12 Best Food Trucks: NASHVILLE

April 02, 2016 by Amber Ford in Native in Nashville, Nashville, Where to eat, Nashville Food Scene, Favorites, Food trucks, Local, Lifestyle Blog, Foodie, Tips from a native, Nashville Blog

It all started with the ice cream man when I was a kid, and I've been hooked on food on wheels ever since! Luckily, I live in Nashville, where food trucks are taking over, and man oh man, are they delicious! I have teamed up with Virago's Executive Chef , Andrew Whitney, to bring you all a list of the 12 best food trucks in Nashville and his recommendations of what to get when you go!

Yayo's OMG !

Yayo's OMG! is mobile food truck run by Chef Yayo Jiménez, serving original Mexican gourmet food ! Their mission is to provide customers with the highest quality local ingredients & authentic Mexican flavor in every dish for a truly delicious experience!

What to order: Shrimp meximelt or Legend Tacos

Website: http://www.yayosomg.com/

Four and Twenty Blackbirds

Four & Twenty Blackbirds offers globally inspired comfort foods. From grilled cheese to Poutine, hand cut fries, delicious seasonal salads and classic sandwiches with a gourmet twist.

What to order: Poutine

Website not available. Follow them on Instagram @blackbirdfoodtruck

Hoss' Loaded Burgers

Hoss' Loaded Burgers is a gourmet burger food truck serving 100% grass-fed, local beef burgers stuffed with cheeses and topped with vegetables and homemade sauces. They also offer a vegan variation of every single burger on the menu.

What to order: The Jaw Dropper

Website: http://www.hossburgers.com/Welcome.html

Smoke Et Al

Smoke Et Al was voted one of the "15 Best Food Trucks in America". Chefs Shane Autrey and Steve Ford specialize in all things smoked, even the vegetables. They also have homemade dressings to serve with their salads.

What to order: Hot ribs. Wings.
Fried pickled okra with Alabama white sauce.

Website: http://www.smokeetal.com/

The Grilled Cheeserie

The Grilled Cheeserie Food Trucks, and soon to be Gourmet Melt Shop provides all different variations of gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches made with seasonally-inspired and local ingredients.

What to order: The B&B of Tennessee. Pimento mac and chee melt. The melt of the moment is always spot on and any of the desserts.

Website: http://www.thegrilledcheeserietruck.com/about/

Crepe A Diem

Crepe A Diem is a unique food truck serving French street food. Everything is made to order, from scratch, using quality local ingredients. Featuring both sweet and savory traditional crépes, sandwiches, and more! Be on the lookout for their bright red truck!

What to order: Hash browns. Lemon sugar crepe. The roast beef Baguette.

Website: http://www.crepeadiem.com/

Bao Down

Bao Down offers handcrafted local Chinese street food. They serve grass-fed, all natural meat and free range poultry, provided by Walnut Hills Farm in Bethpage, TN. Bao is a steamed bun that can have many fillings, savory or sweet.

What to order: Char siu Bao or Shu Mai

Website: http://www.baodownnashville.com/

Retro Sno

Nashville’s original shaved ice food truck. Retro Sno has brought back the snow cone with creativity. They mix all of their syrups by hand, using premium pure cane sugar. Their handcrafted syrups are poured over the fluffiest shaved ice and finished with fresh toppings or stuffed with all-natural ice cream!

What to order: Orange dreamsicle, raspberry wedding cake, and Rainbow.

Website: http://www.retrosnotruck.com/

Bare Naked Bagel

Bare Naked Bagel offers fresh New York Style bagels and bagel sandwiches made from local unprocessed ingredients.

What to order: The everything bagel turkey sandwich

Website: http://www.barenakedbagel.com/

Deg Thai

Deg Thai strives to provide the highest quality Thai-fusion meals in Nashville. It's Thai food with a twist!

What to order: Massaman curry, Thai tea, and
Spring rolls.

Website: http://m.degthai.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.degthai.com%2F&dm_redirected=true#2888

Bradley's Curbside Creamery

Look for Bradley's Curbside Creamery's pretty blue truck for some simple and delicious, slow-churned ice cream, a shake, or a float!

What to order: The White Trash Float

Website: http://bradleyscreamery.com/

Rolling Feast

Rolling Feast offers Southwestern-American food by Chef Tom Mead. They use all fresh, local ingredients and even bake their own sandwich buns from scratch, right on the truck. Be on the lookout for their bright red truck!

