Calliope cooks modern Levantine food from Southern ingredients on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, a 2026 James Beard semifinalist for Best Chef: Southeast.
OrderThe seasonal mezze spread for the table before any main.
TipChef Khaled Albanna's room lands on national lists; book table seating ahead on Tock, or take your chances at the walk-in bar.
Champy's Famous Fried Chicken fries chicken to order on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, with Delta hot tamales, cold beer and blues on the speakers.
OrderFried chicken with Delta hot tamales on the side.
TipFriday and Saturday the kitchen runs to midnight. Expect a wait after Lookouts games; the banana pudding travels well.
Calliope is Chattanooga fine dining at its most current: Levantine tasting plates from 2026 James Beard semifinalist Khaled Albanna on MLK Boulevard.
OrderThe mezze course with whatever bread came off the fire.
TipThe New York Times put Calliope on its 2025 Top 50 list; Tock reservations open ahead and Friday and Saturday sell out first.
White Duck Taco Shop serves globally-topped tacos counter-style on McCallie Avenue in Chattanooga, opened June 2025 with a huge outdoor patio and full bar.
OrderTwo or three off-format tacos; the list changes often.
TipOwners Adam Lutz and Nelson Taylor spent six years building the site; a house brewery, Totality, is being added on the campus.
Uncle Larry's Restaurant fries whiting, tilapia and catfish to order on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, Larry Torrence's family fish house since 2013.
OrderThe whiting sandwich, lemon-pepper style, with hot sauce.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. The MLK original is tiny; Brainerd Road and East Brainerd locations take the overflow.
Wally's Restaurant has served Chattanooga meat-and-three plates on McCallie Avenue since 1937, from drive-in burgers to today's homecooked vegetables.
OrderMeat-and-three with whatever vegetables came in that morning.
TipBreakfast from 06:00 on weekdays; Saturday closes at noon and Sunday is dark. Cash-friendly, counter-fast service.
Champy's Famous Fried Chicken is Chattanooga's juke-joint-styled bird specialist on MLK Boulevard, frying to order with Delta tamales and cold beer.
OrderQuarter dark fried chicken, hot tamales, banana pudding.
TipFriday and Saturday the kitchen runs to midnight. Expect a wait after Lookouts games; the banana pudding travels well.
Mad Priest Coffee Roasters roasts on McCallie Avenue in Chattanooga and staffs its cafes through refugee employment, coffee with a mission attached.
BrewsEspresso, Filter, Whole bean retail
TipDaily 07:00 to 18:00 on McCallie; the roastery supplies wholesale beans across the city, so ask what is freshest.
The Bitter Alibi stacks three storeys of dive-bar comfort in an old house on Houston Street in Chattanooga, cocktails and late plates until midnight.
DrinkHouse cocktails and cheap pours
FoodKitchen until late
TipThe third floor hosts the Dilemma cocktail bar, Thursday to Sunday from 18:00; the porch is the best seat in the house.
JJ's Bohemia anchors Chattanooga's MLK corridor with indie, punk and hip-hop shows in a 150-capacity room where touring acts meet local bands.
DrinkCheap cans between sets
FoodNone
TipCheck the calendar first; most nights are ticketed shows with doors around 20:00 and the room sells out for touring acts.
Alan Gold's Discotheque has run drag shows and dance floors on McCallie Avenue since the 1980s, Chattanooga's long-serving LGBTQ+ nightlife institution.
DrinkWell drinks before the midnight show
FoodNone
TipThursday to Saturday only, 20:00 to 02:45; drag showtimes post on the club's events page, and the floor peaks after midnight.
White Duck Taco Shop counters out inventive single tacos on McCallie Avenue in Chattanooga, ordered at the window and eaten on the sprawling patio.
TryGlobally-topped tacos
TipOwners Adam Lutz and Nelson Taylor opened in June 2025; the taco list rotates, so order two or three different ones.
Hutton & Smith Brewing Co names its beers for geology on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, an on-belay taproom pouring Igneous IPA to climbers off the crag.
TipNamed for the fathers of modern geology; the Good Schist grapefruit ale is the session order after a Stringers Ridge ride.
Wally's Restaurant plates Chattanooga's honest meat-and-three on McCallie Avenue, a since-1937 counter where breakfast and lunch stay cheap.
TryMeat-and-three plate
TipBreakfast from 06:00 on weekdays; Saturday closes at noon and Sunday is dark. Cash-friendly, counter-fast service.
Uncle Larry's Restaurant sells fried whiting sandwiches for pocket change on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, fish fried to order there since 2013.
TryWhiting sandwich
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. The MLK original is tiny; Brainerd Road and East Brainerd locations take the overflow.
Champy's Famous Fried Chicken piles quarter-bird plates and Delta tamales on MLK Boulevard in Chattanooga, big portions that undercut its fame.
TryQuarter fried chicken plate
TipFriday and Saturday the kitchen runs to midnight. Expect a wait after Lookouts games; the banana pudding travels well.
Champy's Famous Fried Chicken runs its MLK Boulevard fryers to midnight on Friday and Saturday, Chattanooga's late-night bird with cold beer.
TryFried chicken and hot tamales
TipFriday and Saturday the kitchen runs to midnight. Expect a wait after Lookouts games; the banana pudding travels well.
Alan Gold's Discotheque keeps Chattanooga dancing to 02:45 from Thursday to Saturday on McCallie Avenue, with drag shows at the centre of the night.
TryDrinks only
TipThursday to Saturday only, 20:00 to 02:45; drag showtimes post on the club's events page, and the floor peaks after midnight.
Alan Gold's Discotheque has been Chattanooga's LGBTQ+ anchor on McCallie Avenue since the 1980s, drag shows, dancing and a crowd that spans the decades.
TipThursday to Saturday only, 20:00 to 02:45; drag showtimes post on the club's events page, and the floor peaks after midnight.
JJ's Bohemia packs touring indie, punk and hip-hop acts into a 150-capacity room on MLK Boulevard, Chattanooga's scrappiest and most essential venue.
TipCheck the calendar first; most nights are ticketed shows with doors around 20:00 and the room sells out for touring acts.
Alan Gold's Discotheque has been Chattanooga's LGBTQ+ anchor on McCallie Avenue since the 1980s, drag shows, dancing and a crowd that spans the decades.
TipThursday to Saturday only, 20:00 to 02:45; drag showtimes post on the club's events page, and the floor peaks after midnight.
The Bitter Alibi keeps three floors of house-party dive comfort going until midnight on Houston Street, Chattanooga's after-work clubhouse of choice.
TipThe third floor hosts the Dilemma cocktail bar, Thursday to Sunday from 18:00; the porch is the best seat in the house.
Guided tour · 3 hours
Discover the flavors of Chattanooga on a guided food tour of the downtown district. Savor the flavors of the city as you enjoy a variety of dishes at up to four curate...
Guided tour · 3 hours
Discover the flavors of Chattanooga on a food-focused walking tour. Visit four different restaurants and meet the proprietors behind them, all while tasting tapas-size...
1 hour
Learn how to make a cocktail from a professional bartender in Chattanooga. Enjoy a fun and interactive experience with a small group.