Tuesday night was my girlfriend’s birthday, and her only request was that we try something new (also, the only reason we did not go to McNamara’s, which is where I always go for any reason). So, I did some digging, hit up Eater Nashville, where I should totally be the Editor, and I found a few places in East Nashville that I’d never heard her mention. I was going for that complete and utter surprise. Out of left field, you know?
It was a huge success. She didn’t see it coming at all.
And, for once, I was going to be a somewhat decent boyfriend and not make our date night about #content. But, we may or may not have received a free entree for no reason that made me turn to my girlfriend and say, “alright – we’re helping this place out.” Didn’t take photos of the place – literally just ripped the featured image from Google, and the pictures I’m sharing are from my girlfriend snapping photos of her food to send to her sister. So, here we are. I’m sharing my thoughts on Butcher and Bee off Main Street in East Nashville.
First off, the atmosphere was nice. Intentional or not, there’s a real NYC vibe in there. We didn’t get to sit at the patio, as we arrived at 7PM, and elected to forego the wait and sit at the chef’s counter. That was a pretty cool experience in and of itself. We were able to sit and see all of the dishes prepared, but that didn’t really help us narrow our choices down.
Ultimately, we decided on bacon wrapped dates and whipped feta dip to start, with scallops serving as our main dish.
I’m a sucker for bacon wrapped dates. So far, it’s one of the few places I’ve found in Nashville that does them, and they do them well. Sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and glazed in a pomegranate molasses, they were a sweet and savory appetizer that set the tone for a vibrant dining experience.
And, really – that’s the word I kept coming back to when describing the food itself. Vibrant.
We were talked into the whipped feta dip. The chef (I don’t know how restaurants work – can there only be one chef? Or, is whoever actively preparing food the chef?) told us it would be the one thing we tasted that we’d be thinking about coming back for once we got home. She wasn’t wrong. I probably would have bathed in the stuff if allowed. I wasn’t too enthused about the thought of feta cheese and honey, but the texture of whipped cheese is a perfect pair, and the crack blacked pepper added quite the pop.
I’m very rarely able to talk the ol’ ball and chain into seafood around here. We’re landlocked Tennessee, after all, and there’s no way we get fresh seafood here like we do in New Jersey…but, when the scallops came out, she was sold. They were hearty scallops, served on a bed of potato puree with a crunchy garlic topping. The flavor was immense and the texture was perfect.
That’s when we were handed a complementary serving of avocado crispy rice, which, in my opinion, stole the show. Was definitely try to sneak bites when my girlfriend wasn’t looking. Every bite seemed to have a unique flavor, and I loved the crispy texture.
Overall, I give it an 8.5/10, the highest official grade I’ve given something on a restaurant review we’ve done. This is the perfect spot for date night. I told my girlfriend after the meal, and I still believe it, the food itself can hang with Etch (my G.O.A.T. Nashville restaurant/gold standard) for a third of the price. I’m looking forward to going back at a time when we can enjoy the patio. It’ll need to cool off before we try that shit, though.
Food Photos
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Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Alabama Crimson Tide football, the WWE, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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