WELCOME TO Ace’s Annual Lexington Dining Guide
for Lexington Kentucky and the Bluegrass Region
Visitors to Lexington, Kentucky arrive in the beautiful bluegrass region with one question: where do the Locals eat in Lexington. This is a ten-part dining series, based on the 20+ years Ace writers and readers have been eating out in Lexington, Kentucky. We include old reliables alongside new and trendy, emerging neighborhoods alongside old faithfuls.
We begin our Lexington Culinary Tour here:
Start the day with a perfect cup of joe. Lexington has no shortage of indie coffeehouses and cafes, in addition to the Starbucks-on-every-corner as required by law.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and you could enjoy everything from doughnuts and beignets to some pretty famous buckwheat blueberry pancakes.
If it’s nice out, you’ll want to enjoy all the Bluegrass has to offer in outdoor and/or patio dining,
If you’re planning to cook, Lexington has greatly benefited from an influx of diverse cultures and culinary traditions in the past two decades. Whether you’re from Omaha or Oaxaca, you’ll have no trouble assembling a world-class meal in the bluegrass from the ingredients available at this selection of a dozen international markets, personally curated by Ace Food Writers.
But if you want to let someone else do the cooking, come downtown, for everything from sandwiches and delis to steakhouses and fine dining. This segment of our guide is almost entirely walkable, but you could also hop a trolley and just circulate. This would also be a great time to stay on that trolley and avail yourself of Lexington’s craft brew scene. You’ll want to finish up that part of the tour in Lexington’s campus, Chevy Chase neighborhoods.
And don’t neglect our gorgeous surrounding countryside, some of Lexington’s finest culinary gems are just a short scenic drive away.
