I recently had an excellent session at the Silver Dollar. On a nice day, with the large, roll-up doors open at both ends of the space, it's an especially great place to spend time. Bourbon selection is extensive, food is very good and prices are reasonable across the board. Personally, I loved the country vinyl spinning throughout our visit, too.

It may or may not be worth noting that both 610 Magnolia and Milkwood are both closed on Mondays.

The venerable and once great bar at the Seelbach Hotel (now a Hilton) was a major drag. It felt like a place time had forgotten. Shelves on the back bar were half-empty and there wasn't much going on there. I'd avoid it. The bar at the 21C, Proof on Main, had a lot more going on bourbon-wise. Not cheap, though.

In Bardstown, you absolutely must eat at The Harrison Smith House, which is helmed by Newman Miller (aka LTHer bourbon). It's open (for dinner only) Wednesday through Saturday (and they also do carry-out bbq on Sunday mornings). We had a spectacular meal there earlier this month. I cannot recommend it highly enough. I have a detailed, dedicated post about it coming very soon.

Enjoy!

=R=

Harrison Smith House
103 E Stephen Foster Ave
Bardstown, KY 40004
(502) 233-9993

Silver Dollar
1761 Frankfort Ave
Louisville, KY 40206
(502) 259-9540

Proof On Main
702 W Main St
Louisville, KY 40202
(502) 217-6360

Maybe more of you caught Esquire TV's crossover episodes about Louisville, KY. of "Brew Dogs" & "Best Bars In America" this past Wednesday.
Brew Dogs gave the #1 spot on its roster of breweries to visit to Country Boy Brwg. (of Lexington, not Louisville) I have known one of the principals of Country Boy since 2008.

We had a really nice vacation visiting Kentucky in late April. Enjoyed great meals and visiting bourbon distilleries, racing activities, sight seeing, and driving thru the pretty countryside visiting distilleries and horse farms.

Since we prefer to support smaller family farms, it was great to see so many farm to table restaurants in Kentucky. Our only disappointment was not being able to visit more of the restaurants on our list.

After hearing so much about chef Edward Lee, we made reservations at both restaurants, 610 Magnolia and Milkwood.

The casual atmosphere (the lower level of the Actor’s Theater building) was very conductive to folks relaxing and having fun, lots of laughter and animated conversations. The fine cocktails may contribute to that, particularly the Toy Tiger, Southern Expansion, Evil vs. Good, and the Dead Mule.

We enjoyed the octopus bacon, pear with melted brie salad, and Vietnamese lamb sausage before our mains. The braised oxtail with black beans, cilantro spaetzle, horshrashish and hominy was a fabulous dish. Also liked the kingklip with a red curry, roasted fingerlings and cauliflower with a kalbi butter. The sorghum & grits ice cream with coconut cake, coffee syrup, croissant, and berries with good coffee was a terrific end to a fine meal.

In contrast to Milkwood, the atmosphere was fine dining at 610 Magnolia. The renovated home with a modern aesthetic in Old Louisville was a nice backdrop for the menu.

Starters were a wonderful foie gras terrine served with toasted brioche, blueberry gelee, mache, with Minus 8 vinegar and scallop crudo, crawfish and uni doughnut, uni ice, with a Creole sauce. Fabulous bread service from Blue Dog bakery. We have been trying to limit gluten intake, but the breads were so good it was worth it.

Fish courses were kingklip with 5 bean salad, warm dashi, and a fresh herb salad with basil oil and a killer dish of walleye cornmeal Johnny Cake, creamed spinach with kim chi, citrus fluid gel, miso pudding and kim chi butter.

Mains were lamb loin with a spring vegetable couscous, cucumber-mint relish, red pepper curry puree, Thai basil lamb jus and beef brisket & squab with fava bean grits, a ‘tasting of beets’, strawberry Bar-B-Q sauce, strawberry-rhubarb relish, shallot rings and cole slaw.

For dessert, a lemon pound cake, with raspberry, lavender, hazelnut, and white chocolate ice cream and a chocolate mousse with cocoa nib coulis, chocolate stones, dulce de leche, and red beet ice cream.

If I lived in Louisville, we would frequent Milkwood regularly and 610 Magnolia would be a special occasion treat. Two different meals, but I enjoyed the dinner at Milkwood almost as much for half the price.

