Pita Delights

I love gyros.  True statement, I feel like we are all friends now so I can let you know that, I am in love with them.  Again these were one of those things I didn’t eat growing up.  Lamb?  No way, forget the fact that I grew up in a farming community that had a large sheep influence.  Now they have come to hold a special place in my heart.  So when it was time for my weekly dinner with J last Tuesday and the question was posed what should we eat, for some odd reason my cravings were for either a gyro or red meat.  And for some reason a steak house just didn’t fit the bill, so gyro it was.  There are a few places in town to get such an item and we ended up picking one we had never been.  Off to Pita Delights we ventured.  Located off Grinstead and Bardstown sits a little building, and while the outside doesn’t look like much, the inside is cute, with deep colors and dark wood accents.  We both ordered the beef and lamb gyros which came with salads and rice.  The salads were both good, refreshing with the fresh cucumbers, bell peppers, and other vegetables.  Then came out our gyro and rice, the rice was just ehhh.  The gyro was giant, the pita delicious and warm.  I like for my gyro to be topped with tomato and onion and the cucumber to come finely chopped in the sauce, this however had chunks of cucumber, which was my only issue with the gyro itself.  The only other thing we both wished Pita Delights had was a liquor license so we could have enjoyed a nice beverage with our meal.  But as far as the gyro goes, there is little to complain about.

Four Pegs Beer Lounge

When everywhere you walk into has at minimum an hour long wait, you know one of three things.  1) You have excellent taste in food 2) You should have made a reservation 3) Time to formulate a new plan.  This is how I and three others ended up at Four Pegs last night.  I had originally wanted to take my father, uncle and friend to Harvest, and then when they were full we walked to Garage Bar, that was a no go.  I had heard about Four Pegs Beer Lounge a while ago, but just have never made it there.  The concept is simple enough; chalk board with beer, chalk board with food, order from the bartender when you are ready.  I like the vibe of the place, the history involved with the building (ask about the mirror behind the bar, my uncle did, good story), but that is where my adoration for the establishment starts to waver.  The bartender was slow, and he was not at all busy, and when you have to order drinks and food from him that’s never a good thing.  We ordered beer cheese and pretzel bread, I have found myself basing my judgment of establishments such as this on their beer cheese.  It was good, a cold beer cheese, which if not done right can be a bad experience, but this was tasty and had a kick. The three of them had the Angus burgers, my father having the beer glazed one, and I had the chicken and waffle sandwich.  They all enjoyed their hamburgers, and we all thought the fries were really good.  My chicken and waffles were a huge let down.  My chicken was really dark, dry, and the waffle I believe was an Eggo, I could be completely wrong, but that’s what it looked and tasted like to me.  The whole thing was covered in the syrup and almost too sweet to eat.  I’m glad the burgers were good, because I always feel awful when I take people from out of town to get food and it turns out to be less than what the city has to offer, which is, as a general rule of thumb, pretty stellar.

Taquería Maranthara

Food Truck.  Mexican Food.  Backside of Churchill Downs.  This should be good.  For those of you that aren’t from the city, or don’t work near or understand Churchill Downs let me explain.  A lot of the hardworking individuals who both work and live on the backside of CHD are Hispanic, so any Mexican food around there should be good!  I have seen this little white truck in the 5/3 bank parking lot at the corner of 4^th and Central for some time now.  I’m usually too busy, or don’t have cash so until today I haven’t eaten there.  Honestly I didn’t even know the name of the truck, just that the big letters on the side said tacos, tamales, quesadillas.  Turns out it’s called Taquería Maranthara.  For $4 I got a carne asada taco, pollo asada taco, and a puerco tamale.  $4?!  Awsome.  They were all delish, the carne taco being my personal favorite.  I will be going back to try the rest of the menu, everything looked good.  For those of you that are skeptics about food trucks please don’t be.  They proudly displayed their permits in the window and I saw everyone wearing gloves, sanitation doesn’t seem to be an issue in any of the food trucks I have eaten at.  Stop by, see the ladies in the food truck, have a lunch that’s light on your wallet and good in your stomach.

El Mundo

Let’s get one thing straight before we get started here, I was born and raised until I was 10 about 5 miles from Mexico, I know what Mexican food is supposed to taste like.  While other kids babysitters had them playing with play-doh mine had me rolling out tortillas.  So when I say that El Mundo is my favorite Mexican food in town, please do not take that lightly as some blue eyed girl thinking Taco Bell could be considered authentic, I’m down with the Mexican food. 

Frankfort Avenue’s El Mundo is always busy, ranging from two to three seating areas depending on the season.  Last Tuesday I met up with J and we sat in the downstairs patio area.  It had finally cleared up from the storms and there was a slight breeze, honestly it was perfect patio weather.  We both ordered margaritas, I personally think the best in the city, strong to boot, and had some queso.  J had the chili relleno, it’s always delicious.  I normally try and get one of the specials, this visit was no different.  The ropa vieja chimichangas with blackberry mole and a habenero sour cream seemed to be calling my name, and I am glad they did.  The mole wasn’t too sweet and the sour cream had the perfect amount of heat to it.  This particular day we went early enough that there wasn’t a wait, but that happens few and far between, most visits you can be prepared to wait (I’ve found the best way is with margarita in hand).  If you sit upstairs all of your food comes up in a dumb waiter, not everyday that happens.  Like I said, this isn’t Mexican food done in a shoddy way; this is innovative, good tasting, worth the wait food.