Roadfood in Nashville

Eating like a local:
Regional food specialties 
- Passing thru the Music City  

We stopped in Nashville for the night on our drive down to Florida this past December and I got to check out a handful of spots on our overnight stay. I hadn't been to the Music City in almost ten years so I went with a pretty big list of places I wanted to try but we would only be there for about 18 hours so I only got to four of them - the first stop is from a drive back from Florida a few years back. 

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Loveless Cafe

The Loveless Cafe might be Nashville's most well known restaurant and it's busiest restaurant by extension. Impressive considering it's about 30 minutes outside of the city center. They get a ton of roadtrippers even though it is a bit of a detour. But I was able to stop in for breakfast one morning when I was driving back to Chicago thru Alabama with my buddy. We didn't want to delay our return too much so we ordered to go as it was packed and there was a little bit of a wait for one of the 150 seats on site. This Tennessee landmark gets more than 500,000 visitors per year but that accounts for all the businesses on site including the motel and gift shops. It's story started in 1951 when Lon and Anne Loveless purchased an old tea room on Highway 100 and renamed it the Loveless Motel and Cafe. They originally served fried chicken at picnic tables on their front porch but they would eventually convert rooms in the house to accommodate a bigger menu and a need for more dining space. The menu is a collection of made from scratch southern favorites and as time has gone by the Loveless Cafe has become famous for their biscuits. Pictures of the famous adorn the walls, many of them with personal messages mentioning the biscuits. We still had an eight hour drive ahead of us so I stocked up on biscuits and they are indeed delicious. I scarfed down a trio of biscuit sandwiches on site including a ham and cheese, fried chicken and cheese and a fried green tomato with pimento cheese and saved some biscuits with jam for later on in the drive. I thought it was worth the pit stop for these especially if you order them ahead of arrival and skip the inevitable wait to sit-down. 

Biscuit Sandwiches at Loveless Cafe 
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SS Gai

Asian food is having a moment not just in Nashville but the rest of the south too. Quite a few of the restaurants on my Nashville “to try” list were Asian and SS Gai would be the first of the two I got to try. It’s located at The Wash which is a culinary incubator made up of multiple micro-restaurants testing out their concepts before making the leap to a permanent brick and mortar. Dare I say the Gai Tod (Thai Fried Chicken) at SS Gai is some of the best fried chicken in the south? 100% YES! Absolute best is debatable but this is every bit as satisfying as some of the well known old school spots. As they say it’s “fried chicken that hits a little by different” which is the perfect way to describe the Southern Thai fried chicken I first had at Soi Polo in Bangkok - one of those meals I’ll never forget. SS Gai hits the same high notes as far as skin as crisp as a potato chip made extra crunchy by topping it with a ton of fried shallots while the meat is extremely moist and full of flavor. It’s served with sticky rice, fried shallots, garlic, tamarind chili fish sauce, aromatic chili vinegar, and herbs and veggies like lettuce, cabbage, jalapeño, mint, cilantro, and red onions making it an absolute feast. I wish I had room for the Gai Yang (Thai grilled chicken), but after the Gai Tod and a wholesome curry made of roasted Japanese sweet potato with charred cabbage in a homemade green curry, I was stuffed.

Gai Tod at SS Gai
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Arnold's Country Kitchen

What a wonderful surprise it was to have learned Arnold’s Country Kitchen was back open in Nashville. I wasn’t aware this old favorite had returned until the week before we hit the road and it doesn’t seem to have skipped a beat. Arnold's Country Kitchen was founded in 1982 by Jack and Rose Arnold. This locals favorite for made from scratch southern food in "Meat and Three" form is setup like a cafeteria. Diners line up to choose their entree (meat) and which three sides they want to go with it (three).  I first came here back in 2012 and very much loved my visit - it’s a first ballot Roadfood Hall of Famer for sure. The roast beef is still cooked to a beautiful bloody rare and sliced to order and all the sides are equally outstanding. Arnold's Country Kitchen is must stop lunch spot. 

