By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season
Remember The Patron? I couldn't help but fall in love with what I thought was the perfect gourmet pizza restaurant on Frankfort Avenue during my last visit to Louisville.
Well, it closed, and so have a few other familiar haunts, but that hardly spells the end of great eating in the Derby City. Ramsi's Cafe On The World is still in its popular and increasingly busy Bardstown Road location.
When I first moved to Louisville in 2000, Ramsi's was a small, hipster-ish joint with low ceilings and poor lighting.
But it's expanded twice since then -- obviously a good sign -- and serves all kinds. Its menu is far more diverse than the Louisville population, offering up nearly 30 entree items from almost as many countries.
The best part of my visit Sunday, however, was the friendly bartender who confessed the Korean Beef Tips dinner wasn't the heartiest of servings. So I ordered the Shanghai Stir Fry instead.
Much like the fish tacos I ordered at El Mundo the night before, the stir fry was pretty bland. The black bean sauce was drizzled in far too conservatively. When the bartender agreed and retrieved an extra side of it, I was nearly half done with my meal that was quickly getting cold. It was a sizeable portion, so I filled up on chicken, rice and nutritious vegetables, but hey, I'm on vacation. I'm not thinking about health. I want delicious creams and sauces.
Pat ordered the fish tacos and seemed to enjoy them. That plate was way heartier than the fish tacos I didn't really enjoy at El Mundo. So far I'm 0-for-2 eating dinner out in Louisville. At least I had some Graeter's Black Raspberry Chip ice cream waiting in the freezer for me when I got back home.