Three years ago the Louisville food writer Steve Coomes traced the career to date of admired local chef Allan Rosenberg, and made this observation:
“By his own admission, he’s cursed with an extreme culinary curiosity, one that sends him plunging into the piles of cookbooks stacked at home. It also seems to lead him from restaurant to restaurant in search of fresh stimuli.”
Now Rosenberg has made perhaps his biggest move. Today The Galt House Hotel is debuting Walker’s Exchange, a Kentucky-style brasserie located in the West Tower, and Rosenberg is the chef de cuisine. Louisville Business First took a peek inside the kitchen.
The menu was originally set to have French and American dishes including seafood, pastas, poultry and steak. That theme is vaguely reflected in the current menu, which features some Southern comforts as well, such as short rib southern hand pies ($12); Kentucky country ham and cheese ($12) and shrimp po-boys ($14).
Many will be happy to hear that some of the favorites from Rosenberg’s former restaurants will live on at Walker’s.
“It’s funny, we’re calling it ‘Allan’s greatest hits menu’ because it has many things on it that I got known for,” (Rosenberg) said.
The restaurant’s name is derived from an establishment by the same monicker that served Louisville’s riverfront in the 1830s, when the Ohio was the water-borne equivalent of our interstate highways.
Adjacent to Walker’s Exchange is the remodeled Jockey Silks Bourbon Bar, an original bar on Louisville’s Urban Bourbon Trail. It reopens today.
The premier bourbon bar – a longtime destination for both local bourbon aficionados and guests visiting Louisville for the Urban Bourbon experience – has been completely reimagined while still staying true to its roots. Featuring nearly 180 bourbons, plus 50 wine and champagne selections, beers on tap, and a well-edited bar bites menu, the iconic lounge now features a sleek, modern aesthetic with a nod to retro 40s and 50s style and décor.
Both Walker’s Exchange and Jockey Silk are part of The Galt House Hotel’s $80 million renovation program.
