Plan a road trip around smoky barbecue, soulful comfort food, piled-high brunch plates, and ice cream worth saving room for.
A food truck became a Lexington restaurant. A wedding menu led to a Jamaican kitchen in Owensboro. In Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood, one woman has cooked the same recipes since 1988.
Discover nine memorable Black-owned restaurants in Kentucky, including where to find them, what to order, and what to know before you go.
Northern Kentucky
1. Order an over-the-top brunch at 6 ‘N The Mornin’
Where: 50 E. RiverCenter Blvd., Suite 20, Covington
Why go: Big brunch plates, cocktails, and a riverfront address
What to order: Red velvet waffles or shrimp and grits
Good to know: Accepts reservations and stays open until midnight Thursday through Saturday
Southern breakfast gets the full celebration treatment at 6 ’N The Mornin’, where the menu runs from red velvet waffles and salmon croquettes to shrimp and grits. The new RiverCenter location sits within walking distance of the Roebling Suspension Bridge, which crosses the Ohio River between Covington and downtown Cincinnati.
2. Strike biscuit gold at Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey
Where: 9039 U.S. 42, Suite H, Union
Why go: Scratch-made biscuits and a long bourbon list
What to order: Gold Shoes with a choice of gravy, the fried chicken-filled Yukon, or biscuit doughnut holes with honey
Good to know: Open Wednesday through Sunday, with weekend brunch hours
The biscuits at Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey come loaded with fried chicken and gravy, paired with a flight of spreads, or transformed into cinnamon-sugar doughnut holes. Chef and co-owner Christian Gill traces his interest in cooking to the time he spent in the kitchen with his mother and grandmother in Lexington. At Boomtown, he turns that foundation into a menu that can move from catfish and smoked cheddar grits to Korean fried chicken on a biscuit.
Lexington and the Bluegrass
3. Fill a plate with soul food at Blue Skillet
Where: 213 E. Seventh St., Lexington
Why go: Homestyle cooking and generous portions
What to order: Fried catfish, pork chops, or ribs with macaroni and cheese
Good to know: Order at the counter, dine in, or take a meal to go
Blue Skillet skips the polished dining room and gets straight to the food. Plates arrive crowded with crisp fish, pork chops, cornbread, greens, and other sides that taste like they were built for Sunday dinner. The restaurant sits north of downtown in a neighborhood that visitors may miss when they stick to central Lexington’s better-known dining corridors.
4. Turn up the heat at Irie Flavors
Where: 417 Georgetown St., Suite 130, Lexington
Why go: Smoky jerk seasoning and filling portions
What to order: Jerk chicken with cabbage, rice, and peas
Good to know: Open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
Irie Flavors serves Jamaican foods such as jerk meats, oxtail, patties, and traditional island sides. The chicken comes marinated in a house blend of herbs and spices, then cooked and smoked until the seasoning works its way into every bite. Its move into a permanent dining room marks the next step for a business that first built its following from a truck and takeout counter.
Louisville
5. Taste Louisville history at Shirley Mae’s Cafe
Where: 802 S. Clay St., Louisville
Why go: Old-school soul food with deep neighborhood roots
What to order: Fried chicken wings with hot water cornbread, greens, and macaroni and cheese
Good to know: It is cash-only and currently offers carryout only
Inside Shirley Mae’s, fried chicken crackles in the skillet while ribs cook outside over hickory smoke. The vegetables do not come from cans or freezers, and even the pies arrive in generous personal-size pans. The restaurant’s history is tied to Smoketown, a Black neighborhood established after the Civil War. Photographs and memorabilia inside also preserve stories from Louisville’s Black cultural and sporting history.
6. Save room for a scoop at Louisville Cream
Where: 632 E. Market St., Suite 101, Louisville
Why go: Inventive flavors, loaded sundaes, shakes, and ice cream flights
What to order: Banana pudding ice cream or a flight of four flavors
Good to know: The shop closes Mondays and stays open until 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
Owner Darryl Goodner makes small-batch ice cream with local dairy, house-made jams and sauces at Louisville Cream. The banana pudding ice cream earned national attention after the Food Network named it the best ice cream in Kentucky in 2021, but a rotating menu gives regulars a reason to keep checking the freezer case. The shop sits in NuLu, Louisville’s restaurant, gallery, and shopping district along East Market Street.
Central Kentucky
7. Build a wine flight at Waters Edge Winery & Bistro
Where: 114 S. Mulberry St., Elizabethtown
Why go: Wine flights, live music, and patio seating
What to order: A wine flight with a charcuterie board or flatbread
Good to know: It’s not a vineyard, but the wine is made in Elizabethtown with grapes from established growing regions
Father-daughter duo Charlie and Tiana Watkins opened Waters Edge in 2020 as Elizabethtown’s first winery and bistro, fulfilling a longtime goal of owning a restaurant. The downtown business produces bottles of its wines on-site with grapes sourced from California and regions in Europe. Sample a flight, settle onto the patio, and order a few sharable plates for a relaxed afternoon or date night.
Western Kentucky
8. Follow the jerk smoke to Jamaican Yard Vibes
Where: 2845 W. Parrish Ave., Suite C, Owensboro
Why go: Bold Jamaican cooking and generous portions
What to order: Jerk chicken
Good to know: The food truck travels to events across the region
Dwayne and Shanetha Whyte began selling homemade Jamaican meals from their home in 2019 after guests raved about the dishes served at their wedding. They opened their restaurant a few years later, then added a food truck to reach diners in nearby Henderson, Evansville, and other tri-state communities. The menu at Jamaican Yard Vibes now includes jerk chicken, oxtail, curry shrimp, rasta pasta, fried festival bread, and traditional juices.
9. Arrive hungry for the buffet at Big Ed’s
Where: 701 N. Eighth St., Paducah
Why go: An old-fashioned buffet with room to sample several dishes
What to order: The ribs and whichever vegetables and desserts appear that day
Good to know: The buffet changes, so the selection varies
Big Ed’s is the kind of place where the plate rarely feels big enough. The buffet may include ribs, catfish, turnip greens, beans, cornbread, or banana pudding. Rather than narrowing the meal to one specialty, Big Ed gives diners a broad survey of Southern home cooking in one stop.
While nine restaurants cannot capture the whole state, this list offers lots of reasons to get off the interstate and check out a small business. Start with a favorite close to home, or try someplace you’ve never been. Your most memorable plate may be the next one on the list.
