Lakeside Mornings And Low Taxes Pull Retirees To Smithville On Center Hill Lake
Some retirement plans start with a spreadsheet, and some start with a map of Middle Tennessee and a lake that keeps showing up near the…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 14, 2026
Category
Tennessee
1,113 Articles
Tennessee
Step Into The Chrome Booths At Ridgewood Barbecue? No, The Blue Plate Breakfast At Elizabethton’s Coffee Shop
Ridgewood Barbecue in Bluff City gets plenty of road trip attention, and it has earned it. Just down…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 14
Tennessee
An Easy Mile-Long Walk Ends At Big River Views On Chattanooga’s Sunset Rock
Eight parking spaces stand between you and one of the best views in Chattanooga. That tiny lot sits…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 14
Tennessee
Johnson City Folks Have Grabbed Hot Dogs At The Original Freiberg’s? No, Firehouse? No, Pal’s Since 1956
Some places in Johnson City feel like part of the family, and this one has been handing food…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 14
Tennessee
Northern Transplants Say This Unassuming Tennessee Market Deli Serves Proper New York-Style Pastrami And Corned Beef
Plenty of people move to Nashville from up North and bring one stubborn question with them: where is…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 13
Tennessee
These 7 Tennessee Barbecue Joints Have Been Smoking Pork For Decades
Some barbecue spots open with a splash and fade within a few years. The places on this list…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 13
Tennessee
Retirees Find Cheap Homes And A Slow Small-Town Square In McMinnville, Tennessee
Some retirement plans start with a spreadsheet, and some start with a courthouse square where nobody seems to…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 13
Tennessee
Swim Below A 60-Foot Plunge At Old Stone Fort’s Blue Hole Falls Near Manchester
Just outside Manchester, Tennessee, two rivers race toward each other and drop over rock ledges into wide, shallow…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 13
Tennessee
Pinball Machines From Every Decade Fill The Walls At Nashville’s Pinewood Social? No, At Game Point
Somewhere in East Nashville, the walls are packed floor to ceiling, but not with pinball machines. Look closer…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 13
Tennessee
Retirees Picking Sparta, Tennessee Get Mountain Views And Some Of The State’s Cheapest Homes
Some retirees spend years hunting for the right spot to settle down. A growing number are finding their…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 12
Tennessee
Retirees Trade Traffic For Quiet Lake Mornings In Kingston, Tennessee On Watts Bar Lake
Some people spend their working years stuck behind brake lights, counting the minutes until they can finally slow…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 12
Tennessee
Quiet Cliffside Trails And A Natural Bridge Make Pickett CCC Memorial State Park Worth The Drive
Some places make you work a little to reach them, and that is half the fun. Up on…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 12
Tennessee
An Easy Two-Mile Walk Leads To Cane Creek Falls’ 85-Foot Drop? Try Foster Falls Near Jasper
Some waterfalls make you earn every step, and some hand you a view before you even leave the…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 12
Tennessee
Soup Beans and Cornbread Taste Like Fall in Tennessee at These 7 Hometown Spots
When the air turns crisp in Tennessee, a lot of folks start craving the same simple supper: a…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 12
Tennessee
Retirees Are Downsizing Into This Tennessee 55+ Community Where A Resort-Style Clubhouse Keeps Neighbors Having Fun Together
Some retirees sell the big family house and never look back. In one corner of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, a…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 11
Tennessee
Clean-Tasting Catfish Is What Keeps Locals Coming Back To This Mom-And-Pop Jackson, Tennessee Hole-In-The-Wall
Some restaurants chase trends, and some just keep frying fish the way folks in West Tennessee like it.…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 11
Tennessee
Tennessee’s Real Philly Cheesesteak Is In Nashville, On Amoroso Rolls Sent From Philly With Cheez Whiz
Plenty of places outside Pennsylvania put the word Philly on a menu board and hope nobody from Philadelphia…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 11
Tennessee
Find The Soup Of The Day Still Made In A Kitchen Pot At These Seven Small-Town Tennessee Diners
Some of the best bowls of soup in Tennessee come from small kitchens on quiet main streets, not…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 11
Tennessee
Since 1954, This Nashville, Tennessee Meat-And-Three Has Dished Out Down-Home Fried Chicken And Fried Cornbread
Some Nashville restaurants chase trends every season. This one has kept the same idea going since 1954: grab…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 11
Tennessee
Step Back In Time At This Classic Humboldt, Tennessee Diner Where Breakfast Never Changed
