Cafe Monells on Bransford Ave (Nashville)

As I mentioned in my article - Marché Artisan Foods; when on vacation, Debarshi and I love getting up late and going to local places for brunch. During our recent trip to Nashville, we visited a cute little café on Bransford Ave - Monells. 

If I am remembering it correctly, we had an early dinner the previous night. Naturally, by the time we got up the next day and got ready, we were starving! We decided to go to a local café with great ratings. Now Monells (also sometimes written as Monell’s) have three locations in Nashville:

1. The original Monells is at 6th Ave North Nashville
2. The Manor is at Murfreesboro Pk and 
3. The Café Monells, where we went is at Bransford Ave. 

I think the first two serve unlimited buffet style breakfasts at their rather beautiful locations. I read on many travel websites that they have much more varieties of food and the setting is also very nice.

Café Monells is a somewhat rustic experience. It is set up in a small building though I did see on their Facebook page that they are renovating so fingers crossed! There were a lot of tables but the parking was limited. This gave me an impression that the place is frequented by many nearby locals who prefer to walk than drive. Whether you are dining in or taking out, the food will be served on Styrofoam plates (or boxes) with plastic utensils which is something I actually like. You see, I almost always have leftovers so they kind of helped me by giving the box straight away. Debarshi decided to go with a plate (because he can always pack his leftovers with mine). 

Their menu was exciting! They had a Weekend Country Breakfast which included: 

Smoked sausage, bacon, biscuits & gravy, country ham, fried apples, pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, cheese grits, skillet fried chicken, corn pudding and coffee (got this from their website). However, we were late! By the time we went there, breakfast was over and they were serving their regular menu. It was too bad that we missed this amazing breakfast because I really wanted to have some delicious pancakes. When the server told me, I got a little disappointed and then took a couple of seconds to choose something else. By this time the server got impatient (which was funny because there was no one else in the line behind me, did I tell you, the food is served in line – cafeteria style). So, I quickly got my order in and explained to the nice lady that we are tourists and this is our first time. This really paid off because their attitude changed at once. They talked with me and even recommended us to go the other Monell’s location.

Now let’s see what I ordered:

Ah! Seems like even in a hurry I made a really good choice. Monells is a meat and three sides restaurant. Plus, they also serve skillet fried chicken which is what I got with delicious sides of cornbread, corn pudding (which is beautifully sweet and sticky) and pineapple pudding. Seems like Debarshi also got the chicken with sides of mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes casserole (1st photo above). I have to say the portions were huge! I couldn’t finish even half of it. I brought the leftovers back to our hotel and ate them for the next two hours!

Bottom line, if you are in Nashville, this place is worth going. Also check out the following places:

• Marché Artisan Foods, Nashville (Tennessee)
• Martin’s Barbecue Joint (Nashville)
• M.L.Rose Craft Beer & Burgers, Nashville (TN)
• El Hornito Bakery, Nashville (TN)