Meta and Three at Arnold's Country Kitchen
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Noko

I was able to secure a last minute dinner reservation at Noko - albeit an outside one in the middle of winter though it wasn’t that cold and they had heat lamps at every table. Noko is the highest rated restaurant in town by Infatuation with a 9.6 score. I liked what I saw and read - “Noko is our surest, most set-it-and-forget-it dinner recommendation we can make in Nashville. They serve ridiculously good Japanese wood-fired plates and crudos that have never let us or anybody we know down.” Unfortunately our meal was a bit of a letdown. I had high hopes for Noko which started with an absolute bang in the form of the “Burnt Ends Lettuce Wraps" made with smoked bits of beef belly with a spiced honey glaze served with carrots and bibb lettuce. This was one of the best things I’ve eaten all year but the rest of the meal wasn’t as exciting. Crispy Tuna Rice was good as was a bowl of Nori dusted fresh cut fries but the crab fried rice was a miss. It might as well have been microwaved as there wasn’t much flavor to it. I forget what the market catch was but it wasn’t anything to blog about. Would I go back? Yes but I might just make a complete meal out of two orders of beef burnt ends.

Dinner at Noko
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Dino's Bar

Nashville was a very different place when I first visited back in 2012. It wasn’t nearly as hyped up as it is today. I remember checking out what was a relatively unknown dive bar called Dino’s that served a great burger and I decided I would pay a return visit to the East Nashville dive bar that was later visited by Anthony Bourdain. From what I remembered they served a really good bare bones burger at a very fair price but that wasn’t the case on my return visit. It’s still a fair price at under $10 each but the bun was cold and the patty was a bit too compact making it a very average bar burger that was nothing like what I had remembered it to be. Oh well you can’t win them all. Until next time!

Cheeseburger at Dino's Bar
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See ya next time @chibbqking

Cold Noodles in Chicago

-Grubbing in Chicago
Five of a Kind: Cold Noodles

If you’ve seen the weather report for this week you know it’s going to be a hot one. Every News Channel meteorologist in town is going to end their weather segment by telling you to stay cool and I’m going to show you how do that when it comes to eating. Cold noodles have become one of my favorite things to eat during a heatwave. According to a little bit of digging I did cold noodles first became a thing during the Tang Dynasty around 700 AD. So the story goes there was an empress who liked eating noodles with her lover but she would sometimes burn her tongue due to them being so hot. So she requested cold noodles and today they’ve expanded into many different types. They’re particularly popular in China’s Sichuan Province which is known for its high humidity in summer. What I love about a batch of cold noodles is they’re much more filling than a salad but equally refreshing. Let’s take a look at five different versions I’ve tried around Chicagoland going back to last summer. 

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Moon Palace Express (Chinatown)

Our first stop is fittingly in Chinatown - where there’s an abundance of cold noodle creations to be had. My favorite in the area are found at Moon Palace Express which is a takeout operation connected to Nine Bar which I previously featured HERE. Nine Bar replaced the dining room of the 50+ year old Moon Palace but they kept a portion of the menu and offer it for takeout. I love the Shanghai Cold Noodles made with thick and chewy wheat noodles tossed in a spicy peanut and sesame sauce. At just $8 an order it’s one of the cheapest and most satisfying meals in Chinatown.

Shanghai Cold Noodles at Moon Palace Express
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Central East Asian Cuisine (Chinatown)

Next we make our way down Wentworth to the only Central Asian restaurant in Chinatown right now. Central East Asian Cuisine opened a year and a half ago and in case you missed it I did a report earlier this year on the sudden surge of Central Asian restaurants opening in the Chicagoland area. Central East Asian Cuisine is definitely one you want to check out, especially if you like charcoal grilled skewers of lamb and the savory baked pastry known as Samsa (made with lamb and onions). They also serve up a popular form of cold noodles called Shihezi Cold Noodles. They feature a spicy and tangy flavor profile and are sometimes called LiangPi but the exact description can vary, it’s generally understood as a type of cold noodle dish with ingredients and flavors common to the Xinjiang region of China (Shihezi is a city in Northern Xinjiang, China). The defining feature of this dish is the noodles are made from a dough that is rinsed to separate the starch from the gluten. The starch is then used to make the noodles, which are steamed or boiled and served chilled. The version at Central East Asian Cuisine has a ton of sliced cucumbers, plus and minimal heat but it still hit the spot on a hot night. That said I’m still searching for a version as good as I had in Milan of all places.  

