Restaurants | Gourmandistan

Sorghum-braised belly, one benefit of being an ex-reviewer

June 22, 2014 by Steve

When Steve was reviewing Louisville restaurants, he mostly wanted to remain anonymous. While that practice (along with the profession) is dwindling today, during the decade-plus he was writing reviews, Steve shunned chefs and took pride in his Zelig-like ability to escape notice even when they did meet him as a diner. Now, as Editor of Louisville’s edition of Eater.com, Steve is supposed to hobnob with all sorts of industry folks—something he’s still a bit uncomfortable doing after all those years of anonymity. But hobnob he has, […]

Categories: Cooking, Food, Pork, Recipes, Restaurants

Guy Savoy, blood orange tart and the meal that almost wasn’t

March 31, 2014 by Michelle

We purchased our copy of Guy Savoy’s 120 recettes comme à la maison in January 2001, the day after we dined at his then-two-Michelin-starred restaurant near the Arc de Triomphe. The day before our cookbook purchase began with Steve learning (having slept through it) that Michelle had spent the night on our chic Paris hotel’s bathroom floor sick with food poisoning (oysters blamed), followed by her announcement that we should probably cancel our dinner reservation. Michelle was at that point refusing to put anything in […]

Categories: Cooking, Food, France, Fruit Desserts, Orange, Pies & Tarts, Recipes, Restaurants, Vegetarian

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Oxtail Ragout with Olives (and additional cooking time)

January 17, 2014 by Michelle

Gourmandistan is a big supporter of grass-fed beef, so much we sometimes wave at the cows grazing the fields of nearby Foxhollow Farm, knowing we’ll likely see some of them on our dinner plates one day. All that ruminating and roaming keeps “our” cows in shape—something we’ve learned to adjust for in cooking dishes like this delicious Oxtail Ragout with Olives. We debone the tails before serving, as it both makes the dish easier to enjoy and spares Michelle the […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Food, Meats, Old cookbooks, Recipes, Restaurants, Soups & Stews

Saying “Bon Voyage” with Bollito

April 30, 2013 by Michelle

Katie from Katie At The Kitchen Door is a Boston-based blog friend who posts gorgeous photographs, writes insightful cookbook reviews and brims with youthful enthusiasm. She asked us to help out with a guest post while she is on vacation in Italy, hinting that she would like something Italian-themed. We decided to honor one of the only things we enjoyed about Florence, a bollito sandwich. Link here to Katie’s site for the recipe, as well as a tale of our miserable trip to […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Food, Italy, Recipes, Restaurants, Sandwiches

Plagiarizing the Pistachio out of The Purple Pig’s Lemon Panna Cotta

April 12, 2013 by Steve

Providing Bon Appétit Magazine with a recipe for Lemon Panna Cotta with Lemon Marmalade was very nice of Jimmy Bannos, Jr. It may make us seem ungrateful to wish he had included in his published version the sugared pistachios that grace the dessert at The Purple Pig. We’ve enjoyed multiple meals at The Purple Pig, a seemingly always-packed place nestled at the southern tip of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. We’re usually torn between too many choices—from Turkey Leg Confit with Crispy Lentils to Pig’s […]

Categories: Cooking, Custards & Puddings, Food, Fruit Desserts, Jams & Preserves, Lemon, Nuts, Recipes, Restaurants

Refining Rocky Top Relais & Chateaux Roasted Broccoli Salad

March 24, 2013 by Steve

What with the luxury accommodations, lovely scenery and lavish menus, it’s not hard to see why people may confuse Blackberry Farm and Gourmandistan. Here are a few key differences: • While Blackberry Farm remains firmly fixed in the foothills of Eastern Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains, Gourmandistan, when given the proper incentive, tends to wander about the globe. • Relais & Chateaux property catalogs can be found at both places. But Blackberry Farm has them as a proud member of the association, while Gourmandistan merely collects them as […]

Categories: Broccoli, Cooking, Food, Nuts, Recipes, Restaurants, Salad, Vegetarian

Soft-boiled eggs, soldiers and slightly overdoing Michel Bras

December 2, 2012 by Steve

We first found the Relais & Chateaux resort hanging above the Aubrac plateau in 2004, as we fled the food desert known as the Minervois that had been our lovely home for almost a month on our first annual “let’s spend our mythical child’s school tuition” flex-time sojourn to France. While we were utterly charmed by our house, we were almost equally devastated at the discovery all French folk did not necessarily look at food the way Patricia Wells had […]

Categories: Cheese, Cooking, Eggs, Food, France, Recipes, Restaurants, Vegetarian

Tenacity & tok-sel lima beans

October 7, 2012 by Steve

“NuLu” is the trendy term for Louisville’s East Market district, currently reigning over Bardstown Road and Frankfort Avenue as the street deemed “Restaurant Row.” (Non-trendy Louisvillians have many more “restaurant row” streets to choose from. Some of them have battling all-you-can-eat buffets.) Before it was “Nu” East Market was more “Ew”—a place of derelict buildings (complete with actual derelicts!), Christian missions and one amazing chef. Bruce Ucán opened Mayan Café on East Market while many people still automatically locked doors and […]

Categories: Beans, Cooking, Food, Mexico, Recipes, Restaurants, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Sooke and Salad

May 11, 2011 by Michelle

Steve recently celebrated a milestone birthday, and Michelle magnificently arranged for a semi-surprise trip to British Columbia. (It was a “semi-surprise” because Steve was planning on a May baby chick delivery, and needed to be told in advance that the first week wouldn’t be the best choice.) We tremendously enjoyed the entire trip from Vancouver to Victoria by way of Tofino, especially the view from our room at the latter’s Wickaninnish Inn. Who wouldn’t love a thrilling floatplane adventure and […]

Categories: Cooking, Food, Lettuce, Recipes, Restaurants, Salad