Some Thoughts About Louisville

For a variety of reasons, I’ve been to Louisville a number of times over the last year and a half. I wrote this entry on last year’s Kentucky Derby, along with this entry on a Ray Lamontagne concert.

I paid Louisville another visit on Thursday and Friday, this time for another concert. I have a few thoughts I want to share about the trip:

  1. Phoenix. Phoenix is the band I went to Louisville to see. They played at The Palace, an awesome venue (especially if you have second-row seats). The band was awesome, as was evident by the pulsating crowd. When the band played Rome, I think it may have been the best song I’ve ever experienced at a concert. The band had these Tron-themed lights everywhere, and the song just builds and builds, it has a great beat, and everyone in the crowd had their arms in the air. It was incredible. Also, at the end of the concert, the lead singer crowdsurfed for a few minutes. I watched him surf right on by me. You can listen to Rome here:
  2. Irish Rover. The Irish Rover restaurant in Louisville serves, hands down, the best fish and chips anywhere. Crispy on the outside, flaky and fishy on the inside. I go here every time I visit Louisville. Here’s my plate:
  3. Mac and Cheese. Confession: I’ve never eaten mac and cheese. Never ever. I never liked the idea as a kid, and the goopy fake cheese on Kraft boxes don’t appeal to me as an adult. If I want cheese and noodles, I want marinara sauce in between the two. However, as of Friday, I have eaten mac and cheese exactly once. A restaurant called Avalon served it just as most of you remember it from your childhoods: with chunks of lobster, a truffle reduction sauce, and crispy potato fingerlings on top. It’s the only way I eat my mac and cheese.
  4. Bed & Breakfast: I’ve become a big fan of bed and breakfasts. They’re just so much nicer than hotels, more accommodating (better breakfasts, free drinks and snacks instead of the $5 Cokes you can get from those pressure-sensitive trays in most hotel rooms), and the prices are just about the same. I definitely enjoyed my stay at the B&B where I stayed in Louisville, but I’m not going to mention the name of the place because of a key lost opportunity. My friend and I were the only people to stay at this B&B on Thursday night, and we had the smallest room in the place. I think the B&B owners should have, hands down, upgraded us to a bigger room. This would have significantly improved our impression of the place and would have given us a story to share with others at no additional cost to the B&B. Do I expect to be upgraded? Not at all. But I think it’s one of the easiest things a business like a B&B can do to create a special memory and a story.

Overall, Louisville was great. If you’re planning on going to the Derby this weekend, make sure you check out my post first. You can bet on the Derby online here.

6 thoughts on “Some Thoughts About Louisville”

  1. Have to agree with you on B&B’s being superior in every way. Better service, personal touches and real food (which is important but so often overlooked) all combine to make with the happy.

    Reply
  2. So glad you could experience Phoenix in concert! I saw them in London and it was excellent. Full of energy and dance-tastic (and I think I also ate fish and chips before the show…strange). And the ‘Rome’ experience sounds awesome—I love running to that song. Louisville is good times all around.

    Reply
    • Rome would be a good running song…if only I ever ran for more than 10 seconds at a time… 🙂

      That’s awesome that you saw them in London. That must have been before they got big.

      Reply
  3. In my opinion, The Black Rose in Boston has the best Fish & Chips. If you haven’t been, I highly recommend it. If I ever make it to Louisville, I will try your place.

    Jennifer

    Reply
    • Thanks for the recommendation. I’ve never been to Boston, but now I have a restaurant to target when I go there someday.

      Reply

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