Cincinnati Magazine - August 2020 Edition

BLACK JOY WILL ALWAYS MATTER p.28 / KEEPING HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS VISIBLE p.50

SMALL CHANGES IN YOUR G R O C E R Y R O U T I N E C A N H E L P S U S TA I N THE LOCAL FOOD SYSTEM.

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Located near I-75, 15 miles north of downtown Cincinnati and 25 miles south of Dayton, the Convention Center is easily accessible from any direction.

Nearby are 22 hotels with more than 3,000 guest rooms, plus a wide variety of dining and entertainment options.

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Add a flavorful flair to date night with wine tasting for two in the scenic surroundings of Gervasi Vineyard. With over 330 wineries across Ohio, it’s easy to plan your next weekend escape.

Ten perfect road trips await you at Ohio.org Gervasi Vineyard in Canton

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EAT LOCAL

No matter how you slice it, Cincinnati’s local food options are more bountiful and easier to access than ever. Join us as we explore the region’s farms, CSA programs, and farmers’ markets.

HUMANITY IS THEIR JOB P. 50

The Holocaust and Humanity Center tries to keep local survivors’ stories visible during an invisible pandemic.

BY GIL KAUFMAN

STORMING THE CASTLE P. 54

Andy Farfsing embraces the challenges of remaking Purcell Marian High School “from scratch” in the face of changing Catholic education trends and uncertainty surrounding COVID-19.

BY POLK LAFFOON IV

P H O T O G R A P H BY A A R O N M . CO N WAY

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14 / CONTRIBUTORS 14 / LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

FRONTLINES

FOOD NEWS

17 / DISPATCH

COVID-19 openings, closings, and pivots.

Emily Henry’s Beach Read makes Book of the Month Club

18 / SPEAK EASY Mary Ellen Goeke reimagines FotoFocus

18 / SPORTS The Western & Southern Open moves to NYC Makeup artist Gregorie Styles

COLUMNS

101 / OFF THE MENU

22 / REAL ESTATE

Black lives matter

102 / TRY THIS

Sleek modern lines in Hyde Park

24 / HOMEGROWN Nikki Zehler’s natural stone jewelry

26 / DR. KNOW Your QC questions answered

28 / CITY WISE

BY AIESHA D. LITTLE

32 / PERSON OF INTEREST We support Team Hughes

BY LISA MURTHA

Good Plates Eatery, Clifton Heights Welcome Table’s takeout dinners

105 / DINING GUIDE Greater Cincinnati restaurants: A selective list

112 / CINCY OBSCURA

HOME + LIFE

New Richmond’s Cardboard Boat Museum

BY KATIE COBURN

DINE

98 / DINING OUT

Decoding our civic DNA, from history to politics to personalities.

ON THE COVER

food styling and photograph by JESSICA ELLIOTT

Tracking what’s new in local real estate, artisans, and storefronts.

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In-depth stories exploring local issues and people.

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CINCINNATIMAGAZINE.COM PODCAST

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CONTRIBUTORS

CARRIE BLACKMORE SMITH

W E ’ R E A L L S E A R C H I N G F O R S I LV E R L I N I N G S I N T H I S C LO U DY T I M E . W E WA N T to believe that all of the disruption, uncertainty, and down time will add up to something positive in the end, that our discomfort and sacrifice will yield some deeper meaning, and that better days lie ahead.

Lots of people in the news are talking about silver linings. Restaurant and store owners who’d always wanted to set up online ordering and delivery service.

Cultural groups always meaning to add virtual programming. Companies that never got around to figuring out flexible work options for employees. African Americans convinced that systemic racism would never be acknowledged.

School officials insisting that their teaching models were too complex to change. Elected officials who claimed there wasn’t enough money to provide universal health care, build a better unemployment safety net, boost small businesses, or forgive college loan debt. As we’ve seen, all of these things are possible and, in fact, doable in a pinch.

Let’s add to that wish list a sustainable local system providing fresh, healthy food at all price points for all Greater Cincinnati residents. In this month’s cover package, “Eat Local” (page 36), we explore another silver lining in the pandemic’s wake: the growth of local farms and wholesalers delivering fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy, eggs, and herbs to our doorstep.

You might stop by a grocery store any day of the year to buy strawberries grown in Mexico.

They’re cheap, and they taste strawberry-like.

Then COVID-19 disrupts the entire food supply chain and infects workers in distribution warehouses along the product’s journey to Cincinnati. How comfortable are you now grabbing them? Instead, buy strawberries from a farm in Clermont County, get to know that family, and keep your money in the local economy.

The big question, of course, is what happens after the pinch loosens. Do we slouch back to business as usual, or do we get our heads out of the clouds and make the possible permanent? If it’s the latter, better days are actually ahead.

J O H N F OX

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

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ILLUSTR ATIO N BY L A R S LEE TA RU

As a freelance writer who has extensively covered environmental and sustainability issues, Carrie Blackmore Smith was excited to dig into the world of agriculture in Cincinnati. In “Serious Growth in Our Local Food System,” (page 38), she explores how the system is growing and changing. “I knew local food was becoming more accessible,” she says. “But I didn’t know about all the nuances.”

AIESHA D. LITTLE “The past is very easy to connect to the present when the past keeps repeating itself,” says contributing writer and former Cincinnati Magazine staffer Aiesha D. Little. In “On Black Lives Mattering” (page 28), Little reflects on how her outlook on race relations has changed from youthful optimism to realism over the past 20 years. However, there is one constant: “I still find joy in the everyday of living in my Blackness and walking in my truth.”

JESSICA ELLIOTT Seattle-based artist Jessica Elliott’s food typography pieces have graced advertising campaigns for brands like Jif and Smuckers Uncrustables, but her cover image for this issue is actually a return to an art form she hasn’t visited in three years. “It’s really interesting.

You get to work with things that you don’t normally use,” she says.

A typical piece can take Elliott anywhere from three to four hours to set up—and she has to work quickly.

“It can’t be a multiday process.”

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FOTOFOCUS REFOCUSES P. 18

TENNIS EVENT ON THE MOVE P. 18

LIFE’S A BEACH

Cincinnati’s Emily Henry grabs national attention for her first adult fiction novel. G R A C E D E A R I N G

P H O T O G R A P H BY A A R O N M . CO N WAY

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MODERN MARVEL ON GRANDIN ROAD P. 22

STONE AGE P. 24

HEN EMILY HENRY WAS A KID IN WEST CHESTER, IT WAS RARE TO FIND HER WITH-

out a book in hand. Describing herself as a “voracious reader,” she finished novel after novel and series after series. Most of them left her wanting more, eager to know what happens after “the end,” so she wrote it herself.

“Now I would probably qualify what I was writing as fan fiction,” Henry says with a laugh. “But that wasn’t my intention. I thought I was writing groundbreaking works of art.”

Henry broke new ground this summer with the release of her first adult novel, Beach Read, after years of success as a young adult author. The book has generated national press attention as one of the year’s best summer reads, and was featured as the Book of the Month Club selection for April.

Henry attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan, on a partial creative writing scholarship, with plans to become a professor. Like most college students, she was anxious to begin paying back her student loans, so she postponed grad school and took a technical writing job. Her mind wandered back to creative writing, and after researching how writers get published, she decided the publishing establishment operated largely on fate—from bumping into CONTINUED ON P. 18 A U G U S T 2 0 2 0 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M 1 7

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teenage experiences.

So Henry transitioned out of young adult fiction with Beach Read. Set in a small neighborhood in Michigan, it’s an ode to her own struggles as a writer and to her Midwestern roots. “I was writing young adult fiction and had all of this momentum going and felt very inspired, but I didn’t actually have any new ideas,” says Henry. “This was my way of investigating my own writer’s block through the main character.”

Add a brooding nextdoor neighbor and former college rival, and Beach Read is the perfect recipe for a feel-good romance.

After positive attention from national outlets like Entertainment Weekly and The New York Times, Henry says she’s grateful to reach a wider audience. “I am always trying to bring some sense of comfort and wonder to people,” she says. “As kids, we can be so amazed by every new thing that we see or experience, but as adults we can just become so used to what’s around us. I’m trying to bring that sense of wonder back to the world we live in.”

SPORTS

A NET GAIN FOR NEW YORK CITY The tennis tournament leading into this month’s U.S. Open will look normal—Western & Southern banners, Rookwood Pottery trophies—but the local summer tradition is moving to New York. “Three-quarters of our players need a passport to play in the tournament,” says Chief Operating Officer Katie Haas (including last year’s men’s winner, Daniil Medvedev, left). “Between the travel concerns and quarantining players during run of play, this was our best option.”

THE WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPEN RUNS AUGUST 20–28. WSOPEN.COM

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SPEAK EASY

REFOCUSED ON COMMUNITY X The FotoFocus Biennial celebrates photography and other “lens-based” art every other October with art shows, speakers, and programming across Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, as well as Dayton and Columbus. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Executive Director Mary Ellen Goeke cancelled the 2020 event (and 10th anniversary celebration) and donated its $800,000 operating budget to more than 100 institutions that were scheduled to be involved, including Cincinnati Art Museum, Taft Museum of Art, and The Carnegie.

Why and when did you decide to cancel FotoFocus? By the second week of March, we were hearing about event cancellations and people not traveling, so we decided we were either going to host a possibly compromised Biennial or we could start a conversation with our team to see how we could support our partners and venues. We wanted to let the arts community know that we’d like to have them back for the next Biennial.

Can FotoFocus also help support the artists who were going

to have work in this year’s Biennial? We’re postponing several of those exhibitions, and we will put them on in 2022. We have the artists’ commitments, and we’re planning to make an announcement in October that will include those projects.

And we’ll work behind the scenes to promote any artists and venues continuing with projects they’d already planned for this fall. Rather than a cancellation, we would prefer this year be referred to as a “reconfiguration.”

What can individuals do to support arts organizations in their communities? I would strongly recommend families and individuals who can to become members of these visual art museums and galleries. The membership fees at museums in our region are relatively low compared to a lot of major cities, and I know that it’s not possible for everyone, but even a student rate—whatever you can afford—is a great private decision that says, I know you’re there, I hope you’ll be there, and I want to come back.

—ELEANOR BISHOP

READ A LONGER INTERVIEW WITH MARY ELLEN AT CINCINNATIMAGA ZINE.COM PH OTO G R A PH S BY J O N ATH A N W I LLI S

I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y Z A C H A R Y G H A D E R I / P H O T O G R A P H S C O U R T E S Y ( E M I LY H E N R Y ) P E N G U I N R A N D O M H O U S E / ( S P O R T S ) W E S T E R N & S O U T H E R N O P E N

a book publisher on the subway to meeting editors in New York City. “But I was in Cincinnati, and none of that was really an option,” she jokes.

“So the only thing for me to focus on was the writing itself. All you can do is write until you have something publishable and keep throwing it out there and see what sticks.”

That “something” was The Love That Split the World, published in 2016. Debuting her first young adult romance novel happened a lot sooner than Henry had anticipated, and she quickly gained momentum. She followed up with A Million Junes in 2017, and two more titles in 2019: Hello Girls and When the Sky Fell on Splendor.

Henry says she was drawn to the young adult genre because she’s always been fascinated by coming-of-age stories and decided to focus on what she knew best: her own teen years. Her stories explored themes from friendship and romance to discovering characters’ individuality, but as the years passed she began to realize how the lessons she was learning in her mid- to late 20s mirrored a lot of her

STYLE COUNSEL

Gregorie Styles OCCUPATION: Makeup artist , personal stylist, blogger STYLE: Always glowing Did you always know you’d be a makeup artist one day? I knew I was going to be something creative. . . . [In college,] I decided that I didn’t want to just create work that was flat on a canvas. I wanted to create something that could move and breathe through the world. I woke up one day and told my parents I was going to cosmetology school, and they were like, What’s happening? You were a full-time hairstylist before becoming a district educator for Sephora. As a hairstylist I felt like I still wasn’t quite reaching my creative potential. [At] Sephora, I became a skin specialist, and then I felt like that wasn’t enough, so I had to add more things. A few years ago you got into styling. How? I was contacted by a woman who said, I need help with hair and makeup, and she struggled with what clothing to wear, so I just picked out what I thought looked best, and she was like, You remind me of Mary Poppins; you just pop in and get people’s lives together and then come back when we need you. Now you offer hair, makeup, and styling services under your personal brand, Gregorie Styles. What’s your goal for each client? My entire goal is to make sure I’m telling someone’s story accurately, even if they don’t have the words to necessarily express it. What’s your personal style like? I’m definitely a T-shirt, jeans, and backward ball cap kind of guy, and then the next day I’m at brunch in all sequins.

What’s your go-to look? As far as clothing, texture is my biggest color, so I may not be wearing the boldest color, but I like to layer different textures. I’m [also] a huge believer in glowing skin. Your skin is your biggest accessory. If it’s shine on my skin, highlighter, or something glossy, it’s always going to have some layer of glow.

—KATIE COBURN

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ON THE MARKET

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TAKE THE FLOOR

“REVERSE LIVING” ISN’T REVOLUTIONARY, BUT IT’S A THOUGHTFUL

departure from the typical pre-war home layout. The idea is that common space is located on the upper floors—second or even third—and personal and sleeping space is downstairs. It’s a calling card of many Mid-Century Modern interiors, designed to reserve those rooms with the best outdoor views for daily living and indeed to reverse expectations about how a home should accommodate our lifestyle (not the other way around). In this three-story Hans Nuetzel home, built in 1981, reverse living is done right.

The four-bedroom house is cut into its Grandin Road hillside, so that all of the rooms, even those downstairs, are “above grade”—that is, above ground—and filled with natural light. The open-plan first floor wraps around a tidy brick fireplace and builtin bookshelf, a peninsula that both separates and integrates adjoining rooms, all of which feature wall-sized windows overlooking the hillside. An extra large back deck lets you lounge among the treetops. The home also 2 2 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

has a striking geometric cut-out chimney, a recognizable feature of a Nuetzel home.

