~story and other photos by Bob Gustin
Nearly 1,200 people were fed at the Bird’s Nest on Main on its opening day, as locals and tourists flocked to check out the new restaurant in the oldest commercial building in Brown County.
The pace has slowed some since then, but the landmark building at the corner of Main and Van Buren streets in Nashville remains busy since it opened Sept. 23 after nearly a year of extensive remodeling.
“Honestly, the response has blown us away,” said co-owner Tyra Miller.
“We hoped people would be excited, but there’s a big difference between hoping they show up and watching them line up to come through the door. We’ve been humbled, exhausted, and grateful.”
Long lines of customers waiting for tables at the former Hobnob Corner Restaurant have spilled out onto the sidewalks.
“It’s an incredible compliment to have people willing to wait for a table. We don’t take that lightly. We offer text service when their table is open so that they can enjoy Nashville while they wait. We put a lot of heart into this place. Seeing the community embrace it has meant more than we could adequately explain.” Miller said.
Manager Casie Zoellner said food prep time was slower at the original Bird’s Nest restaurant on Franklin Street. The new location is getting customers’ orders ready more quickly.
“Our goal has been to improve wait times now that we have a larger kitchen and more people working on getting food out,” Miller said. “We make food fresh with premium ingredients and while we never want to be confused with fast food, we want everyone to enjoy the experience from start to finish.”
Zoellner said the restaurant’s staff was increased from about 25 at the old location to about 35 at the current site.
Like any new business, there have been obstacles and kinks to work out along the way.
“There is no amount of planning that will save you from the reality that you just opened a restaurant right before October in Nashville, Indiana,” Miller said.
“Watching our crew navigate these crazy days and show up to the same chaos tomorrow fills me with pride and respect. There can be immense personal growth in the fires of a busy kitchen.”
The building itself is known as the Frank P. Taggart building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and owned by Andy and Aaron Rudd. It was built as a general store about the same time Nashville was incorporated in 1873 and later became a drug store with a soda fountain before being converted into a restaurant in the 1970s.
During the recent remodeling process, the kitchen was redone, infrastructure such as the plumbing and electrical systems were updated, the old floor was removed and replaced, and the main level of the building was transformed.
Other than new signage, the exterior is much the same. Miller said care was taken to make sure the “soul” of the building was intact.
Medicines, cosmetics and other artifacts from the time it was operated as Miller’s Drug Store are carefully displayed behind glass cabinets, and historic photos and posters are displayed on the walls.
One of the memorable parts of the building was its original wooden floor, which had been patched with pieces of metal over the years.
The floor and the soda fountain counter were two of the things local residents wanted to see saved. But the years had taken a toll on both, and engineers deemed the floor unsafe. New floor joists and sturdy red oak flooring took its place in the remodel.
Parts of the old floor with the most character were carefully preserved as the bar top, designed piece by piece, then covered with a thick layer of epoxy, an idea of general contractor Cameron Stone of Columbus.
Lance Miller, co-owner of the business and Tyra’s husband, spent a couple days cleaning the old floor with mineral spirits, then staying up most of a night “chasing bubbles” as the epoxy dried.
“Nostalgia is very powerful,” Tyra Miller said, “and with the amount of memories made in this building along with its long historical standing in the town, we made every decision as if we were under history’s microscope.”
She said she saw community support “without question.”
Local residents have been a big part of the early crowds, some coming to get a look at the place, others to enjoy the nostalgic cherry phosphate and Green River drinks sold at the soda fountain.
Visitors are also enjoying the new restaurant. On a recent October morning, the family of Glenn and Jenny DeJarnet of Columbus visited the Bird’s Nest on Main during a fall break visit to Nashville. They labelled the food “delicious.” “It was the first thing on our menu when we came to Nashville,” Glenn said.
Zoellner said dishes are still being added to the menus, which will change with the seasons. More soups will be added as the winter arrives.
The original Bird’s Nest café on Franklin Street is closed, and Tyra said now that the new restaurant is running, cleaning and repairs will begin on that building. Plans are still being made for future use.
Likewise, the upstairs room at the Main Street location is now being used for storage while its use is being determined. Tyra said it could be used at some point as an event space/speakeasy/jazz bar, or for small intimate gatherings with highly curated music options.
“I think we all understand that the repairing of the building belonged to so many people along with the town past, present, and future. We aren’t just opening a business. We are becoming part of a story and we have loved documenting the process.” •