Arnold's Country Kitchen
Best Meat-and-Three in Nashville · TN
Nashville's meat-and-three standard bearer
Arnold's Country Kitchen has served Nashville's definitive meat-and-three since Jack and Rose Arnold opened it in 1982, and the family still runs it — son Kahlil Arnold now works the kitchen. Diners grab a tray and move down a cafeteria line, calling out a meat and three sides while roast beef, fried green tomatoes, turnip greens, and chess pie disappear as fast as they're set out.
The plainspoken downtown lunch counter earned a James Beard Foundation America's Classics award — the honor reserved for beloved, locally owned restaurants with timeless appeal — and it remains a place where construction crews, office workers, and visiting chefs all stand in the same line.
Every award, on the record.
Each Centurion Award is its own dated annual record, and staying current means clearing the bar again each new year. Open a year for the full citation and verification details.
2025 Centurion Award
Best Meat-and-Three in Nashville Nashville, TN · Awarded under the 2025 evaluation View the 2025 award →Awards run one calendar year and renew only if the business clears the bar again. Selection is by published criteria, never for sale.
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This page is the standing record for Arnold's Country Kitchen (2025). It was published by The Centurion Awards from the public record; the business did not have to apply for it to appear. It wasn’t voted on or sponsored, and selection is not for sale. Owners can claim the listing or ask us to remove it. For hours, bookings, and live reviews, go straight to the business itself.
This page was published by The Centurion Awards from the public record; the business did not have to apply for it to appear. Own this business? Claim the listing to manage it, or ask us to remove it.
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