The German-born architect was a colleague of local architecture bigwigs Carl Strauss and Ray Roush. He spent his multi-decade career filling Cincinnati streets with his high-concept homes and working closely with homeowners to create a shared vision.“It took a sophisticated kind of client to have one of these houses designed,” says Sibcy Cline Executive Sales Vice President Maureen Pippin, who is selling the home for Marty Cooper and Kim Taylor.

Cooper bought it from the original owner, Jim Brennan, who worked very closely with Nuetzel to design it. “This was his dream home.

When Marty bought it, he expanded it. And he got Hans Nuetzel to come back and work on the project,” Taylor says. That collaborative spirit characterizes this home: Its construction became part of the hillside rather than flattening it; its expanded master bedroom still aligns with Nuetzel’s original design principles; and it is an agreeably modern standout on the otherwise historic Grandin Road.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY RVP-PHOTOGRAPHY

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RING BLING

THE ROCK SHOW CINCINNATI JEWELRY MAKER NIKKI ZEHLER PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON THE STONES. —JAC LY N YO U H A N A G A R V E R IF HER FATHER SAW HER AT-HOME, INDOOR JEWELRY WORKSHOP,

Nikki Zehler guesses he’d have a few choice words to say. Not about the workshop, per se. Just about the whole “using a torch inside” thing. “I have a huge, sturdy workbench set up in our spare bedroom,” Zehler says, and she opens all the windows and uses a ventilator to filter the fumes and push them outside.

“I work right there on the workbench. It sounds much cooler than it probably looks. It probably looks like chaos.”

2 4 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

Zehler, a Cincinnati native, is the owner of LoveRoot, a handmade jewelry shop specializing in metalwork and natural stones. It combines her childhood interest in rocks and jewelry-making.

As a kid, she had a rock tumbler, and loved to polish her stones. She made friendship jewelry out of yarn, and in high school, she took an art jewelry class.

She returned to her two interests in the early 2010s, after leaving a few bad jobs

and finding herself a lot happier—and with more free time and the capacity to focus on her interests. It started with simple wire-wrapping, a technique of winding wires around stones, often in curlicue or functional designs.

She revisited the metalworking techniques she learned in high school and tried her hand at soldering, using a torch, hammering metal, and setting stones.

Today, LoveRoot is her second job— she works full-time writing proposals for drug companies—and that’s just how she likes it. “Part of the fun of this for me is it’s not my primary source of income, so I don’t have the pressure of producing quantity, selling well, doing custom work for people who may not exactly have a good idea of what they want,” Zehler says. “I can do what I want. I can follow the muse. If I wake up one day and I feel like making a long necklace with a green stone, I can do that, and I don’t have to worry about if I’m going to be able to pay the cable bill for that month.”

LoveRoot’s primary home is Etsy, with sales across the country and as far away as France and the Netherlands. “I can’t ever say I want this to be my full-time job,” Zehler says.

“I think I’m where I want to be with it. I get to have meaningful interactions with people on a micro level and still have people respond well to my work.”

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“BRILLIANT UNDER A HALF MOON” This labradorite and reticulated sterling silver ring sold for $198.

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“YOU WANT IT DARKER” Sold for $128, this minimalist ring features Chinese turquoise.

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“THE UNIVERSAL VEIL” Purple chalcedony and tanzanite accent sterling silver granules in this ring that sold for $187.

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PHOTOGRAPH (PORTRAIT) BY CARLIE BURTON

PHOTOGRAPHS (JEWELRY) COURTESY NIKKI ZEHLER

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Dr. Know is Jay Gilbert, weekday afternoon deejay on 92.5 FM The Fox. Submit your questions about the city’s peculiarities at drknow@cincinnati magazine.com

DR. KNOW

certain time during these uncertain times.

Our own research, however, provides an almost-certain answer.

Back in the olden days of the 20th century, customers often paid for things with quaint, bacteria-covered pieces of paper called “cash.” These disgusting green sheaths regularly depleted themselves, requiring a resupply from the nearest Automated Teller Machine. In 1995, the new OfficeMax in Kenwood put an ATM outside its entrance, secured in the very alcove you observed. The machine vanished when OfficeMax folded, and by the time Trader Joe’s arrived in 2004 the PNC Bank next door was providing its own repulsive-sheath dispenser for the area.

Even though PNC has now also left, don’t expect an ATM to reappear in your alcove.

Cash is going the way of OfficeMax.

Q+ A

Before gatherings stopped, I went to a wedding in Indian Hill at an estate called Greenacres. I’m fairly new to Cincinnati, so forgive me, but why are such lush and beautiful grounds named after a tacky, stupid old TV show? Did one of the writers retire there? None of the guests seemed to know. —GREEN ACHE DEAR ACHE:

Social distancing had me standing in line outside Trader Joe’s in Kenwood. As I moved, I noticed a recessed alcove near the entrance, its brick awning covering a park bench. This makes no sense. The nook clearly had some other purpose, but I didn’t want to bother the very-busy staff about it. Can you?

—SAY WHAT’S SO, JOE

DEAR WHAT’S:

The slower pace of our post-quarantine lives has made many trivialities spark into significance—a perfect stimulus for the Doctor’s inbox! Your hunch was correct: The staff at Trader Joe’s, while courteous, did not regard this topic as the best possible use of their un-

2 6 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

Being a non-Cincinnatian is no excuse here. If you were born anywhere in America, odds are good that you were not far from a farm, manor, or bedroom community called Green Acres (sometimes two words, sometimes one). The name long precedes the plebian comedy dating from the era inexplicably described as “the golden age of television.” (Seriously, have you seen My Little Margie?)

Greater Cincinnati itself features multiple versions of Greenacres/Green Acres.

It was once a country home near Florence, and it’s been a Bridgetown-Cheviot subdivision since the 1950s. Unlike the TV show, the Greenacres you visited has a connection to an actual family named Green. In 1949, their generations-old Indian Hill farm began to merge with other nearby properties, ILLUSTR ATIO N S BY L A R S LEE TA RU

starting a process that’s evolved into today’s Greenacres Foundation. Besides hosting events like weddings, the vast acreage supports a wide variety of activities around farming, conservation, and the arts. In other words, the worst TV sitcom ever.

No word on how other residents of Indian Hill feel about having a “commoner moniker” in their midst.

Would Hyde Park ever tolerate a stately manor named Mayberry?

STAY IN THE LOOP

I’m happy to see the Museum Center at Union Terminal reopen, but sad that so much of it is hobbled by the economic disruptions of late. That magnificent building has faced the wrecking ball so many times. Is its very existence in danger once again?

—TERMINATED TERMINAL? DEAR TERMINATED:

Cincinnati’s beloved Union Terminal has suffered many rounds of bad timing, bad management, and bad luck.

Bad timing hit first: Nobody seemed to notice that maybe 1933 wasn’t the best year for a railroad palace. Then, bad management: The 1980s attempt to make a shopping mall out of a defunct train station became a train wreck. (At this point, let us pause and be thankful that the next rescue idea never happened: moving Cincinnati City Council to the Terminal’s rotunda. Imagine Council’s sniping mixed with those acoustics.)

The 1990s finally brought a vision that worked. Cincinnati Museum Center’s popularity helped support the grand renovations of recent years, restoring the building’s Art Deco look while simultaneously modernizing its innards. But then came this year’s bad luck of our economic crisis and its layoffs. Will this finally kill off Union Terminal? Here is the Doctor’s opinion: The first crisis came from changing times, the second from a stupid idea. This time, a gut-punch from external forces has injured a well-established and popular venue fresh from a gorgeous makeover. Our town adores this place, and we will recover together. All aboard!

Cincinnati Magazine

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A U G U S T 2 0 2 0 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M 2 7

CITY WISE

BY AIESHA D. LITTLE

On Black Lives Mattering WHEN IT COMES TO RACIAL INJUSTICE, I FEAR THE PHRASE “THE MORE THINGS CHANGE, THE MORE THEY STAY THE SAME” WILL ALWAYS BE ACCURATE.

I

IN 2001, I WAS A 24-YEAR-OLD PART-TIME EDITORIAL ASSISTANT AT CINCINNATI MAGAZINE, attending graduate school at Xavier University when I landed an interview that would help shape my view of the world for years to come. I find it disturbing and infuriating that I could still do the same interview nearly 20 years later.

About six months or so after the killing of Timothy Thomas at the hands of Cincinnati Police Officer Stephen Roach, I nervously sat in Angela Leisure’s living room as she recounted her son’s life for me. At the time, I was the editorial assistant at the magazine, and when then–Editor-in-Chief Kitty Morgan decided that the December cover story would be dedicated to first-person interviews with local families who had faced enormous 2 8 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

tragedies throughout the year—which included Thomas’s death and the uprising that happened in the wake of it—I never imagined that I’d end up talking to Leisure.

My hours-long conversation with Leisure covered everything under the sun—what Thomas was like as a baby, his personality as a teenager, etc.—until we reached April 7, 2001, the last day she’d ever see her son alive. She told me that one of the last things he said to her before he left the house was “I love you, lady,” and I felt my throat begin to close. That phrase was one I often said (and still say) to my own mother, a heartfelt closing remark to end our conversations until we spoke again. Before that moment, the finality of my last words to her hadn’t really crossed my mind. What would be the last words I would ever speak to my mother, or she to me?

The silence in the room was deafening as I realized Leisure had stopped talking and was waiting patiently for me to ask my next question, but I was lost. I could feel the sadness crawling up my throat and working its way into my jaw as I tried to discreetly grind my teeth. I blinked rapidly a few times, my vision swimming from unshed tears. I swallowed and took a couple of deep breaths through my nose, a final attempt to pull myself together, to soldier on with the interview. But when I opened my mouth to speak again, staring into the face of a grieving mother whose pain I never wanted to know, I crumbled under the weight of it all.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” I whispered, choking on my tears.

I was sorry for her, for what happened to her son, for being “unprofessional” (i.e., human) in an interview situation, and for my 12-year-old brother who could, at any ILLUSTR ATIO N BY TA S I A G R A H A M

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CITY WISE time, suffer the same fate as Thomas. I was sorry for my own mother, for myself. Sorry that Blackness often carried such a heavy price. I turned off my tape recorder as Leisure took a seat next to me on the couch, offered me a tissue, and put her hand on my back, which made me cry even harder. Why is she comforting me? I thought. This is so wrong. Everything is so wrong.

The rest of our conversation was a blur.

I know I eventually turned the recorder back on, asked a few more questions, and thanked her for her time before leaving. I don’t remember the drive back to the office or the rest of that fateful day. I just kept thinking, This is all so wrong. Nineteen years later, I’m still thinking the same thing.

IN THE YEARS SINCE MY INTERVIEW with Leisure, I’ve seen technology advance in ways I couldn’t have imagined. I record my interviews with an app on my phone.

During this spring and summer of “quarantining” and social distancing, I ordered

most food and household supplies online and had them delivered to my doorstep. I watch almost all forms of entertainment on my Kindle, not on an actual television.

And for better or worse, I can now see Black death and harassment all over social media at a moment’s notice.

To the average person, one who hasn’t been paying attention at all, the frequency with which clips and videos like these regularly pop up on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram may make it feel like the incidents are happening more often. The truth is, they were always happening; the internet has simply made them more visible now.

What was it about the increased visibility this time around that got protesters around the world simultaneously marching—in the middle of a global pandemic, no less—for Black lives and racial justice?

Why didn’t it happen for Samuel DuBose?

Or Philando Castile? Or Darrien Hunt? Or Atatiana Jefferson? Why didn’t it happen for the Black children like Tamir Rice or

Aiyana Jones or Trayvon Martin? Why not for Black trans people like Tony McDade?

So many deaths could have lit the fuse of change. What was it about the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery that made people of all races, sexual orientations, colors, creeds, and ethnicities say, Enough is enough?

I can’t pretend to know why this particular string of Black deaths resonated with people enough to cause a reckoning that has forced confrontations between family members, coworkers, and friends, and has left businesses questioning their identities in its wake. I’ve watched skeptically as old cases get reopened for further investigation, companies are made to account for old harms they’ve inflicted, and nonBlack people seek reassurance that they’re reading the right books, following the right Black people on social media, and listening to the right podcasts to be more thoughtful about race moving forward.

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PH OTO G R A PH BY J O N ATH A N W I LLI S

and are wondering why I haven’t mentioned property damaged in the wake of protests, the tearing down of relics of the Confederacy, or the specter of “Black on Black” crime, you have some Google searches to do before you’re ready for a layered conversation around racial injustice. Feel free to start with “slave patrols,” “Reconstruction,” and “intraracial crime” with a dash of “stop the violence [insert your city’s name here].”)

When I think about everything that’s gone on this year for too long and in too much detail, the feeling I get is a mix of skepticism, anger, and dread. Some of the change that’s come out of all this feels like victory—the ban on no-knock warrants in Louisville, the ban on chokeholds and other neck restraints in Minneapolis—but those are small pebbles attempting to fill the gaping maw of a long, dark history that constantly threatens to swallow us whole... again. Will small wins ever be enough for fundamental, sustainable change? Or will

the country be forever stuck in the washrinse-repeat cycle of violence, outrage, and reluctant concession?

IS THIS THE PART WHERE I’M SUPPOSED to say something hopeful about the future of race relations in this country? Something about all Americans working together to find solutions to problems that ail our nation? Well, I can’t do it. I don’t do hopeful anymore. Over the years, I’ve had my own fear-inducing encounters with police officers as well as store owners and workers who were more than willing to threaten to use the police as their personal concierge service for administering violence (if they weren’t threatening to “handle” me themselves).

The naïveté required for hope was burned out of me a long time ago. These problems are not of my creation, and they’re not mine to fix. All I have to do is find ways to survive them for however long I can. I have to survive them to live another day.

