On our final morning in Gatlinburg, we lazed around in bed until we had to check out so we could milk every second of our Airbnb rental period. Then we hit the road and headed back west towards Nashville. We stopped at Aubrey's for brunch, where we both immensely enjoyed the tomato bisque.
The drive back was easy and we didn't hit any traffic.
For our last night of vacation, we stayed at the
Noelle, which is a super chic and cozy hotel in the main downtown area, right near the action of Broadway.
We rolled into town mid afternoon and knowing we had a fancy dinner reservation later, we didn't want to ruin our appetite so we shared a singular hot chicken sandwich at
Hattie B's and some pimento mac & cheese. It was a really tasty sandwich.
After our snack, we went back to the hotel to rest for a little while before going downstairs to the Hidden Bar for some pre-dinner drinks.
We also went to
Gertie's Whiskey Bar for one more drink before heading to dinner.
For dinner, we went to
Yolan where we had the five course tasting menu with wine pairing.
We were given bread to start and there were three kinds to choose from: a cacio e pepe gougere, rosemary sourdough, and a sesame stick. The butter was specially made and filled with a bespoke olive oil from Italy. The sourdough was the clear standout winner.
Before the tasting started, we were brought an amuse bouche, which consisted of crispy polenta cakes. They were delicious.
Course one was the "tonno tonnato" which was a raw tuna with grated bottarga. It was great; somehow light but still rich and super flavorful.
The second course was my favorite. It was a super decadent pasta course with white truffle. I want to try and recreate this at home.
Course three was a black cod. The skin was super crispy, the accompanying pickled vegetables added a brightness and acidity that helped offset the richness of the fish and the anchovy sauce had that unmistakable umami flavor that just gets your mouth watering.
For the last savory course, we had beef cheek with a really delicious demi-glace kind of saucing on it and a yummy carrot that had been drizzled with some kind of verdant pesto.
And then for our dessert, we had a little cake topped with a pavlova with some sweet foam and fermented apples. It satisfied the sweet tooth without being overly cloying.
And then as a closer, we were given these little hazelnut cookies. Both J and I thought they looked like butts with poop seeping out the cracks but they tasted nice.
After dinner, J wanted to go see some live music so we hit up a few different honky tonks. Country music is really not my scene but we ended up at a place where a band was going some covers that I found tolerable.
We woke up a bit hungover the next morning so we lazed around bed for extra long (with a courtesy late checkout from our hotel). We drove over to
Party Fowl for lunch and shared the hot chicken and cheddar. It was really good and something I'd like to eat again and again (which means I'll have to try and make it myself).
After lunch, we went to Centennial Park to ogle the Parthenon replica and to just hang out in a low-key setting.
We also walked around a bit of Vanderbilt's campus before heading to the airport to head home. Had we not been nursing hangovers, we might have had a slightly more productive day but to be honest, I think we spent our time well. It was a nice holiday with a good combination of nature, partying, yummy food, and city sights.
xoxo.
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