This is Athens Family Restaurant in
Nashville Tennessee. It was Sunday and
it was time for Brunch…or Breakfast. The
Trip Advisor rating ratio was solid…84 Excellent/Very Good vs. 8
Poor/Terrible. On top of that, Guy
Fieri, from the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-In’s and Dives had recently
featured this restaurant in one of his segments!
A good sign… The restaurant was very
busy. The good news is that we had a
table before too much time passed!
I had the fortune of sharing Brunch with
these 2 lovely ladies…Laurie and Dawn Marie!
The restaurant was bright and cheery.
Checking out a nearby table where their
breakfast had just been delivered… Lots of food! Looks pretty good…
OK…so I didn’t go for breakfast. I wanted Greek food for Brunch. This is the famous Bacon Lamb Burger, Double
Patty with French Fries. It was a bit pricy at $12.99 but what the heck! The sandwich is described as grilled and
lightly spiced ground lamb patties wrapped in 2 strips of bacon topped with
lettuce, tomato, onion, melted Swiss cheese and a pinch of crushed red pepper. This is the Chef’s original creation and it
was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network.
Maybe it was just my personal taste… While it sounded good, this
sandwich just didn’t do it for me. I love lamb and the sandwich
was filling, but it didn’t make my flavor buds sing… I left the onions off my
sandwich, a personal preference. When I returned
home, I reviewed this show on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. I learned that they put Thousand Island dressing
on the sandwich…not one of my favorites and that may explain my negative
reaction! In addition, the French fries were certainly nothing to write home
about.
Dawn Marie ordered Breakfast. She ordered a Greek omelet with toast and a
side of fruit. She added gyros meat to
her omelet which came with feta cheese, diced tomatoes and onions. ($9.49) She
gave it 3.5 points out of a possible 5.0…in other words, it was average or OK…
When Laurie ordered, she went for one of
our favorites, GYROS! She ordered the
Gyro Platter. ($10.99) All Platters are served with Greek salad, pita homemade
Tzatziki, Greek dressing and your choice of French fries, Dina’s creamy
potatoes, home fries, rice pilaf or fresh vegetables in a light tomato sauce. She opted for Dina’s creamy potatoes.
Where to start…? The gyros and the accompanying tzatziki sauce
lacked any garlic flavor. The gyros were
prepped on the griddle which was good…but we’re used to the chefs slicing them
off the perpendicular spit…instead of these preformed slices. This was not a real side Greek Salad…no way! Four little pieces of pita…really? I didn’t mind the creamy potatoes, but Laurie
thought that they were overwhelmed with dill.
Our waitress was awful… She was totally
scatterbrained and seemed to randomly forget about us…and our various needs/requests. So…we didn’t like the food or the
service! Sorry Guy, but then again, this
wasn’t the first time one of the restaurants featured on your show has
disappointed us…
If you would like to check out the Athens
Family Restaurant for yourself, it’s located at 2526 Franklin Pike in Nashville
Tennessee. Phone: 615-383-2848. Website: http://www.athensfamilyrestaurant.com/?pg=home.
However, if you’re looking for a nice breakfast in Nashville, try the Pancake
Pantry at http://www.thepancakepantry.com/. Warning… The wait time at the Pancake Pantry
can be horrendous…
Just click on any of the photos to
enlarge them…
Thanks for stopping by for a visit!
Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
This is why we don't eat out often and have tried to improve our ability to make good food at home. I got tired of paying high prices for mediocre food. Bev had a Gyro plate at Gondolier once and loved it but the next trip she didn't care for it at all. When we eat out, it's usually Krystal, Hardees chicken biscuit, Bojangles, etc. - always the drive through :-)
ReplyDeleteLovely food look yumm David! and I love the picture of Laurie and Dawn Marie!
ReplyDeleteTake care!
oh, delicious. makes me hungry. :)
ReplyDeleteWe ate at a place between Franklin and Brentwood last night called Burger Up and it was pretty good. I was happy because they serve one of my favorite IPA beer - Lagunitas IPA from California. I had the southwest burger, here is the link: http://www.yelp.com/biz/burger-up-franklin. Tonight we are going to a Korean restaurant that a “foodie” friend of my son-in-law recommended, so we’ll see. I had a post published while I am here but it did not update in Google – don’t know why. I just made strawberry jam with the two eldest grandsons (6 and 4) next we are making blueberry jam – I am taking a small rest right now….
ReplyDeleteDear Dave, That is too bad. I am sorry you all did not enjoy your brunch. You would think that it was chosen for the show so it had to be good. Well, come to think of it I have never seen Guy give a bad review or even a so, so review.
ReplyDeleteWell, also you and Laurie know your food, so many people wouldn't know good food from not so good, it is a pity but true and people get away with passing off just so, so food.
Blessings, Catherine