Salad, wonderful tomatoes

The concept of chocolate-laced fine dining isn’t something you pass on. So when Carolina Knop invited me to join a group for last night’s Five-Course Dinner at Buck’s in Old Louisville, I quickly said YES.

Chef Colter Hubsch
Chef Colter Hubsch

I’ve made maybe a half-dozen trips to Buck’s over the years, and always enjoyed the atmosphere — the ornate bar, the white flowers, traditional tables and wonderful piano music from Rick Bartlett.

The challenge for chef Colter Hubsch was to create five delectable dishes that could be made using traditional Chocolate, Caramel Turtle, Chocolate Mint and Bourbon Ball — the four Ballotin Whiskey flavors. And while my palate didn’t necessarily taste the chocolate in each dish, it was definitely present.

The evening’s festivities included an introduction of each course by Hubsch, a young chef who obviously put forth his best effort in creating dishes to pair with the chocolate whiskey and including fresh tomatoes, pecan-encrusted shrimp, Carpaccio, pork belly and even the bacon-laced ice cream at dessert.