Avalon

Awesome half price happy-​hour drinks after 5 (but you have to sit in the Bar area to get the discount!).
I’ve eaten here several times and it never disappoints — well, let me rephrase that — I took off a star because sometimes the portions aren’t enough to fill me up.

So… I really love the newish chef at Avalon. He seems like a great guy. The food… it tastes yummy, instead of the crap it used to be. The menu changes, though not necessarily dramatic, hopefully make it easier to put a beautiful and tasty plate on the table.
BUT: PEOPLE!!! Train your hostess! Train your waitstaff!
So, that, ya know, she can ‘read’ that a mid-​size mixed gender party (i.e. less than 8) is going to spend several hundred dollars on a meal, instead of ordering 1 5 $ app and a couple of ½ price cocktails and take up a table all night. So that she can figure out that keeping them waiting for dinner for over two hours (while people who arrived after them began being seated 30 minutes after they arrived) is a *bad* idea. So that she can figure out that finally, assigning them to a table (after they’ve already spent a few hundred on bar tabs — hey — don’t judge! We were waiting for hours!) with a server who’d come by a) to take orders eventually and b) to deliver the tab and announce that the restaurant was closing and LITERALLY NOTHING ELSE, despite the fact that my party arrived at 7 pm, but weren’t seated until after 9:30 pm.
My water glass was filled once about 5 minutes after I sat. And never again. While having dinner, five or more bottles of wine were served, along with beer for the guys… Really? No water? Seriously? Because I’m pretty sure even the Waffle House refills water, people.
The house manager (Andrew) was even there all night & everything was jacked up. WTH? No one even said, «Hey, you’ve been waiting forever, lemme throw you an appetizer» or something.
The restaurant was empty. If they don’t have enough staff to cover the patio, they need to remove tables. Because this was totally messed. And yet, the food was good — better than it ever was! But I’m not going back unless in the presence of a restaurant critic the hostess will recognize.

I went here to try something new. My husband and I had a
thing and figured we’d give it a whirl. A-​mazing food. I was super hungry and ended up getting an appetizer and an entrée. The appetizer was a variation of an egg roll with black beans in it that was amazing. There was a good dipping sauce that reminded me of remoulade too. The best part was the entrée though. I decided to try their new «3 pigs rolled in a blanket’ (don’t think that’s the right name tho!). There was some incredibly tender pork that was very savory. I would defineatly come back to try more of the foods. I saw they had a dinner for two that looked good too.

Food was good but not great, service was faultless, staff were friendly.
We used a Groupon, so the price was right. But if we had paid full price I would have been disappointed.
Bottom line: A little overpriced for what is on offer. Did I enjoy it? Certainly. Will I return? Unlikely.

I’ve been for girls night with $ 5 apps and ½ price drinks, for bday party drinks (at the bar — always half price!), for lunch with the yummy sweet potato fries, and recently for a lovely dinner date. Each time has been exactly that: lovely.
The service is pretty awesome. I have gotten the same guy a few times — and being horrific with names I don’t remember to suggest him — but just incredibly good and super friendly.
The flat breads are great, love the bacon dates, love the deviled eggs (very, very worth the price), the lobster mac and cheese was incredible. Not as impressed with the goat cheese dip thing, though it was still nice. I already mentioned the sweet potato fries — win! We also had a dinner special last time that was incredible. Super fresh mussels and tasty sauce.
Almost forgot. The atmosphere is upscale yet casual if that makes sense. It is chill enough to go for drinks in jeans or you could fit in wearing a dress and heels. I appreciate that. And you HAVE to sit outside on the patio if you can. Perfect for after work drinks.
And half price wine night too! The specials here are ridiculous. I have added Avalon to my rotation for regular spots. Not quite 5 stars, but it is definitely borderline. Go for a date or go for a special. Either way, great spot.

Having dined at Avalon frequently, both for dinner and happy hour with apps… we decided to combine all efforts this past tuesday night with friends. Cocktails at the bar, as always were well mixed. Headed to our table for apps… dates were… ok, and the warm olive medley was good. Most decided on the sole special stuffed with crab over rice. Very disappointed as not much flavor at all.
So, in conclusion… stick to the stand bys that have been on the menu for sometime. I tend to find the specials not very special. Sorry!

This is one of my favorite places to eat and drink in the highlands. Food, Drink and Service s very very good and consistent. Drinks are always ½ price and the appetizers are always tasty. Cheese Board and the Lobster Mac are great little meals in themselves. I recommend this establishment to everyone. Enjoy!

Great comfort food and it is always ½ off drinks at the bar. Go see the bartenders (Meghan and Ryan) and you will have a fantastic beverage to go with the yummy food.

