Jefferson’s Restaurant & Showcase

I moved to Nashville a year and a half ago to attend grad school at Vanderbilt. But way back last spring when I was considering schools, I came to Nashville for a visit. With my weekend tour coming to an end, I took up a friendly recommendation for some good olé’ southern food and wandered in my ugly rental car deep into downtown in search of some food. I quickly found myself lost, and upon seeing the sign for Jefferson’s, I thought I’d found my place.
The first thing that caught me off guard was that there was a valet service at the front. Shocked that a southern restaurant would have a valet, I surrendered my car and walked inside. The man at the counter, a pleasant African American gentleman, looked shocked… I don’t know why, but I surmise it had something to do with the fact that an Asian man had entered his restaurant on Sunday. A sly smile crept into his face and he said, «Why, hello there. Brunch… for one?»
I smiled back and said, «Yes. That’d be great.»
He told me it was buffet style and rang me up, and then asked, «Soooo…how did you hear about us?»
Me: «Oh well my friend at Vandy told me I needed to come here.»
Dude: «Great,» he said as he smirked. «Follow me.»
I walk inside and the room is packed with 100 folks all settling into sunday brunch. There is nary an Asian person in the room, and I am turning heads, left and right. In fact I’m the only non-​black person in the room. With a fat grin on my face, I ask one of the servers where the buffet is. He points me to the line. As I’m waiting in line, one elderly woman looks at me and «It’s your first time here, ain’t it?»
I respond, «Yes ma’am. But I’m no stranger to southern food.»
«Oh?» she asks.
«Yes ma’am. Back in San Francisco, I’ve definitely had my fair share of fried catfish, mac & cheese, and collard greens.»
She smiles and gently nods at me with approval, then proceeds to fill her plate. I load my plate up, making sure to get all the fixins, and then head to my table to begin my meal. Then all of a sudden music starts playing and people are singing all around me.
Remember, I’m a California kid. The only soul we have there compares not to the energy in this place. So I’m sitting there, humming and moving in rhythm as a gospel singer belts out a delightful song, cramming collard greens and cornbread into my mouth. About an hour later, my stomach well satiated, I get up, walk out and thank the man at the front counter for a delightful meal and drive off.
And that was my first experience with Nashville cuisine. One Asian man who entered a soul food restaurant on Soulful Sunday, and left with a full stomach, a big smile, and a mind full of soul.

I ate here one day and tried their lunch buffet. The atmosphere was cozy, service was quick and the waiter was attentive. The buffet was small and it had a decent variety of meats and veggies. I’d go again especially to dine in privacy at a soul gathering.