Nashville Beyond Broadway: A 3-Day Itinerary for People Who Actually Like Music and Food

The Gulch location gets crowded by 9am on weekends. Their bonuts (biscuit donuts) and East Nasty biscuit sandwich are the move. Or skip the line and try The Butter Milk Ranch in East Nashville for equally good biscuits with no wait.

Do this during the day when the honky tonks are less crowded and you can hear the bands. Robert's Western World is the one venue locals agree on. Order a Recession Special ($6 fried bologna sandwich, PBR, and a Moon Pie). The live music starts at 11am and there is never a cover charge.

Worth it even if you are not a country music fan. The exhibits on the genre's roots in blues, gospel, and folk are genuinely interesting. The temporary exhibits rotate and can be excellent. Skip the Studio B add-on unless you are a serious music history person.

The 'What Lifts You' wings mural by Kelsey Montague is the most photographed spot in Nashville. Go early morning or late afternoon for good light and short lines. The Gulch also has some of the city's best boutique shopping.

Husk focuses on Southern ingredients with zero pretension. The cheeseburger at lunch is famous. The Catbird Seat is the counter-service tasting menu experience (32 seats, book weeks ahead, $145/person) that put Nashville on the culinary map. For something more casual, try Martin's Bar-B-Que Joint on 4th Avenue.

Robert's has real country and rockabilly music. Layla's (formerly a bluegrass bar) plays a mix of country and rock. Both are on Broadway but feel nothing like the rooftop party bars above them. Sit near the stage and tip the band directly.

The John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge offers the best skyline view of Nashville. Walk it in the morning when the light hits the AT&T building (locals call it the Batman Building).

Barista Parlor at the Germantown location is the most photogenic. Steadfast in East Nashville has better coffee if you care about the actual drink more than the aesthetics.

Five Points is the intersection of five streets that anchors East Nashville's creative scene. Vinyl Tap and Grimey's (a short drive) are the record shops. The Idea Hatchery and East Nashville vintage shops are worth a wander. This neighborhood has the best independent restaurant density in the city.

Prince's Hot Chicken invented Nashville hot chicken. The original location moved but the heat levels are real. Start at Medium unless you eat spicy food daily. Bolton's is the locals' second pick, less famous but equally punishing. Hattie B's is the tourist-friendly version with shorter waits and milder heat, but locals consider it a tier below.

Shelby Bottoms is a 960-acre nature area with walking and biking trails along the Cumberland River. It feels surprisingly wild for being minutes from downtown. The Nature Center is free and good for a quick stop.

Butcher & Bee for shareable Mediterranean-Southern plates, Peninsula for upscale Spanish, or Mas Tacos Por Favor for the best cheap tacos in the city. Then drinks at The Fox (dive bar with patio), Dino's (burgers and late-night energy), or Attaboy (cocktail bar, no menu, tell the bartender what you like).

Germantown Cafe has been here since before the neighborhood was trendy and the food reflects that, solid Southern brunch without the Instagram-bait presentation. Rolf and Daughters is the more polished option with handmade pastas and wood-fired bread.

Germantown is compact and walkable with a mix of pre-Civil War architecture and new builds. Marathon Village, a converted auto factory, has Nelson's Green Brier Distillery (free tours, $5 tastings), Corsair Distillery, and Batch Nashville. The area is a 10-minute walk from downtown.

12South is Nashville's walkable neighborhood strip with the I Believe in Nashville mural, Draper James (Reese Witherspoon's boutique), White's Mercantile, and Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams. It is touristy but less aggressively so than Broadway. The strip is short, about 6 blocks.

The Frist is Nashville's best art museum, housed in a gorgeous Art Deco former post office. Exhibitions rotate every 6-8 weeks. The Johnny Cash Museum downtown is small but excellent, with one of the largest collections of Cash memorabilia in the world.

The Bluebird is a 90-seat venue in a strip mall that launched the careers of Garth Brooks, Taylor Swift, and dozens of others. Songwriter rounds (where 3-4 writers take turns playing their songs) are the format to see. Book online at least 2-3 weeks in advance. This is a listening room. Talking during performances will get you shushed by staff and other guests.