loveless cafe

creamed corn is better than i've cream!

yes, yes, yes.. if you're looking for the definitive example of what southern cooking is, you found it. everything is fantastic, but if you're unsure what to get, i've got two life-changing words for you: country. ham.

worth the wait. i can't say enough good things about this place. great food. amazing staff. our waitress was literally the best waitress we've ever had. they really make you feel at home here. did i mention the food is amazing?

best biscuits period.

mmmmmm...biscuits.... i don't know how i missed all the hype over this place. perhaps it's because this isn't generally my kind of food or perhaps it's that i'm not exactly the president of the martha fan club. but, whatever the reason, it had not escaped the consciousness of the mrs. (who started talking about it weeks before our trip).

we arrived early on a saturday morning, but not early enough, so we had some time on our hands to explore the grounds. there's a lot of kitsch in this place. in fact, there's an entire "general store" devoted to the sale of it. but, for some reason, this is one of the rare places that it "works" so well, you almost don't notice it. in fact, i was quite comfortable relaxing in white high-back wooden rocker sipping my sweet tea on the patio while we waited to be seated. i didn't give much thought to the picture of it until afterwards.

the kitsch carries through inside, but again, in a non-eye-rolly sort of way. once seated, we were promptly served by a team of servers who did a phenomenal job dealing with our small kids, food allergies, and the like while in the middle of a breakfast rush. biscuits were set on the table as we were seated.

a quick word about the biscuits. yes, they're good. yes, they're worth the trip and the wait and they are as good as you've probably heard. in fact, if you're a biscuits and gravy person (which i am not), this is probably a place you should throw on your bucket list.

unfortunately, it would've been rude to show up and just munch on their complimentary biscuits and drink coffee, so i ordered my usual breakfast -- denver omelet, potatoes, bacon -- all of which were good, but none of which were great. i gathered later (as i probably should have guessed) that the fault here lies in the ordering. i should've stuck with one of the 1/2 dozen things they're "known for" (the mrs. and the rest of our party did, and they loved it). so, i'm taking the fall for this one. it's worth remembering that if you go. the omelets are decent, but if you're expecting it to put all other omelets to shame in the same manner the biscuits do, you'll be disappointed.

in the end, i think it lived up to my expectations and, with respect to the things people were raving about, it actually exceeded them, believe it or not. so, i do strongly recommend going when you're in town.

been twice. the first time, i thought it was great, especially the greens which were the best i had. the second time, we took my in-laws. thimblefuls of preserves for the biscuits and $11 for two pieces of fried chicken was a bit much. the kicker was the blackberry cobbler, which cost an extra $2.50 with ice cream. cobbler without ice cream is a normal thing? we won't be going back.


-----06 nov, 2011-----

best veggies. the loveless is what cracker barrel wants to be. their greens are the best i have ever had and the rest of the meal was definitely up there. they were a little miserly with the jams, giving each in a small paper cup like you would pump ketchup into. it's obviously become more touristy than when waylon used to come here, but you should still give it a shot.

food was plentiful. pork chops were tender, country ham yummy, fried green tomatoes, and veggies were all very good.

the bbq was awesome!. do not go to this place on the weekend!!! its about a 2 hour wait! that being said... the fried chicken was overpriced and no better than kfc, the biscuits were ok, not amazing but i will tell you when my mind was blown... their bbq is awesome!

not a tourist trap. when you move to a new area, sometimes the famous and most talked about restaurants are actually just tourist traps, so i never let my expectation get too high. i can safely say the loveless is not one of those. it is a country restaurant with delicious food and a lot of tourists :). i have tried the fried chicken, pork chop and salad. (can you tell i am repeat customer and i have only lived in the area a few months). all three were very good! the fried chicken is the best i have tried in the nashville area! way better than pucketts. the pork chop was suggested by a local. my husband and i were leery because pork chops can be too dry or too salty at country restaurants (looking at you cracker barrel). however, loveless pork chops are moist and perfectly seasoned. the biscuits are divine and quite addictive. some may have reservation about driving so far out of the way, but it is a beautiful drive and this way has yummy food. way worth it.