What to order: Sonoran Dog

Website: http://therollingfeast.com/

Executive Chef, Andrew Whitney PC:@ViragoNashville Instagram

If anyone around here knows about flavor and taste, it's Andrew Whitney. He has been named one of Nashville's top chefs. Andrew has accomplished his career goals by receiving his Chef’s training at the Le Cordon Bleu in Atlanta, Georgia. He, previously, was the Executive Chef for another local Nashville food truck turned Brick and Mortar, Riff’s Fine Street Food. He is now the Executive Chef of the award winning Asian fusion restaurant, Virago. His newest menu contributions are heavily influenced by the season, created with respect for regional traditions, as well as the Asian culture.

You can't go wrong ordering any of these items Andrew suggested from any of the food trucks on the list. I can assure you, all of these are worth hunting down. Most of them cater, as well. To find out where each of these food trucks may be each day, I recommend that you follow them on Instagram or check out their websites. You can also checkout Roaming Hunger's website for an interactive map or Nashville Food Truck Association.

http://roaminghunger.com/bna/

http://foodtrucksnash.org/

I really appreciate Andrew teaming up with me on this one, and your taste buds will too! I hope you all enjoy, and thanks, as always, for reading about my most favorite topic- FOOD!

XOXO- Amber

Instagram: @NativeInNashville

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NativeInNashville/

Twitter: @NativeInNash

#PatioWeather: 18 of the Best Patios in Nashville

March 11, 2016 by Amber Ford in Native in Nashville, Broadway, Nashville lifestyle blog, Where to eat, Best patios Nashville, Best Patios and Rooftops, Downtown, Local, Nashville, Favorites, The Gulch, East Nashville, 12 South, Where to hang, Things to do, Lifestyle blog

With daylight savings time & warmer, sunnier days ahead, I figured putting together a list of some of the best patios & rooftops in Nashville might be a good idea !! Grab some friends & go enjoy some live music, great food & ice cold drinks in the best city there is to do it in!!

ACME Feed & Seed Rooftop Patio

ACME has some of the best views there are in Nashville!! Located downtown, you are overlooking the Cumberland River, Nissan Stadium and the Pedestrian & Korean Veteran's Blvd bridges and also can see all the way down Broadway. It's the perfect place to pre-game before Titans games or just plain awesome for any sunny day! They also have a live DJ which makes for a fun time!

BarTaco

Bar Taco, located in 12 South, is the newest stylish Mexican spot serving serving classic & creative tacos. Casual atmosphere and great place to go with a group !! Their food is amazing !!

Taco Mamacita

Taco Mamacita's is located in Edgehill Village. Another great Mexican restaurant with inventive tacos and enchiladas! This is also a great place to go with a group! I spent my last birthday there with 25 of my closest friends! Great atmosphere !!

Tootsie's Orchid Lounge Rooftop

Tootsie's is one of the oldest and most famous Honky Tonks downtown Nashville has to offer. Located on Broadway, the newest addition to Tootsie's is their rooftop bar with up close views of the "Batman building", Bridgestone Arena and birds eye view of Broadway. It's the perfect place to people watch and listen to some great live music!

Virago Rooftop Patio

Virago has one of my most favorite ambiance's Nashville has to offer. Located in the Gulch you can enjoy some sake,delicious sushi and Nashville's beautiful skyline. The music, atmosphere and view is amazing. What more can you ask for.

Rippy's Rooftop Patio

Another one of Nashville's most popular Honky Tonks on Broadway is Rippy's. You are sure to find a big crowd, live music and amazing BBQ! It's directly across the street from Bridgestone Arena and is a great place to go to pre-game before a Pred's game!

Saint Añejo

Located in the Gulch, Saint Anejo is an upscale Mexican restaurant with a "cantina chic" atmosphere. The outdoor patio is the perfect place to enjoy one of their signature margaritas or some of their delicious queso or freshly made guacamole.

Tavern

Tavern is located in Midtown. It's a sleek gastropub serving retro cocktails, small plates and tacos. I also HIGHLY recommend their s'mores !! Seriously to die for. I actually want some right now!

Rebar

Located in Midtown, Rebar has always been one of my favorite places to go out to in Nashville. It's a very chill atmosphere and always a good time. Make sure to grab a bushwacker, theirs are the best I've had in town.

Blue Moon Waterfront Grille

Blue Moon Waterfront Grille is one of my most favorite places to go in Nashville. It's located on the Cumberland River at Rock Harbor Marina. It's the perfect little escape and they have delicious seafood. Makes you want to listen to some Otis Redding. They will be re-opening in mid-March and I hear may be bringing out some live music right being played right on the water. If you have never been, do yourself a favor & check it out.

San Antonio Taco Co.

