Best of Belmont Blvd: Where Locals Actually Eat, Walk, and Spend Saturdays

Belmont Blvd doesn't have its own commercial strip. What it has is geography — it's wedged between 12 South, Hillsboro Village, and the Belmont campus, so the whole daily-life story is borrowed from the neighbors. I used to think that was a knock on the place. Then I spent a year eating my way through three corridors a resident can reach without ever getting on the interstate, and I came around. The street is quiet. The food is not. Here's where people actually eat.

One housekeeping note before we start, because I got it wrong for years myself: the single best restaurant for this neighborhood is sitting right on Belmont Blvd, not off in some other part of town. We'll get to it first.

If You're Moving Here From Out of State

Here's the lay of the land. Belmont Blvd is a leafy residential street between two of Nashville's most-walked commercial corridors. To the east is 12 South — a tight, popular stretch of 12th Avenue South packed with restaurants, a taco bar, an ice cream line that wraps the block, and a park at the end of it. To the west and north is Hillsboro Village, an older, college-adjacent pocket with a pancake institution and a couple of all-day cafes. And Belmont University sits in the middle of it all. The character of the food here is casual-but-serious: farm-to-table burgers, a Michelin-recommended Thai spot, scratch coffee roasters, and dessert you'll plan a walk around. You will not find a fussy tasting menu on every block. You will find a lot of places that quietly do one or two things extremely well. Bring comfortable shoes — most of this is walkable, and parking on a Saturday is its own small adventure.

Where to Eat

International Market (IM2) — the one that's actually on Belmont Blvd

Start here, because this is the most on-neighborhood restaurant on the whole list — 2013 Belmont Blvd, right across from campus. The original International Market opened in 1975 and fed Belmont students cheap, excellent Thai food for about forty-five years before siblings Anna and Arnold Myint reopened it as IM2 across the street in 2021. In November 2025 it landed on the MICHELIN Guide's inaugural America South Recommended list, which is a fancy way of saying the thing the students already knew.

Lunch is the original move: a fast steam-table line where you point at curries and fried rice and eat cafeteria-style for not much money. Dinner is full-service and where it really opens up. Order the smoked beef curry — deep and a little smoky, the kind of dish you keep thinking about on the drive home — the Thai fried chicken, and the spicy lamb dan dan noodles, which arrive with the good kind of numbing heat. The crab and shrimp dumplings are a worthy start. It is the rare spot that is both the cheapest lunch in the neighborhood and a destination dinner, and it's a four-minute walk from half of Belmont Blvd.

Epice — Lebanese, and worth the short walk

A genuinely charming Lebanese bistro at 2902 12th Ave S that the old version of this article left out entirely, which was a mistake I'd like to quietly fix. The lamb shank is the headliner — slow-cooked to the point where you stop needing a knife — and the chicken tawook (a marinated, char-grilled kebab) is the thing regulars order without looking at the menu. The hummus is smooth, properly garlicky, and made for tearing bread into. Weekend brunch adds shakshuka, eggs poached in a spiced tomato pepper sauce, and the 'beyrouti tacos,' which are exactly as fun as they sound. There's a real cocktail and Mediterranean wine list at the bar, they make their own cheeses and spreads, and reservations are a good idea. Closed Mondays — write that one down.

Burger Up — the farm-to-table burger

A 12 South staple since 2010, at 2901 12th Ave S, with beef from Porter Road Butcher up the road. The signature is the Woodstock: bacon, white cheddar, and a Jack Daniel's maple ketchup that has no business being as good as it is — sweet, smoky, a little boozy, and the reason you'll consider ordering a second. The truffle fries are not optional; get them. Start with the fried mac and cheese bites if you're feeling reckless. Vegetarians order the Troyathlon black-bean burger and don't feel like they got the consolation prize. It's a clean, well-run room that does one thing on purpose.

Bartaco — tacos on the patio

Beachy, whitewashed, and almost always busy, at 2526 12th Ave S since 2015. The tacos come small, on palm-sized corn tortillas, which is the whole trick — you order four or five and build a meal. The pork belly is the single most-ordered item for a reason: rich, crispy-edged, a little sweet. The crispy rock shrimp and the baja fish are the other two to get; falafel and cauliflower handle the vegetarians fairly. Add guacamole and chips and the grilled street corn, get a craft cocktail, and sit outside. It's casual food done with more care than the vibe lets on.

Edley's Bar-B-Que — Nashville-style smoke

At 2706 12th Ave S, and an embarrassing thing to have left off a best-of list this long. The order to know is the Tuck Special: brisket, spicy pimiento cheese, an over-easy egg, pickles, and both the red and white sauces, all stacked into one sandwich that should not work and absolutely does — the runny yolk is the move. The USDA Prime brisket gets smoked ten-plus hours and is the meat to get on its own if you're a purist. Share the BBQ nachos. And order the frozen Bushwacker, which is basically a boozy milkshake in a cup and the most Nashville thing on this list.

