Napa River Grill

As I've said, my husband is not culinarily adventurous, so to try a new restaurant, I usually have to scour the menu and make sure there is at least a selection of chicken fingers from which he can partake. (eye roll) While this makes it extremely difficult to try some new restaurants with my sweetie, occasionally I find one that is a home run for us both.

Napa River Grill was just that.

I know, I know. The Louisville Food Geek had never been to the Napa River Grill? For shame! But, as my excuse, see above. I've been drooling over their menu for quite awhile, mentioning it to the husband unit repeatedly, and finally put my foot down that we were going to drop in on this long-time Louisville establishment for lunch.

The location in Westport Village is beautiful and inviting (as nearly every business in Westport Village is). Walking in, we were greeted by a very cordial host and immediately shown to a table. The settings, decor, and ambiance were all impeccable. After looking over the menu, I decided to try a few of the lunchtime choices by ordering the 3-selection lunch, including their signature house-made tomato soup, Atlas Peak Club Sandwich, and the California Spinach Salad. My husband chose to stick with just the soup and the Napa House Salad. Before any of these goodies came out, however, we were graced with their fresh-baked corn bread, served in a small cast-iron skillet and topped with green chile butter. We started to inhale it the second it hit the table. Sweet, buttery, crumbly, but oh-so-soft, and with a little kick of Mexican flavor from the butter, it was unbelievably good.

Next came the soup. A ramekin covered in a glorious puff pastry which you broke through to get to the creamy soup inside. It was a perfect balance of sweet and salty and the pastry was heaven scooped up with it, the taste and texture of the most perfect croissant you can imagine. At first, the serving was intimidating due to its size, but after taking the first bite, you could see the ramekin was only half filled, giving just the right soup-to-pastry ratio.

When the sandwich and salad were brought out, I was further impressed. The sandwich was a pile of tender, flavorful turkey, which is roasted in-house; along with bacon, tomato, lettuce, havarti cheese, avocado, and a chipotle aioli. While I'm not usually a fan of chipotle (many cooks tend to be heavy-handed and the smokiness dominates many dishes), this sandwich had the perfect balance of all flavors. The salad was tasty, the goat cheese was unbelievably creamy and, overall, the salad was well-balanced with little bursts of sweetness from the raisins.

Napa River Grill is definitely a new favorite and I plan to go back soon. The Asian Ahi Nachos are calling my name!

Experimenting

Friday night I decided to give a recipe found on a whisk and a spoon a try. Raw asparagus, pecorino, and red onion salad. I absolutely love asparagus, but had never tried it raw. Which is odd, since I tend to love all my veggies raw, or just very lightly steamed. I want some serious crunch when I take a bite.

I started chopping up the asparagus and tried a raw piece. YUM! Crunchy and bright, and the salty pecorino I just knew would complement it well. I followed the recipe and let the salad sit for awhile in the fridge before spooning up my dinner and I think I would only change a few things when making it again. I'll cut back on the onion a bit, either the one I used was too potent or I used too much, it overpowered the asparagus. Also, I might add something to give it a little sweetness. It just wasn't as balanced as I would like it to be. Maybe a vinaigrette made with the vinegar, oil, and a bit of honey to give it that sweetness.

I paired the salad with a twist on my normal meatloaf. Instead of just mushrooms, green peppers and onions mixed into the basic combo of beef, egg, and breadcrumbs, I used chopped artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, garlic, and sliced baby portobellos. I topped it with spaghetti sauce rather than my usual barbeque sauce. I also had some green onions given to me by a family member that I wanted to try sauteeing.

The outcome? The meatloaf was good, I think I like the original better, but my husband loved it. The onions were horrible. Way too hot and they got tough rather than tender. I'll stick to sauteeing regular old white or yellow onions. I also used what remained of the container of mushrooms and sauteed them in the same pan as the onions with a little soy sauce and some spicy-sweet mustard I had on-hand, and those were perfect. All-in-all, it was a delicious dinner, and I'll definitely make the salad and meatloaf again.

Mmmmm...berries!

My favorite part about spring and summer is all the fresh produce. Particularly, the berries. Raspberries are my first pick, but blue, black, and straw are all well-loved too. The only bad thing is the short time they last when you take them home. But, that just means you have to eat them sooner...and then go buy more!

My breakfast this morning was just a bowl of raspberries and a Kashi bar. Simple and good. But now I need to go stock up on more berries to make fruit salad for my family for tomorrow morning. Darn.

Sunday Morning Coffee

Sometimes it gets lonely with my husband away on business all the time. Sometimes. But other times, I just revel in it!

That's how it was Sunday morning. I slept in a bit, and when I finally rolled out of bed, I decided to treat myself to a coffee and cinnamon roll from Java Brewing Company. I've missed Java. Ever since I left my old workplace, where there was a Java right around the corner, I have only been in a handful of times. I thought it was time to reacquaint myself.

