KNOXVILLE ROUND-UP: ALL MY RECS!

Long time no post yall! I will start being consistent on here again.

I have been meaning to make this post for MONTHSSS yall but I figured now is as good of a time as any because I am headed back this weekend!! Go vols🍊

Restaurants:

📍Cafe 4: in the heart of market square, never had a bad meal or service here & is my favorite restaurant in Knoxville period. The fish tacos are elite & their truffle fries are insaneeee🍟 they have lots of options & punch bowls along with mock tails🍹🍹

📍adopo: kinda near old city but these is hands down the best pizza I have ever had, along with their homemade gelato

📍babalu: omg y’all, the best homemade chips & guac ever. It’s Latin American food and is sooo good. Even their French fries are delish. I always go for the tacossss & they have Mexican coke !

📍blackhorse brewery: brussel sprouts. Enough said; the best you will ever eat in your lifeeee. I am not a beer cheese girl but when I tell you I craveeee theirs I seriously mean it.

DESSERT:

📍Cruze Farm: homemade soft serve ice cream. Insane. They have seasonal flavors and you’ll be wanting seconds before you finish your cone🍦

COFFEE:

📍Golden Roast: technically on campus or you can head into the more suburban part of Knoxville for this amazing coffee, it’s my favorite coffee shop and the vibes, and of course the coffee are amazing☕️

📍K-Brew: homemade bagels, and delish coffee, a perfect Sunday treat after a Vols win! Located inside the embassy suites right downtown by the Tennessee theatre, small but mighty and always good.

📍Awaken Coffee: Right in old city, their seasonal drinks will amaze you with the creativity and funkiness!!

DRINKS/BREWERIES/21+ FUN:

📍Radius Rooftop Lounge: right on top of embassy suites, you can enjoy a drink and amazing views of downtown Knox along with the smoky mountains in the distance. Fires to keep you warm & lots of places inside & out to sit and chat.

📍Merchants of Beer: DOG FRIENDLY🐶🐶 literally the cutest place they have cornhole, a food truck & of course lots of beer, did I mention it’s pet friendly?? They have dog toys and doggy dishes everywhere so you don’t have to leave your pup at home!

PLACES TO STAY:

Crowne Plaza:

This hotel is great. The staff is super friendly and helpful. They have a great bar and restaurant for breakfast, and dinner and snacks. If you stay and plan on staying downtown, you won’t even have to think about your car because it has great parking, and right next to Market Square (ask for a room overlooking market square!). You are right between Old City and downtown!

Embassy Suites by Hilton Knoxville Downtown:

They have Valet parking, two multiple on site restaurants, Ko-Pita, and CJ’s Tacos, you can also grab a coffee and great bagel at K-Brew or go to Ham’n Goodys and grab a delish lemon cookie! Of course, you can always head up to Radius Roof Top Lounge! They have great hand crafted drinks, local brews and wine plus a roof top pool and stunning views all around. They even have a Top Golf sim in the lobby.

THINGS TO DO:

Market Square Farmers Market:

I could talk about this farmers market all day, it is so good. They have so many vendors & coffee & bakery pop ups right in the heart of market square! You can grab farm fresh fruits, veggies & eggs, and some bakery goods and breads. There are also vendors who sell pottery, clothes, jewelry & art. There truly is something for everyone at this farmer market.

Meads Quarry/ Ijjams Nature Center:

If you have a perfect weather day head over to Ijams! There are hiking trails, the quarry to fish or swim, mountain biking. They also host a lot of events and offer paddle boarding rentals and kayaks in the summer but it is pretty year round.

World's Fair Park:

They have an amphitheatre & have a college church night on Sundays called The Walk. You can head into the sun sphere for $5 for some history of the world's fair park and see great views of Downtown and UTK!

University of Tennessee Knoxville:

Of course this is the heart of Knoxville but if you have the opportunity to catch a football game at Neyland Stadium or a baseball game at Lindsey Nelson, take it! You truly cannot beat SEC sports. The campus is also beautiful, and very hilly.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park:

This is the best place ever. There are easy or hard hikes, or you can just ride around Cades Cove. There are stunning views all around. My recommended hikes are

-Alum Cave

-Chimney Tops

-The Jump Off

-Clingmans Dome

Chat Soon Y'all! Xoxo, Cayley <3