I tried to make this at home, sort of.

Roasted duck, caramelized sweet potatoes, watercress, green apple “kimchi” with a bourbon-maple gastrique

Trips to visit my wife’s family takes us right through Kentucky. I love that part of the drive. Rolling, lush hills. It is a beautiful part of the country. Going up we make the trip from SC in one big drive. Lately we’ve been breaking the trip back in two legs. Why do we do that? Well I’d like to say to lighten the stress of the trip. The real reason is bourbon. Kentucky = Bourbon. I have been a whiskey nut since college and I’ve been collecting whiskey for about 10 years. Anyway, half way home (right about Lexington, KY) puts us smack dab in the middle of The Bourbon Trail. A stay in downtown Lexington can get me to most of my favorite distilleries in 30 minutes to an hours drive. My Mecca.

What does this all have to do with food?

When planning our first trip, as any foodie would do, I started asking where we should eat. A number of folks suggested that we go to Dudley’s on Short. A quick look at the menu and I was sold. Only then did I start looking for a hotel that would provide easy access to the restaurant. We have subsequently been back to that same hotel and the same restuarant several times, each as enjoyable as the last. On our last trip I had Roasted Duck Breast. Dudley’s describes the meal as such:

ROASTED DUCK BREAST
caramelized sweet potato, pickled apple, watercress, maple gastrique

As with all the meals we’ve had the flavors are honest and restrained. It was maybe a little sweet for my taste but the crust on the duck and the watercress helped some to balance it out. The duck was cooked perfectly (not always easy to do). The sweet potato, apple and the gastrique were all well conceived and complimented each other nicely

This might sound weird but some of our favorite items on the menu are salads. The Kale salad was literally a revelation and we make it at home several times a month. Dudley’s describes the salad here:

KALE AND PARMESAN SALAD
dried cherries, pine nuts, lemon, olive oil

Truly, this salad screams restraint. So simply, yet so delicious. If in the area, I recommend Dudley’s on Short. I’ve read some reviews about it being pricey and the “posh” place to be seen, but I would disagree. Dudley’s will be a regular routine for us.

Have you been to Dudley’s on Short? What did you think?