Nashville, TN

It has already been weeks since Memorial Day weekend (seriously, where does the time go?) and I realized last night that if I didn't post about Nashville now, it would soon be too late. For Memorial Day KT and I went to Nashville, TN for the night. It was my first time in Tennessee, but now I want to go back because we had such a good time!

Did we sightsee in Nashville? No, we did not. We were too busy eating, drinking, and partying our way across the city!! Here are a few of the places that we visited:

 

1. Loveless Cafe
Nashville is about 2.5 hours from Lousiville, and when we got into town around noon we headed straight to the Loveless Cafe for lunch. Loveless is a staple in Nashville and well known for its Southern cooking and biscuits. I don't like to cause too much controversy on the blog, but I thought Loveless was a little overrated. To be fair, my opinion wasn't helped by the fact that there was an hour and a half wait when we arrived.

Considering we were starving (and the fact that we're not suckers!), we ordered take out and sat outside in the sunshine at one of the many picnic tables. We ate so much fried chicken and biscuits, which really were good, but I was underwhelmed by some of the other side dishes, like the fried green tomatoes, which were soggy.

2. Honky Tonk Row
Loveless put us into a huge food coma, but after a much needed nap we were able to rally ourselves by the evening to check out Honky Tonk row. Our favorite bar on the street had to be Robert's Western World, where we arrived to find the Don Kelley Band rocking on stage with awesome classic country tunes and blues. The area in general is obviously a little tourist heavy (we probably saw a dozen bachelorette parties in a two hour time frame), but if you find the right place you get front row seats to some truly terrific rockabilly and blues.

3. The City House Restaurant
City House is in a small, up and coming neighborhood called Germantown that serves rustic Italian food with wood-fired pizzas. I had a broccoli and radish appetizer with anchovy dressing that was light and lemony, and just good in every way (I really need to try and recreate it myself!).

4. The 5 Spot
And then came the best part of the night. We headed over to a neighborhood called Five Points where, at the recommendation of a friend, we went to a bar called the 5 Spot. I'm not exaggerating when I say that the 5 Spot is pretty much the best bar ever. In fact, I may be denigrating the 5 Spot's good name by not insisting it is America's Greatest Bar.

Sadly, we were not there for a Monday night when they play 50's and 60's rock and doo-wop all night.  Even with that mild let-down, the Saturday night gig - a raging hip hop party with crazy beats - was just short of epic. I wish we had a bar like that in Louisville or DC.

Friday Links

How is it Friday already? I have been out of town all week for work and I have no idea where the time went. Anyways, here are some links! Happy weekend, everyone!

Food.

• Olive oil and prostate cancer.
• I'm just glad no one photographed my kitchen.
• Restaurant ideas in case you're headed to Florence soon.
• Fava bean recipes, if you're willing to take the time to shuck them.
• How to sautee fish fillets.

Other.

• Tabloid summaries from Grantland.
• Song of the week: Daft Punk's Get Lucky
• NPR's top 25 albums of the year so far. Notable missing album: Random Access Memories. 
• Home office inspiration.

Spaghetti alla Nerano

Well guys, I have to do another post about pasta, because I just cannot help myself. It's summertime and zucchinis were all over my farmer's market this past weekend.  Zucchini always reminds me of Italy, where I lived for 9 months in 2006. Italians have so many different ways to eat zucchini, but one of my favorites is when it is used in the simple Spaghetti alla Nerano, a dish native to Sorrento and the Amalfi coast.

Spaghetti alla Nerano was born in the tiny fishing town of Nerano, nearby Sorrento in 1951.  What began as a peasant dish quickly became a staple in the region and I first tried it while traveling with my parents. We spent five days in Sorrento at an incredible hotel called the Parco dei Principi, which had a huge patio overlooking Mount Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples. We arrived late on our first night and even though the kitchen was closed, the chef agreed to whip up a quick pasta. 

And so we were introduced to Spaghetti alla Nerano, a pasta with only seven ingredients - zucchini, basil, olive oil, parmigiano reggiano cheese, salt, and pepper. It is fresh, light, and quick to make.

Just a quick side note before I get to the recipe - the recipe is spaghetti alla Nerano, not fettuccine, which I used in my photo.  Fettuccine was my only option when I realized I had no spaghetti in the house. Oops. 

Spaghetti alla Nerano

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Ingredients

- 4 zucchini, thinly sliced

- 1 lb. spaghetti

- 1/4 c. basil leaves (the more the better, really)

- 1/4 c. olive oil

- 1/2 c. grated parmigiano reggiano, plus more for serving

- salt and pepper to taste

Spaghetti alla Nerano takes a lot of basil,  luckily, my windowsill basil had gotten a little top-heavy.

Preparation

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. While the water is heating up, thinly slice the zucchini with a mandoline or knife, and julienne the basil leaves.

2. Heat the olive oil and add in the zucchini. Sautee the zucchini for five minutes until it starts to soften.

3. Add the basil, some salt, and freshly ground black pepper, and continue to cook it for an additional 2-3 minutes. 

4. Once the water is boiling add in the spaghetti. Cook the spaghetti until its al dente. 

5. Drain the spaghetti and add it into the pan with the zucchini. Add the parmigiano reggiano, more black pepper, and serve.

Friday Links



It is Friday so you know what that means, LINKS!! Have a great weekend everyone!

Food.

• Longform article on the Kenji Fujimoto, Kim Jong Il's sushi chef. The article is written by Adam Johnson who just won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, The Orphan Master's Son which is set in North Korea. (It is one of the books sitting in my to-read pile).
• On selling Coca-Cola in Myanmar.
• It's eggplant season again, yum.
• Knife skills tutorial in gifs, this just reminds me of how much I want to take a knife skills class.
• Well, there goes my resolve to drink more green tea, bring on the coffee!
• Moo-shine.
• DC's Brian Voltaggio will be on Top Chef Masters.
• Thai chicken soup from Bon Appetit.
• If you haven't checked out Thug Kitchen yet, you should.

Other Stuff.

• Need some book ideas for summer reading? Check out Slate, NPR, and Grantland.
• Vulture interview with John Oliver on hosting The Daily Show.
• Rembert explains Will Smith's Gettin' Jiggy Wit It.
• Song of the week: Cooler Couleur, Crookers feat. Yelle.