Places to eat in the Johnson City, Tn & Bristol, TN/VA area?

Will be in the area in a few weeks for the race. I do know of Ridgwood BBQ, but any other places would be great.

A place I truly enjoy, not a real restaurant per se, moreof a carry out, is The Hillbilly Deli on State St., the VA side of the street.  Some of the best catfish you'll ever have.  They have other things but I've always had catfish.

Cootie Brown's  in Johnson City:

http://www.cootiebrowns.com/

Do your self a favor and take a side trip(iHour) to Burnsville, NC...it's a little town...much like Maybury...The Nu-Wray Inn has superb home cooking...and Li'l Smoky's has the best footlong hotdogs with the works.....The little town, and the town square are fun!

eagle6894


Will be in the area in a few weeks for the race. I do know of Ridgwood BBQ, but any other places would be great.

Good job you know that... I wouldn't go within 100-200 or more miles of Johnson City or Bristol without being SURE to hit the Ridgewood! YUM!

Hi Lo Burger @ 17111 Lee Hwy., Bristol, VA 276 - 628 - 3250.
Mother's Restaurant @ 23292 Mabe Hill Rd., Bristol, VA 276 - 466 - 9111. SOUL.
Troutdale Bistro @ 724 State St., Bristol, TN 423 - 989 - 3663.

Cafe Lola @ 1805 North Roan St., Johnson City, TN. 423 - 928 - 5652. * LD.
Cafe Pacific @ 1033 West Oakland Ave., Johnson City, TN 423 - 610 - 0117. FD/D.
Cootie Brown's @ 2715 North Roan St., Johnson City, TN 423 - 283 - 4723.
Dixie Barbecue Co. @ 3301 N. Roan St., Johnson City, TN. 423 - 283 - 7447. *
Firehouse BBQ @ 627 W. Walnut St., Johnson City, TN. 423 - 929 - 7377.

Littleman is right, mostly.  Cannot stand Firehouse as I believe they get their Bar-b-q from a plastic tub.  Let's put it like this; you never see smoke coming from the place.

Ridgewood is only good if you like ham.  I like my ham country, not smoked, fried, and slathered.

The Dixie Bar-b-q in Blountville is outstanding.  As much as I like "Q," I have to admit that it's the deep fried hot dog I love the most.

http://www.janeslunchbox.com/

Ridgewood has many fans and I certainly do not wish to put a damper on anyones experiences.  My personal experience was that it was certainly not in my top 20.  Many folks have tried it and liked it but I personally did not care for it.
 
Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Go with Cafe Lola..........
   Cafe Lola @ 1805 North Roan St., Johnson City, TN. 423 - 928 - 5652.
  
 

We moved away in 2009 so things may have changed but I would go to Broad St BBQ or Phils Dream Pit in Kingsport before the Ridgewood.

I've not been here yet but my friend who lives in Kingsport says it's good Q.

http://www.theshackbbqgrill.com/

Agree that Ridgewood does not have outstanding BBQ (Dixie and Red Pig in Johnson City are significantly better for BBQ), but Ridgewood has excellent fresh cut fries (better than Five Guys) and simply outstanding beans (gold standard IMO). 

Mother's in Bristol was out of business when we tried it in July 2010

The Apex - Market Street in J City for the burger.

In the vicinity of 6th Street there are some fine restaurants. Troutdale Bistro at 724 State Street is owned by a company that has several restaurants in the Bristol area. TD Bistro is a block W of your rental office on 6th Street. Troutdale Dining Room at 412 6th Street is a fine dining restaurant that's about 4/5 blocks S of your rental office on 6th Street. TD Bistro is more casual and I think you would enjoy dining there. Java J's is a good breakfast or lunch place. Manna Bagel has a good breakfast. State Line Bar and Grill is a lot of fun and JJ Downtown Pub and Grub serves great food. Brooklyn Grill is a casual fine dining restaurant serving outstanding seafood and steaks.
The Burger Bar and Hi Lo Burger have good food also. Simply Delicious is a nice deli type place on your way to Speedway on Highway 11E/19. Philadelphia Grill, Fatz Cafe and Ed's Pizza are on that route also.
Ridgewood BBQ in Bluff City, TN has the best BBQ in TN. It is about 4/5 miles S of the Speedway. Take Highway 34 S from Bristol about 12 miles then take a left on Highway 37. Go about 2 miles and take a right on Elizabethon Highway the go half a mile to Ridgewood BBQ.
Ridgewood BBQ @ 900 Elizabethton Hwy., Bluff City, TN 423 - 538 - 7543.

Troutdale Bistro @ 724 State St., Bristol, TN 423 - 989 - 3663. http://troutdalebistro.com/
Troutdale Dining Room @ 412 6th Street, Bristol, TN 423 - 968 - 9099.
http://www.thetroutdale.com/
C J & Co. Cafe @ 16 6th Street, Bristol, TN 423 - 573 - 1608.
http://www.cj-catering.com/index-3.html
Java J's Downtown @ 501 State Street, Bristol, VA 276 - 466 - 5282.
Manna Bagel Co. @ 634 State Street, Bristol, TN 423 - 652 - 2216. BL.
State Line Bar and Grill @ 648 State Street, Bristol, TN 423 - 652 - 0792.
J J Downtown Pub and Grub @ 11 7th Street, Bristol, TN 423 - 573 - 9448.
Burger Bar @ 8 Piedmont Avenue, Bristol, VA 276 - 466 - 6200.
http://burgerbarbristol.com/
Brooklyn Grill and Cafe @ 2125 Euclid Ave., Bristol, VA 276 - 669 - 1900.
Hi Lo Burger @ 17111 Lee Hwy., Bristol, VA 276 - 628 - 3250.
Simply Delicious Market Place @ 2600 Volunteer Parkway, Bristol, TN 423 - 764 - 3354.
Philadelphia Grill and BBQ @ 725 Bluff City Highway, Bristol, TN 423 - 764 - 6632.
Fatz Cafe @ 1175 Volunteer Parkway, Bristol, TN 423 - 968 - 4498.
http://www.fatzcafe.com/
Ed's Pizza @ 1395 Volunteer Parkway, Bristol, TN 423 - 652 - 2999