Houston Texas & Nashville Tennessee

When it came time to figuring out where to go on our vacation week we thought of all the places Southwest flies to. Wanting to go somewhere we hadn’t been before we started brainstorming. Then I got an invite to my best friend from nursing school’s wedding. She was getting married in Tennessee and it lined up perfectly with my vacation week. So it was decided, Nashville here we come! Not wanting to spend a whole week in Nashville we decided to split our trip and visit Houston, Texas first to see another friend on our way.

First stop Houston. Not wanting to stay directly downtown we chose to stay in the Montrose neighborhood. We were walking distance from some cute restaurants and walked over to Empire Cafe every morning for breakfast, delish!

Our first day we headed over to the Space Center Houston so the husband could get his nerd on. Then we stopped by the Biscuit Wall art to snap some photos which happened to be down the street from where we were staying. For dinner we headed to The Pit Room. This place boasts about its handcrafted bbq. We ordered the ribs and brisket with sides of macaroni salad and potato salad. We chose a few different bbq sauces to dip the meats into which was a neat aspect. For dessert we headed to Amy’s Ice creams a popular choice in Texas.

Our second day we took the 3 hour drive to Waco Texas. Yes I made my husband drive me all the way to Waco to see the Silos, he’s a keeper. It was a dream come true! We got their an hour after opening on a week day and it wasn’t too crowded. On the grounds you can visit their bakery which has pastries and cupcakes. The cupcakes were okay, they didn’t blow me away. At lunch the food trucks begin to arrive and that is when the crowds start to grow. We grabbed some food and sat down at the picnic tables. On the grounds there is really not much to see it doesn’t take long. We checked out the grass area, looked around the garden shop and went through the store which gets very crowded so be prepared. 

Next it was off to Nashville!

We decided to stay in Franklin, Tennessee. Franklin has such a cute downtown and some great history. We rented an Airbnb that was a 5 min drive from the downtown area. For dinner our first night we went to 55 South. We shared the jambalaya and mahi-mahi and of course a brownie sundae. The restaurant was very nice and the food was great.

After a good nights sleep it was time to explore. We started our morning at Frothy Monkey. This was an old house that they turned into a coffee shop, how hip! Apparently this is the go to place in town for coffee and breakfast because every morning there was a line. But don’t be intimidated there is plenty of seating in this big house. You order at the counter and wait for food to be delivered to your table. One night we hit up Sweet CeCe’s which has ice cream, fro yo, and baked goods. Pro tip: ask for your cookie to be warmed up! Love a place that will warm up my pastries.

Tennessee has a lot of awesome history from the civil war era and many old historic places to visit. We decided to visit Belle Meade Plantation since it also has a winery. We chose the 90min tour which includes a tour of their house room by room and explanation of the things from that time period. If you are 21+ then you can have a complimentary wine tasting after the tour tasting 4 wines from the Belle Meade Winery! We may have come home with a few bottles.

Next we hit up the 12South district. We had lunch at Edley’s Bar-B-Que and had these amazing brisket tacos! And you know they must be good when it says on the menu “until sold out”. Get there early people! All along the downtown area you can find a lot of the famous wall art/murals as well. Check out my Wall Art post for more info.

Then it was time to check out the main strip of Nashville on Broadway. Growing up we hit up the Vegas strip, this seemed like the smaller country version of the Vegas strip. There were lots of rooftop bars, cowboy boots and country music was blasting. We started off at Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row Nashville. Got some drinks on the rooftop bar and enjoyed the views along “the strip”. Next we got hungry and decided to try the famous Martins BBQ downtown. We got the BBQ pulled pork and brisket sami’s which were bomb! At each table is their signature sauce which is a different style then we were used to with its watery vinegar base. Once you stand in the long line and order you take your number and find a seat. We headed upstairs where the band was to play and sat at a booth whose seats were from old cars. Upstairs they have two bars, and some darts which you can play. PRO TIP: enter in the back where the band plays off of Almond street, head in and order at the bar straight ahead. You will skip the long line out front and can start getting seats close to the band. We then went to hit the bars once more with food in our bellies. The husband wanted to go to HQ Beercade which is a bar and arcade. They have all the classic video games you grew up playing, very fun place to check out.

A part in Nashville we came across was the Parthenon park. This is a replica of the Parthenon from Europe. This park can get very busy and parking can be difficult. If you don’t want to drive in circles trying to find a close spot you can head down 28th ave north and park near the signs saying Police complex and park on the upper level above the sign. The park is big with plenty of space to walk around the Parthenon, the lake and the grass.

Wanting to see all we could we hit up the Carnton Plantation. This place has so much history with the Civil war as the Battle of Franklin occurred here. Something I found very authentic were the blood stains on the wood floors upstairs where they had treated wounded soldiers. Wanting to relax we then worked our way over to Arrington Vineyards for some wine and relaxation. The firefly rose was my favorite.

Our last night was my friends wedding and then we left the next morning to return back to reality. It was such a fast fun trip being able to see so much in such a short time! Until our next adventure.