Looking for Lexington restaurants and bars with fireplaces to cozy up to this winter?
Too cold to go out and eat or get a drink? Not necessarily.
Here are some Lexington restaurants and bars with great fireplaces to warm you up while you eat; some are wood-burning, others gas, and a few are even used for cooking.
▪ Graze, 111 Woodland Ave., has a fireplace in the bar, with couches and a coffee table, making it feel like a library with a great liquor selection. You can get lunch and dinner or just drinks.
▪ Charlie Brown’s, 816 East Euclid Ave. This old-school Chevy Chase and UK hangout feels almost homey, with its squashy couches around a brick fireplace. Open for lunch and dinner, serving burgers and sandwiches.
▪ Middle Fork Kitchen Bar, 1224 Manchester St., has gotten rave reviews from locals and national media alike. When it reopens Jan. 18 after a winter break, come for a seat around the wood-burning grill that chef Mark Jensen uses to cook on nightly.
▪ The Elkhorn Tavern, 1200 Manchester St., is another option in the Pepper Distillery campus with a fireplace. Attached to the Barrel House Distillery, the tavern hosts live music. . Opens at 11 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday; closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
▪Lexington Diner, 841 Lane Allen Rd., has a fireplace in the main dining room so you can warm up while you get brunch, lunch or dinner.
▪ Merrick Inn, 1074 Merrick Dr., has four fireplaces so your odds of getting a seat near one are good. You can ask to be near the wood-burning one in the bar or one of the three gas ones in the dining rooms.
▪ Drake’s and Malone’s Prime Events and Receptions at the Lansdowne Shopping Center both have fireplaces you can gather around. Malone’s Events and Receptions is open only for special booked events but Drake’s is open daily for casual dining, featuring burgers and more for lunch and dinner. And the new Drake’s in Hamburg, at 1880 Pleasant Ridge Dr., also has a fireplace.
▪ Oscar Diggs, 155 North Limestone, features a gas fireplace by the bar that serves Rooster Brewing beer.
▪ Distilled Restaurant and Bourbon Bar, 120 West Second St., has a cozy bar centered around a fireplace. Every Tuesday the bar has live music from Ben Lacy and you can eat in there, too.
▪ Carson’s Food & Drink, 362 East Main St., has a fireplace in the middle of the front wall.Check out the new mural of champion racehorse Rachel Alexandra.
▪ Brontë Bistro in Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 161 Lexington Green Cirlce, has a huge double-sided fireplace that warms the main part of the restaurant and bar nicely. On the other side are all the books you could want. Pretty much a perfect indulgence.
▪ Coles 735 Main, 735 East Main St., has an elegant fireplace in the heart of the intimate dining room, perfect for a very special dinner. Open every night except Sunday.
▪ Bella Notte, 3715 Nicholasville Rd., also has a large enclosed patio with a big fireplace if you need an excuse to carb up with great pasta and ricotta doughnuts for the winter.
▪ Bella Forno, 2573 Richmond Rd., has a gas fireplace in addition to the wood-fired pizza oven to keep you warm.
▪ Belle’s Cocktail House, 156 Market St., is only open Thursday through Saturday and doesn’t serve food but it has a beautiful bar and a warm fireplace if you are looking for a great place to get a drink.
▪ Dudley’s on Short, 259 West Short St., has a lovely fireplace in the Elk Room. It’s mostly for show but puts out a little heat, so you can be warm without roasting even if you’re sitting right next to it.
▪ Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, 110 Marion at The Summit, has a coal-fired oven in the open kitchen so you can watch your pizza go in and come out piping hot.
▪ Cracker Barrel, 2220 Elkhorn Rd. and 1927 Stanton Way, has a fireplace in every restaurant and their breakfast is hard to top. Unless you try their lunch or dinner.
▪ Blue Heron Steakhouse, 185 Jefferson St., has a great wood-burning fireplace, terrific steaks and a full bar.
▪ The Grey Goose, 170 Jefferson St., is another option in the heart of the Jefferson Street dining district. Open for lunch and dinner, it has an enclosed patio with a firepit to warm things up. Serves pizza, burgers and more.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Looking for Lexington restaurants and bars with fireplaces to cozy up to this winter?."