Anti-Blackness is ingrained in the very fabric of who this country is—it’s as American as apple pie. I don’t know if it and everything that happens because of it can be vanquished so easily. You’d have to dismantle entire systems and structures of oppression, and that’s not something I see happening in my lifetime. I make peace with that, every day, and try to focus on the things that bring me joy.

Joy is in seeing my 1-year-old baby cousin smile, watching her take her first steps, hearing her say her first words. It’s in having good friends I love and support and who love and support me. It’s in my mother’s hugs and joking around with my brother and exchanging funny memes with my sister. It’s in all of the little things that keep me present in the lives of those who need me and not hyper-focused on the what ifs of daily life that can haunt most Black people.

Black joy is resistance in its simplest form. And that will always matter.

ONE FAMILY. CONNECTED BY BLOOD. DRIVEN TO FIND CURES.

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PH OTO G R A PH BY J O N ATH A N W I LLI S

A U G U S T 2 0 2 0 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M 3 1

PERSON OF INTEREST

BY LISA MURTHA

Bigger Than Basketball FOR TEAM HUGHES, THE SPORT IS SO MUCH MORE THAN A GAME.

N

NOT EVERY HIGH SCHOOL REFEREE WOULD DONATE HER PAYCHECK TO HELP A STRUGGLING basketball team. But that’s exactly what Hall of Fame official Kelly Whelan did in 2010 after the Hughes High School athletic director told her about Bryan Wyant, a former college basketball player who was coaching the Hughes boys’ teams and moving mountains to keep them all in play.

Turns out, Hughes’ gym was being renovated that year, so Wyant and his team had been trudging on foot to the UC rec center for practices. Not only that, but there was no team van, so during the summer when busing wasn’t provided, he was making back-to-back trips in his own car, shuttling players to games at other school gyms across the city. The kids on Wyant’s teams already played ball in their street shoes and carried their uniforms to school in grocery bags. Most had failing grades, highly unstable home lives, and few 3 2 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

concrete plans for the future. Add in the fact that Hughes, a Cincinnati public high school with a 95 percent minority student population, had a dismal state report card, and the basketball team’s prospects were looking grim.

But Whelan also learned that day how determined Wyant and his wife Alicia were to change their players’ lives. How they bought the boys shoes and even contact lenses. How Wyant ran study tables, oversaw weightlifting, showed game films, and ran practices, too, keeping the team busy with school and basketball up to 13 hours a day five or six days a week so they’d stay out of trouble and into the game. But he was only one person. He could only do so much.

Immediately, Whelan found herself thinking of her own sons’ experiences at St. Xavier, a school with two gyms, team buses, and hearty team meals donated by parents. We have it kind of easy, she thought. So she donated her check that day to Hughes.

But she didn’t stop there.

For four years straight, as she officiated games across the city, Whelan kept giving money to the Hughes athletic department, hoping to help Wyant help the team. She watched her youngest child graduate from high school. And she prayed hard from the pews at Kenwood’s All Saints Catholic Church for a sign of what she was supposed to do next.

In 2014, Whelan dropped off a big enough check to help send the Hughes basketball team to Ohio State’s summer team camp. The athletic director and Wyant invited Whelan and her husband to lunch. While there, Whelan asked Wyant for his wish list. He was hesitant to give it, and she was overwhelmed when she saw it. But, sitting in a Clifton diner that day, Whelan finally got the sign she’d been looking for. “You were literally sitting right there,” she says, pointing to Wyant across a picnic table today. “I just didn’t open up my mind and heart.”

THE NUMBER ONE NEED ON WYANT’S wish list was food—specifically dinners and after-school snacks, six days a week for all three of his teams (freshman, JV, and varsity). Turns out, the long days Wyant had engineered to keep his players focused and out of trouble were also making them ILLUSTR ATIO N BY KO R E N S H A D M I

C O N TA C T U S T O B O O K YO U R F R E E F O U N D AT I O N S C L A S S

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PERSON OF INTEREST hungry—and Hughes didn’t have the resources to help.

Here’s the thing about Kelly Whelan.

“I don’t like to fail at anything,” she says.

“If I’m gonna do it, it’s gonna be 150,000 percent.” But she also knew that feeding roughly 40 teenage boys six days a week was something she couldn’t do alone. As soon as she got home, she drafted an email to some friends, asking for help. But something stopped her from hitting Send.

“In the back of my mind,” she says, she thought, Can I do this?

Again, she found her way back to the pews at church. Sitting there, praying and reflecting, a phrase in an article she’d brought along caught her eye: There’s no such thing as failure; it’s God changing your direction. That was all the reassurance she needed. “I literally came home, hit the Send button, and within an hour I had five [volunteers]. Within a week I probably had 20.”

That’s how Team Hughes began.

“snowballed,” says Whelan, as she and Wyant sent the volunteer boosters regular e-mail updates about the team. The food kept coming, but so did a fridge, three microwaves, multiple slow cookers (which the boys learned to use), a state-of-theart camera to film games, top-of-the-line Nike uniforms, and even two used cars to transport the team.

Maybe the biggest gift of all came from a Team Hughes volunteer who committed to pay for a dedicated team academic advisor. Before long, the boys’ grades shot up, eventually allowing Wyant to institute a 3.0 GPA as the team standard. That, paired with team trips to summer camps and tournaments (which the boys partially fund themselves by working at jobs like concessions and clean-up crews for Bengals games), suddenly made college a whole lot more accessible and gave kids options. “If you were great at [basketball], you were gonna get a scholarship,” says Wyant.

“THIS IS WAY BIGGER THAN BASKETBALL,” SAYS ALICIA WYANT. IT’S ABOUT SHARING LOVE, SETTING KIDS UP FOR SUCCESS, AND INSPIRING OTHERS TO DO THE SAME. At first, the group sent Wyant cereal bars, then lunchmeat, milk, and hot dogs.

Within a year, Whelan’s Team Hughes volunteer list grew to 100, including people she knew from St. X and her job reffing games, Alicia’s mom’s friends, and even people Whelan met at the grocery store and hair salon. Some dropped off food on Whelan’s front porch or came with her to serve the team hot meals. One bought Christmas presents—pajama pants, socks, and gift cards—for the whole team.

Whelan and her husband held a party for Team Hughes volunteers and asked the Wyants to speak; when people saw how dedicated they were to the Hughes kids, they “fell in love with their family,” says Whelan, and Wyant walked away with several thousand dollars in donations for the team. Soon after, another volunteer donated 10 new basketballs emblazoned with the Hughes logo.

Over the next six years, donations

“If you weren’t, you were gonna have the academics to back it up.”

Since 2016, says Wyant, 26 out of 32 seniors on his basketball team have received either a full ride or full tuition-based scholarship to college. Since 2018, the numbers have gotten even better: 19 of 22, and most of his players, he adds, are firstgeneration college students.

His graduates have attended schools like Ohio State and Stony Brook, with one playing for the latter. One team alum went on to play NFL football; the rest include a financial advisor, a schoolteacher with a master’s degree, and multiple basketball coaches. All that success translates on the court, too. Over the last four years, the Hughes varsity team has finished first in its division three times and racked up the second-most wins in Cincinnati boys’ basketball, just behind Archbishop Moeller High School.

But for the Wyants and Whelans, “this

3 4 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

is way bigger than basketball,” says Alicia. It’s about working hard, sharing love, building bridges, setting kids up for success, and hopefully, says Whelan, inspiring others to do the same. Put simply, says Wyant, “these communities”—Team Hughes and the Hughes High School basketball players—“have collided and produced this super successful force.”

Wyant credits Whelan with equalizing the playing field so his team could flourish. Whelan credits Wyant with setting an outstanding example and being the most committed coach she’s ever seen. “I’ve been officiating 44 years,” says Whelan. “I don’t care if it’s Cincinnati public, Catholic schools, the Greater Miami Conference—probably even the state of Ohio.

There is nobody—nobody—who does what he does.”

She wasn’t the only one to notice. This fall, Wyant starts a new job as Princeton High School head coach. He hadn’t planned on leaving Hughes, but he prayed about it and decided it was the right move. His replacement will be Derrell Black, longtime Hughes assistant coach. Whelan hopes he’ll embrace Team Hughes as much as Wyant did. And she already has plans to form a Princeton version of Team Hughes, too. (That school district, says Wyant, has a surprising number of at-risk kids.)

Looking back at all the two have accomplished so far, one story sticks out.

It’s about one of Wyant’s best players, who wore the same pair of gym shoes to school every day. And not just to school, but to practices, too. Other kids made fun of him.

His feet grew two sizes, so he had to cram them in. The heel came off. Then, one day, a Team Hughes volunteer came along and bought the whole basketball team 67 pairs of brand-new, top-of-the-line basketball shoes—no small expense.

“I told the guy who donated the shoes, Look, you may not think it’s a big deal,” says Wyant, who keeps a photo of the boy’s old shoes in his phone. “But I guarantee you, it’s gonna make a difference.”

Sure enough, the minute the team put the shoes on, “We played like we were the best,” says Wyant. “Obviously they put the work in, [but] they believed it. They looked the part. They felt the part. And I was like, Yeah, this is real.”

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P H OTO G R A P H S BY D E V Y N G L I STA

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SERIOUS GROWTH IN OUR LOCAL FOOD SYSTEM THERE’S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO TRY LOCALLY PRODUCED FRUITS, VEGETABLES, MEAT, DAIRY, EGGS, AND HERBS. AND NOW, THANKS TO THE COVID-19 SHUTDOWN, YOU CAN GET ALMOST EVERYTHING DELIVERED TO YOUR DOORSTEP. — C A R R I E B L A C K M O R E S M I T H

HEYYYYY, COW!” JER EMY BOSW ELL YELLS FROM THE ALL -TER R AIN V EHICLE HE’S USING TO GI V E a tour of his 132-acre farm in New Richmond. And here comes the herd—caramel colored with long shaggy hair and long horns, light tan with short hair and short horns, one black and white—stampeding over a fairway on the former Lindale Golf Course.

Boswell has been raising cattle and other animals for nine years, beginning on a small homestead in the area with enough meat and produce to feed his family. He owned a successful tree-trimming business at the time, but felt himself pulled toward farming after studying where our food comes from. Boswell decided to become a full-time farmer and, with his wife Lauren’s support, began leasing farmland from his in-laws in Georgetown, Ohio, and built a small customer base. But the Boswells felt a calling, from both God and their consciences, to serve more people, so they bought the golf course just 25 minutes from downtown Cincinnati.

Zipping around his property, Boswell points out a pond where he wants to try aquaculture to raise tilapia or other fish for consumption. He’ll stock one of the ponds with catfish, his favorite. There’s an area that should be good for a fruit orchard, and he’s going to lend some of his land to a local farmer to plant a produce garden. “Our mission early on was to help lead the charge to a vibrant, sustainable food system locally,” Boswell says. Emmett Ridge Farm—named after their eldest son, whose name means “strong, hardworking, industrious leader”—now provides up to 150 area households with monthly subscriptions for assortments of grass-fed beef, pasture-raised and heritage-bred pork, and pasture-raised chickens and turkeys. An 18-pound order is $140 a month. Their boxes, delivered to customers’ doorsteps, can now include fresh produce from nearby Foxtail Farm.

The Boswells represent one cog in a local food system that’s better organized and more accessible than ever.

Convenience used to be the enemy of local farms, but innovative farmers are adding delivery, on-farm markets, and other ways to connect with consumers.

The truth is, if you’re privileged with extra time, a form of transportation, and a little wiggle room in your budget, you can get all your fruits, veggies, meats, cheeses, breads, and so much more from producers in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. And you can get to know the farmers and support staff who do the actual work.

At the same time, our local system is far from living up to its potential, says Michaela Oldfield, director of the Greater Cincinnati Regional Food Policy Council, an initiative of Green Umbrella, the region’s environment and sustainability alliance. “The thing is, local and regional food systems are not luxuries,” she says. “They’re essential for us to be resilient to things FIELD NOTES like COVID-19. If we had good interconnected systems, we could compensate when Jeremy Boswell (top) one market collapses or one region doesn’t produce. That’s what’s so great about a raises beef, pork strong local food system nested in a strong national and global system, which we don’t (middle), chickens, and have yet.” turkeys at Emmett Ridge ON A WAR M SPR ING MOR NING, ESTEVAN AND TONCI A CH AV EZ PACK BL ACK COOL er bags inside a barn on their 68-acre property in Felicity, Ohio. They bounce between the walk-in and standing fridge, stuffing frozen meat, microgreens, eggs, and other

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Farm. Toncia Chavez (bottom) sells 500 dozen eggs every week through her company, ETC Produce & Provisions.

items from local farms into bags, checking off items on lists.

Five drivers for their company, ETC Produce & Provisions, are ready to take roughly 150 orders to homes across Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.

The Chavezes got the idea for ETC while living on an organic farm in Oregon. They met as chefs at a Louisville restaurant and worked in the food industry much of their careers. Toncia managed food departments (bakery, wine, and meat counter) for a large grocery chain, while Estevan worked with his Cincinnati-based family business, opening and managing parking lots. “We never saw one another,” says Toncia. “We were exhausted all of the time.”

They decided they had the resources to make a major change, so they hit the road and lived in a camper for a few years “WWOOFing” across the country. That’s Willing Workers on Organic Farms (or World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, depending on who you ask). “We really used the time to reconnect to life,” Toncia says, and they began to formulate a plan for their own farm. They wanted a child and decided to move back to the Cincinnati area. The couple looked at more than 100 properties around Lexington, Louisville, and Cincinnati before finding this one in Felicity. Soon after, they welcomed a son, Nicodemous, into the world.

Toncia says, at first, area farmers were confused with the ETC concept. “They were like, You want to sell my stuff ?” she says. “We had to build some street cred.” That was April 2017.

