A couple of weeks before heading to Louisville, I was not familiar with Edward Lee. After returning home, I realize Edward Lee basically planned my trip, and to good effect.
Lee is a well-known chef from Louisville. 610 Magnolia is his primary restaurant, though he has other interests in the area. When I started researching Louisville, I read about 610 Magnolia, went to its website, and found out that it’s open Wednesday-Sunday and serves only from a tasting menu. I immediately e-mailed for a reservation. No luck. I was asking about a Wednesday, so I had some hope. But I went about my trip planning, thinking a visit to 610 Magnolia might not pan out.
Later online, I found an interview Edward Lee did with Andrew Zimmern. The subject was what to do in Louisville. Lee recommended staying at Gralehaus, part of the Grales family. I looked into that, it seemed cool, so I booked it. Gralehaus was cool. I added the Beer Lover’s package to my room, and four unique beers awaited me in the mini-fridge when I checked in. The room was dark and smartly decorated. It looked down into the biergarten, but the biergarten wasn’t open on Tuesday night. The room had an old school tape deck with a drawer of tapes I had never heard of. The set up looked too inviting, so after checking in, I put one of the tapes on and listened with headphones to some cool music. Next, I needed to get out and walk around.
I headed toward the Big Four Bridge; this is a pedestrian bridge over the Ohio River that crosses into Indiana and is recommended by any what-to-do-in-Louisville feature. On the way, I passed Cave Hill Cemetery, where Muhammad Ali is buried. It looked inviting, and I wish I had a gone inside to take a look. It’s huge, and you could see all the paths and plentiful green space through the entrance. I kept walking toward the bridge. The walk was too long, probably two miles, but I think I just wanted to get out in the city and explore. It was at times pleasant and at times ill-advised. Pleasant: walking through tree-lined streets near North Campbell Street, looking at lovely old houses. Not pleasant: walking past a desolate rock-crushing plant near the soccer stadium; there were sprinklers running here to tamp down the dust. Nonetheless, I made it to the bridge and walked across.
The bridge was cool, definitely worth doing. There are great views into Louisville and into Indiana. The University of Louisville women’s crew team was practicing below when I walked across. There were a lot of people on the bridge, but it didn’t feel crowded. My plan was to eat at bar Vetti after the bridge, but I was now tired of walking and sitting on the Indiana side.
There were several electric Lime scooters nearby, but the bridge had signs that said no motorized vehicles. I had seen a couple of people go across the bridge on a scooter. I didn’t feel like registering for a new scooter app that I would only use once. I opened Uber to check out my riding options. It was going to be close to $20 to get back into Louisville to the restaurant; I scrolled down, and voila, you can rent a Lime scooter from the Uber app. I did it. I figured I would walk the scooter across the bridge if someone gave me flack for having it on the bridge. No need for that. The GPS inside the scooter apparently knows when you are on the bridge, and the scooter’s motor shuts off. After crossing the river, but still high up on the bridge, you can zoom down using the motor. I enjoyed riding the scooter. It occasionally would turn off even after the bridge, which was annoying, but it was easy and got me past the rock-crushing plant and into bar Vetti for dinner. The scooter rental was about $8. New experience, quick result, cheaper than an Uber, so it was worth it.
Bar Vetti was well-reviewed by the local papers. It’s in the AC hotel, which is a trendy spot on East Market Street which is filled with a lot of cool looking bars, shops, and restaurants.
I sat at the bar and ordered a Caesar salad and pizza. The salad was not great. Atop romaine hearts was a goopy, overly creamy Caesar-like dressing. The addition of granola was nice, but ultimately, I didn’t love it. The pizza was very good; it had a nice crust, good, bright tomato sauce, and quality pepps. They had good, local beers, too.
I got back to the Gralehaus. I couldn’t hear a thing. It apparently started pouring because a large amount of water suddenly was dripping into the room. I quickly scrambled and put some towels down and texted the owner (I think) who was nice about it and offered to let me change rooms. I chose to stay, but it was a little unnverving to temporarily wonder, am I okay in here with the water potentially hitting something electrical. The rain and drips died off, and I felt comfortable enough to sleep soundly through the night. At some point in the morning, I contacted 610 Magnolia again about a reservation–no luck.
This is Golftaco, so I had to visit a taco place in Louisville. I scoured the Courier Journal and the LEO Weekly. LEO ranked Victoria Mexican Restaurant as having the best tacos, and the Courier Journal had Victoria ranked second. There’s a consensus. I need to try it. (Strange side Astros note: one of the taco reviewers in the Courier is current Chronicle writer Danielle Lerner, who covers the Astros.)
There were a few problems with this choice. First, it was pretty far out. Six miles in an Uber took a lot longer in real time than I figured it would. The second issue was that I think I caught the restaurant in an off-peak time. There were two guys sitting at the bar watching music videos. The server was nice, but the place was so unpopulated that I wondered what was going on in the kitchen.
