It’s festival season! Sorry, let me clarify: It’s food festival season! Nashville foodies are gonna want to check out these events we have coming up in July.
🐔 Music City Hot Chicken Festival — July 4th
If you don’t have plans for the fourth of July yet, you do now. Make sure to wear some sunscreen and a floppy hat as you stand in the sunshine and sample some hot chicken and listen to local bands at the 18th annual Music City Hot Chicken Festival at East Park. It’s free to attend and all of your favorite hot chicken spots will be there starting at 11 a.m.
🔥 Some Hot Tips
- Check out the fire truck parade at 10:30 a.m. before the tasting begins.
- Since these are little pop-ups, the restaurants won’t have a full menu. They may be limited in terms of how hot you can get your chicken, or whether there are any sides available. Be flexible! Try something new.
- I’m very serious about wearing a floppy hat. There’s not a ton of shade and lines get long.
- Join the Amateur Cooking Competition if you think you can do it better than the pros!
🍔 Burger Week — July 8-14th
The Nashville Scene's Burger Week is upon us. A number of local restaurants will be serving up specialty $7 burgers, and you get to vote on your favorite one. Some burgers will be weird, some will be classic, and some will be weird and new classics. Give a new restaurant a try, or check out the specialty burger at your go-to spots. Personally, after chatting with Nashville Scene food writer Chris Chamberlain, I will be focusing on the variety of burgers featuring fruity flavors this year.
❤️🔥 More Hot Tips
- Make sure to get there early, because some spots may run out of burgers by the end of the day.
- Don’t forget to tip well — these folks are working hard to make hundreds of burgers this week.
- Consider takeout or delivery to avoid crowded restaurants.
- Check out the Foodies of Nashville Facebook group if you want to argue about the best burger online.
🍅 Tomat-O-Rama Festival — July 13th
Not to be confused with the Tomato Arts Festival — more of an abstract, artistic homage to tomatoes as a cultural staple — Tomat-O-Rama is your one-stop-shop for a tomato tasting experience. Try out some different varieties while they’re fresh in season as well as classic tomato-based foods at the Nashville Farmers’ Market on Saturday, July 13th, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
