Kentucky is known far and wide for its amazing cuisine. From hot browns to burgoo stew, fried chicken to bourbon balls, Kentucky is a culinary force to be reckoned with! We searched far and wide to compile the following list of 11 restaurant serving up the best iconic Kentucky dishes. Take a look, and get ready for a culinary tour de force in the Bluegrass State!

Best Biscuits and Gravy: Rudy’s on the Square

Heather Adams/Google Local For the best biscuits and gravy in Kentucky, look no further than Rudy’s on the Square. It’s of the most popular things on the menu – and something you absolutely must try. Made from scratch, this savory classic ranks up there with the best of the best, along with the rest of their morning offerings. Rudy’s on the Square, 104 S 5th St, Murray, KY 42071, USA

Best Hot Brown: The Brown Hotel

The Brown Hotel/Facebook This is where the humble hot brown all began, and it remains Kentucky’s most beloved hot brown to this day. The Brown Hotel is basically Kentucky royalty, and their iconic dish is perfection. The Brown Hotel, 335 W Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202, USA

Best Soup Beans: Wallace Station Deli and Bakery

Wallace Station Deli and Bakery/Facebook Soup beans are southern staple, and Wallace Station Deli and Bakery does them right! When you have the sniffles or feel like you’re “coming down with something,” there’s no better cure than a hot, steaming bowl of soup beans. They’re just what the doctor ordered! Wallace Station Deli and Bakery, 3854 Old Frankfort Pike, Versailles, KY 40383, USA

Best Burgoo Stew: Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn

Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn/Facebook Burgoo is a Kentucky favorite; this stew is made with a tasty combination of pork, beef, chicken, corn, carrots, onion, celery, and lima beans. And hungry folks in the Bluegrass know to head to Owensboro when the craving strikes. Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn is known far and wide for its amazing burgoo stew, served with two cornbread muffins and crackers. This is a hug in a bowl! Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn, 2840 W Parrish Ave, Owensboro, KY 42301, USA

Best Cornbread: Freight House

the freight house/Facebook Cornbread is a staple here in Kentucky, and The Freight House does it best. Their skillet cornbread is about as perfect as it gets: crispy on the edges, moist and light in the middle, and absolute bliss topped with butter and honey. the freight house, 330 S 3rd St Suite 102, Paducah, KY 42003, USA

Best Fried Chicken: Sanders Cafe

Sanders Cafe For the best fried chicken in Kentucky, you’ll want to head straight to where it all began: Sanders Cafe! This restaurant is a Bluegrass bucket-list must; visit and indulge in some Original Recipe or Extra Crispy fried chicken, along with the eatery’s famous mashed potatoes, coleslaw, and biscuits. Dining where it all started is a true and timeless Kentucky tradition. Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum, 688 US-25W, Corbin, KY 40701, USA

Best Barbecue: Starnes Bar-B-Q

Starnes Bar-B-Q/Facebook If it’s finger-lickin’ barbecue you’re seeking, head on down to Paducha’s Starnes Bar-B-Q. This Kentucky institution has long been known for its delicious barbecue and slow-smoked meats, all of which come smothered in its signature, sticky, spicy-sweet sauce. Starnes Barbecue, 1008 Joe Clifton Dr, Paducah, KY 42001, USA

Best Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich: The Freight House

Management/TripAdvisor The Freight House’s Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich is a true work of culinary art. Perfectly crispy fried chicken, topped with tangy pickles, smothered with a finger-lickin’ sauce and served on a thick slab of toast… it doesn’t get any better! the freight house, 330 S 3rd St Suite 102, Paducah, KY 42003, USA

Best Mac & Cheese: The Eagle

The Eagle (Louisville)/Facebook The Eagle’s mac & cheese is crave-worthy cuisine at its best. Made with five cheeses and topped with garlic breadcrumbs, dig in to a skillet of deliciousness at this Louisville restaurant! The Eagle, 1314 Bardstown Rd, Louisville, KY 40204, USA

Best Bourbon Balls: Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory

Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory/Facebook Bourbon balls are a Kentucky delicacy, and Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory makes the best in the Bluegrass! This confectioner is best-known for their Bourbon Balls, a Kentucky delicacy invented by Miss Ruth Booe herself in 1938. Today, folks come from far and wide to try this chocolatier’s iconic treat: a truffle with a creamy bourbon center (with the kick of real bourbon!), covered in dark chocolate, and topped with a Southern pecan. Rebecca Ruth Candy Tours & Museum, 116 E 2nd St, Frankfort, KY 40601, USA

Best Banana Pudding: Shirley Mae’s Café

Ariel Sickles/Google Local Banana pudding is a Kentucky delicacy that’s the sweetest ending to a meal. And Shirley Mae’s Café does it best. Creamy, smooth, and topped with vanilla wafers, you’ll be in a happy food coma after this sweet dessert! Shirley Maes Cafe, South Clay Street, Louisville, KY, USA

What’s your favorite only-in-Kentucky dish?  We’d love to hear about it! And if you have a restaurant you’d like to see featured here on Only In Kentucky, be sure to nominate them and tell us why!

