Rudy's Jazz Room

One of the best things about Nashville and we are so thankful for this club. It is so nice to get away from the typical broadway/country side of the city and escape into some lovely jazz. The red beans and rice are amazing and our go to order! Drinks are a bit pricier but still delicious. The club itself has a romantic & cozy vibe to it and it’s lovely. Minimal parallel street parking (you must pay) nearby so it’s always best to arrive early to your show. It also pays to arrive early because you get first come first serve to your seats/tables. Highly recommend Rudy’s!

Really cool little spot! Was sat at the bar and staff were super friendly and helpful and the drinks and food were great! There was a bunch of empty seats at the front which was a little odd as the bar was pretty cramped so I’m not sure why we were all sat there? But music was great!

We celebrated Valentine's Day at Rudy's Jazz Room this year. The atmosphere is moody and romantic which is enhanced by the incredible live music provided. The bar is quite eye catching and well stocked with anything a heart could desire. The food is delicious and fresh. Everyone was kind and helpful and didn't take away from the entertainment. We can't wait to return for another great date night.

Last of a dieing type of venue. The small, casual, friendly and memorable little venue. Easy access, great artists and amazing service. Add all that to a comfy vibe, cool lighting and great sound and it's a deal. Right around the corner is a great cigar lounge and taco shack. Run.. Don't walk to experience this place.

Can't recommend this place enough. The only complaint I have was not spending more time there. My wife and I went with some friends and got a table for six. The room is so cool and just absolutely perfect for jazz. Lot's of cool memorabilia on the walls too. The chocolate old fashioned is fantastic. The Pat Coil quartet was playing that night; the music was extremely well done.

Absolutely fabulous!! If you are in Nashville and you love all kinds of Jazz you must go to Rudy’s. Good food, good drinks, wonderful atmosphere and damn fine music.

Great lounge vibe and excellent service. All so very friendly. We didn’t have tickets yet were able to have standing room spot. Not idea if watching whole music set but for the time we were there it was perfect.

Incredible atmosphere, tasty creole options. Felt like stepping into another time and space 💕

An intimate atmosphere, incredibly talented performers, and some delicious drinks that'll put some hair on your chest. A gem I'm so happy to have stumbled upon on my first day in Nashville. To drink, I had the Call Me Maybe off their summer menu (blackberry old fashioned) which was a perfectly mixed cocktail and packed a great punch. I kept it light for dinner (shocker!) and went with their vegan red beans and rice. My other Nashville reviews will prove easily that I am far from vegan, but as someone who grew up on the Latino version of rice and beans, I was pleasantly surprised by how good the Creole version was. Admission is relatively cheap - paid a fraction of the price of a table at Blue Note in downtown Manhattan - and the vibes are there for an unorthodox but infallible way to wind down a busy day in the Music City. Will be back on my next visit to Nashville - & I'll be bringing a bigger group with me!

Rudy's is the kind of place that makes me feel like an adult. It's all dim lighting and shadows, cocktails and jazz, spicy food and leather seats. It's classy but unpretentious. Also, my server looked exactly like Matty Matheson, so that was obviously a bonus (see my photo for evidence). Speaking of photos: My photos of this joint suck because the lighting is red. Red lights are amazing in person and set the mood perfectly, but they make everything in a photo look like a bloody vampire movie. I couldn't exactly parse out the exact colors in my food (it all looked red), but all of my food tasted delicious. Rudy's specializes in New Orleans Creole food. I visited with a group, so I got to taste a few things, and I started with the Creole Red Beans & Rice, which comes with andouille sausage. It's spicy! I was warned, but I thought, I'm Mexican, I can take it. I could barely take it. Luckily, it's served with perfectly cooked white rice to temper the heat. I also tried a bit of the Chicken, Andouille Sausage & Shrimp Gumbo, which was just a touch spicy but so satisfying and warm. Our table also got an order of the Rudy's Popcorn Shrimp (served with cocktail sauce) and the fried pickles (served with spicy ranch). Both of these were delicious and definitely enough to share. The menu at Rudy's is concise -- which I love -- and includes many spicy options, so if you love heat, you will love this place. They also have a dessert menu that includes beignets, which I didn't get to try but I heard are great. My server, Matty Matheson's doppelganger, created one of the special cocktails on the menu: a cocktail made with fernet, Italicus liqueur, lemon and simple syrup. So, I had to get it. It was amazing -- refreshing with just a hint of licorice, poured over one of those big, square ice cubes. If it's on the menu when you visit, get this cocktail. Food and drink is just half of the experience of Rudy's. This is a jazz club, so expect to hear local jazz, especially jazz that honors New Orleans swing and French roots. When I visited, the band that was on stage was channeling Django Reinhardt hard. It was a nice because I love that old timey, jangly type of jazz. It was a lovely evening of music and food and drink.

