{"id":8943,"date":"2013-04-21T22:00:12","date_gmt":"2013-04-22T02:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=8943"},"modified":"2024-12-04T17:51:02","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T22:51:02","slug":"leave-as-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=8943","title":{"rendered":"Leave As Friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"21<\/a>Linda Burton posting from Nashville, Tennessee <\/i>\u2013 \u201cEnter as strangers, leave as friends.\u201d That\u2019s what happens when you gather round the dining table and start passing the peas. And the mashed potatoes, and meatloaf, and all the other goodies that grace the table. I was sitting in Monell\u2019s, a family style restaurant in a historic 1880\u2019s house in Germantown, a north Nashville neighborhood. Baskets of corn muffins, pitchers of sweet tea; pass to the left, please; you can\u2019t help it, you start to chat. \u201cMy husband died in February,\u201d said Sandra, on my left. \u201cMy son brought me out for \"21<\/a>lunch today.\u201d Terrance nodded, \u201cWe\u2019re walking in the park after lunch,\u201d he said, \u201cI\u2019ve lost almost a hundred pounds in the last year.\u201d He pulled out his cellphone to show a picture of his former self; his mother and I lavished him with praise. On my right sat Allison and Matt; Matt directs a local TV show and gave me the scoop on the Nashville scene; in turn they wanted to know absolutely everything about the Journey<\/i>. A month\u2019s worth of friendliness, over chicken and dumplings; where can you find that, except when sharing a meal? No fast food hurry up, just take your time and talk. Family dining, the old-fashioned way. Monell\u2019s was my Saturday treat; today I headed far out in the country to the \"21<\/a>famed Loveless Caf\u00e9 for Sunday brunch. Willard Scott claimed the Loveless has the \u201cworld\u2019s greatest scratch biscuits\u201d and Martha Stewart said it was \u201cthe best breakfast I ever had.\u201d But the reality of the Loveless popularity really hit when I wound up in the unpaved parking lot on the far end of the property. Hundreds of biscuit-hungry folks were already waiting to be fed. <\/p>\n

\"21<\/a>The hostess told me I\u2019d wait at least an hour and a half as she handed me the buzzer. \u201cThe device is active all over the property,\u201d she advised. \u201cUse your wait time to shop our other stores.\u201d I sat on a bench near the door for a while, chatting with two well-behaved kids dressed in their Sunday finest. \u201cAre you a granny?\u201d the little boy with the bow-tie asked. I bragged that indeed I was; he wrinkled up a dimple face and leaned against me for a hug. Sister leaned against me then; she was in need of a granny hug too; their mother said they\u2019d been waiting two hours for a table. They were regulars; we talked about the Loveless then. \u201cIt goes back to 1951,\u201d the mother said, and pointed to a Loveless catalogue with an appealing pan of biscuits pictured on the front. Lon and Annie Loveless opened a little eatery beside the Loveless Motel, I read. Annie knew how to make biscuits and like every southern lady of the time, she made \u201cpreserves\u201d as the summer\u2019s bounty of fruit came in. Her biscuits and jams were a hit right away; eventually people who \"21<\/a>weren\u2019t staying at the motel began to stop in at the Caf\u00e9. The rest is history; stories told in Southern Living<\/i> and Bon Appetit<\/i>; their biscuit-making skills invited to the Today Show<\/i>, the Food Network<\/i>, Paula Deen\u2019s<\/i>.<\/p>\n

After the little family was called to their table, I decided to wander the property. In Hams and Jams<\/i> I could have bought, well, you know what. In Lil\u2019 Biscuits<\/i> I could have bought clothes and gifts for kids. But I was ravenously hungry by then, so back to the Caf\u00e9. \u201cHow much longer?\u201d I asked the hostess, sure my buzzer had failed and at least two hours had gone by. \u201cYou\u2019ve only been here thirty minutes,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a long wait yet. How about takeout?\u201d Good idea; I could eat at the picnic tables outside as so many were doing. I ordered the biscuit sampler: one steak, one ham, one chicken, and one barbecue. By darn, I was determined to have Loveless scratch biscuits today.<\/p>\n

