Char on Ashland is a cafe restaurant in Chevy Chase, Lexington.
Editorially verified August 18, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Wood-fired pizza, Fluffy pancakes
Tip: Japanese-style fluffy pancakes anchor the morning menu; dinner picks up again at 17:00 after a short break.
Address: 316 S Ashland Ave, Lexington, KY 40502
Cafe Patachou brought its Indianapolis all-day-cafe formula to The Summit at Fritz Farm, serving Lexington French omelettes and chilaquiles until 15:00 daily.
Signature: French omelettes, Chilaquiles
Tip: Breakfast is served the whole time; weekday mornings before 09:00 are the quiet window at Fritz Farm.
Crust fires artisan pizza and pasta in Beaumont Centre, restaurateur Kuni Toyoda's 2025 revival of the wood-oven room Lexington lost during the pandemic.
Tip: The charcuterie with Kentucky country ham nods local before the Neapolitan-leaning pies arrive.
J. Render's Southern Table & Bar smokes barbecue plates and pours bourbon in Beaumont Centre, west Lexington's full-service Southern table since the 2010s.
Tip: The kitchen closes an hour before the bar every night; Sunday service starts at 10:00 with brunch dishes.
Frank & Dino's plays supper-club Italian on West Short Street, feeding downtown Lexington veal, red-sauce classics and martinis seven days a week.
Tip: Lunch and dinner run daily with a mid-afternoon break; the bar pours a proper Rat Pack-era martini.
Big Kahuna grills Hawaiian barbecue plates and stacked burgers on Liberty Road, the Lexington original that later added a second Clays Mill Road shop.
Tip: Closed Mondays at both shops; the Liberty Road original keeps the shorter queue at weekday lunch.
Ramsey's Diner has plated Lexington's meat-and-three since 1989, with an excellent Kentucky Hot Brown and pies from its Missy's Pies sister bakery.
Signature: Kentucky Hot Brown, Meat and three
Tip: The Zandale Drive room is the classic location. Save room for a slice of Missy's chess pie.