I have been coming to Rudy's for years. I sent them hundreds of go fund me dollars to keep them open in the pandemic. They have changed personnel at the front door recently and their astonishing rudeness and ugliness have completely run me out the door. Run, don't walk, away from Rudy's Jazz Room. What a shame.

What the actual fuck did I just see on a Sunday night in Nashville? Only about two dozen of the most talented musicians rotate on stage to play some classics and jams. Piano, stand up bass, drums, vocals, trumpet, trombone - all ridiculously good. Local music college students + cagey vets, all looking to jam together. Combine this weekly 9pm Sunday jam with the 7pm Station Inn bluegrass jam and thank me later.

We stumbled upon Rudy's as we were trying to find a dinner place that closed. I'm so glad we did! The food was absolutely amazing as well as the signature drinks. I recommend the seafood pies and old fashions. Our server, Keri, who was new, was amazing. What a great intimate atmosphere with wonderful musicians. I highly recommend the only jazz club in Nashville!

The music, atmosphere, and food are top notch. If you love jazz and gumbo this is the place.

Amazing Jazz club with good dark mood lighting and wonderful live Jazz performances by talented professional musicians. Wine and drinks were great, but the food menu could use an upgrade. Overall though a great experience.

Randomly found tickets to go see Gabrielle Cavassa and her band perform. It was a great time. Things are pretty tight here so be prepared! We got here right when they opened for the evening. It was assigned seating it seemed and myself and our group were seated up at the front. Like I said earlier, things were tight so I felt a little claustrophobic but after the concert got started it wasn't too bad. Getting up to sneak through and not knock over any of the small tables to use the restroom was a challenge though. Pretty sure I heard others shatter glassware on the ground throughout the concert. Overall though, the concert was amazing. Everything sounded great throughout and because we were so close to the band, it seemed like the concert was especially for us! It seemed like a pretty long concert too, so we definitely got our money's worth.

One of the best espresso martinis! Also love Gypsy jazz which they have on Thursday evenings. Intimate and cozy atmosphere.

Well, I haven't reviewed this place since it opened six years ago, so I think it's time to rereview it. Rereview--is that even a word? Well, you know what I mean. Things have changed since then. Not physically--the building and atmosphere are still exactly the same. That's a good thing IMO. Food and drinks are pretty much the same too. I really like their red beans and rice. Really nice and meaty with a tinge of spice. Cocktails are all top notch too. The music has gotten better! When they started out, it was mostly vintage swing. Now it's a bit of everything. Both vintage and modern jazz, and everything in between. Seems like about at least once a week, they have a band tribute a late musician like Miles Davis or Thelonius Monk. Now for the negative, and why I'm knocking off one star. The service. So the service from the bartenders and servers is fine. The problem is with the service beforehand. Before you even step foot in the place, you have to buy tickets. Yeah, walk-ins are sometimes possible, but rarely. They fill up fast. So go to their Web site, choose your show...and then it takes you to a separate app called Eventbrite to choose your seats and buy your ticket. Therein lies the problem. They basically pass off all the responsibility to Eventbrite. Eventbrite has a no refund policy. So if you accidentally buy an extra ticket, choose the wrong seat, the wrong show, etc., you're screwed. And if you try to call Rudy's, it takes you to a recording, which says, "Please don't leave a voice mail, go to our Web site." As in, the same Web site that refers you back to Eventbrite to buy tickets. ‍ There is no way to get a hold of Rudy's other than just physically going there. Other than this horrible customer service conundrum, I love Rudy's. The place is fantastic. Fix this customer service problem, answer the dang phone, and sell your own tickets with a reasonable refund/return policy, and I'll give you five stars again. Until that happens, it'll be four from me.

First time at a Jaz bar and I really loved it! Can't wait to try in other cities. The food was ok nothing to brag on. Drinks were not a brag either. But love the music and ambience!

Grabbed some last minute tickets to a show midweek. It's definitely in a quintessential jazz club looking area - dark and looks like you'll get mugged but feels like you won't. We arrived a bit early and got a parking spot right near the front door. This also meant we were first in line for seats. Great seats at the bar and with better than usual drinks for a jazz club. We didn't get food because they had a very limited menu that night but what other people ordered looked like standard fare. We had a ball. The act was great! I'd definitely go back.

