restaurant reviews | Genuine Kentucky

Rafferty’s in Bowling Green, Kentucky: Everything They Do is a Perfect 10

April 4, 2014 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

As I said in a previous Rafferty’s in Bowling Green, Ky Review, it’s one of our favorite restaurants – not just in Bowling Green.. but one of our favorite Kentucky restaurants, period. It’s always outstanding and the service couldn’t be better if you were assigned three personal servers.

On a recent trip, I ordered something that turned out to be so delicious I could have wept tears of joy: BBQ Chicken (Hickory-grilled Chicken Breast basted with a ridiculously tasty BBQ sauce, then topped with Monterrey Jack cheese and hickory smoked bacon). I got a great salad and a huge, delicious baked sweet potato as my sides.

This sweet potato deserves its own paragraph, so here we go. My oldest daughter (Emily) and I are obsessed with sweet potatoes. Wherever we go, we order a sweet potato and eagerly wait to dive in, teeth first. When we’re together, we compare notes – and when we aren’t together, we take pictures of our conquest to taunt one another.

I got her good with this one. I think I racked up conquest points for days.

Rafferty’s baked sweet potatoes are HUGE and cooked perfectly. The inside is soft, beautiful, and delicious, and the outside is slightly crisp. They use real butter (it SO makes a difference) and what tasted like a combination of brown sugar and cinnamon. It was just too fantastic for words.

Even Rafferty’s salads deserve their own paragraph! They’re always wonderful and come with their highly original and delicious bread.

Michael ordered a grilled pork chop, asparagus, and side salad (pictured above). While his plate isn’t as photogenic as mine, it was out of this world. I’m really not all that big on pork, but if all pork tasted like this one, I would be. Tender, juicy, flavorful.. just what we’ve come to expect from Bowling Green’s Rafferty’s.

The next time you’re looking for an extra special place for lunch or dinner (without “extra special” prices), check out Rafferty’s. They won’t let you down.

They couldn’t spell disappointment with a dictionary.

Also See:

Rafferty’s, Bowling Green: One of Our Favorite Kentucky Restaurants

Bowling Green Restaurants

Dockers Bayside Grille: How We’ve Missed You

February 25, 2014 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

Dockers Bayside Grille’s Grilled Chicken Sandwich and Chips

Some restaurants are just funner to visit, aren’t they? Something about the experience (whether or not you can actually put your finger on the reason) just feels right. Dockers Bayside Grille (at Green Turtle Bay in Grand Rivers, Ky) is exactly this sort of place for us. It’s fun, it’s friendly, and it’s always ridiculously delicious.

I’ve written quite a few reviews of Dockers on Genuine Kentucky – always a good sign that it’s a personal favorite.

A Few of these reviews:

Dockers Bayside Grille: Best Breakfast and Best Lunch? What’s Fair About That?!

Dockers Bayside Grille – Mac Daddy of All Onion Rings (the onion rings have changed since this review was written, but they’re still pretty darn good)

When we found out that Dockers had reopened for the season, we went as soon as we possibly could – as in right away. I was set to order one of their delicious wraps with onion rings (something of an obsession of mine) when I saw the three magic letters: BLT. At that moment in time, nothing but nothing in this world sounded better than a BLT, so I went that route. When the server (extra friendly like all Dockers servers) asked if I’d like “chips” with that, for some reason that sounded ideal too.

Besides, I can always hook up with the onion rings on the next trip. And the next.. and the next.. and the next..

You have to understand, “chips” at Dockers doesn’t mean the kind that come in bags – they’re not the kind of chips that leave your fingers greasy and salty. Dockers chips are made in house and are crunchy and out of this world. No grease. No saltiness. No bag.

I knew the BLT would be great, because everything at Dockers is great, but I didn’t know it’d be BLT perfection.

Holy cats, that was a great BLT!

Honestly, if I were to dream up the ideal BLT, it would be just like this one was: The fresh, perfectly toasted bread was buttery and the bacon was cooked just the way I like it – not overly done, but not “fatty” either. Even the lettuce and tomato were on point. That’s a culinary miracle for this time of year.

The chips were excellent as well – crisp and yummy, a great sidekick for the star of the show, the awesome BLT.

