The 404 Kitchen

I decided to check out the 404 due to the acclaim and recommendations from local media and other diners.
Cool space in the Gulch. I paid for Valet parking then realized later that the 404 has free valet parking. Either way it is no big deal. could have saved myself a couple $$.
Be advised the dining space is small and intimate, but classy and cool. Our server was über-​knowledgeable about the menu and the wine list. Thanks for the great wine recommendation!
We tried four of the offerings, while two were good, the other two were outstanding. That is why four stars out of five.
First, the good…
The Burrata starter was good, no two ways about it. I thought it was just a touch on the tough side, but we polished it off quickly.
The Scallops entrée had a different flavor than we were expecting… the scallops were the smaller sized, not the divers that you might expect. They were well seared and the dish was savory with a great depth of flavor due to the bone marrow. It was more deep and savory than bright, and was good. Don’t know if I would order it again though.
The Outstanding…
The Rock Shrimp starter. Just excellent. Great sauce of butter, cauliflower and pesto, very fresh and rich, with a tang that kept me going back. Would definitely order again.
The Tile Fish entrée. Wow, what a fabulous dish. The broccoli was sauced with a lemony peppery butter and the fish was cooked absolutely perfectly. Just an outstanding piece of fish.
The sauces were out of this world on all the dishes.
Great job. We will return.

After reading wonderful reviews of 404, we taxied to «the Gulch» in anticipation of our meal. Unfortunately, we were thoroughly underwhelmed. Everything was okay. Nothing was good, bad, or memorable in any way. It was just okay. My cocktail was just okay. The service was just okay. The Burrata was just okay. The Foie Gras Porridge was just okay. The Bolognese Pasta was just okay. It was nice when the chef came over to the table, but mediocre is mediocre. What wasn’t okay was the bill. Spending over $ 200 for a meal that was forgotten a few minutes after we walked out is not okay. We don’t like okay. We want good. 404 Kitchen is an overpriced okay.

We had reservations for 9:45 but finished our prior engagement early, so we arrived shortly after 9 hoping to sit at the bar if our table was not available. When we entered, I saw two empty seats at the bar. When I told the hostess that we had reservations for 9:45, she informed me that they were at full capacity, and that it would be 9:45 before they could seat us. She saw me look at the empty seats at the bar and told me that a man was saving those seats for his friends. She then told me that due to the small space, they do not allow people to linger, so we could go to another restaurant nearby to wait.
Yep. She kicked us out in the 36 degree weather and invited us to go down the street.
While we were standing out front in the cold, looking through the window at the two empty seats at the bar, a cab driver pulled into the valet lane and picked up a fare from the restaurant. The man was trying to tell the cabbie where to take him. A guy who works with 404, who repeatedly referred to it as «my restaurant,» came out and yelled at the cab to move. When the cab didn’t move fast enough for him, the wanna be tough guy began to try to challenge the cab driver to a fight, cursing loudly and at one point leaning in through the cab’s passenger door window yelling «what the f* are you gonna do about it?»
It was unbelievably unprofessional to act that way in front of patrons.
The food may be the best in the city, but they won’t get a dime of my money after that little circus.

5 course pre fixe on NYE was out of this world good. If you’re looking for the best food in Nashville look no further.

Our family dined here in August 2015, and we all enjoyed the eclectic menu offerings. The food was quite well prepared, and I was happy to see that the restaurant served produce and meats from local farms. All dishes were truly tasty. I look forward to dining here again one day.

This is my second visit to the restaurant. I was hosting out of town guests and my husband and I were very excited to come here and i booked reservations 6 weeks in advance. Similar to our previous visit, the food and service were very good.
My one issue with our evening… we tried to order cocktails (specifically vodka martinis) prior to our meal. We were told by our server that they don’t serve vodka. We thought we misunderstood, but he clarified that the chef wants to steer guests to whiskey/​bourbon. Well, we didn’t want bourbon! I can understand not having 5 different vodka choices, but with a full bar you should have at least one vodka choice. We spent over $ 350 on a meal and we should be able to have our drink of choice. 4 drinks X $ 10 a pop adds $ 40 to the tab. 20% tip on that adds $ 8 to the waiter’s pocket. Hopefully they will reconsider. It just seemed a bit pretentious.

