Louisville Lady Eats Take Away: Heart and Soy

This is my first review on an experience with take out! I don't often order take out, probably because I feel like if I am spending that much money on food I want to be served and cleaned up after. However, some circumstances ask for take out, and what better than helping your sister for an entire afternoon/evening on an Art History essay...I guess you could say no better time... Yes, my life has gotten to this point, but hey it was a great food experience, hence you all get to revel in a raving review!

We walked into the building, which is split into two restaurants (a detail I didn't even note until I confusingly walked in and searched for help on seating/menus/anything) called Roots and Heart and Soy respectively. Roots is on the left, and is more sit-down style and they have soups and tapa-style dishes. Heart and Soy is on the right and is more your noodle bowl, spring roll, okay for eat-in or take-out restaurant. It is gorgeous, balanced, clean, and tranquil inside, and I really would like to come back and review Roots at some time in the near future, but we opted for Heart and Soy for our take-out pleasure.

My first impression was by the lady who helped us order our food. She was so sweet, I wish I had asked her name. She was patient, careful to recheck our order, and was just a breath of fresh air after drilling art analyses on Géricault. She asked about the drop in temperature, if we had ever visited the store before, and directed us towards the desserts and other menu items--good woman Our final choices included spring rolls, sweet rice balls, and Korean cellophane noodles. --Speaking of Korean noodles, I'm going to give a shoutout to my dear friend and fellow blogger Megan at Blue Sunnies, who has a travel blog about living in South Korea...check it out!-- Back to Heart and Soy: our order took about ten minutes to be freshly made and packaged, and their packaging was mostly biodegradable as well, which I appreciated. We were sent off with a smile and wish to see each other again soon, and then came the delicious wafting scents of food from the paper take out bag, forcing us to salivate on that tortuous six-minute drive back home.

When we arrived it was time to open said paper bag and bring out dinner. I forgot how great it was to open a take out bag, it felt like Christmas, especially when hunger was striking as hard as it was. I think this action was accentuated by the seriously incredible smell coming from our promising dinner. So. Good! I broke out the chopsticks and we plated some of the boxes for better accessibility, then it was time to dig in. I don't know how I managed to snap a few photos, but chopstick threats were probably involved.
The spring rolls were my first choice. These fresh, crisp, delightful rolls were served with a silky peanut sauce that had chips of peanut inside. It was fun to crunch into such a taste of the spring season when we are just getting into fall, but if you are ever craving warmer weather food, this is definitely my recommendation. The peanut sauce adds a nice warm depth to it, which perfectly balances the crunch of the carrots and the basil. I honestly had trouble distinguishing whether the glorious herb was basil or mint, so I'm just going to go with Thai Basil, it was fresh and soft and perfectly complimented the carrots, bean sprouts, pickle, and tofu. Incredible.

Second, I dove into the Sweet Rice Balls, which were just wonderful. My sister and I are big fans of Miyazaki and basically anything from Studio Ghibli, so be prepared for an obscure reference if you aren't familiar with Miyazaki-san's art. In the movie Spirited Away, Haku gives Chihiro a Sweet Rice Ball in order to calm her down and let her cry out her worries. That was pretty much my reaction to the Sweet Rice Ball from Heart and Soy; it was slightly crispy on the outside, and yielded to a soft rice inside that was warm and welcoming. It also had a sauce inside between the white rice and the sweet crisp outside. Tears of joy nearly flowed due to extreme happiness. They also came with a slightly spicy soy-based sauce, and it was delicious! Be prepared for a future attempt of mine at recreating Sweet Rice Balls, I think they should be a worthy addition to any repertoire.

Finally, we went for the Korean Cellophane Noodles. They were gorgeous, tasty, full of flavor and spice (we had the choice of spicy or not, and of course we opted for the former). I think it might have been a little spicy for dear sister, but that's okay because that meant more for me! It was beautifully presented with sesame and purple cabbage and carrots, as well as red pepper, incredible soy tofu, and spring onions. Just like I love it, everything was balanced by flavor and color. It was a perfect presentation and a great meal.

Two of us were able to share these three items and we were fully satisfied. I definitely recommend this place for take out, and I promise a follow-up review on Roots whenever I get back over there. Their location is right in the heart of the Highlands on Bardstown Road. They are easily accessible, and you can park on the side streets or right in front of the restaurant if it is not between the hours of 4-6 (when the traffic patterns change). The people are kind, the food is healthy and delicious, their Asian-focused dishes are authentic and inspired, and I hope that you can make it over as soon as possible to affirm my recommendation!

Heart and Soy
1216 Bardstown Road
Louisville, KY 40204
Phone: 502-452-6678
Website: www.heartandsoy.net
Email: info@heartandsoy.net
They also deliver! If you live in the Highlands, Clifton, Crescent Hill, Germantown, Butchertown, or Nulu