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!

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!