Had a great first-time experience at Rudy's for the Sunday jam session. How cool to offer local and out of town musicians a chance to play with the in-house professionals to create magic moments that are organically unique. I reserved table in advance which is the recommended way to go as spots fill up quickly. The service was awesome! I loved Kiera the front hostess and our waiter whom I didn't catch his name but had long hair and floral shirt on. He was super attentive and kind. I ordered the NY sour and chocolate fudge pie which was divine. I'd go back again in a heartbeat. Thanks Rudy's!

This place is the hottest non-tourist hideaway I've yet to find in Nashville. The staff is Fabulous! The food is perfect. The music and ambiance is amazing!!!

Rudy's is a must if you enjoy live music! The ambiance was everything! 10/10 recommend.

Very cool hole in the wall with excellent ambiance and fabulous music. I definitely recommend making a reservation and buying tickets to a show in advance. Very cozy and intimate environment with talented musicians for entertainment. I haven't eaten so can't speak on the food, but drinks and service were good.

So so cool! Visited Nashville for the first time and fell in love with this place. It's like walking into a time warp. You can feel the history buzzing through the venue. Would return to Nashville just to visit Rudy's again.

Really cool venue, have heard so much about this spot! Went Hot Club Gypsy Jazz Thursdays; Rudy's French Connection. Paid at the door, IDs checked, and was shown a few seat options. It was pretty empty so we essentially got front-row seats at a table. Music was good, acoustics are pretty good inside too. Nice ambiance, had a good time! Tickets aren't too pricey either which is nice. Parking is street parking or there's a lot down the street for it.

Traveling to Nashville, we had a plan to enjoy Broadway and all it has to offer.. which we did. At the recommendation of Elenor from the African American Museum of Music, we went to Rudy's Jazz Room which was the highlight of our visit to Nashville. An awesome experience from the time we got in line to be seated.... To the interactions with the hostess.... To the greeter who had our seats at the bar reserved for my party of 3.... To the bartenders who were on point and highly attentive to my party. Great service.. great music.... Excellent food.... And an awesome experience for group from Dallas visiting Nashville. This truly was the highlight of our visit to Nashville. If you're reading this.... Try it for yourself and feel free to let me know your experience.

Wife and I had a terrific time. World class music, an atmosphere you only see in the movies, staff was friendly, and they had delicious food. Will definitely be back for another show next time we are in Nashville.

First off I don't like going out alone, but I love coming to this place. Great food great wonderful nice people and I absolutely love this room the music and just kicking back for a little bit forgetting the troubles of today Thank you Wooten Brothers.!!!

Hands down, one of the best music venues in Nashville. If jazz is your thing, or if you just need a break from the Broadway honky-tonks, Rudy's is a must. Located on an out-of-the-way street in the Gulch, this place is a true hidden gem. Plan ahead and reserve a couple of the comfy lounge chairs or sofa, or just enjoy a spot at the bar or tables. We didn't eat here, so I can't vouch for the food, but drinks are reasonably priced and the service is excellent. The ambience is perfect and the musical talent is first rate. Looking forward to many more visits.

Rudy's a great place to catch a jazz show. Off the beaten path, so you don't need to worry about parking near Music Row. Easy to get a ticket and get in to see a show. Food is mediocre at best and consists of "American Classics". We got popcorn shrimp, zucchini appetizer and grilled cheese with fries. Again, it's the kind of food that's a step above a diner, but kind of perfect for a late night snack. This place is 100% about music and enjoying jazz. Tips: no parking, but easy to find in the neighborhood. Food is mediocre, so are the drinks, but music is fantastic.

Thank you Ms Sharon Owner for your response. I appreciate it and I will visit again when I'm in town. I'm from California and was visiting at that time. Thank you again for your kind response. Sincerely Susan Arnold.

