Germantown
Eat & Drink
312 Pizza
312 Pizza serves Chicago-style deep dish in the heart of Nashville, making almost everything from scratch daily including its homemade dough. Family owned and operated, 312 Pizza was born when its Chicago native owners realized they loved everything about living in Nashville EXCEPT for the pizza. They dusted off old family recipes, experimented until they found the perfect deep dish crust and rest is history.
Butchertown Hall
As a tribute to the neighborhood’s roots, Butchertown Hall serves dishes inspired by the butcher shops that once lined the area’s streets. The menu centers on a variety of smoked meats and barbeque, along with street-style tacos and veggie-based sides. Butchertown Hall also shines in its perfectly balanced mezcal cocktails and the gorgeous dining room, with its top-to-bottom white tile and stunning indoor landscaping.
Photos: @butchertownhall
City House
Though you might not expect one of Nashville’s finest restaurants to be known for its pizza, City House breaks the mold with its unique blend of Southern and Italian ingredients and anything-but-expected flavors. Think belly ham on a pizza or catfish in your sausage stew. These creative blends of flavors make for wonderfully complex dishes without being intimidating, and the warm atmosphere makes us feel right at home. That’s amore, y’all.
Rolf & Daughters
Located in a renovated factory, Rolf & Daughters is nationally celebrated for its adventurous small plates and made-from-scratch pasta dishes. Its constantly changing menu, exotic ingredients and industrial exposed brick make it undeniably cool and a must-visit for foodies. Our favorite way to visit is by spending a warm evening on the string-lit patio, people watching and splitting a spread with friends.
Monell’s
Monell’s is one of those restaurants you smell before you see it. Serving traditional Southern cuisine, it’s difficult to resist the aroma of skillet fried chicken, biscuits and mashed potatoes as you walk down 6th Avenue. In case the food isn’t enough to draw you in, Monell’s is located in a 1905 Victorian house with an adjacent garden, and everything is served family style, passed around a table filled with old and new friends.
Geist
Located in an old blacksmith’s shop, Geist is industrial on the outside and sophisticated on the inside, with moody lighting, velvet couches and upscale food and drink. One of the oldest buildings in city, Geist consists of a bar room, a dining room and an outdoor courtyard/garden. We love the ancient-yet-modern feel of this place and the way it perfectly captures the neighborhood’s historic roots.
Photos: @geistnashville
Henrietta Red
Half raw bar, half chic dining room, everything about Henrietta Red says "simple sophistication," from the Pinterest-worthy interior to the oysters flown in daily. The dining room serves small plates and entrees, while the first-come, first-served bar room has great cocktails, appetizers and the full raw bar. While we don’t expect Nashville to change its moniker to “Oyster City” anytime soon, Henrietta Red seriously boosts this landlocked state’s seafood scene.
Vui’s Kitchen
Vui’s Kitchen, run by the woman behind the popular Juice Bar chain, offers fresh Vietnamese food using recipes from the owner’s family kitchen. Rice and noodle bowls, pho, banh mi and other classic dishes are crafted using whole foods and real ingredients approved by Vui herself. Counter service and affordable prices make this a great anytime choice.
Photos: @vuiskitchen
Sips & Sweets
Tempered Cafe and Chocolate
Chocolate shop by day, absinthe bar by night, Tempered Cafe and Chocolate is one of those neighborhood gems you love showing off to friends and family. During the day, the cafe serves indulgent chocolate truffles (made in house) and breakfast and lunch dishes. But the fun really begins after hours when the green light comes on and the cafe is transformed into a Parisian-style absinthe bar, with traditional absinthe drips, cocktails and plenty of truffles to go around.
NoBaked
Everyone knows that unbaked cookie dough is at least 10x better than the cookies themselves...but whether fear of salmonella or pure laziness has kept you from indulging in this delicious dessert, NoBaked is here to bring dough to the masses. Set up like an ice cream shop, you choose your number of scoops, your cookie dough flavor and your toppings, and have the most fun dessert of your life.
Photos: @nobaked
Cupcake Collection
The Cupcake Collection offers homemade cupcakes, whipped up and served right out of the owner’s family home. The classic and daily rotating flavors include mouth-watering options like sweet potato, buttermint, campfire smores and key lime pie. You can’t miss the purple brick building that houses the bakery and the love in each sweet treat.
Red Bicycle
Nestled on a dreamy historic block in Germantown, Red Bicycle is one of those neighborhood coffee shops you go back to again and again. Serving coffee, crepes and sandwiches, this is the perfect spot for lunch, for your side hustle or to curl up with a book. Bonus points for the perfect sidewalk patio for people watching on pretty days.
Steadfast Coffee
This bright and breezy coffee shop, housed in a chic industrial complex on the edge of Germantown, serves creative coffee drinks such as flash chilled coffee, rested drinks and coffee soda. We love the way the space is built around the central counter and the stylish porch. Pro tip: if they have the lavender scones when you visit, don’t pass them up.
Photos: @steadfastcoffee
Shops & Pamper
Abednego
A boutique with a little something for everyone, Abednego features clothing for women, accessories and grooming products for men and fun goodies for home. The chic space is attractive and easy to browse, and customers love the perfectly curated selected of hand-picked items.
Photos: @abednegoboutique
Alexis + Bolt
Alexis + Bolt offers a new kind of shopping experience — one that makes you feel right at home. Located in an old house, the shop is furnished and designed like a home, with each room stocked with carefully selected goods. Think a full kitchen with cocktail mixes, pillows carefully placed on chic shelving and clothes hung throughout the space as if they were in your closet.
Poppy & Monroe
While there’s nothing like pampering yourself every once in a while, often the ingredients used in beauty products are very, well, unpretty. Poppy & Monroe is an all-natural salon offering nail, skincare and makeup services using only products that are good for your body. The space, located in a gorgeous row house from the 1830s, also has a large retail market with carefully selected makeup and beauty products that meet their strict toxicity standards.
Bits and Pieces
This vintage and antique shop features men’s and women’s vintage clothing and accessories, vinyl records and a wide assortment of antique goods and gifts. Snag some old Nashville memorabilia, a one-of-a-kind piece or a some new old threads.
Vetiver Modern Massage
Created to make self care more accessible in today’s busy world, Vetiver Modern Massage offers chair massage in addition to clothed table massages and 30-minute walk in sessions for those days where you just need a little extra TLC. Drawing from reflexology/reiki practices and using only organic massage products, Vetiver takes a holistic approach to massage while making it easy to integrate into daily life.
Photos: @vetivermassage
Go
Bicentennial Park
Located at the foot of Capitol Hill on the west side of downtown, Bicentennial Park is an urban park where visitors can literally walk through Tennessee's history with maps, memorials and native plants from all over the state. If history isn’t your thing, Bicentennial Park is still the perfect place for a picnic or stroll in the city, with beautiful views of the skyline and Capitol.
Nashville Farmers Market
Nashville’s largest and permanent farmers market can be found right in the heart of Germantown on the edge of Bicentennial Park. Browse the open air farm sheds to find fresh produce, dairy and homemade cheeses, jams, honey and baked treats, all sold by regional farmers and vendors. We also love the indoor market house featuring local restaurants and artisans year-round, and the attached garden center for when you decide to finally try to keep a houseplant alive.
Want more Germantown? Be sure to check out The Nashville Guide book for even more great spots to eat, drink and shop in Germantown!