Some places just have a story to tell. The Loveless Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee is one of them. The iconic restaurant on Highway 100 is known for its Southern cooking — in particular, the biscuits, fruit preserves, country ham, and red-eye gravy are all hits, according to Wikipedia. But do you know the whole story behind the Nashville area institution?
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When Did the Loveless Cafe Open?
According to the restaurant's website, the cafe was first opened by Lon and Annie Loveless in 1951. They initially only served chicken at picnic tables on their very own front porch. They set out to "serve fried chicken and biscuits to hungry travelers" and the endeavor took off so well that they ultimately converted their home into a restaurant and built a place to stay for guests with several motel rooms.
The couple named the establishment the Loveless Motel and Cafe and owned it for eight years before selling it to Cordell and Stella Maynard in 1959. In the early 70s, the business was sold to Charles and Donna McCabe, and after their son, George, became a full business partner, he expanded the services and created Loveless Motel and Cafe's "Hams & Jams" mail-order business and catalog. Yum!
The Nashville landmark is no longer a motel and is now under new ownership. Today, it operates as a market and shops, as well as a restaurant and event venue.
What Can You Eat at the Loveless Cafe?
The Loveless Cafe menu has a little bit of everything. There's a BBQ sandwich, a fried chicken salad with chicken tenders, fried green tomatoes, pork chops, and so much more delicious-looking fare on the supper menu. The pimento cheese and bacon burger looks particularly interesting to us.
On the breakfast menu, there are a lot of brunch favorites you'd expect of any restaurant with a bit of Southern flavor. You can get everything from hashbrown casserole to grits to a variety of omelets like one that features pulled pork.
The restaurant's website makes it sound like the hot biscuits are the way to go, however. Annie Loveless made the recipe from scratch and the celebrated dish is still made the same way today. Even in the time of COVID, you can order the biscuits to go and eat them safely at home.
If you've never visited the Loveless Cafe, isn't it time to add it to your travel bucket list?
