Goodness Gracious Cafe at The Mill

We went for Father’s day without a reservation but were seated within 5 minutes of opening. The food, Quality & Quantity, was great along with the service, it’s a definite go back and for as the drive from M’boro 20 – 30 minutes max and beautiful ride!

You need to make reservations unless you go on Friday morning as they are usually very busy and the wait is sometimes long. The grounds are very nice to walk around if you do have to wait though. Country atmosphere is very unique! We have to take anyone who visits us to eat there at least once and they usually want to go back there when they visit again! The selection of food is unique and very good. It takes a minute to get your food, but it is worth it! The staff is friendly and do not forgo dessert! It is wonderful! Love this place and highly recommend!

Great breakfast here. We are from out of state and were visiting with friends here. The food took over 45 minutes to get to us, but was worth the wait. Must be shorthanded in kitchen. Waitresses were so kind and apologetic.

We LOVED this place when it was in the Boro. We’d never had anything there that we didn’t like, we’d recommended it to everyone we met, took our friends and family there as a must-​see when they were in town, and it was our favorite place to go on brunch dates.
Today was our first time at the new location. The drive was interesting. The location was oddly placed and we had a difficult time making heads or tails of which building to go in. We just listened closely for the sounds of people talking and had to figure it out that way. The landscape is gorgeous. We sat by a window that had a small cliff face a foot away from the window and it was sooo serene and pretty. Made me think of Rock City in Chattanooga.
THE GOOD:
The chocolate chip pancakes were really good. The kids wolfed them down and shared a few bites with us, and they weren’t too rich. The kids ate them without syrup. My husband liked his buffalo chicken omelette without blue cheese okay, but he said it was JUST okay. He LOVES biscuits and gravy, but the biscuits and gravy were JUST okay, he said.
THE BAD:
It’s freezing in there. My kids took turns sitting on our laps to keep warm and my toes were numb (I was wearing closed-​toes flats. I was cold even with my coat on. My husband is usually hot-​natured and was wearing tennis shoes and still found his own feet very cold.
THE UGLY:
My heart was broken because I CRAVE the strawberries and cream cheese frosting combo they have. However, the strawberries were very poor quality. Yellow-​brown discoloration abounded, along with rotten sections. They looked like the container of strawberries you crinkle your nose at at the grocery store before rolling up your sleeves and digging deeper into the bins. ALSO, the country ham REAKED of a rotten meat and ammonia smell. I had cut off a huge piece for each of my kids first before getting my own, but after a couple of bites myself, I noticed the smell and made the kids stop eating it. I traded it for bacon and just gave it to the kids because they were so disappointed. My hand smelled like roadkill afterwards, though. We tried to salvage the day by ordering three different desserts to-​go. They DID take the ham off, but overall $ 65 (not including the tip) was just too much for a mediocre omelette, mediocre biscuits and gravy, two fried eggs, two pieces of bacon, and two chocolate chip pancakes. Sigh. We’d have gladly paid that much for the food at the old location, because that location’s food always blew our minds. But overall the whole meal left me depressed and deflated. I’ll keep an eye on reviews and see if they get any better over time, but they’ve been there for two years already, so I’m not very hopeful. :-(

«The first drive is the longest, and after that it’s a lot shorter.» That’s what co-​owner Karen Ford tells people who are going to make the trip out to Goodness Gracious Café at The Mill at Readyville (see linked video below). It really does seem like you’re never going to get there, even though it’s just about 15 minutes east of Murfreesboro. Especially if you’re hungry. Of course, going back to Murfreesboro was as quick as a blink.
The complex is really authentic feeling — probably because it is authentic. I’ve lived in Tennessee a long time and this is as authentic of a restaurant as I’ve eaten in here. We actually got a little spooked pulling into the place, for no good reason.
The food was as good a breakfast as I’ve had. Biscuit was a little scone-​ish, but it was good. I like ‘em softer and flakier. In the video, they do look softer. Maybe this was a bad bunch. Gravy appeared to be a pepper gravy. I didn’t notice any meat in it. But it was good. Eggs were really good. The gouda grits were awesome. Hash brown casserole was the best I’ve had. Country ham was just the right amount of salty. Wife had BAT Benedict with a great looking peppered bacon. Made with tomato and avocado and really good Hollandaise sauce. Very delicious. BAT stands for bacon, avocado, tomato.
If you have to choose between Loveless Café (the modern version) or this place, choose this place. The old Loveless before it was ruined by the new owners was slightly better, however. Speaking only of breakfast fare. Loveless never was good for other meals, so GG may have them beat overall. Reservations strongly recommended!

This place was great find for a hiddne brunch spot on the way back to Nashville. If you like a sweet bfast get a short stack of the cinnamon swirl pancakes for sure.

