While it’s not uncommon to see a group of tourists to Nashville pushing a “borrowed” Publix shopping cart filled with White Claw up the hill to their Airbnb, visitors and locals alike need to actually lay in provisions for longer periods.
Fortunately, the city is blessed with a wide variety of grocery shopping options. “New Nashville” is filled with transplants, both international and from across the U.S., and each group brings a specific set of wants and needs when they move here.
Sorry, Californian expats, you won’t find Safeway in Music City. Heck, we just got wine in grocery stores within the past decade. Texans probably miss H-E-B as much as Northeasterners long for Wegmans. What we do have are plenty of smaller independent groceries as well as all the benefits of major chains like Publix and Kroger.
There may be choices to make along the way. Should you shop at the closest Kroger, but still make an extra stop for an eight-piece box of delicious fried chicken at Publix on the way home? Yes, you should.
Arm yourself with this list of some of Nashville’s most valuable markets the next time you go shopping.
#1
The Turnip Truck East Nashville
The Turnip Truck is the dean of Nashville farmer-focused grocery stores, founded in 2001 with three locations around the city. The spacious flagship store in East Nashville features a wide selection of natural, local and organic products, including personal care items and a nice offering of natural wines. Browse at hot and cold food bars and a juicery to save a little time and effort in your meal planning. The Turnip Truck’s owner raises his own grass-fed beef to sell at his stores, and beehives on top of the East Nashville location produce honey for sale and serve as pollinators for the surrounding neighborhood. 701 Woodland St.
#2
Brentwood Kroger
With more than a dozen stores within the city limits, Kroger has been the dominant chain in Nashville since the 1970s. The supermarket giant cemented its position in 2013 when it purchased Harris Teeter, the Charlotte-based grocery chain that teased Nashville with its excellent customer service and selection for a few years before folding in under the Kroger brand name. Kroger does many things the right way, and at larger locations like the 84,000-square-foot store in Brentwood, you’ll encounter well-stocked produce, meat and seafood sections as well as a wide selection of private brands. While the days of Kroger’s “Cost Cutter” brand of beer at $3.00 a six-pack are long past, they do support local brewers with a nice offering of craft beers. 210 Franklin Rd.
#3
Whole Foods Green Hills
The affluent neighborhood of Green Hills was the first part of Nashville to acquire a Whole Foods (as well as Trader Joe’s)—much to the indignation of other parts of town, which simply didn’t have the concentration of per capita income to trigger the chain’s complex and successful location-selection algorithm. When it first opened in 2007, the 48,000-square-foot store represented Whole Foods’ first foray into the Volunteer State. The lucky yoga pants-wearing shoppers of Green Hills now benefit from hot and cold food bars laden with alluring prepared foods, as well as a wide variety of organic products, and butcher and seafood counters that are filled with multifold choices. 4021 Hillsboro Pike
#4
Osborne’s Bi-Rite
Known almost universally as the Belmont Bi-Rite, this delightfully decrepit small family-owned grocery store has held its own against the big boys of the industry for decades. Neighbors nod greetings as they happily step around each other in the narrow aisles. Meat specials often revolve around volume purchases like special “Pick 5 for $25” deals—think pork chops, chicken parts, minute steaks—but they’re a great way to plan for a big cookout.
The real attraction is the deli counter tucked in the back corner of the store that operates more like a traditional Nashville “meat and three” restaurant than a deli. A rotating menu of classic Southern specialties like baked chicken, meatloaf with red sauce, fried catfish, and a host of down-home side dishes are so beloved that frequent customers plan their weekly calendar around stopping in to pick up a styrofoam clamshell filled with Bi-Rite goodness for lunch. 3116 Belmont Blvd.
#5
Publix at Capitol View
Publix has a lot to offer, from the “Pub Subs” that have earned legions of loyal fans to the aforementioned fried chicken. The delectable birds are prepared fresh in-house—brined, double-breaded, and seasoned with just enough salt and pepper. Needless to say, the Florida-based chain was a welcome addition to the market, especially for Nashvillians who had been spoiled by shopping there during vacations on the Florida Gulf Coast over the years. This particular Publix location is notable as the first major grocery store to move into the urban core and take advantage of the residential boom downtown. Although it is a little more cramped inside than most Publix stores, the fact that it has an attached garage with copious free parking makes it rare as hen’s teeth. 1010 Dr Martin L King Jr Blvd.
Nashville has plenty of markets to pick up ingredients for Latin American or Asian cuisine, but no place serves the Eastern European community like Aleksey’s. Its cases are filled with dozens of varieties of exotic imported cheeses, cured meats, specialty seafood products, and fresh-baked German breads. In addition to prepared foods, customers can stock their larders with staples such as spices, condiments, and grains. They also maintain a rental library of Russian books and movies for an evening of international entertainment. 718 Thompson Ln.
#7
Trader Joe’s Belle Meade
While the city’s first TJ’s opened in Green Hills, that parking lot can turn into a demolition derby at any time of day. So, many fans make the extra drive out to Lion’s Head to scout out the deals offered by the Hawaiian shirt-clad staff at the Belle Meade Trader Joe’s. Nashvillians had long heard the legends of Two-Buck Chuck, 19-cent bananas, Unexpected Cheddar, and those dark chocolate peanut butter cups, so the lines on opening day in Green Hills back in 2008 literally stretched all the way back to the interstate where they blocked the off-ramp. Those patient souls who persisted were rewarded with cultishly cheerful customer service, enough interesting frozen specialty food options to warrant buying a chest freezer, and impulse buys at the checkout certain to run the bill up a bit before leaving. 90 White Bridge Rd.
