Monell's Dining & Catering

HI! Pros: food, atmosphere, people Cons: could use an airport shuttle service! more

We love Monell's. Great place to take friends and family who are visiting Nashville. more

This place is mediocre for dinner and I can take it or leave it. And if I'm very precisely weighing pros and cons I'd probably leave it because I absolutely hate sitting with strangers at a huge table in uncomfortable chairs. But the Saturday/Sunday morning breakfast. Good GOD, man! The fried chicken (yes, fried chicken for breakfast) is the best I've ever had. And I can only hope my mom doesn't read this because while her's was the best before I ate here, Monell's has her outdone (sorry, mom!) The gravy, bacon, and eggs (real eggs, not powdered) are all great. The biscuits, potatoes, pancakes, ham and fried apples are average at best. I haven't tried the sausage, corn pudding or cheesy grits. The service is fine. I've never had any problems with the staff. They've been courteous and attentive. However, after reading these reviews, if I ever am treated by the owner or witness the owner treating anybody else the way these people have claimed to be treated I will walk out and never return without missing a beat. If he is truly that challenged by human interaction, he should hire someone to do it for him and stay home or in his office. Let's just hope the owner and I never meet so I can keep coming back for the chicken. more

If you love rich, old school Southern food - and don't mind family style - then you must try this place. They have great fried chicken, fried okra, biscuits and incredible corn pudding. They change up the menu every night and it's all you can eat. Some of the best Southern food I have ever had. more

I called Monell's for our Thanksgiving meal. I live in Texas and I read reviews to determine the best choice for our family meal while visiting relatives in Nashville. The only negative things I read in those reviews were about the owner Michael King, and his treatment of customers. Well my experience with Monell's was great.. I was called back promptly and sent a menu for Thanksgiving. Mr. King took my calls. I'm kind of ditsy sometimes, but he was a total gentleman, explaining things very patiently to me so we got the order right. The pick up of the food was smooth and all the staff were very quick and professional. Mr. King takes care of business. Our food was so delicious...I had to write a review to tell others about this wonderful place and the genius behind it. Great idea Mr. King...Thanks again more

I love this restaurant. It is family style where you are seated with other guests and food is passed around the table. The food is fantastic and this is where I always take out of town guests for true southern cooking! more

We happened upon Monell's searching out restaurants in Nashville. Boy did we luck up! The entrance at the side of the building is through a suprisingly large, beautifully landscaped courtyard complete with swinging benches. The building is actually a house which was probably built in the 1940s and the tables which seat about 12 are in the various rooms. The food is family style meaning you sit at the table with others and the food is placed on the table in serving dishes. The dishes are passed around to the left and everyone serves themselves. The food was excellent and the price for basically all you can eat is very reasonable. Once seated you very quickly get served since there is no ordering. We started out with slaw, cucumbers and onions, corn bread and biscuits. We also had the most delicious peach preserves. Water, sweet tea and lemonade were on the table in pitchers. Before we knew it they brought out fried chicken, meat loaf, pulled pork, baked beans, corn pudding, green beans, greens, creamed potatoes and a few other things. Everything home made. Everything delicious. The amount of food is almost overwhelming. We had good conversation with the other guests at our table and we really enjoyed the family style eating. The service was great and the staff was friendly and attentive. It's not you run of the mill restaurnat, but it was an excellent experience. It is highly recommended southern experience. more