It’s a quaint little breakfast/​lunch joint (Fri-​Sun only) located in a historic mill surrounded by some of the most picturesque countryside you will find. Our food was very good (samples from all across the menu — it was all good); the service we received was outstanding.
We made reservations the night before via email and were seated immediately upon arrival. Walk-​ins had to wait 30 – 45. I know which group I’d rather be in.

Looooove Goodness Gracious!!! This family owned restaurant is one of the best in the area. The southern style food is amazing and the staff is extremely friendly.
Today, I took my friend there for the first time, and she had an amazing experience. The food did not disappoint, and the service was very hospitable. Usually when I go here, there is a 30 – 40 minute wait. Today, there wasn’t a wait due to the weather being a little snowy. We were placed at a table by the hostess with menus and left to decide our order. After about 20 minutes, we noticed that no one has came to check on us or at least take our drink order. After flagging someone down, who got us some water, our waitress came to our table, apologized and explained that there was a mix up in tables and she didn’t realize we were hers. We ordered, and moved on. A couple minutes later, a woman comes over and thanks us for being nice and patient. She apologized for the mix up again and then told us that our meals were on the house! This just shows what type of owners Goodness Gracious has!
As I mentioned before, the food is amazing. I recommend the Mac and cheese! Today I had one of the specials — The Pimento Cheese Burger, which was amazing! The French toast and pancakes are really good. The strawberries and pineapple crepes are sooo good — and extremely large! You get so much food here, so plan to leave extremely stuffed and with a to-​go plate. (See my pictures for the food we enjoyed today.)
I can guarantee that you will be greeted with a smile, kind words, and showered with amazing southern style food at Goodness Gracious. This place is a MUST if you are in the Murfreesboro/​Nashville area.

Goodness Gracious at Readyville Mill is some of the best southern comfort foods I’ve ever eaten outside of my grandmother’s kitchen. You’ll never eat at one of those country stores with rocking chairs again after you’ve eaten here. It’s off the beaten path and that adds to the excitement and flare. My favorites are their omletes and cinnamon swirl pancakes yum!

Super cute place! Amazing food! The hashbrown casserole was delicious! Very rustic and laid back atmosphere! Would definitely recommend this place! I will be coming back for sure!

Wow! I can’t believe I have lived here for so many yrs and never been here. Went on a Sunday brunch date with hubby. there was little of a wait and hot, but a pretty drive to get there and the food was soo good. Definitely going back

It’s a little out of the way, but it has great food with a great atmosphere. I had a friend get married out by the creek, and we had the reception in the restaurant area. This place is definitely worth the drive!

I had dined at Goodness Gracious when they were still on the square in Murfreesboro, but this was my first visit to their new location at Readyville Mill. This is a beautiful area with the mill open to walk through, as well as a gazebo overlooking a creek (or river maybe) that makes a nice place for pictures.
I ordered two scrambled eggs, wheat toast, gouda grits and hashbrown casserole. The eggs were absolutely the best part of my meal and seemed as if they were farm eggs, as they were rich in color and taste. The grits were creamy, cheesy and perfect consistency. The hashbrown casserole was interesting. It had something crunchy in it — possibly celery — that was a bit off-​putting. I know places like to make traditional dishes their own, but some are so good they don’t need to be tinkered with. I wouldn’t order this dish again.
Some things you should know —
1) Reservations are highly recommended as this restaurant is only open Friday through Sunday for breakfast/​brunch/​lunch, and it was pretty full the entire time we were there.
2) Give yourself plenty of time, since we waited 50 minutes for a table then it took 30 minutes to get our food. We had made a reservation for noon but ended up getting there at 11am, due to unforeseen circumstances that resulted in us being over there much earlier than anticipated. I asked the hostess if we could be seated early. She said she’d try to get us in earlier. A couple had just walked in before us without a reservation and were seated in 20 minutes. I’m not sure why we couldn’t be considered a walk-​in at that point and also be seated in that time frame for our party of 2. We also saw others come in and be seated while we waited and were finally seated 10 minutes prior to our original reservation time. I know we’d made it for noon, but I thought that was odd, and the hostess was not friendly at all.
3) Parking is kind of strange, particularly for someone like me coming there for the first time. There’s very limited parking next to the restaurant, but there is some on a hill above. Also, as I was leaving, I noticed there’s additional parking across the street, but that sign wasn’t noticeable as I was coming in.
Overall, the food was mostly good and our server was friendly, plus it’s a neat place to visit.

the food is so great! you can tell it’s all made from scratch. I highly recommend their quiche and their omelets. Can’t forget the cinnamon swirl pancakes too! if you’re going during the summer prepare to be a bit warm in the dining room. None of the waitresses I’ve ever had have been good at remembering refills, but they are always slammed too. while you visit it’s very fun to take a look at the working mill on the property. this makes it a great place for all ages to see and learn, not to mention fill their bellies! make sure you make reservations, but your whole party needs to be there on time. there is a 15 minute grace period, but that varies depending on how busy it is. overall great place, don’t come thirsty, and don’t bring a sweater for the dining room!

