Something’s growing just a few miles from downtown Franklin. Many years in the making, a vision is coming to life, where a collection of world-class talent has been carefully sculpting 325 acres on Carter’s Creek Pike into Southall Farm & Inn, a luxury farm-based resort honoring the land and the generations of people who have depended upon it. A 62-room inn, 16 secluded tree-top cottages, a 15,000 square-foot spa, with culinary opportunities and outdoor experiences, unlike anything Middle Tennessee has ever had.
From the entrance, two conservatory-style greenhouses hint at the exploratory nature of the agricultural program, marrying timeless farming techniques with modern innovations. On one side, an ocean of leafy greens is being produced through advanced hydroponics. On the other, a traditional Orangerie stands as an homage to the art of citrus production through the course of centuries. Outside, cultivated areas operate as laboratories, where rare heirloom varieties of fruits and vegetables—many of which aren’t conventionally produced in Middle Tennessee—are being grown under sustainable farming practices to supply the culinary team and celebrated chef Tyler Brown.
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Paul Mishkin relocated to Nashville with the notion to create a place. A successful Chicago options trader with an interest in hydroponics, he was looking for a piece of land and a slower pace of life for his family. Then his path crossed with Tyler Brown’s. Having been nominated multiple times by his peers for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef-Southeast recognition, Brown possesses an insatiable hunger for deeper understanding of his ingredients and the way things work together to sustain the circle of life. As executive chef at the Capitol Grille in the Hermitage Hotel, he helped put Nashville on the culinary map, launching the localvore movement here by starting full-scale vegetable and livestock production farms not only to feed the kitchen but to educate the public. Together, with a staff of five-star hospitality leaders assembled from around the country, they have sharpened the vision into Southall.
Even before opening, people around the nation are taking notice. Travel + Leisure recognized Southall with a Global Vision Award in March for sustainability, noting the dedication to everything from the water preservation system that collects and filters rainfall through the 1,300-tree apple orchard and back to the seven-acre lake to the technology-driven apiary program that governs Southall’s six apiaries and millions of native bees and honeybees and in turn, yields gallons of honey. From Travel + Leisure’s “50 Best Places to Travel in 2022” and the Wall Street Journal’s “7 Buzzy Destinations to Vacation This Year,” Southall’s Inn, Spa, agricultural program, and signature restaurant are gaining some serious recognition.
Perhaps travelers are craving something less artificial and more meaningful in the post-pandemic world. That’s what Southall aims to provide: nourishment for the mind, body, and soul…the sense of wellness that comes not just from luxury accommodations, memorable meals, and sublime spa treatments but from the type of inspiration derived from connection with like-minded people. The mission of Southall lies in that want to share the magic that the land has to offer.
Across more than five miles of trails that wind through the rolling hills overlooking the farm, native edibles are waiting to be foraged. An aerial obstacle course soars high in the old-growth forest, and guests can select activities ranging from guided falconry and archery experiences to hands-on canning and preserving workshops in the Jammery. Tours of the apiaries, orchard and kitchen gardens with the experts who tend them will dive into not only visually spectacular components of the farm but purposeful ones—all of these elements work together in a full-circle environment to sustain each other, and all of us.
For the team at Southall, many of whom have moved from marquis roles at pinnacle properties around the country to be a part of the project, it’s the culmination of experience that brings it all together like nowhere else in the world. And they can’t wait to share it with you.
We invite you to visit southalltn.com and explore all that awaits at Southall Farm & Inn.
