A Small Mountain Town Is Gaining Recognition as a Dining Destination
On Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau, a small mountain town is earning unexpected recognition. Sewanee—long celebrated for its Gothic stone university and sweeping views—is now drawing visitors for its culinary scene. Many arrive for the scenery but leave with a new appreciation for the town’s slow pace and remarkable dining.
The Rise Of Sewanee’s Modern Kitchens
The first signs of change began when two chefs with deep Tennessee ties decided the mountain had more potential than anyone gave it credit for. Julia Sullivan, celebrated for her work at Nashville’s Henrietta Red, opened Judith, a dinner spot inside a former university laundry.
Her menu includes refined Southern cooking, including chicken Milanese, fresh pasta, and seasonal produce supplied by nearby farms. Sullivan, who spent her childhood visiting Sewanee, wanted to create a restaurant that offered comfort and precision.
Across University Avenue, Lunch has become a midday ritual for many residents. Chef Mallory Grimm Tubbs, a Sewanee graduate, returned to the mountain with her husband after years of working in kitchens around the country. Her small restaurant and market change weekly, depending on what her network of local farmers delivers.
One week might feature tomato pie or soba noodles in summer broth. Another could bring porchetta sandwiches or bison posole. Her approach is to cook what grows nearby and make it taste like home.
A Town That Feeds Creativity
Sewanee’s food revival fits naturally into a community already rich in art and ideas. The town hosts the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, the Sewanee Summer Music Festival, and a year-round calendar of readings, lectures, and concerts that draw visitors from across the country. The University of the South’s campus covers 13,000 acres of sandstone halls, forest trails, and panoramic bluffs.
The same energy flows into its restaurants, where menus shift with the seasons and cooks experiment freely without chasing trends. Even long-standing favorites have their place in this new chapter. Stirling’s Coffee House, a sunny cottage café run by students, still serves strong coffee and pastries to early risers, while Shenanigans, the town’s iconic pub, keeps plates of pizza and fried food coming for hikers and locals.
The Broader Appeal
Image via iStockphoto/Wirestock
Recent recognition has confirmed what visitors have been talking about. National publications have named Sewanee one of America’s best small towns for food and culture.
The town’s draw isn’t limited to alumni or passing tourists anymore. People are buying homes, opening small businesses, and contributing to a sense of community that values both preservation and progress. Sewanee still feels like a mountain hideaway, but its growing collection of thoughtful chefs and food lovers suggests it’s becoming something more.