OYE – So Fresh and So Green

Another fantastic Unilocal event! I had been looking forward to trying this
place since it opened and I was not disappointed.
Since it’s a test concept, the restaurant is small but what they lack in space they more than make up for in food/​drink. I expected a great selection of salads, but what surprised and impressed me most was the selection of house made lemonades. They offer 4 different flavors which change with the seasons. The 4 on tap were Pumpkin Spice, Blackberry Vanilla Spice, Piña Colada, and Blueberry Ginger. I hesitantly tried the Pumpkin Spice and fell in LOVE! I would not have thought that to be a good flavor combination for a lemonade, but it was outstanding! The lemonades are on tap and include free refills which was a pleasant surprise. The owner, Evan, said they will soon be offering take home glass bottles (think growler but for lemonade instead of craft beer) and I think it will be very successful.
We were also served two soups, the Sausage, Kale, and Potato and the Spiced Pumpkin Bisque. I do not care for spicy things so I did not expect to like the Pumpkin soup, but the spice wasn’t overwhelming and it was my favorite of the two.
We sampled 4 different salads: Kale Harvest, BBQ Brisket, Tuscan, and Chicken Taco. All 4 were great but my favorite was the Kale Harvest with the Chicken Taco in 2^nd place. I will need to visit again soon to try the other offerings. You can create your own salad if you wish, but I wouldn’t bother. Trust the menu as Chef Josh knows what he is doing!
The owner, Evan, did a great job introducing the concept and all of the food. They are using lots of locally sourced ingredients which I appreciate.
I hope to see a few more Vinaigrette locations spring up in the near future.

No better way to get back into the swing of Unilocal than a fantastic event, right?!
I’ve been anxious to try Vinaigrette since before they opened and was sooooo excited to see a Unilocal event here! Woo-​hoo! Finally a chance to try them out and feel like a Unilocaler again; oh boy, I am so glad I was able to fill my stomach with Vinaigrette yumminess.
The intimate evening started off with the pumpkin bisque soup (hearty and delicious) and kale harvest salad. PHENOMENAL, especially paired together. I also looved the Tucsan salad — such strong flavors mixed together well. A brisket salad, chicken taco salad, and sausage/​kale/​potato soup were also offered during the evening but I skipped those. The chef was nice enough to put together a generous portion of the vegan power salad to make up for it! (The portion was so large, I had the rest of it for lunch a couple days later… and it was still perfect!)
Although the salads were amazing, the star of the evening (for me) were the flavored lemonades: piña colada, pumpkin spice, blackberry vanilla spice, and blueberry ginger. Such unique flavors and they all tasted exactly like I thought they would — but awesome! My favorite? The blackberry vanilla spice. There was some talk of offering growlers for the lemonade — dangerous territory for me. I’d devour the growler in a day.
It was a pleasure conversing with the guys behind Vinaigrette and learning more about their farm-​to-​fork restaurant/​community interactions. Love all the seasonal food concepts and happy they’re open for dinner hours too. Cannot wait to head back there and eat [almost — not the meat] the entire menu. Also, I’m kind of in love with Vinaigrette’s décor and enjoyed talking to one of the owners about the barn doors. Hehe.
It was great seeing familiar Unilocal Lexington faces and meeting new ones, all while devouring great food and enjoying the Unilocal swag (the little bendy clocks are fun)! Thank you for putting together a sweet event and allowing me to be a part of it, Heather, Brett, Unilocal,and Vinaigrette!

I was totally happy with my experience. The atmosphere was quite and inviting. Definitely a place to enjoy a nice date with significant others, friends or co-​workers. This event was my cup of tea. I enjoy great food with healthy options available. The pumpkin soup was to die for and the variety of salads are unheard of. Thank you for the great hospitality and company.

This event was a little shorter and lighter on food than most Unilocal events, but was really fun and I enjoyed everything we sampled. I’ve been wanting to try this place since they opened and the Unilocal event was the perfect way to explore their menu and learn more about their restaurant. One of the owners (Evan) and their main chef (Josh) were both friendly and clearly cared about their business and food. The Unilocal swag and conversation was great (as it always is!), and I wasn’t uncomfortably stuffed when I left which was kind of nice! It sounds as though they will be opening at least one more location in the near future and I’m excited to return for another great salad.

I really enjoyed this event. I loved the harvest kale salad and the pumpkin bisque soup. The owners were so friendly and continuously asked how we were all enjoying everything. Definitely will go back and try some of the other menu items soon. I was glad to hear that they are open at dinner time now, since I work too far away to stop in for lunch on the weekdays.
We sampled four salads and two soups, and four of their unique lemonades. Really enjoyed all of those, especially the pumpkin spice.
Thank you, Heather, for organizing this great event!

Fun and tasty OYE! Heather did a great job with organizing the event and one of the owners was there to tell the story about this original concept. Evan, one of the owning partners, was extremely down to earth and personable. He came around to every table and struck up conversations with each Unilocal guest. His genuineness certainly made me like the restaurant even more. Learning that each of the foods was locally sourced plays in well with the KY Proud/​Farm to Table movement.
The chef, Josh, was a master working on a variety of fresh salads and soups for each guest. Each item was delicious and the lemonades were incredible.
This was my first time dining at Vinagrette and I will certainly be back! Thanks for the opportunity to check out this new establishment and to enjoy a night Unilocaling it up with friends!