I recently had the opportunity to eat a full meal at Avalon after only experiencing their drinks and let me tell you it was worth the wait! The menu consists of good old comfort food but with an eccentric flair. I had the fried chicken with mashed potatoes and they were some of the best mashed potatoes I have ever had in a restaurant. The bread pudding was AMAZING! If you are in the need for some comfort food but don’t want to visit your parents… take a trip to Avalon.

This was THE WORST SERVICE I have EVER experienced in my life! We made a reservation for 7 people at 7:30PM last Saturday night. Upon arrival, the owner told us it would be about 10 – 15 mins. We informed him we would be at the bar. At 7:50PM we inquired again, since we never received any updates from anyone. Again, we were told 10 – 15 mins.
At 8:40PM, ONE HOUR AND 10 MINS. LATER, the owner said there was nothing he could do despite the fact that there were several tables visibly vacant in the upper banquette seating area.
Finally, we marched out of there and went across the street to Bristol Farms where we enjoyed a delicious meal and impeccable service within minutes of arriving.
What shocked me was the owner of Avalon was unbelievably complacent, made no attempt to remedy the situation and absolutely DID NOT CARE if he lost business from a 7 top!!! He simply figured, «I have a full restaurant, it makes no difference to me whether they stay or go!»
You really have a thing or two to learn about how to run a restaurant, how to turn tables in a systematic way to ensure diners are seated at their appropriate reservation time as well as any sense of service and gratitude towards your customers or you will not be around long!

Update… went back to give them another try after the horrible service last visit. Service this time was excellent, granted it was a slow night but sometimes that doesn’t mean good service. Waitress was very friendly and definitely the complete opposite of the waiter on our last visit. We had the hummus, which had been our favorite app here, but they changed it recently. Not traditional hummus as before, different consistency not even close to the previous hummus. Wedge salad was very good and enough for two people. We got salmon and fried chicken. Salmon was good, cooked well, could have used a side item to finish the dish off. Fried chicken I was excited about because it was buttermilk fried chicken, which usually means great flavor. Just not a big fan, the breading was more like fish breading than chicken breading and threw the whole taste off for me. Mashed potatoes might as well have been instant as they were almost like paste and very dry. All that being said, I cleaned the plate because i was very hungry and the food wasn’t bad just not as good as I had hoped. We stop here now for drinks and apps sometimes, trying to narrow down the good items on the menu. Hummus was a go to item, hopefully they are just trying out the new recipe. Flatbreads are safe bet every time. So from last visit to this one definitely earned another star, I wish the food was more amazing and less mediocre because I really want to like the place.
A restaurant with a lot of potential, but poor execution leaves you walking out very disappointed. We have been here for apps and drinks once or twice but never dinner til now. We had about a 20 minute wait only to be shown to our table at the back of the restaurant which was all but empty. I quickly realized they were not extremely busy but rather extremely slow. If you can’t seat your entire restaurant on a Saturday night at 8pm efficiently, then maybe something is wrong. After waiting over 5 minutes to even see our waiter, we finally gave our drink order. Ten minutes later our drinks show up, so we make sure to put in the rest of our order since they seem to be in no hurry. Apps came out in 10 to 15 minutes, deviled egg and hummus. The eggs come with a vinegar and hot sauce mixture that really adds to the flavor of the eggs. Hummus was thicker than most I have had, but the taste was great and the pita was better than most. After apps it was a good 30 minutes before we saw out entrees fried chicken and meatloaf. Main complaint here, meatloaf was way to little, I mean its ground beef so why give me 6 ounces with some mashed potatoes. Make it 10 to 12 ounces and you got yourself a good meal. The green beans are like most, tasteless and not worth eating. How come I can make to die for green beans at home, but find it almost impossible to find good green beans at any restaurant? Fried chicken was good at first but then we decided a side of gravy would make it an excellent dish. The small amount they use in only a tease. Unfortunately i was lucky to get a refill on my drink much less a side of gravy, it would have been stone cold by the time our waiter decided to bring the gravy. We did leave full, but more frustrated with the service than anything. I might go back during the week when it’s slow to see if service is any better. If you make someone wait that long for food, you better wow them with the product, not the case here.

