Bailey and Cato Restaurant Menu and Price List

Bailey and Cato is the kind of Nashville soul food restaurant that makes the menu feel like a kitchen calendar. The food changes by the day, the plates come with comfort built in, and the smell of smoked meat, fried chicken, greens, gravy, and cornbread can make lunch feel like Sunday even when it is the middle of the week. This is not a glossy chain menu with a hundred tiny choices. It is Southern cooking with a steady hand, built around meat plates, vegetable plates, barbecue ribs, fried fish, chicken and dressing, desserts, and sweet tea.

Bailey and Cato, often listed as Bailey & Cato’s, is located at 1130 Gallatin Pike South in Madison, Tennessee, near Nashville. Menu prices can shift between dine-in, pickup, delivery apps, daily specials, and older posted menus. The prices below use current public ordering listings as a practical guide, with some older menu notes included where they help explain why guests may see different totals. For the cleanest bill, call the restaurant or check the live ordering page before placing a large order.

Best High-End Picks After the First Look

The top premium order at Bailey and Cato is the full slab of barbecue ribs, often listed around $38.50 on current public ordering menus. This is the heavy table order. It is built for people who want smoke, sauce, meat, and cornbread rather than a light lunch. The half slab short bone order at about $23.10 and half slab long bone order at about $22.00 are also high-end picks, but the full slab is the main splurge.

For a big takeout order, barbecue shoulder by the pound is another strong pick. A half pound is often listed around $16.50, while a full pound can land near $27.50. Whole order chicken at about $33.00 and whole pies at about $22.00 also belong in the premium group. For single plates, barbecue ribs plates and beef tips with gravy plates sit near the upper end, with prices often around $18.15 to $18.70 for ribs and around $15.95 for beef tips.

Bailey and Cato Main Plate Prices

The plate section is the heart of Bailey and Cato. Many plates include a meat, sides, and cornbread, though the exact setup can change by day and ordering channel. This is where fried chicken, smoked chicken, catfish, whiting, meat loaf, beef tips, barbecue shoulder, and chicken and dressing take center stage.

The fried chicken plate is the classic choice for a first visit. It is simple, familiar, and made for sides like greens, beans, yams, mac and cheese, or dressing when those are available. Smoked chicken is a good order for someone who wants barbecue flavor without ribs. Fried catfish gives the meal a crisp seafood turn, while beef tips with gravy bring a darker, richer plate that feels made for rice or mashed potatoes.

Daily Menu Style at Bailey and Cato

Bailey and Cato works like many Southern meat-and-three spots. Some dishes appear on certain days, and online ordering sections may list Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday groups. That daily rhythm is part of the draw. One day may lean toward fried chicken and dressing. Another may bring ribs, smoked chicken, catfish, or meat loaf.

The a la carte meat orders are useful when you already have sides at home or when you want to build a larger family meal. Fried chicken, smoked chicken, and chicken and dressing at about $11.00 are steady mid-price picks. Chicken tenders at about $8.55 are the easier, lower-cost option. Beef tips cost more, but they are a strong pick for gravy lovers.

Barbecue Ribs and Shoulder Prices

Barbecue is one of the strongest parts of the Bailey and Cato menu. The ribs are the kind of item people talk about after the plate is gone. They sit higher in price than chicken, but they also bring smoke, sauce, and a heavier bite. The menu may list long bone, short bone, full slab, rib sandwich, shoulder plate, and shoulder by the pound.

The rib sandwich is a good way to taste the barbecue without buying a slab. The rib plate is better when you want sides included. The half slabs are strong for two people or one big appetite. The full slab is the main show, the kind of order that takes up space in the bag and on the table.

Sandwich Prices

Older local menu listings show simple sandwich prices much lower than current delivery menus. That is common for long-running restaurants because printed or older third-party menus can stay online for years. Current online ordering may list a hamburger around $8.80 and a barbecue rib sandwich around $15.40, while older pages list burgers and fish sandwiches in the $4.25 to $5.50 range. Treat the newer ordering prices as the better planning guide.

The hamburger is the simple lunch order. The fish sandwiches are useful when you want seafood without a plate. The shoulder sandwich gives a taste of barbecue at a smaller size than a pound order. The rib sandwich costs more, but it gives the deepest barbecue flavor among the sandwich choices.

Vegetable Plate Prices

Vegetable plates are a key part of Southern cafeteria-style dining. Bailey and Cato lists two-vegetable, three-vegetable, and four-vegetable plates on some Sunday menus. These are good choices for guests who want sides as the meal, or for anyone who wants a lower-cost plate without meat.

The two-vegetable plate is the lowest-cost plate meal in many listings. The four-vegetable plate is better when you want a full lunch built from sides. With the right mix, a vegetable plate can feel like a quilt of Southern flavor: greens in one corner, beans in another, corn or yams somewhere warm, and cornbread holding it all together.

Side Order Prices

Side orders at Bailey and Cato are small but useful. They help round out a sandwich, add more food to a meat order, or build a takeout meal at home. Some sides are listed by small, medium, and pint sizes. Others are quick add-ons like fries, chips, cornbread, tomato and onion, sauce, and gravy.