Mafiaoza's — the weeknight pizza-and-pub

This is the answer to 'where do people actually go on a Tuesday' — a relaxed pizzeria and pub at 2400 12th Ave S that's been the unfussy neighborhood hang for years. 'The Informant' is the standout pie; the Margherita with house-made mozzarella is the classic if you want to keep it simple; the Al Capone deep dish is for when you came hungry. Get the toasted ravioli sticks to start. Tuesdays bring 2-for-1 slices and drinks, which is exactly the kind of low-stakes reason to leave the house this place is good for. Closed Mondays.

Sunflower Cafe — the plant-based pick (note: it's in South Nashville)

Quick correction from older versions of this list, which parked it in Hillsboro Village: Sunflower Cafe is actually at 2834 Azalea Place, tucked behind the Iris Motel in South Nashville — a short drive, not a walk. It's South Nashville's all-vegetarian and vegan go-to, and you don't have to be a vegetarian to get it. The gourmet veggie burgers and the vegan barbecue are the signatures; the Tofu TLT is the one regulars keep recommending. There are around twenty vegan and gluten-free sides, plus soy-free and oil-free options, so it handles real dietary needs without making it a whole thing. Closed Sundays.

Coffee

Bongo Java — the closest, and the original

If you want the nearest real coffee to Belmont Blvd, this is it: 2007 Belmont Blvd, directly across from the university. It's Nashville's original independent coffeehouse, open since 1993, and the flagship of Bongo Roasting Co. — organic, fair-trade beans roasted in-house. Order the Local Latte, espresso with local honey and cinnamon, which is the house signature and somehow tastes like the inside of a cinnamon roll without being sweet about it. For food, the Egg McBongo breakfast sandwich and the actual cinnamon roll are the regulars' picks, and there are gluten-free pastries. It's the kind of place where the regulars have unofficial assigned seats and nobody acknowledges this out loud.

Fido — coffee that grew a full kitchen

A Hillsboro Village institution since 1996, a short walk from much of the Boulevard, and proof of what happens when a coffee roaster keeps adding to the food menu until the food becomes the point. The Nashville Scene has named it best for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — all three, which is a hard trick. The signature is the Local Burger: a lamb-and-beef patty with feta, crispy onions, fig aioli, and havarti on a house-made bun, and it's a better burger than a coffee shop has any right to serve. The Smoked BBQ Salmon Sandwich and the Village Scramble are the other regular orders. They pour Bongo Java coffee; get the Local Latte, or the cayenne-peppermint Pepperton if you're curious. It's open all day and it's busy for a reason.

Frothy Monkey — the sit-down, full-menu default

The original Frothy Monkey, opened in 2004 at 2509 12th Ave S — a scratch-made all-day cafe with a beer garden out back for later. This is the move when you want to sit down with a full menu rather than grab and go. Brunch order: the Loaded Biscuits with chorizo gravy, which is as heavy and satisfying as it reads, or the vanilla cinnamon French toast if you want to start sweet. To drink, the Havana Latte or the Monkey Mocha. It's a short drive or a long-ish walk depending which end of the Boulevard you start from, and it earns the trip.

Dessert

Five Daughters Bakery — the 100-Layer Donut

Family-owned at 1110 Caruthers Ave, and the whole reason to go is the 100-Layer Donut — a croissant-donut hybrid laminated over three days into something shatteringly flaky on the outside and tender in the middle. Start with the Vanilla Cream, which is the platonic version; the Maple is the other classic. There are monthly rotating flavors plus genuinely good paleo and gluten-free options, which is rare for a thing this indulgent. Open daily. Get there earlier than you think you need to.

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams — the post-stroll scoop

At 2312 12th Ave S, and the default end-of-the-night stop after a walk. The bestseller is Brambleberry Crisp — roasted-peanut and vanilla-marshmallow folded around oat pie crust — and it deserves the hype. Brown Butter Almond Brittle is the other one I'd fight you for; Darkest Chocolate, Salted Peanut Butter with Chocolate Flecks, and Salted Caramel round out the orders that never miss. The texture is dense and a little chewy in the best way. Open late on Fridays and Saturdays, till midnight, which is when ice cream tastes the best anyway.

