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The Mainstay

3.5 (115 reviews)

The Mainstay Photos

THE MAINSTAY ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Good for groups
Good for kids

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Reviews With Photos

Fried Green Tomatoes
Erika N.

My bestie and I stopped by this place on the last day of our trip. It was a Sunday so we enjoyed all of the NLF games on the multiple TVs. To start my meal I had a Bloody Mary without the bacon to make it vegetarian friendly. It needed a touch of hot sauce, but after that it was perfect. For an appetizer we shared the fried green tomatoes. They were cooked just right and the sauce on top was delicious. For a main entree I had the Grilled Cheese with a side salad. The grilled cheese was tasty, but nothing to out of the ordinary. The salad was very fresh and a huge portion size which was nice. A great place to watch football and hang out. Lots of local beers on tap too.

Cauliflower bites
Jeremy C.

Not completely sure why there's such low reviews for Mainstay. I personally thought the food and service was fantastic! I recommend trying the cauliflower bites. I've heard of this thing where you can make vegan buffalo wings with cauliflower, and I imagine this is what it tastes like and I support it 100%. You can also choose any of the wing sauces they offer to get them tossed in. Perfect appetizer For my meal, I went with the signature Mainstay Melt and it was delicious!! It was your typical patty melt with steak, American cheese, an onions all melted down into a beautiful gift of heaven. Can't wait to come back!!

Fried cheese
John S.

I love trying new restaurants, but I'm always hesitant to visit them in their first few weeks of operation -- I've had some bad experiences. But we were looking for a place with a lot of TVs for the Preds game, so we decided to try out the new Mainstay. The interior is dark with trendy decor but casual -- dotted with plenty of TVs and a full bar. We began with the fried cheese for an appetizer, a mix of fried muenster, smoked gouda and pepper jack cheeses. I'm not sure if each stick had a different cheese (I only had one) or if they were mixed together. Regardless, it was delicious. And the earthy, herb-infused marinara complemented the saltiness of the cheese beautifully. For the main course, I ordered the "Beefcake" burger, made with in-house-ground beef. I didn't realize that the burger came without cheese ($1 extra), but our wonderful waitress, Mel, brought me a slice within seconds of asking. The meat was juicy and flavorful. The brioche bun was a little dense and thick for my liking, but it didn't slow me down. Even the tomatoes, lettuce, pickles and onions were memorable -- usually I just throw them to the side. The side of thick-cut fries were incredible...fresh, hot...not too salty...crispy around the edges. Delicious. For only being open a few weeks, I was blown away by the service. Our waitress was incredibly attentive and friendly, making the overall experience that much more enjoyable. Mainstay is a great place to grab a bite, throw one back and catch the game -- I can't wait to go back and explore more of the menu.

Cool little spot, they just added hours so they open at 1100 am now.
Hank D.

On this venture we enjoyed the wings and drinks as they are open for brunch at 1000am. We had have been here numerous times with the pups sitting outside as well just ourselves (pups are more fun)....the Mainstay will be a new favorite as the food is most improved so compliments to the chef. I live the view of the skyline and the service is always great! Candice is awesome and very attentive during our latest visit. As always video games and a great amount of TV for your sports viewing pleasure. I would highly recommend making this place a part of your weekly rotation if it is not at this time.

Buffalo cauliflower
Sonia K.

To start off, the bartenders were great - very nice and attentive. We went on trivia night and the company that was contracted did a great job of entertaining the group. Would definitely recommend for the vibe and beers. However, the food was quite basic and not great. I regret paying money for it, wasn't terrible but would not get again.

Bloody Mary with everything and the kitchen sink, tasty and inexpensive!
James W.

Luckily I live next door and can walk in easily, and after a few of their drinks can easily walk (crawl) home. Their happy hour(s) are quite nice, and the drinks are strong. The Margarita is surprisingly tasty and a few of these will cause anyone to make this their favorite bar stop. The bloody mary is loaded with fixins and very good. Their weekend brunch has several amazing choices including the best french toast I have tasted in Nashville. Taco Tuesdays combined with lots of boardgames and cool movies on the various tv's makes this one of your best Tuesday stops after work! Service is always fantastic and the staff is fun to chat with, unlike several of the East Nashville "Hip" spots. Do yourself a favor and stop in, you will thank me later!

Shae F.

What in the entire HELL of Hells!? Whyyyyy whyyyy change the nachos and go cheap AF! The owner post a photo of the Nachos on the menu but changes it two years later to this cheap downgrade version of nachos at the bar. No Guacamole, No Salsa, No Poblano Cheese, Cheap Frozen Mass Production "steak" pieces, pickled jalapeños instead of fresh ones, nasty shredded cheese melted under some convection oven which burns some of the chips to a black crisp. Compare the photo. Take the old photo down and stop serving these crappy nachos! Just bc ppl come to get drunk at happy hour don't mean that quality can't be realized PLUS the wait staff sucked.

Prime rib nachos
Brigid G.

