Consult any guidebook for getting the most out of your visit to Nashville, and chances are good that at least one honky tonk will have made the list. And for good reason: you need only to drive down Broadway on a Friday or Saturday (or Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday) night and see the flashing lights and people flooding the sidewalks to get a sense of just how deeply these bars have woven themselves into the culture of Music City. Whether you’re searching for the best honky tonks amidst the saturation of bars on Broadway or for alternative opportunities to test out your dancing chops, here are some of the best honky tonks and dance halls in Nashville.
Broadway Area
More honky tonks abound on Broadway and its ancillary streets than can be addressed in just one article. And while most of these bars share many common fundamental features, here are a few can’t-miss highlights if you find yourself downtown.
Every Monday night at 10pm, locals flock to this East Nashville joint to partake in what is perhaps the most popular weekly dance party in the entire city: Keep on Movin’ (commonly referred to as ‘Motown Mondays’). While The 5 Spot is an excellent venue for live music any night of the week – with regular performers of a myriad of genres ranging from soul to R&B to rock n’ roll – if you’re searching for the best opportunities to brush the cobwebs off your dancing shoes, Motown Mondays are a can’t-miss. And unlike the country kitsch of most downtown honky tonks, The 5 Spot has a reputation, much like the rest of its East Nashville neighbors, for drawing a slightly younger and more cutting-edge local crowd (there’s a reason, after all, that GQ named Motown Mondays the ‘most stylish party in America’).
The 5 Spot, 1006 Forrest Ave, Nashville, TN, +1 615 650 9333
Interested in dance that isn’t of the honky tonk line dance variety? While Nashville may be most well-known for its country roots when it comes to dance hall opportunities, if you look hard enough, you’ll also find a number of venues offering a wide variety of different dance options. One such example is Swing Dance Nashville, a venue celebrating the vintage jazz styles of the mid-twentieth century. In addition to tons of classes ranging from beginner to advanced, every Friday night the studio also hosts a Jump Session, where for five dollars you can drop in on a lesson and then stick around for three hours of open dancing as DJs play jazz tunes from the 1920s-1950s.
Swing Dance Nashville, 4822 Charlotte Ave, Nashville, TN
By Katie Miller