MIEL means HONEY in so many ways.

I'm not sure how it's possible, but the best restaurant in Nashville went unnoticed by us for over an entire year!

MIEL is, by far, the BEST restaurant we've experienced since Erin Roland worked at Zola (which, by the way, is closing its doors mid-January since the owners Chef Deb and husband Ernie Paquette are moving to the Caribbean). For a while, we were enjoying Shon Hudspeth's service at Germantown Cafe, but then he moved to The Yellow Porch (whose menu wasn't terribly impressive), and we had another baby (who, um, happens to be THREE now), so we just stopped frequenting higher-end restaurants for a while.

Kalamata's has been my favorite family restaurant for years, but it's not the place I'd go for a romantic date-night or super-special occasion. Even my favorite restaurant in TN, Pearl's Cafe near Sewanee, burned down, so we didn't make our annual trip to Monteagle this year (although it looks like they're open for business again).

Since Christy moved in with us April and began offering us date nights one night a week, we started going out again. James would buy discounted gift certificates through Nashville Originals or Groupon.com or Restaurants.com or Half-Off Nashville and we would venture out hoping for a culinary experience worth sharing. Unfortunately, I wasn't super impressed with what Nashville had to offer. Most of the time, my chef-ish husband could have topped our dinner offerings at home (for a fraction of the price). Generally, the service was poor or the atmosphere was lacking. And Nashville has too many "good" restaurants to waste time and money at adequate or barely average restaurants.

For truly excellent restaurants, well . . . Zola has topped our list for years. But they're closing!

MIEL's food reminds me of Zola, the atmosphere reminds me of Germantown, and the fresh, local offerings remind me of Pearl's. They even have their own farm! Our server, David, was just as fabulous as Erin and Shon, and so we not only enjoyed a romantic date night this Saturday while my parents' had the kids for the weekend, but we also went back for Sunday brunch!

I could go on and on about how fabulous it is, but you really need to experience it first-hand. Check out their website: MielRestaurant.com. Drool over the pictures and peruse the menu. Then, call 298-FOOD (3663) and make reservations as soon as you can. They're open Tues-Sat from 5:30-10 and Sunday from 10-2, and they're located at 53rd & Charlotte just behind Bobbie's Dairy Dip. Ask for David and tell the host/hostess that James and Lori sent you. You are sure to be perfectly delighted.

Just a bit of press to get you started:

BEST OF NASHVILLE 2009

Nashville Scene October 15, 2009

Best Brunch: Miel
An alternate title for this category could be Best Place for a Culinary Campout, because I'd like to reserve the same table at Miel for Saturday dinner and Sunday brunch and just spend the night. After a lingering evening of foie gras, escargots and trout in Seema and Jimmy Phillips' sleek Sylvan Park dining room, I'd unfurl my sleeping bag on the serene back patio and drift off into a wine-induced slumber, dreaming of orange-custard French toast and Callebaut hot chocolate. When the sun peeked up over Charlotte Pike, I'd rise to the scent of Benton's bacon and sip away the morning grogginess with a steaming French press of dark roast. Shrimp and grits, braised short ribs with poached eggs and house-made granola with macerated berries, orange zest and mint...now that's my idea of roughing it. Carrington Fox