The musical entertainment totally deserved 5 stars. Round of Applause for Don Aliquo ft Rod McGaha!!! Now the drinks. We ordered mojitos. Asked if mine could be made with sugar versus simple syrup. I do believe this must be what sent the bartender into a rage or something to make them forget how to bartend. So if you're reading this I'm going to list you the instructions on how to make a mojito without using simple syrup! 1 to 1.5 tbsp sugar 6 leaves of fresh mint, 2 oz white rum (or 1.5 oz of white rum with a .5 oz of coconut rum. ¾ ounce lime juice  From this point is where you use mole to grind everything together. The alcohol and the sugar should help exacerbate the mint giving it the flavor! After you've grinded it in a mole or a cup as I grinded mine in the glass. Then in a separate glass add the following: Ice Pour your mixture that you finish grinding into the clean glass of ice. Followed by a light topping of: Club soda BAMMMM!! And just like that, you've made the classic mojito!!! I don't understand why that's so hard to make. Y'all I swear to God they brought lemon juice. Not lemonade but lemon juice! Yes I said lemon juice with ice club soda and rum. And had the audacity to use the mint as garnish!!!! Like WTF? What is going on with the bartenders here in Nashville and not knowing how to make some of the most classic drinks ever! PF crafts couldn't make a classic daiquiri! I don't get it! What's going on in the bartending schools? Obviously a lot of nothing! Please read A Mixology drink book before coming to work on the weekends or just coming into work.! This is ridiculous I had to come home and make our own Mojitos because the bartending skills were at all time low at this establishment as well as PF crafts! I don't get it I just really don't get it! And if you're that freaking lazy to not be able to make this, then try a new field. Please and thank you below you'll see what a Mojito looks like. It's not yellow! First Google the word mojito! It means muddy water! So I don't know why people are using simple syrup when it's supposed to look like a dirty drink! I really could keep going on about this because I am so dissatisfied with these lackluster bartenders. Just do better. Read a Mixology book and do better.

Unique atmosphere, staff was attentive and food was pretty good. Mixed drinks were excellent. I went on a open call night for musicians and the music was way better than i expected. Make reservations in advance.

Absolutely incredible! Truly feels like you walked into an authentic old jazz club in New York City. The venue is small, seating is tight, and there is nothing necessarily fancy about it, and yet at the same time, it is cool and classy. The music is incredible, and the table service cocktails are very good. Don't expect to get into this place without a reservation, even on a weeknight. We got lucky at the last minute because two people left early. Go for the old couch just to the left of the stage near the front. Probably the best jazz venue in Nashville! Don't miss it!

Very solid jazz club with excellent vibe, service, and sound system. And it's not too loud to chat with your friends. TY

Went here for gypsy jazz Thurs happy hour from 5:30 to about 8. Smaller venue that has a dungeon prohibition type of ambience. You have to reserve and pay for a table, but hey, they got to pay the talent. Me and my friends enjoyed the drinks and the gypsy jazz with Gyasi sitting in on this session. ( look him up on Instagram) Didn't have food because I ate the BBQ next door at Peg Leg Pork. The candy hearts mural is right around the corner as well as a boot shop and vintage guitar store. Great way to start the night!

What a fun spot to check out! The vibes of this place are immaculate. Drinks are a bit on the pricier side, but not something that shocked me greatly being in Nashville. The jazz group we saw was so so fun to listen to. I would especially recommend this spot for those looking for live music, but trying to go beyond the typical country scene.

The food was excellent. My wife and I loved the establishment's ambiance. The mood was perfect. The staff was fast, patient, and efficient. The music was excellent. This is a place we could attend again.

The best in town for jazz, great music, the atmosphere is very cosy and jazzy, the drinks and the food are excellent you will have a great time. And the staff is amazing.

My wife surprised me with tickets/reservations to a performance this past weekend at Rudy's. This place wasn't even on my radar and now it feels like a place I should be a regular! We got to see the Marc Payne Quartet for the 8pm Saturday show and they were fantastic. The atmosphere of this club is simply one of the best I've experienced in Nashville and at this point I feel I've seen live music at the majority of places in the city. This was one of my favorite. It's wonderfully lit, small and intimate without feeling crowded. The service is fantastic and friendly. We had a full meal as well, and the food was delicious and shockingly reasonably priced. Most dinner options are $12 or less--less than the cocktails. Between the two of us we had the creole/crawfish grilled cheese and fries, two of the seafood pies, an order of the fried pickles, a piece of the dark chocolate pie. All were great, especially the seafood pie. My wife doesn't usually care for pickles of any kind and enjoyed the fried pickles. Cocktails/drinks rounded out half of our ticket but despite being a tad on the pricey side, they are well worth it. I had the sazerac (delicious) and she had the Night in Tunisia (she loved it). I also had a local IPA and at the end of the night a brandy, both of which were fairly priced and good. I hope to come back in the near future and if I lived in the neighborhood, I'd make this a weekly stop. Parking tip---at the end of the road there's a FREE parking garage within short steps of Rudy's. Can't beat that!

