Category Archives: A RESTAURANT LISTING…

$ Budget (under $30), Commentary, St. Matthews, Westport Village, and environs, World Food

La Colombiana offers up South American treats

food on plate
Bandeja Paisa at La Columbiana

LEO’s Eats with LouisvilleHotBytes

Our city is blessed with Latino treats. In addition to a flotilla of taquerias, we’ve got landmarks like Bruce Ucán’s Mayan Café with its Mayan fare from Yucatan and Guatemala, and Anthony Lamas’ Seviche with its Nuevo Latino smorgasbord of goodies from Sonora to Tierra del Fuego.

So why do we remain cursed with a widespread attitude among diners that South of the Border food consists of tacos, burritos and guacamole all the way down?

The cuisines of the Western Hemisphere, from Mexico through Central America and down through South America, are as rich and diverse as, well, the cuisines of our 50 states.

Last month, we gained another new flavor of Hispanic America as La Colombiana — the region’s first Colombian restaurant — opened in Lyndon in the shopping center quarters vacated by FireFresh Barbecue.
Continue reading La Colombiana offers up South American treats →

$ Budget (under $30), Coffee Shops & Desserts, Frankfort Ave., Clifton, Crescent Hill

Hot breakfast at Heine’s?

LEO’s Eats with LouisvilleHotBytes

Just out the pike from the Clifton J. Gumbo’s, the classic Crescent Hill storefront that houses the Frankfort Avenue branch of Heine Brothers Coffee has long been an appealing place to grab coffee, tea or espresso and a pastry or dessert.

Not long ago, the addition of a breakfast panini made Heine’s a reasonable option when you’re in the mood for a quick, hot breakfast.
Continue reading Hot breakfast at Heine’s? →

$ Budget (under $30), Commentary, Pubs, Brew Pubs, GastroPubs, St. Matthews, Westport Village, and environs

Molly Malone’s alive, alive-oh in St. Matthews’ fair city

mussels, red sauce, white plate

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!

In Louisville, however, Molly Malone gains quick recognition as one of the region’s many amiable Irish pubs. Continue reading Molly Malone’s alive, alive-oh in St. Matthews’ fair city →

$ Budget (under $30), Bistros, Commentary, Downtown, NuLu and Butchertown

Good eats among the antiques at Michele’s On Goss

eggs Benedict
Michelle’s Eggs Benedict

LEO’s Eats with LouisvilleHotBytes

Early in April, Michele Brinke took over as owner of the restaurant in the Goss Avenue Antique Mall, renaming it from Olivia’s to Michele’s On Goss. Chef Travis Hall moved on to focus on his school nutrition business, and Brinke is now joined by Sous Chef Philip Hess.

Brinke, who among other things joined her husband, Bob, as co-chef of the short-lived but excellent Chef’s Table in Old Louisville and worked at Highland Fish Market in Middletown, brings plenty of experience to this sizable space. She already has put her stamp on the menu and the service at this lunch and brunch-only eatery.
Continue reading Good eats among the antiques at Michele’s On Goss →

$$$ Upscale ( $50 - $80), Baxter, Bardstown, Highlands, Commentary, Pacific Rim

Wasabiya serves creative sushi, but not without a few flaws

sushi roll

All right, who ordered all this raw fish? At the rate things are going, the city’s Bardstown-Baxter strip is going to have to change its nickname from restaurant row to something like … well, how does “The Boulevard of Bistros and Sushi Bars” sound?
Continue reading Wasabiya serves creative sushi, but not without a few flaws →

$ Budget (under $30), Commentary, St. Matthews, Westport Village, and environs, World Food

Istanbul Palace introduces Turkish fare

meat, rice, sauce
Doner plate at Instanbul Palace

Voice-Tribune review by LouisvilleHotBytes

Louisville’s first Turkish restaurant has settled down in the East End, as Istanbul Palace, a popular spot in Lexington, has now moved to our town.

If you reckon you might enjoy Turkish food because you love turkey on Thanksgiving, you may want to re-think that: Despite the apparent coincidence of names, the turkey does not come to us from Turkey with a capital T. It’s a North American bird, most likely named by early settlers based on what they thought they heard the American Indians say.

Turkish food, to the casual observer, might seem to resemble Greek food, but I’d be careful about that, too: Turkey and Greece, both of which have been major world powers in their time, have a long record of rivalry, and sadly that relationship has had its rocky periods.
Continue reading Istanbul Palace introduces Turkish fare →

$$ Modest ($30-$50), Commentary, Pubs, Brew Pubs, GastroPubs, Southern Indiana

Lots to like about Bank Street Brewhouse

plate of mussels
Mussels at Bank Street Brewhouse

LEO’s Eats with LouisvilleHotBytes

We arrived at Bank Street Brewhouse on a beautiful late-spring afternoon. The temperature was in the balmy upper 70s, the breezes were gentle, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.

I looked longingly at the four round patio tables out front and whispered to my bride how frustrating it is that the outdoor dining section has become the de facto smoking section for many Metro eateries.

The server must have overheard me. “Those tables are no-smoking,” she said with a smile. “Take your pick.”
Continue reading Lots to like about Bank Street Brewhouse →

$ Budget (under $30), Baxter, Bardstown, Highlands, Commentary, World Food

Breakfast is finger food at Queen of Sheba

plate of small food items
Breakfast plate at Queen of Sheba

LEO’s Eats with LouisvilleHotBytes

Let’s face it: Breakfast can be as boring as, well, a bowl of oatmeal. Even such treats as ham and eggs and crispy bacon just don’t get one’s motor running in the morning anymore. Mexican desayuno at Zapata’s Corner or migas and breakfast tacos at North End Café? Been there, done that. Even the rolling carts of Chinese snacks at Jade Palace’s dim sum seem so familiar now.

Not that any of these breakfast or brunch options are bad, mind you, but if they no longer bring the exciting shock of the new, perhaps it’s time to wheel over to Queen of Sheba on a Sunday to check out an Ethiopian breakfast.
Continue reading Breakfast is finger food at Queen of Sheba →