Favorite non-chain Cincinnati restaurants. (Hamilton, Fairfield: work, house, college)

[HuskerDu]

I used to hang out at Tina's on 4th and get Campanello's take out to eat on the little make shift patio at the corner. There is nothing special about the food there. Nice people though.

[WeeMadArthur]

Originally Posted by Cincy-Rise

Best German - Black Forest

I believe Black Forest has closed. Last time I drove by there was a for sale sign on the building.

[Cincy-Rise]

Originally Posted by WeeMadArthur

I believe Black Forest has closed. Last time I drove by there was a for sale sign on the building.

Oh no, that's sad! It looks like you might be right:

Black Forest Restaurant - West Chester, OH

[Whisman]

^^ I'll double check that finding Monday when driving past. I work a few miles up the road.

[goyguy]

Cincinnati hasn't seen a good Greek restaurant since Dimitri's, in the madly incongruous location of poolside at a cheap Central Pkwy motel, called it quits. :-(

I'm among the legions waiting with bated breath for the grand reopening of Grammer's!!! In the category of German cuisine, has anybody here visited either Mecklenburg Gardens or Lenhardt's lately? Both of them were good, at least at one time, when nothing but schnitzel and torte would do for dinner.

Nicola's on "upper" Sycamore St is awesome for Italian. So is Scotti's, but to dine at nine-one-nine Vine is to incur the snappy gruffness of the wait staff. As much as it may be contrived, a la Durgin Park in Boston, be ready for it. Any votes for Barresi's (sp?)

The raves roll in year after year for the Quatman Cafe's version of the all-American classic hamburger. Gotta try it sometime when I'm back in town. Ditto for Deer Park's Chicken on the Run, for a reputedly tasty rendition of that bird.

What I pine for most of all when in the Queen City is good Jewish-deli food. I only have secondhand memories of Loretta's, since I was but a wee lad when they went out of business. ("Every week we'd pick somebody to make the half-hour drive from P & G over there to collect a lunch order, those sandwiches were soooo good...") But if I live past 100 and die without Alzheimer's I'll still remember the Upper Krust and the old Izzy Kadetz's.

Y'all definitely need to conjure up a REALLY good Chinese restaurant. The Blue Gibbon in Bond Hill (okay, okay, Paddock Hills since it's on the south side of Tennessee Ave) approaches that level at times. So did the House of Tam in Finneytown, before they closed up shop last spring. There has to be a line of customers out the door of Song Long on Section Rd - or so I'm told - for a reason, however. Any feedback on them?

No decent seafood joints exist in the Tri-State, either, but what do I care? I live in Massachusetts! What my adopted home lacks, though, is Long John Silver's lol. So I try to get in a stop at my favorite-fast-food-chain-for-life whenever I'm in da nati. It was a sad day when their Hartwell outlet closed, but a funny one to see it torn down only to have Empress Chili build an almost exact replica of the building when they took over the space.

An all-time favorite is the 30-plus-year Glendale mainstay Grand Finale! Their salads would be awesome even without the "house" avocado dressing. Steaks are reliably cooked to order and delicious there. Close your eyes and point randomly at the menu when it's time to decide what you want to eat, lol, you can't go wrong. The restaurant stays true to its earliest years, when crepes were all the rage, by keeping some varieties available. While the days when a "finale" there was truly grand - wedges of cake or pie 3 to 4 inches tall, I kid not - the desserts are still scrumpdilliumptious. If you go on a Sunday for brunch, plan ahead by keeping your stomach empty but for liquid intake after Friday night! The selection is vast, the quality fantastic, and when the weather's good it's a sublime experience to feast while on their patio.

I, too, am loving this thread and am kicking my peripatetic self for not thinking of starting it first. Feh on Ruby Tuesday's, the Olive Garden, Fuddrucker's, Bennigan's, etc etc etc ad nauseum. Eat globally, think locally, to coin the Yoko Ono phrase.

[Whisman]

Originally Posted by goyguy

In the category of German cuisine, has anybody here visited either Mecklenburg Gardens or Lenhardt's lately?

I'm an adamant fan of Lenhardt's but the Christy's bit sees quite the copious number of college students which leads many past their twenties to complain about the atmosphere. My only personal complaint is that imported beer is served in plastic cups. What the heck?

[Exrvi]

I'll second Goy Guy on Nicola's and Barressi's but Barressi's is clearly a special occasion restaurant, given their prices. Grand Finale also has maintained its standards under new ownership.

I never understood people's facination with Scotti's. Admittadly it's been a while, but I thought thier food was terrible, and the wait staff surly. For that I have to go down town?

Sturkey's was also great, but has closed.

We've had many good meals at both The Blue Gibbon and House of Tam, although H-O-T was going down hill once the original owners sold it.

For Thai, we used to love Bangkok Bistro on Erie Avenue. Started going there just after it opened. There was a nice Indian restaurant a few doors down, but last time I was there it had gone upscale, and typical Indian food was not to be had.

When my wife was away, I'd go to Sorrentos on Reading Road. She couldn't stand it, but give me a small carafe of Chianti, a veal parmagian, and a toupeed lounge lizard piano player and I'm in heaven! Always crowded with locals celebrating something, always a few people around the piano bar looking like something out of the '50's.

I could go on, Cincinnati has had many great restaurants over the years, and we've been to most of them. Probably one of the things we've missed most since leaving Cincinnati 4 years ago.

Jeff

[meatwhistle]

Walts in Colerain....

[Ohiogirl81]

Decent Chinese can be had at Sizzling Wok in Anderson Township (the other locations are OK, but not as good) and Magic Wok in Mariemont. I like the Blue Gibbon OK, but not as much as the others.

Every time I come back to town I go to Walt's Barbecue and Price Hill Chili. I usually stay with friends in Westwood; whaddaya want from me?

Other favorites (heaven only knows if any of these are still open!): Dilly Deli in Mariemont, Wooster Tavern in Fairfax, Pleasant Ridge Chili (but only after midnight), Habit's in Oakley (potato rags!!), Tucker's in Over-the-Rhine, and the Washington Platform.

Tina's! Campanello's! I used to work in the Textile Building at Fourth and Elm, and we'd hang out at both places quite often. Yum.

Now I'm hungry.

[Whisman]

Originally Posted by Ohiogirl81

Pleasant Ridge Chili (but only after midnight).

Probably the only restaurant in the city with a waiting time at 3:00 a.m. Love it!