Road Trip - 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY (Revisit)

It had been a few years since hubby and I had eaten at 610 Magnolia in Louisville, so when it got close to our anniversary and we hadn’t planned anything, hubby mentioned that he would really like to go back. The last meal we had there was one of the best we’d had in the Midwest, so we were excited to try it again. Chef Ed Lee’s cookbook, Smoke and Pickles is a great one, although somewhat complicated to actually cook from.

The way the menu is set up, you can get either a 4 course for $75 per person or a 6 course for $95 per person. The 6 course is the same as the 4, but just adds a couple of extra courses. I was really intrigued by the specifics of two extra courses, but we knew from our last experience that the 4 course was more than enough for us, so that’s what we went for.

They first bring you a little amuse—it has been the same both times we have been, and I think its their classic—it’s a little “BLT”  but with roasted tomato and bacon mixed in with the the “L,” which stands for liver—as in foie gras. It’s on buttery, toasty bread and is just a little bite (or two) of perfection. We joked about how hard it would be to work in that kitchen and not want to just snack on these all day long.

For our second course, we both had the charcuterie salad with shaved Brussels sprouts and endive mixed with pork threads and shaved foe gras, black radish bottarga, and Concord grape. It was topped with charred orange vinaigrette. I liked this salad a fair amount, particularly when you got a bite with the rich and creamy foie gras, but I can’t say I was over the moon about it. It was a good and interesting salad, but didn’t have any one thing that made it really stand out for me. Normally hubby and I get two different items for each course to try as much as possible—this was the only one we doubled up on as the other option was gazpacho, of which neither of us are big fans.

The next course though, we were back to trying two things and got one of each of the options offered here. Both were outstanding. Looking back, this was probably our favorite course of the night. The first was a seared scallop with uni, broken Carolina rice, pickled seaweed, grapefruit, pumpkin seeds and miso cured egg yolk. I loved this dish not only for it’s intense flavors—richness from the uni and the egg, acid from the seaweed and grapefruit and the perfectly cooked scallop—but also because it was a flavor combination that was very unique. The ingredients were all familiar, but put together in a way that made it seem like something you’ve never had before. The pepitas for instance mixed into the seaweed—a nice little crunch in the salad. The seaweed reminded you of a sushi taste, but the blast from the grapefruit changed that too. Really well done, even for a girl who sometimes feels like she has been overfed with scallops.

The other fish dish in this course was the “fish fry,” which was just as delicious, but totally different. There were four or five pieces of perfectly tempura-fried white fish mixed with super thin sliced and fried vegetable chips. Nothing was greasy at all, and all had the perfect crunch factor. The whole thing was drizzled with remoulade and chili-citrus hot sauce, giving it all the right amount of creamy/spicy/acid. It was perfect sharing both of these because I don’t think I necessarily would have wanted the whole fish fry to myself, but with the completely different seafood dish, it was just right.

The next course was the heavier protein course, and there were three choices here. We went with the pork dish and the beef dish. Of the two, the beef was the better one. It was called “steak and eggs” on the menu and consisted of a nice hunk of steak that was cooked nicely medium rare with vegetable hash on the side—it had nice crispy buttery tasting potatoes with squash and mushrooms mixed in on top of a Chimichurri sauce. And there was a perfectly poached egg sitting atop the potatoes. The steak itself sat on top of a Bordelaise sauce. I loved the hash—not sure what they were cooking it all in, but it tasted decadent. Maybe something like duck fat was involved? The steak was also good, but after cracking that egg into the potatoes, I was in love with that side of the plate.

The pork dish was not as exciting and the pork loin part of it was a touch on the dry side. The pork belly part was nice. It had that silky fatty taste without feeling gelatinous, the way pork belly sometimes can. It was served with sweet corn grits, Concord grape mostarda, grilled figs and candied beets. Something about this dish just didn’t let it get past the individual parts of it for me to turn it into a cohesive dish—although the grits and pork belly together were delightful.