Extra cornbread is one of the best small add-ons on the menu. It costs little and helps soak up sauce, gravy, and pot liquor from greens. A pint of gravy is the move for a family meal at home. French fries are the easy side for sandwiches, while vegetable pints are better for takeout dinners.

Sauce and Small Extra Prices

Sauces and small extras are easy to miss, but they can matter when the order is going home. Hot sauce, ranch, extra barbecue sauce, gravy, cranberry sauce, and cornbread all have small prices on online menus.

Hot sauce is the cheapest add-on. Extra barbecue sauce is smart with ribs or shoulder. Gravy is the add-on to grab when ordering chicken and dressing, meat loaf, beef tips, or fried chicken. Nobody wants a dry soul food plate in a takeout box.

Kids Plate Prices

Kids plates at Bailey and Cato are smaller versions of the main plates. They work well for children and lighter eaters. Several kids plates show up on Sunday online listings, with prices often landing around $9.90 to $12.10.

The kids tender plate and kids chicken and dressing plate are safe picks for younger guests. Kids ribs and kids beef tips cost more because the meat is heavier. For families, the kids menu helps keep the table affordable while still giving children a real plate, not just a snack.

Large Order Prices

Large orders are where Bailey and Cato becomes a takeout meal for the whole house. These items are good for Sunday dinner, church groups, office meals, family gatherings, and game-day spreads. Ribs, chicken, shoulder, vegetable pints, pies, and gravy all fit this section.

The full slab ribs and whole chicken are the best high-volume meat orders. A pint of vegetables and a pint of gravy make the order feel like a real dinner at home. Whole pies add the final note, the sweet end of the song after a table full of meat and sides.

Dessert Prices

Dessert is simple at Bailey and Cato. Cakes, pies, cobbler, pudding, whole pies, and whole cake show up on public menus. The single-serve desserts are low enough to add to a plate, while whole desserts are made for sharing.

A slice of cake or pie is the best low-cost dessert. Cobbler or pudding costs a little more, but it feels closer to a full Southern finish. Whole pies are strong for family meals. Whole Heath Cake at about $55.00 is a premium dessert order, best for a crowd or a special table.

Drink Prices

The drink list on public ordering menus includes bottled soda, bottled sweet tea, water, sports drinks, and fruit juice. Drinks are simple, but they matter with fried chicken, barbecue, and salty sides.

Bottled water is the cheapest drink. Sweet tea is the natural match for a soul food plate. Gatorade and fruit juice cost more, but they work for takeout orders when someone wants a colder, sweeter drink.

Best Value Orders at Bailey and Cato

The best value for a full plate is usually fried chicken, smoked chicken, chicken and dressing, or fried catfish, since many listings place them near $13.75 to $14.30. These plates give enough food for lunch or dinner and fit the restaurant’s main style. Fried whiting at about $12.65 is a good lower-cost fish plate.

The two-vegetable plate at about $8.55 is the best lower-cost plate for guests who want sides instead of meat. Chicken tenders at about $8.55 are another good low-price pick when ordered a la carte. For barbecue, the rib sandwich at about $15.40 gives a taste of the smokehouse side without reaching the half slab or full slab price.

For groups, the whole chicken, full slab ribs, shoulder by the pound, vegetable pints, pint of gravy, and whole pies are the strongest orders. They cost more upfront but work better when several people are eating. A full slab of ribs, a pint of vegetables, extra cornbread, and a pie can turn takeout into a full table.

Why Prices May Look Different Online

Bailey and Cato has older menu listings online with prices that are much lower than recent ordering pages. For example, older pages list hamburgers around $4.25 and catfish sandwiches around $5.50. Recent delivery-style menus show higher pricing, with items like hamburger near $8.80, rib sandwich near $15.40, and full slab ribs near $38.50. That gap can happen when old menu scans remain online after food costs, labor costs, and app fees have moved up.

Delivery apps can also show higher prices than in-store pickup. Daily menus may also change, which means one dish may be available on Thursday but not on Sunday. Before driving across town for a certain plate, check the live menu or call the restaurant. Soul food menus can move with the day, and Bailey and Cato is no exception.

Final Thoughts on Bailey and Cato Menu Prices

Bailey and Cato offers a Southern menu built around daily plates, barbecue, fried chicken, smoked chicken, fish, vegetables, gravy, cornbread, desserts, and sweet drinks. Most single plates sit around $11.55 to $18.70, depending on meat and day. Vegetable plates can start around $8.55. Kids plates often sit around $9.90 to $12.10. Large barbecue orders move higher, with half slabs around $22.00 to $23.10 and full slab ribs around $38.50.

The best first order is fried chicken or smoked chicken with sides. The best fish order is fried catfish when available. The best barbecue pick for one person is the rib sandwich or rib plate. The best group order is full slab ribs, whole chicken, shoulder by the pound, vegetable pints, and whole pie. Bailey and Cato’s menu works because it feels rooted, warm, and direct. It is food that lands on the plate with the weight of a good story and the smell of a kitchen that knows what it is doing.