A Love Letter to South Nashville’s Food Scene

The beating heart of a city can usually be found in a part of town that possesses an unwavering sense of community, a diverse population and a captivating food scene. No part of Nashville ticks these boxes like South Nashville, making the recent ICE sweeps that terrorized the largely Hispanic neighborhood — a thriving community that has enriched our city for decades — all the more devastating.

In South Nashville, there’s no sign of the honky-tonk, live laugh love, “God’s Country” energy that parts of our city are known for. And the sheer scope and magnitude of the neighborhood’s cultural impact — how it reveals itself as you journey down Nolensville Pike — is like slipping into a fourth dimension that lets you see a new world from your own backyard.

In high school, I more or less lived in a “punk house” just a few lots up from Nolensville Pike. I was too young at the time to understand what a privilege it was to be able to walk across the street and eat delicious spring rolls and red curry at longstanding Thai staple Siam Cafe, or hang a left and walk down to Kebab Gyros at the end of the street, where I could dunk a marinated chicken sandwich in tzatziki and drown fresh tabbouleh in hot sauce. Within a single block, I had two completely different and authentic dining options at my fingertips, allowing me to expand my palate without a second thought. Fortunately, both of these restaurants are still in operation today. My friends and I were a little rough around the edges — we used to joust on tall bikes under the pedestrian bridge and dumpster dive behind the Krispy Kreme on Thompson Lane. But we all carried a love for our neighborhood’s food. If we wanted to try Korean, we could — and you still can at Midori, which has the best kimchi you’ll ever eat outside of Korea.

But the true crown jewels of South Nashville are the neighborhood’s seemingly endless array of Mexican and Central American eateries. Let’s start with Laura’s Cocina, which opened in 2022. Honestly, I could eat at Laura’s every day, and the size of my to-go orders is the stuff of legend. Between their fresh and crispy sopes, their handmade pupusas and their more unique dishes — like their caldo de res (a hearty Mexican beef soup that’s served only on the weekends, adding to its lore) and pollo con tajedas (a Honduran fried chicken dish that will blow you away) — Laura’s Cocina is always at the top of my list.

Another favorite is Chismes Cafe, which features a hearty torta Cubana — a delicious and indulgent Mexican sandwich packed with four kinds of meat and served on a homemade telera roll. (It’s the “everything but the kitchen sink” version of a torta, which in my opinion is the best way for a torta to be.) Chismes Cafe is also conveniently located in the same complex as Plaza Mariachi, the lively and bustling entertainment venue that took over a former Kroger-anchored shopping center. I feel confident that any event at Plaza Mariachi could rival anything happening in Nashville on that particular night. (Give their website’s events calendar a look sometime.)

South Nashville nimbly covers all the bases of a well-rounded food scene — including desserts. La Conchita Panaderia y Pasteleria, a high-spirited Mexican bakery with a seemingly endless array of brightly colored homemade pastries and desserts, offers an almost Willy Wonka-level experience: Tour their vast and vibrant selection of delicacies throughout the store in walls of multitiered glass display cases. “High gluten flour” is also listed as an ingredient for all of their items, and there’s something so delightfully unpretentious (and perhaps inadvertently cheeky) about advertising high levels of gluten.

If you’re looking for something off the beaten path, the taqueria in the back of Uptown Fresh Market is well worth the drive. They also carry a mango ceviche at their deli that’s so good I buy it by the pint (and I typically wind up eating it straight out of the container with a fork). If you’re new to South Nashville’s expansive universe, then a visit to Tempo might be a great place to start. The inviting coffee shop and venue just outside Wedgewood-Houston offers a small yet flavorful selection of breakfast tacos and pastries, and they serve a Texas scramble that will warm your spirit.

As someone who grew up in South Nashville, I must say that lately I feel like I’ve been living with my heart outside of my body. Every piece of news regarding May’s ICE sweeps and their fallout sears my soul. Why any agency or administration would ever want to compromise something so unique, so profoundly vibrant and necessary, is beyond me. I can’t imagine my life without South Nashville — it’s always been my home within my home, the heart I carry with me.

If you’re looking to explore the cultural fabric of this astonishing neighborhood, and you want to be supportive during this time of upheaval, I encourage you to check out some of these first-rate restaurants. Remember to be patient and tip well. These businesses deserve respect, because it’s a privilege for any of us to be a guest in their homes.