Holy GrAle

http://consuminglouisville.com/2010/12/holy-grale-now-open.php

It’s an honor to be guest posting as a fellow around-the-world eater (although I mainly just eat around Louisville and write short reviews on Yelp). Several of us from the office have been meeting out after work once or twice a month and yesterday’s expedition was to the brand new Holy Grale beer bar (behind the KFC at the Bardstown/Baxter split). While Claire had helped organize the event, she herself had conflicting plans and couldn’t join us.

Before walking into the bar, I had already glanced at [Consuming Louisville’s photos and overview] on their blog—the two photos of the bar and entrance basically cover the entire seating area. The photos, and of course the name of the establishment itself, suggest the atmosphere of a medieval place of worship. Sure enough, even as you approach the entrance, the shell of a former church embodies this ancient character. It wasn’t dark enough yet when we were there, but I can even imagine faux candelabras lighting the interior. I did notice one votive candle. The music was also very quiet—they may have been playing organ music for all I could tell.

I was expecting a larger seating area when I walked in, but at a glance, it looked like they had room for less than 50 people to sit. By 5:15, when most of us had arrived, the seats were almost full already. We lucked out when four bar seats opened up all at once. There are no waiters there, so it worked out perfectly as we could sit, drink and order our meals right at the bar. I should use “meals” in the lighter sense of the word as they technically only serve appetizers (Consuming Louisville also lists their menu). Most Americans wouldn’t be satisfied with the portion size if they wanted something substantial to eat on its own, but this birdlike eater was extremely pleased with the locally-made brat on pretzel bread. As Michael (one of the members of our motley crew who tried a taco dish) mentioned, they made up in flavor what they lacked in quantity.

The beer itself also made up for the lack in quantity of food. I don’t think they offer anything by the bottle, but they keep their rotating list of 20 generally-rare selections on a prominent board behind the bar. I like that they sort it by AVB. Most were served in 12-oz glasses around $5 to $8. There were pint glasses on the top shelf, but one of the bartenders did mention that many of the glasses were only for display. They don’t offer a flight, but I did try a third beer in a $3 sample glass (I picked it mainly because it had a long and interesting name that I forget now). I’m sure I’ve already demonstrated that I’m not an aficionado, but I always enjoy trying darker beers, like the barley wine they offered and my local favorite KY Bourbon Barrel Ale—I even got Jacob to try the latter and he declared that it was the best beer he’d ever tasted.

The bartenders there are very friendly, although I failed to get their names. Our main help came from the man I’ll refer to as Beard (his wasn’t out-of-control Grizzly, but he was definitely a Louisville Beard cardholder). He was constantly busy, but we never had to wait more than a minute or two to get our orders in. Michael got shafted a couple times, though—Beard didn’t seem to realize that Michael existed most of the evening. Hannah seems to think maybe it was because Beard thought Michael was her date and was a little jealous and bitter about it. She’s quite a catch.

The Holy Grale is a great place to meet up with a couple of friends and try new beers. It’s like Nach Bar transplanted to the Highlands (minus the band, jukebox, and patio) but with food and a better ambiance.

- J.J. (of http://zepfanman.com/) 

Ramsi’s Café on the World

http://www.ramsiscafe.com/

This is a stellar restaurant nestled in the heart of the highlands supporting a range of clientele (from late night goers drinking the P.B.R. on tap and eating dessert to after-church brunchers enjoying a decadent buffet on Sunday mornings). The mowhawk-haired walk by as the mowhawk-hatted sit inside enjoying seviche, fish tacos, or lamb shanks.

The menu is endless and offers many items from all over the world. There are several asian dishes that include both Thai and Indian fare. There is traditional American continental cuisine that is outstanding (think the biggest ribs you’ve ever seen and excellent salads that are cheap and fresh and unique).

This past Sunday I went there to get their Sunday brunch, which I’ve had twice. For 14 dollars you get a breakfast bar of croissants, Indian naan, pita, French toast made on sourdough with cinnamon, pancakes, fresh fruit galore, grits and oatmeal. The dinner buffet includes the vegan queso and regular queso that scrumptiously accompanies the CuBean burrito from the dinner menu. The homemade tortilla chips are to die for as well. The tortellini from the evening as well as the gorgonzola chicken round out the buffet offerings as well. The bbq ribs and jerk chicken is present too. The spinach salad and mixed greek salad is also there. It’s tough to pass up the queso, for me at least, on my many rounds through the buffet.

The buffet also includes a dessert bar, omelet bar and coffee and orange juice in its price. These items are all difficult to consume alongside the gorging that you would have just endured from the rest of the place. I approached the dessert table on my “round two” to the buffet this weekend, saying that I don’t think I could stomach any dessert. A larger woman serving herself cheesecake said, “oh trust me, honey. You will.” And I did find room for mousse and cheesecake in the hours that we spent chatting and indulging at Ramsi’s.

The décor is interesting. There are four dining areas. An outside only area that isn’t open in the winter, a plastic enclosed heated outdoor area that is offered in the winter, a large secondary room that is a lightly lit, and then a smaller main room that I am used to eating in from my childhood. We used to go there for the burrito, which is only a mass of black beans and queso and their goat-cheese dip. This room has a wonderful bar to the right and is decorated to be somewhat like the inside of a 17^th century sugar cane plantation in the West Indies.

I would not hesitate to dine at this underpriced invitation to the world’s table-of-a-restaurant any day.

Dejlah Bistro

Well it seems like I should review it… now that it’s burned down. Dejlah Bistro was located on Oeschli road at a locale that could never stay afloat. It hosted a mediteranean restaurant with horrible seafood for about the past year and before that an Indian restaurant that was not too bad. Restaurants in that locale simply cannot bring in the customers – none waft over from Havana rumba, at least.

So finally something moved in worthwhile, at least to Robin Garr’s palate. He reviewed the café, that was Persian in cuisine, in the leo and gave it a rating as good as Saffron’s (he stated that it was the Iraqi counterpart to the local Iranian restaurant). The ironic thing about the place is that the restaurant’s chef apparently fixed food for Sadaam Hussein during his regime… and some none-too-shabby potatoes, too!