#8
Aldi East Nashville
While East Nashvillians continue waiting for that Trader Joe’s that they clamor for on neighborhood Facebook pages, many of them have turned to TJ’s corporate cousin, Aldi, for food deals. Curious if a resident is an Aldi shopper? Ask if he or she has a quarter, because you always need to have one on-hand in order to unlock a shopping cart at the store. Aldi’s German roots mean shoppers can find great deals on many products sourced from Europe, including cheese, wine, and chocolate. And really, what else do you need? 615 Gallatin Ave.
#9
K&S World Market
With two locations on the south and west sides of downtown, K&S is the go-to market for shoppers seeking a wide range of international food and ingredients. The massive store’s produce section offers more options of greens than any other store in town, answering the question, “Wait, there’s more than one type of cabbage?” The seafood counter displays multiple species of fish that aren’t just the usual farm-raised salmon, and the prices for live crabs and lobster are exceptional. The meat market offers all sorts of different cuts of beef, pork, and poultry, plus offal options. Where else in Nashville could you find all the parts to sew together your own “Frankenchicken?” 4225 Nolensville Pike
#10
Interasian Market & Deli
While it’s not the largest Asian market in town, InterAsian is well-stocked with staples and specialty products including unusual snack items that have to be—and should be—tried to appreciate. Don’t knock prawn crackers until you’ve tried them! Patrons can break free of the same old, same old produce options offered at most supermarkets by experimenting with delicious varieties of fruits and vegetables like red bananas or won bok cabbage. Definitely stop by the small deli at the front of the store—home to one of the most beloved bánh mì in town! The weekends-only special features roast pork belly, pâté, and char siu, with vegetables served on a crunchy, chewy, toasted French baguette. 2160 Nolensville Pike
The Post states, “The effects of a tumultuous 2020 were still evident in 2021. Now, the region’s business, political and civic leaders are helping bring their organizations into a new era. Those on it embody what it means to be ‘in charge,’ and it will be up to them to make sure the city and state continue their collective forward trajectory.
John Dyke —Owner, The Turnip Truck: Always-pleasant natural foods advocate who in 2020 opened a grocery on Charlotte Avenue in West Nashville to supplement his Gulch and east side stores, the latter of which began operations in early 2001.”
When it comes to shopping for food, everyone has non-negotiables. Now is the time for customers to consider their sources and build relationships with brands they can trust.
Grocery shopping is not what it used to be, and that’s a problem for us all. The long-gone days of a city filled with fully stocked-and-staffed supermarkets now seem like a pre-COVID dream.
Unfortunately, the challenges are not straightforward. They require commitment by grocers, day in and day out. For my team at Turnip Truck’s three in-town grocery stores, that has looked like taking care of and retaining our team, doubling our warehouse inventory to keep shelves full, relying on local farmers and suppliers, and trusting our diversified vendor base to deliver the products we need when we need them.
These nimble moves would not be possible were we not an independently owned, local business. However, I believe mission-minded businesses of all shapes and sizes can do right by their customers if that is a core value.
As Nashville’s local grocer, I am on a mission to keep the shelves full and the service friendly for my neighbors. While there’s no magic formula to take us back to the days before shipping delays, I do have a question for savvy shoppers.
Can you trust your grocer?
Before COVID shutdowns, sanitizing sprees, quarantines and supply shortages, it was easy to take for granted that grocers would have the items shoppers needed without fail. Fast forward through the pandemic and its accompanying calamities, and it’s a whole new world. Americans have had a wake-up call to the grocer’s central role in the food-supply chain.
When it comes to shopping for food, everyone has non-negotiables. At Turnip Truck, that means offering top-notch service and healthy products our customers can trust. Every person shares a need for fresh, clean food to fuel their life. No matter your budget, zip code or grocery list, you deserve consistent access to quality food.
Now is the time for customers to consider their sources and build relationships with brands they can trust. The last two years have taught us many hard lessons and reminded us that norms can change. We can all do our part in making sure those norms change for the better, not a lowering of standards.
Never in our lifetimes have trustworthy relationships mattered more. If your retailer is letting you down, I encourage you to shop around. While every business in our sector is facing challenges, you deserve to shop with those who operate with customers’ well-being in mind.
John Dyke is the founder and CEO of Nashville’s only full service, locally owned natural foods grocer, the Turnip Truck.
Nashville’s local grocer taps Clausi for new leadership post
NASHVILLE,Tenn. – Turnip Truck, Nashville’s local grocer, has expanded its executive team by creating the position of Chief Human Resources Officer and hiring veteran HR and law enforcement leader Christopher Clausi to fill the role.
In the new post, Clausi will direct all employee relations and company culture initiatives for Turnip Truck’s three locations in the heart of Nashville. Founded 20 years ago in East Nashville by owner/CEO John Dyke, Turnip Truck connects Music City with the best local, natural and organic foods available. The company employs 150 local workers.
“My role is ensuring that Turnip Truck takes care of our employees so they can take care of our customers,” Clausi said. “I couldn’t be happier to join such a conscientious team of mission-minded people.”
A retired police lieutenant with 23 years of experience, Clausi most recently served as assistant director of the Metropolitan Nashville Community Oversight Board. For nearly two decades, he has served as a presenter, facilitator and consultant for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals. Clausi earned his J.D. degree from Nashville School of Law and holds a B.S. in management and ethics from Williamson College.
“Turnip Truck is fortunate to have a leader like Chris on board as our first CHRO, a role that will be pivotal to the growth of our company and culture,” Dyke said.