A friend of ours was in town for work last week and was staying in Blue Ash. My family and I met up with her for dinner one night. Originally we were going to go to the  Firehouse Grill  but she had already been there earlier in the day. Instead we made our way to Sammy’s Gourmet Burgers & Beers, which was just  around the bend at the corner of Kenwood and Creek.

With the word beer in the restaurant name I was expecting big things and Sammy’s delivered. There were around 30 beers on tap and a good selection of local and regional favorites. A fairly large bar dominates one side of the building, while the rest of the one room space is filled with various tables and booths.

Inside

All burgers can be prepared with Angus beef, turkey burger, or house-made veggie burger and come on a honey-kaiser roll with fries on the side. I ordered the Tex-Mex veggie burger with ranchero cilantro dressing, green and red peppers, onion, and pepper jack cheese ($9.99). The veggie patty is made primarily of pinto beans, which was a refreshing change from the more standard black bean. It was well seasoned and I really loved the sandwich.

Tex-Mex Veggie Burger

My wife ordered the turkey burger with bourbon sauce, fresh onion straws, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mayo ($9.99). I had a few bites of this burger and it was also very good. The fresh vegetable mix that she shared on the side with our daughter was also a great substitution for fries for the health conscious.

Bourbon Turkey Burger

Others in our group had the chipotle burger, the maple bacon burger, and the guacamole burger all with very high reviews. A kid’s menu  is available offering mini Angus burgers, grilled cheese, and more ($4.49 with choice of side).

Sammy’s reminded me a lot of Flipdaddy’s Burgers & Beers and not just because of the similar names, though both do have a focus on unique burgers and great craft beers. As much as I have enjoyed Flipdaddy’s in the past, I loved Sammy’s even more. I will absolutely be back to Sammy’s again especially as it is on the way to my parents house.

Lucy Blue in Mt. Lookout has closed, and Bub’s Pizza Bar has opened in its place. The late night hours that made Lucy Blue a popular spot will be maintained (until 3:30 on Friday and Saturday) but the pizza has changed considerably. Bub’s features a stone fired crust and a big selection of specialty pizzas. Plus they offer local delivery, which my wife and I were happy to use recently.

Half Pesto & Goat Cheese / Half Coetta & Onion

We couldn’t settle on just one of their specialty pizzas so we got half and half. My choice was the goetta and onion while she wanted the pesto and goat cheese. Two sizes are offered, the 16 inch regular and a large 24 inch. The 16 was plenty for the two of us with leftovers for the next day. I’ve been waiting for a restaurant to offer a goetta pizza and this one did not disappoint. I will definitely order this again!

In the middle of our Lexington brewery crawl a few weekends ago we stumbled upon The Gastro Gnomes food truck outside of Blue Stallion Brewing Company. On the menu for the day was a Philly cheese-steak burrito, open-faced ham sandwich, brie burger, grilled cheese, and bread pudding for desert.

Placing Orders

Of the limited menu offerings, my wife and I could only agree on the “Road to the Final Four Cheese” Grilled Cheese with provolone, Muenster, mozzarella, and cheddar on Texas toast with a smoked tomato soup dunker and gold-fish crackers ($10). Since we wanted to split something to eat this is exactly what we ordered.

“We’re in the Final Four Cheese” Grilled Cheese

Our small group of six placed three separate orders. The two grilled cheese sandwiches were delivered first after a five or ten minute wait. The open-faced ham sandwich took a few minutes longer to be delivered. Overall the food tasted good, though  even with the expected higher prices from a food truck I felt that the price tag for a fairly standard grilled cheese was too high. The ham sandwich was  a dollar cheaper and seemed to offer a better value. I would skip the grilled cheese and look for other options on the menu.

Last week I found myself in White Oak with no plans for lunch.  The second I drove past Mad Mike’s I knew this would be the place, so I quickly turned around and parked my car. The Reds mural on the side of the building is very eye-catching from Cheviot Rd just before intersecting with Blue Rock Rd.

