'Cha Doin' in Chattanooga?

A travel guide to a refreshed and renewed Tennessee jewel

by

A City Transformed

Chattanooga’s impressive success story is tied to its polluted past, long dependent upon an economy fueled by heavy manufacturing and steel mills. In 1969, CBS broadcaster Walter Cronkite announced a report from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare that labeled the city as America’s dirtiest, the “worst city in the nation for particulate air pollution.”

It took billions of dollars from industry and city government, but change started to take place over the next several decades. Factories closed, and the city was finally able to breathe. The 1990s saw a sea of change in efforts to attract visitors through initiatives such as “Vision 2000”—which aimed to revitalize Chattanooga’s downtown by the year 2000. Contributing to that plan were a group of architectural students from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, who conceived a plan to bring a Riverpark, tied to a state aquarium, to the waterfront. The glass-peaked Tennessee Aquarium opened in 1992, with gorgeous low-lit river and ocean galleries designed to treat aquatic creatures like movable Technicolor art. The aquarium hangs its hat on conservation, a story that continues out back, where Riverwalk greenways encourage wandering along the Tennessee River for twenty miles.

[Read Beth D'Addono's travel guide to Mississippi's Gulf Coast here.]

A few blocks from the aquarium, there is the entrance to the 2,376-foot-long Walnut Street Bridge, an iconic piece of architecture on the National Register of Historic Places. Walk the pedestrian bridge to the city’s North Shore, where Clumpie’s, a local ice cream shop, awaits.

Choo Choo

Not every city has its own song. Say Chattanooga, and somebody of a certain age is going to respond “Choo Choo”. That’s because the Glenn Miller Orchestra released the catchy “Chattanooga Choo Choo” tune in 1941. Over the years, it’s been covered by the likes of Asleep at the Wheel, Ray Charles, and Stéphane Grappelli.

The city’s grand Terminal Station, with its soaring eighty-five-foot dome, was restored to its original gilded splendor in the 1970s. With a hotel, shops, bars, dining, and services, the Choo Choo, as it’s known, provided a reason for folks to linger or visit what was, at the time, still an empty downtown.

These days, the station is buzzing inside and out. Have a coffee at Frothy Monkey, Southern eats at Nic & Norman’s, craft beer at American Draft, and small batch spirits and live music at Gate 11 Distillery. Since the completion of a $19 million renovation this past fall, the Hotel Chalet now offers guests the option of checking into a vintage, circa-1920s train carriage.

Not every city has its own song. Say Chattanooga, and somebody of a certain age is going to respond “Choo Choo”. That’s because the Glenn Miller Orchestra released the catchy “Chattanooga Choo Choo” tune in 1941. Over the years, it’s been covered by the likes of Asleep at the Wheel, Ray Charles, and Stéphane Grappelli.

Some Big To-Dos

Between rambling outdoors and a lively downtown, Chattanooga delivers plenty of action. Two offbeat museums intrigue.

The Lodge Museum of Cast Iron is a wonder for the campfire enthusiast and all lovers of the heavyweight cookware. The museum, which could be the star of an episode of How It’s Made, tells the story of the evolution of American cookery, using cast iron as a port of entry. One of the world’s largest frying pans beckons, a highly Instagrammable eighteen-foot monster. Plan on hearty skillet eats afterward at Big Bad Breakfast, the brainchild of James Beard award-winning Chef John Currence.

[Read Beth D'Addono's story about how to spend thirty-six hours in nearby Thibodaux here.]

The International Towing Museum started as a passion project for a group of towing professionals. Radiating solidarity and brotherhood, the museum goes beyond the history of the tow truck, invented here in 1916. A memorial hall commemorates the drivers killed on the job, demonstrating its dangers. An average of two drivers die every month in America, making the profession the deadliest among first responders.

Although it’s plenty commercial, Rock City is a popular family attraction built into the natural landscape with panoramic views and waterfalls. Follow the “enchanted trail” into Fairyland Caves, home to bizarre dioramas that pay apt homage to the Brothers Grimm. Better still, visit Ruby Falls, a cave walk that travels deep underground past a series of hidden waterfalls inside Lookout Mountain.

