Location: Frankfort
Top Restaurants in Frankfort
Top Things to do in Frankfort
- 1. Buffalo Trace Distillery
- 2. Salato Wildlife Education Center
- 3. Three Boys Farm Distillery
- 4. New Capitol Building
- 5. Frankfort Cemetery
- 6. Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial
- 7. Daniel Boone Burial Site
- 8. Old State Capitol
- 9. Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History
- 10. Rebecca Ruth Candy Tours & Museum
Where to Eat in Frankfort: The Best Restaurants and Bars
The city of Frankfort has a long and torturous history. First settled in 1786, the city has survived a failed attempt to make Kentucky a part of the Spanish Empire, an occupation by the Confederate Army, disastrous fires, and flooding from the Kentucky River. This exciting past has left the capital city full of historic sites, museums, and restored mansions. Visit the bourbon warehouses at the Buffalo Trace Distillery or explore the beautiful Bluegrass Hills at the Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary.
Things to do in Frankfort
1. Gibby's
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 229 reviews
Reviewed By Cynthia M - Lexington, Kentucky
Went to Gibby"s with some colleagues after an event. Nice, laid back atmosphere. Larger than it looks from the outside. Clean restrooms. Nice guy taking orders. And the Reuben...MMMMMMM. Just the right amount of 'kraut and they didn't skimp on the meat! One of our group had a baked potato loaded with cheese and broccoli that also looked very delicious.
2. Bourbon On Main
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 218 reviews
Located in beautiful Historic Downtown Frankfort, Kentucky on the Kentucky River, Bourbon on Main is the dream of Frankfort natives who live and breathe bourbon and love to share their passion. They get inspired by the mixology and culinary delights of city life, but love the simple welcoming hospitality of small town living. They wished for their community better food, better cocktails and access to craft beers, as well as better places for the people in the town they love to gather, feast, and have fun! They also wanted to showcase all the beautiful things Kentucky culture has to offer to people from outside the community. So when you come to Kentucky, make sure to put Historic Downtown Frankfort on the top of your list. Bourbon On Main is located in a perfect spot for launching a day's worth of bourbon tours. Start with Buffalo Trace, less than 5 minutes away. Jim Beam tours take place in Clermont, but you can still check in on their large Frankfort operations on your short 20-minute drive out to Woodford Reserve, Four Roses and Wild Turkey. To get your feet wet, try one of our Bourbon 101 flights, where you can learn to discriminate the flavors you'll find along the Kentucky backroads. For you history buffs, you can't do better than visiting the two State Capitals, Kentucky State History Museum (2 blocks from Bourbon On Main) and taking a walk through the civil war historic site, Fort Hill, where you can capture breath-taking views of the city and the Kentucky River valley. Stroll the historic downtown shops and antique malls, and when you are ready to relax pop over to Bourbon on Main for a delicious meal or an evening with friends, cocktails and shared plates on the back deck overlooking the Kentucky River. So drop on by anytime. We love to talk bourbon and we love to talk Kentucky. What story do you have to tell?
Reviewed By BevoBurn96 - Houston, Texas
Enjoyed our lunch at Bourbon on Main. The highlight was the bourbon glazed pork belly sandwich and hand cut fries! The only drawback is finding parking which is street only (and do not park under the bridge as the restaurant confirmed that property owner tows.)
3. Garcia's
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 173 reviews
Best Mexican food in town! Hands down!
Reviewed By Tom L - Frankfort, Kentucky
Have never been disappointed and today was no exception. I had the taco salad, my wife had camarones Vallarta, our daughter had the shrimp quesadilla. We were all well satisfied. Three servers helped work our table, all of whom knew what they were doing. Nice teamwork!
4. Cattleman's Roadhouse
Overall Ratings
4 based on 225 reviews
Reviewed By Brian L - Ottawa, Canada
This place is temporarily closed due to a fire. Call before you go. We didn’t and got a surprise last night.
5. Buddy's Pizza LLC
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 127 reviews
Reviewed By JStarkey2 - Plain City, Ohio
Decided to try Buddy's for dinner after spending the day in Frankfort. It was fast, hot and delicious. Just a small shop, we were there early, so they weren't busy with the dinner crowd yet. I really liked the crust, not to thin or thick and not to crispy. The pepperoni was delicious. The only downfall is there is a one refill only on fountain drinks, otherwise it was very good.
