By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Not that I’m worried about the Delta variant or anything – well, not too much. But it may have been a factor the other day in my decision to try takeout for the first time in a while. This is how I ended up at Starving Artist Café & Deli in Lyndon, which may be the best restaurant in town that I’ve hardly ever heard of. Continue reading Fill up on great sandwiches at Starving Artist
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Hola! I finally got back to a favorite taqueria, El Mariachi, last week, and oh, did it make me happy.
Now I wish it hadn’t taken me so long, but I felt uneasy about the idea before I finally got fully vaccinated. There’s typically some language barrier for me at the storefront places I love best – I can read Spanish fairly well, but I’m not good with conversations en español – so I couldn’t gear up to investigate a favorite spot’s takeout and curbside delivery options.
Now that’s over, and I hope it’s over to stay. Continue reading A happy return to El Mariachi, a favorite taqueria
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Spring is fully sprung, more than one-fifth of Americans are vaccinated, and the Cubs return home to Wrigley Field to play the Pirates on Friday, April 16. Wrigley Field? Now I want a Chicago-style hot dog. Continue reading Lonnie’s hot dogs deliver Chicago flavor
Tell me about favorite desserts and sweet treats for the holidays: What have you got? If you celebrated Hanukkah in your household, you’ve enjoyed such deliciousness as hamentaschen, jelly donuts, and all manner of fried sweets. Christmas brings a wealth of sugary delights, from gingerbread cookies and Yule log cakes to the ubiquitous fruitcake and whatever the hell sugar plums are.
But wait! Where’s the ice cream? Yes, knocking back a pint of frozen cream can bring down your core temperature, but inside a warm and cozy house, in front of a fireplace, ice cream can be a festive treat. Continue reading Ice cream for Christmas because why not?
The Louisville dining scene is facing a grim scenario as I write this, and we’ll be looking down the barrel of a disturbing deadline when you read this. Let’s talk about this, but first, as I’ve told you before: Get out there and order as much takeout food from local restaurants as you can, and tip ‘em as if you’re Scrooge McDuck. They need all we can do for them right now.
Here’s the heart of the problem: Restaurants and bars are perceived as potential pandemic hotspots, with reason: Even with social distancing, they attract people to gather indoors in crowds, and to make matters worse, it’s impossible to mask up for others’ protection while you’re eating and drinking.
That’s why restaurants and bars have borne a disproportionate share of regulation since Covid-19 came to town last winter. Continue reading Support our local restaurants: This week, Royals Hot Chicken
Back in the ‘90s, I lived for a while on New York City’s Lower East Side. It was quite an experience for a Louisville boy, and one of the best things about it was my proximity to Indian Restaurant Row.
That’s what we called the block of Second Street between First and Second avenues, anyway, and the name fit: Every single storefront on the south side of the block housed an Indian restaurant, and they were all good. Their menus were all similar, prompting the rumor that they all shared the same kitchen. Doubtful, I know, but it seemed right.
Now, Louisville is not New York City, but it crossed my mind the other day that we’re kind of, sort of developing our own Indian Restaurant Row. It’s not as dense as New York’s, and there’s no question of a shared kitchen. But hey! Six Indian culinary establishments – four restaurants and two groceries – in a three-mile stretch of Hurstbourne Parkway isn’t bad in a city where we once had to drive to Cincinnati to get Indian food. Continue reading New Indian grocery leads us back to Shreeji
Covid is spiking … again. The election remains undecided as I write this, and chances are there’ll still be plenty of political controversy and yelling when you read this. It’s just plain common sense to reach for comfort food right now, and it’s hard for me to imagine an item more comforting than a warm biscuit.
Mmm, biscuits. No sooner did I write that than I want one right now. One of the simplest of breads, this buttery short, soda-risen delight is easy to make at home but difficult to perfect. Continue reading Boujie Biscuit brings the comfort
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, we interrupt our dining review for this public-service announcement: Have you voted yet? Good! Wait, you over there! You haven’t voted? Please vote on Election Day, Nov. 3, or vote early in person at one of Louisville’s convenient early polls. But vote! Vote as if your life depends on it, because just possibly it does.
There! I’m glad to get that off my chest. We voted last week. It was easy. It really felt good. And best of all, it led us toward this week’s exceptionally tasty food report.
Here’s how it went down: We voted early at the Kentucky Center for African-American Heritage, then decided to grab a delicious soul-food meal from a Black-owned West End restaurant: Big Momma’s Soul Food Kitchen. Continue reading Big Momma’s Soul Food Kitchen lures us West
I should have probably gotten out to I Love Tacos in Jeffersontown sooner. It certainly got my attention when its owners were brave enough to open up (takeout and curbside service only) on March 25, one week after Governor Andy shut down dining in across the state.
And then there’s that “I ?? Tacos” logo with an emoji heart. I don’t think I’ve ever checked in at a restaurant with an emoji in its name until now. Continue reading We love tacos, and I Love Tacos does them right
“From food truck to brick and mortar. A dream has come true!” With palpable joy, Troy King and Selena Johnson, the owners of the Pollo food truck and Shelby Park’s popular Six Forks Burger Co., announced on social media last month that Pollo has landed in a Clifton storefront.
Pollo – or “Pollo – a gourmet chicken joint” if you want to be formal about it – has been a familiar sight around town with its rolling quarters in an old, short school bus painted dark gray. It’s been operating since 2014, but King and Johnson were eager to add a land-based location just as Six Forks marked its first anniversary this month. Continue reading Pollo chicken food truck lands in Clifton storefront
