House of Cards

Unfortunate. Really excited to try but there were delays in getting our drinks and food. Food came out roughly an hour after ordering and simply was not good. Hate to leave these types of posts but for the money, much better options.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 1

We arrived on a Saturday evening and were greeted by a kind staff member who explained the photo rules. My partner wore a button down but was still given a suit jacket, even though plenty of men were dressed the same. The only real downside was the older staffer at check in. He was extremely rude to his own team, snatching tickets and speaking to them harshly, which was uncomfortable to watch. A staff member gave us a quick tour and mentioned the last show was around 11:30. The card tables with the magicians were packed, so the best time to try to see a trick up close is while you are waiting for your food. We skipped appetizers but ordered cocktails, and they were excellent. The Angels Whisper was delicious and the bartender even made me a custom drink and shared the recipe, which was a nice touch. Our waiter was friendly, attentive, and surprised us with a complimentary chocolate torte for my honey's birthday. Dinner was the highlight. The tomahawk pork chop was incredibly tender, juicy, and packed with flavor. My filet mignon with butter and bone marrow was perfectly cooked medium rare and melted in my mouth. We shared the mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, and broccolini. Everything was great, though the broccolini could have used a char. The magic show was great and the outdoor patio, especially with the waterfall wall, was a nice way to end the night. The food and cocktails were excellent and the overall experience was strong, aside from the one staff member who was extremely rude.

Great concept, except we waited for over an hour to eat as they had booked a large party before us

Great show!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Would definitely recommend this place! The food was great! We both got steaks and shared sides (garlic mashed potatoes, fingerlings, and the Mac and cheese). I want to shout out the bartender as she made our visit even more special! I wish I could remember her name! She had excellent drink recommendations and always made sure my glass was full. She even gave my husband a special birthday dessert. The magicians are amazing! I love the ambiance of this place! Will visit again when in Nashville!

If you’re looking for a very interesting and unique dining experience, do not miss this place. Highly recommend making reservations. When you arrive, you are taken to a lower level beautifully designed space. You come down to a cave restaurant that serves American based fare. The entire appeal is the magical part of the experience. Artwork is vintage from multiple areas of magic shows. Throughout the dinner there is time to interact with magicians who’s craft is by far the best that I have been exposed to. There’s also a show that is included if you buy dinner. The magic show was in my opinion, too short, however, entertaining. The drink options at the bar to include a nice variety of whiskeys from things that we would never be able to find at a regular restaurant. Highly recommend you visit this place and to expect to spend several hours doing so.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

A good meal and a fantastic scene. PRO TIPS BELOW.

Convenient location near parking garage with validation, cool speakeasy entrance, warm/dim but nice lighting, tons of interesting artifacts on display. Our steaks and sides were very good though nothing life-changing -- admittedly there's only so many variations on filet mignon, so no complaints. What did make it a night to remember was the close-up magic and show. Highly recommended for those features and the food was good meanwhile. Had no cocktails, can't comment there. Never seen close-up magic before, much less talked shop with a couple magicians between performances. Extremely cool and memorable.

But pro tips:

1) Downtown Nashville can be a zoo. Enter your intended parking garage rather than the restaurant address in your GPS, otherwise you may take a long and unnecessary circle through the craziest place in middle TN if you accidentally pass the garage.

2) Watch the sports schedule. We missed our garage entrance (thus tip 1 in the process) and took 20 minutes to make another pass. In that time we became late for our reservation and the road we had just driven through was now blocked by police, preparing to direct traffic for a big sports event to end. So we had to take a different garage with no validation and paid an extra $50. Learn from my mistake.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Had a wonderful time at HOC! The service from Brandon was very knowledgable and attentive of all our needs. . The food was amazing! We had the Pork Chop (Best ever had) and Sea Bass were delicious!!! The magic show and magicians were great! We’ve been for the Sunday Brunch a couple of times but the dinner beats all!!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Had heard great things about other peoples' experiences and booked it as a highlight for our trip to Nashville. They require formal attire and I knew it would be expensive, but I was expecting impeccable service and amazing magic acts, which was not the case for either. There were two magicians at stations in the restaurant and they did identical card tricks. The magic “show” was underwhelming for the hype and price. Service was fine, but nothing exceptional for a formal dining experience.

Top notch experience from the location to the food. From the history to the execution. Excellent. I would definitely recommend everyone give it a try. There's no experience around like the one you will receive at House of Cards.

Terrible Carter Theater show! We've frequented House of Cards multiple times, for Brunch and evening shows and have always had a fantastic experience. Yesterday, 11/8/25 we took our grandson to celebrate his birthday. As usual the service, cuisine, atmosphere, and side room magic were outstanding. It's unfortunate we can't say the same about the main show in the theater. The best way I can describe this disaster is this...we've seen better magic on a box of Lucky Charms. The “magician” did more talking and story telling than actual magic, and the magic he performed was at best on the level just below Amateur. It was so bad, our 7 yr old magic enthusiast grand son was not only underwhelmed, but didn't even want to meet the performer who clearly needs to stick with his day job. To be fair, based on all the other magicians we've seen at The House of Cards, I'm confident this was a “one-off”.

Definitely a must! Everything was awesome; the atmosphere was amazing. It feels like you're in the early 1900s with a fancy speakeasy feel. The magic shows alone were worth the money. If you're looking for a unique, memorable experience, I highly recommend it!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Wow wow wow. If you’re thinking about it, just do it!
The atmosphere is amazing, staff is so good wonderful, and the magic is out of this world!! We are so glad we finally came to House of Cards. What a fantastic experience. We cannot wait to come back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Great experience. If you have something to celebrate, this is a good place to do it. Food is tasty. The magic show was exciting. The service was great, and the atmosphere is nice. Had the Australian strip and my wife had the elk and both were very good. Celebrated our wedding anniversary here.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

This place is ridiculously expensive and there are SO many rules! Also our service was very poor. Our server stayed down at one of the end of the table of 8 the entire time all while explaining a very complicated menu. Then after originally drinks had been consumed, he came back to the one end of the table and asked who wanted another round but never even glanced down at the other end of the table to ask about our orders. I have much better service at regular chain restaurants than this!!!! THEN the rack on a %38 tip at the end! Who do they think they are?!?!?

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 1