Foodie/History Safari Part II: Nashville, TN, DAY 1

It was still overcast as we rolled out of Birmingham on our way to Nashville, but it had at least warmed up a bit.

You'd think we'd never be hungry again, but a few miles on up the road we stopped for lunch in Franklin, Tennessee, at Riff Burgers and Fries.  This is a burger joint sort of a la Five Guys.  They grind their own meat and serve beef, lamb, salmon and turkey burgers with trendy toppings.  We both opted for the classic beef burger though.  I was excited to see "skinny fries" on the menu, but was disappointed that they were the dark, limp kind I'm not that crazy about.  Edward's onion rings were really good.  How does he always end up ordering better food than I?  I enjoyed eating here because it's in an old Gulf service station.  Can't ever see that orange and blue sign without sweet memories of my dad.

That Good Gulf Gasoline

Riff burger and skinny fries

Awhile back I read, thoroughly enjoyed and recommend The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks.  Hicks did a masterful job with this novel based on the life of Carrie McGavock and the Civil War Battle of Franklin that was fought in her back yard on November 30, 1864, the bloodiest single-day battle of that horrible, bloody war.  The battle lasted about five hours, with around 9,500 casualities and/or MIAs.  Almost 7,000 were Confederate troops, who were mowed down as they charged across McGavock's Carnton Plantation.  Many of the wounded and dying were carried to the McGavock's home.  The next morning, the bodies of four Confederate generals, Patrick R. Cleburne, Hiram B. Granbury, John Adams and Otho F. Strahl, were laid out on Carrie's back porch.  By 1866, the hundreds of field graves around Franklin were neglected, deteriorating and/or being destroyed.  John and Carrie McGavock, recalling the tragedy of the Battle of Franklin, designated two acres at Carnton as a Confederate cemetery and set about removing remains from around Franklin to a final resting spot on their plantation, where Carrie McGavock would watch over them for the rest of her life.  I had to see this place.

Carnton's Back Porch

Carrie McGavock's Tombstone

War is such a tremendous waste of our God-given opportunity on this earth.  I'm afraid we'll never, ever learn.  And our children will continue to pay for our stubborn human pride.

Leaving this solemn spot behind, Edward and I ventured on into Nashville.  I won't bore you with all our navigational spats, but we finally arrived at our next lodging place, the superb Hermitage Hotel in downtown Nashville. 

Hermitage Hotel

The Hermitage Hotel has been awarded the AAA Five Diamond Award eight years in a row and the Forbes Travel Guide Five Star Award five years in a row; it's currently the only hotel in Tennessee to hold either award.  Let me tell you, 5-stars mean something.  We were treated as if we were royalty.  Check their website if you're interested in details on the up-and-down-and-up history of this hotel: http://www.thehermitagehotel.com/homepage.aspx, but I will mention that Gene Autry AND Champion were both guests here in the past (we stayed on the top floor, so I guess we didn't get Champion's room).  Superior service starts with a doorman in tails and a top hat and just keeps going from there.  Everybody knows you by name.  If there's anything you want, all you have to do is look like you might ask for it.  Fresh cherries and strawberries and fancy glass-bottled spring water in your room.  A little basket you can place outside your door with your shoes inside and an hour later they'll come back to you shined.  Free Wi-Fi.  A fresh rosebud on the desk.  A stack of cool magazines in your room, and a TV Guide in a special notebook.  Luxurious robes of course, and an umbrella.  Turndown service includes homemade cookies, fresh bedroom slippers and little mats next to the bed in case you don't want your bare toes to touch the carpet.  Really.  And get this, personalized printed hotel stationery.  And that's just the stuff.  As I said, what really shines is the personal service and attention to every detail.

The Hermitage Hotel is also home to an excellent, award-winning restaurant, The Capitol Grill, and we were tempted, but after two FINE dining evenings, we were ready to try out one of Chris Hastings' recommendations and after cocktails in the hotel's beautiful Oak Bar, we made our way to City House for supper.  Good recommendation, Chef Hastings!  But I must have had an extra manhattan at the Oak Bar (yes, I did, and they served hot boiled peanuts and spicy popcorn as bar snacks!), because I can't recall exactly what I ate at City House.  It was a special that evening, so it's not on their online menu.  It was pasta, just the way I love it, shells with a garlicky, no tomato sauce.  I think Edward had the House Made Sausage with green tomato agrodolce and Abbey Ale mustard, but I wouldn't swear to that either. I do know we had the trip's best bottle of wine, a 2007 Elyse Nero Misto.  I love Elyse wines and tried to abscond with the winery dog when we visited there back in 2007.

Whew, two more days to go.  I'm getting full.  Let's let Day 2 be its own post.