History

The meat-and-three is Tennessee's plate-lunch tradition, descended from boarding-house cooking. Lunch counters serving working Nashvillians codified the format by the 1950s. Arnold's Country Kitchen, which won the James Beard America's Classics Award in 2009, runs the canonical version. The 'three' refers to vegetables but typically includes mac and cheese; the protein rotates daily. Most counters are lunch-only, Monday to Friday, with prices still under $15 in 2026.

Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy

Make it at home

Yield Serves 4Hands-on 1 hrTotal 2 hrDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 1.5kg pork shoulder, bone-in
  • 2 tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 tbsp black pepper
  • For mac and cheese: 250g elbow pasta, 60g butter, 60g flour, 700ml whole milk, 400g sharp cheddar
  • For turnip greens: 2 bunches turnip greens, 250g smoked ham hock, 1 onion, 1 tbsp cider vinegar
  • For mashed potatoes: 1kg russet potatoes, 100g butter, 200ml cream, salt
  • Cornbread and sweet tea to serve

Method

  1. Season the pork shoulder all over with salt and pepper. Roast at 150C (300F) for 4 hours until fork-tender. Rest, then shred.
  2. Wash and stem the turnip greens. Simmer with ham hock and onion in 1 liter water for 60 minutes. Finish with cider vinegar.
  3. Boil pasta until al dente. Make a roux with butter and flour, whisk in milk, cook until thickened. Stir in cheese, then drained pasta.
  4. Boil potatoes until tender. Drain, mash with butter and warm cream. Season heavily with salt.
  5. Plate one protein with three sides. Cornbread on the side, sweet tea in a glass.

Tip from the editors. Make the vegetables in advance; the protein is the easy part. The plate is about the sides as much as the meat.

This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.

Where to eat meat-and-three

Meat-and-three in Nashville

Arnold's Country Kitchen ★ 4.6

the-gulch

Arnold's meat-and-three lunch in Nashville delivers a protein plus three vegetables and tea for under $15. James Beard America's Classics Award winner since 2009.

Try: Meat-and-three plate

Tip: Lunch only, Monday to Friday 10:30 to 14:30; cafeteria line moves fast. Cash and card.

605 8th Ave S, Nashville, TN 37203

Monell's Dining and Catering ★ 4.4

Meat-and-three$$germantown

Monell's family-style Southern dining in Germantown, Nashville has run since 1995, seating strangers at communal tables in a Victorian house north of the Capitol.

Signature: Family-style Southern lunch, Skillet fried chicken

Order: The full family-style spread: fried chicken, country ham, mac and cheese, greens.

Tip: Reservations available; tables seat ten. Sunday brunch is the marquee meal, books a week ahead.

1235 6th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37208 Book →

Elliston Place Soda Shop ★ 4.2

midtown

Elliston Place Soda Shop near Vanderbilt in Nashville plates a meat-and-three lunch for $11 and a hand-dipped milkshake for $5. Since 1939 in Nashville.

Try: Meat-and-three with milkshake

Tip: Hand-dipped chocolate milkshake plus a meat-and-three plate keeps the lunch bill under $15.

2105 Elliston Pl, Nashville, TN 37203

More cities are in research. Want meat-and-three covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.

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