This place wouldn’t normally be my first choice of places to hit up for drinks or food… or really anything. Upon entering, my first impression was that it was too hoity toity for me. But last night after dinner, we tried it out — looking for a few drinks, and a relaxing night. Honestly, it was perfect for what we wanted! I have no idea how the food tastes, but the drink I had was pretty great (White Cranberry Cosmo) — AND, it was half off. (~4 for a martini)
You heard me. Half. Off.
Not only martinis, but the ENTIRE drink menu (including bottles of wine, but excepting drinks with asterisks) were half off. Don’t worry, most of the drinks didn’t have asterisks. I’m not joking, I seriously had to ask the bartender and the waitress — then literally point a drink on the menu and say, «So, this drink, instead of $ 6, is really only $ 3» before I actually believed them. Now, the prices were still not stupidly cheap, but they were pretty darn good, and the drink wasn’t watered down.
Apparently they have half-​off evenings every night… in the bar area only.
Check out other specials (including date night, lunch, and ladies night specials):

Did someone say outdoor dining?!
This place gets 2 stars alone because of the wonderful patio and bar outside. Avalon has really invested in having a summer dining experience. The outdoor patio is perfect considering you are right in college-​town-​quirky highlands. There is enough shrubbery to allow you the piece of eating without being watched, there is a small fence to prevent homeless and political loony’s from approaching your table, and yet there is enough of a view that you can see it all from your table.
As some other reviews have stated the grill cheese it very yummy. I honestly think the portions are pretty good for the cost of the restaurant. This restaurant has a full bar with nothing to fancy to say about the drink menu
I will admit although Avalon has a place in my heart, I tend to only visit heavily in summer for the patio. I am sure everything is just as Yummy indoors too.

I love this place! Perfect for a date or a get together with family and friends. The food is delectable! Their menu is able to satisfy a variety of cravings –whether you are in the mood for a perfect cheeseburger or mushroom ravioli with arugula. The flat breads are also highly recommended! Their wine and drink selection is also pretty expansive –they have a large wine list and offer some pretty awesome specialty cocktails too.
The outdoor seating and ambiance is unbeatable. The staff was efficient and friendly (although probably could use a lesson or two on how to pour wine.) The prices are also reasonable. Three of us spent around $ 20 a piece and shared a bottle of wine too. Going to the Avalon is just a really pleasant experience time and time again –one that I hope everyone can recreate on their own!

I would definitely say, $$$. «$$» is not accurate. Plus, be prepared to pay $ 3.00 per soda, no free refills. In addition to that, the soda comes out in a plastic bottle & they do not recycle them.

I really can’t say enough good things about this place! I am so sad I never tried Avalon when I was living off of Bardstown Road. I missed out. When I was back in town with friends, went here for a quick dinner before freezing our butts off at Thunder over Louisville.
I look at good food on a sliding cost scale. Insanely expensive food better bring me to Jesus or it wasn’t worth it. Likewise, great food at a good price thrills me. Avalon offers very, very good food at a very, very reasonable price.
Started with lobster mac & cheese, deviled eggs and calamari. The mac and calamari were really good. The deviled eggs were bland and gross. For my entrée, I had an Avalon Burger. Saw one go by and I couldn’t resist. My friend and I split a bottle of Guenoc Petite Sirah. Very good.
The décor at Avalon is very cute. This would be a wonderful date spot and service was great. Best part, my bill was $ 35.00!

Simply lovely! This is an excellent choice for a proper date night.
My companion and I enjoyed the selections from the flatbreads, both tantalizing and light enough for the both of us to enjoy without feeling stuffed (although there is plenty of food for that if you wish).
I sent a specialty bottle of wine in ahead of time to be served with our meal. The waitress brought it over, introduced the label and vintage, and served it quite dutifully to us in such a professional manner. She was very engaged, conversational without being pushy, and we thoroughly enjoyed her company.
**Highly recommend** that you get a reservation beforehand (which we did), because it was pretty packed even for a Tuesday night (not crowded or loud, however).
I will be returning this place again.

We wanted to take mom out somewhere different (nothing wrong with the Uptown Café but do we really have to eat there every time we come to Kentucky?) and we decided on Avalon based on reviews.
The crab cakes were mostly crab, not just breading. The halibut was perfectly cooked and delicious. When the two halibut dishes showed up, though, one filet was three times the size of the other creating some serious entrée envy at the table. That was unfortunate. Without that mistake, I would have given the restaurant five stars.
The service was knowledgable but slow.

Avalon is great. I went for lunch with my husband, and then returned a second time for dinner just a few days later with my husband’s boss and wife.
I recommend the lobster mac and cheese — LOVES it.

I think Avalon has a lot of things going for it. I’ve been for both lunch and dinner, and have not been disappointed in anything! The sandwiches and flatbreads in particular are really yum, and there are several entrees that caught my eye to come back and try.
The menu is varied — little something for everyone! And the yam fries are deeeeelicious. The drinks are good (I recommend sticking to mixed drinks or beer — the wine list isn’t anything special, and a little pricey for what it is).
One of the best patios I’ve seen so far in Louisville, for sure! Looking forward to spending some time out there as the weather gets nicer.