Finding the best pizza joint in Nashville means filtering past a lot of noise. Lower Broadway is built for visitors, the chains are everywhere, and plenty of places serve pizza without really being a pizza restaurant. What locals actually want is different: a spot with a crust worth remembering, a menu that isn’t interchangeable with the one down the street, and a location you can reach on a weeknight without planning around it.
Two Boots Nashville sits at 1925 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203, in Midtown near Music Row — close enough to Vanderbilt, the Gulch, and Edgehill to be a regular stop rather than an occasion. This guide breaks down how to evaluate a Nashville pizzeria like someone who lives here, what Two Boots brings to the city from its New York origins, what to order, and how the Midtown position works for everything from a fast lunch to a pre-show dinner.
Key Takeaways
- Two Boots Nashville is at 1925 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203, reachable at (615) 340-4343.
- The Midtown location opened in 2013, bringing a New York pizza program to Music City.
- The brand started in New York’s East Village in 1987, founded by Doris Kornish and Phil Hartman.
- A cornmeal crust is the defining difference from standard Nashville pizza options.
- The Kitty is a Nashville-specific pie topped with hot chicken from neighboring Hattie B’s.
- A full vegan section means plant-based diners order from the main menu, not a workaround.
- Slices, whole pies, delivery, and catering all run from the Broadway location.
Check Out Our Menu!
How Locals Judge the Best Pizza Joint in Nashville
Nashville’s pizza scene has changed considerably over the past decade. It used to be dominated by national chains; now there’s a genuinely competitive independent field spread across Midtown, East Nashville, the Gulch, and the surrounding Davidson County neighborhoods. That’s good news, but it also means “best” requires actual criteria rather than a gut call.
Locals tend to weigh four things: whether the crust has an identity of its own, whether the menu offers something you can’t get five other places, whether the kitchen handles dietary needs properly, and whether the location is realistically part of your week rather than a special trip.
The Crust Is the Deciding Factor
Toppings vary widely between pizzerias, but crust is what you eat the most of and what determines whether a slice holds up after five minutes on a counter. A dough with no character means the toppings are doing all the work, and that’s a fragile setup.
Two Boots uses cornmeal in its crust rather than relying on white flour alone. The result is crisper and more textured than a standard New York-style base, and it stays structurally sound under a heavy topping load — which matters a lot for a pie that’s traveling to your house or sitting under a slice lamp.
Location Is a Real Criterion, Not a Footnote
A pizzeria you love but never visit isn’t your pizza joint. Midtown positioning puts 1925 Broadway within easy reach of Vanderbilt, Music Row offices, and residential blocks around Edgehill and the Gulch, and it’s a short trip from Bridgestone Arena and the Ryman for anyone eating before a show.
That’s a different proposition from a spot on Lower Broadway optimized for tourist foot traffic. It’s positioned where people who live here already are.
The New York Origins Behind a Nashville Pizzeria
Two Boots opened on June 24th, 1987, at 37 Ave A in New York’s East Village. Founders Doris Kornish and Phil Hartman were independent filmmakers rather than career restaurateurs, and the restaurant grew out of the neighborhood’s creative scene.
The name refers to the boot-shaped outlines of Italy and Louisiana, which is also the culinary idea: Italian pizza technique crossed with Cajun and Creole flavor. That fusion produced the cornmeal crust, the piquant sauce, and a catalog of specialty pies named after pop culture figures with real connections to the brand’s history.
What Arrived in Nashville in 2013
When Two Boots opened in Nashville in 2013, it brought the same crust recipe and the same Cajun-Italian menu logic that had been running in New York for more than twenty-five years by that point. That’s a meaningful distinction from a local interpretation of New York pizza — it’s the actual program, not a reproduction of it.
The Nashville Scene covered the opening in the former Great Escape building on Broadway, describing it as a solid addition to the neighborhood and singling out the Great Escape pie — andouille meatballs, pepperoni, basil, and ricotta on a thin Sicilian crust — as a standout among the specialty options. That kind of third-party read is worth more than any restaurant’s own claims about itself.
The Kitty and the Nashville-Specific Menu
Most chains that expand into a new city run the same menu everywhere. Two Boots did something more interesting in Nashville: it built a pie for the city.
The Kitty is named for Kitty Wells, who reshaped the role of women in country music, and it’s topped with hot chicken sourced from neighboring Hattie B’s, along with blue cheese dressing, pickles, and jalapeños. Pickles on pizza is exactly the kind of move a place calling itself a pizza pioneer should be willing to make.
Beyond the Local Pie
The broader specialty catalog carries over from New York — pies like Mr. Pink, The Meg, Tony Clifton, Cleopatra Jones, Mel Cooley, and the Bayou Beast, which leans hardest into the Louisiana half of the concept. Grandma Bess, a Sicilian-style option with crisp edges and fresh tomato, has its own following at the Broadway location.
The naming convention isn’t just branding. It means each pie is a fixed, deliberate recipe rather than a loose collection of toppings, so you’re choosing a dish rather than building one.
| What Locals Check | Why It Matters | How Two Boots Answers |
| Crust identity | Determines whether a plain slice is worth eating | Cornmeal crust, crisp and sturdy, unique in Nashville |
| Menu distinctiveness | Separates a destination from a default | Cajun-Italian specialty pies plus a Nashville-only pie |
| Local connection | Signals investment in the city, not just a franchise | The Kitty, made with Hattie B’s hot chicken |
| Plant-based depth | Determines whether mixed groups can order together | Multiple standalone vegan specialty pies |
| Accessibility | Decides whether it’s weekly or occasional | Midtown Broadway, near Vanderbilt and Music Row |
| Track record | Longevity is a proxy for consistency | Operating since 1987; in Nashville since 2013 |
Plant-Based Pizza in Nashville Done Properly
A lot of pizzerias treat vegan diners as an exception to handle rather than a customer to serve. The usual approach is offering vegan cheese as a topping swap and stopping there, which produces a technically vegan pizza that nobody designed.