Have eaten at Monell's for years at the Germantown location and when my Mother came to visit on Mothers Day I told her I was going to take her to the new location on the New Orleans Manor. She was excited too go and we arrived @ 11:00 and was told it would be an hour and 20 minutes by the lady behind the counter. After an hour and 20 minutes my Mom asked me to ask the man carrying a pad around calling peoples name out how much longer he thought our wait may be after seeing other people asking the same.  I asked very politely as he jerked the pad back and said ""I think you were told it would be 1:20 minutes when you arrived"" I realized this couldn't be a paid employee and recalling an photo from the Germantown restaurant this was the owner!! I said I don't understand why you have a problem letting me know how much longer after letting other people know he said ""well after the 4th time you asked well get too you when we get too you"".  I said this is the first time asking and then he said ""I've seen you ask the lady at the front at least 3 times"".  He even went as far as too ask the lady if I had not been bothering her about how much longer and she even told him I had not asked her even once!  He then said in a sarcastic tone ""I apologize would you like me too take you off the list??"" Obviously the stress of having customers had mentally taken it's toll on this Jerk that should not ever, ever deal with the public directly and leave it too his hard working employees...who I feel for having too work for him.  Of course I did not eat there (went too Outback and had great service and great food at half the price). I'm sorry for the stress I may have caused the owner and will relieve him of any of the pressure of taking my money ever again... more

Spent a week in Nashville, walked 1.4 miles one way to get there and would have walked more after visiting/eating at Monell's! Stayed at the Renaissance and looked for a Breakfast on Sunday AM, unbelievable some of the best food I've eaten, but you have to love Southern cooking. The staff, atmosphere and Food was much better then I expected. Will always visit when in Nashville! more

Every time I visit my friends and family in TN, I HAVE to visit Monells. It's the best family style place I've ever been to. The fried chicken is legendary... the catfish to die for, and all the wonderful veggies that I love are all there, along with biscuits and gravy. Last time I was in town, banana pudding was for dessert that would have made my granny proud. I call it blinner... breakfast, lunch and dinner all rolled into one meal for the day! Wear something comfortable and plan on staying a while and meeting your table mates. Leave your phones, Ipads, etc in your car and converse... you may learn something new. more

We stopped by this location on a Wednesday afternoon around 1pm for lunch. I was not expecting what we encountered. Pure Southern hospitality! First off, you sit with complete strangers at a large dinner table (if there is not enough people in your party because the tables can seat 12.) They start with salads on the table which was a delicious ambrosia fruit salad and a cucumber/onion salad. They had fresh sweet and un-sweet tea put on the tables with fresh homemade biscuits as well. However, when the food started to come out. OMG!!! The meats were Fried chicken, baked chicken and fried pork chops. The sides were mac and cheese, corn souffle, dressing, cinnamon apples, green beans, mashed potatoes and strawberry short cake. All I can say is everything was seasoned right, fresh and simply delicious. If you are riding through or live there, this is a great family restaurant with great food and service! I highly recommend Monell's! more

Today on Sunday there was no waiting. Of course we ate there while the Titans game was going on. So that was probably the reason for no wait. The appetizers today were cole slaw and cucumbers and onions along with biscuits and cornbread. The peach preserves are good on the biscuits in my opinion. The entrees today were fried chicken, chicken casserole and pulled pork. The pulled pork is also good on a biscuit, like a pork sandwich. The sides were mashed potatoes, green beans, maccaroni and cheese, corn pudding, and apples. desert was pecan pie with whipped cream. the drinks were fruit tea, sweet and unsweet tea. I always enjoy eating here. i will continue to eat here and invite others to join me when i go. If you haven't eaten here, at least try it once. everyone i have taken here has said they will go back again. more

My coworkers and I dine in at Monells frequently throughout the week - mostly carry out. Monday, August 9th has changed that experience permanetly! Special on Mondays skillet chicken - order legs and thighs. My coworkers legs were so small she asked for chicken legs that were larger or another leg to add to her two legs received and was told this was it no more legs. I had the thighs that look like chicken backs and I ask for two different thighs. We were both told that was it, sorry, no changes unless we were changing the menu items. We left and called back to the owner. We were told over the phone by the Assistant manager sorry for the inconvenience come back tomorrow lunch is on us. GREAT! that was commendable or so we thought. We both just wanted the meat items replaced but were excited that the customer care was important. We arrived to pick up our meals and the front desk clerk stated the owner was going to call us but didn't have time 1st problem! 2nd he watched a tape and decided we were given an opportunity to change our minds and didn't so the only thing he was replacing were 2 chicken legs! We left and contacted the owner again requesting a return call and never received it! I called today exactly one week and a day later and who answers the phone The owner Michael King! I explained who I was and why I was calling only to have the owner tell me if he felt my call was worth returning he would have! Then he says he watched the tape of my coworker and I and we came back the next day. I explained to the owner that we were picking up food for another coworker as well as picking up what we thought was our replacement meal. Michael King was informed he was rude and he stated and i quote, "" go ahead and post it i don't care good bye!"" wow this is the owner???? the food is good but the owner is very very very rude and does not have any customer service skills!!!! more

