Courtyard Nashville Vanderbilt/West End
1901 West End Avenue
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/bnawe-courtyard-nashville-vanderbilt-west-end/

We stayed at the Courtyard Nashville Vanderbilt/West End during this trip, which is a great location with easy access to Interstates 24, 40 & 65 and is close to Vanderbilt University and Children’s Medical Center.  The hotel is undergoing a renovation, so we weren’t able to see it in its full glory, but we look forward to returning when the project is over.

What we can say about the hotel is that it has one of the friendliest staff we have ever had the opportunity to work with.  They were incredibly helpful, especially the shuttle drivers.  The hotel’s complimentary shuttle had service within three miles of the hotel, which included Broadway Street.  Not only were the drivers always prompt (to get picked up, you called them and they were usually there within 10 minutes), but they were also full of information.  This was such a great service and highly recommended to any guests of the hotel.

We also tried out the breakfast at the hotel one morning and were very impressed.  Cooked to order eggs, bacon, sausage, oatmeal, coffee and more.  A perfect way to start our day before heading off to the conference!
For a hotel with a great location, excellent shuttle service and a top-notch staff, you can’t do better than Courtyard Nashville Vanderbilt.

Merchants
401 Broadway | (615) 254-1892
http://www.merchantsrestaurant.com/

If you’re looking for a wonderful restaurant located right by the Honky Tonks, make sure you check out Merchants.  Merchants Restaurant opened in 1988 in the old Merchant’s Hotel, which was constructed in 1892.  The original structure was a three-story building, which housed a pharmacy on the first floor, a hardware manufacturing company on the second floor and a wholesale drug company on third.  The restaurant occupies all three floors with a bistro (where we ate) on the first, fine dining on the second and events on the third.  We had a great table right by the window, which offered a view of Broadway Street, and our table was complete with white linen napkins and lit candle.

We started our meal with the most amazing iceberg wedge salad, which had huge chunks of bacon and a delicious homemade blue cheese dressing, and baked cheese, both of which our great waitress Megan recommended.  Our dinner consisted of the Blackened Tilapia (which came with roasted corn, sweet potato hash and chipotle aioli) and the 12 oz Ribeye (served with mashed potatoes, sautéed mushrooms and house M-57 sauce) and we finished off with the Whiskey Oatmeal Pie.  What really stood out to us, though, were the drinks.  Merchants has a large list of specialty cocktails, including the Clover Club (corsair gin, lemon, housemade raspberry syrup and egg white), Rocky Top Flip (our favorite drink: corsair pumpkin spice moonshine, allspice dram, licor 43, whole egg, simple syrup and heavy cream), Moscow Mule (a familiar drink to many, but made special here by their housemade ginger beer) and Brandy Alexander.

Merchants is highly recommended to those who are visiting Nashville and want a unique, impressive dining experience.

Amerigo
1920 West End Ave | www.Amerigo.net | (615) 320-1740

Only a block away from our hotel, we found the casual, energetic neighborhood Italian restaurant called Amerigo.  Serving a blend of traditional and modern Italian cuisine, Amerigo had a warm and inviting atmosphere with incredible service.  Our waitress, Ashley, was truly one of the best servers we’ve had the pleasure of dining with.  She did a perfect job of explaining the menu and making suggestions while still catering to all of our requests.

We started with the Cheese Fritters, which were featured in Bon Appetit and were blended cheeses, fried with tomato sauce and honey mustard.  Amazing!  We followed that up with the Tomato and Mozzarella Salad and then chose the Chicken Marsala and Ribeye for our entrée selections.  The ribeye really stood out for us as we come from a ranching background and know a good steak!

This was one was flavorful and huge and we couldn’t even finish half of it.  Amerigo’s also offers brick over pizzas, numerous pastas and a nice lunch menu as well.  Perfect for a quiet, relaxing dinner with your significant other or a group of friends!