Verbena Café is one of those places that always seems to smell like home. For Mike Cortino, the smell is likely a reminder of much more.
Mike and his wife, Laurie, opened Verbena in Norton Commons this past autumn. They based Verbena’s fare on dishes served in restaurants founded by Mike’s grandfather and operated by his family back in the 1960s in Chicago. Verbena specializes in omelets, crepes, pancakes, waffles and eggs Benedict, and offers sandwiches, entrées and salads for the lunch crowd. Continue reading Verbena could make Grandpa proud→
One of the biggest and best changes I’ve seen in our town over a Baby Boomer’s lifetime in Louisville has been the surprising ethnic and cultural diversity that has blossomed here over a generation. As outgoing Mayor Jerry Abramson likes to point out, more than half of our city’s population growth nowadays takes the form of new residents arriving from other countries. Youngsters in Jefferson County public schools speak more than 80 different languages at home, and Buddhists, Muslims and Hindus, among others, gather peacefully in their own places of worship.
Who doesn’t like doughnuts? There’s something comforting about these fried spheres of goodness with a hole in the middle, and most doughnut lovers have strong opinions on the subject.
Louisville boasts many local bakeries and doughnut joints. But not all doughnuts (or, if you prefer, “donuts”) are created equal, so I set out to try a random sample of five locals to see how they compared. Continue reading In search of the city’s best doughnuts→
Rootie’s Sports Bar on Westport Road doesn’t look like anything special — just another sports bar, with lots of TVs and a few pool tables.
But owner Marty Stein knows a thing or two about the classic Buffalo wing. He and the original Rootie’s location hail from Buffalo. He’s been making Buffalo wings for more than 30 years, having bounced from upstate New York to South Florida and now to Louisville, with stops on “The Today Show” and “Regis and Kathie Lee” along the way. Continue reading Rootie’s wings are the real deal. Really.→
I like breakfast. Eggs, bacon or ham, French toast or pancakes, hash browns, whatever, it’s all good to me. I can eat breakfast in the morning, I can eat it for lunch. I’ll even consider eating breakfast for dinner, or an omelet anyway. Continue reading Breakfast gets even better at Meridian Cafe→
Well, well, well — Hooters has some competition in its previously uncontested milieu. You know: laid-back environment, pub grub, cold beer, multiple TVs ablaze with sports. Oh yeah, and cleavage. Lots of cleavage.
After hearing the buzz about the Tilted Kilt, 6201 Dutchmans Lane (the former Ernesto’s building, Oldenburg before that), I considered checking it out. But hey, Hooters is like an old friend; I didn’t want to be disloyal. Continue reading Cleavage Wars: Hooters vs. Tilted Kilt→
If you’ve noticed a little restaurant do-si-do around the corner of Frankfort Avenue and Cannon’s Lane, here’s the story: After Chef Amber McCool closed her Patron restaurant (destined for eventual reopening downtown, McCool has promised her fans), in the spring of w010 the old Boombozz Pizza moved down the block into the Patron’s old quarters. Continue reading Boombozz has come a long way, baby→
Soccer, the sport the rest of the world calls “football,” is celebrating its quadrennial World Cup (the real World Series) this month as the teams of 32 nations do battle in South Africa. Continue reading Watch World Cup with a posse→
Think of the name “Molly Malone” and get an instant “earworm,” the tune that sticks in your head and will not go away. “Cockles and mussels, alive, alive-oh” indeed!