San Antonio Taco Co. is located near Vanderbilt. This Tex-Mex style restaurant is known for their homemade tortillas, award winning Chili Con Queso and awesome patio!!

Bar Louie

You can find Bar Louie in the Gulch! They also have a great patio at their Murfreesboro location but the Nashville location is my favorite! It's a great place to "eat, drink and be happy." I love their relaxed atmosphere and location! Parking is easy so that's always a plus!

5th & Taylor

5th and Taylor in historic Germantown has a rustic-industrial modern feel. Their patio is beautiful, especially at night & has more of a neighborhood feel. It's very spacious which is good for anyone who doesn't like to be crowded. I love the Germantown area and this restaurant is amazing !!

M.L. Rose Craft Beer & Burgers

M.L. Rose has two locations one on Franklin Road and the other is off of Charlotte Pike ! They are known for their wide selection of craft beers and have the best burgers! Both offer awesome patios but I think my favorite is going to be the one on Franklin rd. They just expanded it and upgraded it like crazy !! It is going to be such a pretty, fun and chill place to hang out !!

Jackson's

Located in Hillsboro Village, Jackson's patio is another one of my favorite patios to hang out on. It's also great for people watching and don't be surprised if you see Taylor Swift or the entire cast of "Nashville" walking by.

The Treehouse

The Treehouse is a very unique & creative restaurant located in East Nashville. It's a very charming place and somewhat romantic! If you are in the area be sure to check it out.

Pinewood Social

Pinewood Social is located downtown and down by the river. They offer bowling , food, cocktails and their outdoor patio even has a pool and bocce ball! It's a social gathering place that can accommodate just about anyone's needs!

Tennessee Brew Works Taproom

TN Brew Works is a brewery but they also have the Tennessee Taproom which has live music, food and pints, samplers and even growlers of their brews !! Awesome patio and great set up!

I hope you all enjoy and as always thank you for reading !! XOXO- Amber

Murals You Don't Want to Miss: NASHVILLE

February 28, 2016 by Amber Ford in Wall art, Nashville lifestyle blog, Nashville Blog, Murals, Nashville, east Nashville, Mural locations, Art

I never have a free day, where I don't have any plans or something I absolutely have to do. I finally had one so my best friend Jennifer Cody (who also happens to be a fabulous photographer) and I decided to go exploring around Nashville to find the best murals we could find. Some of these you have probably seen before (if not in person, definitely on social media.) I'm almost embarrassed to say that I waited in line to take a picture in front of one in particular but it's seriously a "thing" here. You can't live in Nashville & not have your picture made with the "I believe in Nashville" mural at least once. You can't come here as a visitor and not take a picture with it either. I am not ashamed to say I have at least 10 pictures with said mural. You can never have enough! I want to share with y'all some of the great places I found today! They definitely make for some great pictures. I will probably end up with another post some day in the near future because we were mural hunting, literally until the sun went down. There definitely are never enough hours in the day but this is a great list of must see and must experience beautiful artwork around town. Luckily my best friend is a photographer so we decided to turn the hunt into a photo shoot ! I decided to actually do my makeup on a Sunday, which is not a normal thing & just so happened to have the perfect shirt for it from The Nashville Shirt Co. It says "Native" how convenient, right ?

I will start with one of my most favorite new walls. This is on the side of Draper James which is Reese Witherspoon's new boutique located in 12 South. It is a lovely Southern boutique. To the left of these stripes it reads "Pretty as a picture." Looking at it just makes you feel good. Thanks Reese :)

The wall directly across from Draper James is one of the many "I Believe in Nashville" murals around town. If you go, be prepared for a complete stranger to hand you their phone so you can take their picture for them too. This is a Nashville favorite by Adrien Saporiti of DCVX Industries.

The next place I want to take you guys is right down the street, still in 12 South, the wall on the right side of Green Pea Salon. This wall is covered in beautiful flowers and makes for some beautiful colorful photographs!!

Directly across from this beautiful flower painting is not necessarily a mural but to me its a really cool wall, especially for photos. As you can see below we really had fun taking them here. We must have taken a hundred.

Yall my be sick of my face by the time this is over, whoops. The next place I want to tell you guys about was my absolute most FAVORITE place we went to. It was like finding a hidden treasure and I have NO idea how the heck I have never seen this amazing place before today. I am about to share probably 20 pictures from there. Sorry in advance. There wasn't just one piece of wall art, there were several. Even the fences were painted. I'm SO excited to share. This is in Berry Hill at the House of Blues Studios. I had no idea we even had that here, but I guess you learn something new every day. Some of these are iPhone photos, so don't judge me.

Y'all know I had to take a picture with Snoop !