Great intimate experience- artists came into the audience and made us feel like part of the act! Great ambiance and good drinks

My partner and I visited on a Friday night. We had tickets and arrived just a few minutes early and were greeted and seated immediately. The place is small but very intimate. The crowd was mature and were just enjoying the amazing jazz band playing. It wasn't too loud either. The food was decent. We had the gumbo and fried shrimp. But the star of the show besides the band were the autumn style drinks. Delicious. Our waitress was nice, professional and on point. I would definitely visit again.

Authentic. Amazing. One of the premier jazz clubs in the country. Simply consistently perfect. I travel 200 days a year for work and from Frenchmen Street in NoLa to The Majestic in KC, a dozen places in my hometown of Chicago to El Chapultepec in Denver, there's no place that tops this place. (And yea: be an adult and make a reservation and don't be sniveling about Coach not getting you a seat when you ain't got one and leaving 1-star reviews--looking at you, Patrick. Plan ahead--so totally worth it).

Great ambiance and music. Knowledgeable bar staff. The fried pickles were really good. The shrimp Po boy was just okay. I would return to the venue.

Cool space , good jazz .................................................here you go Yelp trying to make me write 85 characters

I can't rave enough about this place! I visited Nashville from Charlotte, and although I did enjoy the main strip of Broadway....I was ready to get to a more mature scene and crowd from all the hooping and hollering that Broadway crowds bring. And this place delivered! Very quaint, music was amazing, drinks and food were just as awesome. So glad I ended my trip with a visit here.

I haven't been back since Covid. Place must be like some sort of time capsule. Nothings changed which seems almost impossible. Made it for "Hot Club Gypsy Jazz Thursday" and the music was superb. Had the shrimp Poboy with a good local draft and finished it off with a "French 75" in a champagne flute. The combination of fabulous music and delicious food would be very difficult to beat. The miracle of all this is it's just like it was - pre-Covid. And where else can you get Louisiana hot sauce lit up by a non-battery powered candle?

I was in Nashville for a quick getaway. I had no plans at all except to relax and listen to some great music. I got that and more at Rudy's Jazz Room. It's a quaint space with unique seating areas. I chose the lounge seating which put me near the stage. The staff was super nice and I would highly recommend Rudy's to everyone.

Rudy's was such a fun place to grab a drink before dinner! The atmosphere and music were amazing. The service was a little slow but the drinks were good and we had such a fun time! Excited to go back!

Chic jazz room in the Gulch whose fantastic atmosphere is matched only by the incredible musical talent and delectable eats. The ambience is intimate and cozy with an understated yet lively feel. Food is delicious and not overpriced (I recommend the creole grilled cheese). My girlfriend ordered the gumbo, which was also exquisite. I'm a Nashville resident, and this place offers a great alternative to Music City's country scene. At ~$15 per ticket, it's also very affordable relative to some of the other local music spots. My drink of choice is typically an old fashioned, but here I would go with the Sazerac. There is free parking outside Peg Leg Porker down the street and metered parking across the road as well. Whether you come for the food, the ambience, or the jazz, Rudy's rounds out any list of must-see establishments for both tourists and locals alike. Definitely recommend! Happily, Clayton Cohn

Such a cool spot, truly feels like you're in NOLA! Bought tickets to get in and fortunately came early to grab a good spot. Their cocktails were strong and delicious (Misterioso was my favorite!) but I was most surprised at how good some of their food was. The creole grilled cheese with crawfish was flavorful and perfectly crispy, as were the fries. We also enjoyed the popcorn shrimp but sadly the po' boy wasn't as good as expected. Would definitely come back to enjoy awesome live tunes as the Don Aliquo Quartet left a great impression, keeping us thoroughly entertained with their talent all night long!

Awsome place all kinds of music straight jazz and and amazing Cuban Latin Jazz Hot music

Pat Coil Trio was fantastic! Great music and service! Very attentive staff and great jazz ambience!

The atmosphere was great! I was treated rudely by a patron but the overall experience was one I will repeat.

Awesome place!! Sunday night has an open jam session and got to see plenty of artist doing there thing. The drinks were great and the people were nice.

Had an awesome time here with my sister. Our bartender Lucas was extremely attentive and very personable. The customers were nice. Maybe it's a down south thing but I throughly enjoyed Nashville. The band was good. The "representative on the ballot" was my favorite.