Gary's on Spring

Got to go to a soft opening of Gary's on Spring last night and I certainly was not disappointed. Although it has taken a while to open, the wait was certainly worth it. The transformation from the old Spring Street Meeting House to the present restaurant is most remarkable. The dining room is warm and inviting with walnut plantation shutters in the front windows and the walls decorated with black and white nostalgic prints. Whenever possible they have kept the original brick walls, especially the stairs to and including the upstairs bar area. This area is a really cool place with a nice inviting bar and small tables and a leather couch area on one side.

Once the food began there was no stopping Chef Harold Baker. His execution of the New American Cuisine menu was spot on from the smoked salmon and Kentucky Hot Brown appetizers to his blacked New York strip, veal chop and encrusted grouper entrees. All were fulfilled to perfection. His promises for great cuisine were certainly kept.

The service, even though it was a trial run, was attentive without being intrusive and GM Greg Fearing was the perfect field general making sure all diners expectations were realized.

This is a great venue for an informal dinner or a place to stop off for drinks and appetizers. The restaurant is very inviting and the entire staff from the front of the house to the kitchen are passionate about their food that is served.

Good luck Guy, Harold and Greg.

very excited to go! We've been watching this spot for what feels like years!

I noticed that they were open to the public last night. Did anyone go?

We did after Valentine lunch at Boom Bozz on Eastern Parkway and Valentine dinner at the Market Street White Castle with tablecloths, candles, flowers and two bottles of an adult beverage served in appropriate glasses for our foursome. Lots of fun. Although I have had extensive experience with both the sliders and the beverage separately, they really don't go well together. Heading up Market toward River Road, we decided to check out Gary's to see if it had opened yet. Yesterday was their first day for the public; they had had a previous friends and family day and a VIP day. The first person we met was Jackie R. ready for any POS problems. We went upstairs to the bar where we had a glass of wine.
The bar floor is shotgun style with furnishings that I would call plush, muted, very cozy and comfortable. The wine list is well chosen. With bottles that we were most familiar with we noted the smallest markup over retail that we have seen in Louisville. With warmer weather, the first floor patio and second floor deck should be very nice. We reviewed the food menu and hope to return for dinner. Gary's joins L & N as a good place to grab a glass of wine on the way home from downtown.

I'm really geared up about this place and plan to dine there this Friday with Gayle. One of my most anticipated dinners in a while. The atmosphere is so warm and the crew tops the charts.

Is there a menu available to peruse ?

Dinner last night was spot on! Jackie and I tried the caviar on blini and smoked salmon appetizers. Jackie had the bison ribeye and I had blackened scallops served in (if I remember correctly) a lobster sauce with mushrooms, red peppers, onions/scallions over linguini. The latter was perfectly seasoned and married. The portions were more than generous. As Robert mentioned the wines are amazingly reasonable per label and the decks scream for continued warm weather. Our server, Greg, was knowledgable, cordial and attentive. Gary's is a definite keeper!

Gary's On Spring is opening decks in 3 weeks, come join us for that Spring is just around the corner!

We went to dinner at Gary's On Spring last night to celebrate a birthday and I came away quite impressed.

Firstly, I feel a big plus is the fact that they have an ample parking lot out back so there is no scrambling around for a spot on the street. The building itself has been really transformed and has a simple, understated elegance. The decks appear that they will be very inviting once the weather figures out what season it is. I can see dining alfresco being a big draw. The upstairs bar-lounge area is nice as well. The first floor dining room is warmly lit and simply decorated and was quite pleasant until the room started to fill up with patrons and it quickly got pretty loud. There appears to be nothing to soak up any noise from the long & narrow high ceiling, hardwood floor room, so it had an echo chamber effect. For myself, that was the only non-positive thing about the evening. Everything else was quite good. The attentive service was well paced and unobtrusive as the waitstaff just kind of appeared when anything was needed. And the food was delicious. Chef Harold has really put together a nice menu.

We started with an order of the Chicken Fritters. Lightly fried spheres of chicken, peppers and onion with just a touch of curry with an addictive sweet chili garlic chutney. It was a harbinger of good things to come.

The ladies both ordered the Potato Encrusted Grouper. This will most likely become the signature dish at Gary's as I found my sample to be one of the most balanced dishes I have ever eaten. It is one of the best seafood dishes I've ever had in Louisville. A recurring theme during the meal for me was Chef Harold's' sauce work and the Dijon Chive Cream Sauce that accompanied the grouper is outstanding. He had a delicate touch with some assertive flavors and it really made the dish. When I was talking with Chef Harold after the meal he admitted that they have been selling a lot of this dish. I personally don't think he will ever be able to remove it from the menu once the word really starts getting around about Gary's

I ordered the Veal Chop, curious about how the Dark Truffle Mornay Sauce would pair with the Citrus Tomato Coulis on the plate. Two things in my mind I would have never put together but it worked perfectly. The rich, earthy Mornay was actually highlighted by the acidity of the coulis which paired well with the perfectly cooked veal.

My father's Bison Ribeye was a pretty straightforward approach that you might find in most finer establishments around town. But once again the sauces really set themselves apart on the plate. The rich Demi Glace and the Bearnaise were both well executed examples of what these two sauces are supposed to be.

Pretty satiated, we almost didn't try dessert but I left it to Chef to pick one for the table to share and was pleasantly surprised by the White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake. It was actually lighter than it sounds and the perfect size for sharing. A fabulous end to an exceptional meal.

All in all, Gary's on Spring makes it much harder to decide on where to dine out in this city.It is a welcome addition in my book. It seems to complement the finer tables in town, and I believe will ultimately be considered in the same circle as Jack Fry's, Lilly's and the like.
Great job guys and keep up the good work!

Really good deal for Gary's still left for a few people:

http://www.fox41.com/link/471381/be-our-guest

Nice review there Dano. Gary's is now on our radar.

Thanks for the heads up, Ray. I went ahead and bought one!

I got one too! Only 23 left.

I got one too! Only 23 left.

I didn't really see any vegetarian stuff on the menu, but I'm more than certain that the kitchen would be more than happy to accommodate you, and do it well.

I had an excellent meatless eggplant dish there.