Motor City invades the heart of Music City as Kid Rock's Detroit Cowboy opens in Nashville

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5 days ago

Kid Rock's new Nashville restaurant has planted a flag for Detroit music and sports in the heart of one of America's leading tourist destinations.
The Detroit Cowboy, which will have its grand opening June 3 following its soft launch earlier this month, will feature memorabilia spotlighting Bob Seger, Eminem, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross and other Motown stars alongside artifacts from Kid Rock's own three-decade career.
A media release touting the grand opening describes a scene from the new seafood and steak establishment: "sucking down fresh shucked oysters while Loretta Lynn stares at you from a framed photo and Bob Seger plays over the speakers."
'To put it simply, I am here to take the foo-foo out of fine dining," Rock said in a statement.
As previously reported, Kid Rock's downtown Nashville eatery is a collaboration with Detroit restaurateur Joe Vicari, whose Joe Vicari Restaurant Group of restaurants includes the Andiamo and Joe Muer brands with multiple locations and more than a dozen other metro Detroit restaurants.
'We've built our name on quality, consistency, and hospitality — and now, with Kid Rock, we're expanding our footprint. Under the culinary brilliance of chef Marino Bianchi, guests will experience a culinary journey that celebrates two great American cities,' Vicari said in a statement.
Music memorabilia includes a gold record commemorating Seger's "Live Bullet" album, Eminem platinum albums, concert posters and photos of Rock with Detroit celebrities such as Motown founder Berry Gordy.
Sports artifacts include a signed Barry Sanders statuette, an autographed Ty Cobb picture and a baseball signed by late Tigers pitcher Mark (the Bird) Fidrych.
The Nashville eatery, previously a Joe Muer Seafood location, has a theme that unites the Motor City with Music City. Now officially opened at 500 Eleventh Ave. N., the Detroit Cowboy is billed as 'the finest dining hangout."
'The Detroit Cowboy isn't just a restaurant — it's a culinary ride like no other, where like-minded folks who love this country can dine in style. Whether you wear a bow tie, a bolo tie, or no tie — it's all good,' Kid Rock said.
The 12,000-square-foot restaurant has a redesigned space that's described in a media release as a place where 'Detroit grit and Nashville swagger collide.'
The Detroit Cowboy is Kid Rock's second Nashville dining establishment: His nightclub and restaurant, the Big Ass Honky Tonk & Steakhouse, opened in 2018.
Vicari, who spoke with the Free Press earlier this month about the Detroit Cowboy, said the collaboration came about when mutual friends put the two Michigan natives in touch.
"A mutual friend of mine and a mutual friend of his (Kid Rock) calls me up and he says, 'Hey, Bob Ritchie (Kid Rock's given name) would like to talk to you, if you have some interest, about the restaurant,'' Vicari told the Free Press.
He said, Kid Rock told him that he had been going into the Nashville Joe Muer and could help the restaurant draw more customers.
'He (Kid Rock) says the food is great, the service is great, but there's nobody in the place,' Vicari said.
'We weren't busy enough, and we thought that having Kid Rock to be part of it would be a game changer,' Vicari said.
The two ended up partnering (no financial details were revealed) and changed the name and concept of the restaurant to the Detroit Cowboy.
'We are still serving food and service like Joe Muer," Vicari said, but a big component was the addition of the Kid Rock artifacts.
'Every wall that we have has some memorabilia,' Vicari said. 'It's really, really cool.'
There are also pictures featuring Kid Rock shaking hands with Bill Clinton and doing the same with George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump.
Vicari brought the Joe Muer brand to Nashville after he took notice of the city's growth. Joe Muer Seafood opened in Music City in August 2023 with an upscale dining room and patio offering sustainable seafood, aged meats and an extensive wine list.
At the time of the Free Press interview, the Detroit Cowboy restaurant had been open only several days.
'It was really busy. I am hoping that it stays that way,' Vicari said.
It's in an area of Nashville called Capitol View and about a mile from the city's busy Broadway, where honky-tonk after honky-tonk lines the street and where Kid Rock's existing steakhouse is based.
Joe Muer Nashville, Vicari said, was 'a little isolated' and didn't get the foot traffic owners desired. He believes that the Kid Rock name will draw in customers, but he knows that retaining customers is the key to success.
'And so we'll keep them with good food and good service,' he said.
The Detroit Cowboy is open for lunch, happy hour and dinner with a menu that includes prime steaks, sustainable seafood, a curated wine selection, craft cocktails and beer.Menu highlights include a dry-aged Tomahawk ribeye, veal chop Parmigiano with pomodoro and burrata, lamb chops and surf-and-turf. There are also shareables such as a seafood tower, lobster mac-and-cheese, truffle pomme frites and fire-roasted portabella mushroom caps with beef tips.
Contact Detroit Free Press food and restaurant writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news and tips to: [e-mail]. Follow @SusanMariecooks on Twitter.
Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Motor City invades Music City as Kid Rock's Nashville restaurant opens