A few months ago I was getting some training at Ivey Portland, and our trainer mentioned he had recently been to Nashville. His client had taken him to a restaurant he highly recommended, but -- unfortunately -- he couldn't remember its name. He could only remember he sat at a big table where he was served "family style."
Quite by accident during my first day in Nashville I ran across a description of such a restaurant. I decided to try it out in hopes it was the same place. I'm betting it WAS the same place, and running into it as I did was sheer, dumb luck. It's not a tourist destination. I spoke with people who had lived in Nashville all their lives and had never heard of such a place.
The name of the restaurant is Monell's, and it was outstanding.
Monell's is a little bit north of downtown in a lovely neighborhood, Germantown. It's a historic district, and it's undergoing gentrification. I wouldn't mind living there if I lived in Nashville. The architecture is really nice, and there are a lot of small interesting businesses in the neighborhood. Plus, it's only a few blocks from the Farmers' Market.
I was seated at a table with a 65-year old (or so) woman from Alabama, her daughter who's a PhD student at Vanderbilt, and an older couple from Nashville who run a pet-sitting business. The table sat 12-people, but the restaurant wasn't so crowded the night I was there. There were probably four other tables of 4-6 people.
I can't begin to remember everything that was served at Monell's, but here's a start:
• "Sweet tea"
• Unsweetened iced tea
• Lemonade
• Green Salad
• Cole Slaw
• "Watergate Salad" (see below)
• Fried Chicken
• Baked Chicken
• Pork Chops
• Ham with red-eye gravy
• Mashed Potatoes
• Stuffing
• Corn pudding
• Green Beans
• Okra cooked with Celery and Tomatoes
• Stewed Tomatoes
• Butterscotch Bread Pudding
And more that I'm definitely forgetting.
But the kicker was the biscuits! Amazing biscuits! Unbelievably good biscuits! I've never had such good biscuits, nor did I know there were such heights of biscuitry. I may have to work on creating the perfect biscuit when I return to Seattle.
All of this food cost $12.99. It was all you can eat. Our server stopped by several times to see if we needed any bowls re-filled. Unbelievably outstanding food, good company, and a great price in a nice atmosphere. Really, I couldn't ask for much more!
The name, again, is Monell's, and here's another shot of it. It's in a typically-styled house for that neighborhood:
The next morning on my way out of town I stopped for breakfast at Loveless Cafe.
I ordered barbecue pork served with eggs (over easy). All breakfasts come with hash browns or grits (I chose grits) and two biscuits with an assortment of preserves and sorghum. I also discovered a corn cake underneath the barbecue pork. It was a great meal, but the biscuits weren't as good as Monell's biscuits. The peach preserves, however, were phenomenal. They had a gift shop next to the restaurant, and I'm now kicking myself for not buying some of their peach preserves!
Yes, it's a bit of a tourist trap, but it's an institution. The food was better than decent too.
I did, however, manage to buy a 14.85-lb country ham (needs no refrigeration) from Gatton Farms in Kentucky. I'm now lugging a ham around with me. Some of you might be treated to a ham dinner when I return from Seattle!
I drove from Nashville to my parents' house in Norman, Oklahoma. I was greeted at the front door...
...and I'll continue catching up tomorrow. If you want to read about Watergate Salad start here:
Yes, it was unspeakably odd for several reasons. Everyone else at the table knew what it was though. Is it a "Southern thang?"
2 comments:
I have never heard of Watergate Salad. "Well known dish"???? Amazing!
Nice looking front door. I'm so glad you were here, albeit brief. Come back anytime, sweetie.
Late post - like 6 days! I finally read the Watergate Salad recipe and LO! I used to make it once in awhile when we lived in Glen Ellyn and Bryan. I didn't even know it had a name! It IS good, though very 70's.
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