Rossi's

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1060 Chinoe Rd # 104
Lexington, Ky 40502
859-335-8788
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It's not that Rod Jones has a thing against culinary school. "I think it's great for the kind of training it is. It exposes kids to a lot of terrific ideas. But when you come out of culinary school, what you're armed with is theory. When you come up through the ranks in actual restaurant kitchens, well, what you know, you really know it." Rod came up through the ranks starting at the Coach House in Lexington where he worked both in the kitchen and as a musician. "Stanley Demos (the owner of the legendary eatery) heard me play and told me to give it up and be a cook. I think he was right."

Back again to Lexington, he opened the Atomic Cafe, a lively eatery devoted to Caribbean fusion. He's worked in an upscale deli, a fine Italian restaurant and the University of Kentucky faculty club. And now he feels he's found the place where all of these disparate adventures can come together in a dynamite menu, Rossi's. The cafe and nightspot was a fixture near the University for the first four years, but has recently moved to a new facility featuring lots of blonde wood and a very contemporary atmosphere. "That's our food, too: contemporary and bright. "

Rod has worked with a variety of spirits in the kitchen including Irish whiskey. And then he had a bourbon epiphany. "Bourbon has more sugar, more nose than an Irish whiskey, and that makes it more adaptable. I didn't realize though, that you could sit down and drink it with a meal, just like a fine wine," he says.

One of Rod's favorite creations is a cocktail with Woodford Reserve blackberries, peaches and some simple syrup. "I think it's better than sangria."

And in the kitchen? "Once I understood how a really fine Woodford Reserve bourbon could go with anything, even a great piece of cheese, there was no end to it," he notes. "Here in Kentucky, you know you can put bourbon on anything."