Two Boots runs a set of complete vegan specialty pies — built as their own recipes with plant-based cheese and vegetable toppings rather than as subtractions from existing pies. That’s a meaningfully deeper program than a single cheese substitution, and it’s been part of the brand since its East Village years, when it was serving a neighborhood that expected it.
Why This Matters for Group Orders
Nashville tables are frequently mixed — one person eating plant-based, two eating whatever, someone avoiding meat but not dairy. A menu with a real vegan section lets one person order for the table without a round of ingredient questions, and without anyone getting the consolation option.
Making the Midtown Location Work for You
The Broadway address handles several different visits well, and knowing which one you’re making changes how you should order.
For a fast weekday lunch, the slice line is the move — slices turn over quickly on the popular pies, so you get something fresh and you’re out in minutes. For a pre-show dinner before Bridgestone or the Ryman, a whole pie with a table is more sensible, and Midtown means you’re not fighting Lower Broadway traffic on foot. For a night in, delivery works, and the cornmeal crust survives the trip better than a softer dough.
Sampling Without Committing
Slices are the low-risk way to test a pizzeria you haven’t tried. Two Boots slices run large, so judge your appetite before ordering three — but two slices is enough to compare a classic against a specialty and figure out where your preferences land.
If you’re new to the menu entirely, order one plain or pepperoni slice as a baseline for crust and sauce, then one specialty to see how far the Cajun-Italian side goes.
Catering for Nashville Events
The Broadway location handles catering for office lunches, Music Row industry events, Vanderbilt-area gatherings, and parties. The advantage of a menu with a clearly labeled vegan section is that mixed-group ordering becomes a spread rather than a negotiation.
Give lead time when you can. Advance orders secure your preferred combinations instead of leaving you with whatever’s fastest to produce.
| Visit Type | Best Approach | Worth Knowing |
| Weekday lunch | Slices off the line | Fast turnover, slices are large |
| First visit | One classic slice, one specialty | Establishes a crust baseline and tests range |
| Pre-show dinner | Whole pie, dine in | Midtown avoids Lower Broadway congestion |
| Night in | Delivery | Cornmeal crust holds structure in transit |
| Mixed dietary group | Order across vegan and standard sections | Clear labeling removes ingredient questions |
| Office or event catering | Advance order with a stated split | Lead time secures preferred pies |
A Checklist for Any Nashville Pizzeria
If you’re still comparing options across the city, run these checks:
- Order a plain slice first — it exposes the crust and sauce with nothing to hide behind.
- Ask whether the vegan option is a full recipe or just a cheese substitution.
- Look for at least one menu item that couldn’t exist at a location in another city.
- Check whether slices are sold, which signals confidence in turnover and volume.
- Confirm catering runs off the full menu rather than a reduced version.
- Consider whether the address fits your actual routine or requires a special trip.
Reading Reviews Like a Local
Ignore the star average and read for repetition. When many separate reviewers independently mention the same specific thing — a crust, a particular pie, consistency across visits — that’s a real signal. A handful of glowing reviews with no common thread usually isn’t.
Conclusion
The best pizza joint in Nashville, for most locals, is the one that combines a crust with genuine character, a menu you can’t replicate elsewhere, real plant-based depth, and a location that fits your week. Two Boots at 1925 Broadway checks those boxes through a cornmeal crust refined since 1987, a Cajun-Italian specialty catalog that includes a Nashville-only pie built with Hattie B’s hot chicken, a full vegan program, and a Midtown position that puts it within reach of Vanderbilt, Music Row, the Gulch, and the city’s major venues. Start with a couple of slices, call (615) 340-4343 with any questions, and see whether the crust makes the case on its own.
Where is Two Boots in Nashville?
Two Boots Nashville is located at 1925 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203, in the Midtown and Music Row area. The phone number is (615) 340-4343.
When did Two Boots open in Nashville?
The Nashville location opened in 2013 in the former Great Escape building on Broadway. The brand itself dates back to June 24th, 1987, when it started at 37 Ave A in New York’s East Village.
What makes Two Boots pizza different from other Nashville pizzerias?
The crust is the main difference. Two Boots uses a cornmeal crust rather than a standard white-flour dough, giving it a crisper, more textured base. The menu also runs on a Cajun-Italian flavor profile — Italian pizza technique crossed with Cajun and Creole influence — which is not a common approach in Nashville.
What is The Kitty pizza?
The Kitty is a Nashville-specific pie named after country music pioneer Kitty Wells. It’s topped with hot chicken from neighboring Hattie B’s, blue cheese dressing, pickles, and jalapeños.
Does Two Boots Nashville have vegan pizza?
Yes. There are multiple vegan specialty pies built as complete plant-based recipes rather than as cheese-free versions of existing pizzas. Vegetarian options are available as well.
Can I get pizza by the slice in Nashville?
Yes. Slices are available alongside whole pies, which makes it easy to try more than one specialty pie in a single visit. Slices are generously sized, so plan accordingly.
