Kentucky Derby head chef reveals the one thing on the menu that will never change at Churchill Downs

At Churchill Downs, Robert Lopez's job is to feed Kentucky Derby guests through an all-day bourbon-fueled marathon while preserving the traditions they arrived for — while still giving them something new to remember.

"There's no changing the mint julep," Lopez said.

That tension between tradition and reinvention sits at the heart of the Kentucky Derby menu.

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Lopez, now in his fourth year as head chef at Churchill Downs, said that balance is what makes the job distinct.

"Churchill Downs in and of itself — and the Kentucky Derby — is something that is second to none," he said. "There is nothing in my career that I can compare it to."

Before arriving in Louisville, Lopez came from Formula One and thought he understood major-event hospitality. 

The Derby, he said, was something else entirely.

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Between the Kentucky Oaks and Derby races, Churchill Downs serves upward of 170,000 to 200,000 guests, supported by about 130 senior- and executive-level chefs brought in from around the country, plus about 4,000 cooks, dishwashers and other staffers, Lopez said.

The property operates 17 full kitchens and serves hundreds of thousands of meals in just a few days.

Still, for Lopez, scale is only part of the story. The bigger challenge is protecting Derby staples while finding room for fresh ideas.

For the 150th Derby, that meant a "new-age hot brown," a spin on Louisville's signature dish made with fried chicken and local smoked bacon. In another variation, his team turned the flavors of a hot brown into a bratwurst link.

Guest expectations run in both directions, he said. 

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Some want their mint juleps and hot browns exactly as they remember them. Others want a new experience every year.

"It's finding that sweet middle ground," Lopez said.

This year's menu, he said, "is so well-balanced with the freshness of the lighter items" and Derby "staples like our shrimp and our short rib."

That balance also shapes how Churchill Downs thinks about food and drink over the course of a long day.

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"This is a marathon," Lopez said of Derby Day. "This is not a sprint."

Derby dining must hold up over hours of racing, socializing and juleps, he said.

Churchill Downs sources all the mint for its juleps from one nearby supplier.

"Every piece of mint that you have on Oaks and Derby Day is all from one farm," Lopez said.