A letter from Old Louisville
610 Magnolia
Edward Lee's Victorian house on Magnolia Avenue — the South run through a Korean pantry
A Derby trip, and never quite leaving
Brooklyn-born, Korean-American chef Edward Lee came to Louisville on a Kentucky Derby trip in 2001 and never really left.
He began cooking at 610 Magnolia under founding chef Edward Garber and, barely a year after moving south, bought the restaurant outright — turning a nineteenth-century Old Louisville home into the platform for his career.
Southern staples, Korean pantry
The 610 Magnolia menu reads as a modern Southern tasting — grits, country ham, collards — filtered through miso, soy, kimchi, and the pantry Lee grew up eating.
He rewrites it constantly, backed by his own on-site greenhouse and a wine and bourbon program built for the multi-course pace.
A Victorian preservation district
Old Louisville is one of the largest Victorian preservation districts in the country — a leafy grid of turreted homes and shaded sidewalks south of downtown.
The restaurant is set inside one of those nineteenth-century buildings on Magnolia Avenue, its dining rooms carved out of parlor spaces.
With gratitude,
Edward Lee
Chef & Owner, 610 Magnolia
Order this
The dishes that made 610 Magnolia
Seasonal Tasting Menu
A four- or six-course procession that changes with the greenhouse and the farms; Southern staples pushed with Korean and Asian technique.
Country Ham & Grits
Lee's signature elevation of the Southern larder — cured pork and stone-ground grits with unexpected fermentation and umami.
Duck with Kentucky Grains
Duck breast served with wheatberries, salsify, kale, black garlic, and fruit — a course that repeats across seasons in different guises.
Good to know
610 Magnolia, answered
Is 610 Magnolia à la carte or a tasting menu?
Tasting-menu only. Book weeks out for Wednesday–Saturday and expect to spend a full evening.
What should I drink?
Ask the sommelier about the Kentucky bourbon flight paired to the courses — it's what the room is built for.
When are you open?
Only four service nights a week. Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday are dark.