I think I must have passed out every time after eating here. I have no idea how I have not posted a review. This Memphis native who also lived in Kansas City for years has a high bar for 'que. Papa Turney's is one of those IYKYK kind of spots. This is the place if you want fall off the bone ribs. That is surprisingly hard to find consistently in most of the barbecue places in Nashville. The pork here has great flavor good, but sometimes is a little dry. I love the beans and the potato salad here. The coleslaw isn't creamy, so it's not for me. I do wish they had bigger cups. They are hilariously small for a drink to go with flavor-filled BBQ. This place is not fancy. That's what is great about it. You get a free view of the marina, and after you eat be sure to visit J. Percy Priest Dam. They champion great music here, and I've enjoyed the solo players on the patio during warm days. I look forward to coming at night when the joint is jumping. Easy counter service and great conversation with the staff solidifies the authenticity of the food. There is magic here. Come and get it! read more

Papa Turney's - The Ribs - all you need to know - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

Papa Turney's is located in a marina, so the view is pretty nice. I walked in and went with a two meat combo, pork and sausage. For my sides, I went with Mac and cheese and their baked beans. It took a bit to come out. First, I did not expect two sandwiches, I thought that I would get a platter. Not earth shattering, but different. The sides were both pretty terrible. Like I would not be surprised if the beans came out of a can and the mac and cheese came out of a box. The sausage was not the best, but the pork was pretty good. I guess I will give it three stars overall. read more

Papa Turney's - The view - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

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Great place to hear live blues music. Wednesday night is a jam where people swap in and out is the session providing wonderful music. BBQ menu with the usuals plus catfish. The chess pie is a tasty dessert, almost always available. Food is served quickly and hot from the kitchen. read more

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Great place full of folks having a good time with good food. I went on an open jam nite it was good. Great local talent excellent brisket sandwiches. A little hard to find a seat, but that's because it's a little place that is good. read more

Brisket was soo flavorful, bbq sauce is FIRE. i had the smoked wings last time, it was just outstanding. cabbage was to die for. FRIENDLY, such a nice view! I love coming here and will always come back! read more

Papa Turney's - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

Food is wonderful! We ordered smokes catfish, smoked wings, BBQ ribs with potato salad and cabbage. Everything is delicious! read more

Papa Turney's - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

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Entering the building is a chore for anyone with mobility problems. There's a ramp but it didn't seem very sturdy. We entered via the stairs and they seemed to be unstable they made creaky sounds on the trip up and down. Two meat plate with ribs and sausage was bland and the ribs were terrible, they were soggy and lacked the taste of having been on a grill and a hint of being old. None of the sides made the grade neither. The ambience just wasn't what I expected to be greeted with at the time of visit. read more

The live music is great and the ambiance and views are breathtaking. Food is great also but the best of all was having the owners greet you and making you feel like welcome read more

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My husband and I discovered this place while traveling for work, and I have to say, it's definitely one of those spots we'll be coming back to. The vibe was so warm and inviting, and Mr. Turney was out mingling with everyone, including us visitors, genuinely happy that we stopped by. The food was fantastic, the music was lively, and it was so refreshing--nothing felt rushy like some of the busy Broadway spots or other Nashville places. We're already looking forward to our next visit! read more

The catfish plate from Papa Turney's was spot on. They were sold out of brisket that day so I opted for the fried catfish. It was perfectly seasoned and fried. The portion size was perfect. It came with two sides. The service was quick. I was there for a show! I love the memorabilia on the wall and you can't beat the view from the restaurant. read more

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A hidden gem! If you're visiting Nashville, this is 100% worth the short drive! Pretty view and AMAZING meat. This is the best bbq we have had in Nashville! The owner is has such a sweet and caring heart. He sat with us for a while and we had great conversations. May God bless this this establishment read more

We went for the BBQ but happened to visit on the Wednesday night Blues Jam. What an incredible experience. Food was killer. We ordered a couple of pounds of pulled pork to go. Great blues music. Don't miss it!!! Fun time. Owner's family were so nice. Love this place! read more

Had the ribs, greens, and mac and cheese. Not bad. Chill spot by the water. Food was 7.8/10. Will be back to try more!

