Get a Real Taste of East Tennessee

Five historic restaurants located outside of the Smokies

When visitors come to the Smokies, they are beset by merchants, restauranteurs and more. And all are selling a particular brand of nostalgia. Authentic mountain goods, authentic mountain recipes. Some of it real. However, some of it is catering to specific expectations.

But the taste of East Tennessee – even the mountains – is bigger than fried chicken and taters. It is more than meatloaf and fried okra. And while those things are fine, it’s Ok to want to experience a more authentic version of East Tennessee’s culinary history.

And some of that history is alive today. In Gatlinburg, you’ve got places like the Pancake Pantry and Howard’s that have been serving guests in the mountains for a combined 144 years. You’ve got Calhoun’s an East Tennessee institution and a member of the Copper Cellar Family of restaurants – a veritable who’s who of East Tennessee culinary experiences.

If you really want to take a walk through the history of dining in East Tennessee, you’ve got to try things that extend beyond Grandma’s recipe book:

Historic dining experiences in East Tennessee

1. Ye Olde Steakhouse – Knoxville

Located on Chapman Highway, not far from the Sevier-Knox County line, the story of Ye Olde Steakhouse is one of excellence – and perseverance. The restaurant was founded by Bunt King – a man blessed with a great name and a vision but perhaps a less than stellar eye for real estate. The location he picked for his dream restaurant was a former antique store embedded in the side of a hill that had little practical parking and would face a kudzu situation that can only be described as less-than-optimal.

Still, Bunt, his family and restaurant endured. Bunt passed in 1987, but the restaurant remains in family hands. Located about 20 minutes from our house in Maryville, it was my first favorite restaurant in Knoxville and remains at or near the top. The dark interior makes for great steakhouse vibes and it’s a perfect place to watch a University of Tennessee football game.

The menu is classic steakhouse, shrimp cocktail, various sides and a variety of classic sides. The steaks are grain-fed beef from Iowa and are wet-aged and hand trimmed. I go with the T-Bone but, you know, hard to go wrong with a good steak. The menu also includes grilled salmon, baked snapped and charbroiled chicken. Visit the website here.

2. Pizza Palace – East Knoxville

Located on E. Magnolia Avenue, not too far from the new Smokies Stadium, is a drive-in restaurants – like Sonic or the Old A&W – that has served pizza, pasta and sandwiches for more than 50 years. Pizza Palace opened in 1961, and has been featured on “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” – Guy Fieri’s show. But don’t hold that against them.

The menu is eclectic featuring pizzas that are extremely well made and fresh. If you choose to carry out from the counter – there is no seating – you might see the guys hand-tossing your pizza. Easily some of the best pizza you’ll find in East Tennessee.

Pasta options include spaghetti – with “secret recipe meat sauce,” lasagna or jumbo beef ravioli none of which are great options for dining in your car, but make for great carryout. They also offer a ground tenderloin steak, half a fried chicken and a fish plate that is legit.

Side orders include the “world famous” onion rings. We know folks who swear by them but they weren’t our favorite. The real steal on the menu are the sandwiches which come in very reasonably priced. The Cheeseburger deluxe is $5.25 at the time of this writing, for instance, and lives up to the name.

This – as much as any place on this list – is a step back through time. You can almost see the place busting with classic cars from the 50s and 60s as men in suits and fedoras try to manage an order of spaghetti while sitting behind the wheel.

They only take cash. There is an “ATM” which is really just a card machine that charges you a little extra to get your cash out of the till. It’s a Hinkie system, but the pizza is good enough that I overlook it. Visit the website here.

3. Little Dutch – Morristown

The Little Dutch’s history goes all the way back to 1939 when Frank and Mattie Lorino opened a place that catered to local workers and the after-school crowd. The Little Dutch – so named because the owner traded a lifetime of free meals to a sign maker for a windmill sign someone ordered but never picked up – has been Morristown’s place to be for decades.

Featuring an Italian and American menu, the Little Dutch has welcomed political movers and shakers and a handful of celebrities over the years including the cast of “The Evil Dead” – which was partially filmed in Morristown, Lilly Tomlin, whose wife, writer Jane Wagner is from the area and Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart, whose parents retired to Morristown.

The menu has streamlined a bit over the years – the Greek options are gone as is my favorite cheese tortellini. Still, the fried mushrooms are great and the salad bar is one of the best in the region as is the French Onion soup. Can’t go wrong with the steak, seafood or chicken options and all of the pasta dishes are good. I usually go with the chopped steak and a trip to the salad bar. It makes for a perfect lunch. The restaurant is located at 115 S Cumberland in Morristown. The website can be found here.

4. Altruda’s – Knoxville

For my money, it’s the best Italian food in East Tennessee. The N. Peters Road location is in a strip mall that used house Circuit City. But somehow, once you pass through the doors, you don’t feel like you’re in a strip mall. The place is substantial, it has weight.

Paul Meyer – who opened the restaurant in 1988 – puts his whole family history into the place and you can feel. Meyer tells the story of his mother, Geraldine Iva Altruda, born in Italy in 1925, the youngest of 13 kids. She immigrated to the U.S. when she was 12, raising five boys on Long Island.

It’s cheesy to say but you can taste that history in the food. A lot of places in the Smokies talk about a connection to the food they serve, a history. But at Altruda’s, it’s evident. This is family. You could close your eyes and point at the menu, but I’ve always been partial to the Rigatoni Anthony – a large hollow, ribbed pasta sauced with sauted fresh tomatoes, ham, basil and parmesan cheese and the Fettuccini Alfredo with ham and peas, which is the best fettuccini dish I’ve ever had and I just will not order fettuccini any place else in the world.

I know there’s Italian food everywhere and a lot of it is very good. But, Altruda’s is worth the drive. Visit the website here.

5. Brumley’s at General Morgan Inn – Greeneville

The General Morgan Inn – located in historic downtown Greeneville – has a legacy that reaches back to 1790s when it was the DeWoody Tavern, a wooden structure that offered food, supplies and lodging to travelers. In the 1880s, there was a new train depot in town and Col. John H. Doughty recognized the opportunity. He bought the land and built what would become the General Morgan Inn, which still welcomes guests today.

Brumley’s – a farm-to-table restaurant located within the inn – offers a menu that celebrates the craftsmanship that goes into getting food from the farm to the plate. The menu is meat forward with plenty of beef, lamb and chicken options. The Chicken Schnitzel is a bright, crispy choice but you can’t go wrong with the Wagyu Ribeye. Desserts are a must at Brumley’s and the Pecan Pie Baklava is our favorite. See the menu here.

Did you know about these iconic restaurants? What do you think? Let us know in the comments and on the socials.