\"21<\/a>Back on the porch waiting for my order, I met Betty and Lloyd. They were bikers (the motorized kind) out for a spring-day ride. We soon discovered we had a lot in common; Lloyd drove a long-haul truck so knew the roads all across the USA; we compared notes on the evils of tailgating. \u201cIt takes me at least 300 yards to come to a safe stop at 60 mph,\u201d he told me, in answer to my question. Betty loved my story of the Journey<\/i>; \u201cBut I\u2019m not much for planning,\u201d she said. \u201cI travel at the drop of a hat.\u201d She told about her train rides to Chicago, and New Orleans, and Seattle. \u201cWherever I go, I want to stay a little longer,\u201d she laughed. \u201cI\u2019m always surprised at what I find!\u201d They called my name; my \"21<\/a>biscuits were finally ready. And Willard was right; they were the best scratch biscuits I\u2019ve ever eaten. But it\u2019s not the biscuits I\u2019ll remember about the Loveless, it\u2019s the feeling of the place. And that, I suspect, is why most people come. That\u2019s the thing about \u201ceating\u201d in the south. Food is merely an excuse for getting together. And if the food happens to be great, well that\u2019s a bonus! I have two more restaurant stories for you that prove the point.<\/p>\n

\"21<\/a>Last week Ellendale\u2019s was recommended to me as a place near my hotel that serves outstanding food. Located off Old Elm Hill Road in a restored farmhouse, it aims for elegance; a roomy front porch and gazebo; linen tablecloths; artful d\u00e9cor. The menu was interesting; Asiago Crusted Calamari and a cold shrimp platter with fresh garden vegetables were offered under the Appetizer heading; entrees included Prime Rib, New Zealand Lampchops, San Francisco Cippino, Southern Fried Tofu, Crispy Fried Rabbit paired with ginger mashed sweet potatoes, Hickory Smoked Salmon served with lemon and mint Israeli \"21<\/a>cous-cous and a chimichurri sauce paired with roasted garlic baby carrots. The food was fabulous, beautifully presented and flavorful beyond measure. Yet what I\u2019ll remember most was Julie Buhler, and the atmosphere of the place. Julie opened Ellendale\u2019s in 1999, after a stint as Dolly Parton\u2019s personal chef, and cooking for other stars such as Reba McIntire, Vince Gill, and Garth Brooks. Now she spends her time making her guests feel welcome, and creating original recipes from what she grows in\u00a0the large organic garden beside the house. She\u2019s an artist too, and promotes other artists in the community; she bought a car wash and converted it to an art gallery! The house reflects her \"21<\/a>artistic nature; I asked about the striking panels on the wall. \u201cIt\u2019s my great-grandfather Douglas Ives,\u201d she answered, pointing to a portrait hanging behind me and the basis for the panels. Julie was excited to hear about the Journey<\/i>; she followed me outside to get a picture of the Scion for her Facebook page; and posed for me. \u201cI named Ellendale\u2019s after my great-grandmother Ellen Dale Ives,\u201d she told me, as we walked the grounds where the wisteria is just starting to bloom.<\/p>\n

\"21<\/a>I haven\u2019t been to Tootsies Orchid Lounge so far this trip; although I have visited it before. It\u2019s properly defined as a Honky Tonk Bar, located back to back with the Ryman Auditorium; its orchid-colored front faces Broadway. It continues to attract the hoping-to-be-famous, the famous, and those who want to be where the famous have been; its walls are covered with autographed photos of those who made it. But \"21<\/a>back in 1960 when Tootsie Bess bought the property, it was named simply Mom\u2019s. Over the years Tootsie quietly fed many hungry hopefuls that hung out in this musician\u2019s haven, and slipped ten-dollar bills into their pockets when she knew they needed a hand. And every now and then, so the story goes, Opry stars slipped into Tootsie\u2019s cigar box, and replaced all the IOU\u2019s with cash.<\/p>\n

Enter as strangers, leave as friends. That\u2019s how it goes.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

A table at Monell’s.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

About Monell\u2019s. Mr Monell and Mr King opened their first Pass-the-peas-please-concept Monell\u2019s almost twenty years ago; today there are four in the Nashville area. http:\/\/monellstn.com\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

About Loveless Caf\u00e9. Caf\u00e9 open 7 AM to 9 PM 7 days a week; every Wednesday night the Loveless Barn has Music City Roots, Live from the Loveless Caf\u00e9. http:\/\/www.lovelesscafe.com\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Julie<\/a>

Julie Buhler and Alex at Ellendale’s.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

About Ellendale”s. Open every day for lunch and dinner; live music every night. http:\/\/www.ellendales.com\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

About Tootsies. Open till the wee hours for burgers, beer, and music. http:\/\/www.tootsies.net\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Linda Burton posting from Nashville, Tennessee \u2013 \u201cEnter as strangers, leave as friends.\u201d That\u2019s what happens when you gather round the dining table and start passing the peas. And the mashed potatoes, and meatloaf, and all the other goodies that grace the table. I was sitting in Monell\u2019s, a family style restaurant in a historic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4587,1721],"tags":[2284,2279,1037,2282,2281,2278,2277,3086,2283,2234,2280],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8943"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8943"}],"version-history":[{"count":54,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8943\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15572,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8943\/revisions\/15572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}