I dined there one time with a coupon with my family and we had an excellent meal. We ate potatoes in two forms: chunked new potatoes that were out of this world and French fries that were extremely well seasoned and cooked as well. Our meat there was excellent - I believe we ordered some lamb and chicken, both of which were good, but the chicken was outstanding.

We were wanting to go back, had another coupon, but then someone burned the place down and grafitied something inside that was racist… some comment.

Anyway, here I am blogging about it. I guess I’m not too disappointed, seeing as other restaurants around town fill the same niche well, but man were those some good taters!

Kayrouz Café

When I was young I often entered the grand Kayrouz café located at the end of willis ave. in a huge, wooden dining room filed with ceiling fans, a secluded bar, deli, and lots of rooms for private parties. I remember well the crackers I’d eat as an appetizer before the meal, the corn pudding, the club sandwiches, the excellent creamy cole slaw, and the Shirley temples.

Today you can’t find the smells, ambience, or old cigarette machine sitting by the door of the establishment, but you can still find an establishment with the same, older crowd sitting around waiting for excellent sandwiches.

While I’ve only ever ventured to try the Nova Chicken Sandwich or caprese salad at the new location, a review entered the leo a few weeks ago of their pork sandwich, so I had to venture there to try it. It came with apples, seasoned mayo, bacon, a side, a pickle, and a large hunk of pork. There was some wonderful melted cheese on top as well. However good it was, I don’t think it competes with the Nova sandwich which beautiful melds the molten flavors of carmelized onions, bacon and chicken in your mouth with some avocado.

I recommend you indulge in a Kayrouz visit because the warmth and peace that can be found in the environment that pumps in wonderful Christmas tunes via a TV and sweet heat while you glance out the window at snow falling is priceless.

Their beers are cheap – about three dollars for a blue moon  - and wines cheap still – about five dollars a glass. They have happy hours for a dollar off drinks on Friday and Saturday nights, which means that they must really cater to their older crowd to be offering such specials those nights in particular. They offer desserts too, which I was told are good, but didn’t indulge in. They had a hot brown special and lots of seafood on the menu that I’d be intrigued to try.

This is the perfect neighborhood hangout. Replacing it these days would have to be the less personal Café Lou-lou down the block. They pack in the crowds like Kayrouz used to on a winter day!

Eiderdown

http://leoweekly.com/dining/double-down-germantown-eiderdown-and-danny-mac%E2%80%99s

(no website, so here's a link to the LEO's review article, which includes a description of several of the entrees.)

Go there... now!!! I don't care if you don't like or have never had or never thought you'd like the smell of chopped ham and sauerkraut. That's not what it's all about.

Eiderdown is the restaurant offspring (literally) of NachBar, located in Germantown. The food combines local cuisine (recipes such as country ham sandwich and foods such as local veggies) and continental cuisine (think spaetzle und sauerbrauten und der list could beginnetagainundagain). Three friends and I dined a two-course meal with beers quite enjoyably for around fifty dollars.

We enjoyed the potato soup - well didn't really eat too much of that, my friend got it and I don't think she liked it, the cornbread - better than the red star tavern's cornbread as proclaimed by us, the cornbread officianados of the universe due to its widespread use of heavy butter, chocolate stout and gouda dip - say what? but even the cheese dip hater among us enjoyed this delicacy that had a consistency of mustard and a taste that is undescribable. For our entrees we had a country ham sandwich, which was accompanied by a warm potato salad and some wonderful calming sauces on the sandwich itself which made it less salty. The bread on the sandwich was a pugliese roll cut open from blue dog bakery. The size was massive: enough to feed a small army of 22-year old men.

The chicken soldier sampler, or whatever that ess-alliterationed dish was called, was excellent - and made perfect by its accompanying grits. Oh my god. They melted in my mouth. They were full of a light, juicy meaty flavor that made them the transcendent grits I have waited all my life to eat (yum, yum, yum!). Anyway the chicken and the veggies were good too, although the veggies were seasoned a little too strong with vinegar and the chicken was a little underdone. However, I should mention that the chicken was full of flavor and not too juicy, fatty, salty, shifty, cookie, spooky, or chinese. It was just downright smart!

The atmosphere of the place is what will have us coming back... I think it is unmatched in louisville. A dark, unlit room with only table candlelit to guide your path. The ambience is similar to the whistle stop in glendale, kentucky except a lot more open and closer to home. The restaurant was packed with people, yet we could all hear one another and felt as if we were in our own little enclosed box. The restaurant has all kinds of people - mostly looking older and upper-middle class - and the waitstaff is uber-friendly (stimmt!) and surprisingly attentive.

I cannot wait to take more family and friends to eiderdown to eat some good germanish grub! Yum! I have yet to also try the newfound Louisville German staple of Erica's on Hurstborne Lane. Maybe I should stop by there for a comparison!

Aglamesis Brother's Ice Cream and Candy

http://www.aglamesis.com/
Walking around Oakley square looking for a sandwich shop, I recently pasted the window of an old time soda fountain. Mourning the loss of a treasured existence I never came to know, I secretly wanted to venture inside, knowing that I'd never get the chance to go in if I didn't now. Upon a suggestion floating in the air, I backtracked my steps and entered. Into full spoonlight of creamy existence.

Butterscotch and cookies and cream were the picks of the day and boy were they fabulous! The ice cream here is just sooo creamy it's heavenly. The amount, though, of chunks of cookies in the cookies and cream and the richness of them made that flavor in particular out-of-this world. It left me craving it for months (and months and months - two months, to be exact).

It just so happened that the Food Network was going to stop by tomorrow and do a televised show on the ice cream shop and its Cincinnati rival, and well-known midwest favorite, Graeter's Ice Cream. I've had both and have eaten ice cream from shore-to-shore as well as in sinful Europe and therefore feel qualified to say that Aglamesis wins hands-down as some of the best ice cream in the United States. Check out Food Feuds on December 2nd to see if I'm correct in my assessment of Aglamesis!

Aglamesis sports two locations: the original Norwood location on Montgomery Road and now an old-looking Oakley Square location on Madison Ave.

