Hot Brown
(Kentucky Hot Brown)
Hot Brown is an unusual open-faced sandwich consisting of Mornay sauce-covered roast turkey and bacon that is baked or broiled with bread until it gets crispy, and the sauce starts to brown. Louisville, Kentucky's culinary icon started its way to stardom during the 1920s in the Brown Hotel, when chef Fred Schmidt created this unique sandwich to satisfy the guests who were tired of dancing in the ballroom and craved something more glamorous than the usual ham and eggs.
The sandwich was a huge hit and it quickly became the top choice of 95% of the hotel's customers. As the dish gained popularity, numerous variations have been made such as Hot Brown tart, Hot Browns with fried cheese grits, Kentucky Hot Brown cornbread skillet, and biscuit Hot Browns.
Because the Brown Hotel had been shut down from 1971 to 1985, the sandwich was unavailable for a long time, but today anyone can enjoy it, preferably with some tomatoes and mushroom slices placed over the flavorful sauce.
WHERE TO EAT The best Hot Brown in the world (according to food experts)
"We enjoyed course after course of spectacular food ending with a “Hot Brown” which is an open-faced sandwich with turkey, bacon, and topped with Mornay (like béchamel) sauce."
"Order a meal while you're here; the Brown is known for its incredible room service, and you absolutely must try the hotel's legendary hot brown."
"Despite my profound desire never to eat a hot brown again, I tried theirs and found it to be delicious, pretty much the platonic ideal of a hot brown. I actually ate about half of this hot brown, because it tasted so darn good."
"The hot brown was insanely delicious."
