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Places to Visit

Where to drink in Nashville

Rooftops, honky-tonks, cocktail bars and happy hours, picked by locals.

Honky-tonk·Lower Broadway·Partner

Tootsie's Orchid Lounge

Google 4.4 (7.2k)Yelp 3.6 (1.3k)

Broadway honky-tonksLocals' vote winnerVisitor favorite

The purple honky-tonk on Broadway, with stages on several floors and a back door facing the Ryman's alley.

$$$$

Tropical bar·East Nashville

Coral Club

Google 4.8Yelp 4.5 (59)

Cocktail barsLocals' vote winner

A tropical-themed bar on Gallatin Avenue that readers voted Nashville's best happy hour in 2025.

$$$$

Cocktail bar·The Gulch

The Patterson House

Google 4.7 (1.5k)Yelp 4.4 (1.5k)

Cocktail barsNashville Scene pickLocals' favorite

The bar widely credited with starting Nashville's craft cocktail scene in 2009, now on the fifth floor of a new building on 8th Avenue South.

$$$$

Cocktail bar·East Nashville

The Fox Bar & Cocktail Club

Google 4.8 (531)Yelp 4.6 (229)

Cocktail barsNashville Scene pickLocals' favorite

An Art Deco-styled cocktail bar in Inglewood that makes big-format drinks for the table.

$$$$

Rooftop·The Gulch

L.A. Jackson

Google 4.5 (1.1k)Yelp 4.2 (361)

RooftopsLocals' vote winnerEater 38

The Thompson's rooftop: the skyline on one side, the Gulch on the other, and DJs on weekends.

$$$$

French wine bar·East Nashville

The Authentique

Google 4.9 (290)

Wine barsLocals' vote winner

A French-owned wine bar in a Gallatin Avenue strip mall, with flights, crêpes and weekend jazz. Readers voted its list the city's best in 2025.

Distillery·Marathon Village

Nelson's Green Brier Distillery

Google 4.8Yelp 4.8 (793)

Distilleries + whiskey

A working Tennessee whiskey distillery in Marathon Village with tours, a tasting bar and a restaurant. Weekday happy hour pours $7 Old Fashioneds.

$$$$

Wine bar + bakery·East Nashville

Butterlamp

Google 4.8Yelp 4.7 (35)

Wine barsNashville Scene pickLocals' vote winner

An East Nashville wine bar built around its own bread; the Scene's best new wine bar of 2025.

$$$$

Distillery·Downtown

Nashville Barrel Co.

Google 5.0 (2.2k)

Distilleries + whiskeyNashville Scene pickVisitor favorite

Steps from the Ryman, a whiskey tasting room pouring the Nashtucky single barrel. At the HQ, you can fill your own bottle.

LGBTQ+ bar·East Nashville

The Lipstick Lounge

Google 4.6 (627)

LGBTQ+ barsLocals' vote winner

Readers' favorite LGBTQ+ bar and karaoke bar two years running, on Woodland Street, with a Friday drag revue and a sports bar on site.

Whiskey bar·Germantown

Barrel Proof

Google 4.9 (198)

Distilleries + whiskeyLocals' favorite

More than 300 whiskeys, a bar built from old church pine and a dog-friendly patio in Germantown. The kitchen runs until 1 AM.

$$$$

Cocktail bar·East Nashville

Attaboy

Google 4.6 (1.1k)Yelp 4.2 (384)

Cocktail barsNashville Scene pickLocals' favorite

No menu: tell the bartender what you like and they build a drink around it.

$$$$

Hotel cocktail bar·SoBro / Downtown

Four Walls

Google 4.4 (77)

Cocktail barsNashville Scene pickLocals' favorite

Take the elevator to the floor marked with four lines for this hotel cocktail bar, named one of America's best by Esquire. Order a Negroni.

Drag brunch·Midtown

Suzy Wong's Drag'n Brunch

Google 4.5 (805)Yelp 3.5 (546)

LGBTQ+ barsLocals' vote winnerVisitor favorite

A two-hour drag brunch show on Church Street with three queens, shared starters and an entree.

$$$$

Honky-tonk + rooftop·Lower Broadway

Ole Red

Google 4.6 (14k)Yelp 3.7 (1.4k)

Broadway honky-tonksLocals' vote winnerVisitor favorite

Blake Shelton's multi-level bar and venue on Broadway, with a real stage and a rooftop readers voted best in town.

$$$$

Cocktail bar·West Nashville

Otto's Bar

Google 4.5

Cocktail barsLocals' vote winner

A converted auto garage on Charlotte Avenue that readers voted the city's best neighborhood bar. Order a $7 teeny martini on the patio.

$$$$

Circus-themed gin bar·East Nashville

Tiger Bar

Google 4.4 (274)

Cocktail barsLocals' vote winnerNashville Scene pick

Circus-themed and gin-focused, open Thursday to Saturday on Gallatin Pike. Get a G&T, a cotton-candy Negroni and the Flamin' Hot mozzarella sticks.

Karaoke dive·South Nashville

Santa's Pub

Google 4.6Yelp 4.2 (237)

Dives + karaokeLocals' favorite

A family-run karaoke dive in South Nashville, open Wednesday to Sunday until 3 AM. Beer only, cash only, no cussing on the mic.

$$$$
How we rank and check these places

Every place here was checked on Oct. 1, 2026: open, at that address, with hours from the venue or Google. Happy hours appear only when the venue itself posts them.

Four scores, one rank. Locals is what Nashvillians say (the Nashville Scene readers' poll, local writers, the neighborhood regulars). Visitors is what travelers love (review volume, travel guides). Critics counts Michelin, the James Beard Awards, Eater, The Infatuation and the Scene's own critics. Crowd rating blends Google and Yelp stars, weighted by how many people rated the place, so 4.8 from 40 reviews does not beat 4.6 from 9,000. Top picks weighs them together; the sort menu lets you lean on any one.

Editor's picks are our own calls and say so. Sponsored places are labeled and never lead a list. Ratings are a snapshot; they move. Photos are of the place itself and credited, or there is none.

Every place on our list, A to Z

Drink 101

Hours, deals and cover charges change, so check with the venue. "Reserve" links may earn us a commission. Sponsored spots are labeled.

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