7 Longstanding Local Restaurants and Cafes

Mere Bulles

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7. Mere Bulles

5201 Maryland Way, Brentwood TN 37027

Mere Bulles, which is in Brentwood at the historic Maryland Manor, actually first served fine food and champagne in downtown Nashville on Second Avenue.

Having been founded in 1985 by Rodney Wise, who named it after his grandmother a French restauranteer, it originally occupied a building at Second Avenue and Broadway in downtown Nashville. All told, the 32-year old Mere Bulles is one of the older restaurants around here, even if it has only occupied its current location since 2000.

Mere Bulles’ history begins with, Mother Bubbles, who was the grandmother of the original owner. She was born Michele Bouvier around 1840 in Deauville, France as the illegitamte daughter of a shopkeeper.

Bouvier came to America and made her fortune, first in New York and later opening one of the most popular restaurants in Charleston, South Carolina. She was known fondly for her love of champagne, which earned her the nickname Mother Bubbles, or Mere Bulles, in French.

In 1985, Wise opened Mere Bulles on Second Avenue in downtown Nashville. After success there, becoming known as the place to go for fine dining in downtown, the restaurant moved south in 2000 to Maryland Manor.

The historic plantation-style farmhouse and former estate home in Brentwood was built in 1942 with bricks salvaged from a previous historic building that was torn down near the present site. The Maryland Farms business district and neighborhood where the current location thrives derive its name from the once grand 400 acre estate.

Today Mere Bulles keeps up its fine-dining tradition and revels in its historic connections and story.

Mere Bulles is located at 5201 Maryland Way, Brentwood TN 37027.