Set to open in May 2022, Conrad Nashville introduces three highly-anticipated restaurant and lounge concepts in partnership with celebrated James Beard Award nominated hospitality industry veterans and husband-wife business partners, Elizabeth Blau and Chef Kim Canteenwalla.
Blau and Canteenwalla are pleased to introduce Blue Aster, The Lounge at Blue Aster and Thistle & Rye to Music City’s exciting culinary scene. Blue Aster, Conrad Nashville’s mainstay restaurant, welcomes seafood-centric American cuisine and innovative Southern flavor with modern sophistication, style and world-class hospitality. Adjacent to the restaurant is The Lounge at Blue Aster, featuring stylish classic cocktails and a luxurious afternoon tea service. Thistle & Rye, located on the third floor of the hotel, is a vibrant, beverage-centric concept featuring shareable, globally-inspired small plates. Award-winning design firm Champalimaud has brought to life all three concepts, featuring intricate, bespoke architectural elements as well as opulent textiles, fusing modern luxury with natural simplicity.
“Named for the iconic native Tennessee wildflower, we love that the Aster is known for its unique star shape symbolizing love, wisdom and charm,” shares Blau. “Kim and I are so excited to bring the culinary inspirations we have gathered and honed over the years to these beautiful restaurants.”
BLUE ASTER
Offering an innovative twist to modern American cuisine, the restaurant’s seasonal menus will focus heavily on a farm-to-table approach, sourcing most of the ingredients from local and regional purveyors and farms, along with a selection of fresh seafood and a variety of local ranch steaks. Blue Aster will serve daily breakfast, lunch and dinner in addition to a signature weekend brunch. Dinner will feature items such as Hot Stone Ahi Tuna, Root Vegetable Wellington, Maine Lobster Pot Pie and Mac & Cheese Waffles.
THE LOUNGE AT BLUE ASTER
The Lounge at Blue Aster will provide an elegant, contemporary space to enjoy cocktails and wines by the glass, as well as small plates, making it the perfect day-to-night destination. The lounge features an afternoon tea service with international teas, iconic Southern cocktails, quintessential tea sandwiches, scones and delicate pastries.
THISTLE & RYE
On the third floor of Conrad Nashville, guests at Thistle & Rye will enjoy live music, an indoor-outdoor bar, large patio and windows overlooking bustling downtown Nashville. The menu, inspired by Blau and Canteenwalla’s extensive travels, features international street market foods like Sugar Cane Shrimp Skewers, Pork Belly Bao Buns and Pomegranate Glazed Lamb Kofta as well as approachable classics including Nashville’s Famous Hot Chicken Sliders and Fresh Lobster Rolls.
Exclusive to hotel guests, the Pool Deck at Conrad Nashville draws from the menu at Thistle & Rye, alongside house-made gelato, boozy ice pops and batched craft cocktails.
SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY, REDEFINED
Blau and Canteenwalla met while he was Executive Chef of the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi, and from there the duo spent time touring the region and developed a shared passion for the treasured flavors and traditions found in the South. Today, many of these culinary inspirations are reflected in the menus and branding at their restaurant concepts.
Joining Blau and Canteenwalla, Conrad Nashville is also pleased to announce the appointment of Executive Chef Dwayne Edwards, bringing over 30 years of experience to the kitchen and formerly serving as executive chef at multiple Ritz-Carlton hotel locations throughout the United States. Director of Food and Beverage Jean-Christophe LeVarrat is also bringing his talents to the table, with 35 years of experience including the iconic Beverly Hills Hotel, Hotel Casa del Mar and most recently, leading the food & beverage team at the famed Shutters on the Beach hotel in Santa Monica.
ABOUT ELIZABETH BLAU
Elizabeth Blau is the founder and CEO of restaurant development company Blau + Associates and is widely credited with transforming Las Vegas into the world-class culinary destination it is today. Her work creating the restaurant portfolios at both Bellagio and Wynn forever transformed the food and beverage philosophy of the city. A judge on CNBC’s Restaurant Startup, she also operates several restaurants in Las Vegas and Vancouver with her husband chef Kim Canteenwalla. Blau and Canteenwalla co-authored “Honey Salt: A Culinary Scrapbook,” which was named Best Cookbook of 2018 by Food & Beverage Magazine.
ABOUT KIM CANTEENWALLA
Chef Kim Canteenwalla provides a diverse range of international expertise with more than 30 years of culinary and industry leadership. He has led restaurants and resorts around the world including Singapore, Bermuda, Dubai, Cambodia, Toronto, and Montreal, and is the former Executive Chef for MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Along with wife Elizabeth Blau, Kim is the Chef-Owner of the acclaimed Las Vegas restaurant Honey Salt and managing partner of Buddy V’s Ristorante at the Venetian. In 2017, Kim conceptualized and developed multiple world-class food and beverage outlets in Vancouver, Canada which he continues to operate today.
