The Bar Car — Restaurant in Nashville-Davidson

This is a beautiful bar in a beautiful location, but I had hundreds of bars to choose from and I came here specifically for the Conductors Hour special. I had read about this online and was very intrigued by the description of the train bell, and the announcement of a special drink with a bit of Nashville history thrown in. The website says this is done every evening at 6:30, so a friend and I went around 6. When I realized it was 7pm and nothing had happened yet, I asked the bartender about it - he was extremely nonchalant, and said "oh yeah, I guess it is past the time". He then told us there was no drink for the night, but that if we got another round of drinks he would honor the happy hour pricing. I then asked about the bell and he proceeded to walk over to it, and tap it as lightly as possible, almost mocking me and the fact that I was excited about it. At that point, we decided to leave and I received the check - $46 for 2 drinks! I think I was overcharged as my drink was listed as $16 and unless my friend's Old Fashioned was over $25, there was definitely a mistake made. I also feel like we should have received our drinks at the Conductors Hour special price due to the fact that we came out of the way for this and it never happened. I paid, we left, it was fine, but we were both very disappointed in the experience. Drinks were good, location was nice, but the bartender was full of himself and rude, and a big part of what was advertised online was...

Stand alone? Don’t bother. Connected to the hotel? Read on. This is supposed to be an Autograph collection hotel. Bearing in mind, I level set based on the “Drover” in Fort Worth for the Autograph collection. It’s Wednesday in “music city” and I couldn’t check in online for reasons that are still unclear to me. Still, I arrived about 1:30 PM (CDT) and the front desk was super busy. May in “Nash-vegas”, I get it. Rather than wait in line, I have a drink with Heather (bar tender) at the lobby bar. She’s personable, informative, and kind. Literally everything you want in a bartender. No food available because it’s neither lunch, nor dinner… fair enough. I get checked in easily enough. Front desk staff is pleasantly inquisitive and efficient. It’s Nashville so I wander around downtown before coming back for dinner… and it just goes badly from here. The bartender that doesn’t want a client at the bar, winds up waiting on me anyway. I ask for guidance on the menu and despite the reluctance I’m recommended toward a steak. Tough. Poorly prepared. Cold. On top of that? Undercooked broccolini and quite possibly the most bland mashed potatoes I’ve ever had. Do...

Stop in for a look at this historic railroad station and absolutely stay for a drink and an appetizer at the ERGO lobby bar. First, the atmosphere is incredible and unlike anything you could just build today. The history and character speaks for itself and the fact that they still have the old timetable boards from the railroad up complete with track signage makes if feel like you’re having a drink while waiting for your train to arrive on Track 14. The periodic clack of the vintage sign boards changing their messaging is absolutely nostalgic. Cocktails here are incredible and nicely elevated. We had the Hummingbird and the Wanderlust. Both excellent. We paired those with Crispy Brussel Sprout appetizer and I can’t say enough about how good those were. The mix of honey, peppers and cheese were all unexpected but perfect pairings. It’s was a great small lunch and a nice change of pace from the Broadway vibe. We got there on the Old Town Trolley which drops you off a few hundred feet away. Highly recommend and would visit again next time I’m...