The Catbird Seat is a tasting menu fine-dining restaurant in Downtown, Nashville.
A 22-seat counter on the fifth floor of the Bill Voorhees Building in Paseo South Gulch, Nashville, awarded a Michelin Star in 2025 under Ortiz and Doubrava.
Editorially verified May 31, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Must order: The full chef's counter tasting; the menu shifts seasonally.
Tip: Reservations open one month in advance on Tock. Wednesday through Saturday only; one seating per night.
Address: 700 8th Avenue South, Fifth Floor, Nashville, TN
The Joseph Hotel's Italian fine-dining room in downtown Nashville opened August 2020 with refined regional Italian cooking. A Forbes Star award-winner.
Order: Pasta tasting paired with a deep regional Italian wine list.
Tip: The espresso bar on the ground floor serves casual antipasti at half the price; counter seats welcome walk-ins.
Sean Brock's Rutledge Hill institution in Nashville cooks ingredient-driven Southern food on a wood hearth, recommended in the 2025 Michelin Guide American.
Order: Cornbread skillet, then whatever the menu lists from the wood hearth.
Tip: Lunch is quieter with the same kitchen. Book the porch seats in spring; they overlook downtown.
Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Hermitage Hotel restaurant in downtown Nashville opened 2022. Order the plant-forward small plates built around tennessee produce.
Order: Plant-forward small plates built around Tennessee produce.
Tip: Weekend brunch at 11:00-14:00 is the Hermitage's quieter face; the bar pours top by-the-glass selections.
Josh Habiger's 24-seat tasting-menu room in Wedgewood-Houston, Nashville opened 2016 and was awarded a Michelin Star in November 2025 under Strategic.
Order: The chef's tasting menu; no a la carte service.
Tip: The adjacent neighbourhood bar runs walk-in service with a separate snack menu and is the cheaper way to try the kitchen.
Irish chef Trevor Moran's 12 South dumpling and kakigori counter in Nashville earned a Michelin Star and 20th place on North America's 50 Best Restaurants.
Order: Pork dumplings in chicken broth and the seasonal kakigori shaved ice.
Tip: Friday through Sunday only, lunch and dinner. Moran wants his team to have weekends; midweek bookings are not an option.
Sean Brock's Appalachian fine-dining room in East Nashville opened 2021, recommended in the 2025 Michelin Guide. Sam Jett took day-to-day in 2025.
Order: Heritage pork from Brock's own farm and the cornmeal program.
Tip: June, the tasting counter upstairs, is on hiatus for guest-chef sessions in 2026. Audrey downstairs runs nightly.
The Joseph Hotel's Italian fine-dining room in downtown Nashville opened August 2020 with refined regional Italian cooking. A Forbes Star award-winner.
Order: Pasta tasting paired with a deep regional Italian wine list.
Tip: The espresso bar on the ground floor serves casual antipasti at half the price; counter seats welcome walk-ins.
Sean Brock's Rutledge Hill institution in Nashville cooks ingredient-driven Southern food on a wood hearth, recommended in the 2025 Michelin Guide American.
Order: Cornbread skillet, then whatever the menu lists from the wood hearth.
Tip: Lunch is quieter with the same kitchen. Book the porch seats in spring; they overlook downtown.
Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Hermitage Hotel restaurant in downtown Nashville opened 2022. Order the plant-forward small plates built around tennessee produce.
Order: Plant-forward small plates built around Tennessee produce.
Tip: Weekend brunch at 11:00-14:00 is the Hermitage's quieter face; the bar pours top by-the-glass selections.