We arrived early and they sat us almost immediately. Our waitress was a character. She knew the menu inside and out. We had one of the best nights in a long time. The menu is very diverse, and has everything from rabbit to shark. The button mushrooms were fantastic and had this amazing sauce. I would recommend this place for an intimate dinner. The place is a little small but that’s kind of what makes it nice. Amazing meal for 2 for under a $ 100 is what you can expect. That’s with wine, which was very high quality. I recommend making a reservation.

I wanted to really like this place. Cool atmosphere and interesting menu. However, the execution is very average. Food was ordinary despite sounding unique on the menu. Not likely to return.

Anniversary Dinner! I went back and forth between 3 and 4 stars. 3 felt way too low but 4 feels generous. I’m going with the 4 because although a lot of our evening at 404 Kitchen was «A-​OK», nothing was bad enough to give 2 stars (creating a 3 star average) so we’re going with 4. Whew! Tiny place, we knew that going in… but just so a newbie knows… tiny place. So you kind of are on top of each other which doesn’t lend itself to a romantic date night atmosphere. We were able to hear everyone’s conversations, which is sometimes fun anyway. Also had a front row seat watching the couple who obviously hates each other chew in silence. However it also provides everyone an audience to your table (I’m looking at you, single woman at the bar… the one from The Bay Area who just cannot understand why Nashville is so popular. She kept turning around and watching us until we looked at her then she’d turn back around. Maybe she was bored, in which case… you’re welcome honey.)
The food… Burrata appetizer. There was a lot of hype about it so I expected to fall off my chair, but it was just good. Good is good enough.
My entrée… whole Sheepshead fish. I’d never had Sheepshead before (it really needs a new branding). It was delicious and they go to great pains to prepare it in such a way that it tasted like buttery goodness. The bones were there but not a horrible imposition by any means. Served with a succotash of field peas, corn and tomatoes. My dinner was very good. Hubby had the tri tip steak. It’s probably the least adventurous item on the menu. He deemed it «pretty good». I didn’t try it and it takes a lot for him to go much further for «pretty good.» Dessert was kind of a disappointment. I didn’t love the saffron ice cream and shortbread is shortbread. They do serve a mean cup of coffee and my husband enjoyed an E.H. Taylor bourbon that you don’t get everywhere.
The server was perfect, she described the offerings without sounding like she was reciting the alphabet and chatted us up when appropriate. They were packed and we never felt neglected. All in all, a 4 star evening at 404.

Another farm to table restaurant. Very small portions and even smaller drinks. The old fashioned cocktail was made with cherry syrup and the pour of EH Taylor was barely tasted. Wine pours were minimal as well. The app (tomato gallete) was fantastic, the rabbit was a pile of what looked like pulled pork and was really odd. The fish (barracuda) had the skin on and was overly salted. Ambiance was «ok». It’s very cramped and loud and just kind of weird. I felt like I was in an entry way to something larger.
TLDR — left hungry and came home and made some popcorn.

The food was terrific and the wait staff were great.
***** Be warned, if there is any chance that you might be more than 15 minutes late for your reservation, they will cancel it, even if part of your party has arrived. I had a guest from out of town (from the UK) that I wanted to take to a business dinner and I was told in very stern terms that even though I was there, my reservation would be cancelled. I explained that my guest was on his way right now and was told «our policy is clearly on our website». I have NEVER had a restaurant management at this level treat me like that! Need I mention that there were NO people waiting for a table AND that there were plenty of empty tables!!! ****
So, if you need a great place to take someone to dinner, don’t go here, unless it is ok if part of your party is late that they cancel your reservation.

Amanda and Travis were amazing host and server. The food was impeccable from starters to main course. The mushrooms, rAdishes, drum and cornbread were all out of this world. The rabbit and tartare were enjoyed by my colleagues.