I have driven past this place so many times and wondered what it was like. I met a friend for dinner here. There is a lot of free parking which is really nice. I got a little confused about how to get to the restaurant from the parking garage but found it. We were at the restaurant for happy hour but that only included one white and one red for wine options. I was stoked to see that there were four rosé options on the menu. Unfortunately, only one was available. The fried cauliflower bites were a yummy appetizer. My friend got the fish and chips with veggies substituted for the fries. I was super pumped about the prime rib nachos. They were decent but not my favorite nachos. This place would be great for watching sports games because there are televisions all over the restaurant. The vibe is cool that you could sit for a few hours and grab drinks. The service was good and our server was very friendly.

Brunch Hot Chicken and Waffles
Thad B.

Not sure how I haven't written a review for this place yet! Mainstay has grown to be one of my favorite bars in Nashville. #1 The drinks. #2 The food #3. The people. Come here for a Cheersesc experience that will put you on your ass. Drinks: Really there's two drinks that you need to try, the margarita and the bloody mary. I'm from Texas so just trust me on this one. The margaritas will definitely destroy the following morning because they boast a strong poor of tequila topped with triple sec and lime. That's all you need folks. No strawberries, syrups, or any other hoopla. The Bloody Mary is a completely different story. These things are breakfast in a cup; bacon(crispy), cocktail onions, pickles, olives, boiled eggs. Yeah, basically the kitchen sink. The best part? you can snag both of these for $5 if you play your cards right. Food: Soooolid brunch options including Nashville hot chicken/waffles. The give you cinnamon butter so how could I complain? $2 Taco Tuesday? Do it. Fried cauliflower dipped in any wing sauce? Veggies with guilt! Oh and for any fried pickle lovers: THEY DO SPEARS! Mainstay has a basic menu with pretty much any bar food you'd care for plus a little more. Service: This is also a huge plus. A lot of places around here are filled with staff that is too cool to serve. The folks at Mainstay all greet pleasantly and are just generally laid back people. Go here, eat well, drink too much, and tip!

a glass of beer

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6 years ago

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7 years ago

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2 years ago

Place is closed. No longer open and has been replaced with a brunch place. Completely different atmosphere.

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5 years ago

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4 years ago

Great food and excellent service!!! My boys and I wanted to escape the craziness of downtown so we went there for dinner and loved it.

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Josiah J.

Thanks for sharing, Allen! Love hanging with you!

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Ask the Community - The Mainstay

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Jonathans Grille

3.9(143 reviews)
1.0 mi•Downtown
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Jonathan's Grille is a solid spot, especially for late-night food. The late-night menu is clutch…read morewhen you want something good and not just the usual limited options. We tried a little bit of everything, and the food was really good. We picked up my gf mom at the airport and most restaurants are closed or limited menu. This is place is such a clutch. I had the egg rolls were delicious and probably one of my favorites. The pizza rolls were also good, cheesy, and perfect for sharing. The salad was fresh and surprisingly great, my gf mom really enjoyed it. the smashed burger was really solid with a soft bun, good toppings, i had the smashed burger and bacon jam. Could use more bacon jam though. It came with fries the fries came out looking soggy but the waiter was 100% she saw it and took it back and it came out crispy . My gf enjoyed her brussels sprouts and pizza rolls. Everything came out looking good and tasted fresh. The atmosphere is fun and energetic, but it is definitely loud, so keep that in mind if you're wanting a quiet dinner. Overall, it's a great late-night spot with good food, good portions, and a lively vibe.

I really wanted to like this place but unless you're really into sports bars, it's a pass for me…read more The food is good, they have a lot of choices of burgers, wings, flatbreads. Unfortunately, it was super loud sports bar. Good if you're into that but not really my vibes the food was decent and the service was good.

Photos
Jonathans Grille - Bar with some of the TV's

Bar with some of the TV's

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Inside

The Clubhouse

The Clubhouse

2.0(3 reviews)
9.3 mi

Not sure what all these high falutin corn pones are crying about. Its a dive sportsbar. In madison…read more With CHEAP ass drinks. C'mon people. This is actually one of my main joints. They have outdoor volleyball, huge outdoor seating/patio area, with cornhole. It sometimes looks like the aftermath of a rush week frat party, but that just means people were raging the night before and you missed out. Amirite? They've got 2 pool tables, snack candy food dispenser, video poker, jukebox, AND several old school arcade machines. They had them before all the hipster barcades started too popping up too, talk about OG bar fun I tell you. They have a deadbeat DJ playing top 40s and decent hiphop on weekends, with a solid sound system and great acoustics for the venue because of its lodge-esq feel and open air wooded infastructure. The fact that it turns into a dance club atmosphere with bass booms, lasers lights, and low lighting is a nice breath of fresh air compared to the honkey skonk suet downtown. Nothing special, just a nice dance club dive at night. This atmosphere also attracts hoodwinks, so be warned. Theyre all honestly harmless as long as youre not acting like a complete doucet - or wearing a certain gang color (sarcasm?). For demographics, this bar is par for the course in its neck of the woods. I hate that they dont serve drinks in real glasses though, only plastic. Theyve got a wide variety of TVs, not the biggest, but they do the job. They also have poker on Wednesday nights. The food is pretty decent, they actually use a grill. The grilled chicken sandwich is actually curiously fantastic.

What a total shithole. I went here once and that was all I needed. I'll never set foot in there…read moreagain. The food is awful, the customers and pure trash, and the bartenders are really good at putting their bodies on display to earn a few extra bucks. If you have any self respect, stay away.

The Mainstay - sportsbars - Updated May 2026

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