Image credit: Goodwood Brewing Admit it – when it comes to Kentucky comfort food, most of us will take a Hot Brown every time. There’s just something about moist white turkey, sizzling bacon, lightly charred tomatoes and creamy Mornay sauce on buttered toast that gets our culinary juices flowing and our mouths watering. In recognition of this, Downtown Frankfort, with the support of Whitaker Bank, has put together a week-long Hot Brown Trail (April 26- May 3) that will lead up to this year’s Run for the Roses. The original Hot Brown may have been created at Louisville’s Brown Hotel in 192 ..read more

The newest addition to Frankfort’s burgeoning dining scene is already gaining a loyal following. Brown Barrel/Blind Harry’s, which opened in February on West Broadway, follows the flagship restaurant in Midway, which moved to its current location in 2022.  A third location has recently opened in Georgetown as well. In keeping with the concept of owner J.P. Gibson, Frankfort’s newest eatery will specialize in “fine dining in a casual atmosphere that patrons have come to love.” On the Brown Barrel side, the décor features a brick wall and portraits of Thoroughbred horses, while next door at ..read more

So, you’ve heard the joke……. Elon Musk walks into a brewery and asks the owner how much it would cost to send his beer to space. Very funny, you might think. But for Kevin Pierce, co-owner and brewmaster at Stainless Brewing & Spirits, it was no joke. Seems that the billionaire founder of SpaceX did just that. “He came in with his IT guy and sat at that table by the window,” says Pierce, indicating a table overlooking St. Clair Street. Eccentric Musk may be, but the man knows a good beer when he tastes one. As a result, you can now find bottles of Pierce’s brew in Musk’s off ..read more

Luke Patrick walks into Capital Cellars wearing a peach-colored sweatshirt with the Nike logo “Just Do It!”  You might say that Luke took that advice seriously a year-and-a-half ago when he and two partners purchased the shop. Capital Cellars had been part of the downtown Frankfort scene for 16 years and had a loyal following when the original owner decided it was time to move on.  Patrick, whose prior career had been in real estate development, knew a good thing when he saw it. “For a long time, I had been wanting to open some kind of business on the train tracks along Broadway,” he ..read more

Tucked away in an alcove inside Frankfort’s newest hotel, the 15-suite boutique St. Clair, is an inconspicuous door marked Maintenance. Behind the door you won’t find pails, mops, cleaning supplies – all the things one would typically associate with keeping a property spic and span. What you will find behind the door is a Prohibition-era speakeasy that would have appealed to Al Capone and his cronies. Even Eliot Ness, chief enforcer of The Untouchables and Capone’s arch nemesis, might have been tempted to spend time enjoying some bathtub gin here. Not that you will find bathtub gin ..read more

If you find yourself lost in a romantic desert this February 14th, with no Valentine to give chocolates to or receive chocolates from, don’t despair. There’s good news for chocoholics – single or coupled – if you can wait just two more days. Circle your calendar for February 16th when Frankfort will host its inaugural Chocolate Stroll from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Downtown shops, museums, bars, and restaurants are taking part in the chocolate fest, offering their individual twists on everyone’s favorite confection. Suzy Hosley, executive director for Downtown Frankfort, who has only been in ..read more

In any discussion of bourbon there are some names that cannot be overlooked: Elijah Craig, often referred to as “the father of the bourbon industry,” E.H. Taylor, Albert Blanton, Elmer T. Lee, Pappy Van Winkle, and the list goes on. Their place in the industry is the stuff of legends.  To the list, you should add John Graves Mattingly. His name may not be as immediately recognizable outside the bourbon industry as the others, but in 1845, J.G. Mattingly opened the second registered distillery in Kentucky in Marion County, eventually moving it to Louisville. Today, some bourbon histor ..read more

On Saturday, January 27th, Frankfort’s Capital Plaza Hotel will be overrun with aliens from outer space and invaders from the Underworld.  The Dead will be Walking again; Wonder Woman will hook up with Aquaman, and Harley Quinn will go up against her one-time ally and now arch-nemesis, The Joker.  And $20, the price of an admission ticket, will put visitors right in the middle of it all.   Welcome to FrankfortCon 2024, the city’s comic and pop culture event.  Following in the footsteps of similar conventions in San Diego, New York, Denver, Dallas, Boston, Atlanta and S ..read more

There’s a new corner bar in Frankfort, but it’s far from being stereotypical. The House of Commons, which opened in July of this year, doesn’t look like any corner bar in the Bluegrass…more like one found on a corner in San Francisco or New York. The sleek sophistication of the bar at the intersection of West Main Street and St. Clair is a welcome departure from the usual sports bar where inexpensive beer is the favorite libation, and the main design feature is the array of large screen TVs with a different game on each one. The bar’s proprietor, Dave Sandlin—a man whose roots in bourbon can b ..read more

It’s that time of the year again…. when the holiday shopping wars begin, and normally mild-mannered folks transform into warriors wielding carts and baskets as weapons.  Relax. This year shop Frankfort’s merchants and ensure your season remains a peaceful one.  To get in the holiday mood, stop into Benjamin’s Flowers and Gifts. Owner Benjamin Lee continues his 35-year tradition of transforming his shop into a Christmas wonderland. While you’re there, you can get inspiration for your own holiday decorating.  “We stock everything you need to decorate the house, both inside and ou ..read more