Outside

Mad Mike’s is  a small chain of restaurants around the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area that specializes in burgers. However they also offer chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, and a small selection of other sandwiches.

Inside

Just one employee was working during my visit, alternating between taking orders and cooking the food. I was shocked when he dropped off my food as quickly as he did. I went with a “what the cluck” chicken sandwich with cilantro mayo, avocado slices, bacon, Swiss cheese, lettuce, and tomato ($6.99).

What The Cluck

The chicken is hand pattied all white meat and was stacked two high on the bun, which was nice as it was not very thick. The avocado was fresh and abundant. The flavor of the sandwich was very good. The fries (regular size for $2.19) reminded me a lot of Penn Station. In fact vinegar was offered as a condiment making them nearly identical. I wouldn’t go out-of-the-way for Mad Mike’s but you could certainly do much worse.

After a few hours touring distilleries on the Bourbon Trail this past Saturday, it was time to head into Lexington to check out some of their breweries. After checking into our hotel near the University of Kentucky, we took an Uber to West Sixth Brewing. Our visit happened to coincide with their 3rd anniversary party which featured all sorts of specialty beers and infused firkins. Apparently I was having too much fun to remember to take any photos.

Blue Stallion Brewing Company Bar

Something else even bigger was taking place in Lexington during our visit, UK basketball was playing Notre Dame for a spot in the final four. At times it seemed like our group was the only one in town not wearing blue. This also caused Uber fares to skyrocket. Fortunately the weather was pretty nice, so we decided to walk to our next destination, Blue Stallion Brewing Company.

Blue Stallion Brewing Company Brewery

Blue Stallion specializes in authentic German lagers and British ales, boldly traditional craft beer as they say. On tap was roughly a dozen of their own beers such as Weizenbock, Schwarzbier, and Doppelbock plus a handful of guest beers. I was told by one of the bartenders that an IPA is in the works, though it seems they will still primarily focus on these traditional styles.

Chase Brewing Taps

From there we walked to  Chase Brewing Co., which has been opened for a couple of years but looks to be just starting their brewery operation. Out of the sixteen  taps only two were created in-house, but there were plenty of good-looking options. Unfortunately we never got to sample any of the beer as the crowd gathered to watch the basketball game had completely overwhelmed the wait staff.

Chase Brewing Brewery

We quickly continued our brewery crawl  with a decent hike out to Country Boy Brewing, which has been operating for roughly the same amount of time as West Sixth, since early 2012. The crowd was definitely glued to the TV’s, including the bartenders from time to time, but we didn’t have any problems getting some beers to drink.

Country Boy Brewing Taproom

I really enjoyed the beers here, probably my favorites of the day. Their cliff jumper IPA was a very solid choice, and they also had a couple of double IPA’s on tap that I enjoyed very much as well. The crowd eventually thinned out after the game was over and our group was able to claim a table and enjoy a couple of beers before closing time.

Country Boy Brewing Taps

We tried to get a ride back to our hotel but in the end found it easiest to just walk back to our hotel.  It was just over a 5K route and would only have been two miles without the last leg to the hotel. It’s nice that there are numerous breweries within walking distance of downtown. Now that Taft’s Ale House is open in Cincinnati, plus Braxton in Covington, we also have a nice brewery crawl route with Moerlein (both locations) and Rhinegeist included. I may have to give that a try sometime in the future. Anyone want to join me?

While out exploring the Bourbon Trail, like I did this past weekend, Wallace Station is a great place to stop for a fairly quick lunch. When we arrived around 1:30 there was already a line out the door. Orders are placed at the counter which is located just inside the front door.

Outside

Inside you will find plenty at least a dozen tables, which were all occupied during our visit, though they were turning over pretty quickly. The also offer a large deck out back and with the warming spring weather we decided to enjoy our lunch outdoors.

