Exclusive: Giant food hall, music venue coming to downtown Nashville

A multi-level, 100,000-square-foot food hall and entertainment venue with the potential to transform downtown Nashville’s dining landscape is planned for the Fifth + Broadway development.

The yet-to-be-named food hall slated to open in the first half of 2020 will showcase dozens of regional chefs, restaurateurs and entrepreneurs.

It will anchor the site of the former Nashville Convention Center, where an H&M retail store and the National Museum of African American Music have already been announced as tenants.

“When you walk into the food hall, what will hit you is your senses because you will see all these different food stalls — what we like to call it is food theater — so you actually see wood-burning grills with shawarma, you see a wood-burning pizza oven and you see people actually making the food in front of you,” said Jack Gibbons, president of Front Burner Restaurants, the parent company bringing the food hall to Nashville.

The deal between Front Burner Restaurants’ The Food Hall Co. and Fifth + Broadway developers OliverMcMillan and Spectrum | Emery marks significant leasing progress for the $430 million project in the heart of downtown Nashville.

A food hall of this scope has the potential to become a major culinary destination drawing locals and tourists alike, comparable to European-inspired food hall concepts in Chicago, New York and Charleston, S.C.

Food halls have expanded rapidly across the U.S. as the trend becomes an increasingly popular way for restaurateurs to test concepts with lower financial risk and for consumers to enjoy an array of cuisines under one roof. The market house at the Nashville Farmers’ Market is the closest example of a local food hall, and New Orleans-based St. Roch Market plans to expand to Music City.

“When the city of Nashville decided to redevelop (the former Nashville Convention Center), this new Food Hall is precisely the type of attraction that was envisioned,” Mayor Megan Barry said in a statement. “Not only will the Food Hall become a great gathering spot in the heart of downtown, it will also shine a spotlight on a host of our incredible local chefs and restaurateurs, which are so integral to our city’s culture and hospitality.”

Gibbons and Front Burner Restaurants CEO Randy DeWitt were inspired by a food hall in Amsterdam. They formed The Food Hall Co. and debuted a food hall called Legacy Hall in Plano, Texas, in late 2017.

The Nashville food hall will feature more than 30 local food stalls showcasing an array of international cuisines, multiple cocktail bars, a wine bar, a craft brewery and a rooftop event and music venue.

“Imagine being able to savor artisanal flavors from a variety of local chefs, along with an assortment of our craft beers and custom cocktails while watching performances by talented local singer-songwriters. Our space pays homage to the tastes and traditions of Nashville and the ingenuity that its chefs, restaurants and musicians contribute to the community,” DeWitt said.

Fifth + Broadway is slated to debut in 2020 with more than 235,000 square feet of retail and entertainment space, a 385,000-square-foot office tower at 501 Commerce, more than 380 residential units and more than 2,000 parking spaces.

DeWitt founded Front Burner Restaurants in 1994 with Half Shell’s Oyster Bar & Grill in University Park, Texas. The company has since developed 14 restaurant concepts and operates more than 100 restaurant locations nationwide.

Reach Lizzy Alfs at lalfs@tennessean.com or 615-726-5948 and on Twitter @lizzyalfs.