What Are the Best Neighborhoods for Nightlife in Nashville?

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It depends on the kind of night, but one current measure points clearly to East Nashville for bars. In The Infatuation’s guide to the best bars in Nashville, updated September 30, 2026, 11 of the 21 bars listed are in East Nashville, 3 are downtown, 2 are in the Gulch, and 2 are in Germantown, with one each in Edgehill, Wedgewood-Houston, and Melrose (counted from the guide’s neighborhood labels; The Infatuation). For live music in bar after bar, Lower Broadway downtown is the place, and for a rooftop or a planned cocktail night, the Gulch.

Neighborhoods by Kind of Night

Neighborhood Kind of night Bars and venues named in the sources
East Nashville neighborhood bars and cocktail spots Attaboy, Dino's Bar & Grill, Martha My Dear, Skinny Dennis, The Fox Bar & Cocktail Club, Rice Vice, Chopper, Schulman's, Mickey's Tavern, Ernie's Boondock, The Authentique (The Infatuation)
Downtown and Lower Broadway honky-tonks and live music Robert's Western World, open 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. every day (Robert's FAQ); Bar Roza and Four Walls (The Infatuation)
The Gulch rooftops, cocktails, ticketed music The Patterson House and L.A. Jackson (The Infatuation); Rudy's Jazz Room and the Station Inn
Germantown cocktail bars Le Loup and Barrel Proof (The Infatuation)
Edgehill, Wedgewood-Houston, Melrose one bar each in the guide Old Glory, Santa's Pub, Melrose Billiard Parlor (The Infatuation)

Robert’s hours are in Robert’s FAQ.

How to Pick

  1. First visit, want live music everywhere: Lower Broadway, where you can walk from one honky-tonk to the next.
  2. Want the widest choice of bars in one area: East Nashville, which holds the largest share of the guide’s picks.
  3. Want a dressier night with a view: the Gulch’s rooftops, covered in whether the Gulch is good for nightlife.
  4. Want a quieter cocktail: Germantown’s two listed bars.

Plan the ride between neighborhoods before you go out, since the guide’s picks are spread across the city. For timing a Broadway night, see the best time to visit Broadway.

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