A lil' Bit o' Phila

Twin Kegs

(aka International Famous Twin Kegs)

413 West Thompson Ln

Nashville, TN

615-832-3167

TK patty melt and a side of tots

I love the neighborhood pubs where friends and family go gather, in the style of Boston, Philadelphia, Cork Ireland, etc.  Having lived and visited all these places, I think people meet at pubs because these are areas with traditionally small homes, and enjoying friends and family is best done at a pub.  When I lived in Phila, me and my neighbors would head down to the Berwyn Tavern about once per week to grab a bite, have a drink, perhaps catch some music from a local band, and the bottom line enjoy each others company.  Also in Phila and Massachusetts, the neighborhood pub or tavern often had a shuffleboard game.  Since moving to Nashville, I have not seen a shuffleboard game in Nashville.  There is no real history of pubs and taverns in Nashville due to alcohol sales and distribution laws, and the recent no drinks the glass laws.  It is tough to have a pub or tavern if for decades it was illegal to sell drinks by the glass.  Because of the lack of the pub and tavern tradition, there is a lack of shuffleboard tradition.

shuffleboard

Then, after much ado in the Nashville Scene about Twin Kegs, I decided to go visit this place.   The reviews said the burgers are good and worth a visit.  Well, Twin Kegs is really a down and out a dive.  It is cigarette smokey, and feels dirty.  I have not ventured into the bathroom in fear that it will be worse than a NYC Chinatown bathroom. The menus are all worn and sticky.  I just want to use hand sanitizer all the time I am there.  The lighting has seen better days.  It is unclear how service works at this place.  Do you have to go to the bar?  Do you sit at a table and wait for service?  I dunno.  There was a woman there who took about 20 minutes to help us, as the guy who is normally working there, wasn't there, so we had no idea who was working.  It is always a bit of an awkward situation to sit and order for me.  It also is not a friendly place.  Neither the normal guy, nor the woman have been particularly nice to me.  They actually had an air of being put out by me ordering anything.

Outwardly, I really don't like Twin Kegs, but what does keep me coming back is the shuffleboard, the only shuffleboard I know of in Nashville.  I really love shuffleboard, as it reminds me of my friends when I lived in Philadelphia, who I miss dearly.  Also, the burger isn't bad.  It is made fresh to order, and it seems like real ground beef, not those industrial pre-made frozen pucks.  So, as long as Twin Kegs maintains the shuffleboard, and they have a decent burger, I will be going back again and again for my shuffleboard fix with memories of my Phila days.