Founded by entrepreneur Craig Susser in West Hollywood in 2011, Craig's built its name as an iconic modern American restaurant rooted in old-school charm and timeless hospitality. Known for its elevated comfort food, A-list clientele, and impeccable service, Craig's Nashville marks the brand's first expansion, bringing its celebrated experience to Music City. Settled into its home in the Gulch, the restaurant has wasted no time earning its place among Nashville's most talked-about tables. If you haven't been yet, consider this your guide to exactly where to start.
"We are old school and don't charge for the bread," Susser says. "We feel it's a way of welcoming you and our bread basket is the best first step in the business. When we were first working on the menus 15 years ago before we opened, our new Chef De Cuisine in Los Angeles, Jason Bigus, was our pizza chef. We made many different types of pizza, calzones and desserts using pizza dough. One day he made a batch of warm, gooey, garlicky, sweet bread. We all took a bite and exclaimed, 'What is that?' He said, 'Oh, just something I learned to make.' I said, 'That's our bread.' He said, 'No way, it would be too hard to make in volume.' I said, 'We'll figure it out. And the rest is bread basket history.
Chicken Parm "We always aim to deliver comfort food elevated beyond what a home chef can accomplish," says Susser. "There is comfort in familiar foods executed at a superior level. I always like to say, 'The world is tough enough—dinner shouldn't be!'
Meldman's Honey Truffle Chicken was inspired by a dish I experienced at Gozzer Ranch, a Discovery Property in Idaho," Susser says. "It was called Jimmy Cracked Chicken. Before the opening we were working on dishes and this dish stayed with me, I worked on it with the chef. We had some tastings before opening and Mike Meldman, the founder of Discovery, is a good friend, mentor and investor. He came for a tasting and I slid the dish in front of him. He took one look and knowingly asked, 'What's that?' I said, 'Just taste it.' He did and said it was better than the version they had made. I asked, 'Can I have it?' and he said, 'Of course.' So I told him I'd name it after him. Now when I see him, I say, 'Forget about Discovery, Casamigos and the Raiders, your name is more famous because of the Honey Truffle Chicken at Craig's."
"Jerry Weintraub was a legendary concert promoter and film producer," Susser says. "He came in often. We were good friends and he was a mentor of mine. One night he was ordering and I could see there was an issue. I walked over and sarcastically asked, 'What?' He said, 'I'm trying to order the linguine with clams with spaghetti,' and this guy, pointing to the waiter, said, 'I can't.' I said I got it. We walked away from the table and the waiter says 'we don't have spaghetti in the house.' I reached into my pocket, grabbed some cash, gave it to a bus person and said, 'Run up the street to the supermarket and get some spaghetti.' 15 minutes later Jerry was enjoying his spaghetti with clams and being the showman said, 'You should name this the Jerry Weintraub Spaghetti Clam Show.'
"The Boys' Chocolate Pizza originates from an event during construction where we had a pizza tasting night," says Susser. "The dining room was a construction mess but the kitchen was up and working. I invited the Thursday night boys, a group of guys who still have dinner together every Thursday. There are eight of them and at least two sometimes make it for dinner; occasionally, all eight have over 15 years. The group consists of Zach Schiller, Ryan Philipe, Jesse Stern, Jesse Bradford, Brian Washington, Tyler Mitchel, Adam Talbot and Breckin Meyer. Jason, the pizza chef at the time, started sending out pizzas and the drinks might have been flowing. As the night grew fuzzier, we were all calling out pizza ideas. Someone suggested a chocolate pizza. That person is unverified but many have taken credit, with one even presenting the idea on a national late-night show. That's how the chocolate pizza was created. Chef has refined it many times. It's decadent and perfectly reflects the spirit of Craig's because it comes from a night spent with friends."
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