They’d secured a table at the Findlay Market weekend farmers’ market and started a chicken operation producing about 12 dozen eggs a week. Today they sell roughly 500 dozen eggs per week through their delivery service and a brick-and-mortar space inside Findlay’s Market House, along with items from roughly 100 local purveyors.“We want to be the Amazon of local food in Cincinnati,” says Toncia, who envisions having several storefronts around the region one day.

Roughly 55 percent of the fruits and 32 percent of the vegetables eaten by Americans today are imported from another country, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

There have always been two streams within our food chain, says Oldfield of the Food Policy Council: one for big farms and one for medium to small farms. The nation’s supply chain doesn’t make it easy for the latter to get a piece of the retail market.

Nevertheless, she says, Cincinnati’s local food system is gaining ground.

Oldfield knows this because of a 2018 report the policy council completed on the state of local food, updating a similar report from 2013. It shows that we’ve made significant progress in distribution, consumption, and access. For example, two local food hubs, Local Food Connection and Our Harvest Cooperative, now connect producers to restaurants, institutions, and individual consumers and provide resources for those working in our food system. Both formed in CONTINUED ON PAGE 43 P H OTO G R A P H S BY J O N AT H A N W I L L I S

I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y M O R P H A R T/ S T O C K . A D O B E . C O M

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THE BIG PICTURE

OHIO

The Expanding Local Food Map

Butler County 1

DOUBLE J FARM CSA

Hamilton doublejfarm ohio.com FAIRFIELD FARMERS’ MARKET 2

GET TO KNOW THESE OHIO AND KENTUCKY FARMS, CSA PROGRAMS, AND MARKETS IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN A HEALTHIER RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD. — C . B . S .

Wednesdays through October fairfield-city. org/market

THERE ARE COUNTLESS WAYS TO ACCESS LOCALLY grown food these days and become friends with real, live farmers. They haul their wares to farmers’ markets in city neighborhoods and small towns every summer and fall, or you can swing by their properties and buy directly. In the COVID-19 era, several farms have created or expanded delivery services, bringing orders directly to your home. You can also join a community-supported agriculture (CSA) membership program that entitles you to fresh food throughout the growing season for an upfront fee. Dig in!

3 HAMILTON HISTORIC FARMERS’ MARKET

Saturdays through October 3 hamiltons historicfarmersmarket. com 4

HARRIS-MILLER FARM

Oxford sites.google. com/site/harrismiller organic farm1 5

JUST FARMIN’ CSA

Liberty Township justfarmin.com 6

LIBERTY FARM MARKET

Thursdays through Saturdays libertyfarm market.com OXFORD FARMERS’ MARKET 7

Saturdays year-round oxfordfarmersmarket. com SCHAEFER’S FARM MARKET AND CSA 8

Trenton schaefersfarm market.com 9

7 WONDERS FARM

Somerville 7wonders farm.com WEST CHESTER FARMERS’ MARKET

12

New Richmond emmettridgefarm.com 13

Clermont County 11

B&D GOATS

New Richmond (513) 553-1422

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FARM BEACH BETHEL CSA

Bethel farmbeach bethel.com 14

GREY FOX FARMS

Batavia grayfoxfarmsohio.com MILFORD FARMERS’ MARKET 15

Wednesdays and Saturdays through October milfordfarmersmarket. com MT. CARMEL FARMERS’ MARKET 16

Tuesdays through October milfordfarmers market.com

10

Saturdays through October westchester ohiofarmersmarket.org

EMMETT RIDGE FARM

17

PRINGLES ORCHARD

Goshen (513) 625-9866 THE ORGANIC FARM AT BEAR CREEK 18

Felicity organicfarmat bearcreek.com

Hamilton County ANDERSON TOWNSHIP FARMERS’ MARKET 19

Saturdays through October andersonfarm ersmarket.org BLUE ASH FARMERS’ MARKET 20

Wednesdays through September summit parkblueash.com 21

CARRIAGE HOUSE FARM

North Bend carriage housefarmllc.com DELHI FARMERS’ MARKET 22

Saturdays through August delhi.oh.us/delhi-farm ers-market FIBONACCI’S MT. HEALTHY FARMERS’ MARKET 23

First Sunday of the month fibbrew.com FAB FERMENTS KOMBUCHA TAPROOM + STORE 24

Lockland fabferments. com

25

FINDLAY MARKET

Over-the-Rhine findlay market.org GORMAN HERITAGE FARM CSA 26

Evendale gormanfarm. org 27

GREENACRES FARM CSA

Montgomery green acres.org HYDE PARK FARMERS’ MARKET 28

Sundays through October hydeparkfarm ersmarket.com 29

HOLLMEYER’S ORCHARDS

October madeirafarm ersmarket.com

4

MONTGOMERY FARMERS’ MARKET 33

Saturdays through October montgomery farmersmarket.org NORTHSIDE FARMERS’ MARKET 34

Wednesdays year-round northsidefm.org OUR HARVEST COOPERATIVE CSA 35

College Hill ourharvest. coop SAYLER PARK FARMERS’ MARKET 36

Tuesdays through August facebook.com/ saylerparkfarmers market 37

TURNER FARM CSA

Indian Hill turnerfarm. org 38

21

WESTSIDE MARKET

First Saturday of the month westsidemar ketcincy.com

Warren County DEERFIELD TOWNSHIP FARMERS’ MARKET 39

Saturdays through October deerfieldfarm ersmarket.com 40

IRONS FRUIT FARM

Lebanon ironsfruitfarm. com

Mack (513) 574-0663

LEBANON OHIO FARMERS’ MARKET

LETTUCE EAT WELL FARMERS’ MARKET

Thursdays through October lebanonohio farmersmarket.com

30

Fridays through October lewfm.org LOVELAND FARMERS’ MARKET 31

Tuesdays through October lovelandfm.com MADEIRA FARMERS’ MARKET 32

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41

42

PEACE ANGEL FARM

Morrow peaceangel farm.com 43

THE GOODLIFE FARM CSA

Waynesville goodlife familyfarm.com

Thursdays through

M A P I L LU S T R AT I O N BY E M M A T H E I S

9

43

8

7

1

41 40

5 6

3

Wednesdays through September fortthomas farmersmarket.com

42 2

10

NEWPORT FARMERS’ MARKET 50

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Saturdays through October facebook.com/camp bellcountyfarmmarket

31 20 24

23

32 17

37

34

29

COVINGTON FARMERS’ MARKET 51

27

35 30

Kenton County

33

26

15

28

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Boone County

16

22 51 44

58

54

BOONE COUNTY FARMERS’ MARKET 44

25

36

KENTUCKY

50

19

49

53

14

Almost daily year-round boonecountyfarmers market.org 45

DARK WOOD FARM CSA

Petersburg darkwood farmstead.com

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48

52 46

12

Campbell County

11

ALEXANDRIA FARMERS’ MARKET 46

Fridays through October facebook.com/camp bellcountyfarmmarket

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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS FARMERS’ MARKET 47

13

55

Tuesdays through October facebook.com/camp bellcountyfarmmarket 48

18 57

IDYLLWILD FARM

Melbourne idyllwild farm.com FT. THOMAS FARMERS’ MARKET 49

Saturdays through October rcov.org/covfarmers market CRESTVIEW HILLS FARMERS’ MARKET 52

Saturdays through October 17 facebook.com/crest viewhillsfarmersmarket 53

DCCH FARMERS’ MARKET

Saturdays through October dcchfarmers market.com 54

DIXIE FARMERS’ MARKET

Thursdays through October (859) 727-2525 INDEPENDENCE FARMERS’ MARKET 55

Saturdays through October facebook.com/ skfarmersmarket RAINS & SUN HILLTOP FARM CSA 56

Independence rainsand sun.com 57

RISING PHOENIX FARM

Morning View rising phoenixheritagefarm. com 58

TEWES FARM

Erlanger tewes farm.com

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Seasons in the Sun HERE’S THE BEST TIME OF THE YEAR TO BUY MORE THAN 50 LOCALLY GROWN FRUITS AND VEGETABLES. — C . B . S .

IT’S EA SIER TH AN EV ER TO BU Y YOUR FOOD FROM LOCAL SOURCES , A S long as you’re willing to abide by Mother Nature. This chart covers popular fruits and vegetables currently being grown somewhere in the Cincinnati region, indicating the best months for buying them freshly harvested from the ground and from indoor and/or hydroponic farms. Some of these items are fairly easy to grow yourself at home; see a list of five DIY projects on the opposite page. We’re not including animal products here—meat, fish, eggs, and dairy are basically available year-round from local sources.

T TA

SO

I

MA TO OES T

CCHI S ZU P I N TUR

FRUITS & NI VEGGIES

APPLES

JAN

FROM THE GROUND HYDROPONIC SOURCES

ASP AR GUS A-

FEB

BE

ETS

MAR APR

B E B LU RR E IE S BO CH

S CH WIS AR S D

K

MAY

OY

JUN

BR

ST BE RAW RR IES

OC

JUL

CO

AUG

S A R RO T S SSEL C B RU O U T S R LI SP

SQ (WINUASH TER )

SEP O N

RADISH

EDAMAME GARL IC

ES RHUBARB SPINACH

D

ER

PPUM S KIN

G I NG

P PEP

ER

S

CH HUS E RR K IES

PE

A PE

S

GR A S GR

EE

NS

HE

RB

S

HON

EY

KOHLRA

BI

MAPLE SYRUP

MELONS

MU RO O S H MS

O

KR A

S O U R C E S : CORV Local Food Guide 2020, Ohio Farm Bureau, Local Food Connection, Carriage House Farm, and Turner Farm

P

EA CH

ES

2015, and by 2018 they reported a total of $1.3 million in local food sales—a pipeline farms just didn’t have before.

The Food Policy Council, also created in 2015, has been working with the hubs to commit schools, universities, museums, company cafeterias, conference centers, and other institutional buyers to acquiring a portion of their food from local producers. Our region also has two incubator kitchens now—Incubator Kitchen Collective in Newport and Findlay Kitchen in Overthe-Rhine—providing shared equipment and space for member artisans to create items like jams and baked goods. More and more grocery stores carry local produce.

“Even small behavior changes can be really meaningful,” Oldfield says to those thinking about buying more local food. “If 10 percent of the Greater Cincinnati population shifted 10 percent of its food budget to local products, it would infuse about $66 million into the local economy annually.” For a local family, that 10 percent equals roughly $15 a week on local foods, she notes.

UNDER PINK GROW LIGHTS, THE TOM ATOES AT 80 ACR ES FAR M are otherworldly. Growing in aisles suspended off the ground, their stems wrap around and around their bases and suck up nutrients from natural soil substitutes such as peat moss or coco coir. “They grow about a foot a week,” says farm supervisor Zach Burns, standing in the 30,000-square-foot facility that was a former Miami Motor parts plant in downtown Hamilton. Since February 2019,

it’s been a hydroponic farm.

The operation captures, cleans, and reuses 97 percent of its water. Pesticides or herbicides are never applied. They produce an average of 3,000 tomatoes weekly, which are sold by Madison’s at Findlay Market, Butler’s Pantry in Covington, 10 local Kroger stores, Jungle Jim’s, and Whole Foods.

Something else is different about these tomatoes. While outdoor plants produce tomatoes for three to four months, these can produce as long as 16 months. It took years to create such a perfect tomato, says Mike Zelkind, who cofounded 80 Acres with business partner Tisha Livingston in 2015. The company regularly tests its tomatoes in the lab, and tissue samples always show high levels of vitamins and minerals, says Zelkind. “Instead of genetically modifying a plant to survive in some environment, we take the most natural heirloom seeds and create the best environment for them to grow,” he says. “The tomato industry is producing these perfectly red tasteless tomatoes that have no nutritional value and taste like teddy bear stuffing instead of this yummy local stuff. That’s the problem with our country’s food system.”

80 Acres grows lettuce mixes, cucumbers, microgreens, and herbs year-round, too, and its newest facilities are mostly automated. “Technology enables agriculture to do things we couldn’t have imagined before,” says Zelkind. “We decided that we had to build what 10 years ago was literally science fiction and five years ago you couldn’t make profitable.”

Alice Chalmers, founder of the Local Food Connection hub, agrees that our local food supply chain has evolved quickly in just a few years. She arrived in the Cincinnati area from Maryland in 2014. Her family has roots in Kentucky, and she moved back for personal reasons, but Chalmers brought along an idea to build a food business that could help “everyone find what they want” and promote local sustainable agriculture at the same time.

DO-IT-YOURSELF

Fall Veggies You Can Grow at Home PETER HUTTINGER, COMMUNITY GARDEN PROGRAM DIRECTOR AT TURNER FARM, GETS DOWN TO THE ROOTS ON FIVE COOLWEATHER CROPS YOU CAN PLANT TODAY. — R O D N E Y W I L S O N

1

Lettuce and Leafy Greens

Lettuce varieties that do well in the fall include Black-Seeded Simpson, Buttercrunch, and Oakleaf. If there is going to be an early freeze, harvest as small, tender leaves for salads and sautéing.

2

Beans

Sow seeds in early August in a sunny spot. Bush beans are low growing, and runner beans need a trellis. Varieties are available in different colors and sizes, making them a lovely edible ornamental.

3

Root Crops

Radishes, carrots, beets, and turnips make good cool-weather crops. Radishes mature in 25–30 days; carrots in 60–80 days; and beets and turnips in 45–70 days. Their greens liven up a salad or stir fry.

I L L U S T R A T I O N S B Y ( L E F T, B O T T O M ) E M I V I L L A V I C E N C I O / ( T O P ) M A S H I K O M O , M O R P H A R T/ S T O C K . A D O B E . C O M

4

Cabbage

First-time gardeners should go with cabbage; if there is an early hard freeze, the young leaves are very tasty. Transplant seedlings (do not sow seed) in late July and early August.

5

Garlic

Plant individual cloves from seed garlic in late September and in October. They will begin to grow in the fall, go dormant over the winter, then come back in early spring and be ready to harvest by late June.