This is a unique experience: you’ll get your hearty portion of food (your traditional southern hospitality). The area fits the menu and it’s pretty cool that they have a lot of history on site.
On to the food, everyone enjoyed what they got. They don’t take short cuts and cheap you on meat or food, so you get more than what you pay for.
Service was wonderful as well. I saw no sore spots in our experience, so I would definitely recommend this place for breakfast or brunch!

Yummy!!! Oh my, so yummy! Tomato pie, coarse wheat pancakes, stone ground gouda grits (so creamy), huge chocolate chip pancake (almost a stepping stone mancake size, and for a kids entrée). So many choices and pretty sure you won’t be disappointed with many. I did have the perogis (cheese and potato) and thought they were bland; noticed the potato used was a russet, so tasted like a plain baked potato. And after eating, go check out the mill; still in use and all seem to be run by hand or person. Can’t wait to go back and try some more! Definitely worth the drive.

They’re even better than what my mother makes, but don’t tell her. They always have creative specials of the day and great tasting classics. The owner is dedicated and passionate about her restaurant and it shows. If you’ve never been, and you like sausage, go for the Monti Cristo, you won’t be disappointed.

I’ve been a fan of Goodness Gracious for years. Now that they are Goodness Gracious at the Readyville mill I’m completely sold. You can tell the inspiration of the grounds is inspiring the food. It is worth the drive. I highly recommend the French toast. Other favorites are the Gouda grits, pimento cheese, spinach dip and stuffed strawberries. One warning, don’t order too much. The food is very rich and filling. Doesn’t take much too make you feel stuffed. Love this treasure. Bön appetite.

Food there is great. My girlfriend loves it too. Sorry no pics this time, but we will take some today. Do wish they were open a little more often, but that also adds to the uniqueness.

Amazing place was a little sad that they moved but I had to take a drive to eat at this place again and the absolutely didn’t disappoint. Food was amazing home cooking at its finest the crime stuffed strawberries were a little smaller than I remembered but were still good. Customer service of course still amazing like I remembered would like them to be open more days. Heads up get there early when they first open if u don’t have a reservation cause it will get filled quickly. Or make a reservation ahead of time

Just had another delicious lunch at Goodness Gracious Café. This was our first time at the new location. Awesome service, laid back atmosphere, and excellent food! It’s worth the drive for certain.

Great good and awesome service, as always! Breakfast brunch or lunch, amazing portions. Casual atmosphere, historic site. Tour the working 1812 mill while you’re here, too.

Neat setting, the food is great! A real improvement from when they where in Murfreesboro.

The staff at Goodness Gracious is so great at keeping up with their Unilocal reviews! The owner contacted me and informed me that they’re keeping the white chocolate raspberry coffee in stock and, as promised, I update my review to 5-​stars!

Delicoous food. Great personnel. Make reservations. It was busy on a Thurs. Lunch. I went with their quiche of the day and a spinach tortellini salad with bleu cheese cole slaw. Love the unique combination of ingredients in each dish.. nothing typical about it. Love it

So grateful to have such a quality eatery in the county. The café moved from downtown Murfreesboro to the historic Readyville (pronounced reedyvull) Mill in early ’14. Includes the Mill’s menu w corn ground favorites as well as the Goodness Gracious buttery menu. Great breakfast items. Hoping to see more vegetarian options in the future. Highly recommended –well worth the drive.

Goodness Gracious recently moved to the former Readyville Mill location. The best way I can describe it is that both places have lost what made them great. The atmosphere at the Mill feels like the heart has been ripped out of it, even the band seemed without the same energy. One of the best things to come out of the kitchen at the Mill was the grits — a big, hot, creamy bowl of them. The grits that came to our table were half the size, with a skin on top that made them look like white gravy (we didn’t bother to taste them). I ordered the GG french toast with a side of maple bacon. The french toast was gooey and cold in the center. The bacon was so cold there was congealed fat on it. My husband’s bacon was also cold, and his corn cakes sub-​par. Our waitress was very apologetic, and discussed the matter with the manager and we were not charged for the breakfast we couldn’t eat. Interestingly enough, the manager never came to our table! My husband and I have eaten at the Mill many times, brought family there, and everyone loved it — the food, the atmosphere, the music, everything. We had breakfast at Goodness Gracious in downtown Murfreesboro just before they moved, and breakfast was great. I’m not sure what has happened, but two wonderful, successful restaurants were combined and, in our opinion, it’s a disaster. Sadly, we will not be back.