Monday Munchies- Shugga Hi Bakery
For the first time in the history of Monday Munchies, I get to highlight a restaurant on Dickerson Pike. In case you didn’t know, I live off of the street that in the 90s and early 2000s was somewhat infamous for criminal activity. Thankfully, things are finally starting to straighten out for our corridor, which is unique in the fact that it runs in to first Avenue which takes you all the way down to the Titans stadium and to some major downtown access points. Over the next few years (as I’ve stated in my blog multiple times, hope you’ve been reading) some really good things are going to be happening to Dickerson Pike as Metro is helping prosper and encourage growth. And while that is great for my business, I’m mostly excited about the food opportunities because that’s what’s really important. Shugga Hi is the first of its kind and it couldn’t be ran by better people.
As you can probably assume from the name, they started out as a bakery. Started and ran by two sisters (Kathy and Sandra), their recipes came from their mom, who demonstrated them and taught them from an early age. The same recipes are used in the food that they prepare in their restaurant that opened in the summer of 2017. When we went in for the first time a couple of months ago, we actually got the chance to meet one of the sisters on our way out. She thanked us multiple times for coming in to the restaurant and made sure to welcome us back again. In an effort to help out our Nashville neighborhood, a portion of the proceeds from sales every Thursday is donated to charity because they want to continue to be on the forefront of the rejuvenation of their community. That’s reason enough to frequent their spot more than once.
Going to start off talking about their appetizers before going in to bread and butter of the menu and all of the incredible values that they provide for Nashville food. They were voted best chicken and waffles in Nashville by Tastebuds, so one of their main appetizers is a set of four tenders (for under $10). Other than the veggie spring rolls, all of the apps have meat in them, which makes them a winner in my book. A couple of salad options for starters as well. The first hamburger option on their menu is a waffle burger, topped with the usual burger toppings as well as bacon. The rest of the menu is sandwich options ranging from turkey, chicken, pork, and ham. And all of the menu options come with fries for under ten dollars outside of the waffle burger. That is cheaper than you’re going to find it at just about anywhere in Nashville. Everything is a really good value for the portion sizes. If you can find a place that gives you more food with an order for the prices that Shugga Hi runs, I would be glad to hear about it and try it out.
Da Bomb, featured with a side of the Henny syrup. Yes- Hennessey inspired syrup is a thing.
When we went a couple of months ago, we went for brunch on a Saturday. As always, we are the aliens in the room due to coming in with two handsome little guys. The only thing better looking than our kids was the food that we ate. To start off I want to notate that they have multiple brunch menu options for less than $7. One of those is called “The Dickerson Sunrise”, which is two eggs, bacon, sausage, grits, and toast. You can’t go to Kroger yourself and get those items and cook them for cheaper than that. Bumping it up to a whopping $7.95 is “Da Bomb” and it comes with two large biscuits, stuffed with eggs, sausage, bacon and cheese….topped with the queen of all bread toppings that is honey butter. I got this when we went for the first time, and it was KILLER. There aren’t many places that you can get really full for less than ten dollars in town, but Shugga Hi is 100% one of them. They also have eleven different choices for additional sides to add to your already plentiful meal if you’re needing a cure for a night that had too much fun.
On the weekends they always have someone at the front playing some music that is noticeable enough but doesn’t overwhelm you with the volume of other establishments that like to accompany their food with live entertainment. On Sundays they do a Brunch Buffet that is always packed to the gills, with food ranging from your normal breakfast sides to catfish and other lunch options. We tried going one Sunday after church at about 11 and they told us a seventy-five minute wait, so they definitely have their following and stay pretty busy. I hope to do some partnering for events in 2020 with them so be on the lookout for that as I try and fledge it out and see if I can get an event going. As I said earlier, I am really proud of the success that they’ve had as basically the only restaurant that is really crushing it on the lower half of Dickerson, and I hope that more places quickly follow suit.
SCORE- 8.3/10