When I found out I’d be in Nashville again for work I was SO excited. I couldn’t wait for some yummy local bbq and live music. I especially couldn’t wait to go back to visit Tootsie’s – a favorite by locals and tourists alike. I just knew I’d be in for a good time. Nashville didn’t disappoint but the experience sure wasn’t what I thought it would be. The first night of our conference me and Marci (conference chair) decided to keep things pretty chill. Low key beer and bbq night. Totally perfect in every way. But we knew or low key Tuesday night was only to save up our energy for Thursday when we were determined to hit the town (and find celebrities).
Throughout the day on Wednesday (when I wasn’t working hard) I tried to figure out the Thursday night game plan. I happened to mention my quest for a good time in front of one of our vendors who happened to be a local. SCORE. He said that we simply had to try The Patterson House. He said it wasn’t touristy at all and many celebrity artists were known to hang out there. By the time he mentioned the drinks were pretty pricy it was too late, I was sold.
Hearing about the Patterson House was the easy part. Finding it was an entirely different story. We got in the cab and I gave the cab driver the address/cross streets. He’d never heard of the bar but seemed to know exactly where to take us. We drove for all of 5 minutes, made a U-turn and the cab came to a stop in a residential (slightly sketchy) area. He told us we were there. Ummmmm we’re where? I had a feeling the bar wasn’t readily advertised but I assumed there had to be some sort of sign or something to let people know it was a bar…I mean, right? We jump out of the cab and stand there in utter bewilderment. Awesome. Now we are somewhere (!?) in Nashville, at night, wondering around looking for a bar no one really seems to have heard of. Not NEARLY as shady as a night I’ll never forget in Atlanta it still wasn’t the situation Marci and I wanted to be in.
Enter a phone that is smarter than me. I whip out my phone and hit “google maps” and instantly I see that where we intended to go is just up the street. Marci and I look that direction and see a church and an old house with blacked out windows very similar to the frat houses back in Radford. We assumed we could rule out the church so we walked towards the house. The entire first floor was dark except for the porch light and a light on inside the doorway. There was a sign that said it was a hair salon. WTF. We kept walking anyway because the shady house with blacked out windows still seemed like the better option over standing on the side of the street. As we got closer we could see the there is something printed on the glass door of the house….The Patterson House. Sweet baby jesus we had arrived.
The inside was so much better than I’d imagined the hunt was worth it. After we were greeted by the hostess we were escorted behind a heavy curtain to the bar. The hostess picked out our seats (perfect for people watching) but it wasn’t until I’d sat down that I could truly appreciate how amazing this bar was. There’s no pictures on the website and I wasn’t about to lower my “cool” factor by taking pictures so you’ll just have to take my word for it. It was dark, but still lit with comfy bar stools and deep booths. The big square bar was covered in fresh fruit, cool bar ware and many, many “ingredients.”
The bartender was a wealth of knowledge (about drinks). He helped us pick the perfect cocktail based on flavors we liked and complimenting liquors. I picked Gin as my base (surprise surprise) and finally decided to try the “Ellie May” (peach infused tea, grapefruit, mint and rose water). It was a-ma-zing. Hands down, without question or debate the best drink I’ve EVER had. I had no idea how good all of those things could taste together. Marci also had an amazing drink made for her. It was so fun to watch him mix all the crazy ingredients (what IS rose water?) and then of course they were all served in unique bar ware with unique ice (spheres and sticks of ice). The night only got better when we tried Bacon Infused Bourbon made in-house. Seriously folks I’m not a huge fan of bourbon but when it tastes like bacon…well then pass the pancakes! So tasty.
We topped off our night with the homemade doughnuts (house specialty) and our new bartender friend made us a yummy cream/coffee based cocktail to go with. The only thing that could have made the night better was if we’d seen a celebrity. But no such luck.
If you are ever in Nashville please do yourself a favor and find The Patterson House. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
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