By Lisa Salter
Montreal travel advisor · Updated August 25, 2026
If you have one night on Broadway, the honest shortlist is Robert's Western World for traditional country, Tootsie's Orchid Lounge for the history, Legends Corner for the crowd-pleasing covers, and one of the celebrity mega-bars if your group wants a rooftop. None of them charge a cover. That is the whole trick to Broadway: walking in is free, so the right move is to keep moving.
The short version
- Best for traditional country and the cheapest food: Robert's Western World.
- Best for history: Tootsie's Orchid Lounge, the songwriters' bar behind the Ryman.
- Best for singalong covers: Legends Corner.
- Best for a big group that wants floors and a rooftop: Honky Tonk Central, or a celebrity bar.
- Best rooftop view: Jelly Roll's Goodnight Nashville, the newest of the tall ones.
- Bring cash — no cover anywhere, but the bands play for tips.
What is Honky Tonk Highway?
Honky Tonk Highway is the nickname for the stretch of Broadway between 1st and 5th Avenues in downtown Nashville — four blocks of back-to-back bars with live music running from late morning until close, every day of the year. It is not an official street name and you will not find it on a map; it is what the strip of honky-tonks is collectively called.
The defining feature is that almost nothing charges admission. Bands are paid out of tips, so the door is open and the expectation is that you buy a drink if you stay and put something in the bucket when it comes past.
The honky-tonks worth your time
Robert's Western World
The one to prioritise if the music is why you came. A narrow room with a wall of cowboy boots, a small stage and bands playing traditional country, western swing and rockabilly. It is also the cheapest place to eat on the street thanks to the Recession Special — a fried bologna sandwich, chips, a MoonPie and a PBR, listed at $6 US as of 25 August 2026. All ages until 6 p.m., 21-plus after.
We paid $12 plus tip for two of them on 17 August 2026, walked in with no line at 3 p.m. and again at 10 p.m., and had a table five minutes after arriving. The band that afternoon was playing Ghost Riders in the Sky and other Johnny Cash — which tells you everything about why this room is different from its neighbours.
Tootsie's Orchid Lounge
The famous purple one, and the most historically significant bar on the strip: it backs onto the alley behind the Ryman Auditorium, and generations of Opry performers and songwriters drank there between sets. It is busy, loud and multi-level now, but the history is real and the walls earn the visit.
The bands are genuinely good here too — this is not a museum you tick off. When we were there Tootsie's had a drinks deal running that made a round go a good deal further than it would elsewhere on the strip, so it is worth a look at the board; specials come and go, so treat that as what we found on the night rather than a fixed price.
Legends Corner
On the corner at 5th, wall-to-wall album covers, and reliably strong cover bands. A good first stop if you are easing a group into the street rather than starting with the purists' room.
The Stage on Broadway
A larger single room with an actual dance floor, which is rarer on Broadway than you would expect. Worth it if anyone in your group intends to dance rather than stand and watch.
Layla's
Narrow, unpolished and long-standing, with a bias toward honky-tonk, bluegrass and rockabilly acts. The closest in spirit to Robert's if Robert's is too full to move.
Honky Tonk Central
Three floors, a different band on each, and the easiest answer when a large group cannot agree. Loud and touristy in the way that is either the point or the problem, depending on your group.
The celebrity bars
Luke Bryan's 32 Bridge, Kid Rock's Big Ass Honky Tonk, Jelly Roll's Goodnight Nashville, Blake Shelton's Ole Red, Alan Jackson's AJ's Good Time Bar and several more. These are big, modern, multi-storey operations with rooftops, cocktail programmes and DJs alongside live bands. They are the newer Broadway and they are genuinely popular.
Celebrity mega-bars or traditional honky-tonks?
This is the actual decision, and it is worth making deliberately rather than by accident. The celebrity bars offer rooftops, views, cocktails, food menus, space for a group and a modern country soundtrack. The traditional honky-tonks — Robert's, Layla's, Tootsie's downstairs — offer better musicianship, older repertoire, no cover, cheap beer and very little comfort.
