Franklin, Tennessee ★ 4.6
Famous for: Main Street meat-and-three, gracious Southern lunches
Franklin's restored Main Street, 25 minutes south of Nashville by car, runs a tighter restaurant row than its size suggests. Booking recommended.
Food destinations within easy reach of Nashville. worth the train, the rental car or the early start.
Worth the trip
Lynchburg, Tennessee ★ 4.8
Famous for: Jack Daniel's distillery tour and Miss Mary Bobo's boarding-house lunch
Lynchburg, 75 minutes southeast of Nashville, hosts the Jack Daniel's distillery and Miss Mary Bobo's, a 1908 boarding-house Southern lunch in a single.
Leiper's Fork ★ 4.2
Famous for: Country tables, live music, the Country Boy restaurant
Leiper's Fork, 40 minutes southwest of Nashville, is a single-street country village with the Country Boy restaurant for biscuits and the Fox & Locke.
Chattanooga, Tennessee ★ 4.0
Famous for: Riverfront dining, Easy Bistro and Main Street Meats
Chattanooga, two hours southeast of Nashville by car, runs a strong riverfront dining scene with Easy Bistro for French-leaning plates and Main Street Meats.
Tennessee Whiskey Trail (Lynchburg, Tullahoma, Shelbyville) ★ 4.4
Famous for: Jack Daniel's, George Dickel and Uncle Nearest distillery lunches
The Tennessee Whiskey Trail strings Jack Daniel's, George Dickel and Uncle Nearest distilleries within a 90-minute drive of Nashville. Booking recommended.