Some towns change their main street every few years, and some places simply refuse to follow along. In…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 10
Tennessee
Six Tennessee Waterfalls You’ll Have Nearly To Yourself This Winter
Summer crowds love Tennessee waterfalls, but winter is when the trails quiet down and the parking lots open…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 10
Tennessee
Shoppers Say You Can Practically Taste The Ocean At This Clarksville, Tennessee Fish Market Open Since 1955
Clarksville sits hundreds of miles from the nearest beach, yet one modest shop in town has been handing…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 10
Tennessee
Fresh Sushi, Crawfish, And A Hibachi Grill Draw Tennessee Diners To This Huge Knoxville Buffet
Some buffets give you a few trays and call it a day, but one spot in west Knoxville…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 10
Tennessee
This Pigeon Forge, Tennessee Cafe Bakes Bread From Its Own Mill’s Grain, And The Chicken Gumbo Is Worth The Drive
Some restaurants buy their flour by the truckload. One spot in Pigeon Forge grinds its own grain at…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 10
Tennessee
You Haven’t Really Done Tennessee Until You’ve Braved Nashville Hot Chicken At Hattie B’s
Some trips to Nashville end with a souvenir hat. Others end with a story about the day a…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 9
Tennessee
This No-Frills Memphis Soul Food Spot Is Where Tennessee Locals Go For Fried Catfish And Smothered Pork Chops
Some of the best lunches in Memphis come on a plastic tray, not a fancy plate. Down the…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 9
Tennessee
Sip Wine At The Bar While You Wait, Then Split A Tomahawk Steak At This Classy Tennessee Steakhouse
Some dinner plans fall apart at the last minute. A reservation vanishes, the group grows to eight, and…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 9
Tennessee
Tennessee Shoney’s Fans Say The Thompson Lane Location In Nashville, Where The Hot Fudge Cake Comes Dripping Like It Did In The ’60s, Still Hits Different
Some desserts are just desserts, and some are time machines. In one corner of Nashville, a family diner…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 9
Tennessee
Pinball, Skee-Ball, And Arcade Cabinets Pack Game Galaxy Arcade In Pigeon Forge
Somewhere in Middle Tennessee, a single flat fee can buy an entire afternoon of flipper battles, fighting game…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 9
Tennessee
Short Boardwalk Trails Lead To Big Views At Rock Island State Park
Some of the best waterfall views in Tennessee take only a few minutes of walking to reach. In…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 8
Tennessee
Cumberland Plateau Retirees Swear By The Slower Pace And Low Costs In Monterey, Tennessee
Some retirement plans start with a spreadsheet, and some start with a highway exit nobody else seems to…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 8
Tennessee
Generations Of Johnson City Families Have Shared Burgers At Freiberg’s? No, At The Firehouse Restaurant
Some restaurants feed a town for a season, and a rare few feed it for decades. In Johnson…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 8
Tennessee
Slower Days And Cheap Homes Draw Retirees To Tullahoma, Tennessee
Some towns rush you, and some let you finish your coffee. In southern Middle Tennessee, one small city…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 8
Tennessee
Quiet Winter Mornings Bring Bald Eagles To Reelfoot Lake State Park In West Tennessee
A lake that was created by earthquakes now draws some of the most famous birds in America every…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 8
Tennessee
Walk Behind A Waterfall On An Easy Trail At Rainbow Falls Near Chattanooga
Some trails save the best part for last, and this one makes you earn every inch of it.…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 7
Tennessee
Roll A Few Frames At THE Bowling Alley In Paris, Tennessee
Some towns hide their best fun in plain sight, and Paris, Tennessee, has a family-run spot where strikes,…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 7
Tennessee
Hike A Short Trail To Greeter Falls, A Lesser-Known Savage Gulf Waterfall With A Swimming Hole Near Altamont, Tennessee
Some trails make you earn the view, and this one hands you a spiral staircase to do it.…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 7
Tennessee
Why Nashville Families Keep Driving Out For Pancakes At Pancake Pantry
Some Nashville mornings start with a line on the sidewalk before the coffee is even poured. Families wait…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 7
Tennessee
Seven Small Tennessee Towns Where Retirees Live Cheaply Near The Mountains
Retirement in the Tennessee mountains does not have to mean paying Gatlinburg prices. All across the eastern half…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 7
Tennessee
Walk A Flat Half-Mile Trail To Burgess Falls And Its 136-Foot Drop Near Sparta
Some waterfalls make you earn every step, but this one near Sparta asks for very little. A short…
By Caleb Whitaker · Nov 6