Bristol Bar & Grille

http://www.bristolbarandgrille.com/

During my youth upon entering a catered event and seeing a shining steel tray of the Bristol’s green chili wontons, I think I probably had a miniature foodgasm in my mouth. The Bristol is just that good. In high school there was one local hangout – which JS always makes fun of our friends for – that I would always gladly gravitate towards with friends and family. For Christmas brunches, for late-night friend get-togethers, with friends named Sarah Jessica-Parker and with just my parents I always gladly dined at the Bristol Bar and Grille. The location on Bardstown Road near Longest Ave. is my original favorite, but today I like dining at the chic downtown locale or the peaceful Hurstborne Lane location. I have even stolen a bite at the Jewish Hospital hotel location!

A true meal for me always starts off with the green chili wontons, filled with mozzarella and green chilies. The recipe for these guys, according to the courier journal’s website, packs one pound of mozzarella per batch, which is a lot, and a ton of oil. Nonetheless, this is fried goodness, a half order of which is not worth passing up. I should note that the wontons come with a side of guacamole, which isn’t really guacamole so much as it is green-colored zesty mayonnaise with some fresh parsley sprinkled on top. It’s good and worth saving (or ordering more of) to eat with the free French bread mini-loaves that come before your meal.

All meals come with a house salad with an excellent homemade blue cheese, mix dressing and bread. The salads are always fresh and include specs of cottage cheese, which I don’t even like but lovvvvve mixed with this salad dressing.

For the main course as a kiddo I always went for the freddi’s noodles (alfredo pasta). Let’s hope I never ate the free crayons! As I grew older the Caesar salad beckoned, as well as pork dijonaise with homemade skillet fries (unlike anything you’ve ever eaten), Bristol burger, pharoah’s revenge (i.e., the middle eastern grilled cheese made of havarti, spinach, and onions in a phyllo dough shell), and, of recent, Theresa’s sweet linguine. This last dish has taken my tastebuds by storm continuously for the past five years! It’s in a sweet cream sauce, that has a mysterious Cajun, beet flavor (that I love even though I don’t like beets) that makes the dish simply irrestiable. It features chicken, parmesan, and shredded beets on the top. If only I could figure out who Theresa was!

Their wine selection is great – last time there I had a sensational merlot – and the desserts are very good too and decently priced. The raspberry chocolate moose is fabulous! If you’re wanting an intimate setting, reasonable prices, a lot to eat, and dependabley good food, dine at the Bristol. For a lunch, sandwich shop version of the Bristol that infuses creative-genius into the menu, try Meridian Café.

Cafe Lou-Lou

http://www.cafeloulou.com/main/

So this is surprising. A good, local Italian restaurant that opened up in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and is N'Orleans themed... that I don't frequent. Hmmm. Goat cheese pizza, good desserts, why don't I go there more?

There is something about stuffing food that keeps me away. Indian I do. Italian's just downright addicting. When I eat Italian, for some reason, pizza does not appeal to me unless if it's extremely thin crust and has italian sausage with big fennel stuck in it. I wholeheartedly love pasta. Enough busywork trying to make sense of why I haven't been to Cafe Lou-Lou in a year!

The place is good! They use fresh, local ingredients and their prices aren't exhorbitant. They offer a warm environment with a bar section (where you're likely to bop into folks you played sports with in high school) and a loud, bright atmosphere in the family-style seating section. As far as the fare goes, I’ve only ever had the pizzas and calzones there (and maybe a salad once). I’ve eaten there twice since it’s moved (i.e., not much). It’s not a spot I think of. But after eating there last time, I completely fell in love with it.

I’ve had the pizza with goat cheese (always good) and that used to be my go-to. But last time I went with a health-conscious, ex-personal trainer friend of my parents. He got feta cheese, chicken pizza perhaps with tomatoes or spinach on top. It was either no sauce or low sauce, but the point is that it was exquisite! The feta and the chicken there on pizza is unbeatable. Something about the chicken – I think it is local and low-fat – made the chicken taste out of this world, and I’m not even a chicken person (except I find myself saying that a lot these days). Anyway, I would recommend anything there.

However, if you're looking to not be stuffed, steer clear of the calzones!! If you care to dine on simply wonderful Italian fare that comes from a - shutter - chain restaurant that I actually really enjoy (though have only been to twice), dine at California Pizza Kitchen!

Mr. Pollo

http://leoweekly.com/dining/mr-pollo-restaurant-offers-simple-and-safe-taste-peru

(Mr. Pollo is currenlty sans website, so I will defer you to the source that originally offered me a waft of Mr. Pollo)

No, you cannot find Peruvian food at my friend's, Will's, house. You may find it in Louisville - and only in one place in Louisville - at Mr. Pollo, a peruvian chicken and chips shop located off Klondike Lane. Assimilated poorly into its surroundings as it sticks out like a green egg, it features roast chicken, roast chicken, and roast chicken as its entree options. I am not a fan, generally-speaking, of roast chicken; however, the rub on this chicken is so spectacular that I become a fan yesterday evening (it gave me thoughts of the distant Rollo Pollo that used to be situated by the mall that I would frequent in my middle school years). The rub was a spicy jamaican sort of rub that needed no sauces.

The chefs do give you two sauces with your meal, though: a yellow and an orange. The orange is spicy and amazing - I would literally put that sauce on anything. The yellow is more buttermilky and celery like - good but not clearing my taste bud hurdles of amazingness. Our family meal (number 6) was served with rice and beans and a whole chicken. The rice and beans weren't up to Havana Rumba standards, but were a nice accompinament to the main show.

The restaurant offered many drink and dessert options, which looked yummy. The chef asked us if it was our first time there, to which we responded yes. He gave us all small, appetizer portions of the house's soup. Soooo exquisite! It reminded me of indian cuisine in its spice-choice and had little bits of rice mashed up in it (which, texture-wise, I love for some reason). I would definitely come back again just to get soup or a chicken.

While Mr. Pollo is located near tons of ethnic groceries and restaurants on Klondike Lane, its building is small and hard to find. It's a shot-gun, hole-in-the-wall that's painted an ugly dark blue. Several families of teenagers came in to eat while we were there, but we saw one car of upper-middle class males pull up and then away from the restaurant after deciding it looked too shady. It was simply splendid (but probably did a number on my sodium count!).