Michael ordered a grilled chicken sandwich and chips. The grilled chicken was amazing – so much flavor! It was topped with Swiss cheese, sauteed onion and green pepper, and (again) lettuce and tomato that thought it was July instead of February. He said it was the best sandwich he’s ever had at Dockers – which is really saying something since the boy has had every one on the menu. I took a bite and have to agree that it was phenomenal.

Each of our sandwiches and chips came with yummy pickles too – a touch I always love.

In hindsight, I wish I’d “opened” one of my BLT’s halves before taking it’s picture. You can’t even see how juicy and delicious the bacon was! In my defense, I was just in a big hurry to dive into the sandwich.

Oh, shucks. I guess we’ll have to go back soon so I can take another picture. Hmmm, I need a recent picture of onion rings too…

Dockers Bayside Grille is located at Green Turtle Bay Resort & Marina in beautiful Grand Rivers, Kentucky. Green Turtle Bay has GORGEOUS condos, boat rentals, and a Commonwealth Yacht Club (for dinners). Dockers is THE place to eat breakfast or lunch in the area (or, better yet, breakfast AND lunch!). You don’t have to be a guest at Green Turtle Bay to dine at Docker’s – you just have to enjoy delicious food and friendly people.

I hope you’ll go as soon as possible. Odds are we’ll see you there.

Also See: Green Turtle Bay Condos Review

The Majestic Pizza & Steak House in Benton, Kentucky in a Word: Perfection

February 18, 2014 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

There are certain Kentucky Restaurants that I could eat at several times a week – restaurants that are extra fun to review because the positive juices can just flow like a river. The Majestic Pizza & Steak House in Benton, Ky is definitely one of these restaurants. In fact, when we’re visiting Kentucky Lake (something we do OFTEN), The Majestic is one of our favorite places to eat.

The only complaint I have about The Majestic is this: It’s difficult to decide between all of the delicious options:

Their buffets are excellent. Their beautiful… make that gorgeous… salad bar is second to none. Tossed salad, pasta salad, homemade slaw, beets, bean salad, fruit, jell-o, etc. The hot food buffet never disappoints, either. Case in point, we went last night (which was a Monday). Let’s be honest, a lot of restaurants save their A game for weekends, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. We still chose buffet – because of unfailing trust in The Majestic – and our faith was richly rewarded. They didn’t just have their A game, they had the A+ game. I’m normally not that big a fan of buffets, but they are the exception. Last night’s buffet had fried chicken (excellent!), wonderful mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, stuffed cabbage rolls in a wonderful tomato based sauce that I could have eaten like soup, cheese pizza, pasta, greens, corn, and more. Yes, more!
Their pizzas are perfection. When our girls were younger, we’d never venture far from pizza – which was fine because The Majestic has mind-boggling delicious pizza. When they were kids, the decision-making aspect was taken care of… of course we were getting pizza! The thing is, their pizza is so fantastic, I can’t get enough of it either.
The Majestic has GREAT steaks. Ordering off the menu is just as delicious as choosing the buffet. Their steaks and baked potatoes are freaking fantastic. And when ordering an appetizer, you’ll definitely want to try the Greek Fries – they’re unlike anything you’ve ever had.

So, you see, the decision making process is a tough-y. Basically, you cannot go wrong. Fortunately, we go pretty often, so we just mix it up. In fact, the last three times we’ve gone, we’ve done something different each time.

The buffet last night was one of the best buffets I’ve ever had. The Majestic easily has one of the best (if not THE best) buffets around. And for less than $10 – most buffets I’ve seen are several dollars MORE than The Majestic’s and no where near as good.

Not only did the buffet have buffet-staples like mashed potatoes, green beans, and corn (which were all outstanding, by the way) – it also had excellent and juicy fried chicken. The Majestic has some of the best fried chicken in the state of Kentucky. They also had delicious cabbage rolls that I fell in love with. The filling was like a meatloaf (with rice), wrapped in a beautiful cabbage leaf, and covered with a fantastic tomato-based sauce. I actually put some of the beautiful sauce on my mashed potatoes…. something that proved to be a delicious idea.

The next time you’re anywhere near Kentucky Lake, Benton, Draffenville, Aurora, or Land Between the Lakes, you just have to stop in to The Majestic and see for yourself why I rave and rave and rave in these reviews. Gorgeous restaurant, uncommonly friendly people, outstanding food, and reasonable prices. There is nothing I don’t love about The Majestic.