Heather does it again. Thanks for lining up such great places for us to visit.
Vinagrette is a restaurant I visited shortly after it opened. I really liked it then and I like it more now.
I am glad to see that they are adding seasonal soups and salads. It was great to hear the owner speak about partnerships he is forming with local farms.
I really liked the pumpkin bisque. Great texture and a very rich creamy taste. The sausage and Kale soup was good also but I might eat a bucket of that bisque. Good job chef Josh.
I really enjoyed the chicken taco salad and look forward to more seasonal specials. Good job guys I will be back.

Great event! Thank you to the guys at Vinaigrette for having our group for a fantastic night of great food! We tried 4 salads and 2 soups. My favorite was the seasonal salad with quinoa and sweet potatoes. Loved everything else too. The lemonade choices really were great as well. Will definitely be back to try again. Thank you Heather for coordinating this event!

Yet another outstanding Official Unilocal Event or OYE as the Unilocalers say. Thank you Heather P for setting this event up with Vinaigrette Salad Kitchen and hooking us up with all the great Unilocal Swag. Great seeing/​meeting Brett N live and in the flesh. Big thank you to Evan M one of the owners for being such a great host and speaker. And last but definitely not least, big Unilocal thank you to Josh the great chef/​salad slinger and man behind the great lemonade flavors that are so addictive.
I was a huge fan of this place before the event, but after hearing Evan tell us about their concepts and the farm to table ideas, I love them even more.
We got to sample a couple of their soups, the Pumpkin Spice Bisque and the Kale, Potato & Sausage. I would normally tell you my favorite one of these options, but that just isn’t going to happen. They are both outstanding in different ways. The Pumpkin Spice Bisque was perfectly creamy with just the right amount of curry to kick it up a notch. The Kale, Potato & Sausage had a strong kale flavor, but wasn’t overpowering. The broth alone on this one was so light and savory.
The salads that we sampled were the Kale Harvest, BBQ Brisket, Tuscan Salad, and Chicken Taco. My favorite of which was the BBQ Brisket Salad. The BBQ Brisket was just the right amount of light tangy dressing accented with sweet potato cubes and white whole corn kernels topped off with the random crunchy corn bread croutons. It is such an unexpected flavor combo, but yet so right.
Then to wash all of this great food down with, I had to sample all of their lovely home made Lemonades. Their four Lemonade choices tonight happened to be the Piña Colada, Pumpkin Spice, Blackberry Vanilla Spice, and the Blueberry Ginger. I truly can’t decide which of these would be my favorite. I wish I had a gallon of each of these to go. I was reluctant about the Pumpkin Spice, but by jiminy it was good. I do feel kind of bad though. I couldn’t stop thinking about how each of them would taste with a shot of booze. I don’t know how Chef Josh comes up with these flavors, but I sure am glad he does. SO GOOD.
Thanks again Heather, Unilocalers, Evan, Josh, and Vinaigrette for such a great event.

Another great Lexington Unilocal event! The owner was great, very hospitable. My favorite salad was the first one served — The Harvest Kale salad. It was very tasty. I like the sweet potatoes and the dressing was sweet and tangy. My second favorite was the Taco Salad. The Pumpkin Bisque soup was creamy, warm and delicious. I enjoyed hearing about the farm to table ingredients and the large bowls are a fun addition.
Awesome swag as usual. I’ve been writing all day and was in need of vitamins and nourishment and this really hit the spot. We try to eat healthy most of the time, so this is a place I will definitely return to in the future.
I almost forgot to mention the lemonade. The Blueberry Ginger was my favorite. I also liked the Pina Colada. That would be fun on a warm day.

To be truthful, when this place first opened up, I thought it sounded hilarious. I actually told my friends, «Hey, did you hear about this new restaurant? It only serves salad.» (insert maniacal laughter)
Tonight I had to eat my words. Literally.
I particularly enjoyed the Kale Salad with the Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette. The Kale was so earthy… You could really still taste the farm in this salad. The craisins and cous cous melded together to create a delicious and entirely unexpected flavor. The BBQ Brisket Salad was similarly amazing, especially with the very subtle cornbread croutons and bits of sweet potato.
The soups were both quite tasty, especially the pumpkin bisque (which I was very hesitant to try, as it just sounded strange). The lemonades all sounded either delicious or oddly weirdly strange. But this place makes these flavors work. I don’t typically enjoy piña colada anything… But I tried their piña colada lemonade first just for giggles. Dang, I ended up drinking a whole glass.
This place really works.
Once again, thanks for Heather P. and the crew for organized this and Evan and Josh for being such gracious hosts.
Yay!

Another great OYE! Heather does a great job lining up fantastic new places to host these events. Of course there was great Unilocal swag again this time as well!
Vainagerette is a great new place off Leestown rd. The owner was really nice and informative and talked about the farm
To table ingredients. Everything was definitely fresh. They offere two soups for us to try. Pumpkin spice bisque and kale, potato and sausage soup. I wasn’t crazy about the pumpkin becuase of the spice in it, but that’s just my taste. I don’t like curry or spicy things too often. I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed the kale soup. It wouldn’t have been something I would have ordered, but probably will next time I go. I took an extra cup home with me and my 5 yr old wouldn’t let my husband finish it. She loved it.
We were given samples of their Kale harvest salad, BBQ brisket vinegarette, Tuscan salad, and Chicken Taco salad. The taco salad was probably my favorite with the kale being second. You are also able to make your own salads.
They make their own lemonade and the choices were piña colada, pumpkin spice, blackberry vanilla spice and blueberry ginger. I loved the blackberry. I didn’t even try the others it was so good.
This place is a great change of pace from other restaraunts. Love a good salad and this place has them!