I'm going to go re-heat and re-eat it in the lunch room right now. Smells like a plan!

This restaurant should be put on your list of Louisville must-eats. It's inexpensive (six dollars for a meal) and completely different and better than all other roast chicken in town. When a restaurant serves me a dish that offers my tastebuds something completely novel and completes the meal with other suburb items, it gets a must eat recommendation from me. Go there now!!!!! (I will leave you with no culinary alternative on this posting! Do it!)

Joe Huber's Family Farm and Restaurant

http://www.joehubers.com/

Huber’s is good country cooking. Plain and simple. Huber’s in its entirety is an orchard, store, winery, several restaurants, petting zoo, play ground, donkey ride, hay ride, u-pick patch, garden jazz eatery, fishing hole, and so much more. What can you not do at Huber’s these days?

Well you probably can’t move if you go there right now. Just before Halloween is when parents from the city and nearby countryside flock to the Indiana farm-o-polis to pick some friggin’ pumpkins. It’s a zoo, I’m sure. This was always when I went when I was a kid. Recently I’ve been going in the wintertime and it’s soooo peaceful there! Taking friends from college there is always a treat – who doesn’t love watching goats frolic while very full and slightly toasted from a free wine tasting?

The eatery itself offers many options of salads, sandwiches and entrees at somewhat expensive prices. The side orders are my go-to items now. They are about three dollars and absolutely huge. They include the typical: cole slaw, mashed potatoes, chicken and dumplings (what I always get!), and sweet potatoes (yummy too!). I also must say that the catch with hubers – and what has always been the catch besides the good fried chicken – are the rolls. They serve these desserty, dumpling-like roles as appetizers along with an apple spread that is killer! Oh my, I could eat a lot of those. They are also good for feeding ducks or stray dogs after your meal, if you ask your waitress for a second or third serving.

Fifteen big ones is the price for the family style meal that includes lots of chicken (cuts and preparation of choice) and unlimited family-style sides. Warning: you will walk away full.

On one side of the room, which is more like an amphitheatre, is a row of several tables strung together for large parties to sit at. As a youngster, we’d sit over there with our school group (~70 people). Today I’ve seen some companies take their workers out to eat at Huber’s and sit over there. Maybe if you had enough offspring in your family who didn’t die of coronary failure before the age of four, you could all eat over there. The dining setup still confuses me.

On the other side of the acres of land is the winery’s tasting room. It’s in the upstairs to this building that sits across from one of the country stores down from the petting zoo. On the second floor is a room just sheerly for tasting wines. Now they always have free wines to try, but you have to be careful about how you go about tasting the “free” wines because they continuously change their policy (perhaps to charge those who haven’t yet gotten their degrees in drink mooching or who pre-gamed their entrance to the tasting room).

If you’re looking for some even better home cooking, try Colonel Sander’s place – the Colonel’s Lady (now known as Claudia Sanders). It’s worth the drive out to Shelbyville, Kentucky!

Nepal's Cafe

http://www.nepalscafe.com/index.html

In downtown Estes Park Colorado along the backcorner of a city block is a hole in the wall (almost literally) that serves exquisite Nepalese and Indian food. A family run business, the shop offers a buffet for nine dollars for lunch or a dinner menu full of entrees for around ten dollars.

What is unique about this place? Everything. The owners bow down to you practically while serving you the food, take breaks to go outside and scrape little pieces of dirt from the local green space into a bag to bring inside (is that their secret ingredient?), and have exquisitely friendly attitudes. The décor is from Nepal and includes many interesting and jaded tapestries. Additionally, a large liquor collection covers one wall.

The menu is incredible and full of food I have never heard of (but lacks the beloved durian, that Indonesian dessert-tasting fruit thing). We had Nepalese noodles similar to pad thai, but more with greater texture to the flavor and an order of Indian chicken saag. The freshness of the dishes and the mix of flavors (all complimented by the heavenly herb, cilantro) was unbelievable – especially from this chaqteau of a restaurant with no one in it at 6pm. I don’t think I will eat another chicken saag like that one again. It didn’t taste overly creamy, but the balance and freshness of herbs just melted it away into my mouth. The cuts of meat were juicy, but firm and without fatty pieces (we ordered chicken in both dishes).

I do know the restaurant’s secret – I overheard it! They mix all their sauces together fresh using a blender. The Indian dish was out of this world – the taste of the fresh spinach and cilantro together with the chicken was literally unlike anything we had tasted at a typical Indian restaurant. When a restaurant doesn’t follow a normed formula of heating premade sauces that other restaurants follow, it stands to gain a lot!

If I could go back, I would skip the Nepalese naan (it’s too similar to regular naan) and I would get some odd dish on their dessert menu that was poorly described as an ice cream-like concoction of chocolate and coconut (I love coconut!). They also have rice pudding, which is my go-to dessert at Indian restaurants.

We found this restaurant because on google it was one of the few restaurants in the area with a five-star user rating (it’s hard to get this with so many people commenting on restaurants online these days and the opportunity for one customer to be disappointed!).

Looking for more authentic, inexpensive local grub in Estes Park, check out Tulum’s Mexican.

Grape Leaf

http://www.grapeleafonline.com/

My father always revels about the breakfasts the grape leaf now serves (they’re even open before 8am on Sunday morning!). This is the local Greek original, and to me, steadfast staple of an aware Louisvillian’s palate. The shwarma, the lamb, the Spanish burrito, the salads (oh my!), and the hummus are all part of the experience. I can still remember bringing my high school’s cultural awareness club to the Grape Leaf and downed a lamb gyro. The bliss my peers and I experienced was rather extreme. It was an excellent bonding experience of joy and warmth.

Last week I went there and tried out a new dish for me – chicken sumac. I had recently discovered sumac at Saffron’s Persian cuisine on Market Street. They sprinkle it all over the humus served there and include it as a rub on meats. It’s rare to find and expensive to buy, but armed with a good recipe can do wonders in a simple fashion to any meat. At Grape Leaf the chicken was fried with vegetables and had an excellent, unified taste. The server was smart enough to bring out our Greek salads (like the house except served with feta cheese) before the meal so that we could enjoy some early yummyness. The salads include lots of romaine leafs, cut up fresh fruit (pineapple and melons), some craisins or pomegranate seeds, big almonds, and a wonderful vinaigrette dressing applied liberally. Wow! Everytime I eat that salad I’m reminded of just how wonderful a creative salad – and healthy – can be.

