Last week I had to go on a business trip to Nashville, TN. I’ll be honest, typically I would be extremely happy to be traveling. But when it is winter AND December, I prefer to stay home. Despite my reluctance, I had to go because of, well work. So, while I was packing my bag and reviewing my checklist, I realized I would be free for dinner one night and I had no plans. After a quick google search on recommended restaurants, Etch came up as highly recommended. I looked over the menu and saw a few items that I would like to try and then quickly booked a reservation for one via the app and made sure to book a seat at the Chef’s bar, where you could see into the kitchen; it was highly recommended in the reviews.
By the time work ended, I was tired and somewhat hangry. I secretly wished I could just go home where I could chill at home and watch Spy Family from the comforts of my couch. I ended up going to my hotel and catching up on emails and getting caught up on last minute items. Initially I was going to walk to the hotel, but I took a little too long and was running late to make my 5:30pm reservation, Uber to the rescue.
With a quick Uber ride, I made my reservation with 5 minutes to spare. The restaurant was a little dark when I first entered, but got lighter as I moved around. I checked in and was immediately led to my seat at the counter. I had the last seat off to the right, where the staff would enter/exit the kitchen and it was awesome! Like others I would highly recommend that if you are going to dine at Etch, that you too should book a seat at the counter because that is where all the action is. You get to see the food being prepared and served up ready to be taken to guests.
Within minutes of sitting, my waiter came over to give me the menu and take my drink order, which was just water. I reviewed the menu and I instantly honed in on the Pork Ribeye. According to the menu, the Pork Ribeye was served with couscous stuffed winter squash, charred onion, butternut puree, granola spice butter, apple marmalade, grapefruit, tangerine lace, frisée golden beet salad, oat crumble. I thought it all looked pretty interesting. When the waiter came back he reviewed the menu with me and agreed that the Pork Ribeye was an excellent choice. To accompany the pork, I also ordered a side of fried brussel sprouts with chili sauce, sesame crema, and crushed peanuts. Lastly, I ordered a hot tea, which I was extremely grateful for to help me warm up.
For the tea, they brought out a box for me to choose my tea packet. To my delight, they had Tea Forte, a brand I have had many times. I selected the Citrus Mint. While I waited for my food, they brought me a mug and the cutest tea pot with hot water. I instantly poured myself a cup of hot water and unwrapped my tea and dunked it in. The steam from my cup made me smile as I anticipated the taste of the tea. As I waited for my tea to steep, I watched the kitchen. The kitchen was a buzz with life, the kitchen staff busy at work but also finding time to chat with one another. To the wall closest to me was a shelf filled with kitchen items ie glass bowls but also cookbooks like Tartine and French Patisserie. Once the water in my mug changed colors I took a sip of my tea and I was not disappointed. It was a nice change of pace from drinking coffee in the am, and allowed me to relax.
Soon my food was brought out to me, first the glorious pork ribeye and then the brussel sprouts. The pork looked amazing. It had the pork on the bottom, which was nice and tender with a salty after taste. To the side of that was the apple marmalade and granola spice butter which tasted like a warm cinnamon apple pie. It was really good. The apple was shredded, and had a nice texture to it, it was cooked but had a little bite to it. The squash was soft and sweet and was paired with couscous and granola. The combo provided a nice texture and balanced the sweetness of the squash with a little bitterness from the granola. Everything on the plate complemented the pork nicely.
After sampling everything on my plate, I moved onto the fried Brussel sprouts which was nicely charred and had a perfect amount of chili sauce drizzled over it. At the bottom of the heap of Brussel sprouts was a sesame crema, which had a subtle flavor. And then on top of the of everything was crushed up peanuts which provided a nice change in texture. The sprouts were nice and crispy and tasted great by themselves but the pairing with the chili oil took it over the top. The chili oil almost had a sweet flavor to it similar to honey or balsamic vinegar. Regardless, I couldn’t get enough of it it.
Once dinner was finished I perused the dessert menu and selected the apple upside down cake. This dessert was amazing. It was not dense or sugary, but a perfect peace of moist apple cake with poached apples on top and the pumpkin apple butter at the bottom, again reminding me of warm apple pie with hints of cinnamon. On top of the cake was a pistachio tuile which reminded me of a very thin heath bar with chunks of pistachio. This provided a nice crunch and had the perfect hints of a buttery caramel. And lastly, the most surprising to me was the masala ice cream. The masala was very good. I wasn’t sure if I would like it, but the subtle spice of the masala matched the apple perfectly. When you combined each element into the same bite, the flavors complimented one another and the textures balanced.
Overall, I would highly recommend that if you are going to spend a few nights in Nashville, go ahead and reserve a seat at the Chef’s counter. I enjoyed everything I ate while dining there. The staff was extremely friendly and helpful and when you first sit down they ask if you have any time constraints. At the end of the night I was really happy I had stayed another night and got to dine here. It was a great experience.
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