Papa Turney’s

Great lunch here while waiting for a flight. Great food, excellent service and good music. Owner Mike has a great spot here

Very kind and friendly staff who took our orders at the table (even though people generally walk up to the counter to order). The food was great. (I had smoked catfish which came with two sides, and it was all delicious.) There are lines of picnic-​style tables.
They did not have a beer/​liquor license, but at this point it might be a few weeks away.
We went for the live music, and the quality of the musicians was fantastic beyond belief, playing to an enthusiastic group of listeners!
You will enjoy your visit. I hope this place stays around for a good, long time!

Best BBQ and blues jam in town! BBQ nachos are the BOMB! Come out Wednesday nights for the best blues jam in Nashville! 7 to 10pm. Listen or play, All players welcome!

Awesome local place to eat. Right on the water so nice view. They had someone singing live music while we ate there which was neat even though we are in Nashville. Defiantly worth the price which is not very much for the amount of food you get.

Live music, great food this place is a winning combination. Customer service was awesome.

Mmmm. Just thinking about this place makes me want some ribs. I came across PT’s a couple of years ago when they used to setup shop in front of Kwik Saq. They would be there just about every day and for sure on the weekends. I live about a half-​mile away and you could smell the smoked goodness in the air, we knew what was up. I finally stopped by and got to meet Mr Papa Turney himself. Real cool, down to earth guy. Made you feel welcomed & appreciated for coming by. I ordered a couple slabs of ribs and they pulled them right off the smoker and gave me a lil sample. I could’ve hugged the guy, those ribs were falling apart in my hand and I swear they melted once in my mouth. They were that good. DAMN! He explained his process to me but I was in a smoked BBQ daze and couldn’t remember what he said if my life depended on it. Let’s hope it never comes to that but you get the idea. Anyways, the guy who took my order & money was a cool and easy to talk to. Good thing because I’m a lil skinny white guy and this dude was swoll as hell. He told me how he just recently got out of prison and was trying to turn his life around when Mr Turney offered him a job. He was very grateful to be out and socializing, I liked him. Apparently just about everybody who works there is trying to restart their life on the right path and that just adds to the greatness of PT’s. Good food, good people, good story. That’s what it’s all about.

We went to Papa Turney’s tonight. One word! AWESOME! First, I don’t know why Unilocal has them as closed — they were open. So, if you aren’t sure, call, because you don’t want to miss this place. The food was too good to describe. We had chicken, pulled pork, ribs and smoked catfish; and every dish was mouth watering. The huge bonus was the live music. Three different groups, which ended up being a real Nashville jam session. Papa and Ma Turney did all the cooking and are two of the nicest people I have ever met. So if you are in Nashville make this place a must stop!

Great food (mostly pork, but the sides are awesome)
Great views (water…)
Great hospitality.
Depending on when you come there is live music!

We stopped at Papa Turney’s on our way to Nashville today. Brittany, the server, was awesome. She made us feel like family, offered us tastes of a couple of things to see if we liked them, helped us with suggestions about where to shop in Nashville, and generally made our experience one of the best we’ve had in a restaurant in a long time.
Oh, and the food was GREAT.
We had ribs, smoked catfish, macaroni and cheese, grilled cabbage, greens, gumbo, and chess pie. All were delicious. Really.
We’d go back if we lived here. No question.

I can’t believe I forgot to review this place. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it…
It was good. The BBQ was great and the sides were OUTSTANDING. And the staff was friendly, outgoing and also enjoyed a bit of banter. All in all, a keeper of a restaurant.
Stop here. You’ll like it.

The best barbecue in Nashville! This place has grown tremendously in just a few short years, so sometimes they’re not fully prepared for such big crowds. It’s worth the wait, and the sides are delicious as well! Papa Turney’s has live music from time to time.

Love this place! Tried Pulled Pork, Brisket, Smoked links, ribs, grilled cabbage and beans!!!
We will definitely be back!

Do you want a home cooked meal from a southern hospitality professional? Papa Turneys is without a doubt the greatest BBQ meal I have ever had. I feel like I’m at Sunday lunch after church. Not to mention one of the most involved, humble and passionate restaurant owners I’ve ever met. Thank you sir for a beautiful lunch with a gorgeous view. We will be back.

So much fun! My husband and I found this place randomly driving around in our neighborhood. We’ve always vowed to come back and tonight was the night. We had really great food! I took Jolene’s recommendation and got the ribs with the potato salad and baked beans. Omgosh. It was amazeballs. My husband got the ribs plate (this was bigger than my portion) with collard greens and grilled cabbage which he also raved about. And we enjoyed the laid back and friendly atmosphere and the live music especially. We’ll definitely be back!
Ps. The sweet tea was dabombdotcom. So were the homemade pecan pie and homemade ice cream. ALL. THE. NOMS.

So good and so friendly! Our first time here but we will be back.
The location is gorgeous!