Recently I also ventured to try something known as the Spanish burrito. It’s pinto bean madness with gooey cheese. I don’t remember much else about it except that it was served with very good pico de gallo and was enough for three people. It was extremely good as well!

The ambience of the restaurant I should note as well. It used to be a well-lit, smelly hole in the wall. Since it expanded into the beauty shop the owner’s wife owned next door they have upgraded the interior. It’s now calming and quiet, complimented by a waterfall, and wonderful bathroom – but odd floor-length mirror on the way there. There is also a patio area for dining with large grape leaves covering the latticework hanging above. Trains occasionally pass and surprise rains also occasionally ruin the blissful moments spent in the outdoors, but otherwise dining outside is not to be missed!

Next time you’re looking for limitless Greek choices and the best ambience in town, come to the Leaf! For a cheaper, speedier Mediterranean experience walk a block west to Shiraz on Frankfort Ave.

To try this week or next...

In the coming weeks, I hope to sample the likes of:

Angio’s Italian on Old Bardstown Rd.

Dejlah Bistro on Oeschli Rd.

Little India Café on Breckinridge Rd.

Some Peruvian Pollo spot on Klondike Rd. or something that was written up in the paper recently

Saigon by Trinity

Simply Thai by Rainbow Blossom St. Matthews

This week you can hope to find reviews of: Market on Market (on Fourth Street in downtown Louisville) and the Uptown Cafe, located on Bardstown Road in Louisville. Perhaps Huber's deserves a review as well!

The Comfy Cow

http://thecomfycow.com/

Wow! Cinnamon, that beloved flavor of my days of yore that I can still not spell correctly, is currently one of the rotating flavors available at the comfy cow, located on Herr Lane in the new Westport Village.

Anyway, the comfy cow is a new business establishment that actually fulfills what the homemade pie and ice cream kitchen claims. Having tried both their ice cream and their ice cream pies, I am qualified to say that the boundless options that comfy cow offers are unprecedented in their flavor. For instance, when eating their peanut butter flavor it actually tastes like distinctive, homemade goodness in a cone, not some singular Reese’s taste that is not a novel experience on your taste buds. The butter pecan is fabulous, as is the peanut butter ice cream cake. The thing about their creations is that none of them are just filled with simply one thing, but rather a combination of flavors that the owners take seriously in their design and formulation.

The options at the comfy cow are endless: they have many ice cream flavors, ice cream pie flavors, frozen banana sprinklings, cookie and regular dessert options, tea flavors, and soft drink options. Their most recent flavor creation, one that pays tribute to the great Steely Dan song, Pretzel Logic, purported combines their signature vanilla ice cream chocked full of chocolate covered pretzels, Reese’s peanut butter chips and a decadent peanut butter swirl. While this concoction of flavors leaves me speechless, all that one can add to this posting is that life is too short for you to not know – and I mean really know through and through – what each of the ice cream flavors at comfy cow tastes like.

PostScript: I read in the paper yesterday that they are to open a second location on Frankfort Avenue where Ginny’s Diner used to be. Yes please!

PostScript 2: How many followers do I have? This is an Xplosion!

Red Star Tavern

http://www.restaurants-america.com/ra/restaurants/red-star-tavern

Last night a group of coworkers descended upon the Red Star Tavern for an evening of drinks, fun, and cheap food. This is precisely what we found. 5 dollar wines, 3 dollar beers, 5 dollar mixed drinks, and half price appetizers. We ordered several of the house cabernets, some Samuel Adams Oktoberfests, and white Russians and commenced the evening. The service was prompt and nice – they accomidated us and served us these happy hour specials at a table inside, even though they reported that they usually just reserve them for those who sit at the bar or outside (to make it look busy, perhaps?).

We ordered a lot of food! Some of the ahi tuna bites, which were simply scrumptious and char-grilled on the outside and raw on the other. Those were just fabulous in terms of taste. Calamari could have been skipped – it tasted like “friend nothing,” as my friend said. The sweet potato fries were delectable. We also got a less-than-great order of spinach dip. I liked it sufficiently, but my coworkers were not impressed by it (it tasted canned, I’ll admit). The whole reason I chose to come to the Red Star Tavern was to grab some of its fabulous corn bread. My best friend first introduced me to the cornbread back in 2005 and I’ve been heading back to only this restaurant every time I’ve been on fourth street (i.e., next to never) ever since. The bread comes out with a honking knife, a grand dollop of butter on top, and is served in a black metal circular skillet of the good stuff. Little chili peppers fill in the inside to make the bread just that much more southern, rich, and wonderful. The taste is neither too sweet nor salty, but I could always use a little more butter.

I embarked on a new food adventure and ordered the nachos, which were good but a little too filled with saucy bean stuff. The accompanying salsa tasted like cool refrigerator-inside (yum yum!) and I opted not to use it as a condiment.

Our waitress got our checks wrong and gave us incorrect change, warranting me to leave no tip since she already took out 50% (my bill was 2.50, mind you). Overall the experience was downright fabulous and I wouldn’t hesitate to go back there with coworkers for an evening of inexpensive, post-work fun. The icing on our cake was stepping out into the street to see some sort of mixed martial arts fight in session (and to people watch the awesome spectators all evening long). If I had to recommend another venue for a post-work get together that wasn’t downtown (getting people out to holiday manor would never happen after work, though) I would suggest stopping at Mojito’s tapas restaurant and bar!

Matso's Greek Restaurant

Matso’s is a Wooster staple. It is a Greek restaurant situated next to Ciao Bella and across from the Wooster Library. (Interestingly, the salad dressing they use on their Greek salads has a website but the restaurant itself does not). The store is well known for the joie-de-vivre of its owner Mr. Spyro Matso, a short, happy, and older gentleman who willingly engages any child or new face that graces the wooden frames of his restaurant with his or her presence.

