Top of the Hill, Derby Party Middle Eastern and Coopers for Mother’s Day

Nashville Restaurants and Food
Top of the Hill, Derby Party Middle Eastern and Coopers for Mother’s Day

Pizza equal parts crispy and chewy, straight from a wood fired oven. House made salad dressings. And this can be found…now wait for it…in Joelton? Yeah, that was kinda our reaction as well. It’s a pretty cool development for the Joelton dining scene. We’ve been watching work on the location for the last few months. Top of the Hill is a new restaurant at the summit of Germantown Hill on Clarksville Highway, in what is actually Whites Creek by the map, but what most people would think of as Joelton. The owners took great care in the renovation and, as you might imagine from a restaurant started by a family in the masonry business, rock is a big part of the décor. The wrap-around bar is stone on the bottom and finished concrete up top. That wood fired oven is a thing of beauty in and of itself. Cedar planks finish off the airy space for an upscale sports bar type of look. We were surprised to find that some of the first pies served to the public came out of that oven spot-on. House made tomato sauce and exacting cooking make a difference. Fried pickles and fresh cut French fries were pretty decent as well. Even the house burger was good at a medium (they won’t do medium-rare, as with a growing number of joints around). We’ll keep checking back in to see how things progress and have a review down the road. It’s a beer bar and restaurant for now- we’re told liquor is in the works. General Manager Devin Roberts was making the rounds, welcoming everyone. He says they’re putting a big emphasis on making it a family joint. In Joelton that will mean a lot. Plenty of people head into town for dinner and a drink because the bars in Joelton are primarily watering holes (gruff and loveable watering holes).

Top of the Hill
5432 Clarksville Highway
Whites Creek
615-970-7729
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Derby Party

Veggie Eater: Nothing says Kentucky Derby Party like Middle Eastern food and Moscow Mules; at least that was my vision for this year’s wing ding. This idea was hatched during my first visit to Shish Kabob Restaurant several months ago. Following that visit, we made our way to Suvlav International Market next door and I found myself like a kid in the candy store wandering with wide-eyed wonder and wanting to try everything they had in the deli case. Our annual Kentucky Derby Party gave me the perfect opportunity to do just this. It also gave me another excuse to eat at Shish Kabob.

Accompanying me on this journey was my mom from Connecticut, in Nashville for a visit. As always, the meal starts with complimentary soup, feta, cilantro, and flat bread. Mom stated the Greek chicken soup was delightful, as was her lamb shank. My falafel was out of this world, again.

Next door, we literally bought every single version of feta available (Bulgarian, French, Turkish, and just plain feta) as well as each version of torshi (pickled veggies). The flat bread had just come out of the oven and was still warm. The helpful and attentive clerk (we had to keep letting her cash people out because our order just kept increasing) asked us, “Are you having some sort of an International party or something?” and I replied, “No, this is our version of a Kentucky Derby Party,” and she just giggled. Everyone at the party loved experimenting with the torshi (much of our friend base is ex-Wisconsin Cheeseheads and love all things pickled) and fetas. Least favorite feta: Turkish (dry, not much flavor). The favorite feta: Bulgarian (creamy, pungent). If you haven’t been to Shish Kabob Restaurant or Suvlav, you need to put it on your “To Do” list.

Cooper’s Brunch

We returned for the Cooper’s on Porter brunch last weekend and found it to be excellent, once again.

The occasion was Mother’s Day and Katie’s mom was digging her corned beef hash. I have to say the steak and eggs may be one of the best versions in town. A thick-cut steak comes out perfectly medium-rare, juicy and covered in melting truffle butter. Scrambled eggs are wonderfully creamy and the hash browns hit the spot. The Veggie Eater remarked that the egg and cheese sandwich was elevated by the thick, toasted wheat bread. Still no liquor available from what we can see. They offer a sake Bloody Mary and a Shandy (cider and orange juice) for brunch drinking needs. Head to the deck for sunny brunching or stay inside the dark, cool confines if you had a little bit too much to drink the night before.