I have a personal conflict about sharing all the different things I eat when I explore new food scenes. Sometimes, I don’t make the time to write out a blog post for each experience, but more often than not, a lot of places just don’t inspire me to write a full blog post. Following me on Instagram (@blackgirlmeetsworld) is the best way to see where my foodie adventures take me, but I’ve decided to start compiling food diaries by city. After spending a week bouncing around the Louisville, here’s my rundown of the food scene. Since my sister lives there now, I’m sure I’ll be back and may update this list as I go.
Royal’s Hot Chicken
Located in the East Market District, Royal’s Hot Chicken was one of the top rated restaurants on our must-visit list. Unfortunately, the Nashville style hot chicken did abosolutely nothing for me but the set the tone of being underwhelmed by Louisville’s
I ordered the “Kinda Hot” chicken sandwich with broccoli slaw and mac and cheese. Unfortunately, disappointment doesn’t begin to describe how I felt when I dug into the blandest sides I’ve ever had. The only redeeming quality of either sides were that they helped quell the hellfire that was the “Kinda Hot” sauce the sandwich was tossed in. I’ve never experienced such a mouth numbing reaction to spicy food, and I love spicy food.
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Babie Bac’z Good Grill – BBQ
The customer service is endearing. The owner and staff took the time to properly welcome us to Louisville, and give us the rundown on how to make the most of my brief time in the city.
While the hospitality delivered a home run, the barbecue came up short for me. As a Texas gal, my BBQ philosophy is the smoke ring is king and BBQ sauce should be optional. Yes, the ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender. However, the ribs appeared to be baked then finished on the pit and slathered in a thick BBQ sauce to bring them together. Just not my preference. The sweet potato casserole hit, though.
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Havana Rumba – Cuban
With both Caipirinhas and Mojitos on the menu, I’d describe it as more of a Cuban/Brazilian fusion restaurant. Imagine my excitement when I saw some of my favorite foods that reminded me of my trip to Havana, Cuba?!
Read my full review of Havana Rumba here.
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Graeter’s Ice Cream – Dessert
After dinner at Havana Rumba, I walked next door for dessert at Graeter’s, a regional ice cream shop that serves a high quality, handcrafted ice cream. They had all the classics like and . They also have a few signature ice creams like their Black raspberry chocolate chip and Buckeye Blitz – chocolate peanut butter ice cream, peanut butter cookie dough and their signature dark chocolate chips.
I opted for the S’mores ice cream in a chocolate dipped cone. The ice cream has a graham cracker flavored base with large chunks of chocolate and gooey marshmallows. I enjoyed this scoop and briefly considered the logistics of sneaking a pint onto the plane. Luckily, Graeter’s is available to order online.
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El Molcajete – Mexican
Once featured on Travel Channel’s The Zimmern List with Andrew Zimmern, this South Louisville Mexican restaurant is charming and a great value!
Admittedly, I didn’t expect to get good Mexican food in Louisville, but the cashier at Trader Joe’s recommended this hole in the wall and told me I wouldn’t regret it. Read my review here.
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Momma’s Mustard, Pickles & BBQ – Southern
My search for burnt ends, the delicious cut of the pointy ends of brisket, led me Momma’s Mustard, Pickles & BBQ. Known for their Kansas City style BBQ and secret family recipe for mustard and pickes, the St. Matthew bbq place was a cool choice for my last dinner in Louisville.
I ordered the burnt ends with mac and cheese and potato salad, plus a side of sweet cornbread. The Burnt ends weren’t that burnt, but they had a good, smoky flavor and tasted even better with Momma’s hot bbq sauce. I wasn’t a fan of the mac n cheese, but the potato salad and cornbread more than made up for it. I prefer mustard-based potato salad and Momma’s naturally uses their famous mustard for this dish.
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After a week of eating our way through local recommendations, I figured my foodie adventures were a more or less a bust! Lucky for me, my last stop before heading to the airport was the saving grace.
Boujie Biscuit – Breakfast/Brunch
At Bougie Biscuit, the premise is simple: delicious comfort meals served on a square, buttermilk biscuit. Sounds wild, right? It’s the best thing I ate and single-handedly redeemed the city’s food scene for me. Surely if something this delicious was here, I could be open to give Louisville another chance during my next visit.
Check out my full review of Boujie Biscuit here.
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BGMWeats Overall Rating for Louisville:
I am well aware that 5-7 restaurants don’t define a city’s food scene. However, most of the restaurants I visited are at the top of every Louisville restaurant recommendation list, so I think I had a good sample size. I just don’t consider Louisville a foodie city, but I’m not writing the place off as a whole. I’ll be back and am open to exploring more options, but I’ll never forget my first impression. Where do you like to eat in Louisville?