Las Paletas — the cult popsicles

A genuine Nashville-only thing, in an unmarked storefront with a burgundy awning at 12th and Kirkwood, near Mafiaoza's. They make gourmet Mexican-style paletas with a daily-changing, seasonal lineup and no fixed menu, so the joy is partly in not knowing what you'll get. The adventurous ones locals love: avocado (creamy, barely sweet, weirdly perfect), hibiscus, pineapple-lime-chili-salt, rose, and chocolate with hot peppers. Cash or check only, open Tuesday through Saturday with hours that drift by season. If you only do one dessert on this list that you can't get anywhere else, do this one.

Drinks and a Nicer Dinner

Urban Grub — oysters, steak, and a real bar

When the occasion calls for sitting down and ordering a cocktail, this is the anchor the neighborhood needs — set inside a renovated carwash at 2506 12th Ave S, with stone fireplaces and a seafood-and-charcuterie bar. Start with fresh-shucked oysters at the raw bar. The double-cut pork chop and the dry-aged steaks are the mains to get, and do not skip the popovers — they arrive hot and steam-filled and disappear fast. It's casual fine-dining, which around here means you can show up nice without anyone making it weird. Open late on weekends, till 1am Friday and Saturday. Closed Mondays.

Worth the Walk on the Weekend

Pancake Pantry

A Nashville breakfast institution at 1796 21st Ave S in Hillsboro Village, open since 1961, walkable from most of the Boulevard. Twenty-three scratch-made pancake varieties; the locals point to the sweet potato pancakes and the banana bread pancakes topped with the house cinnamon cream, though the blueberry and the plain buttermilk are reliable greatness. The line is a Nashville landmark in its own right — 30 to 45 minutes on a weekend. Go on a weekday, get there at 6am when they open, or make your peace with the wait. They validate parking in the lot behind.

The Saturday Rhythm

1. Coffee at Bongo Java (closest) or Fido, with the Local Latte at either.
2. Belmont Boulevard walk — the architecture itself is the entertainment.
3. Lunch at International Market on Belmont Blvd, or a 12 South spot like Burger Up or Bartaco.
4. Afternoon at Sevier Park or a Belcourt Theatre matinee.
5. Dessert detour for a 100-Layer Donut at Five Daughters or a paleta at Las Paletas.
6. Dinner and a cocktail at Urban Grub, or weeknight-easy pizza at Mafiaoza's.

Recently Closed (So You Don't Drive to a Locked Door)

• •Josephine (2316 12th Ave S) — closed in early 2026 after roughly a decade. It was a 12 South favorite; it's no longer open, so don't plan around it.
• •The Silly Goose — closed years ago, and for the record it was never on 12 South. It was in East Nashville (1888 Eastland Ave). We're noting it because older neighborhood lists still send people looking for it.

What's Missing (Honestly)

• •Belmont Blvd itself has almost no commercial businesses — International Market and Bongo Java are the rare on-street exceptions. Most of the food is a walk or short drive into 12 South or Hillsboro Village.
• •A walkable full grocery. You'll drive to Whole Foods or Publix.
• •A late-night scene inside the neighborhood. For that, you're heading to 12 South or Midtown.
• •Reservations-required fine dining on the Boulevard itself. The nicest sit-down dinner is Urban Grub in 12 South, not on Belmont Blvd.

Quick Questions

What's the single best restaurant near Belmont Blvd?

For sheer relevance and quality, International Market (IM2) at 2013 Belmont Blvd — it's literally on the street and landed on MICHELIN's America South Recommended list in 2025. For a nicer sit-down dinner, Urban Grub in 12 South. Honestly, it depends on the night, which is the good kind of problem to have here.

Where's the best brunch?

Pancake Pantry in Hillsboro Village is the famous one — go early to beat the line. For something heartier and less of a wait, Frothy Monkey's Loaded Biscuits or Fido's Village Scramble. Epice does a strong weekend brunch too, with shakshuka.

Where do people go with kids?

Bartaco's small tacos and patio are easy with kids, Burger Up is reliably family-friendly, and Pancake Pantry is a kid magnet (just bring patience for the line). For dessert, Jeni's and Las Paletas are the crowd-pleasers.

What's the best coffee closest to Belmont Blvd?

Bongo Java at 2007 Belmont Blvd is the closest and the original — order the Local Latte. Fido in Hillsboro Village pours the same roaster's coffee and adds a full kitchen if you want food with it.

Where should I take someone for a special dinner?

Urban Grub for oysters, steak, and cocktails. Epice if you want something quieter and more interesting — the lamb shank and a Mediterranean wine. Both take reservations, and on a weekend you'll want them.

Read Next

• •Living in Belmont Blvd: An Honest Guide — what the day-to-day is actually like on the street.
• •Buying on Belmont Blvd: What Different Price Points Actually Get You — the honest breakdown of price bands and the old-home gotchas we walk every buyer through.