My mother and I went to Monell's for lunch on 7-26-10. My mother had been there before and told me of the communal seating. I was a bit put off by the thought but decided to go because my Mom raved about the food. We were seating quickly and were just as quickly served cucumber salad, tomatoes, roasted potatoes, corn pudding, green beans, fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, corn on the cob, homemade biscuits and cornbread with peach preserves. All the food was made from scratch and was WONDERFUL with the exception of the corn pudding (not a fan of). Once a bowl had been finished another was brought to the table. So much food was brought I lost count! The communal table setting I thought I would be put off by turned out being a good experience. One cannot beat wonderful food and good conversation! I live in Pueblo, Colorado and my Mom lives in Ashland City just northwest of Nashville. My future visits will include Monell's! Pros: Terrific Food, Communal Seating more

I have been there a few times and its great every time. more

what a lovely Mother's Day treat...wonderful atmosphere, friendly people, good service and best of all...yummy food ! Just like eating at my Grannie's Sunday table. Pros: good southern food Cons: too many people know about it more

Took my wife and 5 children there on vacation. Shared a table with another family. The food was excellent southern-style chicken, pork chops and more sides than you can shake a stick at. The staff was attentive and plenty of food was provided.\r \r We paid more for breakfast at the hotel than for this enjoyable meal.\r \r It was great fun meeting other people while sharing a meal. There was something for everyone, even my most picky kid. If we ever go back to Nashville, we will be visiting them again. Pros: Great food, fun family-style, great staff, good price more

My friends (7 of us) and I arrived on a Saturday morning around 9am and the restaurant was already packed with people waiting. They don't take reservations, so it was a wait of over an hour (they said this was an unusually long wait). It was worth the wait. We sat down to the best southern cooking I've ever had. This was our first time in Nashville and I'd heard this was the place to go for a great southern breakfast. I must say it exceeded our expectations. Food is served family style and is all you can eat. I couldn't even eat half the stuff they passed around, but what I had was fantastic. The corn pudding is to die for! The biscuits were fluffy, tender and crispy on the edges - perfection. The hash browns were awesome and everything else was just fabulous. My only criticism is of the orange juice - it tasted like canned stuff, not fresh. But another friend of mine thought it was great. So expect a wait, but also expect the food to be worth it. Pros: Excellent southern cooking at a great price Cons: There may be a wait since they don't take reservations more

I just had Monell's cater an event at my home and they did an excellent job. I ended up serving stuffed jalepenos, pigs in a blanket and fried chicken and it was very delicious and my guests devoured every piece. Monell's sent Patty over to serve and help me out and she is fabulous! She served, cleaned, and oversaw the food and beverages completely, freeing me up to enjoy the party. I highly recommend Monell's Catering!!! Pros: Easy, delicious catering with superb staff more

I recently visited Monell's for the first time and I will have to say I was very impressed. On our first visit breakfast was being served. I am not a very big breakfast lover but I will have to say that everything they served was very good. The food kept coming out and all the food I tasted was well worth our trip. My family and friends are planning to visit again when dinner is being served and I cannot wait to experience the great tasting home cooked foods that will be served. If you like good home cooked meals and have a big appetite, then Monell's is the place for you.....Can't wait to go back.............. Pros: GREAT FOOD, GREAT SERVICE Cons: ????????CAN'T THINK OF ANY???????? more