Kentucky cornmeal souffle: stone-ground cornmeal stirred into hot milk to a porridge, beaten with eggs and butter, baked until risen and soft enough to scoop with a spoon. The state's defining cornbread.
Spoonbread is a Kentucky and Virginia tradition with documented recipes from the 18th century. The dish takes its name from the soft scoopable texture, distinct from sliceable cornbread; it is closer to a souffle than a quickbread. Boone Tavern in Berea, Kentucky, claims the canonical recipe, on the menu since 1909. In Louisville the spoonbread is served at Jack Fry's, Garage Bar and 610 Magnolia as the Southern starch accompaniment to braised meats and game.
4 editor picks for Kentucky spoonbread in Louisville, ranked by editorial score. All Louisville signature dishes · Kentucky spoonbread across every city.
610 Magnolia ★ 4.8
old-louisville · 610 Magnolia Avenue, Louisville, KY 40208
Edward Lee's 610 Magnolia in Louisville runs a weekly tasting menu out of an Old Louisville Victorian, the chef's Southern-Korean flagship since 2003.
Jack Fry's ★ 4.6
highlands · 1007 Bardstown Road, Louisville, KY 40204
Jack Fry's has run on Bardstown Road in Louisville since 1933, the Highlands dining bar where the counter takes walk-ins for the full menu. Priced at $$$.
J. Graham's Cafe at the Brown Hotel ★ 4.6
335 West Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202
J. Graham's Cafe in the Brown Hotel serves Louisville's original Hot Brown for brunch and lunch, the open-faced turkey-and-Mornay sandwich invented.
Garage Bar ★ 4.2
nulu · 700 East Market Street, Louisville, KY 40202
Garage Bar on East Market in Louisville turned a former auto-service shop into a wood-fired pizza pub with a courtyard ping-pong table and a Kentucky bourbon.