For dessert we chose the cheese plate and the cornmeal cake. The cheese plate was the other highlight of the meal. It was simple as far as the amount of cheeses—but all the accompaniments made it into something really special. Just the super thin toasted slices of walnut raisin bread alone were great with it. I love it when a restaurant takes the time to make the bread with a cheese plate special. I also love it when it’s cut really thin so you can really appreciate the cheese flavor without being overwhelmed with bread that’s too, well, bready. There was also fresh fruit—pomegranate, apples and figs, but also a lovely jam. We ended up needing some extra bread to eat it all, which they happily brought us. Superb.

The cornmeal cake was unique, and good, but just didn’t stand up to the strength of the cheese plate. It was small course though—which I appreciated because by the end, you’re feeling pretty full. The cake was small pieces that were very tender—they were accompanied by peaches, berry pudding, corn and buttermilk ice cream. Loved the rich, but with just a hint of sour, flavor of the ice cream. 

We also enjoyed the wine pairing, which they do a really nice job with as far as what they choose. Our only complaint is that depending on your server, your pour size may vary. Our server was very light on the pours—so small that it was hard to make it last through to the course (because they poured it as soon as you finished the course before). We finally just asked for an extra glass of one of the pours to share so that we could have enough to sip on while we waited for our next course. They didn’t end up charging us for it, so I guess it worked out. Speaking of service though, one of the things that we loved about this place the first time was how friendly our server was. He was just chatty enough and always smiling. This time our server seemed like maybe he was having a bad day or something. A  little gruff and a little rushed at times, even though the restaurant wasn’t super full when we first arrived. We didn’t see Chef Lee milling around this time either, but since our last visit, he’s had lots of good press and is busy opening other new restaurants so he probably wasn’t there.

All in all, it’s still a great restaurant, with a great homey atmosphere and we still look forward to returning, even if this visit wasn’t quite as spectacular as our first. Maybe we just set our expectations too high. One of these days I want to get over to Milkwood (Chef Lee’s other restaurant in Louisville) and try it as well. It sounds delicious.

610 Magnolia

610 Magnolia 

Lousiville, KY 40208

502/636-0783

www.610magnolia.com 

Road Trip - 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY

Man.  You know those meals you can’t stop thinking about? This was so one of them.  I have been looking forward to writing about this since I ate the meal.  610 Magnolia is set in a inconspicuous old house—honestly, other than the little lighted numbers, you wouldn’t even know there was a restaurant in there. You walk in to a very warm, inviting environment though (I really didn’t know what to expect based on the exterior). Lots of wood and dark slate gray.  I liked the feel of it right away. You knew you were in a nice place, but I don’t think anyone would feel out of place regardless of how they are dressed.

Chef Edward Lee has quite the accolades. He has won Iron Chef, was a favorite on Top Chef, and is on the list of James Beard semi-finalists for best Chef in the Southeast region.  And the food, well, the food speaks for itself.  It is a three or four course set price menu (3 courses are $55, 4 courses are $65). They also do a wine pairing ($45 and $55 depending on how many courses you get). You have a choice from at least 3 options for each course, and this was a menu that was hard to choose because so many things sounded good. Luckily hubby and I are very good at sharing and we ordered different courses the entire way through and split them.

The first course was actually an amuse bouche, so in the end you got a little extra.  This included 3 little things—a crisp Brussels sprout leave with chestnut puree, a slice of daikon with hummus (great rich flavor in the hummus) and a little sandwich with pork belly. This little bite was rich, and meaty and really delicious.

Our first ordered courses were lobster bisque and the raw Ahi tuna.  The tuna was so interesting—two sliced of beautiful fresh tuna topped with pieces of lardo (essentially thin cut pork fat). It was served in a chestnut and bay leaf sauce with a bourbon soy glaze and bacon powder.  I was sort of wondering how these flavors would blend with the tuna, but everything was amazing. The tuna was fresh and light, but the other things complimented it well turning it into a rich, decadent dish.  The bisque was also really good, and had a little lobster salad with pieces of lobster and greens.  It had nice little spicy kick to it to, making it stand out from other lobster bisques I have had.

Before I forget, they had a lovely bread service as well—both visually and taste wise.  The sliced bread from the local Blue Dog bakery (which we have enjoyed immensely in other restaurants in Louisville as well) was served in a little wooden basket and accompanied by soft tarragon butter that was amazing.

