Willie’s Locally Known - Lexington, KY
There are plenty of combinations that are hard to beat in this world - peanut butter and jelly, bourbon and ginger ale, macaroni and cheese, just to name a few - but there’s nothing quite like the pairing of live music and bbq. As luck would have it, we have such a place right here in the heart of Lexington at Willie’s Locally Known. Now conveniently located on Southland Drive off of Nicholasville Road, Willie’s has been a local staple in the Lexington music scene for quite a while. The original location, at the corner of Broadway and Loudon Avenue, had an intimate setting that allowed for patrons to enjoy good bbq while having a front-row seat to a wide variety of musical genres. The move to Southland Drive has managed to keep that same intimacy in the midst of a larger venue that pays homage to a now-defunct music spot called The Dame, lost in the infamous Centre Point debacle in the summer of 2008. You can see the influence of The Dame in many aspects of Willie’s decor, including the light-red illumination of the Willie’s Locally Known logo behind the bar.
We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with the owner of Willie’s Locally Known, Wilson Sebastian, to talk about live music, bbq, and how he got into the restaurant business. Wilson, a local businessman here in town, has always loved seeing live music; he used to frequent The Dame when it was in its prime downtown. When The Dame closed, he wanted to make sure there was still a place where people could enjoy good music while also serving up some comfort food (and what better cuisine to serve up than bbq)! The folks over at Food Network agreed, as Willie's was featured on an episode of Burgers, Brews and ‘Que, garnering a massive amount of business from all over the country for Wilson and company. Eventually, Wilson decided to make the move from North Broadway over to Southland Drive, and with the move came Tanner Stiff, the newly-appointed chef for Willie’s Locally Known. His vast knowledge of bbq, as well as other comfort food staples (like hot chicken and burgoo, of course), makes him the perfect fit for Willie’s concept.
Once we were finished chatting with Wilson, we checked out the menu and had a hard time deciding on what to have for lunch - everything looked so good! We had a special guest with us for this trip, friend-of-the-blog Brittany, so we had even more opportunities to try the different menu items. We started with an appetizer of chip and queso, because why not? Everyone loves chips and queso! The platter came with chorizo on the side (Renee doesn’t eat red meat, and they were very amenable with that request), as well as some tasty-yet-spicy salsa, all of which was pretty dang good if I do say so myself! Renee tried the pulled chicken tacos, while Brittany had the appetizer nacho plate, and I settled on the brisket French dip. Willie’s features a bar with 24 beers on tap, most of which are from local breweries, and a wide array of spirits for all kinds of mixed drinks. Since it was lunchtime and I had to work, we decided to stick with soft drinks and tea. Our food came out pretty quickly, and everything looked great; the nacho platter for Brittany was huge, Renee’s tacos came with more chips and salsa, and my French dip came with a side of fries. Everything was excellent; the chicken on the tacos was really moist and nicely accented with cilantro, cheese, and a fresh lime. The nachos were perfectly portioned with pulled pork, cheese, tomatoes and sour cream, while the French dip had a hearty serving of brisket and cheese with a side of au jus for dipping (of course I dipped; I always dip)! Everything was so good, and the service was awesome as well. We never wanted for anything, and our drinks were never empty, which is a huge plus for us here at BB&E!
As you may or may not know, many local restaurants have taken a hit in recent months with the influx of several new food spots flooding the market here in the Lexington area. Wilson recently received some media attention with his plea for people to keep local places in mind when they dine out, seeing as many of these restaurants utilize other local food vendors for the dishes on their menus. We think it’s great that someone is willing to stand up for the little guys out here trying to make it work, and that makes us appreciate all the hard work that goes into starting a small business. As for parking, there is plenty of it available all around Willie’s, and in the summer you can take advantage of the large outdoor patio that sits right outside of the stage area (so you can still hear any live music, naturally). We really recommend checking out what Wilson, Tanner, and the rest of the gang have going on at Willie’s Locally Known, and when we come back we’re setting our sites on their weekend brunch; we can’t wait to see you all there too!
