Nashville Nugget Nos. 4 & 5- The Perch and Hot & Cold

Guess who was in town this weekend??? My Senegalese friend Michelle! I had the privilege of spending all day Friday with her, gallivanting around town and doing the most Nashville things possible.

Reunited in AMERICA! Remember that the last time we saw each other was on the streets of Senegal?

First stop? The Perch, located just over the border in Brentwood. The Perch is a fun little coffee & crepes & more shop. And by more, I mean coffee from Zimbabwe (hey, southern Africa) and even waffles! This place was so good that Meesh and I didn't even pause for photos...we just chowed down. We came from Africa, so that's okay, right?

[photo cred]

Having only ever eaten sweet crepes at The Perch (oh.my.holy.sweets. The s'mores crepe? Unbelievable.), I dove into the world of savory crepes on Friday. I ordered the "herbed turkey, brie, arugula, cranberries w/balsamic" crepe and devoured it. Brie on a crepe. So good.

And, being a connoisseur of independently-owned coffeeshops, The Perch's hot chocolate is high up on my list.

After jumping around Franklin for a while, we headed back north to escape the heat and indulge in another new Nashville place: Hot & Cold. This extension of Fido/Bongo Java Roasting Co opened last December after Michelle and I had left Tennessee, so neither of us knew much about it. However, while at Fido earlier this week, my eyes were drawn to a sign enticing the reader to try Hot & Cold because it offers Las Paletas dipped in Olive & Sinclair. My oh my, I just about fainted from excitement. If you're not from Nashville, then you have NO IDEA of the implications of this offer. And there's simply no way to explain what combining Las Paletas and Olive & Sinclair might do to the joy of your mouth and tummy.

But like The Perch, Hot & Cold is so much more than Las Paletas dipped in Olive & Sinclair. They also have a great selection of Ohio's very own Jeni's Ice Cream - which of course can be covered in an Olive & Sinclair dark chocolate shell. And in addition to some of the well-known drinks from their neighbor, they have chocolate shots. Chocolate. Shots. What?! So tempted. So overwhelmed.

We smartly decided to try Jeni's Ice Cream - a new thing for both of us - since they had run out of most Paletas flavors by the afternoon. I had a scoop of Pistachio & Honey ice cream and a scoop of "the Milkiest Chocolate in the World," all covered in Olive & Sinclair dark chocolate. Whoa. I have to say, the deep taste of Olive & Sinclair was a little overwhelming and I might just choose to pop the $7 for a bar of it instead of pouring it on my ice cream. But it was a treat indeed.

I will definitely be returning to The Perch and Hot & Cold. I'm impressed, very impressed. And full.

The Perch is located near Old Hickory Blvd at 117 Franklin Rd in Brentwood.
Hot & Cold is located next to Fido in Hillsboro Village at 1804 21st Ave S.