The next course was Carpaccio and a salad.  Both were really great, but honestly, as much as I love Carpaccio, I may have even liked the salad more.  It was local Bibb lettuce with little patties of warm blue cheese alongside.  There were julienne pieces of apples, hazelnut brittle, bacon, and a fennel vinaigrette.  I loved the way the blue cheese was warm, because it really brought out its flavor.  And the sweetness of the apples and brittle were great with it.  The Carpaccio was also really good.  The beef was thinly sliced on the bottom, with shaved foie gras all over the top. There was a little salad as well, and bits of crisp shallots and the most amazing little fried capers that were totally light and crunchy.  The salad was dressed with a light vinaigrette and had mustard oil as well.  For me, mustard is the perfect flavor to go along with Carpaccio, and they did it a very refined, but delicious, way.  Loved the additional richness from the foie gras, as if the perfect raw beef wasn’t enough.

The main dishes for us were the salmon and the wild boar.  I will have to say, this was the only course I had a hard time sharing because the salmon was so, so good.  (I am showing you a picture of it as served as well as after I deconstructed it a bit, just so you can see all the amazing looking ingredients that are kind of hidden in the initial presentation.) Wow, a perfectly cooked piece of fish on top of roasted fingerling potatoes—perfectly tender and perfectly crisp on the outside. The whole thing was topped with a pistachio brown butter puree and served on top of a nice little pile of melted leeks and Meyer lemon.  All of my favorite things. Melty soft, mild leeks, a nice lemony sauce, but with the little bit of sweetness that Meyer lemons have.  And beautiful potatoes.  There was also a nice side of broccolini.  I appreciated the well-balanced meal. And this main dish was quite a fair portion.

The boar was also very good—I don’t know if I have ever had boar in the form of chops. They were maybe cooked just a little further than I generally like meat, but had a nice, just barely game-ish flavor.  There was also an amazingly tender piece of boar shoulder that was really the star of this dish, even though the chops made it look impressive. There was also a black-eyed pea ragout which hubby loved—super flavorful beans, as well as some greens.  The dish was also flavored with rosemary and Guinness.  Really hearty, rustic type of meal.  Unusual in its main ingredient, but very comforting and familiar flavor profile.  Still, if I went back to the same menu, there is no way I would not order that salmon.

We just got one dessert to share (one of us got 3 courses, one got 4) and it was also very good (I am telling you this is one of the best top to bottom meals I have had in quite awhile.)  While we toyed with the idea of the cheese plate option, we ended up with the lemon panna cotta, probably because of the passion fruit element, which hubby and I are both suckers for.  It had a passion fruit cream, macadamia caramel, yuzu candy, yogurt and kaffir ice cream.  Loved all the tangy, fruity flavors going on in this dish, including in the ice cream. They also topped us off with some Bourbon chocolate bon bons just to give us the final chocolate pop. Perfect.

The wine pairings were great as well, and because they have a retail license as well, you can buy any bottles you particularly like—for us, that was nearly all of them, so we came home with several bottles of wine. I like being able to try them later in isolation to see if we like them as much as we remember.  So far, we do.  The service was also great—our server was super personable, not being snooty at all, but was happy to discuss anything on the menu, and to wonder with us about a table next to us that abruptly got up and left before ordering anything.

It was a great evening of great food and a wonderful experience. We are already planning a trip back with a group of friends because I want to share this one with some other people.

610 Magnolia

610 Magnolia  Ave

Louisville, KY  40208

502/636-0783

www.610magnolia.com

Road Trip: Seviche--Louisville

Hubby and I took off for Louisville recently for just a quick little getaway.  I have a long list of places to eat in Louisville and had a hard time deciding which one to go to this time.  But Seviche was recommended by several people, and just sounded good to me.  If it were cold and wintry, I would have probably gone a different direction, but it was still warm and ceviches sounded good.  The restaurant serves other things as well, and bills itself as a Latin restaurant.  The walls near the bathroom were loaded with lots of press about the Chef, Anthony Lamas, and he appears to have some serious credentials.

Honestly, the starters and ceviches all sounded so good, we decided to blow off the main dishes (some of the mains coming out to other tables didn’t look as exciting to me) and just get a couple of starters and a giant plate of ceviches to share.  We started with the Kentucky bison empanadas (they also have chicken empanadas and mushroom and goat cheese empanadas) ($9) and the chicken tostada ($11).  We were really torn about which flavor of empanadas to get, but went with red meat since we knew we were about to get a giant plate of mainly seafood.

