Some cities have a way of demanding a second chance. And that was exactly the case with Montreal. My first trip was less city exploration and more an extended exercise in retail recovery, lost luggage will do that to you, which meant the city I’d heard so much about remained largely unvisited.
As a self-proclaimed Type A traveler, I’m the one with an icon-coded Google map, a meticulously organized itinerary, and at least three backup restaurants for every meal. So, spending an agenda-free afternoon in Paris felt like I was rebelling against my natural wiring. It was equal parts liberating and mildly terrifying—with a definite emphasis on terrifying.
There are a few weeks every summer when Nashville quietly becomes a better city, and it has nothing to do with a buzzy new restaurant or another honky-tonk opening on Lower Broadway. It's tomato season, that fleeting stretch when heirlooms arrive at farmers markets in shades of red, yellow, green, and purple, still warm from the field and tasting exactly as summer should.
In 2011, the Goldberg brothers, masterminds behind Strategic Hospitality, transformed the culinary scene in Nashville when they unveiled The Catbird Seat. Unlike any other restaurant in Music City, the Catbird Seat elevates the dining experience as guests gather around a twenty-two seat U-shaped bar and are entertained and enthralled by the stylings of the chef and his team.
Consider this my long-overdue return to this little corner of the internet. It’s been a few months since my last post, and in the time since, there have been new destinations, memorable meals, and plenty of stories that deserve their moment on the page.