So if you haven’t yet and you’re a Wooster Freshman (and don’t dare say you haven’t dined here and you’re an upper-classman… shame on you for having no culture or Wooster-love. Go to Matsos. Eat anything. Especially Gyro’s, one of those egg sandwiches on the bottom of the menu with everything on them (the Leroy?), and the SPAGHETTI PIZZA. Holy crap that shit’s good.

Here’s the formula for a week evening of Matso’s magical delights: take a buddy there and show up around 7. They close at 8. Dine on free breadsticks for a while, while Mr. Matso bakes your order in the microwave in the back (actually happens), eat your order until you are stuffed. Sit there afterwards and chat while he offers you multiple rounds of free ice cream. When you check out he’ll magically knock your bill down to 6 dollars a person, regardless of what you ordered. Good deal? You bet.

The Spanikopita and generally speaking all the items listed on the front page are gi-normous. Most items are served with some shredded mozzarella, which I find divine, diced tomatoes and a  little lettace, which is right up my alley. Salads are a little generic-looking, but apparently the dressing is good. Everyone gets free garlic bread sticks, which are very good. They are served in hilarious Tupperware bowls, though, and on stacks of papertowels.

With a big crowd on a weekend night he’ll come around and chat and do tricks at your table involving forks and matches and little shot glasses. Pretty cool dude. Loves his sons, but that’s okay (insert funny, inappropriate chorus comment here).

The waitresses are also the spice of life at the restaurant. They’re all older and kinda catty and probably hate working for Mr. Matso. Seeing them troll around and having him yell at them is pretty hilarious.

If one seeks a more nutrional, Wooster-only experience, visit Broken Rocks. It's one of two in an Ohio chain and serves up yummy continental cuisine. It's the go-to spot that opened up my junior year and quickly became the culinary hotspot!

Addis Red Sea

http://www.addisredseacambridge.com/

Yes, I have eaten up and down the banks of the Red Sea and can say that it is very good. Perhaps armed with a coupon or who knows with what inspiration (oh yes! I remember now. It was a faux-coupon. I had to convince my friend to come, so I sent her a “coupon” from me for a free appetizer there! So silly.), I put on my adventure cap and visited an Ethiopian restaurant with my weekly culinary-adventure buddy last summer in Boston and went to Porter Square to try Addis Red Sea Ethiopian cuisine. I had not had Ethiopian food in about seven years since trying poor Ethiopian cuisine in the basement of a Louisville hotel at a former version of the Queen of Sheeba. I was prepared for a renewed experience.

It was about 5 o’clock on a sweaty Tuesday afternoon when we entered the sunlit-filled establishment. There were a few people already seated in the well-decorated establishment. You could either sit on the floor or at normal tables. My friend and I opted for a table by the window, the table made from a vine-strung basket the lid of which was turned upside-down half-way through the meal and used as our plate. We got some appetizer (dabo perhaps) and then two entrees of lamb and chicken. As always I liked my friend’s item more than my own. We both had enough to feed about three people. Their bread there is sooo scrumptious, which is great because the bread was the downfall with my last Ethiopian dining experience. The meal was sensational, as we mopped up pieces of yellow and orange saucy meats with our bread and chatted about our future in the glowing sunlight. Were I to head back to Cambridge today, I might hit up addis or the ice cream spot there on the corner of Porter Square for its maddening coconut goodness of a scoop of ice cream or JP Licks for its oreo delight (and I don't even like oreo). Why am I talking about ice cream now?

La Dolce Via

http://www.ladolceviabakery.com/

We pulled up to “the sweet way” in its quiet locale to find the baker/owner woman looking out on our car, validating our parking. We entered the retro one-room establishment and were greeted by two sets of faces anxious to take our order. The items on the menu were overwhelming: breakfast, a la cart items, fresh scones, and a huge coffee menu. We ordered the hash browns (good and spicy), bacon (I’ll stick to my non-gamey Kroger bacon that I never eat, thank-you), and pancakes (wow!).  The pancakes are buttermilk and literally expand in your mouth. I, who eat buttermilk pancakes on a regular basis, can qualitatively say that these are some damn good hotcakes being thrown down the pie hole. Apparently they won’t give away their secret ingredient, but there is something that makes their taste, texture, and state of doneness absolutely perfect.

The restaurant serves dinner on the weekends as well using all local and fresh foods. The shop has won several best of St. Louis awards, as it’s known as a fine bakery and sconery. (There is a photo of a scone (which the baker gave to us for free upon our exit) on their webpage that is taken too close up.)

If I were in the nearby forest park again for lunch, I would definitely consider hitting up La Dolce Via.

Zia’s “On the Hill”

http://www.zias.com/

This weekend I ventured on a 3 mile bike ride from Forest Park, St. Louis to “The Hill” in St. Louis to a restaurant called “Zia’s,” which was rumored to have exquisite fried ravioli (I’m not a real fan of fried anything or ravioli, but if it comes as a recommendation, I won’t shy away from taste-tested goodness!).

After walking past the other tables filled with large salads topped with provel cheese and a lovely sweet vinaigrette dressing. We split an order of the special, which also included bread, for only 9 dollars. It was a homemade beef tortellini with asparagus and peppers in a lemon, garlic, oil sauce that was simply delectable. I would not hesitate to go back there and go for their pasta dish that features a sage cream sauce (one of my favorite dishes).

Our service was incredibly quick and the wait staff was very cordial, even though the place was hopping with people. It was a cool oasis on a hot summer day… however the thought of biking back to forest park on a stomach full of Italian food didn’t sound so great.

Ermin’s Bakery and Café

http://erminsbakery.com/about.php

Ermin’s French Café, with four area locations, has always been a favorite of my family’s, even back when it was located in its glass enshrinement on the second story of the old Galleria on Fourth Street.  Today I still run to it for its spicy black bean burrito. Soup, salad, dessert, drink, and even ice cream options abound there; however, the black bean burrito was a favorite from during my pre-middle school basketball practice winter days. The warmth was predictable and fulfilled a need for a healthier fill of  gooey-goodness than one like me might find at a joint like, say ohhhhhh Taco Bell!