Inside

On the menu are a wide variety of sandwiches that all looked very good. Hamburgers and salads round out the menu. A few craft beer options are available in cans, most of which come from Lexington’s  West Sixth Brewing.

Bourbon Trail Triple Crown

For lunch I finally settled on the  Bourbon Trail Triple Crown with roast turkey, cheddar, bacon, Bourbon BBQ sauce, mayo, lettuce and tomato, stacked three layers high on your choice of white, wheat, or rye toast. ($9.95). The sandwich was very large and packed full of quality ingredients. Chips and a pickle spear come served on the side.

East Hampton Hot Ham & Brie

My wife took the suggestion of our friend who had previously visited Wallace Station and ordered the  East Hampton  Hot Ham & Brie with city ham and Brie topped with  sliced apples and honey mustard ($9.95). This sandwich stole the show and is very highly recommended! If were are ever in the area again we will definitely be back to Wallace Station.

Over the weekend I spent a day  down in the Lexington area exploring the Bourbon Trail for the first time. My wife and I left Cincinnati with a couple of our friends around 8:45 and arrived at our first stop, Buffalo Trace, at 10:30  in the morning. I had tried to get us on a reservation only “hard hat” tour but it was already full for the day. Fortunately one of my brother-in-laws beat us to the distillery and put our names in for the “trace tour,” which requires no reservations and is completely free.

Warehouse C at Buffalo Trace

Buffalo Trace offers many brands of bourbon including but not limited to Eagle Rare, Van Winkle, Stagg Jr., Blanton’s, and W.L. Weller. These are often some of the most sought after brands around. Our tour took us around and into Warehouse C, which was build in 1881. Inside there are 24,000 barrels of bourbon aging away, each one carefully placed to create a specific brand  and taste profile.

Inside Warehouse C at Buffalo Trace

We also go to see inside Blanton’s Bottling Hall, but unfortunately nothing was being bottled at the time. All of their premium bourbons are bottled here, with each bottle filled, corked, and sealed by hand. From there we were treated to samples of Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare 10 Year, White Dog (unaged whiskey), their newly created Wheatley Vodka, and their super tasty Bourbon Cream.

Tasting at Woodford Reserve

The next stop on our tour was Woodford Reserve. The wait for a tour here was roughly an hour, so we opted to take part in a 20 minute presentation and tasting with one of the tour guides for $7 each. Our small group gathered on the beautiful patio of their visitors center for a quick history lesson along with questions and answers all the while enjoying samples of their regular whiskey and the Double Oaked.

Woodford Reserve

Our final stop for the day was Four Roses. Built in 1910, the unique Spanish Mission-style architecture is something rarely seen in Kentucky. Here we were able to quickly get on an hour long tour through nearly the entire site for just $5 each. The distillery operate continuously, except for the summer months when the stream water used to cool their mash isn’t cool enough to do so. This was great for us as all the equipment was in full use during our visit and we got to see it all. In fact you could even dip your finger into the open air fermenters for a taste of this so-called beer.

Fermentation Area at Four Roses

After their bourbons are distilled they  are trucked off this site to another site near  Bardstown for aging in their single story warehouses, the only distillery using single-story for minimal temperature variations.  After the tour we were treated to samples of their Yellow Label, Small Batch, and Single Barrel bourbons. Plus the rocks glass that the samples were poured were ours for the keeping!

Four Roses Distillery

Each distillery that we visited had its own unique thing that I enjoyed. I loved seeing the inside of the warehouse at Buffalo Trace. I thought that Woodford Reserve had the prettiest location. And the tour at Four Roses was very thorough and hands on. I hope to visit some of the other distilleries in the future and maybe one day I’ll have my passport complete.

The craft brewery drought on the west side of town is now over. Tap & Screw Brewery opened their doors late last year in the spot formerly occupied by Tom and Jerry’s. The ownership is still the same, but the food menu has changed, and the beer selection is much improved.

