Science Hill Inn

I've been going to Science Hill Inn around Christmas time and around Derby time each and every year since I was around 7 years old.  Each year my mother, my sister and my two grandmothers piled into one car and made the trip  from Louisville.  Now, the entire family goes...my dad, the husbands, the nieces but only one grandmother now.  Whenever I'm in town for the holidays (I live up North now) I make a point of going there.  I live in a big city up North with a myriad of dining options but I've never found one yet that can provide the same experience as SHI does.

Happily, little has changed since I was 7 years old and that's *exactly* why I love the experience so much.  I've seen the same dear servers working there for the last 35+ years.  The only difference is that now they bring me Bloody Marys instead of Sprite!  The food?  Top. Notch.  The bread basket is fantastic...the cornbread (made with heavy cream!) makes me swoon.  The KY Bibb Lettuce is crowned with the best roquefort dressing I've ever tasted.  The Hot Brown is a vision of warm, bubbly bacon-y cheesiness.  The KY counry ham is great, too..thinly sliced and served on their miraculous biscuits with a side of honey, a nice sweet touch that plays off the saltiness of the ham to perfection.  I do miss items no longer on the menu (The Marco sandwich, the hot pimento cheese and bacon (bubbling with melty, yummy cheese) sandwich are but fond memories now.   But I never have trouble finding a new favorite.  For dessert, the cream puff can't be beat.  I'm not a fan of pecan pie or custard or buttermilk/chess pie but have always made (VERY happy) do with either the cobbler or the cream puff.  The bread pudding is another favorite...we used to tease my grandmother ceaselessly about how much she loved the "hard sauce."  It IS very boozy but very tasty if you like that bourbon-y taste.  

In short?  One of my favorite places of all time.  So many memories, so many good times and so much *really good* food.

Think: "My Old Kentucky Home" and you'll get it right away.

We came here on the way to the airport in Louisville - probably not the best idea, as the food is quite heavy and greasy.

We started with two baskets of bread - fried cornbread (hot water bread) in one and biscuits in the other - both were good but not fantastic.  Their menu is varied, but since were didn't have a ton of time, we went for main dishes and dessert (for me).

DH and I split the beef burgundy - its more like a stew than you might think and they have it pre-made so no substitutes allowed.  There was more than enough for both of us, and they were nice enough to put it in separate bowls for us.

MIL got shrimp and grits - these were very rich looking and she enjoyed soping up the bowl with biscuits.  They were able to customize these with less spices.

BIL ordered the Georgian - which is an open faced sandwich drowned in thousand island dressing - ask them to back off on that to get the full flavor profile.

I finished with a brown sugar pie - it was tasty and was basically pecan pie without the nuts.  The slice was small (because it's so rich) so don't be surprised.

They weren't able to offer me sweet tea, which was surprising to me.

I would disagree with some people - for me (being from Georgia), this was not "Southern Food" but it was "Kentucky Food" - subtle differences but I thought worth mentioning.

Once you are done eating, you can browse the shops they have - silver, linen, women, men, and more - very pretty items, although for an older crowd.  And again - for a Union crowd (if you know what I mean).

Overall, I'd say this is a place to come with an older family member (more than 60) if you are younger and not the place to hit before sitting in an airplane for several hours.  But it was lovely and you should give it a shot if you are in the area.

Southern dining at its finest - prices seem locked in 1940s, ambiance is Southern ladies who lunch. My business partner was the only male patron in the house...no joke.

Bread basket is delicious - cornbread is decent, but the biscuits were fantastic. Fried chicken is excellent. Trout was perfectly pan-fried but would be bland w/o the tartar sauce, which was very good.

The Inn also houses a few quaint gift shoppes - including a Silver Shop, and a finely curated Men's Shop.

Save room for dessert - chocolate chip pecan pie was indulgent but absolutely worth a try.