Food - BBQ ribs was so delicious. Great service. Lunch date so it wasn't a long wait. Enjoyed the service and good music. read more

Ok first off is the Location , it is amazing right on the water in the marina watching the boats is just the best. Next is it can be a little challenging to find but when you do WOW. Now the Food, OMG is just one of the best BBQ places in the local area. I would put it in my top 5 for sure. All of the sides have so much flavor so if you have not been you need to go. Trust me well worth the trip especially on a nice sunny day but if you try the weekends you might miss out because it gets Busy !!! read more

Could use LOTS of improvement. To start off, they were OUT of brisket which is a staple for BBQ. Ordered ribs, pulled pork, Mac and cheese, potato salad and wings. The ribs were not seasoned in the slightest. Pulled pork was dry. BBQ sauce came in a separate dipping cup (the sauce was Sweet Baby Ray's. The smoked wings tasted off and were very soggy. They were swimming in water almost as if they were boiled. The mac and cheese was genuinely depressing, not seasoned, lacking of cheese and also cold like it was sitting out. Potato salad was alright and could use a little more love with seasoning. The service was OK. Food took a little longer than expected to come out and to top it off the place was extremely cramped. Constantly having to move your seat out of the way for others. The only nice thing was the view of the marina. Some pink red like substance came out of the water jug so I had to pour it out and fill another cup. Mind you, this place does not have fountain drinks. Only cans and giant jugs of water, lemonade and what looked to be sweet tea. Unless this place gets a very SERIOUS overhaul I will unfortunately not be coming back. Has potential to be great read more

Papa Turney's - Marina - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

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The food was very good. Service was very slow. They skipped me twice and all I ordered was a large macaroni and cheese side. Took over 20 minutes to get it brought out and served Service was too slow. Not the greatest. The old rustic place and the photos was neat to see. Just slow service read more

I will start off by saying the ribs are the best In Nashville. So to constantly show up and have them be out sucks. Then on top of it, I order rib ribs and Mac and cheese. I waited an HOUR AND 15 minutes. Not one person offered a drink, money off, a sorry. Quite embarrassing. Waste of time. I will NEVER go back. I can go listen to music and get BBQ anywhere in Nashville. Thanks read more

Casual atmosphere with great BBQ & catfish and the prices were even better; 2 full dinners with 2 sides each plus 2 beers under $30

such a great atmosphere an amazing food. I loved the hot wings that I got had a really great portion and honestly, if I could give it more stars than I did, I would've. read more

Smoke? Ordered DZ smoked wings and they were wet, rubbery unseasoned. No way they ever saw a smoker. Then the Brisket plate was nothing more than a brisket sandwich. Meat was dry and missing that smoke again. Sides of Mac & cheese was dry and bland. Baked beans from a can. Only thing tasty and seasoned was the fried cabbage that had a welcoming kick. You order at the counter. Tables are inside and out. Don't recommend this eatery. read more

Super glad we stopped in for lunch!!! Awesome brisket, friendly service, and great views on the marina!!!

So my husband has gifted me a vacation to Nashville for my birthday, my husband has done everything to make sure that I get the right food or there's gonna be some problems (we're foodies). We traveled to Broadway today to visit the Country Music Hall of Fame. Ok stick with me here it might be a long message but worth it. We had breakfast at our hotel something light, then headed to broadway as I explained up top. The event/Tour was scheduled for 2pm. So we eat at a place called Baja taco (inside the CMHF) the worst experience and the worst food don't eat there I had a quesadilla because you can't possibly mess cheese and chicken but they did the nastiest ever. Wawa sells better! Ok my husband get 2 tacos yuck one chicken one fish (cod) the most driest thing ever and the worst part the no flavor. Ok we continue with our tours and the end is near. Well everything comes to an end of course. It's 5pm I'm hungry my husband said you feel like eating dinner I express how hungry I am. Ok now we are headed to the hotel and my husband said let's go eat at the restaurant I talked about this morning in the water. (By the Marina) location Hermitage I said ok I'll give it a try after the debacle in Broadway! We get to Papa Turney's and was treated immediately upon entering the establishment I tell you from beginning to end it was the most heartfelt hospitality you could ask for from a mom/pop restaurant. Menu.... 1/2 rack rib fall off the bone, Mac & Cheese so creamy! Turnip greens flavor that will make you want to ask for more, grilled cabbage of course the flavor was so good that we asked for more, the baked beans OH MY WORD...... Listen we spent $65 in broadway for the worst and spent $45 at Papa Turney's and I would have given them the $65 with pleasure. The morale of the story is find your 5 star restaurants before spending your money on a place you couldn't even get 1 star for. Papa and Mama Turney I'll be back. Thank you for the best experience In Tennessee. read more