Gaylen is amazing.
Gaylen is a one man show as a waiter that knows his menu and his wine.
He was our waiter the evening we dined.
He explained the menu and described every dish, which made it easy for my party to choose. It just sounded better coming from him, than reading the menu.
When he brought the wine out, he swirled it around in the wine glass aggressively, breathing in the scent he was trying to find, before handing it to the person who ordered it.
Oh… the restaurant. You want to know about the restaurant…
Well, if there happens to be a celebrity in the house, sitting near you, it’s quite the show to watch everyone fawn over him. He gets the royal treatment, and whether you ordered your dinner before him, he got his cornbread, before me. He got special treatment. It was entertaining for my table.
The place is nice. Small, quaint.
The noise level is LOUD. VERY LOUD. It’s difficult to hear the person across the table, after 7pm.
Food. An interesting menu where texture plays a big role. The different grains used in dishes… chewy, nutty. along with a little of this and a little of that. Everything made from scratch. Decent portions, although one of my dining partners remarked that his rabbit must have been a baby. there was hardly any rabbit meat in his dish.
The scallop dish was amazing. The mushrooms and scallops are stacked into a pyramid on the plate. Aesthetically pleasing, delicious with every bite.
The chicken dish was good, as was the flavor in the «porridge.» My protein portion was on the small side. small portion for a large price.
Cornbread was amazing. Sweetened butter came with the skillet cornbread and there’s enough to feed three people, if you slice it like a pizza.
Everything was delicious.
We had some issues with the food, but Gaylin fixed things to his ability and all was forgiven.
Complimentary valet.
Glass of wine, entrée, side of cornbread = $ 50
We’ll return another time.

Items Selected:
Flight 404 — Martin Miller’s gin, Crème de Violette, Luxardo, lemon
Pig Plate — Woodlands back bacon, coppa di testa, 14 month Benton’s, goldrush apple butter, whiskey apple butter, sourdough
Wedge Oak Farm Duck Egg — wild mushrooms, Anson Mills farro, egg yolk, herbs
Fava Beans — rock shrimp, orange, honey, pecorino
Glendale Farm Chicken — Anson Mills dirty porridge, lacinato kale, button mushrooms
Ponce Inlet Bay Scallops — cauliflower, brown butter, paddlefish caviar, white truffle
Anson Mills Skillet Cornbread — Kentucky bourbon barrel sorghum butter
Lemon Curd — Medjool dates, cashew, Italian meringue
Olive & Sinclair Chocolate Budino — almond, port, cherries, crisps
Saffron Ice Cream — strawberries, shortcake, Marcona almonds
Small in size, and difficult to locate in an area currently high in construction, Matt Bolus’ The 404 Kitchen was the finishing piece to a large puzzle of dinner decisions in Nashville and featuring more ‘farm to table’ cooking inside of what was once a shipping container the cuisine proved every bit as good as highly praised spots like Josephine, Husk, and City House while the setting and service were perhaps even better — the small size and tongue-​in-​cheek humor providing an excellent experience spread over the course of two hours.
Described as ‘uncomplicated’ by the chef, with a menu that varies almost day-​to-​day, our arrival at The 404 Kitchen found a four-​top ready in waiting despite a late arrival due to difficulties finding the space around orange barrels and joking about how much the city had changed in the last 12 months, not to mention the dozen years past since our last visit, it was almost an immediate connection with the staff that was established — the conversation free-​flowing and full of recommendations not only for food and drink, but things to see and do in the area.
Eventually deciding on a four-​course order to begin with a plate of locally sourced charcuterie paired to housemade preserves and warm sourdough brought in from a local baker it was much to our surprise just how enjoyable the whisky apple butter was alongside the more briny bites of pork and slathering the bread thick with Goldrush Apple compote while sipping a mighty fine spin on the classic Aviation it was with the restaurant quickly filling to capacity that appetizers arrived, the duck egg and faro dish presenting an earthy aromatic bowl of creamy porridge while the fava bean soup was the very definition of vibrant — a fresh seasonal expression that saw every ingredient utilized to the utmost potential for texture, flavor, and balance.
Progressing to entrees, and taking into account the amount of eating already done that day, it was in two plates that we invested along with a side of skillet cornbread that easily proved to be the best in the city when soaked in smoky-​sweet butter, and although the «jellybeans of the sea» scallops were indeed quite sweet amidst their rich accoutrements both the small size and use of truffle oil were offputting considering the $ 32 pricetag, a far better appropriation of funds invested in the pan roasted bird atop liver-​rich porridge balanced out by the tender mushrooms and kale.
Inspired by dessert descriptions, at least enough to order one of each, it was once again here that Tennessee surprised my generally citrus-​averse palate, for as good as both the thick port-​infused chocolate pudding and innovative take on strawberry shortcake were neither even came close to the mason jar parfait of creamy lemon curd decorated by meringue with roughly chopped dates and cashews, a dish that in many ways supported the Chef’s vision of simplicity while still presenting as quite sophisticated, much like the experience as a whole.

