Dish on Market – The Home Of The Presidential Breakfast

Harry Truman would start every morning with an egg, a slice of bacon, toast, fruit, a glass of milk and a shot of Old Grand Dad. You can get this breakfast at Dish on Market and much more. Anderson Grissom was a student in the first Filson Bourbon Academy back in the fall of 2009. He and his brother Marshall opened Dish on Market shortly afterwards. It is a great Bourbon Bar and restaurant.

I walk into Dish and sit at the bar. It is an attractive bar that has been in the city for a long time and was once known as “Delta”. I recognize the bartender from a Filson Bourbon Academy. I get the Bourbon menu from her and look it over. It is a very good selection, but there are a few bourbons on the bar that are not listed on the menu. Old Grand Dad bottled-in-Bond is not listed which surprises me since it is part of the Presidential Breakfast. Neither is the Heaven Hill 6yo Bottled-in-Bond. I am told they are not on the menu because they are part of the daily specials and marked on the chalk board above the bar. The menu does include three Bourbon flights and they are well thought out. The first is a Heaven Hill flight allowing the person to compare three Bourbons from the same distillery. The second is a flight called the “Evolution of Bourbon” with a corn whiskey, a traditional Bourbon whiskey made with rye and a wheated Bourbon. The last is called Bourbon 101 with Bourbons from three different distilleries. The price of the flights is not listed on the menu so the customer has to inquire of the server.

The Bourbons are mostly separated by city or county where the Bourbon is aged. I say aged because Heaven Hill is listed under Bardstown, but their distillery is in Louisville. There are 76 Bourbons listed on their menu. They do have a category called “Premium Selection” which has the more expensive pours and is subject to availability, and a section “Alternative Bourbons” where they have the flavored products, corn whiskey and “White Dog” whiskey listed. The Alternative Bourbons has 6 products listed there and Angel’s Envy Rye is listed in the Premium Selections. Each Bourbon will have a short, one line statement about the Bourbon which is often a bit of history. For example with the Wathen’s it states “Eight generations of family distillers”. The menu also lists the proof and the age if there is an age statement. The Premium Selections are a bit more costly with prices from $16 for Wild Tukey Forgiven to $40 for Wild Turkey Diamond. Dish also stocks a very good selection of Rye whiskey, including Angel’s Envy rye at $20 a pour.

I order an Old Grand Dad Bonded, neat, at $4 a pour and it is a generous amount served in a rocks glass. I would have preferred a Glencairn glass or some other whiskey tasting glass but I do understand the cost involved and how they tend to disappear on busy nights. I also taste the new bottle of Willett 3yo rye that they recently received. It is an excellent whiskey. The people behind the bar are very knowledgeable and answer any questions I ask with ease. They are not busy while I am there but I have been told that they make excellent cocktails. I do not normally drink cocktails but I have drunk their Old Fashioned cocktail before and enjoyed it. The Old Fashioned Cocktail is now the official cocktail of the city of Louisville and every bar needs to make a good one and Dish on Market does not disappoint with their version.

I score the Dish on Market 1 points for their flights, 1 point for the menu selection, 1 additional point for their very reasonable prices, 1 point for their generous pour, 2 points for their knowledgeable staff, and 1 point for then general atmosphere. It is a very friendly place to have a drink and talk whiskey. This is a total of 8 points. A very good place to have a Bourbon and don’t forget to treat yourself to a Presidential Breakfast. You will be glad you did.

Dish on Market is on the Urban Bourbon Trail.