The answer depends on whether you want the best plate of food or the best experience. At the top meat-and-threes in Nashville, the two are usually the same thing.
Arnold’s Country Kitchen
605 8th Ave S, The Gulch. Open Monday through Friday 10:30am to 2:45pm, Saturday 11am to 3pm, closed Sunday.
This is the benchmark. Jack Arnold purchased the original restaurant in 1982 from Lynn Chandler, who had been running the Nashville meat-and-three circuit for decades. Jack’s son Kahlil took over in 2005, expanding the menu while keeping the core identity intact. In 2009, the James Beard Foundation gave Arnold’s its American Classics Award, which is given to restaurants that reflect the character of their community. Food & Wine called the cooking “some of the highest-quality cooking ever to grace a cafeteria line.”
The roast beef is the reason to visit. It is slow-roasted, sliced to order, and served in its jus. Chef Kahlil has shared the recipe with colleagues who have attempted it at home and failed. The creamed potatoes carry a faint white pepper edge. The turnip greens are long-simmered with smoked pork. The chess pie is one of Nashville’s most discussed desserts and is made daily.
In January 2023, the family announced closure after the building appeared headed for sale. The city responded with what can only be described as a public mourning. The sale fell through. Arnold’s reopened for a Thanksgiving pop-up, then resumed full lunch service in January 2024. In August 2024, Kahlil announced a second location in North Nashville with sit-down service and expanded hours. Three generations of the Arnold family have worked that cafeteria line.
Arrive before opening if you want roast beef. It runs out. Cafeteria line runs until close or until sold out, whichever comes first.
Swett’s Restaurant
2725 Clifton Ave (Germantown area). Founded 1954.
Walter and Susie Swett opened the original business after buying a tavern they had no intention of running as a bar. They started cooking for their ten children and fed the neighborhood at the same time. Swett’s has been running continuously since 1954, making it one of Nashville’s longest-operating meat-and-threes. The food is reliable Southern: fried chicken, pork chops, candied yams, macaroni and cheese. A second location operates at Nashville International Airport under the name Pig Star as part of the Peg Leg Porker airport food program.
Elliston Place Soda Shop
2111 Elliston Pl. Open since 1939.
Opened by Lynn Chandler, the same man who sold Jack Arnold the building that became Arnold’s Country Kitchen. Elliston Place holds the distinction of being Nashville’s oldest continuously operating restaurant in its original location. The diner format, with red neon and chrome counter stools, looks almost identical to how it looked in the 1950s. The milkshakes are excellent. The meat-and-three plates are reliable. Come for the food; stay because you understand what it means for a building to have been feeding the same neighborhood for nearly 90 years.
Wendell Smith’s Restaurant
5300 Charlotte Ave. Open since 1952.
Charlotte Avenue’s most consistent institution. Fourth-generation operation now runs the place, which the family describes as “a little melting pot.” Tuesday is chicken and dumplings. Wednesday and Saturday are fried chicken. Friday is catfish. The rotation matters because regular customers plan their weeks around it. The prices are honest and the portions are not small.
Monell’s Dining and Catering
1235 6th Ave N (Germantown mansion location) and additional locations.
Monell’s breaks the cafeteria format entirely. You sit at long communal tables, and food comes family-style in bowls and platters that rotate around the table. Everything arrives at once: fried chicken, meatloaf, biscuits, sweet potatoes, whatever the day’s menu includes. You pass bowls and serve your neighbors. The Germantown location operates inside an antebellum mansion built in 1898. It is the most theatrical of Nashville’s meat-and-three options. Good for groups, good for people who want Southern food but prefer to sit and be served rather than carry a tray.
What to Know Before You Go
Lunch only at most places: hours typically run 10:30am to 2:45pm or 3pm. Many close on Sundays. Call ahead or check websites because daily specials change. If you want a specific dish, ask what day it’s available. Cafeteria lines at the best places move quickly once you’re in them, but arrive early to avoid waiting at the door. Almost no one uses apps or waitlists at these places. You stand in line.
Sources
- Arnold’s Country Kitchen, arnoldscountrykitchen.com
- Arnold’s Country Kitchen, Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org
- Fox 17, “Arnold’s Country Kitchen opens back up,” January 2024, fox17.com
- Notes on Nashville, “Meat-and-Three Restaurants,” notesonnashville.com
- Explore Parts Unknown, “When all you need is a meat-and-three,” explorepartsunknown.com
- Nashville Lifestyles, “Arnold’s Country Kitchen,” nashvillelifestyles.com
- A Little Local Flavor, “What Food Is Nashville Known For,” alittlelocalflavor.com
- Michelin Guide, Arnold’s Country Kitchen listing, guide.michelin.com