Java is Louisville-based, all the roasting happens in our great city, and I happen to think there is no better cup of coffee anywhere. While I will go to Starbuck's for a latte or macchiato, I won't touch their basic coffee. When I want excellent, flavorful, perfectly roasted and brewed coffee, I go to Java.

So that's where I trundled off to Sunday morning. I decided to visit the location on Highway 42 in Prospect. Just as every other location, Java has the ambiance down pat. There is nowhere else on Earth I would rather curl up with a book and a cup than one of their cushy, well-used leather couches or chairs. The music is always subtle and mellow, and you are perfectly welcome to spend hours there, just hanging out.

I ordered my usual, a "huge" dark roast. It always packs a punch. Pair that with the cinnamon roll, which the baristas are happy to warm up for you, it's just a little slice of coffee heaven. I sat and savored for a good hour, when the barista approached and asked if I would like a latte on the house. Ummm...sure! :-) I've already had more caffeine than I normally consume in a week, but who cares? I'm sure not going to pass this up.

I have to say, it was one of the prettiest lattes I've ever had! He did a beautiful fern pattern in the foam, I almost hated to drink it...almost!

After polishing off the latte, I was good to go...for about a week! As I left, I was excited to see some Lotsa Pasta sandwiches available in the cooler. I grabbed a couple to take home for lunch over the next couple of days. As always, they were excellent as well. One was a wonderful mix of artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, onions and olives. The other was a mix of cheeses that was perfectly sinful, especially after I zapped it for 15 seconds! The cheeses got ooey-gooey and oh so yummy! I just might have to make a trip to Java every weekend.

First Time for Everything...

Obviously, I haven't posted in quite awhile. Studying for an MBA while working full time and having a 45-minute commute (one way) doesn't lend itself to much culinary experimentation! :-) I haven't been anywhere new recently. The times I have been out in the last few months have been unmitigated disasters nearly every time, so I decided to try something new at home.

A couple days ago I decided to try my hand at paella. Having never attempted it, I was a little nervous, but nonetheless, decided to give it a shot...on a weeknight...after being at work for 10 hours. Maybe not the best plan to start with.

Searched for a recipe online and decided to go with Tyler Florence's "Ultimate Paella" recipe. It seemed realistic, so I stopped by the grocery to pick up the ingredients, took them home, and started in on it.

Sauteing the chorizo, garlic and onion went perfectly, browning the chicken was a little tough as the chicken stuck to the pan, but this being my first true foray into using my stainless steel skillet, I kinda expected that. But then, it started getting dicey. I didn't read the recipe clearly and forgot to drain the tomatoes before adding them. whoops. So it didn't caramelize like it should, but I figured it would be okay after the rice soaked up the excess liquid, I would just not add all the water called for.

The rice cooked as it should, and then I added back in the chorizo and chicken...soooo...there are special paella pans for a reason. A large skillet was NOT big enough. Slopping over the sides and much frustration followed. Proceeded to let it cook for the requisite time...check the chicken, and it's still raw. Really raw. 2 hours have already passed, 9 o'clock is swift approaching, and knowing that there was no way to cook the chicken any faster without destroying the rice and everything else in the pan, I decided to give up the game.

So what did I learn? To either roast the chicken while the rest of the rice and everything else was cooking, to just use boneless chicken breasts instead of on-the-bone chicken, or to boil the chicken and shred it and add the already cooked chicken to the paella.

Maybe I'll try it again. When I do, I will cut the recipe in half to prevent the Mount Vesuvius of paella from swamping my stove.

Live and learn.

Weekend Adventures

A friend came to visit this past weekend, and she had never been to Louisville! Of course, me being me, we structured the whole weekend around where to eat. Wow. Having to figure out which of the myriad of places we should visit was extremely difficult…but delicious!

Friday night, we went to Ramsi’s Café on the World. I’ve been there many times and constantly rave about their Sloppy Falafel ($7.99), Medjool Dates ($6.90), and eclectic ambience. The last time I went, I had the Smoked Salmon Panini ($9.40, I asked them to lose the hard-boiled egg) and considered getting it again. However, we decided to tour our way through their extensive appetizer menu. We started with Madame Tussauds empanadas ($7.99). An unbelievable, Philly-cheesesteak-like combination of London broil, Kenny’s sharp cheddar cheese, portobella mushrooms, and onions. We paired that with the Potato Latkes ($5.25) which were just how they should be: a soft, tasty mixture of mashed potatoes, formed into patties and fried, rather than being a large tater tot. Following that, we delved into our sweet sides with the Brie Bernadette ($7.99), brie rolled in toasted almonds and pecans, fried and then drizzled with honey. After sitting for a bit, I convinced her that she MUST have the Medjool Dates stuffed with goat cheese and she convinced me that we MUST order the Fried Plantains drizzled with maple syrup and served with ginger whipped cream ($3.50). Well, if we must, we must…needless to say, we did not finish. Half the dates and the majority of the plantains came home with us, and were just as tasty the next night!