The empanada was quite tasty—the pastry was perfectly done and obviously freshly made.  It was just light and flaky enough, but could hold up to the ground bison inside which was quite tender.   It was served on top of a sauce made from avocado and cilantro and jalapenos. Similar in flavor to guacamole perhaps, but a much smoother, thinner consistency. It was delicious. If I had any complaint, I just wished for more of that sauce (partly because hubby ate a little more than his fair share if you ask me). It was garnished with a nice fresh pico de gallo as well which added a touch of freshness and brightness.

But the tostada was my favorite of the warm appetizers.  It was a crisp tortilla topped with a little Manchego cheese, the most lovely, tender smoked chicken pieces, avocado, and more of the pico de gallo. The whole thing sat in a pool of Poblano demi glace and a bit more of the avocado cream.  The chicken is what made this dish for both of us.  It had a nice smoky flavor, but was so tender as well.  I liked a bit of the demi glace, but a little went a long way. I was glad they served it around the dish so you could sort of take as much as you wanted. Although, it would be hard to not order this one again, I would also be tempted by the chicken empanada if it is made with the same chicken. Although there were many, many other items I really wanted to try on the appetizer menu, so if I return, I will force myself to try something new (probably).

We got the sampler of 5 different ceviches—you get to make your own choices, although a couple of items have an up charge, for $41.  But that was split between both of us and served as our main dish.  We had, as mentioned, the crab, the beef (their version of carpaccio), the tuna tacuitos, the wahoo, and the shrimp.  Our favorites were definitely the tuna and the wahoo.  The tuna was chopped tuna which was well seasoned with lime and yuzu and served in little teeny taco shells.  The tuna in this case was chopped into small pieces, sort of tartare style.  The wahoo was served tiradito style which means in slices (think more like sashimi). And the seasonings were slightly more Asian in style as well—there was soy, chile and ginger and some nice slices of red onion on top.  This dish was great in its simplicity, but also because the fish was so good. I appreciated the texture variation of the onion as well. Next, in order of preference probably would have been the crab.  It was lump crab meat served with chopped and sliced tomato.  The crab wasn’t overly exciting, it seemed like it could be really good quality canned to be honest.  The tomatoes were nice and sweet and I liked the swipe of lemon cilantro sauce underneath, but it needed more of the seasoning.  The bites of everything together were good, but we ran out of the sauce way before we ran out of crab and tomatoes. Next was the beef. It was also served tiradito style, and similar to the fish, was cut in about the same thickness as sashimi.  It was also seared on the edges, as well as being marinated. The seasonings here were toasted garlic and Serrano chiles.  It wasn’t bad, but there was nothing really making this stand out for me. And with beef served raw (or raw-ish), I prefer either really thin slices (a la carpaccio) or finely chopped (a la tartare).  These were just a little too thick. Lastly was the shrimp.  The shrimp were whole and served in what I am assuming was the marinade, which had little flavor. Thus, the shrimp also had little flavor.  And they were tough. There were some fresh slices of avocado on top, as well as some fresh tomato dices, but it needed more than that. The shrimp was a definite pass.  I would certainly get the tuna tacuitos and the wahoo again, but next time I would try some of the specials (should have had that bass).  Or maybe get a sampler of three of the ceviches ($25) and try another one of those delicious sounding appetizers.

Dessert.  Oh my. Dessert was insanely delicious.  We were torn because there were a couple of things that sounded good, but were intrigued by the special dessert of the day. It was brown butter and macadamia nut ice cream with house made caramel corn that was flash frozen in liquid nitrogen.  The caramel corn was good, and it was interesting eating it really cold, but not mushy at all, but that part of it was not the star. The star was that ice cream. It was also made in house and it was amazing. Seriously, why have I never thought of putting brown butter into ice cream?  That is going to be happening at our house soon.

And hey, since I have this long list of restaurants to try in Louisville, I am wondering, what are your favorite other non-food things to do there?  We’re looking for ideas to kill time between meals.

Seviche

1538 Bardstown Road

Louisville, KY 40205

502/473-8560

www.sevicherestaurant.com