Category Archives: Baxter, Bardstown, Highlands

Where will we go for brunch now that Lynn’s is closed?

At least a few million megabytes of social media and a wastebasket full of old-media newsprint have surely been spilled over the recent startling and sudden demise of Lynn’s Paradise Cafe.

I don’t see much point in adding more to that flood, other than to note that we may yet be hearing more about the weird tipping and servers-vs.-management dispute that broke into public view a few days before proprietor Lynn Winter yanked the keys out of the restaurant’s ignition and shut ’er down.

But let’s not get into the who, what, when, where and why of all that right now. A larger question looms: “Where in the heck can we go for Sunday brunch now that Lynn’s is gone?”

Continue reading Where will we go for brunch now that Lynn’s is closed?

Banh Mi Hero gets the Vietnamese sandwich right

It’s no longer hip to claim colonialism was cool. Take it from one who spends entirely too much time in the groves of academe: In this post-colonial era, the dead white men who once strode the earth to plant a flag in distant lands in the name of president or queen are distinctly out of fashion. It isn’t even politically correct to brag about those exploits anymore.

But I’ll step up and proudly claim one great boon of civilization that may be even better as a result of having been taken around the world to meet and mingle and gain new ideas from exposure to other cultures.

Of course I’m talking about the sandwich. Continue reading Banh Mi Hero gets the Vietnamese sandwich right

Counting Calories And Loving It At Heart & Soy

Here’s bad news for Baby Boomers (and a cautionary note for the rest of you): As we get older, we can’t get away with eating as much as we used to. Our metabolism slows over time, and chances are our lifestyle slows down, too.
Continue reading Counting Calories And Loving It At Heart & Soy

Funmi’s showcases the bright, bold flavors of Africa

“Good Day! I am the nephew of Dr. Gen. Col. Robin Mkborumi Bmaka Grrrr, the infamous Bean Factotum and former Royal Food Evaluator of Krakatoa. I am contacting you for your consideration in liberating a Treasure of Delicious, Memorable Good Things To Eat. Have you ever eaten the rare and delicious food of Nigeria? It is very rare and difficult to find, but I am prepared to part with 20 percent of the proceeds to be gained from your help and assistance in liberating this great African cuisine for the people of Louisville.”

Wait! Don’t touch that DELETE key! This is no scam.
Continue reading Funmi’s showcases the bright, bold flavors of Africa

Lilly’s was locavore before locavore was cool

Turn the hands of your food-memory clock, if you will, back to 1987 or 1988. It was a very good time for Louisville restaurants – and when hasn’t it been?

The upscale bistro movement that had started with the Bristol, Formally Myra’s, Jack Fry’s and others a decade earlier had matured and blossomed. Our chop suey Chinese-American tradition had evolved into spicy regional eateries serving fare from Hunan and Sichuan. Fine French dining was here in the form of Le Relais. Authentic New Mexico cooking had arrived with Chico’s; our first sushi with Sachicoma, our first Korean hidden in the back room at Lee’s, and our first Thai at Thai Siam.

Frankly, local food lovers figured that we’d gone about as far as we could go. Continue reading Lilly’s was locavore before locavore was cool

Lil Cheezers piles on the cheese

Order a sandwich and it comes with a foundational legend, the old story about John Montagu, the Fourth Earl of Sandwich, who invented the portable meal that bears his name so he wouldn’t have to stop playing cards to take his nourishment.

sandwich
Lil Cheezers’ Caprese Grilled Cheese. PHOTO: M A Buckner

The grilled cheese sandwich, sadly, carries no such memorable tale. While the combination of cheese and bread surely goes back to the Neolithic age, as best I can determine through extensive cookbook and Internet research, the American comfort-food standby evolved in its current form only within the past century. This filling yet low-cost Depression-era dinner was made possible by the happy pairing of two 20th century inventions: sliced bread and processed cheese. Cheese meets bread, hits skillet sizzling with melted butter or margarine, and a few moments later, lunch is on. A can of tomato soup can turn it into a banquet.

