Meat and Three

Name: Swett’s Restaurant

Location: Nashville,TN

Meal: Fried Chicken, Mac and Cheese, Flat Beans, Corn Bread, and Sweet Tea

Type: Cafeteria

Swett’s is a Nashville institution, it is also a cafeteria. Throughout Nashville, lunch is best defined as a meat plus three meaning you choose a meat and pick your sides. As you walk down the cafeteria line in Swett’s you certainly have lots of great choices in what to match your food with. Swett’s specializes in what the outside world calls “soul food”, what is great about Swett’s is that they simply call it lunch.

The fried chicken was good, well seasoned, a crispy skin, and overall softness to translates to great being very moist. When I travel around I will almost always try a restaurant’s macaroni and cheese if it has even a chance of being homemade. Swett’s is indeed homemade, everything they serve is. I wish I could say the macaroni and cheese was a real winner but it wasn’t. Don’t get me wrong it was good but a little watery, I prefer a little gooey-cheesey-stringiness in my mac and cheese. The beans are wonderful, well cooked yet still firm enough, plus they use ham (probably a ham hock) so the beans wind up with some delicious flavor cooked in. The cornbread in Tennessee isn’t like cornbread I’ve had before. More traditional cornbread is made in a baking pan, this cornbread is made on a skillet like a pancake. Regardless of regional differences the fact remains that Swett’s is a great meal. Family run today and the since the day they opened their doors I encourage you to make your way east Nashville and take in a slice of Swett’s wonderful southern hospitality.

Half Chicken - Medium Heat

Name: Prince’s Hot Chicken

Location: Nashville, TN

Meal: Hot Half Chicken and 2 Sweet Teas

Type: Chicken Joint

Nashville is a great city to visit; you’ve got history, culture, country music, and great food.  Lots of great food. The great regional food of Nashville is hot chicken.  Fried chicken with the heat cooked right into, not added later like buffalo wings or sauced chicken. Most every one agrees that in Nashville the best hot chicken can be found on the north-side of town at Prince’s Hot Chicken. Located in a run down strip mall you might easily miss Prince’s, there is not big sign proclaiming, “Stop Here for Great Chicken,” no there is no sign just look for the throng of cars. Prince’s seems to always be busy.

As best I’ve come to understand, Prince’s is a pan fried chicken. Being pan fried it means two things in particular; it gets lots of attention of the cooks and it can take a long time.  Other reviewer comment on the long waits they’ve encountered (over an hour) but many of my experiences seem to be atypical so it was all of 10 minutes from order to eat. The chicken comes served on a four pieces of white bread; its purpose is to  sop up some of the grease / cool the heat down. While the heat is partially cooked into the chicken, they take it a step further and sprinkle more spice over the cooked chicken.  I ordered my chicken medium and it was plenty hot for me; I like heat but nothing excessive and Prince’s medium was plenty hot enough for me.  Taste aside, one of the best things about Prince’s Chicken is the texture, it has perfect fried chicken crunch and still super moist; clearly they know what they’re doing.

When you’re in Nashville, of course you have to visit the honky-tonk bars on Broadway but take the trip up the road for some Prince’s Hot Chicken. Prince’s keeps their menu small because they focus their energy on doing their chicken so well. In addition to getting some amazing chicken you’ll have the opportunity to experience a Nashville institution.

Prince's Hot Chicken