Shihezi Cold Noodles at Central East Asian Cuisine
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Chengdu Bistro (Wicker Park)

Let's head to Wicker Park where Chengdu Bistro serves up an excellent version of Sichuan Cold Noodles - Chili oil sauce, Sichuan peppercorn, scallions, and sesame are tossed with chewy noodles at one of my most visited restaurants in town. I often order from here when I don’t know what else I want to eat as I can always eat noodles and or dumplings. These are by far the spiciest batch of this bunch due to the abundant use of Sichuan peppercorns. Click HERE for my complete report.

Sichuan Cold Noodles at Chengdu Bistro
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Lao Peng You (Ukrainian Village)

Next stop is Lao Peng You in Ukrainian Village where just about everything is good including the cold noodles. The brothers behind this place are cooking up family recipes tracing back to their grandma but so I was told the cold noodles are a creation of the brothers themselves. They mix soy sauce, peanuts, carrot, cucumber, turnip, celery, bean sprouts, cilantro, and chili oil tossed with their chewy house noodles. I almost always get the pork and dill dumplings which are served in soup but sometimes it’s too hot for that and the cold noodles make for a great substitute. Full report HERE. 

Cold Noodles at Lao Peng You
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S.Y Chef (Lisle)

Last stop takes us out to Lisle where The Morton Arboretum resides. We needed something to eat after waking around there last summer and I found the perfect spot in S.Y. Chef. Their menu listed “Colorful Wide Cold Noodles” which caught my eye as that’s a dish I had previously enjoyed at a long gone place called Homestyle Taste which was on Halsted in Bridgeport. Cold wide rice noodles are mixed with a delicious peanut and sesame sauce and tossed with a ton of cucumbers and such at this spot just five minutes north of the Morton Arboretum and for those wondering, yes, there is a connection to the old Homestyle Taste in Bridgeport. They make very good fried dumplings here too. 

Colorful Wide Cold Noodles at S.Y Chef
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See ya next time @chibbqking

Ora Sushi

-Grubbing in Chicago  
BYOB Sushi in Andersonville

You know for someone whose diet is as diverse as mine I don’t eat as much sushi as others seem to do. There’s a couple reasons for this - 1) it’s an expensive habit, especially omakase 2) to me sushi is a warm weather food meaning I crave it when it’s hot outside. I do eat sushi but mostly during the warmer summer months like right now. Lots of couples I know have their own “sushi spot” they go to when they want some nigiri and or rolls but we did not until earlier this summer. During the first heat wave of the year we decided we wanted sushi and I made the call to check a spot long on my list thanks to some tips from people I know that eat lots of sushi. Enter Ora Sushi in Andersonville.  

Locals Favorite in Andersonville

Ora is stationed on the corner of Clark and Hollywood. I was tipped off by a friend in the food world who eats lots of sushi at different price-points and Ora is one of his favorite places in town. He’s also a big wine guy and lives north and Ora is BYOB and located further north so those two factors play a role in his love for Ora but first and foremost is the sushi. First thing I liked when peeping Ora’s menu was it’s tight - meaning it's not over the place. It’s a single page with no more than 20 options listed among appetizers, nigiri, and rolls. I avoid sushi spots that get packed with groups due to the fact they’re cheap and have other stuff, choosing to leave those places to recent college grads in need of a spot to celebrate a group birthday or the likes. Ora is more personal than those places as it’s fairly small and only open for dinner so no lunch deals, no ramen or Thai food, or any of that other stuff. 

Crispy Tuna Rice

Ora is all about the sushi and it’s offered at a fair price-point. For ex. the crispy tuna rice is only $10 and it’s as good as any others I’ve tried, then again tuna crispy rice is always pretty good. The version at Ora is a bit smaller than others but it’s got a delicious relish made up of finely diced tomatoes, onion, and kimchi radish. We always start with that before moving onto our favorite thing on the menu - Beni Toro aka seared salmon belly. It’s a piece of seared Scottish salmon belly resting atop a small ball of rice but it’s truly one of my favorite bites in town this time of the year. The salmon just melts in your mouth. The searing of it really brings out the flavor. It’s so good we always get a second round. 

Beni Toro at Ora

After that we always get two or three rolls of “Makimono” which is a Japanese term that can refer to sushi rolls or, more broadly, rolled items. I know that some sushi purists frown upon these but some spots do them better than others and Ora would be one of those spots. We’ve gone thru all the rolls we want to try and they’re all good but there’s one that really stands out. The Hotate Volcano roll is made up of Cajun bay scallops over shrimp tempura, cucumber, scallions, lemon, sweet soy, crisp scallions. It’s a terrific combination of flavors with the crisp burnt scallions really bringing it all together. This is my favorite roll in town right now and another one of my favorite bites during these dog days of summer. 

