Saturday, August 23, 2008

Ron's rules!


I ate dinner tonight at Ron's BBQ & Fish. One of the very first A Man's Gotta Eat posts was a review of Ron's BBQ & Fish. It's just as good now as it was when I reviewed it last August ...

For years I'd tell anyone who'd listen that the Priest Lake/Antioch area of Nashville needed a good meat-and-three/soul food restaurant. Imagine my surprise two years ago when a couple of meat-and-threes opened within a few months of each other. First came Ron's Barbeque and Home Cooked Meals (now Ron's BBQ & Fish), followed by H & T's Home Cooking.

Since it's too hot to cook, I decided that I'd hit both Ron's and H & T's over the weekend. I've always been partial to Ron's, so I figured I'd go there first.

Ron's features some of the best fried fish that I've ever eaten -- whiting fish, mostly, but ol' Ron does fry catfish from time to time. I set out for Ron's this evening fully expecting to arrive home with a big plate of fish. When I saw the massive meatloaf steaming gently under glass, however, my hankering for fish suddenly disappeared.

While it's not as good as my late Granny Ruby's meatloaf, Ron's meatloaf gets real close. It is expertly seasoned and filled with chopped onions. Some restaurants go overboard slathering their meatloaf in tomato sauce or ketchup, but not Ron's. Ron puts just enough tomato sauce atop his meatloaf to serve as a slightly spicy garnishment; and for that he is to be commended.

Alongside my meatloaf I had green beans, macaroni and cheese, and a thick hunk of cornbread. The green beans were seasoned with just enough salty ham; the macaroni was rich and creamy, with bits of oven-singed cheese on top; and the cornbread - which was light, fluffy, and full of cornmeal goodness - was a perfect sop for the spicy meatloaf juices left on my plate.

I waited a long time for a good meat-and-three to come to the southeast corner of Davidson County. Ron's was indeed worth the wait!

Rons BBQ & Fish
2689 Murfreesboro Pike
Nashville, TN 37217

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I live in Smyrna. How do I get to Rons from Smyrna? Is it open on Sunday?

Joltin' Django said...

Ron's is on the corner of Murfreesboro Road and Bell Road.
Take Murfreesboro Road from Smyrna. Ron's is in a rather large strip on the left just after you cross Bell Road. It's on the opposite end from the large international market.

Anonymous said...

There is a pretty good meat and three on Murfreesboro Road near the highway patrol station. I don't remember the name and it's take out only. I think it's just open for lunch too.

Joltin' Django said...

That particular meat-and-three was called Carol's Place. It recently changed hands and the new name escapes me. It was, and still is, pretty good. Be sure to go early 'cause they sometimes run out of things.

MusicCityMissy said...

You are so right. RON'S Rocks! I did the Stern's RoadFood tour of Nashville last year and none of the more 'famous' places even comes close to Ron's. I just love them in there. I am such a creature of habit and always get a hot fish sandwich but when I venture out, I've had the fried pork chop and it's almost as good as Miss Dolly's at Bolton's. Veggies are almost as good as mine and that is saying a heck of a lot!