The softness and texture of the Atlantic Mackarel is amazing! Farro w duck egg was decadent.
Nice job @mattbolus @the404kitchen #nashvillefood #404kitchen

Service was excellent.
Drinks were great, too.
Burrata was good but under-​salted. Both tri-​tip and pork were really damn good. Best food I’ve ever had in Nashville.

The 404 Kitchen has to one of my favorite restaurants in Nashville. It has to be one of the most romantic spots with dim, romantic lighting and its small space.
Everything we had tonight was superb. For starters, we had buttermilk burrata and funghi mushrooms with farro. Both dishes complimented each other so well. Secondly, we had seared scallops on top of a brown butter and cauliflower purée with roasted cauliflower and caviar. That was probably the best thing I’ve had in Nashville in a long time, it was so good. Lastly, we had the Bear Creek aged tri-​tip with farrotto and mascarpone cheese. We didn’t leave anything on the plate.
So if you’re in Nashville and trying to find a place to go for a wonderful date, this is the place to be. I wouldn’t suggest going here for a big group but for something more personal. And if you get Jordan as your server, you’ll have the best service.

The first thing you need to know is that this restaurant is VERY tiny. It’s a former shipping container guys. Expect to be on top of other tables. If you know you’ll hate this, sit on the patio or at the bar. It will give you a bit more space, though you are still going to be a bit cramped. It’s also pretty loud and the wait staff have to kinda lean into your table to talk and take your order. How they don’t knock things off the table constantly is quite impressive.
I just don’t recommend a group more than 4 people unless you are reserving the entire patio. I would find the experience less than ideal if I had to deal with a big party. The perfect size is 2, so grab your SO or a friend and enjoy!
The cocktails are pretty whiskey heavy but tasty. I opted for wine and was pleased to see reasonably priced wines by the glass.
The second thing you have to do is order whatever dish contains burrata. Burrata is a mozzarella styled cheese that is made in house and is out of this freaking world. Just order whatever dish has it. I also had the lamb sugo and it was excellent with a thick sauce. Very tasty and both are a decent portion size too.
I tried the rabbit entrée and my bf had some kind of special fish. We really enjoyed them both, the rabbit was slightly sweet but well balanced and I loved it! The fish was very light and delicious as well. Overall… yum!
The 404 Kitchen is a unique and delicious experience. Definitely give them a try, but book in advance if you have a specific date or time that you need because it fills up very quickly due to limited capacity.

Honestly – haven’t yet eaten here and likely won’t due to the treatment we received after having made our reservation this past summer upon their opening. Two stars instead of one because I had hoped for something great and I’ve heard good feedback from others.
We made a reservation for five, and received a follow-​up call on the day of our reservation, confirming the details. The hostess said she was confirming our reservation for four – I corrected her and said there would be five. She curtly replied that there was no room for five and we’d have to make another reservation for a different night. I completely understand part of the allure of the restaurant is its intimate setting – that being said, the original reservation (made on the phone) was for five. If that was a problem initially, it should have been clarified to me.
It’s increasingly challenging to collaborate with friends to find good times to meet for dinner – we were all excited about trying out The 404 Kitchen, but after the initial impression we received just after they opened, none of the five of us have tried it out, and no one is rushing to. Too many quality restaurants in this town with pleasant and charming staff welcoming their guests with open arms… no need for the attitude.

The good/​great:
1. The food lived up to the James Beard nomination hype. Try the rabbit, homemade burrata or poached egg salad. All were fresh and delicious.
2. Our server was very knowledgeable and took us through a line-​by-​line of the entire menu upon request. She was clearly passionate about the food.
The bad:
1. The lighting — and by that I mean if you are seated 5−7pm during the summer and facing the window you will be roasted, toasted and blinded by the light. Bring sunglasses (in anticipation of this issue they also have extra pairs), or request to be seated away from the window. The bar is also a safe bet.
The verdict:
Worth a visit, but plan ahead.