The atmosphere is always nice – usually I visit the location on fourth street by the library nestled in the Heyburn Building now and there are always literate attorneys sitting around munching and quiet medical assistants enjoying their finds! For the price of eight dollars, you will get one roll, one gigantic side enough to feed me and then some, and a giant entrée. The entrée options are as follows: spinach quiche, pot pie, Montgomery Inn BBQ (how do they pull that off? It sounds scrumptious!), twice baked potato, and chicken tetrazzini (yuck!).

The café was open in 1993 by two Bosnian brothers escaping the war in the country, both by the name of Ermin. They sold the restaurant in 1997 and now there are either four or five locations (inside the store it says four, on their webpage they say they have five).

This café comes highly recommended; however in terms of taste and selection I might recommend the City Café over it, with their zesty daily specials and fun creations!

732 Social

http://www.732social.com/

For what seemed like centuries I drove by an establishment that, evening or afternoon, had happy, warm faces aglow with libations and laughter at a nameless locale in the NULU district of East Market. Today, I refer to this chic restaurant as Social 732, even though it’s really 732 Social, and frequent it about once a week on Wednesday evenings. This hopping wine bar-looking establishment sits in the green building adjacent to the Beer Store, Toast on Market, and the Mayan Café. Wooden interiors, tables, and chairs all made from the local recycled wood fill out the interior with a cement floor and indirect lighting. There is a full menu of local organic food (pricey!), cocktails (pricey at 9 dollars a pop), and wines and beers (still pricey, starting at 6 dollars). The bartenders are world-renowned, according to chef Jayson Lewellyn, who purchased drinks for me and my underage friend (hehe!) after witnessing my indecisiveness. He disclosed this wealth of information about the place – and then, typical for me, we proceeded to have  a miniature argument about whether and how much one should advertise the fact that all the materials in the building and that go towards producing the food is local and organic. His point was that customers should just come to expect that as the new standard, I said that he is missing out on a large portion of his target market, which is most definitely literate, by not making this explicit more places, such as the menu.

The bartenders, who are very nice and urban-scruffy looking are either gay or very flirty (I think Kyle is the flirty one), make their own bitters and drinks that I generally conclude are too strong to be sensational (I wouldn’t know, though… I should just order an amaretto sour or gin and tonic). The drink that Jayson bought me is known as being the hardest of them all called the dirk funk featuring Johnny Drum 101, Carpono Antica Formula, Grand Marnier, Herbsaint, Angostura Bitters. I don’t know what all that means, but the upshot is that you’ll be toasted after a few sips (It’s basically 10 drinks in one and too strong to even sniff). I decided a third of the way through my drink, which none of my friends could handle, to chug it down – which led to one gooooood evening!

I have been back many times to sample the wine and beer selection and would recommend the three philosophers beer, the cheap Riesling (I got my friends hooked on that!), the cheese tray with the local honey, tomme cheese, American-something cheese, and bleu goat (killer!!!). I have sampled their cake dessert and rock shrimp mac-n-cheese, but disliked them both. The cake lacks in flavor and tastes old and the rock shrimp tastes like the grizzly pieces of a chicken tossed into a mac sauce that is too creamy.

The waitstaff at Social 732 are interesting. So there is Urith, a friend who always waits on us on Wednesday nights and makes change for fifties even when I forget that I ever gave her a fifty in the first place. Then there is an individual who always wears dresses, never smiles, and whose face muscles move like federer’s rocket arms in a tennis match as she eats a salad at work. The only time I saw her smile was when she opened the door for me to the bathroom and brushed my leg awkwardly on the way in. Weirdo! Then there are several friendly hostesses who seem to smile for relatively no reason when I enter the establishment. (I secretly wonder if they talk about me behind my back.) Always gossip-worthy!

Sitting outside at Social 732, embraced by a warm Louisville night breeze is how I spent many an evening this summer. Like La Roux’s Bulletproof, this was the go-to restaurant of the summer. However pricey it is, the atmosphere makes it worth it - there are always giddy side tables to talk with. However, if you want to pay half for your brews, split a bottle at the beer store!

Homemade Ice Cream and Pie Kitchen

http://www.piekitchen.com/

Referred to as the Homemade Pie Kitchen or Homemade Pie and Ice Cream Kitchen, this local chain of dessert shops features an array of pies, cakes, desserts, and ice cream flavors, as well as sandwiches, soups, and salads. Featured on NPR's The Splendid Table in March of 2000, the restaurant has really prospered and now features nine locations with the original one located at Taylorsville Road and Bardstown Road.

In middle school, I would wait with my parents in a line extending far out the door on a Saturday night just to get my beloved cinnamon ice cream (since I've found better at Mollie's cupcakes in Chicago). In high school I ventured in to get the frozen Reese's ice cream cake, which is enough for two and usually frozen solid. However, these days I just order whatever strikes my interest.

In high school I heard from a friend working at the kitchen that in fact the pies and ice cream are not homemade... what? The business' very name-sake is thrown out the window and dislodged from the constellations that hold all other good restaurant names together. This is disturbing!

After waiting with much excitement to eat the birthday cake and strawberry shortcake flavored ice creams, I decided that the pie and ice cream kitchen could do a little better and use fresher ingredients. Both were laking in flavor and were just kind of a sugary mess that honestly didn't even taste that good.

Now last night I went there with a couple - to the one on Shelbyville Road - and split a Reese's Cupcake the size of the sun with someone. It only cost $1.60, but was a taste sensation. The icing was sweet and gooey, the cupcake itself was a yellow cake batter. On top there were reeses cups melted and sprinkled - and even some inside! My other friend ordered a chocolate chip ice cream that looked delectable. Be sure to try their Kentucky pies - shaker sugar, bourbon, and chess - as well as their popular apple pie with caramel icing on top. Yum!

If you're looking for a new place to dine for dessert that frankly tops them all and tastes homemade and wonnnnnderful, check out comfy cow in Westport Village!