Hotate Volcano Roll at Ora Sushi
(cajun bay scallops, shrimp tempura, cucumber, scallions, lemon, sweet soy, crisp scallions)


Wasabi Tail at Ora Sushi

(fresh yellowtail, chopped yellowtail, avocado, cucumber, bacon salsa, scallion vinaigrette) 


Sake Tataki at Ora Sushi
(seared salmon, softshell crab, cucumber, avocado, onion soy vinaigrette, sweet soy)

Ora Sushi
5701 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60660
(773) 754-8750

Zarella Pizzeria & Taverna

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Tavern Style Pizza in River North

Chicago's pizza scene continues to reach new heights with each passing day. I’m not sure if it’s passed New York City in terms of impact but I don’t think there’s any debate that Chicago truly is Americas second city when it comes to pizza - the options have never been better than they are right now. This is thanks in part to the city’s hottest restaurant at the moment - Zarella Pizzeria and Taverna in River North. The setting is the corner of Grand and Wells in the former home of GT Fish & Oyster which was also a Boka spot. You know tavern thin pizza is having a moment when one of Chicago's biggest and best restaurant groups decides to get in on the action. Zarella Pizzeria is a product of the Boka Restaurant Group led by Kevin Boehm who along with his business partner, Rob Katz, operates 26 restaurants in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City. Their namesake restaurant (Boka) has been awarded a Michelin star 13 straight years. Kevin and his team also won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur in America back in 2018. They opened Zarella in March and it’s been bumping ever since. We first visited near the end of May and have been back twice since then.

Recently Opened in River North

On my first visit I was with my wife who doesn’t like eating meat right now so I didn’t get to try the sausage on first crack which is what I usually get at Chicago based pizzerias. But it all worked out because I wouldn’t know how good the pickled peppers were had we not gotten a pizza with those and some onions on our first visit. I knew I liked this pizza as soon as I picked up my first square. It was super thin and extra crisp with no limp and the bottom of the pizza was a bit bumpy thanks to a cornmeal crust. I could also tell that it wasn’t over sauced just by looking at it. Then I took a bite and it reminded me of Wells Brothers up in Racine Wisconsin (my favorite pizza anywhere). I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what type of peppers they're using but they’re chopped and all sorts of zippy.

Pickled Peppers and Onion Pizza

For starters we got the Gigante Beans with Calabrian peppers, lemon, fennel pollen. No complaints on those but it's not something I would say you must get though I liked the addition of the Calabrian peppers. The fried zucchini seems to be the most popular dish aside from the pizza but we both wanted calamari so that was an easy choice. It was a tad bit salty but included tentacles which is a must for me. It's probably some of the better calamari in town, when salted properly. They serve a trio of desserts including coconut soft serve which sounded pretty good but she wanted to try the brown butter cake with pineapple and lime cool whip which was a satisfying way to end a pleasurable meal. 

Gigante Beans

Calamari


Brown Butter Cake

I wasn’t going to write this review without trying the sausage which I recently did when I learned they were now doing pickups. I placed an order over the phone and it was ready within 20 minutes though they do put a hold on pickups when it gets too busy. I made sure I was there when my pizza was ready but it still suffered a bit from being taken out though the crispness of it stayed intact long after I got back. The sausage at these chef driven pizza spots is never quite as good as it is at the old school places but it was still better than most of the sausage you’ll find outside of Chicago so consider me happy with the sausage here too. Reviews from others have been mostly positive though a couple of people have complained about the sauce being weak and it not being crisp in the middle but those were non issues for me as I prefer a milder sauce to a super sweet one and got a crisply cooked pizza each time. Zarella is also putting out an artisan pie but as long as tavern thin is an option that’s what I’m getting from here. Just be aware that it’s a bit of a process right now as reservations are booked weeks out. They do take walk-ins but you’ll likely be waiting with others. As long as it’s not too long I think the wait will be worth it. Some are bound to complain about the price and get upset it's called tavern thin and call Zarella a tourist type of spot but those same people will tell you real Chicagoan's eat thin crust pizza - just like the version served at Zarella, which is better than most.

Sausage Pizza 

Zarella Pizzeria & Taverna
531 N Wells St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 470-0250
Website