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She started by working with a handful of farmers and a handful of chefs—it’s our restaurants that should be credited, she says, for really getting the local food economy going. With a master’s degree in finance from the University of Pennsylvania and a 20-year career in strategic planning behind her, Chalmers knew she needed to scale up.

“I wanted proof of concept that it could be fiscally sound,” she says.

By year three, she was in the black. Local Food Connection is now operating in Dayton, Louisville, and Lexington and was just acquired

by Creation Gardens, a midsized food FRESH HARVEST distributor, which allowed for expan80 Acres produces more sion into Columbus, Indianapolis, and than 3,000 tomatoes each week at its indoor Nashville. “As you increase in volume, farm (opposite page) you need more trucks, more infrastrucin downtown Hamilton. ture, more storage space,” says ChalmBouquet (below) works ers. “They were able to count on us to do with local farmers and local food aggregation. Each of us saw producers to build its changing daily menu. the value of that partnership.”

COVID-19 altered everything , Chalmers says, with food being redirected where it could be as restaurants and schools stopped buying. So Local Food Connection expanded its delivery service to Cincinnati and Lexington households in early May. M Y FIRST LOCAL FOOD CONNECTION OR DER FINALLY AR R I V ES at my house, with three pounds of Kentucky-raised veal short ribs destined to become a meal for five in my Instant Pot; a plastic grocery bag stuffed with hydroponic kale that will last more than

PHOTOGRAPH (ABOVE) BY LANCE ADKINS

FARM-TO-TABLE

KITCHEN VANGUARDS

These local restaurants (and many more) feature menus that evolve with the bounty of the seasons.

—KAILEIGH PEYTON

1

Bouquet

2

The Baker’s Table

3

Bite

Area farmers determine the menu, says chef-owner Stephen Williams, who calls Bouquet’s planning a “constant evolution.” The kitchen works with about 60 area farms, fisheries, and other local producers, and soon they’ll be launching an interactive map online to spread the gospel of sustainable local food systems for home cooks.

519 Main St., Covington, (859) 491-7777, bouquetrestaurant.com

Chef-owner Dave Willocks calls Local Food Connection and area farmers our local restaurants’ “secret weapon.” He founded The Baker’s Table on the concept of nourishment through local, seasonal foods, and his menus change on a near-monthly basis—substituting on the fly based on ingredient availability on any particular day. 1004 Monmouth St., Newport, (859) 261-1941, bakerstablenewport.com

With a passion for scratch cooking with wholesome ingredients, Marc and Rachel Seeberger opened Bite in 2012 with a goal of supporting the slow food movement and local farmers. Since then, the casual eatery has gone further in reducing its carbon footprint by growing organic produce and keeping beehives on its two-acre property. 1279 State Route 131, Milford, (513) 831-2483, bitefoodie.com

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three weeks in the fridge; a washed-rind–style cheese; a pound of multicolor radishes; and a pound of candy-yellow onions. Total damage: $60, including a $5.99 delivery charge. The ribs, a bit of a splurge, cost $35.74 alone.

Six days later, my ETC order arrives: beets, green onions, mint, apples, sunflower shoots, sweet potatoes, a dozen eggs, whole wheat flour, Kentucky stone-ground white grits, a kombucha from Cincinnati and one from Indianapolis, locally made deodorant, and two chicken breasts. I ordered the organic artichokes from California because, well, spring artichokes shouldn’t be missed. Total bill: $93.50. Both orders come directly to my house near downtown, dropped safely behind my coded gate in cooler bags.

Other than the artichokes, everything I bought was produced within a 50-mile radius of Cincinnati, including from growers within a 100-mile radius whose items can be purchased inside those 50 miles. That’s the definition of “local food,” according to the Central Ohio River Valley (CORV) Local Food Guide, released each spring. We’re talking about small- and medium-sized farms and community gardens commonly following organic, sustainable, or regenerative (the new buzzword) methods. Old, conventional farming practices have wrecked the soil for generations; regenerative farming ultimately means adhering to growing and grazing practices that rebuild the organic material in soil and restore degraded biodiversity.

Inside the 50-mile Cincinnati and Northern Ken-

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tucky foodshed, there are now more than 50 small farms, more than 40 farmers’ markets, and more than 20 community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs, according to CORV. CSAs are farm memberships selling a share of what’s grown. At Carriage House Farm, for example, a popular CSA in North Bend, members choose between a $500 standard share for 24 weeks of vegetables or a $300 work share with the same amount of vegetables and a requirement to work 24 hours on the farm.

Alan Wight, an assistant professor and service learning coordinator at The Christ Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences, has spent the last several years studying and mapping our local food system as part of his master’s and doctoral studies at the University of Cincinnati. He teaches a course on nut and fruit production at Cincinnati State and is leading an effort to put the history and data he’s collected from the Central Ohio River Valley’s local food system into a book called Edible City: An Art Atlas.

The local foods landscape is changing so quickly now that Wight says it’s hard to keep up, and many challenges remain. Farmers are aging out in this country and are often woefully underpaid, he says. In reporting this story, I heard from lots of people making low wages, even a CSA farmer who got IOUs for months in lieu of payment. “You don’t make money farming,” says Wight. “A farmer’s equity is all tied up in his or her land. Most farmers have off-the-farm jobs to survive.”

It’s also highly volatile work, Wight says. A week

I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y M O R P H A R T/ S T O C K . A D O B E . C O M

of spring nights below freezing, and you can lose an entire crop of strawberries or asparagus. Super wet falls might destroy harvests that prefer dry conditions. These unreliable conditions are one of the unfortunate consequences of climate change, which Chalmers sees as the biggest threat to farmers. Meanwhile, large grain farms and livestock operations are underwritten by massive federal agricultural subsidies, says Wight, while produce farms pay low wages to migrant workers. “We have an ag system that’s paying people to grow huge amounts of corn and soy for animal feed or additives to the rest of the food system,” he says. “I’m not going to say, Take that away, but if you allocated a small percentage of that money to grow local fruits and vegetables and paid growers equally for their produce, that would help.”

That sort of policy shift could also help Americans eat healthier.

We live in a nation with both an obesity crisis and a lack of access to healthy food (14.1 percent of Hamilton County residents were rated as “food insecure” in 2018, including more than 35,000 children).

Many problems are related to our overconsumption of processed foods. Humans have actually processed food since they first put meat on a fire millions of years ago, because “processed” simply means it was altered—think baked, frozen, dried—meaning that not all processed foods are unhealthy; in fact, processed foods like Greek yogurt are healthy.

Today, though, “processed” usually refers to a food product made of more than one ingredient with added salt, sugar, or fat—or a mix of the three. Think boxed stuff like breakfast cereals, chips,

and crackers; canned goods; frozen, miTOP PICKS crowavable, and stovetop meals; candy Toncia and Estevan Chavez (opposite page) bars; and hot dogs. Convenience foods. sell locally grown proAnd it was convenience that amped up duce via home delivery America’s production and desire for and at their ETC Findlay processed foods in the early 1900s, Market stand (above). because it took less time than cooking everything from scratch. Society shifted based on necessity, too, during the Great Depression and World War II, when fresh food was either scarce or needed to be nonperishable.

Then came microwaves and TV dinners in the late 1960s, and, well, we know how the fast-food movement took off. Between 2013 and 2016, nearly 37 percent of adult Americans ate fast food on any given day, according to the most recently released report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

One of the greatest healthy steps Americans can take is to eat more fruits and vegetables, according to the CDC. Statistics show we’re eating more than we were in the 1970s, but most of us eat well below the recommended 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

IF YOU’R E HOPING TO EAT MOR E LOCAL FOOD, YOU MUST CONsider the seasons, says Abby Lundrigran, crop production manager of Turner Farm in Indian Hill. Like many young farmers, the 2010 Walnut Hills High School graduate was on another course entire-

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THE INSIDE STORY

Future Farming HYDROPONIC FARMS MOVE GROWING INDOORS, USING TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED SOILLESS METHODS FOR YEAR-ROUND HARVESTS. —R.W.

1

RootHouse

This Batavia-based aquaponics (with fish) farm grows greens, herbs, vegetables, and tilapia year-round. Its Certified Naturally Grown items are available at Pipkin’s and ETC Produce & Provisions, among other grocers. roothouseaqua.com

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2

BrightFarms

One of six BrightFarms hydroponic farms, the Wilmington site grows crispy baby greens for Ohio, Northern Kentucky, western Pennsylvania, and New York. They deliver pesticide-free produce to Jungle Jim’s, Meijer, and more. brightfarms.com

3

Waterfields

As an urban farm, Waterfields’s Winton Place site offers employment opportunities to locals in need. They’re all about quality, too, growing leafy greens, garnishes, and herbs for area chefs and schools. waterfieldsllc.com

ly—studying art history in Chicago—when she was inspired by the sustainable agriculture movement. She became interested in urban agriculture while working for a nonprofit that tended a network of beehives around Chicago via bicycle. Then she attended a conference focused on rural agriculture. “I remember turning to my friends on the car ride home and saying, Does anyone else just kind of want to be a farmer now?” Lundrigran says. “It had never occurred to me.

I was 21, 22, and I felt so inspired.”

Nonprofit Turner Farm is one of the more well-established small farms in Greater Cincinnati. Its internship and veteran farming programs have been pumping out organically and sustainability trained farmers for years, including Lundrigran, who started there as an intern.

Last year, she and her team harvested about 40,000 pounds of crops, which go to Turner’s roughly 60 CSA members, onto Turner’s farm market shelves, and to the weekend farmers’ market at Findlay. It also goes out on Local Food Connection trucks and into Turner’s meal prep kits, prepared foods, and cooking classes held on the farm.

“I’ve come to feel really strongly as a consumer myself to try and eat seasonally and locally,” says Lundrigran. “Sometimes it’s really inconvenient. It requires you to put more planning and time into what you eat, but we need a mindset shift.”

To get there, she experiments with preserving and freezing food, using it however she can. Food from a farmers’ market or farm will often last longer because it’s just been picked, she says, so that’s a plus. “It takes being willing to make mistakes and make some terrible food, but also some really good food.”

Growing her own food transformed Lundrigran’s relationship with it, she says.“Right now, I’m not buying tomatoes at the grocery store—it’s become second nature—and that’s going to make that first tomato of the season infinitely more enjoyable. It makes you P H O T O G R A P H ( L E F T ) B Y L A N C E A D K I N S / I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y M O R P H A R T/ S T O C K . A D O B E . C O M

appreciate things, but it also led me to MINDSET SHIFT Abby Lundrigran (above) having really special relationships with, and her Turner Farm say, the person I get my milk from.” colleagues are helping In the spring and summer of COVconsumers learn to eat ID-19, most small farms were thriving. seasonally and locally.

CSAs at Turner, Carriage House, Emmett Ridge, and other local farms had waiting lists longer than they’d ever seen. ETC’s sales tripled within the first few weeks of state stayat-home orders, and many places, including 80 Acres, started onfarm drive-through pickup services.

Some farmers struggled, though, says Oldfield. They couldn’t find buyers fast enough when restaurants and institutions stopped ordering, which further exposed cracks in our system that had been forming. The meat-processing pipeline, for instance, had backed up before COVID. By mid-June, Boswell at Emmett Ridge Farm was getting desperate, because it had been several weeks since he’d been able to get his animals butchered. “We have business starting to really fire, and now I could be out of business in three months,” he says. He’s hoping to connect with investors and build his own meat processing plant.

He admits that he and farming colleagues wonder if consumers will stick with them as the pandemic wanes. “When the real world opens back up and it’s back to soccer practices and this and that, people may decide they don’t have the time,” says Boswell. “Will people forget these foundational things?”

“Heyyyyy, pig!” Boswell hollers from the four-wheeler. We’re at the pen where the swine stay when they’re not roaming wild. “This, at one point, was a manicured putting green that somebody spent approximately $40,000 to build, and now it just collects pig shit,” he says, grinning wide. “It’s a really great septic system—sand, pea gravel, drain tile, pea gravel, clay. Perfect.”

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The Holocaust and Humanity Center tries to keep local survivors’ stories visible during an invisible pandemic.

BY GIL KAUFMAN

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEREMY KRAMER

SHE WILL SURVIVE ZAHAVA RENDLER PHOTOGRAPHED AT HER BLUE ASH HOME ON JUNE 23, 2020, AND (OPPOSITE PAGE) AS A CHILD IN NAZIOCCUPIED POLAND.

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T THE VOICE IS HAUNTINGLY FAMILIAR. “MY FATHER CONTINUously reminded me of the importance of remembering our past and telling it to others. It is in his memory that I decided to translate his legacy to you and the generations yet to come.” The unhurried, deliberate pace, the gently rolled r, the th sound that comes out more like a d, and the methodical enunciation molded from decades of teaching Hebrew and Torah to English-speaking schoolchildren in the Midwest.

The last time I last sat across from Zahava Rendler, more than 40 years ago, I was a boy at Yavneh Day School (now Rockwern Academy). But as she flipped the laminated, typed pages of the well-worn script holding her story of surviving the Holocaust as a child, I was instantly transported to a time when her familiar accent was a daily, comforting reminder of my Argentinian/Israeli parents’ unique approach to English.

Like many in the Jewish diaspora, especially in the Midwest, our families had found each other. The adults clung to scraps of memory from the homes they’d left behind by getting together to laugh and share traditional meals accompanied by hummus, olives, and warm pita from our favorite bakery.

What I didn’t know then, and found out only last year, is that Rendler, 79, is among the youngest Holocaust survivors

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in the U.S., born just two years after Adolf Hitler signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact in 1939. From what I can recall, she never told us her story in class, but in the decades since she’s proudly shared it with audiences all over Ohio.

Until March, when the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily took away her voice again.

Rendler is one of more than 70 local Holocaust survivors whose stories are featured at the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust and Humanity Center (HHC) at Union Terminal.