The Majestic Pizza & Steak House (Benton, Ky) Buffet and Iced Tea

Majestic Pizza and Steak House in Benton, Ky

Read one of my other Majestic Pizza and Steak House ReviewsÃ?Â to see the Greek Fries, steak, and baked potato in action.

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Spudz-N-Stuff: A Favorite Place for Lunch in Owensboro (Review)

February 2, 2014 by Joi Sigers 2 Comments

Spudz and Stuff Garden Spud

Varying members of our large family love to get together in Owensboro at least once a week for lunch and laughs. Our goofy cast of characters supply the laughs and whichever restaurant we’re in the mood for supplies the lunch. Fortunately, there are a great number of Owensboro Restaurants to choose from.

To add to the decision-making proceedings, we have several “food determiners” in our group:

One of my daughters is a vegetarian and has followed a very strict vegetarian diet over half of her life
Another daughter has a wheat/gluten allergy and is now adhering to a very strict gluten free diet. Even cross-contamination is a real danger, causing frightening reactions.
I, myself, have to eat gluten and wheat free. My body has decided that they’re poison and will react violently if I allow them on the premises.

Even with these stipulations, we’ve found that Owensboro still offers us a lot of variety.

One of the most delicious options is Spudz -N-Stuff off of Highway 54.

Not long ago, my husband brought a couple of Spudz -N-Stuff’s Garden Spuds to me and one of our daughters (the vegetarian). I’d been craving another since then, so we went to Spudz -N-Stuff Friday for lunch. With salads and potatoes, gluten-free meals isn’t a problem in the least. What’s more, they have SO many options that the meat-lovers in the family (daughter number 3, for example, probably loves chicken more than Colonel Sanders ever did and her husband eats meat with every meal… I can’t prove it but I’m fairly certain he’d put bacon on his Cheerios!).

“The Vegetarian” and I ordered the same thing – the WONDERFULLY DELICIOUS and fresh-tasting Garden Spud. The baked potato is topped with cheddar, mozzarella, lettuce, grilled mushrooms, tomato, green onion, and ranch dressing. Words can’t even describe how delicious it is.

You may be like I was BEFORE I ate at Spudz and Stuff – wondering if a baked potato can be filling. Let’s just put it this way – we all left the restaurant wondering if we’d even eat supper later. When 4:30 rolled around, I still wasn’t the least bit interested in food. So, yes, these potatoes will most definitely fill you up. Males and females, alike.

There were two males in our group Friday and they left with serious “I’m stuffed!” faces too.

Spudz-N-Stuff’s Chicken-N-Broccoli Spud

My “Gluten Free” daughter ordered the Chicken-N-Broccoli Spud (pictured above). According to her it was fantastic. The potato is topped with a yummy combination of cheddar cheese sauce. chicken, broccoli, and real bacon. The combination’s a thing of beauty.

As for the “Chicken Fan” and “Mr. Bacon on His Cheerios,” they each went with the Chicken Bacon Ranch Spud (pictured below). Even though I’m not as in love with chicken as she is, I have to admit – I was tempted by this one! This potato is topped with cheddar, ranch, chicken, and real bacon.

Spudz a-N-Stuff Chicken Bacon Ranch Spud

A word about the REAL bacon… good on Spudz-N-Stuff for using real bacon as opposed to those insane little rubbery “bits” some places use on their potatoes and salads. They taste like a chopped up Barbie doll head and have about the same consistency. The bacon Spudz-N-Stuff uses tastes like it could have just come right out of your morning skillet. Holy cats, does that make a difference?!

“The Vegetarian’s” boyfriend ordered a real masterpiece. It was topped with pulled pork, steak, and I believe bacon. I can’t even find his creation on the menu. I also wasn’t able to snap a picture because when my potato arrived, I dove right in, forgetting everything and everyone else.

I’m kicking myself now because this was one work of art. He loved every bite, too!

I wish at least one of us had branched out and gotten a salad, nachos, or pitas so that the review and pictures would be more varied, but.. what can I say.. we all had Spudz on the mind.

Gosh darn it, I guess we’ll have to go back again soon. Oh, what a shame. A serious case of sarcasm there, in case you couldn’t tell… I cannot wait to go back!

