The Southern Steak & Oyster — Restaurant in Nashville-Davidson

$475 to learn this lesson. I have never in my life had a more miserable meal anywhere. I will start by saying that I have eaten in this establishment 6 times now. This was not only the worst meal I’ve ever paid for, it was the absolute worst birthday meal I’ve ever eaten, and I’ve spent birthdays alone eating at Dennys. That’s pretty hard to beat.

First the hostess seemed out of sorts when I got there. She barely looked at us and kept whispering to the other host who seated us. Maybe they had some bad guests or were recovering from something that happened before my arrival. It made me feel like something was happening.

Once we were seated a young gentleman wearing a Gilligan hat (I know his name but he will always be Gilligan to us), dressed more like he was going to hang out with his friends than provide service in a $100+ per person restaurant. If professionalism starts with what you see, he’s not it. After getting our drink order, we discussed oysters. He pointed at the cheapest oysters and said “I would just order these because they are cheaper”… if I’ve chosen the Southern Steak and Oyster, I’m not looking for the cheapest. I expect some of the best food in the area. I live here, I’m not a tourist and I chose your establishment for my birthday meal. The warm beers were set before us, not even they could save us from what was to come. The oysters were seasoned with shattered shell. I took more out of my mouth than I put in it. Every bite was crunch and shell. My girlfriend quit eating them. It was as if an untrained person shucked them with a hammer. We stacked our appetizer plates to the side of the table, precariously on the edge, where they stayed. Suddenly out of the back, our steaks were slid in front of us. It wasn’t wait staff, just someone random out of the kitchen. All the other dirty plates, empty glasses and small plates were just left towering on the edge of the table. My girlfriend who worked many years in fine dining was visibly upset that there was barely room for anything on the table. Gilligan shows up and asks if we want more beers. To which I said “they were warm, can we just have a couple of old fashions”. Gilligan disappeared. I watched the girls dig into their filets. Cooked to perfection and they both appeared happy. I cut into my steak… first bite… scorched. Second bite… scorched. I have eaten steaks across the country for 50+ years. I have had blackened steaks, I have had black and blue steaks. This was neither, it was just burnt. Which made the rub taste like ash to the point that when I cut off the burnt portion and tried to eat the rest, it just tasted like scorch. It was cooked so fast and at such a high temperature that it was burned on the outside and raw in the middle. Not rare but actually still marbled raw. I have never in all my years not finished a steak. This was a first. I cut it into two big chunks to leave on the plate so it was obvious there was something wrong. I laid my knife and fork down and pushed the plate away from me while I watched the girls finish their food. Gilligan finally clears the stack of dirty plates on the side of the table. Which should have been done before food was sat in front of my family. Apologizes that the drinks took so long then leaves and comes back with our old fashions. The girls almost done with their food, mine pushed away from me. Gilligan looks me in the face and asks if I enjoyed the steak. I said “not at all” Gilligan looks me in the face and says “Nice!” When he walks away, my girlfriend looks at me and says “he didn’t hear you at all”… No he didn’t and that’s why he shouldn’t wait tables anywhere. When I made the reservation I was asked if I was dining for a special occasion. I chose Birthday. Why was that a question if the staff has no intention of making your celebration better? I have for years sent people to this establishment. I am embarrassed that I...

Rating: 5 stars (4.5 rounded up) We had a fantastic experience at The Southern Steak & Oyster during our trip to downtown Nashville. This place hits the sweet spot between upscale steakhouse and family-friendly comfort — delivering quality food, a diverse menu, and lively atmosphere without the $$$$ price tag.

Food: 5/5 Let’s start with the star: I ordered the Meatloaf — not your average diner dish. This was a Beef Tenderloin Meatloaf with Smoked Gouda Herb Grits, Maple Glazed Carrots, and Caramelized Onion Bacon Jam. The glaze, the creamy grits, and the slow-cooked carrots (which I never like) made it unforgettable.

The oysters? 5/5, even though I didn’t eat them. I chose this place thanks to ChatGPT for the best oyster spot with steak options and variety — and they delivered. My family devoured them. The shucker himself brought out a couple dozen and they were so good he even got tipped by my in-laws right at the table.

My dad had the Southern Burger — looked amazing, tasted even better. He’s a Five Guys guy, so the $19 price tag had him side-eyeing it (even though he wasn’t paying), but he loved it so much he saved half for a late-night snack strategy.

Three people in our party ordered the Belle (8oz Filet Mignon with red wine-balsamic glaze, chive whipped potatoes, grilled asparagus, portabella, and fried onions) — and those 8 ounces looked like 10. Beautifully plated and cooked perfectly.

Service: 4.5/5 The staff was patient, attentive, and handled our crew of 9 like pros. Shout out to the oyster shucker who personally delivered the goods. Our server was especially kind with my parents — my dad returned the gumbo because it was “too spicy” (it’s gumbo, not vanilla pudding, Dad) and my mom asked for gravy on a steak with a balsamic glaze drizzle. I was mortified, but our server handled it like a champ. Food arrived hot and timely. Props all around.

Atmosphere: 4.5/5 Gorgeous corner-window dining room with natural light pouring in. Our table had 9 people and we were comfortable and uncramped. It was a lovely way to cap off our last night in Nashville. The only hiccup was a brief sunbeam across the table — nothing major.

Parking Valet was a little confusing (you enter mid-block, valet is on the corner), but the attendant was super helpful and even handled the validation slip for us with some Matrix-level code punching.

Final Thoughts Would definitely return. The only thing I’d change? Expand the dessert menu — I was hoping for a good bread pudding or strawberry shortcake to close the meal. Still, 4.5 out of 5 easily rounds up to 5 stars....

The stars at this place are the cooks. Otherwise, a wholly disappointing experience. Read on.

We arrived about 20 minutes early for our dinner reservation and the host, who was friendly, invited us to the bar because he said they did not have a table ready. The restaurant was half empty.

At the bar, I ordered a whiskey and some oysters. The bar tender seemed to scoff when I ordered the blue points that were at the top of the list and the least expensive. 5 or 19 minutes after our reservation time, my wife went to see what was going on and the house seated us. We were told we needed to close the tab at the bar and could not send it to the table. Annoying.

At the table, we waited forever for the server. He finally came by and asked us if we wanted a drink. We explained we had been at the bar for about 45 minutes and were not interested in any more drinks. He went away and brought the cocktail menu. Again, we explained we were not drinking any more and wanted to order dinner.

It felt like the whole time they were trying to get us to order more to increase the bill for the visit.

The waiter took our order. Overall, he seemed like a nice guy, but either overworked or stoned. It took quite some time for the meal to arrive.

The meal was very good.

I had the filet and it came with these unbelievably lightly battered, very thin onion strands. The asparagus were perfect size and grilled just right. The chive whipped potatoes were light and airy. Perfecto!

My wife's spicey chicken salad was overflowing the plate and difficult to manage. There was too much dressing. The chicken itself was good. The brussel sprouts she ordered were good, but again, too much dressing. Get the dressing in the side.

Finally, in the bathroom, there were holes in the wall where framed photos once hung. An example of the neglect this restaurant seems to be suffering.

We will not be recommending this place or...