But given their advanced age and vulnerability, it’s likely that the coronavirus will have a serious impact on those left to tell their stories. Combine that with a rise in anti-Semitic incidents across the U.S. in 2019, the most since the AntiDefamation League began tracking such incidents in 1979, and the HHC’s state-mandated shutdown created a void that will be difficult to refill later.

THERE’S A CRUEL IRONY IN VISITING THE CINCINNATI MUSEUM Center on a muggy afternoon at the start of what should be summer vacation for local students. I walk from the barren parking lot into eerily hollow silence in the majestic rotunda, which would normally buzz with the high-pitched echoes of revved-up, TELLING THE STORY snack-packed schoolkids. Like Rendler, THE NANCY & DAVID WOLF HOLOCAUST AND they’ve been silenced by the coronavirus.

HUMANITY CENTER AT UNION TERMINAL Dressed in a dark suit jacket and pants, SHUT DOWN FOR FOUR MONTHS. IT PLANNED with a black and white mask featuring a wavy TO REOPEN JULY 17. pattern, Sarah Weiss, executive director of the HHC, strikes an upbeat, defiant tone when describing the summer that should have been. “We worked with the survivors on display in here, and their optimistic message was incredible: We are resilient,” she says as we descend the stairs to the abandonedlooking museum, passing the blown-up reproductions of

visas, manifests, and birth certificates of some of the Holocaust survivors who traveled through and settled in Cincinnati. “This is something we can learn from, their resilience and the human ability to adapt.”

After celebrating the first anniversary of the HHC’s move to the Museum Center in January, Weiss’s team was planning a lavish fund-raising gala in March—an elaborate version of the annual Liberation Ball events local survivors have been holding off and on for nearly 60 years—as well as a series of programs that would expand the HHC’s already impressive reach into the local community. “I think the next two years will reshape what we do here beyond the pandemic,” says Weiss, a Youngstown native who’s been working at the HHC ever since graduating from UC in 2004.

tion plan countless institutions scrambled to devise in the wake of COVID-19.

The unexpected pivot was especially jarring for a museum where the raison d’être is pointedly about experiencing and witnessing the horrors of the “Final Solution” in person. In a year marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camps, the HHC was a place that encouraged visitors to listen to local survivors’ stories and get close to artifacts from their time in hiding and transit to their new lives. It took you on a journey to freedom via interactive, sliding displays depicting the brutality of Hitler’s plan, as well as the inspiring stories of escape, survival, and rebirth that unfolded when the war ended. (The HHC planned to reopen to the public on July 17.)

Powered down on this day, the space is darkened by an invisible menace that suddenly forced us all to hide in our homes and robbed us of the ability to touch and gather with our loved ones.

It all sounds familiar, but not exactly in the way you think.

“We can learn from Holocaust survivors’ resilience and the human ability to adapt,” says Sarah Weiss, HHC executive director.

HHC was forced to close its doors on March 14 as the nation ground to a halt, with Weiss and her team meeting remotely to game out ways to advance their work through a combination of virtual tours, digital book clubs, and online guest lectures. It’s the same ac-

“THE PROBLEM MOST PEOPLE HAVE WITH analogies is to think of the things as being equivalent,” says Michael Berenbaum, the unofficial dean of American Holocaust museums, about whether the world’s COVID-19 quarantine is not unlike Jews and other Nazi victims hiding in plain sight from the Third Reich, as some have suggested.

“No one is equivalent to Hitler, and no event is the exact equivalent to the Holocaust.… Analogies are fine provided you understand C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 9 0

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Storming the Castle Andy Farfsing embraces the challenges of remaking Purcell Marian High School “from scratch� in the face of changing Catholic education trends and uncertainty surrounding COVID-19.

By Polk Laffoon IV Illustration by Matt Herring

P H OTO G R A P H S BY J O N AT H A N W I L L I S

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On the building’s north walls, inset where lockers once stood, is a series of Maasai shields in red, black, and white, the handsome if unlikely products of Purcell Marian’s creative arts program. The teacher, Joey Versoza, says all four grades (9–12) made the shields after researching their signs, symbols, and color codes. “The arts are important for the students in terms of creating and recognizing their identity as they change and grow,” says Versoza. “It gives them an outlet to explore. I think it’s crucial.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic upended school schedules, the past few months have become a crucial time for Purcell Marian to explore as well. Andy Farfsing, soon to begin his fourth school year as principal, tells me in mid-April that he and his staff are focused as much on the students’ social and emotional needs as their academic requirements. “There is no replacement for friends, hallways, lunchtimes together, and face-to-face with teachers,” he says. “Still, we are taking all we can learn from it, and we will use it in the fall.”

Speaking again in June, Farfsing is determined to bring back face-to-face learning in the new school year. Like the rest of us, though, he’s trying to adjust, adapt, and remain flexible as an uncertain future unfolds.

That’s especially true in the case of Purcell Marian, the venerable Catholic high school in East Walnut Hills.

Walk into the main entrance on Hackberry Street, and the first thing you see is an information desk with a live human being who smiles, asking how she can help. The floors aren’t just clean; they gleam. The Rookwood tiles on the walls, also well-scrubbed, suggest that the period architecture, in vogue when the school was built almost 100 years ago, links a proud past to an optimistic present.

Not so many years ago, the students cruising through these spacious halls would have been all white and, until 1980, all boys. Today they’re co-ed and 68 percent African American, reflecting in part the changing demographics of urban education—and neighborhood transition—throughout Cincinnati.

But keep looking. They walk, seemingly, with purpose. On the wall above the information desk is a video screen flashing alternating messages concerning upcoming school events, news, and personnel. This is a place where everyone—students, faculty, administration—is expected to be involved and contributing.

Purcell Marian is a proud school with a proud provenance.

Mid-century movie star Tyrone Power was a graduate, and there’s a story that at one point he offered to buy the houses across Hackberry Street and build the school a football stadium—but because he’d been divorced, Cincinnati’s Catholic Archdiocese turned him down. The story is likely apocryphal, but Purcell people like it anyway. It’s part of the lore of The Castle, as the main school building is known. Signs urging support for The Castle and the Cavaliers, their mascot, act as silent cheerleaders throughout the year.

Purcell High School was founded on the site in 1928 as an all-boys school, while all-girls Marian High School was located down Madison Road in O’Bryonville. They merged for the 1981–’82 academic year in East Walnut Hills; the old Marian campus now houses Springer School and Center. In the late 1990s, a handsome new wing added a state-of-the-art gymnasium and a modern library, plus conference rooms and more, reflecting alumni faith in the school’s ongoing potential.

Like any enduring institution, Purcell Marian has evolved,

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P H OTO G R A P H S ( O P E N E R I L LU S T R AT I O N ) G E T T Y I M AG E S , P U R C E L L M A R I A N H I G H S C H O O L , G O O D LU Z / S TO C K . A D O B E .C O M ( T H I S S P R E A D ) C O U R T E SY P U R C E L L M A R I A N H I G H S C H O O L / I L LU S T R AT I O N S ( F LO U R I S H E S ) P R OV E C TO R S / S TO C K . A D O B E .C O M

First impressions can be critical.

MAKING CONNECTIONS PURCELL MARIAN HIGH SCHOOL (ABOVE) INFUSES ITS DIVERSE STUDENT BODY (OPPOSITE PAGE) WITH A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE, INCLUDING AN ART PROJECT CREATING MAASAI SHIELDS (BELOW).

either willingly or kicking and screaming.

In an era of rising private school tuition— currently $10,500 annually—more than 80 percent of students receive some kind of scholarship. At a time when personal, familial, social, and societal stresses can shatter any student’s well-being, they and their families have access to four professionals from Beech Acres Parenting Center: two counselor therapists, a family coordinator, and a parent liaison. And The Castle serves all comers, from those with learning disabilities to advanced aptitudes.

Roughly 25 percent of students come from East Walnut Hills and Evanston, and Farfsing says there’s a strong contingent from Pleasant Ridge, Oakley, and Madisonville. The resurgent Walnut Hills neighborhood, he says, embraces Purcell Marian as a point of pride—a much-appreciated player in the ecology of the St. Francis de Sales district and a steady partner on the East Walnut Hills Community Council.

Upstairs, on the walls of the building’s west side, is another distinct set of visuals: flags representing the countries of origin of Purcell Marian’s diverse student body, their parents, and the staff. Like the Maasai shields, they’re as striking as they are unexpected, serving to not only enliven a potentially dreary stretch of hallway but to trumpet the school’s International Baccalaureate (IB) accreditation.

“I felt we needed a meaningful academic program,” says Farfsing (pronounced FARsing). “I wanted us to be part of a network that shared ideas looking at learning from a global lens. But more than that, we can use IB principles to educate everyone, regardless of ability. They will work for the kid who’s struggling; he or she will just go at a different pace. They won’t have IB on their diploma, but they’ll learn. They will benefit by what the honor student is doing, and the honor student will learn equally—maybe more—from them.”

The requirements for a school to attain IB status are rigorous. But for Purcell Marian, it may be particularly notable. Just four years ago, the school’s sustained existence was very much in doubt.

When Farfsing, then the principal of another Catholic school, DePaul Christo Rey, was recruited to East Walnut Hills, Purcell Marian was arguably moribund. Enrollment was declining. Alumni support was crumbling. A number of parents were unhappy. An expense-saving “blended learning” program of computerized instruction,

57

introduced at some cost and considerable energy, wasn’t working. The grounds and physical plant were in serious disrepair.

The school had deep debt and disaffected vendors; no bus company would do business with it anymore.

Coming off a series of what one faculty member describes as “revolving door principals,” the once-proud institution was also devoid of mission focus. Was it to be for college prep, or a school to bolster pupils with learning disabilities? When the board of trustees recognized the magnitude of the problems during the 2016–’17 school year, they embraced an alumnus, Farfsing, class of 1995, to turn things around.

Sho r t an d goat eed w ith a M r.

Clean dome, Farfsing exudes energy, intensity, and charisma that come quickly to the fore when he talks about education. “I was given the freedom to rebuild a Catholic school from scratch,” he says.“I loved Christo Rey, and I thought I would retire there. But I was approached in the spring of 2017 and told my alma mater was dying. They told me, If it can be fixed, you’re the guy. I let it sit on my heart for a month. Finally, I said to my wife, You’ll think I’m crazy, but I want to do this. She said, It’s about time.”

A principal for 10 years, Farfsing had also been a social studies teacher and director of student activities at La Salle High School.

When he looked at Purcell Marian, he knew what had to be done. He told the Archdiocese his plan, C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 9 3

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FOR STUDENT ATHLETES, COVID-19 MEANT A SHORTER SPRING SEASON AND THE LOSS OF TOURNAMENT PLAY. WITH THE FALL SEASON LOOMING, LOCAL DOCTORS SAY THAT THE BREAK IN THE ACTION MAY CAUSE AN UPTICK IN ORTHOPEDIC INJURIES.

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espite spring seasons that were cut short and summer workouts that inevitably looked different than in years past, Cincinnati’s student athletes are quickly preparing to get back on the field this fall.

But the upcoming season has some orthopedic doctors worried that students will be underprepared for the grueling demands of the fall season.

Some fear a vicious cycle in which a lack of conditioning will lead to higher

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rates of injuries that could cut students’ seasons short—a cruel irony on the heels of the spring season’s COVID-19 cancellations.

ORTHOPEDIC CONCERNS When COVID-19 forced Ohio’s schools to shut their doors for the second half of the spring, high school athletic facilities followed suit, with the OHSAA announcing an official end to the spring season on April 20.

But the season’s cancellation didn’t just affect spring sports. The latespring, early summer period is also a critical time of preparation for student athletes hoping to compete in the fall.

“COVID has disrupted many people’s training schedules, and has disrupted a lot of the pre-sport conditioning that goes into injury prevention once they return to their sport,” says Marc Galloway, M.D., medical director of Mercy Health’s sports medicine program and head team physician for the Cincinnati Bengals.

By summer, Galloway says, high school athletes would have undergone months of team-based conditioning programs to prepare for the upcoming season. Once August rolls around, they would have already adjusted to the oppressive heat of a Cincinnati summer.

They also would have had adequate time to focus on strength training, which correlates with lower rates of injury.

“What I worry about is that some [athletes] may not have had access to programs over the summer that would have put them in a position to avoid overuse injuries once they return,” says Galloway.

Student athlete injuries usually fall into one of two categories: acute and overuse. Timothy Kremchek, M.D., has seen the whole gamut, and not only during his time as team medical director for the Cincinnati Reds. He also works with student athletes at several high schools and colleges.

This year, Kremchek has concerns about what the lack of time to prepare will mean for high school athletes. Even players who start off strong at the beginning of the season risk running into injuries later on, as underprepared muscles fatigue and athletes push themselves past their limits.

“Now, many of them have not had that structured program,” Kremchek says. “So it’s a concern that a lot of them, who are not going to be ready, come back and hit the ground at 100 miles an hour. There’s a higher likelihood for injury and there’s also a higher likelihood for early fatigue.”

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HEALTH WATCH ORTHOPEDICS TODAY’S STUDENT ATHLETE Some injuries simply can’t be prevented.

There’s not much student athletes can do when it comes to an unexpected collision on the football field or a misstep on the basketball court that leads to a torn ACL. But the injuries that can sideline players—particularly young athletes— can often be traced back to overuse.

Today’s student athletes play under new pressures the previous generations simply didn’t experience, explains Robert Burger, M.D., cofounder of Beacon Orthopaedics and head team physician for the Xavier Musketeers.

“These kids are preparing for their sports year-round,” Burger says. “In other words, if they’re a football player, they’re conditioning throughout the summer, they’re working out in the spring, they’ve been in summer programs. If they’re a basketball player or a volleyball player, they’re playing on club teams. So the kids have not been doing that through summer.”

FOUR STEPS STUDENT ATHLETES CAN TAKE TO PREVENT INJURIES THIS FALL Local orthopedic doctors offer their advice for getting back into the game after a season of COVID-19 cancellations.

