Nashville's Asian dining scene expands, while The Nations' Rock’n Dough closes

Nashville’s notable Asian dining expansion made headway this summer — with lavish new eateries opening their doors in the Gulch, the announcement of a new pan-Asian restaurant coming from the owners of Noko and the upscale Japanese restaurant Sushi Row headed to Wedgewood-Houston in 2025.

Back in December 2023, Tennessean senior dining reporter Mackensy Lunsford said Asian food was one of the areas lacking in Music City’s dining scene, and the city’s restaurant industry could may have taken note.

In July alone, two new Asian spots opened with upscale concepts and pricey menus.

Plenty of other interesting new restaurants came to fruition in July too, and one shut its doors for the last time.

Here’s a roundup of all of last month’s restaurant openings and closings:

July openings

Choy

Upscale Chinese restaurant Choy opened in the Gulch on July 30 filling the space that previously housed celebrity chef Maneet Chauhaun’s take on Chinese food, Tansuo, which closed earlier this year. One of Choy’s owners, Moni Advani, worked with Chauhaun to open her other Nashville restaurants Chauhan Ale and Masala House and Mockingbird.

James Beard award winner Brandon Jew consulted with executive chef Brian Griffith on the menu, which includes dishes like chicken-fried wagyu steak, squid ink wontons, Maine lobster fried rice and a sourdough scallion pancake.

Co-owner Nishaan Chavda said that Choy proves that fine dining doesn’t have to be confined to Italian spots and steakhouses.

"We're trying to break that mold," Chavan said. "The amount of work and attention that goes into a perfectly made fried rice is equivalent to a beautiful handmade bowl of pasta too."

Bayou Keys

A Louisiana-style piano bar made its debut near Lower Broadway in July with curated wine and whiskey lists, classic sharable bites, low lighting and cheetah-print booths.

Bayou Keys neighbors country-star Lainey Wilson’s bar Bell Bottoms Up, and both are projects from Nashville’s TC Restaurant Group, which is also behind spots like Miranda Lambert’s Casa Rosa and Morgan Wallen’s This Bar & Tennessee Kitchen .

The lounge serves up flatbreads, corn ribs and charcuterie alongside specialty cocktails inspired by its neighbor’s namesake like the Disco Cowgirl, Bourbon Gras and Yellowstone Spritz.

Fancypants

The owners of East Nashville favorites Butcher & Bee and Redheaded Stranger opened the doors to their new venture Fancypants on July 26 .

It’s a lighthearted take on fine dining with a multi-course fixe prix menu centered around vegetables and fun cocktails. One drink that seems to embody the concept is the Jorts: a tasteful mix of Miller High Life, Aperol, passionfruit and lemon bitters.

The opening menu includes chicken fried cauliflower with coconut gravy, miso butter mafaldine with a peanut chili garlic crunch, grilled lion's mane mushroom with potato puree and a birthday cheesecake with a sugar cookie crust.

Sushi Bar

Nashville’s first full omakase sushi restaurant opened on July 18 . Tucked behind a speakeasy-style entrance in the Gulch, Sushi Bar contains two dining rooms with 12 seats each centered around the space where sushi chefs prepare 17 courses of nigiri for each patron.

The restaurant ships its fish in from Japan, and the experience starts at $165 per person.

Buds and Brews in East Nashville

The cannabis restaurant Buds and Brews opened its second Nashville location in July, taking over the space that formerly housed 3 Crow Bar and Slow Bar — a spot where bands like The Black Keys and Kings of Leon got their start.

Buds and Brews East Nashville features a menu of “munchable” bar food that patrons have the option of topping with THC-infused condiments, plus THC-infused beverages and a “vape experience.”

Golden Sound

The Golden Sound building at 610 Magazine Street has lived many lives since its start as a recording studio. In 2014, it became an outpost of coffee shop Barista Parlor, and this July, it opened as the Gulch’s newest cocktail bar, proclaiming to “mix the gritty charm of old Nashville with fresh beats and bold flavors.”

From draft espresso martinis to Tennessee whiskey concoctions, all cocktails are $18.

July closings

Rock’n Dough Pizza and Brewery in The Nations

One of Rock’n Dough Pizza and Brewery’s three Nashville restaurants closed its doors for good in July after more than four years in business. The company did not publicly release a specific reason for the closure.

The spots at Geodis Park and Dickerson Pike remain open, and Rock’n Dough is preparing to add a new location in Gallatin this fall.

Black Market Bar and Grill

The Birmingham, Alabama-based bar and restaurant has closed in Printer’s Alley after opening just last year.

Black Market Bar and Grill quietly closed its only location outside of Alabama and removed all signs of the Nashville restaurant from its website.

Hadley Hitson covers trending business, dining and health care for The Tennessean. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com . To support her work, subscribe to The Tennessean .

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville's Asian dining scene expands, while The Nations' Rock’n Dough closes