Lexington Restaurants

This is a restaurang I've tried to visit but friends tell me it is one of the best in Kentucky!! I WILL get there!. Furlongs, creator Tommy Walters hails from Lafayette, Louisiana, where he grew up cooking alongside his father, noted Cajun chef Roland Walters.

Favorite Dish: In addition to wonderful cajun food, my friends tell me that the selection of America's National Spirit -- Bourbon whiskey -- is wonderful here.

I've listed several local favorites for eating outdoors: Dudley's has a bricked in patio. This restaurant is located in an old school building built about 1884 on Maxwell street between Mill and Upper, near UK. Chefs usually have interesting selections.

The Merrick Inn located on Tates Creek Road (3380 Tates Creek Rd.) just off New Circle Road is in an old restored house in a complex of apartments. Casual, yet upscale food. (though some critics might find atmosphere stuffy). This is a favorite of racing fans that come to Lexington during Keeneland's spring and fall meets. Reservations highly recommended at that time.

The Cheapside Bar and Grill, located at 131 Cheapside next to the old court house on Main street is a good place to mingle with Lexington's young single professionals after work downtown and have a drink while listening to a local band.

Favorite Dish: These three restaurants have stayed in business for many years because they have consistently good food and service. If you like dining outdoors (in good weather), you can't go wrong with any of these. Dudelys and Merrick Inn are more upscale. Cheapside would appeal more to the single crowd.

Ever had that Kentucky classic, burgoo? What about a mile-high corned beef sandwich? How about bread pudding with Keeneland's very own Maker's Mark bourbon sauce? If you haven't sampled some of these delectables, then you don't know what you're missing.

Keeneland is almost as well-known for its great food as it is for its great racing.

Equestrian Room is located on the ground floor of the grandstand adjacent to the finish line, this casual dining room offers an a-la-carte menu with appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches and light entrees. Sandwiches and entrees range from $7.95 to $10.95. Individual and small groups are welcome.

EVEN THE CONCESSIONS STANDS offer Burgoo and Bread Pudding!!

Favorite Dish: Burgoo!! Burgoo is a savory stew made from a varying array of ingredients. The meats could include any or all of the following meats: mutton (sheep/lamb), beef, pork, chicken, veal or opossum. You will also find some combination of these vegetables: potatoes, corn, lima beans, tomatoes, or okra. Of course there are also many spices to choose from as well

A bit of a conglomerate restaurant “complex” in a “strip mall” at the corner of Lyon and Harrodsburg Road almost at Man O’War, Malone’s is an excellent place to find steak or seafood. The “strip mall” location is a bit deceiving as the place seems to be crowded all the time. Reservations are most definitely recommended but same day reservations are not uncommon. At 1:00 PM we had options of 5:00PM or 8:00PM and beyond. We chose 8:00PM and found a packed house when we arrived.

The wait staff was very attentive, knowledgeable and ready to get you whatever you needed. The steaks are (from our experience) done to your order, but beware when ordering rare as it may be done correctly when it leaves the broiler but might cool a bit on the 30+ foot walk to the table. The wine list is good; not extensive, but it has a bit of everything from local Kentucky wines to high end California wines (you will not however like the price of the CA wines).

Prices for the entrees are high but well within the realm of what you are getting. Instead of a Prime cut, a Choice filet will be significantly less and for my money tastes just as good if not better.

The King Crab was wonderful. Done to perfection and the candle lit / heated butter dish was just the right touch to ensure your butter dip did not get cold.

Favorite Dish: Steak and King Crab! Outstanding.

While shopping at the local supermarket we spyed a sign that said FREE WIFI. Since we needed a wireless Internet connection to get four computers going all at the same time, this became our lunch stop.

Located in the Palomar Center "strip mall" at the intersection of Lyon and Harrodsburg Road we found a very comfortable "local" establishment.

The owner, Tom O Brien, noticed that we were part of the horse crowd in town for the World Equestrian Games was quick to stop by our table and welcome us to town. I suspect that even if the games were not being held, he'd stop by anyway just to say hello and greet people.

Favorite Dish: Burgers.....Burgers....Burgers....Ok, and beer. If we lived in Lexington, this could become my favorite haunt. Although it's technically a "chain" each are individually owned. This one has friendly people and good food. It's nothing fancy but everything was done to perfection. We even got our fries extra crispy on the first try.

2 more images

On a recommendation from a local store owner we attempted to dine at Giuseppe’s one night only to find that not only were there no parking places in the parking lot or within a ¼ mile of the restaurant there was at least a 2 hour wait for the occasional “walk-in” patron. That said we grabbed a business card and called for a reservation a few days in the future.

Located on a hard to see side road just off of Nicholasville Road about a mile past the Fayette Mall we arrived to find an unpretentious but comfortable looking building with a bar on the right side and a nicely appointed dining room on the left. Booths ran around the outer area of the dining room while a raised floor with tables was in the center. The menu was not overly extensive but carried 6-8 items for most every category one would want from an Italian restaurant.

The wine list too was not extensive but the 6-8 (5x7) pages carried an impressive list. Wines ranged from ordinary Italian and US “table wines” to bottles one would expect to find in only 5* venues (Jordon, Opus, Quintessa). The best part was the price. A bottle of Quintessa or Opus that retails for well over $125 at the winery was priced at only $170-200. The food was just as good. Entrees were priced from $12-24 and were prepared perfectly.

Favorite Dish: I had the Chicken Marsala and it was excellent. Comments from others that had Lasagna, Pasta Bolognese were similar.

2 more images

Located on Short Street just two blocks off of Broadway (one of the main roads through town) this boisterous bar is definitely designed for those out for drinks and munchies and not an older “dinner crowd.” There is an extensive outside bar area that does a great business. There is even a bar on the sidewalk to ensure you are never without while waiting. The specialty drink menu is almost as large as the food menu.

Since the town was over crowded due to the World Equestrian Games, there was a long wait for entrees so we ordered an appetizer; The spinach dip was excellent. We were warned the wait for the entrees would be long due to the crowds; the wait was not as bad as anticipated, but some of the entrees were not “up to par.” The Black Bean soup was quite bland and the salad rather wilted. The Chicken l’orange on the other hand was taste, even if quite over cooked.

It was obvious the place was more of a bar and was quite overwhelmed by the crowded. Our young student waiter was quite polite and very attentive. We did have to teach him a bit about serving wine as he brought our California Red in an ice bucket; an omission he continued to apologize profusely about.

Ramsey’s – There are now multiple locations, but we went to the one located on the outskirts of Lexington on Harrodsburg Road (actually near “Old Harrodsburg Road”). Looking like it had been located in the area for many years and perhaps saved only by history when the “new road” was built.

The menu is not very extensive but has all the basics including “Hot Brown,” a local favorite (normally enough for 4 on one plate). The portions are typically large for the price. The menu consists of a list of meats and a list of vegetables. Most meals consist of choosing one meat and up to three vegetables.

Upon first glance, I noted that any restaurant that considered “Mac and Cheese” a vegetable, had to be good.

Favorite Dish: The meatloaf was excellent. Not too “mushy” as some commercial products tend to be; just the right seasoning and lots of it. The creamed corn was excellent (and I don’t typically like creamed corn). The beans were only “so, so” but all in our group tend to like beans with a bit of flavor; these were rather bland, which may be the style in the area. The “small side” salads were huge; in addition to lettuce, they add tomatoes, eggs, and cheese in amounts equal to the lettuce making for a large plate.