Papa Turney's - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

Had pulled pork, greens and macaroni and cheese. Excellent!! Will definitely be back here again for next rowing competition at Percy Priest! read more

It's been quite some time since I've been to Papa Turney's to eat. Needless to say I was a little disappointed. The quality of the food seems to have gone downhill somewhat. The greens were way too salty, and the rib meat was way too tough. The young man at the counter was very friendly. read more

What a cool place despite the band wasn't scheduled to play this night. Food is excellent, service was spot on, and prices are definitely old school bbq prices. 2 sauces, loved the one with heat. Meat was very lean and large portions. Would love to return next time in Nashville area when house band is playing. read more

I've been considering telling no one about this place because I hate it when a legitimately awesome small business in Nashville becomes just another tourist trap. But you know what? That's just selfish. So I'm not going to hold anything back. I don't care if you're a local or a tourist. You MUST come here if you're in Nashville, Hermitage, or any surrounding suburb. This place is the opposite of a faddish tourist trap. This place is REAL. Real Southern soul food. Real Southern hospitality. And real MUSIC. They've got live blues music here every night at Miss Zeke's Juke Joint. Miss Zeke's is Papa Turney's wife. If you love the blues, you have to come here. It's one of three blues clubs in the Nashville area. B. B. King's downtown (I don't care for that place, half the music isn't actually blues anyway), Bourbon Street Blues (actually a really nice blues club, but you still have to deal with downtown traffic, parking, and a cover charge), and then this place. No cover, but you can support the business by buying food and drinks, and always bring cash to tip the band! I know this place advertises their BBQ, hence their name, and their barbecue is nice, but that's not the best thing IMO. Food-wise, I love their chess pies! Miss Zeke makes them from scratch, and you can pick them up right at the counter--no need to wait. I also really love their turnip greens--so savory--and if you do want to go the BBQ route, I really dig their flamin' hot chicken (I think that's what they call it). It isn't Nashville hot chicken like I thought when I first went. No, it's actual BBQ chicken, but with some hot seasonings and sauce on it. It's my favorite thing they have BBQ-wise. Oh, and don't forget their lemonade! It's wonderful. I'm assuming it's homemade and freshly squeezed because it tastes like it, but don't quote me on that. The blues music can't be beat. Papa Turney himself plays the guitar and sings with the band. It's real, down home blues music. Saturday nights they have an open mic jam session. If you sing or play blues, come on out and bring your instrument, and they'll let you play. But my favorite night to go is the third Thursday of every month--blues dance night! It just started this month. All of the local Nashville blues dancers, myself included, go out and dance to Papa Turney's music. They even move the middle table for us. It's great. Papa Turney and Miss Zeke are such great people too. Turney will always come and welcome you there and thank you for coming. His ability to run the business, play the music, and greet the customers all in the same night is pretty amazing IMO. This place is the epitome of a locally-run, , family friendly, quality, Southern business. There's literally no reason NOT to come here. It's out in the middle of the boonies, nowhere near all the downtown tourist traps. So make sure to bring your GPS, or you'll get lost on the winding roads! But then you'll see the house on the lake, and that's when you're there. It's perfect. They even serve catfish that I'm assuming they catch from that lake. I haven't tried the fish though; I'm addicted to that spicy BBQ chicken with turnip greens. Okay, I'm out of compliments. Just come here, okay? You'll never forget it, and you'll want to come back all the time. read more

