Restaurants in Louisville

Patticakes' menu features sweet and savory flavors and more than 30 different panini sandwiches. The egg-, ham-, onion-, and pepper-stuffed Western Scrambler panini ($4.95) and the sweeter apple-pie panini ($4.50) satisfy bready cravings, and fast-breaking specialties, such as the vanilla-infused cinnamon-bread Sunnyside french toast ($4.49) with a side order of Patticakes' fresh-baked cinnamon rolls ($1.99), make traditional meal lovers smile. Herbivores and herbivoyeurs can dive fork-first into various salads, such as the corn and avocado salad, which is rich with spinach, turkey, bacon, and veggies and is drizzled with a honey-gorgonzola vinaigrette ($5.99, whole). If a full meal isn't on your to-do list, the cozy café—with its candy-colored pastel walls and dog-friendly atmosphere—is a welcoming place to pop in for an impromptu slice of Patticakes’ homemade pie, whose selection rotates daily.

Pregame with spinach artichoke dip (4.99) or a hearty helping of fried pickle chips, hand-breaded dills fried to a crisp and served with peppercorn ranch dressing or a Cajun horseradish dip ($3.99). Most of the thin-crust pizzas, salads, chicken, steaks, pastas, burgers, and sandwiches on Aspen's menu cost less than $10. Flavorful meaty dishes include a chili-rubbed pork tenderloin trio (three pork medallions wrapped in bacon and grilled and bathed in honey lime dressing, $9.99) and Hawaiian-style grilled chicken topped with a fresh grilled pineapple ($7.99). Aspen Creek's pan-seared salmon ($10.99) is hand cut, superbly seasoned, honey-glazed, and totally unable to travel upstream in search of superior gold prospecting.

Though Ahoy!! caters to a fish-loving crowd, you can kick off the feast with an order of fried green tomatoes ($4.50), sliced, cornmeal-flecked, fried until golden, and served year round. Seameat fans will squeal with delight for the cod priced according to size and number of sides. Try a medium order with your choice of one side, such as green beans or crinkle-cut fries ($6.99). Other aquatic eats include fried clams, tilapia, and grilled salmon. Specials include a bluegill sandwich ($6.50) and special tacos ($6.99). Stop in for live serenades, and support local artists who may or may not only play music about local weather, local hairstyles, and local underground cities.

The Bard's Town blends two households, both alike in dignity, yet separate all the same. A theatre on one side, and a restaurant on the other, The Bard's Town is not a dinner theatre, as dishes never find their way into the staging space. Contrary to what the name might suggest, The Bard’s Town Theatre chooses to pay homage to Shakespeare not by performing his plays, but by following in his footsteps and creating new work. This mission has resulted in the performance of several world premiers, short plays, and the Obie-award winning A Bright New Boise.

In the self-contained restaurant, a raucous menu full of hearty dishes and Shakespearean puns abounds. Prologues (appetizers) include dishes such as Titus Nacho-nicus, while main course dishes include The Mushroom of Venice burger with Swiss cheese and mushrooms, and The Steakspeare—an 8-ounce Shell Island steak coated in original rub. Epilogues (desserts) include homemade gooey butter cake and key lime pie.

At Ramsi’s Café on the World, the Kamar family may fill its menu with dishes from around the globe, but many of its ingredients come from their own farm. The USDA-certified organic farm yields eggs, chicken, and produce, lovingly spoken into existence by the Jolly Green Giant to populate the restaurant’s dishes. Moroccan lamb chops with pumpkin-mint sauce, korean bulgogi, egyptian kusheri with lentils, and harissa are all equally at home on the diverse menu, nearly half of which is composed of vegetarian and vegan recipes. To complement meals, a selection of more than 70 bourbons populates the bar—making Ramsi’s a member of the city's Urban Bourbon Trail. Staffers also pour beer and wine or shake craft cocktails such as the Kentucky Shaman, a mix of ginger, honey, bourbon, and peppermint. As patrons dine and sip among ornate sculptures from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, pianist Pete Peterson cultivates a laid-back atmosphere with tinkling jazz numbers.

A veteran of Ritz-Carlton kitchens from around the world, Executive Chef Laurent Géroli upholds his philosophy of simple, clean cuisine while imbuing his upscale American fare with a Southern spin. The decor at his restaurant honors the elegance of the historic building in which it lives—the Brown Hotel—with varnished wood pillars, oak paneling, and stained-glass windows. In fact, Chef Géroli even cooks up the hotel's de facto trademark, the Hot Brown sandwich—an open-faced masterpiece stacked high with turkey, bacon, and a delicate mornay sauce. Lauded by publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Southern Living Magazine, and the Travel Channel's Man vs. Food, the time-honored treat has been attracting guests for more than 80 years, even during the 1970s' short-lived Prohibition of bread.

The Hot Brown isn't The English Grill's only epicurean triumph, however. Chef Géroli and his staff curate the seasonal menus with contemporary cuisine, complementing the diverse flavors with the spicy corks of more than 200 wines. Under Géroli's tenure, the Grill has garnered a prestigious AAA four-diamond rating and impressed Esquire food and wine critic John Mariani so much that he has called it "one of the finest restaurants in the United States."