Every Chattanooga Journal food list in one place: wings, pizza, Mexican, barbecue, breakfast, burgers, sushi, ice cream, bakeries and patios.

Last checked Oct. 18, 2026. Refreshed every three months.

These are our where-to-eat lists for Chattanooga, one page per kind of food. Each is an alphabetical list of every place inside the city limits that we could confirm, with its address, the hours it publishes and its phone number. They are not rankings, and nobody paid to be on them.

How we made these lists. The places come from OpenStreetMap records inside Chattanooga’s city limits, the same data behind our local directory, checked against each place’s own website on Oct. 18, 2026. We checked every address against the U.S. Census Bureau’s city-limits map, which keeps out places in Red Bank, East Ridge and other nearby towns. Run a restaurant that is missing or out of date? Write to us.

Where the food is

Across the lists, the same few areas come up again and again. Downtown, on Broad, Market and Chestnut streets near the Tennessee Aquarium, has the most places within walking distance. Across the river, the North Shore fills Frazier Avenue, North Market Street, Cherokee Boulevard and Manufacturers Road with coffee, brunch, pizza and patios. Main Street on the Southside and the blocks around the Chattanooga Choo Choo add bakeries and bars. Farther out, Hamilton Place and Gunbarrel Road hold most of the chains, Brainerd Road and Highway 58 have local restaurants, and St. Elmo and Hixson each have a handful. Our neighborhood guides describe each area.

The lists

Wings. Eight places, mostly sports bars, burger bars and pizza shops, downtown and on the Southside and along Brainerd Road and Gunbarrel Road. Includes a karaoke bar on Market Street.

Pizza. Sixteen pizza places, from wood-fired Neapolitan pies on the North Shore to New York-style slices, Detroit-style squares and the delivery chains. Most sit on Broad and Market streets downtown.

Mexican and Tex-Mex. The longest list: 22 restaurants and counters downtown, on the North Shore, along Highway 58, in Hixson and around Hamilton Place, including a Mexican seafood restaurant and an Indian-Mexican taco shop.

Barbecue. Ten barbecue restaurants spread across the city, from St. Elmo at the foot of Lookout Mountain to Hamilton Place, Highway 58 and Hixson.

Breakfast and coffee. Twenty-one diners, biscuit and bagel shops and coffee houses, clustered on the North Shore and downtown, including two that never close.

Burgers. Eleven burger places, from Southside burger bars to the drive-thru chains on Gunbarrel Road and in Hixson.

Sushi and Asian. Twenty sushi bars and Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Korean restaurants, most around Hamilton Place, Brainerd Road and downtown.

Ice cream and desserts. Nine scoop shops and dessert stops, most near the riverfront and the Walnut Street Bridge.

Bakeries. Seven shops: a Southside bread bakery, a Mexican panaderia, three Bread Basket stores and two doughnut shops.

Patios and outdoor dining. Eighteen places whose own sites mention a patio, rooftop, beer garden or outdoor seating, with notes on which welcome dogs.

More food and drink

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find a list of restaurants in Chattanooga?

Chattanooga Journal keeps alphabetical lists by category: wings, pizza, Mexican and Tex-Mex, barbecue, breakfast and coffee, burgers, sushi and Asian, ice cream and desserts, bakeries, and patios and outdoor dining. Each gives the address, published hours and phone for every place.

How are these Chattanooga restaurant lists made?

The places come from OpenStreetMap records inside Chattanooga’s city limits, checked against each restaurant’s own website and the U.S. Census Bureau’s city-limits map. The lists are alphabetical, not rankings, and nobody pays to be on them.

How often are the lists updated?

Every three months. The last check was Oct. 18, 2026.

Where can I check a Chattanooga restaurant’s health inspection score?

Our restaurant inspections page explains how to look up Hamilton County inspection scores.