Ordering garlic knots in Nashville means ordering something that has no business being in Tennessee. The garlic knot is a New York invention — specifically an Italian-American pizzeria invention, made from dough scraps, with no counterpart in Italy and no Southern lineage at all. It arrived here the way most New York food arrives anywhere: somebody moved and brought it with them.
At Two Boots on Broadway, that somebody was a pizzeria that opened in Manhattan’s East Village in 1987 and landed in Midtown Nashville in 2013. This is a short guide to what the knots are, why they exist, and what to pair them with on a menu that also serves hot chicken pizza.
Key takeaways
- Garlic knots aren’t Italian. They’re an Italian-American invention from the New York area, made from leftover pizza dough.
- They arrive first. Order them at the start — they’re the thing that hits the table while everyone’s still deciding.
- Three to four per person as a side, more if they’re doing real work.
- They’re the reset button next to The Kitty. Hattie B’s hot chicken on a pizza is hot, and bread is what gets you through it.
- The dough is cornmeal-dusted, which gives the exterior a crunch that holds up better than a softer dough in a takeout box.
- Where: 1925 Broadway in Midtown, open from 11am on weekdays and until midnight on Friday and Saturday.
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Where the garlic knot actually comes from
Not Naples. Not Sicily. Brooklyn, or Queens, or Long Island, depending on which account you believe — and nobody has settled it. Some versions place it in Brooklyn in the 1940s, others in Queens or Long Island in the 1970s. What every account agrees on is the mechanism: pizzerias had dough left over after stretching pies, throwing it away was unthinkable, and tying it into knots and dressing it with garlic oil turned waste into the cheapest item on the menu.
That kind of invention is characteristic of Italian-American food generally rather than Italian food. The great wave of Italian immigration to the United States ran from the 1880s through the 1920s, and the Library of Congress documents how that generation’s children grew up American while their parents remained, at least in part, of the old country — a cultural gap that shows up on menus as clearly as anywhere else. The food that emerged from those neighborhoods wasn’t transplanted Italian cooking. It was something new, made from what was available, by people improvising in a different country.
Garlic knots are that process in miniature. So, for that matter, is Two Boots — an Italian-Louisiana hybrid that exists nowhere in either place.
So what are they doing in Nashville?
The short answer is that Two Boots brought them.
The restaurant opened in New York’s East Village in 1987, named for the boot shapes of Italy and Louisiana, and the Nashville location opened in June 2013 in the building that used to house The Great Escape record store — at the point where 21st Avenue splits into Broadway and Division, in Midtown rather than down on the honky-tonk strip.
What came with it was a New York pizzeria menu with Cajun running through it, and then a few things that could only have been made here. The Kitty puts Hattie B’s hot chicken and jalapeños on a white pie with pickles on the side. The Meg is named for Meg White, and Two Boots supplies pizza to Third Man Records when they need it.
The garlic knots didn’t change. They’re the same New York side dish they were in 1987, sitting on a menu next to a hot chicken pizza. That’s not a contradiction — it’s just what happens when food moves.
What to pair them with
This is where the Nashville menu makes the knots more useful than they’d be elsewhere.
| The pie | Heat | Why the knots help |
|---|---|---|
| The Kitty | Hot | Hattie B’s hot chicken and jalapeños. Bread is the reset between bites, and the pickles only do half that job |
| The Bayou Beast | Hot | Shrimp, crawfish, andouille, jalapeños. The 1987 original, and the other genuinely spicy option |
| The Bird | Medium | Buffalo chicken, blue cheese, scallions, jalapeños. Knots soak up what’s left on the plate |
| The Meg | None | White pie, four cheeses, roasted garlic, oregano. A doubling-down order rather than a contrast |
| Grandma Bess | None | Thin square Sicilian. Simple enough that the knots don’t compete |
| Cleopatra Jones | None | Sausage, roasted peppers, red onions. Straightforward, and the knots round it out |
| V for Vegan | None | Artichokes, red onions, shiitake mushrooms, two pestos. Check whether the knots suit a vegan order before assuming |
The first row is the real argument for ordering them. The Kitty is not a mild pie, and the pickles on the side exist because you need something to reset your mouth. Bread does the same job and more of it.
How many, and when
| Your situation | How many | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Two people plus a pie | 4–6 | A side, not a course |
| Four people sharing | 8–10 | Two or three each, with one left over |
| Group ordering hot pies | Add 2–3 per person | Heat increases bread consumption more than people expect |
| Kids at the table | Add 2–3 per kid | Reliably underestimated |
| Late night, Friday or Saturday | 6+ | The kitchen runs to midnight and this is the easiest thing to eat standing up |
| Office or group order in Midtown | Call ahead | Individual ordering falls apart above about eight people |
Order them at the start of the meal rather than with the pizza. They arrive fast, and they end the conversation about what else to get.
When you can get them
The kitchen opens at 11am Monday through Friday and noon at weekends. It closes at 9pm most nights, and runs to midnight on Friday and Saturday — which is the useful window if you’re coming out of a show in Midtown.
Our Nashville late-night guide covers the timing in more detail, and the what-to-order guide goes deeper on the rest of the menu.
Order at 1925 Broadway
Two Boots Nashville is at 1925 Broadway in Midtown, where 21st splits into Broadway and Division. Garlic knots, slices, and pies in three sizes, plus a full vegan menu and gluten-free crust.
Walk in and order the knots first, order online if you’re picking up on the way somewhere, or call (615) 340-4343 for a group order. The Nashville location page has current hours and the full menu.
Frequently asked questions
Are garlic knots Italian?
No. They’re an Italian-American invention from the New York area, developed in pizzerias as a way to use leftover dough after stretching pies. There’s no Italian equivalent, and accounts differ on whether they started in Brooklyn in the 1940s or Queens and Long Island in the 1970s.
What are garlic knots made of?
Pizza dough, tied into an overhand knot, baked, then brushed with garlic-infused oil and herbs. Marinara on the side is common. They’re traditionally the cheapest item on a pizzeria menu because they’re made from scraps.
How many garlic knots should I order?
Three to four per person as a side alongside pizza, and more if you’re ordering spicy pies — heat increases how much bread a table gets through. Add two or three per kid.
What should I pair garlic knots with in Nashville?
The Kitty, if you want the local specialty — Hattie B’s hot chicken and jalapeños on a white pie. It’s genuinely hot, and bread does more to reset your palate than the pickles on the side manage alone. The Bayou Beast is the other spicy option worth pairing them with.
Where can I get garlic knots in Nashville?
Two Boots at 1925 Broadway, in Midtown, where 21st Avenue splits into Broadway and Division — closer to Vanderbilt and Music Row than to Lower Broadway, about a mile and a half from the honky-tonk strip.
What time does Two Boots Nashville close?
9pm Sunday through Thursday, and midnight on Friday and Saturday. Doors open at 11am on weekdays and noon at weekends.
Do garlic knots travel well?
They’re best in the first twenty minutes and fine for about an hour. A cornmeal-dusted dough keeps its exterior texture in a box better than a softer dough does, which helps if you’re taking them back somewhere.