Tumbleweed

http://tumbleweedrestaurants.com/

Known for cheap margs, good ole’ tex mex, and the slowest service under the Southern sun, this southwest saloon hails from weed roots down on Mellwood immediately adjacent to the Mellwood Arts center (did it start in the early ‘90s?). Today there are many locations in Louisville, as well as other states (Wooster, Ohio being one). Growing up, I consistently begged my family to take me to Tumbleweed so that I could get wasted on margs – no, just kidding. So that I could perfect my pacman skills while waiting for a table, get a large sprite, free chips and salsa, and order a soft taco and waffle fries off the kids menu each and everytime (location being the present Wild Eggs restaurant on Dutchman’s Lane). In Middle School I would drag willing friends there for hours of giggles in a booth all of our own (I believe the funniest thing we giggled about was how my one friend was taking medication, back in the day when we thought that old people things were hilarious and said things just to see what looks they would elicit. Later that night we went home and called two teachers while on a giddy chip-induced high).

Today you will enter a warehouse of a restaurant to discover “ehh” margs priced at either 99 cents or 1.99 depending on the day and the locale (Wooster Mondays – 99 cents, all day; Friday and Saturday any locale, 1.99). Don’t get the white bean soup – it’s kinda generic and salty, if you order the taco salad, you’ll be eating it for the next five days (although it is pretty good, slide into a baked taco salad bowl), do get the enchilada sampler that sits towards the end of the menu for about 13 dollars and split it with a friend. It’s tops. Multiple types of enchiladas and other items, food enough for three I’d say.

Queso there is also always a sensation. You can also just order a taco a la carte for a few dollars, which is what I selected on my last venture there. If only good Mexican eats were still cheap, cheap, cheap, cheap. For the cheapest of cheap – and an authentic experience – head down to La Lolitas.

Istanbul Palace

http://www.istanbulpalace.net/

After seeing an add in the sidebar of LEO suggesting the likes of a purely Turkish restaurant existing in Louisville, KY, I creeped onto google.com to read reviews and see what Istanbul Palace was all about. Apparently it’s all about 5/5 stars and incredibly good Mediterranean cuisine!

So on a whim, after a 6-mile jog, and no shower, I pulled my family into the car, drove around Goose Creek Road for about 5 minutes at the corner of Goose Creek and Westport Road looking for this restaurant to realize that it’s on the southwest corner of the intersection. We enter at about 6:15pm and there is not a car in the parking lot or a person in sight. I give my family the right to veto… this is not a good sign on a Friday night. But instead, we take a seat, order the meze plate, and are blown away by what we’ve discovered. I looooove the baba ganouj, my mother the Haydari, and all of us the humus. The bread I could take or leave (it was homemade, though). The falafel was sensation – definitely the best in town because it was fresh, not too oily or dry, and full of rich flavors.

For our entrees, which came out quickly, my father and I endeavored the Doner. This took me back to my roots in France from two summers ago when I would – on extremely rare occasions – indulge in a fabulous gyro made with the saltiest, lamb/beef mixture right from the turning spit as it glistens in the sun. Takes me back to my mammalian roots! The meat was good, salty, but the favor slowly grew on me. My dad was hooked from the start.

What resulted in silence and a foodgasm on my part, though, was  the shish tawook. Having ordered this at safier before and experienced a firm love for the dish, I was blown away this time by the perfect tender, juicy, flavor that this chicken elicited. Wow! Highlight of the year, taste wise. This definitely resulted in my thinking that Istanbul Palace is the go-to Mediterranean place of Louisville, which a teacher at St. Francis High School who frequents Yafa and Safier downtown confirmed with me.

Go there noooooow!

But if you want something a little closer into town and with more than two locations, why don’t you give  Shiraz a try?

The Zen Garden

http://www.zengardenrestaurant.org/ 

Celebrating the birthday of a loved one who enjoys peace and calm has never been easier. Tonight I meditated my way to Zen Garden, my mother noting the smell of marijuana echoing from a behind a bar next door. We entered the one room house and were greeted by the mellow faces of the two couples in the restaurant. It has been years since I've been to the restaurant - last time I was there I took a busload of high school seniors from rural Kentucky in to experience their very first tofu. What fun!

My go-to dish, which I have selected over the years at both Lemongrass Cafe and Cafe Mimosa, is the spring roll bean sprout salad on vermicelli noodles. Well, let's just say that I thought I ordered that tonight only to be disappointed by some random frothy tofu meat soup with sauce on the side (called Northern Noodle Soup - don't get it!). My mother, though, ate a wonderful black bean sauced stir fry with white rice that was perfectly seasoned. It inspired her to search for the sauce at Kroger's even! My father got my go-to dish of egg-roll and noodles. Sub-par, but the soothing experience and gallon of jasmine tea I imbibed have us sure to come crawling back for more food to support this local non-profit, one-of-a-kind restaurant in the 'ville!

Should your stomach still be aching for some Asian, give Cafe Mimosa a try at its new location on Bardstown Road.

Sue Min's Chinese Gourmet

http://sueminschinesegourmet.com/

Gourmet indeed! Sue Min and her husband tout a feast of homemade, non-MSG Chinese cuisine that is simply sensational! One must climb the hill that heads south past route 30 to find this former soda fountain situated on the right across from the OARDC. Small and unadorned, the same waitress always offers that you may sit wherever you like and may have a free baklava at the end of the meal.

Hunan chicken has been my favorite find there – I’ve only had it once, but it was out of this world. Lo mein I would not recommend, won ton soup yes. Service can be dicey – don’t play to go there on Friday evening at 6:30 with a crowd of eight and have everyone served their meal at the same time or expect to leave at a decent hour.

On the hole, I love sue min’s. It’s out of the way, across from the beautiful OARDC (agricultural campus for Ohio University). The prices are fair: 4 to 7 dollars for an entree and you may get a lunch combo at a reduced rate for dinner, which includes fried rice and choice of egg roll or soup. Their buffet, which is incredible and highly recommended on a hungry first visit, prices out at about 9 dollars (used to be cheaper when I ate it, but hey, it saves me the pounds and dough to not indulge).

The one caveat that comes with choosing to dine at Sue Min's is that you never quite know when they're open. Rumor has it that the couple frequently treks to their second home in Italy and come the fall and late spring they are usually out for the season.

So how does one solve the ravishing hunger pains that may trip up the innards of your brain with hope for delicious egg rolls and won ton soup that can only smile down at you from the heavens? Better hit up Wild Ginger!