If you pull out of the street this is on and head towards Wedgewood you will see this ! I loved this one because it's painted as a cassette tape, gotta love anything old school. Kids these days will never know the struggle.

I couldn't resist heading downtown off of Korean Veterans Bridge on Almond Street to see the Willie Nelson wall!

The last 2 murals I want to show you all are both in East Nashville and about 45 seconds apart (driving) We got a little lost so it took us more like 15 minutes but that's ok, they were both awesome! The first one actually says "East Nashville" and is by : @ColorTheoryStudios.

This last one is also by Adrien of DCXV Industries and names "Stay Tuned". This is at the Center 615 Building.

I have lived here my entire life and it's crazy the things you can see if you actually just open your eyes. Pay attention to something other than your phone for a change ( don't worry I'm guilty too) and really take the time to go enjoy the beauty that is all around you. If you know of any other great wall art in Nashville please share with me so I can share with others !! I never knew how much I would enjoy blogging or how much work it would be but I really do love it! I sincerely appreciate everyone who has reached out to me about my new blog and it means a lot to me to know people actually enjoy reading it. Be sure to follow me on Instagram at @NativeInNashville and Jennifer Cody at @JenniferCodyWeddings. I hope you enjoy this one, we had lots of fun with it & thank you for reading ! XOXO - Amber

If you would like to book Jennifer Cody for photographs you can contact her by visiting her website at http://www.jennifercody.space/ she specializes in weddings, engagements & boudoir and adventure photography :) (shameless plug) you'll love her !

What's On My Plate: Cork & Cow

February 15, 2016 by Amber Ford in Lifestyle blog, Food Critic, Nashville Blog

Hello again, it's me. It Is time to discuss my most favorite subject: food. I told you guys I am an avid taker of food pictures and to know me is to know I have an opinion, about any and let's just admit it, everything. I hope I can even write this while the Grammy awards are on in the background and all these opinions are going through my head, but I'm gonna give it my best shot.

Tonight I want to discuss my dining experience at Cork & Cow, located at 408 Main Street, in Downtown Franklin, Tn. Franklin is a 25 minute drive from Nashville headed South. If you have never been Downtown Franklin, you are missing out and my advice to you, go check it out. You will not be sorry you did. I can assure you will have a good time, even if you are just walking around. There are several really great paces to eat, but I especially loved Cork & Cow.

First let's talk about this presentation and the ambiance in there. It's almost dreamy, especially in the evening. With chandeliers, elegant white table cloths, dim lighting and my most favorite Edison lights hanging over the very well put together bar.

We started by ordering a Moscow Mule and a "Sugarbear". The Sugarbear was delicious an made of Picker's Vodka, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, rubar, bitters and soda. My favorite part about it was that it was not too sweet, and definitely not as sweet as it sounds. I'm not a Moscow Mule person, but apparently they have one of the best around. Next we got an order of fluffy bread, served in a small cast iron skillet that was very buttery and delicious as well as an order of one of my most favorite things I ate, the grilled lamb chops. The grilled lamb chops were served with Mint Pepper Jelly, Chimichurri, Fried Onion and let me tell you that mint pepper jelly sounded strange to me at first but when I tasted it, it made complete sense. Make sure you dip your lamb chops in it. SO perfect together. The next item that came out was the entrée, dry rub New York Strip. This steak was 14 ounces and topped with lemon butter & sea salt, served with complimentary house potatoes. I didn't realize when I ordered, that the potatoes came with it, and they were a very nice addition to the meal. Another one of my favorite parts of dinner. The steak was excellent and if you order appetizers and sides, you have more than enough steak to share. I am normally a filet person when I go to nice restaurants, but this was a nice change. For the sides, we chose the "Mac n Cheese" with applewood bacon and chilies mixed within as well as the sautéed spinach with grated parmesan. And let me tell you, it may have been the best macaroni and cheese I've ever had at a restaurant in my whole life. I am not sure I would order the spinach again, I would probably order an extra order of the mac n cheese again, ha. The spinach was good but I like calories and carbs a whole lot more. The sides are a la carte and the perfect size for sharing. They had a great dessert selection, but by the time I was finished with all of this I couldn't even dream of eating dessert, and I NEVER turn down dessert. SO FULL.

The food was very filling and I give it 5 stars!! I will definitely be back. If you go, I recommend sitting upstairs if they have it available. It's nice being able to enjoy seeing the beautiful décor from up there. Thank you all for reading. I hope if you go you enjoy it as much as I did. It's perfect for a date night or a special occasion. Be sure to check out my photos below. You can see their entire menu by clicking this link: http://corkandcow.com/menus . XOXO-Amber