Most Nashville cocktail bars point you toward a stool and a menu. Urban Cowboy Public House points you outside, into a string-lit garden with an Argentine grill smoking in the corner and a pizza oven a few steps away.
Published December 15, 2025 · By Daniel Okafor
Urban Cowboy Public House sits at 103 North 16th Street in East Nashville, tucked behind the Urban Cowboy bed and breakfast in a restored Victorian compound. It runs as the public bar of the design-forward Urban Cowboy hotel brand, and the cocktail program is the reason locals come without booking a room. The garden, not the lobby, is the heart of the place.
The pull is a serious drinks list served in one of the better outdoor rooms in the city. The courtyard layers vintage furniture, fire, and greenery into a sequence of nooks, so a group can find a corner even on a busy night.
The room
The interior keeps the bold design language of the brand, all reclaimed wood, dark walls, and a long copper-lit bar. The real draw is the courtyard, a planted garden with an open-air bar, fire features, and an Argentine-style grill that perfumes the whole space. The two halves let the bar work as a cozy indoor room in winter and a garden party the rest of the year. Fire pits and heaters keep the courtyard usable well past dusk, even when the evening turns cool.
What to order
Order off the seasonal cocktail list, which leans on local ingredients and rotates often, then pair it with a wood-fired pie from Roberta's, the Brooklyn pizzeria that runs the kitchen. The grill turns out smoke-driven plates that suit the garden setting. Expect cocktail-room pricing in the $$$ range, which buys a polished drink and a genuinely good pizza in the same sitting.
The crowd and best time to go
The crowd mixes East Nashville locals, hotel guests, and date-night couples drawn by the garden. The bar runs from late afternoon into the night, so early evening is calm and the courtyard fills as the light drops. Go on a warm weekday evening for the garden at its best without the weekend crowd.
What regulars say
Across Yelp and Tripadvisor the steady refrain is design, garden, and cocktails, with the Roberta's pizza repeatedly called the reason to stay for dinner. The Vendry and local listings cover it as a destination event space as much as a bar, which signals how polished the setting is. The common caution is that it runs pricier than a neighbourhood bar, and the garden fills fast on warm weekends.
Who it is for
This is for the date-night couple, the cocktail-and-pizza crowd, and anyone exploring East Nashville bars who wants a garden rather than a barroom. Skip it if you want a cheap round or a big sports screen. For the wider city, see our guide to the best cocktail bars in Nashville and the full Nashville bar guide.
The verdict
Urban Cowboy Public House wins because the setting and the drinks are equally considered. A planted garden, a grill, real cocktails, and Roberta's pizza make it one of the most complete outdoor rooms in the city. Come on a warm evening, claim a corner of the courtyard, and pair a seasonal cocktail with a pie. For more polished East Nashville drinking, compare the cocktail den at Attaboy, the tiki room at Pearl Diver, and the music-forward The Fox Bar. Our cocktail bars guide rounds out the list.