Hands down the best BBQ I have had in a long time! Brittany (hope I spelled that correctly) is super sweet and has a great memory!
Each time I’ve gone here it was just as good as the last. My favorite is the ribs with beans & potato salad. Be sure to get the pecan pie for dessert; heated with a scoop of ice cream.
The fact that you can sit atop the water and have live music is just a bonus!

Always loved this place when I lived back in Hermitage. Very solid food and their new venue on the water is sweet. The one thing I have to say is that some of the food, like the pulled pork can actually be fairly dry, but their bbq sauce handles that.
Really nice people, great operation. Their collared greens are the best I’ve had, and I know someone legit from the bayou that claims their gumbo, while not traditional, is some of the best she’s ever had. Unfortunately I think it’s a special and not on the reg. menu, but I could be wrong about that.

THE best rib place I have ever eaten at. Very friendly owner, very personal place. When we are in Nashville this place is a must. Great place to eat period

Fine,
Easy
BBQ
With marina
Views not too far from the airport. Chill place.

I used to LOVE Papa Turney’s. Any time I had a craving for BBQ, that was my go-​to place! Super-​friendly owners that make you feel very welcome! It pains me to give them a negative rating, but since they moved locations, the quality of the food has gone down.
The meat seems to be either too dry or to fatty. The sides are so-​so, which I hate because they’re mac n cheese used to be SO good. (the baked beans are still pretty nice and flavorful though!). The bbq sauce they use now seems store-​bought, and they are very stingy with giving it to you. I placed a to-​go order the other day, and I would not have had any sauce had I not thought to ask about it on a whim. And on that note, i was given two little half-​filled cups of the sauce which is nothing when compared to the nice sized proportions they give you.
The only upside I can see in their move to the new location is that there is more space. Plenty of room to sit down and eat, and even for a live band.

I am giving Papa Turney’s a conditional 4-​star rating. Here’s the deal. Anyone who has been there knows it should get 5 stars, all the time, no questions asked. But seriously, run out of beer AND brisket, and then blame it on a busy Saturday? Sounds like lazy to me. Ok, so the distributers can’t deliver beer on Sunday — does that stop you from BBQing some brisket? Apparently so. Not chickens or ribs, just brisket. It just pissed me off is all.
So we settled for the ribs and chicken. My daughter inhaled her ribs before I could even think of taking a picture, but I did snap one of my chicken plate. The chicken was very moist and flavorful and wow, did they get the smoke into the meat! Not overpowering at all, but a pleasant smokiness through and through. The mac and cheese was tasty but cold and a bit congealed and the greens were just a bit over seasoned (read too much salt) but I’m not really complaining because we were eating out of styrofoam containers and using plastic utensils. Talk about a landfill nightmare, but it is the south so I guess it ain’t nobody’s business.
Loved the ambiance. We sat outside because it was a wonderful day and the singer inside, while pretty good, was so loud we couldn’t even hear the guys behind the counter. They couldn’t hear us either and did apologize for how loud it was. I was hoping we could hear him outside but with the windows closed it was a pretty well sealed building. Looking over the docks was fantastic. This is another reason to want to live in Nashville. I just hope Papa Turney’s doesn’t let the atmosphere lead them down a path to indifference. They could be a BBQ go-​to place.
I plan on making it a point to go back there the next time I am in town. They will either go up to 5 stars or drop to 3. It will just depend on whether they want to be great or just another restaurant in a great location. I hope the former.

This place is amazing– great service and very friendly employees. Greeted by the owner upon entering the room. The bbq is delicious and everything is full of flavor. The baked beans were so sweet and delicious –
The view of the water is also very pleasant. I recommend the strawberry cake for dessert!

5 stars is far from enough for papa turney’s.
seriously, if there’s one bite of bbq you’re going to eat in the nashville area, it better be here.
we came here twice in one day. no regrets. i’d be here every day.
the meats are all smoked, and the delicious smells hit you as soon as you make it up the winding road into the parking lot. settled right on a gorgeous marina, the wide 2^nd floor patio has about a dozen 4-​top tables, and the inside has a a few more. there’s a small area where musicians play some nights, and the overall vibe is casual.
papa turney’s niece greeted us, and was super friendly throughout service.
our food was brought out to the patio in styrofoam containers bursting with deliciousness.
when we came back a second time in one day, she even called papa turney himself to swing by and chat with us. amazing hospitality!
pulled pork was absolutely delicious. great texture, although a little bit fatty.
brisket was perfect.
puled chicken was superb.
ribs fell off the bone and were totally yum.
mac and cheese got rave reviews.
the coleslaw was really reallyyyy tasty.
the smoked cabbage is probably my new favorite side dish. ever.
the bbq sauces are so great… i love bbq sauce, and these homemade creations were really delicious– there’s a spicy and a sweeter type, and they are both fantastic.
don’t leave without grabbing a piece of strawberry cake to go.
i don’t even like cake, but this was phenomenal.
ask for the family story that goes with it!