6. Capital Cellars
Overall Ratings
5 based on 49 reviews
We are a popular wine and bourbon bar, restaurant, and mainly a retail wine, bourbon and specialty store located in Historic Downtown, Frankfort, Kentucky
Reviewed By Maria H
We were walking by and the Frankfort locals insisted we go in for the free wine tasting going on. They were very polite, the wine tasting samples were VERY generous. Very eclectic environment.
7. Serafini
Overall Ratings
4 based on 224 reviews
Reviewed By Bob B - Naperville, Illinois
We stopped here for dinner after a tour of the State Capitol and were not disappointed. The service was excellent, attentive but not overbearing, and our server explained the menu like he had personally tried every item. My wife had a risotto topped with an excellent baked cod and I had their version of fish and chips. Both outstanding and their homemade bread is to die for. Did I mention they made a great martini?
8. Cliffside Diner
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 119 reviews
Reviewed By olblu92 - Arroyo Grande
We were in Frankfort to see the New Capitol Building and Rebecca Ruth's candies. It was lunch time when we finished our tours. This diner was in the vicinity. It isn't a large diner, and there were no empty seats during the Noon to 1:00 pm hour. So, we waited and that was worth the wait. The staff is friendly and the food was good.
9. Sage Garden Cafe
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 97 reviews
Sage Garden Cafe was created to illustrate the connection between the garden and the plate, showing that healthful, honest food can also be delicious. Our menu is designed to use fresh organic produce, grown on-site at Wilson Nurseries ... as local as it gets! Our goal is to create great homegrown and homemade food, served to you in a family-oriented, come-as-you-are environment where you can relax and enjoy the experience. Check our website or Facebook pages for hours information.
Reviewed By montereyjack2015 - Cookeville, Tennessee
My wife and I were visiting family in Lexington KY. It was Saturday, and we needed flowers for an event on Sunday back home. It was also late-afternoon, and we had not eaten lunch. What do you do? Go to a nursery with a cafe, or to a cafe with a nursery. Both. After some researching and confirmation from our daughter-in-law, we drove from Lexington to Frankfort where we purchased our flowers at Wilson's Nursery, and then made our way to the on-site Sage Garden Cafe. There is something very appealing about a garden cafe. May be its the relaxed ambiance; and because it is in a garden, the anticipation of a unique dining experience. Whatever the appeal, the Sage Garden exceeded our expectations. Upon arrival, the friendly staff offered the choice to dine outside or inside where it was cooler. Both were very pleasant dining areas, but we chose cooler. The menu was well written with mouth-watering descriptions making it difficult on deciding what to select. Fortunately, our server's recommendations guided our selections to the Reuben sandwich for me and the garden vegetable soup for my wife as we had already decided to make room for desserts which we narrowed down to the chess bar and the bread pudding made from their in-house baked oatmeal walnut bread. The blend of flavors was extraordinary. The only suggestion to offer is more caramel sauce on the bread pudding. We left the Sage Garden with a loaf of their oatmeal walnut bread for our daughter-in-law, full bellies, and a backseat filled with nice flowers ... a memorable afternoon.
10. Thai Smile
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 104 reviews
Reviewed By NCPirate - Sanford, NC
This is a place several members of our family frequent regularly. We were visiting and they chose to take us here for dinner. It is an obvious favorite for locals. The owner and staff quickly acknowledge folk they recognize when they enter. They were equally friendly with folk they didn't know, but it was obvious when a regular came through the door.
The menu has the usual Asian dishes. The can all be spiced to the diner's delight. The servings were large!!
Service was very good. The place was packed and the staff had to hustle to meet everyone's requests.
The restaurant was clean, but a bit on the worn-out side. I am sure this is because they don't want to shut-down long enough to make the updates.
All-in-all this is a very good place to eat. The prices are reasonable. It is easy to find right off exit 53 from I-64. I certainly can recommend that you give this restaurant a chance if you are near Frankfort.