In addition to amazing combinations of potatoes, like the ones above, below are just a few more of the delicious menu items from Spudz-N-Stuff:

Taco Nachos (cheese sauce, seasoned beef, salsa, jalapenos, lettuce, sour cream, green onions)
Buffalo Nachos (cheese sauce, grilled chicken, hot sauce, ranch, lettuce, sour cream, green onion)
Gyro Pita (seasoned lamb, beef,Tzatziki sauce, lettuce, tomato, grilled onion)
Steak Fajita Pita (steak, cheddar, white American cheese, grilled onions, bell peppers, lettuce, tomato)
Classic Philly Sub (Philly steak, white American cheese, grilled mushrooms, grilled onions, green bell peppers)
Sides: Mac-N-Cheese, Broccoli-CHZ-Bacon Bowl, Side Salad, Chips
Chef Salad, Garden Salad, Grilled Chicken Salad, Taco Salad, Chicken Caesar Salad
Check out the rest of Spudz-N-Stuff’s Menu online!

Oh! I just found my buddy’s masterpiece of a potato on the menu. It’s under the category “Hungry Man Spudz.” Well played, sir… well played.

There’s a Kid’s Menu in addition to the many, many other options and even brownies for those of us who are card-carrying chocoholics.

Where Can You Find the Best Pizza When You’re at Kentucky Lake?

January 17, 2014 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

One of our favorite places to eat when we’re at Kentucky Lake is Mama D’s Italian Restaurant in Calvert City

A while back I raved and raved in a Mama D’s Italian Restaurant (Calvert City) Review. I threw adjectives around like they were baseballs in a Spring Training camp. I can’t help myself, really. Food is a great passion of mine, whether I’m cooking or eating, and when I find people excelling in the sport, I get uncommonly excited. I want to tell everyone about it and….. well.. that’s when the adjectives take flight.

Watch your head the adjectives are about to fly again.

I had Mama D’s Italian Restaurant on my mind since our first visit. I kept thinking, “If they made SUCH incredible bread and lasagna, what must their pizza taste like?!”

The mystery was almost more than this pizza fanatic could stand, so when we went back for our second visit, I told my husband (Michael) that, under no conditions, was I leaving that restaurant without trying one of their pizzas.

I kept my word.

Michael ordered a beautiful and tasty chicken and pasta dish – which came with bread and a salad. A very sound, economical decision. I ordered a large pizza.

That’s how I roll.

I knew there’d be no way I could eat the whole thing, but I was up for the challenge. Besides I just knew it’d be so incredible that Michael would jump in to help me out. Plus, taking leftover pizza home always makes us heroes with the kids.

Oh, boy, was I ever right about Mama D’s Pizza. In fact, I honestly don’t recall when I’ve ever been SO right about anything. Every single bite was an experience in and of itself. Heck, just the sight of it, alone, was a culinary adventure. The toppings were incredibly fresh, there was just the right amount of delicious sauce and cheese, and the crust? Wow. I could have eaten the crust all by itself and still been grinning ear to ear.

When our VERY sweet server came by to check on us after we’d been eating for a few minutes, I told her, “This pizza is so fantastic I never want to eat pizza again, just so this can be the last pizza I ever ate.” She laughed and said I’d just have to keep coming back there for my pizza.

Not a problem.

Every single thing they do at Mama D’s Italian Restaurant is first class. THIS is how Italian food is supposed to taste. The herbs and flavors are quite unlike anything you’ll find anywhere else and, trust me, once you go, you’ll return again and again. As soon as you step in the door, the aroma lets you know that you’re in for something extra, extra, extra special.

I’m also in love with the cleanliness of the restaurant and the happy, upbeat, and very friendly servers. Everyone seems genuinely thrilled to see you walk through the door and goes out of their way to make sure you’re well-fed and smiling when you leave.

Mama D’s in Calvert City is one of my favorite Kentucky restaurants – and if you read my restaurant reviews very often, you know that’s saying something. This gal has seen A LOT of restaurants!

I don’t care where you live, you just have to promise me that you’ll visit Mama D’s as soon as possible. Whether you have the lasagna or pizza (the best pizza you’ve probably ever had), you’ll be blown away. Then YOU’LL be spewing adjectives all over the place.

Trust me.