the only reason i give it 4 stars instead of 5 is because service is hit or miss. on our first visit, the waitress did not have that friendly southern attitude i appreciate in an establishment such a this one. not that she was out right rude but she was cold. also, not very attentive and my drink went dry a couple of times. if the food hadn't been so good we may not have come back again so soon. on my second visit our waitress was amazing and even sat down with us to helped us with the menu. she was very friendly and attentive. the third visit we had an average waitress. the hostesses are also hit or miss.

many people say this place is over hyped and the food is good not great. is the food the best i have ever had? no. is it good down home country food? yes. it is way better that cracker barrel (just using a popular chain as a comparison), there is only one location and it is in a beautiful setting. give them a shot, with an open mind. in my experience, having high expectations of any restaurant will leave you wanting.

good but not great. maybe i'm cynical but for all the hype and accolades in the brochure i thought this place would knock my socks off. needless to say my socks stayed on. not to be harsh but this place kind of feels like a glorified bob evans.

admittedly the biscuits were great. although not something i can't get anywhere else really. granted i only tried one dish so aside from the home made jams and biscuits they bring out nothing seemed extraordinary. i tried my wife's fried chicken. didn't really stand out from kfc or something of the like. i had a pulled pork bbq sandwich. once again rather underwhelming. nothing i couldn't get anywhere else.

the largest issue i've had with some of the area restaurants is they get built up to such iconic status that when i eat there it doesn't even come close. outside of bbq jack's no one really lived up to their hype and none really gave me what i'd call southern food or southern bbq. i have pretty good taste when it comes to food so i'm not trying to be harsh just didn't feel this really did anything that anywhere else couldn't do about equally as well.

again overhyped. skip this place and head to cracker barrel. the biscuits they have are nothing special and the breakfast is mediocre at best after having to wait 3 hours for a table.
it's a tourist trap, and not for locals...
if you want a good biscuit i recommend the nolensville tn feed mill on saturday mornings. they put loveless' biscuits to shame!!!!! no i do not work for them just love their food.
i will not return, but they still will get business from all the out of towners...

outside of my grandmother's home-cooked breakfast, could be the best we ever had. get there early on weekends to avoid a long wait. try the bbq dishes for breakfast- odd combo, but it works!!

this is our favorite spot.... had an incredible breakfast here the scratch biscuits are as good as everybody says. there were a ton of bikers there i suppose they were there to ride the trace and one particularly bizarre biker pulled up on a hot pink gold wing and a rebel flag helmet. he took his helmet off and threw it. it was an odd scene but our buzzer went off and we went in to eat. thought nothing else of it until the same man was seared in the dining room and then stood up and yelled, "howdy nashville, it's mark russell the choo choo train man and christmas is right around the corner and i need to know, who's got a summer sausage for my frosty holiday buns?" he the stands up and removes his camp pants to reveal santa faced boxers and he turned around to moon the entire restraunt and on the back of his boxers it said in big red letters, pirate love. he then pulled his pants back up and began to sing jingle bell rock as he payed his bill and left.

overrated...i tried this place for breakfast and was disappointed by the food & service. i gave it one more try and ate lunch there & once again, i was disappointed. i had better service the second time but i will not be going back.

love the biscuits!. everything we had was great but i literally crave these biscuits. i love them so much i go to the general store and buy a couple bags of the mix to take home with me to last me until we come back to nashville again. sooooo good!


-----13 nov, 2010-----

worth the wait!. i wasn't sure what to expect with all the hype about this place so i went in with no expectations. i was pleasantly surprised by the a lot of things. first of all, i am not a big biscuit fan but i couldn't put these biscuits down. a little butter and sorghum or preserves and you are in heaven! i reluctantly ordered the hashbrown casserole thinking it wouldn't compare to cracker barrel. omg - i only wish cracker barrel's casserole was this good! it was amazing! i got scrambled eggs with cheese and it was like a mini omelet. the greens were also very good too. fyi - the biscuits were so good that i went to the store and got a bag of biscuit mix with the hope that they taste just as good when i make them at home.