To view the grilled cheese sandwich living up to its full potential, however, one must consult the masters of the art at Lil Cheezers, a popular local food truck that added a bricks-and-mortar shop last month in tight but inviting quarters in the midst of the Baxter Avenue nightlife zone. (The Lil Cheezers food truck continues in operation, and a second is coming soon, proprietor and grilled-cheese chef Matt Davis says. The trucks serve limited selections from the sit-down eatery’s menu.)

The venue, a tiny shotgun house-turned-storefront, is clean and bright, the walls boldly painted the colors of Campbell’s tomato soup and Velveeta. I am not kidding about this.

The menu is made of finer stuff than those iconic ingredients, however. It’s all grilled cheese, all of the time, plus munchies, sides and desserts. There are 10 variations on the grilled cheese theme, all available on sourdough or wheatberry bread, ranging in complexity and price from $6 (for the “Plain Jane,” made with your choice of a dozen cheeses) to $8 (for many of the options). All come with a side and a dish of house-made curry ketchup, a thick, spicy red condiment that should make Heinz hang its head in shame.

Admirable creativity went into the bill of fare: The “Fancy Pants” ($8) musters Brie, Granny Smith apple slices, grilled onions and walnuts. The “Buenos Huevos” (“good eggs,” $7) lays down spicy Mexican chorizo sausage and a fried egg on your grilled cheese. Don’t bogart the “Legalize Marinara” ($7), a cross between grilled cheese and a pizza, loaded with pepperoni, mozzarella, sliced tomatoes and garlic. And so it goes, with something for just about everyone, including vegans, who’ll delight in a dairy-free model grilled with vegan cheese. Fountain drinks, Rooibee Red Tea and a selection of bottled beers are available.

Munchies for those late-night moments (or any other time) are mostly $3 for a small portion, $5 for large, include a half-dozen goodies such as sizzling, crisp fries or sweet-potato fries, fried mozzarella strips or house-made potato chips, served with curry ketchup or, for $2 more, a schmear of PBR beer cheese. There’s soup — tomato, of course, with basil added, or a soup of the day, $3 for a cup or $4 for a bowl. Add a dessert designed for the grill — S’mores, an Elvis-style PB and banana or a PB&J (all $4), or a Jamie’s 14K cupcake, keeping alive the spirit of the previous occupant, and you’ve got about everything anybody could ask for.

I was happy with the Caprese ($8), grilled mozzarella with fresh basil, rather pale tomato slices and a touch of sweet balsamic reduction, on my choice of sourdough with house-made chips. The sandwich was great. I would have liked the chips a little crunchier, but I admit I ate them all.

The Highlands Philly ($8) was a splendid sandwich, too, a good ration of thin-sliced roast beef, sautéed peppers and onions and molten cheddar — hold the Cheese Whiz — on wheatberry bread with fries. Soup of the day ($3 small), cucumber-cilantro, was chilled, green and surprisingly spicy.

With iced water, our comfort-food lunch came to $19.08, and the high-tech Square payment system built into an iPhone lets you tap to choose a 15, 20 or 25 percent tip.

Lil Cheezers Gourmet Grilled Cheese
938 Baxter Ave.
409-7424
lilcheezers.com
Rating: 84

How is Le Relais like a high-school reunion?

Imagine, if you will, a high school reunion. A seemingly ordinary reunion, perhaps 25 years after you graduated and left town for new challenges. You return, eager to see old friends again. Hey, Jack hasn’t changed a bit! Trent and Joanie got married, gained a few pounds as they slouched into middle age. Ronnie is bald!

And then, across the room, a tall, slender form appears. It’s Lizzie! The cheerleader you had a crush on. She must be a beauty still. You walk over to say hello. She turns, smiles and … oh.
Continue reading How is Le Relais like a high-school reunion?

Tom + Chee and goetta makes three

Tom + Chee

Grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of soup: the classic combination you grew up with. Done adequately, it’s a comforting duo that fills you up and cures what ails you. Taken to the next level, with super-fresh ingredients and creative flavor combinations, it can be downright transformational.
Continue reading Tom + Chee and goetta makes three