Before answering this: being photogenic and being a good coffee shop are not the same thing. The most photographed spots in Nashville’s coffee scene range from genuinely excellent operations to places that exist primarily as backdrop. That distinction matters if you’re visiting for coffee. It doesn’t matter if you’re visiting for a photo.
Barista Parlor East Nashville
The original Barista Parlor at 519 Gallatin Ave is the most-photographed serious coffee shop in Nashville for reasons that hold up. The exterior is a converted auto shop with a giant horizontal anchor above the garage doors and the name in large illuminated letters. Inside: reclaimed wood counters, swinging Edison bulbs, Yama cold brew towers on the bar, a pixelated ship mural on the back wall that reveals itself differently when viewed through a camera. Founder Andy Mumma recruited craftsmen including Aaron Rosburg for the woodwork, Southern Lights Electric for custom lighting, and Steric Design for furniture. The space was not assembled from a mood board. It was built. The New York Times wrote about the furniture.
This is the rare case where the most photographed option is also among the best coffee. The Germantown and Golden Sound locations have different aesthetics (the Golden Sound is “air” themed in blues and whites) but the same quality.
Drug Store Coffee at the Noelle Hotel
Drug Store Coffee at 200 4th Ave N inside the Noelle Hotel wins on the art-deco-meets-vinyl angle. The custom Hazelwood Laboratories turntable setup, a walnut-and-brass system with automatic record-switching and built-in amplifiers driving four bookshelf speakers, is something you don’t see. The Noelle’s mid-century modern interior, restored from the original Noel Place building, provides room after room of photographable space that coffee customers have access to. The two-story lounge, the brass fixtures, the hotel bar visible through the lobby. Drug Store Coffee occupies a small counter within a much larger aesthetic world.
Elegy Coffee in Germantown
Elegy Coffee at its Germantown location has the plant-ceiling thing: greenery hanging overhead, sunlight streaming through large windows, a tight, styled space. It was created by the same people behind The Fox, one of Nashville’s most recognized cocktail bars, which means the design sensibility is sharp. The menu runs to drinks like the baklava latte, sugar plum matcha, and zest latte, which are built as much for the photo as for the palate. Three Nashville locations now exist (Germantown, East Nashville, Downtown). The specialty drinks photograph extremely well.
The Gulch-Area Options
Americano Lounge at 434 Houston St. in Wedgewood-Houston is a 1930s-inspired space with velvet booths, plush chairs, a live jazz band on Thursday evenings, and a menu that combines cocktails and espresso at the same bar. The design photographs in a register that is different from the industrial-wood-exposed-brick look. It’s the exception to the Nashville coffee aesthetic rule.
The Honest Assessment
Nashville’s most photographed coffee shops earn their photos through design investment that is also genuine hospitality. The city avoided, mostly, the tendency toward “Instagram trap” spaces that exist purely for the selfie with no underlying substance. Barista Parlor is excellent coffee in a well-designed room. Drug Store Coffee is good coffee in a remarkable space. Elegy makes interesting drinks in a curated environment. None of these need the photo to justify the visit, which is probably why they photograph as well as they do.
Sources
- Barista Parlor history and design, Imbibe Magazine: https://imbibemagazine.com/inside-look-barista-parlor/
- Barista Parlor Coffee Compass review including design details: https://www.thecoffeecompass.com/barista-parlor/
- Hazelwood Laboratories on Drug Store Coffee turntable: https://www.hazelwoodlaboratories.com/pages/drug-store-coffee-noelle-hotel-nashville
- Drug Store Coffee at Noelle, Visit Nashville: https://www.visitmusiccity.com/local-business/drug-store-coffee
- Elegy Coffee description, Sixth City Marketing: https://www.sixthcitymarketing.com/2025/02/06/best-cafes-coffee-shops-nashville/
- Nashville Guru coffee shop guide: https://nashvilleguru.com/1577/nashville-coffeehouse-guide
- The Infatuation Nashville coffee guide including Americano Lounge: https://www.theinfatuation.com/nashville/guides/best-coffee-shops-nashville