Germantown · Nashville, TN
Nashville's Best Farm-to-Table Restaurant
Seasonal menus. Local ingredients. Open-fire cooking. In the heart of Germantown.
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What Makes Us Different
Why Nashville Chooses Sage & Ember
Every Farm Within 100 Miles
We don’t use the word “local” loosely. Every protein, every vegetable, every dairy product comes from a farm we’ve visited personally. Sweetwater Farm for produce. Rolling Hills Ranch for meat. Harpeth River Dairy for cheese and butter. You can taste the difference when the ingredients traveled 30 miles, not 3,000.
A Menu That Changes with the Season
Chef Elena doesn’t write a menu and source ingredients to match it. She sources what’s best that week and builds the menu around it. That means what you eat in October is completely different from what you eat in June. Come back monthly and you’ll never have the same meal twice.
Everything Touches Fire
At the center of our kitchen is a custom wood-burning hearth. Every dish on the menu interacts with smoke, ember, or open flame at some point in its preparation. It’s not a gimmick — it’s the foundation of how Elena learned to cook, and it gives our food a depth and warmth you can’t get from a conventional kitchen.
Germantown’s Living Room
We’re in a converted 1920s warehouse with exposed brick, reclaimed wood floors, and an open kitchen where you can watch the cooks work. It’s warm, moody, and the kind of room that makes conversation easier. Not a scene — a restaurant.
From Our Kitchen
Dishes Worth the Trip
Smoked Beet Tartare
House-smoked golden beets, cashew crème, capers, charred sourdough.
Pan-Seared Trout
Tennessee river trout, brown butter, preserved lemon, haricots verts.
Braised Short Rib
72-hour braised, smoked potato purée, gremolata, red wine jus.
Sage Old Fashioned
Bourbon, sage-infused honey, Angostura, expressed orange.
Ember-Roasted Carrots
Whole roasted heirloom carrots, harissa yogurt, dukkah, mint.
Seasonal Crumble
Warm fruit crumble, buttermilk ice cream, oat streusel.
Planning a Night Out?
Answer four quick questions and we'll plan your perfect evening — from the right table to the right dishes.
Nashville Dining Guide
Nashville's Restaurant Renaissance — and Where Sage & Ember Fits
Nashville's dining scene has undergone a quiet revolution over the last decade. What was once a city defined by hot chicken and honky-tonk bar food has become one of the most exciting restaurant cities in the South. James Beard nominations are no longer surprises here. Nationally recognized chefs are choosing Nashville not as a stepping stone, but as a destination. And the neighborhoods driving this shift — Germantown, East Nashville, The Gulch, 12 South — are producing restaurants that rival anything in New York or San Francisco, with a warmth and hospitality that's distinctly Southern.
Germantown, where Sage & Ember is located, has become the quiet epicenter of this movement. Just north of downtown, the neighborhood blends historic architecture with a growing community of chefs, farmers, and makers who care deeply about where food comes from. The Nashville Farmers' Market is a five-minute walk from our door — and it's where Chef Elena sources ingredients when she isn't buying directly from the four farms that supply our kitchen. Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park is across the street, and Broadway's entertainment district is a ten-minute walk south. For visitors, it's the kind of location that puts the best of Nashville within easy reach without the noise.
Sage & Ember is the restaurant Germantown deserved — a serious kitchen in a neighborhood that takes food seriously, but without the pretension that sometimes follows fine dining. It's where couples come for anniversary dinners and leave planning their next visit. Where out-of-town executives bring clients and look like geniuses for the recommendation. Where rehearsal dinner parties spill into the private dining room with custom menus that guests talk about for years. And where first-time visitors to Nashville discover that this city's food scene is the real deal.
If you're planning a visit, a few tips: dinner service runs Tuesday through Saturday, 5–10pm. The sweet spot for availability is Tuesday or Wednesday — you'll have your pick of tables and the kitchen is just as sharp. Thursday through Saturday book up faster, so reserve a week or two ahead. For brunch (Saturday and Sunday, 10am–2pm), arriving by 10:30am avoids the wait. And if you're celebrating something special — a birthday, an engagement, a business milestone — ask about the Chef's Table or private dining room when you book. Those spaces turn a great dinner into an unforgettable one.
Guest Reviews
What Nashville Diners Say
“We’ve eaten at every upscale restaurant in Nashville and this is the one we keep coming back to. The short rib is the best thing on any menu in this city.”
“Had our rehearsal dinner here. Chef Elena created a custom five-course menu and every single guest said it was the best meal they’d had in Nashville. The private dining room was perfect.”
“I bring out-of-town clients here because it makes Nashville look incredible. The food, the service, the space — everything is dialed in without being pretentious.”
“We came in as tourists and left feeling like locals. The bartender recommended the Sage Old Fashioned and the trout, and both were extraordinary. Already planning our next trip around a reservation here.”
Frequently Asked
Questions Before You Visit
Reserve Tonight
Dinner: Tue–Sat, 5–10pm. Brunch: Sat–Sun, 10am–2pm.
Reservations recommended. Walk-ins welcome at the bar.
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