The Dish: French bistro opens in NuLu Tuesday

Taste of Derby Festival 2011 had a packed house.

La Coop: Bistro à Vins will open at 732 E. Market St. on Tuesday. The French bistro concept is owned by Brett Davis, Chip Hamm and Michael and Steven Ton, with Bobby Benjamin (most recently of The Oakroom) as chef.

French comfort food is on the menu, but not at haute cuisine prices. “People are going to be very surprised when they see the pricing,” Davis says. “The most expensive entree is $20. A true Old Country-style French bistro is very value-driven, and we wanted to stick to that.

“I love French food ... simple, classic,” says Davis, but “it was about the space. We looked at the space … we talked about two or three concepts, and we kept going back to a European bistro of some sort and we felt like it was a French bistro more than anything else. A small French bistro was perfect for the space. We felt like that was a missing piece of Louisville’s dining scene.”

The menu will include classic dishes such as cassoulet, coq au vin with braised chicken, salted pork, glazed carrots, mushrooms and braised pearl onions; coquilles St. Jacques with scallops, fennel and celery root ragout and blistered tomato; and travers de bœuf with short rib, grits and onion confit.

A daily crepe special will be offered, and among the selections on the $6 dessert menu is a creme brulee aux pistaches with classic pistachio custard, cinnamon, pistachio tuile and cream.

Wine infusions and French aperitifs are among items on the cocktail list.

Hours will be Tuesday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; Tuesday through Thursday from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m.; and Friday and Saturday from 5:30 to 11:30 p.m. The bar opens at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

More information: www.coopbistro.com.

Buck’s Restaurant celebrates 20 years

Buck’s Restaurant, 425 W. Ormsby Ave., opened 20 years ago (on April 25) in the Mayflower in Old Louisville, and it’s celebrating with a new menu and special offer, but some things remain the same.

“Nothing’s changed here,” says co-owner Lisa Imrie. “We’ve been the same since we opened the door. You go back in time when you come into Buck’s. People are waiting for the mobsters to come out. It’s all beautiful white flowers all over the bar and on tables. We will always keep the white flowers, the mismatched china, the old decor. The only thing I hope we get to see one day is new chairs,” she says with a laugh.

The new menu will feature a BLT salad, risotto of the day, grilled swordfish, country fried quail, rack of lamb and New York strip, among other selections. But the restaurant is keeping its crispy fish with hot sweet chili. “That’s the one that people order all the time,” says Imrie, “and it has been since the day we opened.”

The spicy Cantonese noodles, also a favorite on the menu for 20 years, will remain as well.

Some nine restaurants occupied the space where Buck’s is now in the 23 years after the restaurant space opened in 1965. The building itself was built in 1926. “We have had people celebrating their 65-year anniversary that had bridal showers in the Mayflower,” Imrie says.

Buck’s will offer any diner who mentions the 20-year anniversary a $20 gift certificate to use on a future visit or to give to a friend.

More information: www.bucksrestaurantandbar.com or (502) 637-5284.

Taste of Derby Festival holds 25th annual event

More than 50 local restaurants will dish up tastings at the 2012 Dare to Care Food Bank’s “Taste of Derby Festival” Wednesday at Slugger Field from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

“Don’t eat before you come!” warns Angela Gerst, who serves on the executive committee for the festival. “It’s a full tasting — and you can do wine and liquor tastings too. It can be anything from Proof on Main to Baxter Station to Bistro 301, Cafe Lou Lou, Irish Rover, even Seviche — Anthony Lamas is in it. We’ve got a lot of good restaurants, not just fine dining. It’s kind of a big party.”

“We’ve been trying really hard to include a variety of restaurants, things people wouldn’t expect,” Gerst says. The event is a chance to taste old favorites (“Science Hill brings their famous bread pudding,” Gerst says) as well as preview possible new dishes. “Some restaurants try out new entree items to see if people like it,” she says.

The festival is the largest fundraiser of the year for Dare to Care and raised more than $110,000 in 2011. “It’s just a fantastic organization; they do a lot of good,” says Gerst. “Any of us could need their services. The need does not stop.” Dare to Care partners with more than 300 food pantries, emergency kitchens and shelters in eight Kentucky and five Indiana counties.

Tickets must be purchased in advance, and you must be 21 to attend. Tickets are $80 ($50 of which may be tax-deductible) and may be purchased at www.tasteofderbyfestival.org or by calling Dare to Care Food Bank at (502) 966-3821.

News bites

The Indiana Uplands Wine Trail will hold a “Toast to Spring” this Saturday and Sunday. This wine and cheese pairing event is free. Each of the nine wineries on the trail will offer suggested pairings of Uplands wines with cheeses. Many offer gourmet picnic foods and cellar tours. www.indianauplands.com.

Varanese, 2106 Frankfort Ave., will host a “Tale of the Horse” Drink Contest Monday at 5 p.m. to find a winning “post-Derby 2012” drink. Louisville bartenders are invited to participate in the inaugural event sponsored by MyDerbyLove.com.

A revamped Fleur De Licious, Louisville’s restaurant week, is in the works for May 11-20. More details to come.

Tell Dana! Send restaurant “dish” to thecjdish@gmail.com.