R & R and lack thereof: 2013's Final Trip: Thrilling our senses in Nashvegas

I flew into Nashville on a Thursday evening in late September, and was picked up at the airport by two of my best college girlfriends. Part of a group who plan girls trips every few years, we chose Nashville after a tedious selection process. (At this point, I can’t even remember how it made the cut.) It was to be a busy weekend in Nashville, so finding a hotel prior to arrival was quite difficult. Not wanting to change our plans and weekend, we persevered and eventually ended up with a room at the Hilton Garden Inn Vanderbilt. Initially I was disappointed we weren’t staying at a chic downtown boutique hotel, but the Hilton Garden Inn actually turned out to be perfect. Firstly, the location is fab. It is central to many of the hot Nashville restaurants and sights including downtown, and the hotel shuttle will take you to most destinations. The room was spacious and clean, and the staff couldn’t have been nicer.

That first night, we decided to walk to Whiskey Kitchen, a friend’s recommendation, for dinner. The place was packed, and we decided to wait it out for a table on the patio. Here is where the restaurant receives its first negative mark in my book. The process of getting a patio table is entirely ungoverned, which ultimately leads to frustrated patrons. How can it not? People stand around like vultures waiting for tables to turnover. After a while, we managed to snag a table, but a nearby waiting couple also felt they should have been entitled to that table. A stare match ensued. Nasty looks were cast. We held our ground and won. Or maybe we lost. Because after sitting, we were completely ignored by Whiskey Kitchen staff for at least 30 minutes. No drinks, no appetizers, not even a look. I finally had to seek a manager to ask if we could get service. Thankfully, after that, things perked up a little bit for us. We got some drinks - two of us wine – and one girlfriend ordered the Veev lemonade, a vodka, lemon, and lime concoction accented by cucumbers. She still remembers this drink, so I take it she very much enjoyed it. I ordered the shrimp and grits, which as a Louisiana-born gal, I should have known would be mistake. It was nothing special. The rest of our experience was not memorable, save for the delightful Hilton shuttle driver who came to take us home. I know Nashville natives love Whiskey Kitchen, so surely our experience was a rare one or they would not be so popular. But in a town with so many options, it will be hard to come back.

On Friday morning, we decided to hit up the Country MusicHall of Fame.When in Rome, you know? In addition to memorabilia from the most popular Country music artists, there was also a temporary Carrie Underwood exhibit from her Blown Away Tour. It was neat to see Reba’s Grammys, telegrams sent by John and June Carter Cash, and costumes from some of my favorite singers. Speaking of costumes, Carrie’s Blown Away wardrobe was simply amazing. The detail on each piece was stunning.

Then, after enjoying a late lunch on the patio at BrickTop’s, we explored the area around The Parthenon, a full scale replica of the Greek monument. Built in 1897 during Tennessee’s Centennial Exposition, the Parthenon is centered in a large city park which also coincidentally was hosting a small arts and crafts fair that weekend.

That evening, we had tickets to the Southern Ground Music & Food Festival. The event, hosted by Zac Brown Band, is a 2-day music and food extravaganza held on the edge of downtown Nashville. This was to be the highlight of our weekend, and initially one of the inspirations for the trip. Sadly, a fourth girlfriend who is a big country music-lover couldn’t be with us in Nashville due to a death in her family. This left me with one non-lover of country music and one “I don’t listen to music” friend. We weren’t sure what to expect, but Kenny Chesney was scheduled to appear, and that was all I needed to know.

Upon entering the festival, we could hear Grace Potter and the Nocturnals performing, and we stood around on the outskirts of the crowd for a while, not sure what to do. For a brief moment, I began to doubt our decision to buy “lawn” tickets instead of seated tickets. When Grace’s set was up, we decided to venture farther into the event in search of food. This is when we discovered the large hill directly behind the venue seats, and also the food trucks and drink tents. My friends bought dinner from the Biscuit Love truck. One entrée was pulled pork with chili verde sauce and watermelon salsa, and the other was “The Schmidt”- smoked turkey with buttermilk cheddar sauce, bacon and tomato relish. We all enjoyed dessert from the Cookie truck - chocolate peanut butter biscuit pudding with rum sauce. The only way to describe it was YUM. They had me at peanut butter. All of the selections were tasty, and we certainly were happy with our choices. After eating, we scored a perfect spot of hill seating with an awesome view. The river was to our right, and we had a great view of the stage and downtown. At one point, a riverboat even floated by. It felt truly magical, and that was before the stars of the show even hit the stage.

If you love Zac Brown Band, the Southern Ground Festival is your mecca. Fortunately for me, Zac Brown just happens to be one of my favorite country artists. I am a ZBB CD-owning, seen-them-in-concert type of fan. They sang every ZBB song I know and more, with sit-ins from Jason Mraz, Kenny Rogers and Kenny Chesney. I sang my heart out. My friends sat there. I sang some more. It was awesome, and certainly a thrill ride for all four senses. My only wish would have been more Kenny. Zac, if you’re reading this, next year more Kenny OK?

On Saturday, our only plan was to eat at the Pancake Pantry and do some shopping. The Pancake Pantry is a Nashville breakfast institution which draws huge lines as people wait patiently to get inside. So we waited. Along with every Vandy student and their parents. (One of the other big events happening in Nashville this weekend was Vanderbilt parents’ weekend.) Normally I wouldn't be keen to wait an hour outside an establishment for a table, but the weather was nice, I was in the company of friends, and we were child-free.

After over an hour wait, we were finally inside at a table. Not normally a pancake-eater, I ordered a combo plate which came with pancakes, and I’m SO glad I did. The pancakes were honestly some of the best I’ve eaten. They were totally worth the wait. I would say the Pancake Pantry, long line and all, is a must-do when visiting Nashville. Unless you have young children with you. Then avoid it like the plague, as you’ll likely want to stab yourself with a fork after waiting in that line with kiddos.

After The Pancake Pantry, we shopped a few boutiques around the restaurant, and then decided to go back to the room for a little while. We promptly fell asleep and took naps for the rest of the afternoon. Embarrassing, yes, but we're moms. We don't ever get to do that in real life. And as I told our mutual friend who lives in Nashville, we were just resting up for our big evening out with her.

Saturday evening we decided to go to Merchants for dinner and drinks. Not having planned ahead of time, we had no reservations and decided to just wing it. We arrived sometime within the 6:00 hour, put our name on the wait list for downstairs, and proceeded to the bar. Before we could even finish our drinks, our name was called and we were seated on the patio. The atmosphere at Merchants is really cool. It's trendy and upscale without being pretentious, and the food holds its own. We ordered a selection of appetizers including the baked cheese and the Southern fry, all of which were delicious. Speaking of drinks, one girlfriend had the Tennessee Mojito and it was memorable enough to make her TripAdvisor review. Someone had the Steak and Frites, and I believe I had the Mac & cheese. Overall, we had a fun time, and the food was good at Merchants. It's definitely on the recommended list for visiting Nashville. Later that evening, we decided to meet up with another local Nashville friend. He suggested the bar at the Hutton Hotel because it was close to our hotel. Here is where we finally saw a celebrity! (I had been on the look-out all weekend). We saw Dr. Drew! (And if you don't know who he is, you're probably a young-in).