Heather Adams/Google Local

For the best biscuits and gravy in Kentucky, look no further than Rudy’s on the Square. It’s of the most popular things on the menu – and something you absolutely must try. Made from scratch, this savory classic ranks up there with the best of the best, along with the rest of their morning offerings.

Rudy’s on the Square, 104 S 5th St, Murray, KY 42071, USA

The Brown Hotel/Facebook

This is where the humble hot brown all began, and it remains Kentucky’s most beloved hot brown to this day. The Brown Hotel is basically Kentucky royalty, and their iconic dish is perfection.

The Brown Hotel, 335 W Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202, USA

Wallace Station Deli and Bakery/Facebook

Soup beans are southern staple, and Wallace Station Deli and Bakery does them right! When you have the sniffles or feel like you’re “coming down with something,” there’s no better cure than a hot, steaming bowl of soup beans. They’re just what the doctor ordered!

Wallace Station Deli and Bakery, 3854 Old Frankfort Pike, Versailles, KY 40383, USA

Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn/Facebook

Burgoo is a Kentucky favorite; this stew is made with a tasty combination of pork, beef, chicken, corn, carrots, onion, celery, and lima beans. And hungry folks in the Bluegrass know to head to Owensboro when the craving strikes. Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn is known far and wide for its amazing burgoo stew, served with two cornbread muffins and crackers. This is a hug in a bowl!

Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn, 2840 W Parrish Ave, Owensboro, KY 42301, USA

the freight house/Facebook

Cornbread is a staple here in Kentucky, and The Freight House does it best. Their skillet cornbread is about as perfect as it gets: crispy on the edges, moist and light in the middle, and absolute bliss topped with butter and honey.

the freight house, 330 S 3rd St Suite 102, Paducah, KY 42003, USA

Sanders Cafe

For the best fried chicken in Kentucky, you’ll want to head straight to where it all began: Sanders Cafe! This restaurant is a Bluegrass bucket-list must; visit and indulge in some Original Recipe or Extra Crispy fried chicken, along with the eatery’s famous mashed potatoes, coleslaw, and biscuits. Dining where it all started is a true and timeless Kentucky tradition.

Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum, 688 US-25W, Corbin, KY 40701, USA

Starnes Bar-B-Q/Facebook

If it’s finger-lickin’ barbecue you’re seeking, head on down to Paducha’s Starnes Bar-B-Q. This Kentucky institution has long been known for its delicious barbecue and slow-smoked meats, all of which come smothered in its signature, sticky, spicy-sweet sauce.

Starnes Barbecue, 1008 Joe Clifton Dr, Paducah, KY 42001, USA

Management/TripAdvisor

The Freight House’s Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich is a true work of culinary art. Perfectly crispy fried chicken, topped with tangy pickles, smothered with a finger-lickin’ sauce and served on a thick slab of toast… it doesn’t get any better!

The Eagle (Louisville)/Facebook

The Eagle’s mac & cheese is crave-worthy cuisine at its best. Made with five cheeses and topped with garlic breadcrumbs, dig in to a skillet of deliciousness at this Louisville restaurant!

The Eagle, 1314 Bardstown Rd, Louisville, KY 40204, USA

Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory/Facebook

Bourbon balls are a Kentucky delicacy, and Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory makes the best in the Bluegrass! This confectioner is best-known for their Bourbon Balls, a Kentucky delicacy invented by Miss Ruth Booe herself in 1938. Today, folks come from far and wide to try this chocolatier’s iconic treat: a truffle with a creamy bourbon center (with the kick of real bourbon!), covered in dark chocolate, and topped with a Southern pecan.

Rebecca Ruth Candy Tours & Museum, 116 E 2nd St, Frankfort, KY 40601, USA

Ariel Sickles/Google Local

Banana pudding is a Kentucky delicacy that’s the sweetest ending to a meal. And Shirley Mae’s Café does it best. Creamy, smooth, and topped with vanilla wafers, you’ll be in a happy food coma after this sweet dessert!

Shirley Maes Cafe, South Clay Street, Louisville, KY, USA

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