Avalon: Reviewed October 28, 2006

Avalon: Richness abounds - Avalon's sauces dampen excellent meals

By Marty Rosen
Special to The Courier-Journal

They will butter you up at Avalon, and at times that can be a very good thing.

Avalon has a winning dish with its horseradish-encrusted Atlantic salmon. By Pam Spaulding, The Courier-Journal

A case in point is the complimentary basket of warm ciabatta served at the beginning of a meal. It's earthy and sublime: A drizzle of brown butter and balsamic vinegar forms a sweet, tangy, crunchy glaze that might make you think you've come across a grown-up variation on cinnamon toast — and in a way, you have.

On the other hand, sometimes that butter just gets in the way. When I ordered a roasted boneless half chicken ($19.60), I hoped for crisp, crunchy, golden brown skin and a firm, juicy texture.

Instead, what I found on the plate was soft, spongy chicken drowned under a surfeit of buttery sauce. The sauce was a fine affair, and if the kitchen takes pride in its saucy creations, no one should begrudge them that — but too much pride is an unseemly thing.

The setting has an attractively modern bistro feel: Black tables in a split-level dining area are surrounded by walls the color of creamy coffee; brushed-metal rails connect the levels; windows look out over bustling Bardstown Road. In season, there's a wildly popular outdoor dining area, and throughout the year the bar offers a cozy refuge.

Every detail, from the stylish flatware to the meticulous service, seems well-considered.

But where the furnishings are modern and the sourcing focuses on fresh and local ingredients, the techniques reach into an old-fashioned epicurean playbook that focuses on richness above all else — a playbook that too often obscures the essential qualities of the materials.

Richness informs the wine list, as well, which, though the markups seem fair, offers hardly any viable options below $30. We were happy with an aromatic glass of Belle Vallee Pinot Noir ($10/$39) and a surprisingly mild M. Chapoutier Belleruches Cotes du Rhone, 2002 ($10/$38).

A wonderfully balanced Caesar dressing ($7.50; $4 in a smaller version when ordered with an entree) expresses all the multilayered flavors that made this dressing a global classic before chefs started tampering with it.

Judiciously applied, this dressing would have been a perfect accent for the gleaming Romaine on the plate; instead, the greens were swamped.

Likewise, a chopped salad ($7.90/$4) is colorful and surgically precise; but here again purple cabbage, orange carrots, slivered red and yellow bell peppers were swamped — though the green goddess dressing was fine in its own right.

A wedge of iceberg lettuce ($7.50/$4) was better. The leaves were whimsically deconstructed to form a jade bowl decorated with grape tomatoes, thin wafers of pungent cheddar, smoky bacon and, this once, a light dose of ranch dressing.

An appetizer of fried risotto balls ($7.50) was perfect in its parts, but never quite added up. Break into the delicately crunchy sphere and you find a rich core of rice bound together with melted Kenny's Farmhouse Gouda. The accompanying smoked tomato vinaigrette, streaked with crème fraîche, is alluring enough to eat with a spoon.

Alas, the two elements never form a compelling connection — but what fun it might be if those risotto spheres were infused with basil, saffron or a vibrant foil fit for that proud sauce!

Other appetizers include coconut-encrusted shrimp, fried green tomatoes, crab cakes and a truffled lobster macaroni and cheese that's become a legendary indulgence in some circles.

As for fit foils, my wife, Mary, dined on horseradish-encrusted Atlantic salmon ($21.90), and a better combination would be hard to find.

True, once again the kitchen was overly enthusiastic with a drizzle of crème fraîche, but horseradish pairs superbly with salmon, and the fish was cooked to silky perfection. Likewise, a short rib that fell apart tenderly under my fork.

There is no neglecting the side dishes, which recently have included tender cubes of butternut squash, carefully tended baby yellow squash and crisp-tender haricots verts.

Ask an Avalon server about dessert, and you'll discover that they're as commendably partisan in their preferences as they are knowledgeable about the menu.

Acting on excellent advice, we opted for blackberry cobbler ($7), a steaming purple under a white cap of ice cream and a little garden of edible flowers.

Freelance restaurant critic Marty Rosen's review appears on Saturdays. You can e-mail him at cjdining@courier-journal.com

Avalon

1314 Bardstown Road, Louisvile, KY

502-454-5336

Rating: 3 stars