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Bardstown & Watterson Trail

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Richard S.

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Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Richard S. » Sun Dec 11, 2022 4:17 pm

Passed the cursed spot next to the Dollar Tree at Bardstown & Watterson Trail yesterday and saw a new sign advertising an African restaurant coming soon. I didn't catch the name, and the light at that intersection was out so I wasn't able to swing around for another look.

The last resident was a Peruvian chicken place. We ate there once and thought it was good, but I'd be surprised if they had more than 5 customers a day. That fact alone kept us from returning; I was concerned about the quality of the food we'd get if we were the only customers that day. It was at various times a chicken wing place, a Cuban bakery, a few different Mexican spots and a coffee shop.

I hope this one succeeds. Between that and the shopping center, that intersection is turning into another hub of international cuisine.
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Steve Shade

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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Steve Shade » Sun Dec 11, 2022 5:21 pm

And before all of the restaurants, it was a liquor store.
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James Natsis

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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by James Natsis » Sun Dec 11, 2022 7:56 pm

That location has certainly had its failures.

As mentioned above, it is a fairly international strip with a Turkish store behind, and across the street a Mexican supermercado, an International Store, an Indian Restaurant (Dakshin) , and a recently added Ethiopian restaurant. It is also not far from Dinos and Buechel bypass where there are many international places.

I'm glad to hear that an African place is coming in. Now its yet to be seen if they can buck the death sentence trend. The Congolese population has grown significantly in Louisville is recent years. The Kentucky Refugees Ministries reported that from 2017 - 2021, Cubans and Congolese (DRC) refugees were the largest two group, far out numbering any other group. We've seen the Cuban impact on our food scene. It would be nice to see some Congolese entrepreneurs venturing into the culinary scene.
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Iggy C

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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Iggy C » Sun Dec 11, 2022 9:24 pm

James Natsis wrote:I'm glad to hear that an African place is coming in. Now it’s yet to be seen if they can buck the death sentence trend. The Congolese population has grown significantly in Louisville is recent years. The Kentucky Refugees Ministries reported that from 2017 - 2021, Cubans and Congolese (DRC) refugees were the largest two group, far out numbering any other group. We've seen the Cuban impact on our food scene. It would be nice to see some Congolese entrepreneurs venturing into the culinary scene.

Prepandemic there was a catering place run by (IIRC) a group of Congolese and Burundian women. They’d also bring stands to events like WorldFest and the annual Americana festival where they’d serve brochettes, frites, chapati, amandazi, beans and rice (although no ubugari aka fufu, the fermented cassava mush that’s a typical starchy staple of the region). Not sure what their name was or if they’re still going.

Also, for a few years there was a Rwandan bar called Karisimbi in Iroquois Manor. It became a Somali place after they had a disastrous pipe break and had to sell. They had goat ribs, which were fun. I am not sure if the food of eastern DRC, Burundi and Rwanda is ever going to be a big draw for western foodies, but I hope something along those lines does pop up again, because I enjoy it.
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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by James Natsis » Sun Dec 11, 2022 10:13 pm

Nice recap, Iggy. I had heard about the catering gig and had met some ladies at the Worldfest a few years back. I knew several of the guys involved in Karisimbi and had been there once. Apart from the mishap you mentioned, I'm not sure if they had much restaurant experience to begin with.

I also agree that there won't likely be a large number of restaurants of that nature in the city. But it would be nice to have at least one. Besides, ethnic restaurants (and stores) also serve as community meeting spaces. They bring people together.
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Terri Beam

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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Terri Beam » Wed Dec 14, 2022 3:51 pm

The new African restaurant opened as of today. It's called Fa & Ada. I can't find anything via google-fu other than a business license.
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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Terri Beam » Tue Dec 27, 2022 7:10 pm

I thought I'd bump this up now that Fa & Ada has set up a Facebook page with pictures of the (small) menu and food.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088437471291

While it certainly looks interesting, the reliance upon onions will probably rule out me trying out their food, as I have a pretty severe allergy to anything in the onion family (much to my detriment as I love onions and ate them a lot up until a year ago when I wound up in a hospital bed from eating them).
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Robin Garr

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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Robin Garr » Tue Dec 27, 2022 9:10 pm

Teri, thanks for the post. I'm really sorry to hear about your allergy. I guess Indian food is out for you too then? I know they use a ton of onions. :cry:
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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Terri Beam » Sat Dec 31, 2022 2:34 pm

Robin Garr wrote:Teri, thanks for the post. I'm really sorry to hear about your allergy. I guess Indian food is out for you too then? I know they use a ton of onions. :cry:


Yes. I also love some Indian dishes, but even something as mild as tikka masala wrecks me.

I can't even subscribe to a meal service as they all rely heavily on onions (Hello Fresh got dumped almost immediately because there was nothing for me to choose). At best I can sometimes eat one onion ring stolen from my fiance, but any more than that and boom!
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Re: Bardstown & Watterson Trail

by Robin Garr » Sun Jan 01, 2023 8:55 am

I'm sorry to hear that, Terri. Have a happy New Year anyway! :)

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