Radishes are always a great touch on tacos. The fresh crunch and contrasting colors work with any meat. Victoria’s radishes looked good, but tasted old. The carnitas taco was my favorite. I also had beef and barbacoa. They were good, not great, and if I were staying in the Highlands or downtown, I would try something closer in. After I was finished, I had to get another Uber.
Next up, the Louisville Slugger museum. I love baseball, but I wasn’t that jazzed about going here, which was a mistake because I fully underestimated the many steps involved in wood bat production. The tour starts off with an informative short movie about the forest in the Northeast where they source all their wood. They discuss the obvious lengthy commitment they must make to growing and harvesting trees. They talk about how they select trees for cutting and how one tree will generate hundreds of bats of different qualities.
There is historical information about the hand-made origins of the bats and talk of all the famous players that have been through the factory.
Now the factory is completely modernized. The bats come off assembly lines. First they are shaped, then wood from the tops and bottoms is removed. They then head to various paint stations, and a sizeable portion of the operation is devoted to mini bat production. There is even a batting cage where you can take some swings with bats cut to different famous players’ dimensions through the years. I hit a few punch line drives. It was fun.
I went back to the hotel. It was rainy. I contacted 610 Magnolia one more time, and there were still no spots. Did I still want to try to go there, even though I had clearly been rebuffed? There’s something about being out of town, feeling like I am on an adventure, that causes me to be much more game for trying different stuff and much more bold in my approach. If I had been told by a restaurant two or three times on the phone that they didn’t have any openings, my general approach would be to obviously not go there. In fact, while home, I wouldn’t even make a second call.
There were no seats available, they had explained. They are small. The message was people who reserve here are intentional, and cancellations are not common. Don’t come here, bro.
I went anyway. I wanted to walk around the University of Louisville campus, which is near 610 Magnolia. I figured if there was a cancellation, it would be better if I was in the area able to pounce on any opening. I took an Uber to UL. UL was green, lovely, with many brick buildings. Not unlike a lot of college campuses. Nearby though is a neighborhood called Old Louisville. Old Louisville was awesome. The streets, particularly St. James Court, are lined with well-kept, old Victorian houses. There was a sense of open space and calmness when I walked it. It was really enjoyable.
I approached 610 Magnolia cautiously, unsure whether there might be large windows where everyone would see me loitering outside and then getting rejected.
It’s a converted old house. There are no such modern floor-to-ceiling windows. If not for the neon “610” sign, you probably wouldn’t think anything was there. I walked in the door. There is a makeshift 5 foot or so hallway as you enter, literally some paneling hung from the ceiling. I wanted to be discrete—I would wait for someone to approach me. There were a couple of servers who peeked their heads in or looked at me, but nothing happened for five or more minutes. Finally, a server asked me if I had reservations. I explained my situation. This would be my only chance at such a meal. I really was excited about the restaurant. He understood. He wanted to help. He said he would go and speak to the manager and the chefs across the street and get back with me. I hung around outside. He came back, said it was doubtful, but then there was a pause. He said there was a person scheduled for the bar who hadn’t showed up yet. He would check. I waited, hopeful, but doubtful. He came back out in a few minutes and said you’re in.
What is it about eating at a nice restaurant that you just know is going to have great food? There is little that is more exciting to me–the anticipation, the drinks and bites leading up to the meal, the good cheer in the room.
The amouse bouche is a “610 B.L.T.,” bacon, liver, and tomato. After the fact, I learned that the liver is foie gras and am still not sure if there are tomatoes. But this is a phenomenal bite. In one sense, it is like a grilled chese with buttered and fried bread with cheese inside. In another, the salty-complex flavors of the pate/bacon mix, it is not anything like the humble grilled cheese.
The kingfish crudo had a perfect balance of brininess and brightness. Paired with a dry sparkling wine by the Italian maker Contratto, it made for an ideal, light start to the meal.
The agnolotti was off-the-charts good. The pasta was perfectly cooked, and the strong olive flavor hitting against the delicate cheese with chopped almonds interspersed throughout was sublime. The main course of rack of lamb with red peas felt like a more local, southern dish–of course it was also great. Throughout, the atmosphere was relaxed and calm, the servers were attentive, and the pacing of the meal was again, perfect. The dessert of brown butter ice cream and cake placed in a glass with corn kernels, smoke (actual smoke), and Pappy-infused syrup was unique and delicious.
Great restaurants inspire big feelings. As I overlooked the room slightly perched on a barstool, I observed a couple arguing nearby and saw a man propose to his girlfriend across the room. (When she said yes, this was very subtly acknowledged by the staff with an almost silent clap of hands.) I almost offered to take some pictures of them, which is totally out of character, but I was full of warm feelings. Two others celebrated a birthday that night. Big things were happening at 610 on a regular Wednesday night in October.
I feel like the meal at 610 Magnolia will be etched in my mind for as long as I am able to remember good meals. Every aspect–service, food, drink, atmosphere–was superb. It’s fitting that Edward Lee’s restaurant provided the singular Louisville experience on my Edward Lee-planned-trip itinerary.