Nashville 2k19

Last weekend, my former Nashville roommate Hanifah got married!! I spent the weekend in Nashville visiting with my other former Nashville roommates, Jim and Lisa (who was also my date to the wedding). 

Hanifah being escorted down the grassy aisle by her older brother

my best friend / former housemate / recent wedding date Lisa

aren't we adorable :) 

After I landed on Friday evening, Jim, Lisa, and I went to a newish popup restaurant in Nashville called Tailor. Back when I lived in Nashville, this chef and I were both on the board of Slow Food Middle Tennessee, so I was especially excited to check out his new foodie project.

The restaurant space was gorgeous,

The multicourse meal was served family-style: Servers brought out each course at the same time to all tables, and then the chef (Vivek Surti) would stand in the middle of the room and tell a story about how he developed the dish based on his rural Tennessee upbringing merged with the traditions of his Gujarati Indian family. 

Every course was excellent, and it was fun learning about how so many of the ingredients I might consider traditionally Southern could also be considered traditionally Indian. Here are few of the most picturesque dishes:

vegetarian Jingha with heirloom tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, serrano chile, and lots of cilantro

Bhinda Ni Kadhi (okra, yogurt soup, basmati rice)

Keri (mango, pistachio, honey, saffron)

On Saturday morning, I did a 12-mile run: from the Crowes' house in Hillsboro Village, to Shelby Bottoms Park, and back. Jim ran the (first) 2.7 miles to the river with me! After I got back and showered, the three of us went to my favorite Nashville bakery: Dozen. 

preferred place with preferred people

prime pastry with prime partners

best brunch with best buds

Then the three of us went to a cafe in Berry Hill that Lisa likes (called District Coffee) and did some coworking for a few hours. Then it was time for Lisa and me to get ready for Hanifah and Daniel's wedding! We ended up being stuck in traffic for a solid half-hour on the way out to Montgomery Bell State Park, where the wedding was held, so we missed most of the cocktail hour prior to the ceremony. But I had just enough time to snap this pic of the beautiful reception lodge:

each table held glass jars full of assorted wildflowers

The ceremony was held under a giant oak tree in the middle of a clearing:

Afterwards, there was a buffet dinner followed by some DJ-ed dancing. Hanifah seemed really happy, and I was happy for her. 

Hanifah with her ancient dachshund, Sadie.

On Sunday morning, Lisa and Jim skipped church to hang with me!! The three of us went on a short run down Belmont Road and ran past my childhood home on Ashwood on our way back to their house on 21st Ave S.

Then we ate this AMAZING tomato tart that Lisa made:

 

And then the three of us walked down to 12S so I could do a little souvenir shopping. After we returned back to the house, Lisa left for a board meeting and I did some journaling while Jim worked on his iPad (strange choice of device, amirite??).

Then my friend Caroline picked me up! Caroline is a farmer who was also on the Slow Food Middle Tennessee Board with Vivek and me. We tried to go to the Frist to see a Frida Kahlo exhibit, but the line was literally out the door so we decided to walk to the 21C hotel instead, where there is always a free rotating art exhibit in the hallways. A lot of the art in the hotel was super creepy (the theme being "supernatural,") but here is one of the more enjoyable pieces:

After our loop through the hotel, Caroline drove me to the airport and I was off, back to Chapel Hill.