Papa Turney's - Third Thursday blues dance night - Barbeque Near Me - Hermitage, Tennessee

This review is based on just the food. Service was good. The guy at the register helped us pick from the menu, answered our questions and took our order quickly Sat outside at a corner table overlooking the water. The food was flavorless. I really wanted to like this place but it was just bland. I added salt to everything but it was just not worth even eating. I got the 3 meat combo They come in bread buns... not even toasted or with some Mayo... just plain dry, out the bag buns -.- My order came with: -ribs -brisket -pork All bland and flavorless Side: Mac n cheese Not even the cheese had flavor it was just so sad. Everything came out in styrofoam to-go containers and it just made the entire thing feel childish. read more

We went to see the Hermitage and decided to have b-b-q for dinner. We wanted something local rather than go back to downtown Nashville. We did good. We were greeted by music from Scott Ramminger. It was great. He and his band played the blues. Everyone was friendly. The owner came over to see how we liked our food. The cook also checked and brought as some ribs to try. We were lucky to come in when they were not busy. We were also lucky to come when they had turkey legs. The meat was all delicious and tender. The turkey fell off the bone. The hot link was excellent, nicely spiced. The ribs were juicy. The coleslaw was home made, chopped not shredded. The sweet tea and lemonade satisfied our thirst. Chess pie rounded off our meal. Thank you all for making us feel so welcome and the great food. read more

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Traveled from California to Tennessee and wanted a good pulled pork sandwich and I got an AMAZING one! Loved the live music and great place overall! read more

We found this place on Yelp upon our arrival to the Nashville airport as we needed a quick bite. Upon entering about 30 min before closing we were so graciously welcomed by a gentleman who identified himself as the owner and I feel terrible I can't quite remember his name. So, upon entering we were so welcomed! We ordered and the food was delivered quickly and it definitely did NOT disappoint!! We had the pulled pork and brisket sandwich's, coleslaw, potato salad and Mac and cheese. The food came out hot and delicious!! We would definitely return again to this off the beaten path place with great live music and the friendliest staff. read more

This was the first BBQ spot we tried when we moved to Nashville and honestly, it's still in my top five in the city. Please @ me about this topic, I'm down to defend PTs. We recently ordered food to snack on while watching the Super Bowl, so it could at least feel like an event. There were four of us, 3 adults and 1 toddler, but we still ordered 1lb of chicken, 1lb brisket and 1lb of pork along with beans, Mac n cheese and coleslaw. It was a feast! We ordered it for lunch, but planned on eating it for the next three days, which we did... ever have a brisket omelette? Everything was amazing, the chicken was loaded with flavor and wasn't dry, the brisket melted in your mouth and the pork was smokey and juicy! You can't go wrong with the sides here! My favorite are the beans, smokey and sweet! The photos I posted aren't from latest visit. Sadly, I took photos and they are MIA. The ones attached are from previous dining experience, pre-covid. read more

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My brisket was good but hubby got the 1/2 rack ribs and said they were tough and not very tasty. The man who took our order was very nice.

Wonderful BBQ with great views and even better service! Will definitely be returning!

Great find! The owner plays in the band and the music is great (Blues) Food was outstanding! Between the three of us we had a big selection of the BBQ items and all cooked to perfections. The baked beans were about the best I have had.. read more

Great BBQ and sides, relaxing patio on the water, friendly people. Try the smoked catfish or the pork. Mac and cheese was good too. I wish we had been there for the blues. read more

Hidden gem. What a great place to eat and listen to live music. The food is very good, and the owner and service personnel makes you feel welcomed. Highly recommend. read more

Really enjoyed our visit to Papa Turneys...great good (had the Family Pack, way plenty for we four adults!). The live music was terrific and we had a wonderful time. Will definitely be back! read more

I love papa turney's: good music, good vibes, but I waited for over an hour for my food

If you ever need to provide macaroni and cheese for a large event, let Papa Turney's prepare and deliver it. This is mac and cheese like your grandma makes! My order arrived on time, hot, and ready to serve. Awesome experience! read more