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By May, most high school and collegiate athletes have already undergone annual orthopedic exams that allow doctors to comprehensively screen each athlete to catch problems before they manifest on the field.

But because of COVID-19, there were scarcely any routine physicals at local high schools this spring. Now, Burger is concerned about the student athletes who may be about to take the field with entirely preventable injuries.

Without the safety net of a spring physical, he believes some students may have fallen through the cracks.

“These kids really never get out of shape because they’re participating in sports year-round,” Burger says. “So now we’ve lost a little bit of that.”

PREPARING FOR THE FALL Months of gym and facility closures mean that, from a conditioning standpoint, many student athletes have largely been on their own. Most players have lost the advantage of working with in-

1 Conditioning: With traditional conditioning looking different this summer, it may be up to student athletes to take workouts into their own hands. Robert Burger, M.D., of Beacon Orthopaedics, says volleyball and basketball players, for instance, should focus on honing their jump training to avoid ACL injuries on the court. Not sure where to start? Contact your local sports medicine practitioners for sport-specific advice.

2 Beat the Heat: “Heat illness can be a very serious problem,” says Marc Galloway, M.D., of Mercy Health. While playing and practicing in the heat is all but unavoidable, student athletes can soften the blow by staying hydrated, Galloway says. Drink plenty of fluids, including water and electrolyte drinks, before, during, and after games and practice to fend off heat-related illnesses.

3 Stretch and Warm Up: When athletes return to the game after being away for

person trainers and coaches at school.

Luckily, there are steps student athletes can take to avoid injuries on the field as the fall season begins.

If your team has a timetable to work with before getting back into a sport, work with a coach or trainer to start conditioning now. An early start can help stave off fatigue, one of the most significant factors when it comes to overuse injuries that can sideline athletes.

Above all, local orthopedic experts encourage student athletes to exercise a healthy sense of caution when returning to a sport. Jumping back onto the field or the court too quickly could put athletes back on the sideline or on crutches before the season even begins.

“One of the things that made me so sad this year is that all of our students lost their spring season. A couple of them lost their summer season. So I don’t want to see them come back in the fall and get hurt and miss even more,” Kremchek says. “The time they have to play is so short anyway.”

an extended period of time, the time spent stretching and warming up is especially important. But young athletes often don’t understand the importance of doing both, says Timothy Kremchek, M.D., of Beacon Orthopaedics. Sometimes, they simply don’t differentiate between the two. While stretching involves working the muscles adequately—particularly those you’re going to be using during a sport—warm-ups involve activities that increase the heart rate, like jogging.

4 Prepare for a new environment: This fall, student athletes are going to be competing in an environment that’s going to look different than it has in past years.

Galloway, who also serves on the sports medicine committee of the OHSAA, says new restrictions will affect everything from sharing water bottles to distancing on the sidelines. Check with the OHSAA for specific rules and regulations that will impact the upcoming season.

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Bowling Green State University ............... 72 Butler Tech .............................................. 76 ChatďŹ eld College ..................................... 71 Cincinnati State Technical and Community College............................ 77 Eastern Kentucky University .................... 78 Galen College of Nursing ......................... 71 Gateway Community and Technical College............................... 71

Great Oaks Career Institute of Technology ........................................ 66 Indiana Tech ............................................ 79 KHEAA and KHESLC................................. 68 Miami University Regionals ..................... 67 Mount St. Joseph University..................... 74 Northern Kentucky University .................. 80 Sinclair Community College ..................... 81 Union Institute & University..................... 82 University of Toledo ................................. 83 Wright State University............................ 70 Xavier University ..................................... 69

CONTENTS 68 SOCIAL MEDIA MATTERS 69 MAKE YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE WORK FOR YOU 70 COVID-19 AND RECRUITING

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DON’T GET TANGLED UP

BY THE WEB

IT’S NO SECRET THAT THE CURRENT GENERATION OF HIGH SCHOOLERS GREW UP TAPping and swiping away at smartphones, and college admissions officers are paying attention to those taps and swipes. Miami University strategic communication professor Katie Day Good says that “young people face a higher bar of scrutiny and a different set of considerations” than those who applied for college before the time of Facebook and Snapchat. No pressure, right?

But colleges these days want a more holistic view of prospective students, and the content you post online reflects a part of you that doesn’t really show in test scores or official essays.

That kind of exposure could hurt or help your chances of admission, so Good stresses that students should be “conscientious about the digital record they create online.”

Just remember that whether your accounts are set to private or public, information is almost always available somewhere. Good recommends “operating under the assumption that what you post online lingers forever, even if you delete posts or set your accounts to private.” And if you’re familiar with tools that can help “clean up and curate” your social media image, all the better. Students who take the time to understand their privacy settings and the controls they have as users, Good suggests, will be less likely to get slammed by incriminating screenshots and other tells.

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Everyone’s social media footprint is an open book (and fair game) for college admissions officials as they evaluate prospective students. —LEANNE STAHULAK

COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

Show your involvement in the community Posting about extracurricular or volunteer activities can help colleges see that you’re not afraid to share about your commitment to community.

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Thoroughly inspect the pages or people you follow When deciding whether or not to like a social media page or follow a person, make sure the content matches up with your core values. Who you follow can tell universities a lot about your interests and character.

Use your platform for civic or social discussion Social media presents a unique setting for engaging in discussion with a community of similar- or opposite-minded people. So long as you’re respectful, universities will recognize and appreciate your interest in current events.

Think about how your content reflects on you Your pics, your posts, your videos, your comments, your likes— these simple swipes of your thumbs could have a lasting impression on universities. So take a second to think before you tap, and remember that your activity will be visible for longer than you think.

WORDS OF WISDOM FOR THE WEB Tips for using your social media presence to boost your admissions profile.

Yes, it is OK to be yourself “As long as students approach these activities in a way that’s respectful, ethical, and not hurting or attacking others,” says Miami’s Katie Day Good, “they shouldn’t worry about their social media presence having a negative effect on their college applications.” So retweet about your interests or post vacation pics—just remember that all of it represents who you are. –L.S.

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

COLLEGE RECRUITMENT DURING COVID-19 THE OUTBREAK OF COVID-19 has changed everything about the college experience, from remote classwork to virtual commencements. And that includes the admissions process, which is being forced to forego tried-and-true experiences like on-campus visits and in-person class observation.

Especially during this period of pandemic, Northern Kentucky University Director of Admissions Melissa Gorbandt stresses the importance of connecting with the current generation of high schoolers. “We need to be where the students are,” she says, “and we understand that mobile technology is where our students live.

So we’re trying to deliver content for them through social media, through virtual tours, and through connecting via text messaging.”

NKU has employed all of these strategies and more to reach out to high schoolers. With campuses closing and stay-at-home-orders in place this spring, online admissions became extremely important for college recruiters.

Xavier University launched its own web channel to aid prospective students who can’t visit campus in person. With the XU to You link, students can attend mock online classes, watch student panels, and set up Zoom meetings with admissions coun-

selors. The resources collected there make the page a one-stop clearinghouse for potential students.

Choosing a university is a challenging decision on its own, but with COVID-19 thrown into the mix, it’s become even more difficult for high school seniors.

But several college admissions

reps, like Xavier’s Midwest Regional Recruitment Director Julie Nelson, want to make the process as easy as possible. Even as colleges and universities begin to reopen this fall, digital resources will continue to help students connect with these institutions.

“It’s a brand new world for all of us,” Nelson says. —LEANNE STAHULAK

Find your passion.

Find your people.

Find your future.

Find your mentor.

wright.edu/now

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Now more than ever, admission offices are trying to be accessible on prospective students’ terms.

A COLLEGE DEGREE DESIGNED FOR YOU. YOUR JOURNEY HERE At Galen, nursing is all we teach and your success is all that matters. With early hands-on education and clinical emphasis, you’ll enjoy small class sizes and individualized support.

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Visit us online or call 513.475.3636 today.

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GalenCollege.edu Galen is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

COLLEGE FOR THE REAL WORLD.

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE YOU GATEWAY.KCTCS.EDU/YOU

441 Vine Street | (513) 651-1442 SnapFitness.com/Cincinnati

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY 1001 E. Wooster St. • Bowling Green, OH 43403 Undergraduate Enrollment Information: (419) 372-2478 • www.bgsu.edu/admissions Graduate Enrollment Information: (419) 372-2531 • www.bgsu.edu BGSU: Belong. Stand out. Go far.

Belong. BGSU offers the benefits of a major university, with the feel of a small college. Welcoming smiles, hellos, and nods from familiar faces help students feel relaxed, motivated, and ready to unlock their potential. And there is no shortage of ways for students to unlock their potential at BGSU. With more than 400 student organizations, 40 social fraternities and sororities, 56 intramural sports, and 25 sports clubs, there is something for everyone.

Stand out. Nearly 9,000 students participate in service-learning and/or community service projects each year at BGSU, giving

them one way to stand out from the crowd.

Leadership opportunities, personalized career planning, and interactions with caring faculty are other ways students can be part of something bigger than themselves—building their résumés and their character.

Go far. To meet the needs of future students and job demand, BGSU offers high-quality programs in a range of relevant areas. These programs offer students the opportunity to become the next generation of educators, participate in cutting-edge research, and acquire in-demand skills.

BGSU invites you to learn more at www.bgsu.edu.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1910 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 19,000 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 18:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 200+ // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 55 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 17 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Arts, Business, Education and Human Development, Health and Human Services, Musical Arts, Science and Technology // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 180 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $20,992.64 // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $28,981.04 // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 90% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Fastest growing public university in Ohio • No. 1 public university for boosting graduates’ earnings after college • One of the safest college campuses in the U.S. // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: BGSU Firelands in Huron, Ohio 7 2 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

BE A PART OF THE FASTEST GROWING PUBLIC UNIVERSITY IN OHIO.

B E L ON G. BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY BOWLING GREEN, OH 419-372-2478 | BGSU.EDU/ADMISSIONS

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

MOUNT ST. JOSEPH UNIVERSITY 5701 Delhi Rd. • Cincinnati, OH 45233 Undergraduate Enrollment Information: (513) 244-4531 or (800) 654-9314 • www.msj.edu Graduate Enrollment Information: (513) 244-4233 or (800) 654-9314 • www.msj.edu/graduate For nearly 100 years, Mount St. Joseph University has held higher education to a higher standard—right here in Cincinnati. As a Catholic university rooted in the values of the Sisters of Charity, the Mount is dedicated to the success and well-being of each student, empowering them to become competent, compassionate, critical thinkers who make a meaningful impact on the world with the heart of a lion.

Each student is given the opportunity to reach their peak potential: our students receive personal attention from some of the world’s leading scholars, who know their students by name; the MSJ Career & Experiential Education Center prepares students for

success with real-world and leadership experience; and students gain vital problem-solving skills through the Mount’s liberal arts core curriculum.

A rock-solid student life experience is available on our safe, ideal campus—just 15 minutes west of downtown Cincinnati.

Students can get involved through 20 NCAA DIII programs, Esports, band, choir, theatre, campus ministry, or a diverse range of student activities and organizations. This fall, our Centennial Field House will open to students with: indoor practice areas, the latest exercise equipment, and the only indoor NCAA regulationsize track in the region.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1920 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 2,100 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 10:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 37 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 7 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 2 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Doctoral: Nursing, Physical Therapy; Graduate: Business, Education, Nursing, Physician Assistant; Undergraduate: Biology, Education, Health & Wellness, Nursing, Sport Management // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 8 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $31,100 // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $31,100 // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 95% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: 99.6% Career Outcomes Rate. Nearly 100 percent of surveyed 2019 graduates from the Mount reported that they were successfully employed, enrolled in graduate studies, or volunteering within six months of graduation. • Mount St. Joseph University has been named as one of 18 undergrad teacher prep programs to earn an A+ for their early reading instruction in @NCTQ’s 2020 Teacher Prep Review. • In 2020 U.S. News & World Report ranked the Mount #83, Regional Universities Midwest. // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: Mount St. Joseph University continues to foster partnerships with several Greater Cincinnati colleges, universities, and hospitals for bachelor’s and master’s degree programs.

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MEETthe MOUNT www.msj.edu/meet

CENTENNIAL OPENING IN FIELD HOUSE FALL 2020

99.6% CAREER OUTCOMES RATE

Come visit us!

Visit our website and learn all the ways you can connect with the Mount. Campus is open to in-person visits by appointment starting in July.

We look forward to meeting with you!

Register today at 513-244-4531 or www.msj.edu/meet.

Mount St. Joseph University is committed to providing an educational and employment environment free from discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other minority or protected status. Visit www.msj.edu/non-discrimination for the full policy and contact information. 10-WO-001581/20/Ad

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020 2017

BUTLER TECH 3603 Hamilton Middletown Rd. • Hamilton, OH 45011 (513) 645-8344 • www.butlertech.org At Butler Tech, every student is a top priority. Our mission is to foster our students’ academic and personal development as they take the steps to gain the knowledge and skills needed for their future.

Choose from classes and career training programs that interest you.

From healthcare and public safety to industrial technology and commercial driving, Butler Tech provides a purpose for every passion. Our training programs are designed to prepare you for employment and to begin a successful career, advance in your current career, and industry certification.

All of our programs offer state and/or nationally recognized credentials and certifications. With more than 40 career-focused programs, Butler Tech Adult Education will provide you the career training you want in 11 months or less.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1975 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 750 yearly // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 15:1 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Adult Career Training Programs: training programs designed to prepare you for employment and to begin a successful career in: Healthcare – training for Nursing, Clinical Medical Assisting, Phlebotomy, Medical Billing & Coding, and STNA. Public Safety programs – Firefighter, Paramedic/EMT, Police. Industrial Technology programs – Industrial Maintenance Technology, Industrial Welding, and HVAC/R Technician, Commercial Drivers program. Nationally recognized certifications and program length range from two weeks to 11 months. // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 34 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: Varies by program // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: N/A // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 75% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Student completion rate of 91% • Earned Industry Credential Rate of 89% • 100% hands-on career experiences for students!