Saturday morning rolled around and brought with it the burning question, “Where do we go for breakfast?” You might guess that I said, “Wild Eggs,” but to do Louisville right, for her first time with the proper “Louisville” experience, we went to Lynn’s Paradise Café. It’s kitschy, a little overpriced, and does not have great service, but still…it’s Lynn’s! You go for the experience and to spend some time in the “World of Swirl.” After waiting the requisite 40+ minutes shopping around, and of course purchasing some goofy things for ourselves, we were seated. To drink, I had a Bloody Mary, which is usually the epitome of Bloody Marys for me with a full skewer of olives and peppers, but this time it was a little watered-down. My friend had a Mimosa, which she said tasted less like orange juice and more like orange drink, not completely yummy when mixed with champagne. We ordered fried green tomatoes to start, which were thinly sliced and lightly battered. What makes them is the parmesan mayo served alongside. I had my usual, the Wild Mushroom scramble with cheese grits and a biscuit (make sure to ask for the sorghum butter!), and she ordered the signature Bourbon Ball French toast, which was featured on Throwdown with Bobby Flay. I must say, I commend Lynn’s for allowing patrons to order half orders of most things on the menu. We saw a full order of the French toast come out…no way, so she asked for a half order and they accommodated without any issue. Overall, it was a good meal at Lynn’s and I still recommend it to anyone traveling through out great city.

After all that, we wanted to work off a little of what we had consumed, so we proceeded down the street to Cherokee Park. The Scenic Loop has always lived up to its name. We strolled along and ventured up the bird sanctuary trail. It was a beautiful walk for a crisp autumn afternoon. We then decided to visit Glassworks and when we got there, a tour was just starting so we joined in. It was very informative and enjoyable and for the price tag (around $6) it was well worth it. After shopping for a while, it was getting towards 5 o’clock, so we ventured home to take care of my pup and plan the dinner attack.

We decided to continue the café theme and head to Café Lou Lou in St. Matthews. I stuck with the Shoofly Shiraz (still yummy) and she had a “Relaxation” cocktail, a mixture of fruit juices and vodka that is not overly sweet. After splitting a bowl of Shrimp & Grits, we ordered the small Smoked Salmon Pizza. A perfectly done, chewy crust topped with smoked salmon, goat cheese, capers, Kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, and mozzarella cheese. It was listed to have marinara sauce on it, but we both thought that would not be the best choice, so we asked to replace the sauce with the garlic sauce listed on other pizzas. It sounds like an odd combination for a pizza, but it was excellent. They didn’t go heavy on the salmon, which I was very happy about, and the salty bite of the olives and capers kept it from being too heavy.

Now I need to go run for two days straight to work off all the calories! But it was completely worth it!

Mexican in Louisville

I love Mexican food! What's not to love? Lots of cheese, a little spice, and tons of flavor. Louisville has many choices in this cuisine, and I'm not talking Tumbleweed. Many are small chains; however, the taste and quality can vary greatly among different locations with the same name. My all-time favorite, as evidenced by the fact that I held my rehearsal dinner there, is the El Nopal in Jeffersontown at the corner of Taylorsville and Watterson Trail. Do not be fooled by imitators. First of all, their chile rellano. It is the epitome of chile rellanos. A simple combination of poblano pepper, stuffed with chihuahua cheese, and dipped in a light egg batter and fried. The peppers are always just the right level of heat. I usually get the combo that includes the rellano, a burrito (always shredded beef, never ground), and a chalupa. Heaven on a plate.

But I've branched out and I am perfectly willing to give credit where credit is due. A few weeks ago, I visited the Los Aztecas in downtown Louisville at the corner of Main and Sixth. As I used to work downtown, I have frequented this establishment often, and was never really impressed. I must say, they have improved. Their margaritas were perfect and were available in three sizes, regular, medium, and Oh my dear Lord. :-) I had the medium and it was more than enough. Their queso was perfect, as was the guacamole. All of us got various basic entrees, and they were all just how they should be, tasty and piping hot.

My newest find is Fiesta Time on Chamberlain Lane. Once again, for the most part, pretty basic and a good Mexican fix. But the last time I was there I discovered their hidden gem. The grilled shrimp entree. Two skewers of perfectly grilled shrimp, seasoned lightly with garlic and salt, glazed with queso blanco; served alongside a pile of rice and their "Guacamole Mario." It's the Guacamole Mario that sent me over the top. A light, but decadent combination of avocado with chopped tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. They offer it on the appetizer menu, as well. Definitely worth any cost. As far as I could see, the only entree that included a serving of it was the grilled shrimp. Darn, guess that means I'll just have to eat more shrimp. Whatever will I do?