Boutique Lexington hotels upping the restaurant game with bourbon, local specialties

It used to be that dining in a hotel restaurant was the hospitality equivalent of eating in the school cafeteria. The food was never going to be inspired, but it kept you from going hungry.

Then in the 1990s, a sea change occurred in hotel dining. A slew of celebrity chefs from Gordon Ramsey to Jean-Georges Vongerichten began opening restaurants in hotels around the world. Here in the United States, Dean Fearing led the charge with his acclaimed restaurant at the luxury hotel Mansion at Turtle Creek in Dallas. Suddenly locals were just as anxious as hotel guests to nab a coveted table.

While none of these chefs have seen fit to open a restaurant in Lexington, that doesn’t mean that Lexington hotels aren’t following Fearing and company. Leading the way, of course, was 21c Museum Hotel and its restaurant Lockbox. The Lockbox’s inventive menu features such specialties as Jerk Chicken with Carolina gold rice and peach relish and Smoked Marksbury Chop with watermelon, cucumber, queso fresco and chili.

The result of this creative menu is that now locals consider Lockbox a go-to dining destination.

While she says it’s difficult to quantify, Kira Hassenger, the Lockbox’s food and beverage director, estimates that locals make up 35 to 45 percent of the restaurant’s business.

“We try to attract locals several different ways,” says Hassenger. “First, of course, are our seasonal menus that source ingredients from local farmers, “but we also offer them events such as cocktail classes, drag brunches and bourbon dinners.”

The Lockbox has found its way into locals’ hearts, but it’s not the only hotel that has recently opened a restaurant in hopes of garnering local business.

There are several promising newcomers with more coming soon: Sedona Tap House next to the Clarion on Newtown Pike is scheduled to open Oct. 12 and The Mad Horseman at The Sire Hotel near Gratz Park is coming soon.

Infinity Sky Bar & Café

Lexington Marriott City Center; 150 W. Main; 859-446-5605; infinityskybarcafe.com.

Located on the 8th floor of the Marriott Residence Inn, Infinity Sky Bar & Café is known primarily for its killer views and killer cocktails (a Moonlight Kiss, anyone?), but it also offers an inventive menu. Whether you’re in the mood for appetizers or more substantial fare, Infinity has just the dish for you.

In the former category, try fried chicken lollipops with house-made pickles and hot sauce; dry-rubbed Memphis BBQ with salt and vinegar and togarashi, a Japanese spice; and a charcuterie board offering a selection of local cheeses. In the latter category, opt for the lamb chops or steak frites.

You will get a check for your meal and the Moonlight Kiss cocktail (Castle & Key gin, prosecco, simple syrup and butterfly pea flower tea), but the killer view is free.

33 Staves

Origin Hotel, The Summit at Fritz Farm; 859-245-0400; 33staveslexington.com.

If you find yourself hungry after a few hours of traipsing from shop to shop at the Summit, head over to 33 Staves in the arty Origin Hotel. With a menu described as “Southern inspired,” the culinary team excels in creative apps such as smoked wings with Buffalo sauce; chorizo fritters with cilantro aioli; beer cheese with toast points and veggies, and pan-seared jumbo crab cakes with fried tomatoes, corn relish, avocado, fried onions and spicy remoulade.

For an entrée, Steak Frites is a favorite as is Chicken & Waffles with bacon maple syrup.

Prior to the pandemic, 33 Staves heavily marketed to locals with activities ranging from cocktail classes and classes with restaurant vendors to yoga classes in the adjoining space with a coupon for brunch.

The restaurant hopes to bring these events back post-pandemic, said Origin general manager Michael Russell.

The Rackhouse Tavern

Campbell House Hotel; 1375 S. Broadway; 859-255-4281; thecampbellhouse.com.

Kilburn’s, the restaurant at this iconic Lexington hotel, was the site of many a lucrative deal among horse folks who considered it a sort of clubhouse. Over the years, however, it became desperately in need of a refurbishment, being outdated both in menu and décor.

When the hotel became part of the Curio Collection by Hilton in 2015, the transformation began. Today, locals as well as guests can dine in the bourbon-centric Rackhouse Tavern, an industrial chic space designed to mimic a distillery rackhouse using real barn wood and distinctive equestrian features.

Did I say bourbon-centric? The Rackhouse offers more than 300 bourbons ranging in price from $9 to $155, and it is a featured stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

“We wanted the restaurant to be as equestrian and bourbon friendly as possible,” says general manager Gary W. Byrd.

Mission accomplished. Every evening promptly at 6 p.m., the strains of “My Old Kentucky Home” are piped through the tavern and diners are offered a complimentary one-ounce shot of the house bourbon.

That’s followed by a locally inspired menu that features Kentucky Hot Browns, Western Kentucky burgoo, Marksbury Farm pulled pork, and house-smoked chicken and waffles featuring Weisenburger cornmeal and local maple syrup.

Those still concerned with indoor dining will find The Rackhouse Tavern has maintained its seating capacity at 33 percent and has a number of niches designed for safe distancing, as well as an outdoor shaded patio.

The Fiddletree

Elwood Hotel, 444 Parkway Drive; 859-423-1001; theelwoodhotel.com

If you’ve driven down South Broadway lately and noticed (how could you not?) the stark white building with the massive colorful exterior mural, then you have seen Lexington’s newest boutique hotel, the Elwood.

But what you haven’t noticed is its restaurant, Fiddletree, as it won’t be fully open until the middle of October. However, food, along with art, is such an important part of Fiddletree that until the restaurant does open, you can dine on the lovely shaded patio or enjoy a cocktail on a comfortable couch in front of the two fire pits.

But when the restaurant does open, it will have a unique focus, says Hilda Delgado, who owns the hotel with her partner David Bader, a Lexington native.

“I don’t see Fiddletree as a hotel restaurant, but as a restaurant in a hotel,” says Delgado.

That means plenty of local involvement, says the Nashville-based couple who will mingle with their guests at an end of every month soiree where 10 percent of the restaurant’s proceeds will benefit local charities from LexArts and the Headley-Whitney Museum to the Lexington Humane Society.

“We’re calling it a social club for social causes,” says Delgado, adding that there will be no pricey admission fee, just what guests eat and drink.

Until Fiddletree opens with its full menu in mid-October, diners can enjoy a limited menu with Steak Frites, Shrimp and Grits, and either beef sliders or Applewood bacon, lettuce and fried green tomato sliders. You can start off with an appetizer of deviled eggs with bacon Serrano relish which gets my nomination for the best in Lexington.

This story was originally published September 30, 2021 at 6:00 AM.