Art lovers will appreciate large-scale works on display at the Sculpture Fields at Montague Park. They’ll also enjoy a wander through the planned Bluff View Art District downtown, overlooking the Tennessee River, dotted with galleries and outdoor sculptures. The Hunter Museum of American Art is here, too—with an impressive American collection that includes works by Thomas Cole and Jasper Johns. After touring, tuck into some Italian fare at Tony’s Pasta Shop & Trattoria, from homemade garlic ciabatta, to fresh pasta smothered in your choice of a dozen sauces.

A Farm for the People

When Melonie Lusk took over as executive director of the twenty-two-acre Crabtree Farms of Chattanooga, it was essentially a farmer’s market for the Whole Foods set. Now, with Lusk’s impassioned vision and collaborative bent, it’s home to a half-acre community garden and programming like a monthly potluck and Spanish immersion cooking classes. A Forrest School teaches fourth graders in the outdoor setting.

Lusk’s mission, driven by inequities in food access, moved the farm from a tucked away treasure catering to ‘the haves’ to a place welcoming and accessible to all. The farm stand takes SNAP benefits, sells wildflowers, local eggs, and produce that supports growers and makers within a 100-mile radius. Aligning the farm with the needs of its Clifton Hills neighbors has enervated this urban oasis, sowing seeds of cooperation and trust that ripple out into the community.

Eating and Drinking

Some sixty restaurants have opened in Chattanooga in the past two years. Add in the already-strong line up of chef-driven spots, and choices are vast.

Breakfast and brunch are a specialty at Milk and Honey, a coffee and gelato shop on the North Shore. The hangry should order the “Hot Mess,” a massive open-faced biscuit sandwich loaded with hot pepper jam, bacon, avocado, pickled red onion, melted pepper jack cheese, and a sunny side up egg. For the less peckish, avocado toast with greens and an egg hits the mark. Why shouldn’t breakfast include dessert? Homemade gelato entices.

In the Choo Choo, Frothy Monkey is an all-day café with outstanding java, from-scratch pastry and bagels, and a slew of local farms credited on the menu. The biscuits and chorizo gravy will set you right.

Come lunchtime, sample authentic Mexican dishes from Chef Maria Parra at Taqueria Jalisco, a homespun spot tucked away off Main Street. She and her husband Jorge started with a food truck in 2005 and now have two storefront locations. Try the street tacos worthy of Mexico City. Pastor and nopales are two of a dozen fillings topping corn tortillas dressed with cilantro, onion and lime. Burritos, tortas, and fajitas are a few more options.

“Fish so good it will smack you.” That sums up the fried catfish at Uncle Larry’s, one of a handful of Black-owned restaurants on Martin Luther King Boulevard. Now with four locations, chef Larry Torrence’s light, thin, and crispy catfish is the stuff of legend. More rib-sticking Southern specialties round out the menu.

James Beard Award-nominated Chef Erik Niel’s Easy Bistro & Bar is known for inventive cocktails and a deep wine program. An impressive raw bar features seafood from all three coasts. Easy’s menu excels with cheekily named small plates, like the Georgia caprese made with heirloom tomatoes, plums, pecans, cheese, and basil. The pasta is house-made and farm ingredients inform the likes of roast chicken with eggplant and purple hull peas.

Beyond Chattanooga’s swell cocktail scene, two interactive experiences raise the bar. Take a tour and a taste at Chattanooga Whiskey Experimental Distillery, founded in 2011 as the first whiskey distillery in Chattanooga in more than a century.

And whether you’re staying at the boutique Kinley Hotel or not, take a cocktail making class at Company, a hidden speakeasy that’s worth the hunt. Led by experienced mixologists, you’ll be shaking and stirring like a pro in no time. The bar’s menu is outstanding, with nibbles of charcuterie, steak frites, and truffle fries.

These are just a few of many portals into the city’s small but mighty food scene, which is becoming as much of a draw for visitors as the miles of accessible hiking, biking, and bouldering trails near downtown. Chattanooga is a destination that can tick the boxes for both food and outdoor-driven travelers, keeping everybody happy. 

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