December 6, 2010
With all the good restaurants near our apartment, I was really excited about picking one to go to on my 24th birthday, my first one in Louisville. Well, about two weeks prior, Tom accepted a position at a new church-plant in Salisbury, Maryland, which means we'll be moving again next summer. So this was also my last birthday in Louisville, making the restaurant choice all the more important. Some good friends of ours recommended The Irish Rover, and after looking over the menu, I knew for sure that this was the place to go.
Appetizer: Garlic Mushrooms
These cute little mushrooms were sautéed in butter and minced garlic until they were the perfect tenderness. They came with Marie Rose sauce, which is not as glamorous as it sounds; it's just a combination of ketchup and mayonnaise...! It's actually really delicious with the mushrooms, though.
Tom's Entree: Guinness Beef Stew
Yes, this is exactly what it sounds like: beef stew cooked in the dark, famously Irish stout that is Guinness. The beef is nice and tender, as are the vegetables; and the base of the stew is hearty and rich. Then again, what else would you expect from a beer you can't even see through?
My Entree: Lamb Stuffed Cabbage
To be completely honest, if you don't love lamb, you definitely won't like this dish because the flavor of the ground lamb in it is really robust. Actually, pretty much everything in this has really strong flavor...but man, does it work. You get three boiled cabbage leaves, each stuffed with a mixture of ground lamb and smoked cheddar, then topped with a red wine reduction. It's really a one-two-three punch: Ground lamb, whap! Smoked cheddar, bam! Red wine, pow! But to lend some much-needed smoothness for balance, the cabbage rolls are served on a bed of champ, which is Irish mashed potatoes with butter, milk, and scallions. Just fabulous.
The Irish Rover is a real winner in my opinion, and not just because of the delicious food. Prices are reasonable, portion sizes are manageable, service is friendly and fast (we were out in less than an hour), and the atmosphere is comfortable; we got the impression that everyone sitting at the bar was a regular...kinda like a dimly lit, Irish version of Cheers. This was also the perfect choice considering the kind of weather we had that day; it was the fourth day in a row that Louisville got snow, so some warm, hearty Irish food really hit the spot.
By the way, you might be wondering why I didn't list a dessert. As tempting as the Irish Rover dessert menu was, we had to decline because there was homemade birthday cake waiting for us at home, thanks to my wonderful husband!
