Burger Up is well known in Nashville for having one of best - if not THE best - burgers in town. The trendy burger joint had a line wrapped around the corner when we arrived. But, luckily, there were two seats at the bar that we snagged.

The restaurant is communal-style seating, which I'm noticing is kind of a trend in Nashville. But, we got the same sort of effect at the bar. And, oooof, did we.

The menu has a ton of amazing burgers that I wanted - like the Ramsey Pimento Cheese Burger (housemade pimento cheese, iceberg, tomato, pickles, red onion, truffle aioli, benton's bacon on jalapeno bun) or the Bison Burger (white cheddar, fried red onion and jalapenos, romaine, tomato and honey dijon aioli). But, alas, I went with the Black and Blue Burger (crumbled blue cheese, blackening seasoning, red onion and arugula). I had a ton of pimento cheese already on this trip, o I wanted to switch it up. I also got an order of the truffle fries.

Let me just take one moment to pause and tell you about the woman dining next to me. It was just the most bizarre experience; I kept looking for hidden cameras. She was incredibly demanding - asking for about 30 paper napkins and another 10 cloth napkins. Asking for an entire pitcher of water so she can fill it up as she pleased. Changing her order with a different waiter. Sending the food back. Seeing a pickle on my plate and asking why she didn't get one. Taking the silverware and cutlery with her in her to-go box. It was just a trip. A memorable one. I felt bad for the servers.

So, the food - was phenomenal. The burger was cooked perfectly, and they have house ketchup and like a garlic sauce. Both super, super good. I love the bite from the blue cheese and the sweetness from the red onion. And those truffle fries were the stuff dreams are made of. My only complaint is that I can't get this exact burger in Morgantown.

Grade: A

Yazoo Brewing Company is the largest brewery in Nashville, so I was excited to check it out. As soon as we got inside, I noticed the tables full of samplers and a long line to order.



Cool vibe in this place, but not enough seating. That was kind of a bummer. We waited around for a bit before we found a place that was vacated.

I went for a Hefeweizen, and they have a good one here. Light, summery, refreshing.

I think I might try another visit when it's not so crazy busy. And definitely would like to try a few more on their lineup.


Grade: B

We ate at so many places in Nashville in such a short amount of time, because I was really trying to touch on all of their most notable restaurants. And Nashville has no shortage of them.


Marche Artisan Foods is one of those places. This European-style cafe and marketplace is located in the heart of historic East Nashville, and seemed like this perfect brunch option.

The restaurant itself is very sweet with split-level dining paired up with a small marketplace. I loved the windows lining the walls of the space and the brick and exposed duct work. Just very cool.

The menu for breakfast had a number of croissants, crepes, french toast, scrambled eggs and omelettes. I, however, went for a simple cheese plate which had goat cheese, peach jam and Pugliese toast. This was simple, but this was probably my favorite goat cheese I've ever had. It had just a bit of bite, but it wasn't overpowering. The jam was great, and the toast was nice and light. The perfect light option that I was just in the mood for, with the perfect ambiance and great service.


Grade: A

What's cooler than a cupcake ATM? Even I, who doesn't subscribe to the cupcake craze, think this is pretty damn cool. I ran into my first one in Nashville.

Sprinkles Cupcakes is the world's first cupcake bakery - founded in Beverly Hills. Tons of celebrities and others have endorsed these cupcakes. And, it can be credited with starting the cupcake craze that swept the nation.

Sprinkles has expanded beyond Beverly Hills to 19 other locations, including Chicago, New York, Washington DC and ... Nashville! So, not only is this place credited with crafting artisan cupcakes (thing neat flavors, beautiful designs), they have pioneered the cupcake ATM. This means you can stop outside the store after hours and get a cupcake they prepared earlier in the day for your late-night cravings.

Oh, and it was all created by a woman by the name of Candace Nelson. Yes, the cupcake lady. THAT cupcake lady. The one who shares my name and appears on TV all the time because, well, she started the cupcake trend. She's the more famous Candace Nelson that I always get asked if I know there's a famous cupcake lady named Candace Nelson. And, I ate cupcakes at one of her bakeries. My life is coming full circle.

OK, so, we did not use the ATM because they were open, and I figured we might as well get a fresh one, right? The bakery is not huge, but the displays are very cute with little spaces for each individual cupcake.

There are tons of flavors, like chai latte, chocolate marshmallow, pumpkin, red velvet and more. I ordered a salty caramel cupcake, which is a caramel cake with buttery caramel cream cheese frosting topped with fleur de sel.

"Sprinkles Salty Caramel cupcakes are an irresistible salty-sweet flavor combination using fleur de sel crystals hand harvested from the pristine seas off Brittany, France. These fleur de sel granules are a delightful complement to the sweet, buttery caramel which flavors both the cake and frosting. Taste the rich, delicious complexity of Sprinkles take on this classic French duo."

This was probably the best cupcake I've ever had. I didn't know a cupcake could be this good. It was salty sweet, rich and just the perfect balance between icing and cake, as well as between sweet and savory. So. Good.



Grade: A

Blackstone Restaurant & Brewery is of note, because Blackstone is Nashville's first craft brewery. It opened in 1994 at 1918 West End Avenue where it remains.

We got here as soon as it opened, so it wasn't busy at all. I ordered a Nut Brown Ale, because you can't really go wrong. It was a good, solid beer. Little sweet, easy drinking but with good flavor.

Grade: B