We really enjoyed Garage Bar on our first evening in Louisville. Beautiful evening with the overhead garage doors open and a fun lively crowd of varying ages. Oysters, delicious country ham’s, and very good Neapolitan pizzas. Great and reasonable priced bourbon selection and inventive cocktails.

Silver Dollar was good, but I wanted to like it more. Felt the atmosphere and service lacked warmth, the dinner menu was limited and they were out of a few items on our visit, and the bourbons were a bit pricier that other spots.

Had a good and very inexpensive dinner at Vietnam Kitchen, when some of our other choices were closed. Only complaint was I wish the powers that be would allow BYOB. Would have loved some good wine with the dinner.

We loved our first lunch at El Taco Lunchador, we had to stop a second time. We have great Mexican in Chicago and this would hold it’s own for casual lunches.

Changed our mind about dinner at Proof on Main, but really enjoyed going to the lounge and wandering around the fun museum with drinks. I found some good bourbon values on hard to get bottles.

Had nice lunches at Wallace Station and it’s sister restaurant Windy Corner after bourbon and horse farm tours. Would recommend wend looking for good food out in the countryside. And they serve beer for those of us on vacation…

First night in Lexington was getting late for dinner and it was a long day of a tour at Claiborne Farms and a full day of races at Keeneland, so we stopped at Alfalfa, which was close to our hotel. Another place I wanted to like more, the food sounded better than it tasted. Again, wished BYOB was legal after seeing the brief wine list.

Another dinner was at the Village Idiot. Decent bourbon values. Great Brussels sprouts, OK shrimp and grits (very heavy on the grits and sauce), but the asparagus and strawberry salad barely had any of either, and the pulled pork mac & cheese was so sweet, it was inedible.

We had a couple of nice afternoon stops in Lexington, first at County Club for drinks and hand cut fries on their lovely patio on a perfect afternoon. This was on my list for dinner, but the dinner options were limited, which resulted in the Village Idiot audible based on some local recommendations. Awesome atmosphere, would gladly return for drinks. We also enjoyed visiting West Sixth Brewery after enjoying their beer at El Taco Lunchador.

Had a quick lunch at Tortilleria y Taqueria Ramirez. Didn’t stand out for a Chicagoan, good, but wouldn’t go out of my way.


610 Magnolia
610 W. Magnolis St, Louisville, KY 502.636.0783

Milkwood
Actor’s Theater, 316 West Main, Louisville, KY 40202

Garage Bar
700 E Market St, Louisville, KY, 502.749.7100

Silver Dollar
1761 Frankfort Ave, Louisville, KY 40206, 502.259.9540

El Taco Luchador
938 Baxter Ave, Louisville, KY 40204, 502.583.0440

Vietnam Kitchen
5339 Mitscher Avenue, Louisville, KY 40214, 502.363.7535

Proof on Main
702 West Main Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502.217.6360

Wallace Station
3854 Old Frankfort Pike, Versailles, KY 40383, 859.846.5161

Windy Corner
4595 Bryan Station Rd, Lexington, KY 40516

County Club
555 Jefferson St., Lexington, KY 40508, 859.389.6555

Tortilleria y Taqueria Ramirez
1425 Alexandria Dr., Lexington, KY, 859.455.9237

The Village Idiot
307 W Short Street, Lexington KY, 859.252.0099

Alfalfa
141 East Main Street, Lexington, KY, 40507, 859.253.0014

West Sixth Brewing
501 W. 6th Street, Lexington, KY 40508, 859.705.0915

And down the stretch they come! Getting close to the end for me but I have a few spots in Louisville worth sharing. Actually this trio is probably as good of a bunch as you'll find. Was down there last January picking up some neon for Pearl's Southern Comfort and at this point I'm probably more familiar with the food scene there than most locals. Ramen at Milkwood was the best bowl of ramen from a non-specific ramen shop I've come across. Love that spot, and a few others I doc'd upthread but today we check out the lesser known. Hoping to inspire some future posts across the board. Anyone?
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Anchorage Cafe

You're not going to find lots of options for great biscuits in Louisville. They're just not found this far north, for the good ones you need to travel a little further south. However there is one place you can find what I consider to be a wonderful sandwich and a fluffy biscuit baked with chives is the bread. Anchorage Cafe is located in a suburb but Louisville is so small it's not far at all. The fillings in this beauty below are country ham and white American cheese. As good as it looks.


