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Department of Parks
Gen. Butler Unveils New Restaurant
Diners at General Butler State Resort Park in Carrollton are now greeted by a new look and new menu in its restaurant.
General Butler is a trailblazer in the state park system. It is the first to adopt a distinctive menu and interior design theme.
The new restaurant is called “Two Rivers,” reflecting the rich history of a community that thrived at the confluence of the Kentucky and Ohio rivers.
The difference between the previous food service operation and Two Rivers starts even before a visitor steps into the dining room.
Outside the park lodge, a rustic-appearing wooden sign calls attention to the Two Rivers Restaurant inside.
Then, a guest steps into the dining room to see a remarkable transformation. The wide-open, cafeteria-style layout has given way to several seating areas. Replacing generic scenic photos on the walls are historical photos and documents that outline the history of this river town. The historic theme carries over into items that range from driftwood to fishing lures.
“It was important that we reflect the identity of Carrollton,” Jones said. “The two rivers are the reason Carrollton came to exist.”
The river theme is reflected in a small decorative pool that gurgles next to a window.
A diner also will note an immediate difference in the menu, especially for the evening meal. Traditional breakfast fare is offered, as is a popular lunch buffet.
For dinner, guests will see several menu items not offered at other state park dining rooms. They include oyster stew served in a cast iron crock, porterhouse pork chops, and crab cakes.
Kentucky producers are spotlighted on the menu. One appetizer is PJ’s beer cheese of Paris, the pork chops are from Happy Hollow Farms of Springfield, and the restaurant serves Penn’s country ham from Gravel Switch.
Another park supplies the restaurant – the cornmeal is made from meal ground at Levi Jackson State Park’s McHargue’s Mill.
During the summer, the restaurant features local fruits and vegetables grown by local family farmers, as do all other park dining operations. They include Jumbleberry Farms, in the Carroll County community of Ghent.
The transformation was a team effort, Jones noted. The entire staff considered various themes for the new operation. Once the Two Rivers idea was adopted, the park’s curator, Evelyn Welch, scoured antique shops to find display items. Clay Cable, maintenance supervisor, and his staff remodeled the dining room interior. Chef Eric Clippert worked with the department’s food services division to develop the new menu.
The food service staff participated in special hospitality training in advance of the opening, Jones noted.
“We really changed the way we do business,” he said.
The entire cost of the remodeling was only about $15,000, Jones noted, far less than a private contractor would have charged.
“We have a lot of talent at General Butler, and this project gave them the opportunity to show their creativity and commitment,” he said.
All the hard work is already paying off. With only word of mouth promoting it so far, the restaurant has seen sales up by 30 percent over a recent two-week period, compared to the same period last year, Jones said.
Now that the restaurant is up and running smoothly, the park will actively market Two Rivers.
Parks Commissioner George Ward said the department plans to adopt special themes at several other resort parks in the future.
“We believe our dining operations have potential to serve as more than simply a convenient place to eat for our park guests,” Ward said. “They can create new revenue from local residents who want a dining experience that they can’t find at the local chain restaurant.”
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