What I tell clients: do at least one of each. Start at Robert's in the late afternoon while it is still all ages and you can hear the band properly, then let the evening drift toward whichever rooftop your group is voting for. Doing only the mega-bars means leaving Nashville without hearing the thing Nashville is famous for. Doing only the purists' rooms means standing up all night.
That is roughly how our own night went: we worked along the street sampling the bands, and kept coming back to Robert's for the Recession Special. The clients I send to Broadway are the ones who love country music and are up for a proper night out — if that is not your group, one early set and an early exit is a perfectly good plan.
What a night on Broadway actually costs
There is no admission anywhere on the strip worth mentioning, so the spend is drinks, food and tips. Drinks on Broadway are priced for a tourist street and the celebrity bars sit at the top of that range; the older honky-tonks are noticeably cheaper. Robert's Recession Special at $6 US is the outlier that everyone remembers, and it is a real way to eat cheaply mid-evening.
As a real data point: two Recession Specials came to $12 plus tip in August 2026. Two people can eat on Broadway for the price of one cocktail, which is worth knowing before you commit to a rooftop dinner.
The line item visitors forget is tips for the bands. Plan a few US dollars per venue in small bills. Card is fine at the bar; the bucket is not.
Ages: where under-21s can and cannot go
Most honky-tonks on Broadway operate as all-ages rooms during the day and switch to 21-plus in the evening. Robert's states its own cut-off plainly: all ages until 6 p.m., 21 and over after. Policies differ venue to venue and change, so if you are travelling with teenagers, build the music into the afternoon rather than gambling on the door at 9 p.m.
When to go
Weekday afternoons for the music and the elbow room. Thursday to Saturday evenings for the atmosphere, with the understanding that from about 8 p.m. you are standing, queuing at the bar and shouting. Broadway runs 365 days a year, so there is no closed season — but there is a very real difference between a Tuesday at 4 p.m. and a Saturday at 11 p.m.
Worth leaving Broadway for
Broadway is not the whole of Nashville's live music, and a second night is better spent elsewhere. The listening rooms and neighbourhood venues away from downtown — East Nashville, Midtown, the Gulch — are where locals go, and where original material gets played instead of covers. If you have three nights, one on Broadway and two off it is a better trip than three on it.
Keep planning
Robert's Western World: Recession Special, hours and tips · Things to do in Nashville: a Canadian first-timer's guide · Where to stay in Nashville: best areas and hotels
If you are building a Nashville trip from Canada and want the music nights to actually land — the right venues on the right evenings, and a hotel you can walk home to — that is the part I plan for clients.
Getting there
Nashville for Canadians: days, costs, car and best time to go · Organized Nashville trip from Montreal: coach, fly or drive?
FAQ
What are the best bars on Broadway in Nashville?
Robert's Western World for traditional country, Tootsie's Orchid Lounge for history, Legends Corner for cover bands, The Stage for dancing, and Honky Tonk Central or one of the celebrity bars for a big group that wants several floors and a rooftop.
Do Nashville honky-tonks charge a cover?
Almost none of them do. Entry on Broadway is generally free and the bands are paid from tips passed through the room, which is why bringing small bills matters more than it looks.
What is Honky Tonk Highway?
The nickname for Broadway between 1st and 5th Avenues — the four-block run of live-music bars in downtown Nashville. It is a nickname, not an official street name.
Which Nashville bar has the most traditional country music?
Robert's Western World is the one most consistently named for traditional country, western swing and rockabilly, as opposed to the modern pop-country that dominates the larger celebrity bars.
Can you go bar-hopping on Broadway with kids?
During the day, largely yes — many rooms are all ages until early evening, and Robert's is explicit that its cut-off is 6 p.m. After that the strip is effectively adults-only, so plan family music time for the afternoon.
How many bars should you visit in one night?
Three or four is a comfortable evening. Since there is no cover, the point is to sample rooms and bands rather than commit to one, and a set runs roughly 45 minutes.
Are the celebrity bars worth it?
Yes, for what they are: space, rooftops, views, cocktails and a modern country soundtrack. They are not where you go to hear old-school honky-tonk played by career musicians — do at least one of each and you get both.
