SpringHill Suites Knoxville at Turkey Creek

Phone: 865-966-8888
Address: 10955 Turkey Drive Knoxville, Tennessee 37934
Group Name: GRIDSMART Technologies Inc.

INTERSECT attendees can reserve a discounted room rate at Spring Hill Suites at Turkey Creek by clicking on the link below. Spring Hills Suites will also participate in helping provide a better today for some very deserving children. Book at the special INTERSECT rate and Spring Hill Suites will give you a chance to make a direct donation to Lonsdale.

Holiday Inn Knoxville West At Cedar Bluff

Phone: 865-693-1011
Address: 9134 Executive Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37923
Group Name: GRIDSMART Technologies Inc.

We are excited to announce that we have partnered again this year with Holiday Inn Knoxville West and discounted room rates are available through this link. In addition to providing exceptional service, great rooms, and a fantastic location, Holiday Inn is offering a free shuttle service between the hotel and the conference. The Holiday Inn will generously donate $10 per room per night to the GIVESMART Foundation as it strives to build a playground for the Children of Lonsdale Elementary School. Learn more about GIVEMSART and Lonsdale.

Best Breakfast: The Plaid Apron

Phone: (865) 247-4640
Address: 1210 Kenesaw Ave, Knoxville, TN

Tucked in the center of Sequoya Hills, this hidden gem is not to be missed. The modern artworks of farm animals and mason jar pendants adorning their walls is pleasing to the eye, but it is their farm-to-table menu that has patrons coming back all the time. It is no wonder the Plaid Apron is a popular breakfast and brunch spot. Savor their dishes like Sausage Omelets, Eggs Benedict, Smoked Beef, Chicken Thighs, Rib Tips, and Cheesy Grits. Though their fare is seasonal due to the availability of the ingredients in the market, you can be assured of delicious food anytime you head there.

Best Dinner: J.C. Holdway

Phone: (865) 312.9050
Address: 501 Union Avenue, Knoxville, TN

Chef Joseph Lenn is back in the kitchen after spending 10 years as one of five executive chefs at Tennessee’s fine-dining destination Blackberry Farm — where he became the first person in Tennessee to win the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southeast. Lenn left Blackberry Farm last year to open his own place: J.C. Holdway. The menu also has some Southern favorites like hushpuppies, pimento cheese, and chicken wings topped with Alabama white sauce. Lenn describes the cuisine as “southeastern regional,” so a soy sauce made in Kentucky or beautiful lamb from Virginia is just as relevant as produce from the big farmer’s market that takes place just a block away. THIS IS A MUST IF YOU ARE A LOVER OF FOOD.

**Reservations highly recommended.

Best Burger: Copper Cellar

Phone: (865) 673-3411
Address:1807 Cumberland Ave, Knoxville, TN

This place has the best burger in Knoxville, but prepare yourself for lines out the door. If you are not in the mood for a burger, or are feeling more graceful, the eponymous downstairs cellar offers a more upscale dining experience: quiet, cool, dark, bartenders in crisp, white shirts who perpetually cloth-clean the glassware. Down there it does end up feeling like a haven, even if you’re only getting a Smoky Mountain Brewery beer while you wait for your table upstairs.

Best Beer Selection: Pour Taproom

Phone: (865) 337-5726
Address: 207 W Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN

Located in Jackson Terminal in the Old City, this place is a must stop for beer lovers! With over 68 different taps of craft beers, ciders, mead, and wines there is something for everyone.  No prepaying, just open a tab and you’re free to taste as little or as much as you would like.  With the most unique selection in Knoxville, you pour and pay by the ounce.

Best Wine Menu: Cru Bistro

Phone: (865) 544-1491
Address: 141 S Gay Street, Knoxville, TN

A kind of comfortably mod interior, the aesthetic at Cru Bistro and Wine Bar is all big shapes, solid tones, brick walls, and hardwood floors under soft lighting. The menu mainly consists of creative small plates like The Tower — layers of shrimp, lump crab, pico de gallo, avocado slices, romaine, and a casual smear of chili oil and honey-chipotle dressing. The knowledgeable staff will help you pair your dishes with flights, glasses, or bottles from their selection of over 70 wines available by the glass.

Best History Walking Tour: Cradle of Country Music

Phone: (865) 523-7263
Address: 301 S Gay St, Knoxville, TN

This one-hour tour, provided by Visit Knoxville, takes visitors through parts of downtown, where some of country music’s greatest got their starts. The walking tour has 19 stops, including WIVK, where Dolly Parton had her radio broadcast debut at age 7, and the former location of Bell Sales Co. in Market Square, where Elvis Presley’s “That’s All Right, Mama” played over the airwaves. An RCA scout was in Knoxville at the time, purchased the demo and ultimately helped Elvis get his contract with RCA Records, which bought it from Sun Studios in Memphis, TN.

Best View: World’s Fair Sunsphere

Phone: (865) 363-9538
Address: 810 Clinch Ave, Knoxville, TN

One of the remaining structures from the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville is a can’t-miss: the golden dome of the Sunsphere. Although interesting to look at, the Sunsphere which includes an observation deck, is splashed with factoids on the World’s Fair and Knoxville. Learn interesting tidbits about “Knox”; for instance, did you know that the world’s largest Rubik’s Cube is located at the Knoxville Convention and Exhibition Center?