Country Ham and Cheese Biscuit
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Morris' Liquors & Deli

This place is so under the radar I'm not even sure what it's called. Some online mentions call it Morris' Liquors & Deli while others call it Karem Deeb Liquors Delicatessen. There's little info online but those in-the-know know that this place puts out a fantastic country ham sandwich and is also a good spot to check for that bottle of bourbon you cant find anywhere else. Lets take a look.


Bourbon & Ham

Cool spot. Definitely a locals place. I actually came here twice last trip and got a signature ham sandwich each time and a bottle of bourbon I hadn't heard of before. The guy that owns the place is very knowledgeable on the subject. The salty country ham pairs great with the recipe for the type of sandwiches your mom used to make you for school. No need for the fancy stuff with this one.


Country Ham Sandwich
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Shirley Mae's Cafe

"Shirley Mae’s Café cuts no corners. Shirley Mae and Chef Theresa take an enormous amount of pride in the painstaking process of prepping and cooking fresh food every day they open their doors to their eager customers. The marriage of Shirley Mae’s Café’s nostalgic atmosphere with its savory and historically-authentic dishes… straight out of the South…resonates with people who like its down-home-feel and its special one-of-a-kind cuisine…a cuisine that most folk don’t have the time or know-how to prepare for themselves or their families at home. Shirley Mae’s mission is to enable her customers to take Shirley Mae’s Café home with them in any quantity, as well as, dine-in."


I inquired about the neon but was told to come back in ten years when she's nearing retirement. haha.

Somehow this place totally went under my radar on my previous trips in. Otherwise I would've been there the first time I went to Louisville. On the weekend I visited it would be Martin Luther King Day and this place typifies the dream he wanted all to be able to achieve. It also happened to be Muhammad Ali's birthday and seeing as how he's from Louisville this spot was the perfect place to honor both men.


a peek inside

The building itself has some rich history as it dates back to 1880. The community where it rests is the oldest African-American living area in Louisville and dating back to 1946 when it housed the J & H Food Bar it's been one of the premiere bars/restaurants for the city's minorities. Service was extra friendly and the old school atmosphere was still there. Then there's the food. Skillet Fried chicken wings are all the rave and the hot water cornbread that comes with it was the best piece of cornbread I've ever had. I don't want it any other way anymore. This is what Roadfood is all about.


Skillet Fried Chicken and Hot Water Corn Bread
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The Anchorage Cafe
11505 Park Rd
Anchorage, KY 40223
(502) 708-1880

Morris' Liquors and Delicatessen
2228 Taylorsville Rd
Louisville, KY 40205
(502) 458-1668

Shirley Mae's Cafe
802 S Clay St
Louisville, KY 40203
(502) 589-5295

Will be in Louisville next week from the 1st to the 5th--I'll be there for, of course, another baseball tournament, so I won't have total control over food decisions and probably less on beverage, though I've promised myself a bourbon tour if I have to hire a driver and go by myself. But I will, definitely, post on anything remotely worthy (or notably avoid-worthy).

Thanks for the intel above--that biscuit sandwich looks divine!!!

Any updates? I plan to be in this area in about two weeks.

shorty wrote:Any updates? I plan to be in this area in about two weeks.

In the past two summers I've eaten at the Butchertown Grocery (chef-driven take on some Southern classics, great local drink program) and had a takeout picnic from Yummy Pollo (Peruvian rotisserie chicken) - haven't checked upthread to see if they're there, but both are recommendable, as of course is the Slugger Museum, where I enjoy visiting #10's bat on display and taking youth and/or seconds (cosmetic issues) bats away from the shop.

https://butchertowngrocery.com
http://yummypollo.com

shorty wrote:Any updates? I plan to be in this area in about two weeks.

Made a trek there last year and here were a few highlights:

Royals hot chicken: they do Nashville hot chicken but only boneless renditions. Was initially disappointed after learning that, but the chicken was pretty damn good.

610 magnolia: this was the one place I really wanted to try and it was what I expected from a high end dining spot.

Con huevos: stopped in for breakfast one morning and the chilaquiles were fantastic. My favorite meal of the trip.

A few other non dining recommendations.

Meta - cocktail bar downtown. If you get stuck being around 4th street live, take that couple block detour and come here instead.

Sunergos coffee - not a coffee expert by any means, but this was one of the best coffees I've ever had. And their location on Norris st off Bardstown was a cool joint to get some coffee on a nice Saturday morning

Sergios world beers - cool beer bar with a huge selection. Believe it was over 1000. All their beers have a price label on em and all the domestics are priced at $99.