Who
Edward Lee is chef/owner of Magnolia 610 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Why
Chef Lee’s cooking is drawn from his Korean-American heritage, Brooklyn background, classical French training and the Southern city he’s called home for over a decade, Louisville, Kentucky.
610 Magnolia - Louisville, KY
Q & A with Chef Edward Lee
Q. For visitors coming to Louisville, please tell us about 610 Magnolia:
A. 610 Magnolia is a fine diningrestaurant, located in the heart of historic Old Louisville, housed in a historic and charming carriage house.We juxtapose this old world charmwith modern Southern cuisine to create a truly unique dining experience where homey Southern ingredients like grits, rhubarb and sorghum mingle happily with global spices, modern cooking techniques and unexpected pairings like Skate Wing and Bacon.We offer a three, four or six course dining option every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evening.Reservations are required.
Q. Do you draw from your own background for inspiration and how do you incorporate it presently?
A. I always use my Korean background as a different vocabulary that I can draw from when I want to tell a slightly different story with my dishes. Something as simple as finishing grits with a few dashes of soy sauce bring a depth and layer to the plate without making it outright Asian or global. But it's a flavor that isthought-provoking,yet familiar to most palates.
Q. What local ingredients do you never tire of using?
A. Rhubarb, sorghum, bourbon.
Advice / Tips
Q. What are some kitchen shortcuts that home cooks would love to know about?
A. I use pressure cookers at home to achieve restaurant quality braises and stews in a fraction of the time.
Recommended By
- Bourbon Barrel Foods’ Matt Jamie
Recommendations
Edward Lee’s recommendations for bourbons, websites and where to eat, drink and shop in Louisville, Raleigh and New York.
Recommendations
FIND | Resources - Magazines & Websites
The Art Of Eating Magazine by Ed Behr
The best (and maybe only) publication out there for thoughtful food writing.
Garden & Gun
It’s great to keep up with what's going on in the South, I always learn something new with each issue.
So Good
A cutting edge pastry magazine for the intrepidpastry chef.
Ideas In Food (www.ideasinfood.com)
A great blog that has some of the most creative techniques I've seen come out of a home kitchen.
[See details.]
Chef Edward Lee’s Louisville
Find | Markets
Bardstown Farmers Market
Photo Credit: stlbites.com [flickr]
Louisville Farmers Markets
Farmers markets here in Louisville are great. There's one somewhere every day of the week.The produce here is some of the best I've ever seen, and it gets better every year.
Lexington Farmers Markets
On Saturday afternoons, they have one of the biggest farmers markets in the region, and I'll often make the drive over there just to see what's shaking.
[See details.]
Eat | Restaurants
I like small, poorly lit ethnic restaurants where English is a second language.To that end, there are places in town from Pakistani to Vietnamese to Iranian to Mexican holes-in-the-wall.Most of these places have a sign that I can't read and I order whatever is looking good at the other tables.
Dak-Shin
For Indian.
Pho Bin Min
For Vietnamese.
La Tropicana Market
For Mexican.
[See details.]
Where Chefs Eat
Holy Grale
Photographs courtesy of Holy Grale
Holy Grale
A great beer bar that has creative bar food.
Eiderdown
A new place in Germantown that makes good pub food.
[See details.]
Where The Locals Eat
Jack Fry’s
A wonderful speakeasy-vibe restaurant with an incredible sense of history.
Wagner's Pharmacy
If you are in the horse business, you will go to Wagner's Pharmacy for a greasy spoon lunch and to talk shop.
[See details.]
Off The Beaten Track | Franco's Soul Food Restaurant on Dixie Highway
A terrible location for a restaurant, but the best fried chicken in the city, hands down (sorry KFC).
[See details.]
Find. Eat. Drink. | Quintessential Louisville Spots
Churchill Downs | A Sandwich At Blue Dog Bakery
Photograph Credit: Erin Pettigrew [flickr] | Blue Bog Bakery
1) Grab a beer at any of the Irish bars on Bardstown Road
2) A day at the track at Churchill Downs
3) An espresso and sandwich at Blue Dog Bakery
4) A walk through Cherokee Park
[See details.]
New York, NY
Eat | Restaurants
Must Hit Spots
Dumplings at Joe’s Shanghai | Hot Dogs at Crif Dog
Photograph Credit: Alexis Lamster [flickr] | star5112 [flickr]
Joe’s Shanghai
In Chinatown -- I miss the juicy dumplings.
Crif Dogs
I'll always stop in one time for my bacon wrapped deep fried dog.
Porchetta
For a sandwich.
Chef Koji Hagihara of Hakata Tonton
Photograph Credit: Troy House for Find. Eat. Drink.
Hakata Tonton
In the West Village -- for pig's feet dumplings.
[See Slide Show]
Katz’s Deli
There's nothing better than a corned beef sandwich at Katz's in the morning.
[See details.]
Drink | co*cktails
Pegu Club
I always try to make Pegu Club for their Kill-Devil co*cktail.
[See details.]
Eat | Chefs
Poole’s Diner [North Carolina] | Ashely Christensen
She takes comforting food to a whole new level.
[See details.]
Bourbons
Pappy Van Winkle Rye | Willett Family | Rowan’s Creek | Noah’s Mill
Pappy Van Winkle
Still the king, but if you find their Rye Whiskey, that's like finding gold.
Willett Family
They doan awesome line of bourbons: Rowan's Creek, Noah's Mill and their vintage aged bourbons.
[See details.]
Recommendation Details
Details of Edward Lee’s recommendations for bourbons, websites and where to eat, drink and shop in Louisville, Raleigh and New York.
Recipes
- Lamb Burger with Kim Chi Slaw
