of Nashville beyond the trendy boutiques and rowdy honky-tonks.

Venturing out of the main city area is a great idea, but the logistics can be tricky.

Public transportation has been a hot-button issue in Nashville for over a decade. There have been big plans, big debates, and big disappointments, especially when it comes to funding.

The city’s bright-purple WeGo bus system is limited, and although certain neighborhoods are walkable, the city is too spread out for bussing or walking to be effective ways to get everywhere.

Rideshares work for short trips, but I suggest you give yourself the freedom of renting a car so you can really explore.

Although driving in a city doesn’t sound ideal, Nashville’s drivers can be pretty patient and cautious (honking is a no-no). Plus, I’d say parking is never too hard to find.

Beyond that, you can use your car to see more of the area, which brings me to my next point …

Nashville is wonderful, but part of what makes it stand out is the access to the bucolic beauty of Tennessee’s countryside.

If you’re down for a longer road trip, spend a couple of hours heading from the city to the beautiful Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Or, stay more local — just a 20-minute drive down Hillsboro Road will take you to rolling hills studded with hay bales and horses. If aimlessly driving isn’t your thing, make Leiper’s Fork your final destination.

The historic village hosts a strip of antique stores and art galleries, but nothing beats sitting on a rocking chair outside of Puckett’s market with a glass of sweet tea and the smell of applewood smoke and pork wafting toward you.

Leiper’s Fork and the surrounding area have been home to famous musicians like Justin Timberlake, Chris Stapleton, and Brad Paisley.

Nashville, more broadly, hosts Dolly Parton, Nicole Kidman, and countless other stars.

Part of the appeal of Nashville — or at least what we like to tell ourselves is part of the appeal — is that we don’t disturb the city’s A-listers. It’s a point of pride for Nashvillians.

I’ve bumped into Taylor Swift at a cupcake shop and advised Steven Tyler on what brand of peanut butter he should get at Whole Foods (Justin’s, of course).

So, while you’re visiting, if you see Reese Witherspoon at her 12th South boutique or Blake Shelton checking on his Broadway bar, do your best to be polite.

Although there are plenty of delicious spots that boast a bang for your buck (many of which are named above), it’s worth spending a little extra to partake in Nashville’s star-studded food scene.

Visit Food Network star Maneet Chauhan’s Chauhan Ale and Masala House for takes on Indian classics like tandoori-chicken poutine. Eat at Adele’s, helmed by one of the pioneers of California cuisine, Jonathan Waxman.

Try homegrown favorites like Henrietta Red, which once earned chef Julia Sullivan the title of best new chef from Food & Wine, or Etch, where Nashville legend Deb Paquette combines flavors in original and mind-blowing ways.

Don’t miss the heritage pork ragu or pastured chicken with preserved lemon at James Beard-nominee Philip Krajeck’s Rolf & Daughters, either.

Plan ahead because reservations fill up quickly at most of these places.

There are plenty of ways to enjoy the great music Nashville has to offer.

You should certainly plan an evening hopping the honky-tonks of South Broadway (SoBro, if you want to sound local), which is filled with rowdy bars with sticky floors and bands belting out country-rock covers.

Maybe one of your favorite artists will be on tour at one of Nashville’s great outdoor venues like Ascend Amphitheater or FirstBank Amphitheater. Or maybe you want to see a show at a venue steeped in history like The Grand Ole Opry or The Ryman.

I like visiting smaller spots. The Bluebird Cafe is famous for the singer-songwriters who have come through it.

Station Inn is an old-school stalwart in the midst of the busy Gulch neighborhood. Basement East or The 5 Spot are East Nashville venues that are sure to show off local favorites, and Marathon Music Works and Exit/In are sure to offer unique experiences and rocking performances.

Wherever you go, be sure to tip well.

If there’s one thing that’s more synonymous with Nashville than music, it’s hot chicken.

Today, hot chicken pops up on menus across the city with all sorts of variations, but the dish has a long history in the Black community of Nashville. It also exemplifies a much greater issue in Southern foodways with white chefs taking credit for and profiting off of Black ingenuity.

Many believe the dish was created by the Prince family decades ago when local casanova Thorton Prince got in trouble with his partner for coming home too late. As a punishment, she supposedly added a bunch of hot pepper to his fried chicken — but it ended up being delicious.

Because of segregation in the city, both officially (until the mid-1960s) and unofficially since, hot chicken was a favorite in Nashville’s Black community for many decades but was widely unrecognized outside of it.

This has changed in the past decade or so, and André Prince Jeffries, queen of hot chicken and current owner of the original Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, has encouraged competition from other restaurants — but has suggested visitors remember the creators of the dish.

And I definitely think it’s worth making the trip to Prince’s to get the original hot chicken.

This story was originally published on November 15, 2024, and most recently updated on June 5, 2026.