City Guide | Louisville
I went to Louisville for a conference the other weekend. In between presenting my paper about Shakespeare and listening to other panels, some riveting and others snooze worthy, I explored the small, waterfront city. Louisville surprised me with a multitude of art galleries and a feeling someone created a brand guide the city follows. Most places I went had creative, hand lettering-esque logos with cool colors, from coffee shops to restaurants and boutiques. There were so many hip shops with beautifully designed unique products. Hand lettering murals graced the sides of brick buildings and even the Starbucks was decorated with iconic Louisville decor (baseball bats, but artfully displayed in a gradated wall display of dark to light woods).
Here are some of the highlights from my trip if you ever end up in this conference city, it's more interesting than you would think.
Cute, Louisville. It's true, sometimes it just takes getting away to a new place.
Feast BBQ in NuLu (New Louisville), the hip part of town. When in the South eat BBQ, right? The sweet potato fries were extra crispy and delicious especially with the homemade ranch. Also, the logo design is perfect. I'm not joking when I say this whole city is coordinating with design.
Louisville Slugger Museum. Obviously this was a very fun sight to find on a run one rainy morning. I watched through the window as people worked on hand making the bats. In addition to the museum, there is a little Louisville Slugger Field near the waterfront. Around the city are different home plate monuments set in the sidewalk, kind of like Hollywood Stars, for various noteworthy baseball players, like one for Barry Bonds right outside the museum (Go Giants!).
Atlantic No. 5 on Main Street provided a nice resting place to get some homework done in the course of the weekend. Healthier options of food were offered like a nice chicken salad, sandwiches, and many coffee choices. The interior was so soothing, with nice lighting and perfect sage walls. I always appreicate a coffee shop/cafe that creates a space people feel they can be at for a while.
Ok, you have to go to Please & Thank You in NuLu. No lie, the chocolate chip cookie was amazing. The chocolate chips were more like sliced shavings, resulting in sheets of chocolate throughout the cookie and paired with an Americano it was the perfect afternoon pick me up on an overcast day. After, we walked around NuLu looking at different murals and galleries, a quiet town on a Saturday morning.
Hotel 21C is a museum hotel on Main Street. I had pinpointed this hotel as a stop before arriving, fascinated with the concept of a hotel also being an art gallery. The main lobby led to this gallery space and other eclectic art was hung around the hallways and restaurant. Waiters were super hipster in the hotel restaurant Proof on Main. The brunch was divine. I found every place we went for breakfast would put a whole pot of coffee on our table and there were only ever four of us, max. Is this normal? I loved it, especially at Proof with my frittata and toast.
Louisville is a surprisingly artsy city. Although not that large, the closeness allowed for walking everywhere. So, if you ever catch yourself hanging around for a conference or the Kentucky Derby, explore some of the unique places waiting to welcome you in.
A few other notable stops:
Galt House - A historic hotel on the water front with an intricate glass walkway in between the East and West towers of the hotel.
Good Folks Coffee - A local coffee roaster whose coffee was served at Press and Please & Thank You. It is really good coffee and the company is killing the branding.
Fourth Street Live - If you're looking for some fun places at night, Fourth Street Live has restaurants, bars, and an ice cream shop that only achieved a B health rating but has really good ice cream.
Muhammad Ali Center - Placed between the water front, performing arts center, and Galt House