Inside

In addition to six of their own Tap & Screw brews, there were six other offerings with half of them coming from other local breweries. My wife and I split a couple of flights ($6 each) to sample most of the offerings. Their own beers were pretty good, with the Jacked Porter serving as the real standout.

Beer Flight

On the food front we started with an order of southwest egg rolls which included their own white chicken chili on the inside ($6.99). These were very good, with the chicken chili adding interesting flavors to the standard corn and bean southwestern flavors.

Southwest Egg Rolls

My wife had the portobello burger with bell peppers ($8.99) and she was very pleased with her selection. This included a side of saratoga chips and BBQ sauce.

Portobello Burger

I had the special of the day, which was a chicken philly ($6.99) and also had chips on the side. The sandwich was good and should probably be made a permanent part of the menu. Children’s options are available including grilled cheese ($3.99) with fries.

Chicken Philly

Overall Tap & Screw Brewery is off to a good start with some solid beer choices and nice selection of homemade food. This could be a regular stop for my family when visiting my in-laws on the other side of town.

Late last year national sandwich chain Which Wich? opened a location close to my house, their fourth location in the area. I’ve had their sandwiches  a handful of times before, but I was always on the run and never took the time to review.

Outside

The first thing you’ll see when you walk into any Which Wich? location is the menu board along with their unique ordering system. Customers first select from one of 10 sandwich categories (think turkey, chicken, etc.) and grab a brown paper bag for that category. On each category bag there are a handful of sandwich options (like club and turkey Reuben for turkey) and customers make their selection using a red sharpie  marker. From there you can select your cheeses, mustard, mayo, dressings, veggies, and more. The ordering process is a little complex but it is nice as the sandwich options are near limitless.

Inside

On this visit I ordered the club with turkey, ham, and bacon ($5.50 for small 7″) and a side of house chips ($1.25). Most sandwiches are all the same price and can be ordered in three sizes on white or wheat, plus bowlwich (salad) and  lettucewich (wrap) option exist too.

Club

The club was  great, the Dijon mustard had a very nice spice level to it, and the veggies were fresh and crisp. The small was definitely enough for a solid lunch, and I would have to think the large 14″ would be a great option to split with another. There is a location that we visit in northern Kentucky on the way to the lake. Orders can be placed online for any location for a super speedy pickup.

Prior to catching a performance at music hall a couple of weeks back, my wife and I joined my brother and his girlfriend for dinner at Zula. I’ve been to Zula a few times before, but just for drinks at the bar. As the hostess showed us to our table, I was amazed at how big the dining space is. I had no idea that there were  more than the few tables you can see from the bar.

Eggplant Fries

We started with eggplant fries topped with confectioner sugar ($8.75) and arancini filled with rice along with bits of  braised pork and cheese ($10.50 for 3). The eggplant fries were served with an amazing spicy-sour dipping sauce, which mixed well with the sweetness of the fries. The serving size was large and easily enough for our party of four to share.

Arancini

Our server kindly let us know that the arancini was just an order of three and asked if we wanted to add another fried ball to the order so everyone in our party could try them. I’m glad we did as these were very good, though the pork was a little scarce on the inside.

Baby Kale Salad

We also sampled the baby kale salad with radicchio, goat cheese, and walnuts ($9.50). Again this was more than enough for two and probably could serve four. The goat cheese was especially tasty, but nothing else stood out much.

Brussels Sprout Leaves Flat Bread

Finally we ordered the Brussels sprout leaves flat bread with fresh mozzarella, Pecorino Romano, hickory smoked bacon lardons, and extra virgin olive oil ($15). I’m glad we had a small group with us, as again the flat bread was large and my wife and I needed help finishing it off. This was a tasty dish with plenty of toppings on a perfectly cooked crust.

Others in our party sampled the New Orléans mussels as well as the beef carpaccio, which both received high marks. Our service was outstanding and the the flow of food was very well paced throughout our visit. I will definitely return to Zula whether it be for a date night or for a group get together.