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

CINCINNATI STATE TECHNICAL AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE 3520 Central Parkway • Cincinnati, OH 45223 Undergraduate Enrollment Information: (513) 861-7700 • www.cincinnatistate.edu/admission Cincinnati State is the regional leader in career education and one of its best higher education values. Cincinnati State offers a wide variety of online, in-person, and hybrid education options that are geared to local employment needs and flexibility for students. Many programs lead directly to well-paid careers and include paid co-op experience with area employers. For bachelorbound students, Cincinnati State is a smart start with tuition less than half the cost of traditional universities and credits that transfer seamlessly to other colleges and universities. Cincinnati State offers associate degrees, certificates, and selected bachelor’s degrees in healthcare, business, culinary, engineering and information technologies, and humanities and sciences. Its Workforce Development Center provides customized training for corporate, governmental, and nonprofit clients as well as job-oriented courses for the public. Schedule a virtual or in-person information session at www.cinnatistate.edu/visit.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1969 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 10,000 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 14:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: More than 130 Associate Degrees, Bachelor’s Degrees, and Certificates // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Health (nursing, allied health professions); Business (management, accounting, marketing); Engineering Technologies (mechanical, electrical, civil, environmental); Information Technologies (web, software design, cyber-security); Midwest Culinary Institute; Humanities & Sciences; Horticulture; Graphic Design; Aviation Maintenance; and many other fields. // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 3 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $168.64/credit hour // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $307.28/credit hour // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 75% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: One of the first community colleges in Ohio approved to offer bachelor’s degrees (Bachelor of Applied Science in Land Surveying; Bachelor of Applied Science in Culinary & Food Science) // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: Middletown; Harrison and Evendale (Workforce Development Center)

BACHELOR’S DEGREES ASSOCIATE’S DEGREES CERTIFICATES SHORT-TERM CREDENTIALS Whether you want to be one of the first to receive a Cincinnati State Bachelor’s degree, save on the first two years of a transfer degree, or start your career as soon as possible, Cincinnati State is a great fit for your future.

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

EASTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY 521 Lancaster Ave. • Richmond, KY 40475 (859) 622-1000 • www.eku.edu Eastern Kentucky University, centrally located just 90 minutes from Cincinnati in Richmond, Kentucky, is a student-centered comprehensive regional university dedicated to high-quality instruction, service, and scholarship. Underscoring the University’s legacy as a “School of Opportunity,” many of Eastern’s successful alumni were the first in their families to attend college. Even today, approximately 30 percent of EKU freshmen are first-generation college students.

At the same time, EKU attracts more of the best and brightest students. Approximately 15,000 students come from almost every state, and thousands of alumni worldwide have distinguished careers. Approximately 75 percent of the University’s graduates are employed in Kentucky one year after graduation, and many are employed in service occupations vital to any community’s quality of life: education, health care, and public safety.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1874 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 14,980 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 15:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 95 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 42 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 4 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: American Sign Language (English Interpretation), Animal Studies, Athletic Training, Aviation, Criminal Justice, Education, Fire and Safety, Forensic Science, Interactive Multimedia (Game Design), Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Professional Golf Management, Social Justice Studies // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 105 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $9,266 // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $10,300 // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 66% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: U.S. News & World Report • Forbes • Military Times // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: EKU Manchester, Kentucky campus; EKU Corbin, Kentucky campus

STUDY OUT OF STATE FOR AN IN-STATE PRICE With EKU’s SMART Program, out-of-state students «>Þ > y>Ì ÌÕ Ì À>Ìi Ì >̽à iÃÃ Ì > > Þ ÃV ý ÃÌ>Ìi ÌÕ Ì À>Ìið >Ü>Þ Ì V i}i v À iÃÃ] LÕÌ ÃÌ Li Ü Ì > ÌÜ ÕÀ `À Ûi v V >Ì °

LEARN MORE AT GO.EKU.EDU/SMARTCHOICE #EKUeverywhere On Campus | Online (DVWHUQ .HQWXFN\ 8QLYHUVLW\ LV DQ (TXDO 2SSRUWXQLW\ $IƓUPDWLYH $FWLRQ HPSOR\HU DQG (GXFDWLRQDO ,QVWLWXWLRQ

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

INDIANA TECH Northern Kentucky Campus, 809 Wright Summit Pkwy., Suite 310 • Ft. Wright, KY 41011 (859) 916-5884 • www.IndianaTech.edu/GOFORIT Indiana Tech educates students beyond its home base in Ft. Wayne, Ind., with regional campuses throughout the Midwest, as well as online programs that meet the needs of students worldwide. The private, not-for-profit university offers career-oriented degree programs at the associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. levels, as well as professional certificate programs. Busy working adults find Indiana Tech an ideal fit, with class schedules that allow students to take one class at a time and still make rapid progress toward a degree.

Classes start every six weeks, so students can begin their education at any time of year. The university is accredited through the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). For more information or to enroll today, contact the Northern Kentucky admissions team at (859) 916-5884.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1930 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 1,500 undergraduates on main campus, 6,500 online undergraduate and graduate students // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 16:1 average class size // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 50 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 7 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 1 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: More than 45 degree programs align with in-demand careers, including project management, engineering, business, cybersecurity, accounting, information technology, computer science, health care administration, criminal justice, and more. // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 4.5 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $404 per credit hour for undergrad/$515 per credit hour for graduate // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: same as in-state // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 90% // TOP THREE AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Ranked in top 15% nationwide for return on investment by PayScale • Ranked as a Top 10 Gold Level Military Friendly School • Cyber Warriors collegiate cyber defense team has won 6 straight and 13 total Indiana state championships // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: Indiana Tech’s main campus is in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, with regional locations throughout Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois.

RISING STARS

Indiana Tech will help you go further with 45-plus quality degree programs. Our class schedules allow you to make rapid progress toward an affordable degree, taking one class at a time—either online or on site at one of our regional locations.

• Degrees at the associate, bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. levels.

• Undergraduate and graduate certificates that will expand your skills and advance your career.

• Dedicated staff and resources that will support you throughout your education.

READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP? CONTACT OUR NORTHERN KENTUCKY ADMISSIONS TEAM. 859.916.5884 | 809 WRIGHT SUMMIT PARKWAY, SUITE 310

INDIANATECH.EDU/GOFORIT

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020 2017

NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY 1 Nunn Dr. • Highland Heights, KY 41099 Undergraduate Enrollment Information: (859) 572-5200 • www.nku.edu/admissions/undergrad Graduate Enrollment Information: (859) 572-6364 • www.nku.edu/admissions/graduate Fueled by an unstoppable spirit and a passion for knowledge, Northern Kentucky University students engage and impact their communities, the region, and our world. The university’s long-standing commitment to academic excellence offers abundant opportunities for experiential learning in the region’s best facilities, including the new Health Innovation Center. NKU connects students to their world-changing dreams through classroom experiences, faculty mentorship, and internships and co-ops with hundreds of community partners and more than 200 student organizations. We’re also home to 17 NCAA Division I athletic programs.

We shape driven individuals and create opportunities for our students to succeed in this knowledge-based economy. We will continue to nurture inclusive and equitable communities where people want to live, work, and tackle complex challenges.

You belong here.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1968 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 15,687 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 19:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 82 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 22 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 3 // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 7.4 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $413/credit hour // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $828/credit hour // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 93.9% of full-time undergraduates // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Forbes Top College 11 years running • 2020 Safest College Campuses in America list (YourLocalSecurity.com)

TOGETHER WE WILL CREATE A BRIGHTER FUTURE

Schedule a virtual visit or apply today!

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

SINCLAIR COMMUNITY COLLEGE 5386 Courseview Dr. • Mason, OH 45040 Undergraduate Enrollment Information: (513) 339-1212 • sinclair.edu/mason The Sinclair College campus in Mason continues Sinclair’s mission of providing accessible, affordable, flexible education to meet the needs of the community. Conveniently located, the campus is easily accessible from I-71.

Sinclair in Mason offers a full-service small-campus feel, with all the advantages and resources of a large public community college. More than 25 degree and certificate programs are offered in Mason, with over 30 fully online programs and almost 300 programs available system-wide. Students can earn job-ready credentials, or earn credits that transfer easily to any four-year college or university.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1887 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 17,000, 1,000 in Mason // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 17:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: Nearly 300 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Healthcare, Business, Engineering Technologies, Information Technology, and programs designed for transfer to a four-year college or university // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 24 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $173.26/credit hour // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $329.40/credit hour // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: 60% // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Sinclair has awarded more degrees and certificates than any other Ohio Community College in the last five years. • More than 100 University Transfer agreements. • Board member, League for Innovation in the Community College // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: Sinclair Community College - Dayton Ohio, Centerville, Huber Heights, Englewood, Wright-Patterson AFB

Build your future on a solid foundation.

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SINCLAIR COLLEGE! With over 130 years of stability and experience, Sinclair plays an important role in the workforce and economic development initiatives in southwest Ohio.

Students can complete career-ready associate degrees and certificates, or transfer credits to public and private colleges and universities.

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

UNION INSTITUTE & UNIVERSITY 440 E. McMillan St. • Cincinnati, OH 45206 • (513) 861-6400 • www.myunion.edu Since 1964, Union Institute & University has specialized in providing higher education to students nationwide. Union is a nonprofit, regionally accredited university that offers a variety of certificate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree programs. Taught by world-class faculty, most programs are 100% online. Union’s delivery model is the result of more than five decades of identifying and refining ways to structure and deliver education to meet the needs of busy people in an ever-changing world. Its U4U! program is just one example of how Union continues to break new ground. Introduced in 2020, the program provides high school students with the ability to earn college credits and get a head start on higher education. Through an uncommon combination of highly personalized attention and online learning, Union is uniquely suited to serve its students anytime, anywhere—even during uncertain times. New program offerings include master of arts degrees in Dietetics and Nutrition, Education (non-licensure), and Human Lactation Studies. New MBA concentrations are also planned for the near future.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1964 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 1,000+ // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: Varies by program // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 7 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 8 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 4 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Business & Leadership, Criminal Justice & Emergency Services Management, Education, Healthcare & Mental Health Counseling, Philosophy // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 3.5 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: Varies by program // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: No additional cost for out-of-state students // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: Most students receive financial aid // TOP AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: Best Online Bachelor’s Programs List - U.S. News • 2020–21 List of Military Friendly Schools - Gold Designation • Phi Theta Kappa Transfer Honor Roll // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: Los Angeles, CA; Sacramento, CA; Hollywood, FL

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS - EARN COLLEGE CREDIT FOR FREE The U4U! Early College Program is a great opportunity for high school students to get a head start on higher education. Designed for juniors and seniors, this two-year program allows qualified participants to take General Education college courses online with Union Institute & University – while still attending high school. All earned credits are transferable to the college of your choice.* • FREE for qualifying students

• Guidance from a personal success coach

• Save on tuition toward a 4-year degree with Union

• Academic coursework beyond the high school experience

• Official college transcript upon U4U! completion

• Explore various fields of study

LEARN MORE AND APPLY AT: MYUNION.EDU/U4U 844.880.1424 | admissions@myunion.edu *Union Institute & University is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In general, college level courses taken at a regionally accredited institution will transfer to other regionally accredited institutions. Regional accrediting agencies are the Higher Learning Commission, Middle States, New England, Northwest, Southern, and Western Associations of Colleges and Schools.

The final decision of accepting university transfer credits reside with the receiving institution.

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COLLEGE GUIDE | 2020

THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO 2801 W. Bancroft St. • Toledo, OH 43606 • (800) 586-5336 • www.utoledo.edu The University of Toledo offers more than 300 undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs spanning engineering, business, education, medicine, nursing, health professions, pharmaceutical sciences, law, the arts, sciences, and humanities. Our Main Campus features gothic style architecture with nine modern residence halls, the Student Recreation Center, state-of-the-art classroom facilities, and athletic fields and training complexes. The Health Science Campus is home to graduate health programs, the Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center, and the University of Toledo Medical Center, which supports clinical learning experiences for students in the University’s health professions programs. With more than 400 student organizations, 35 Greek Life organizations, opportunities for community service, and athletic events and activities, there are countless ways to get involved around campus and create lasting memories and relationships at UToledo.

THE STATS YEAR FOUNDED: 1872 // CURRENT ENROLLMENT: 19,782 // STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO: 19:1 // UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES OFFERED: 116 // MASTER’S DEGREES OFFERED: 128 // DOCTORAL DEGREES OFFERED: 42 // SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE: Areas of research excellence: Astronomy and Astrophysics; Solar Energy, Water Quality and Sustainable Technologies; Cell Architecture and Dynamics // DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI: 206 miles // IN-STATE TUITION: $22,984 on campus/year // OUT-OF-STATE TUITION: $32,344 on campus/year // PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS ON FINANCIAL AID: In 2018–19, 94% of UToledo’s full-time beginning undergraduates received grant/scholarship aid. // TOP THREE AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS: 20 academic programs—undergraduate, graduate, online, and professional programs—nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report. • Ranked among the top 100 public universities in the latest Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education Rankings. • The Princeton Review recently ranked our College of Law fifth on its list of top law schools with the “Greatest Resources for Women,” and again included UToledo in its “Best Law Schools 2020” ranking. // AFFILIATED COLLEGES/SATELLITE CAMPUSES: The University of Toledo Main Campus, The University of Toledo Health Science Campus, The University of Toledo Center for the Visual Arts, The University of Toledo Lake Erie Center

BUILDING CO N N EC T I O N S

Big enough to broaden your horizons.

Small enough to avoid getting lost in the crowd.

UToledo. Just the right fit.

Visit utoledo.edu/yourtomorrow to learn more and schedule your campus visit.

UToledo @UToledo

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C I NC I N NATI DESIGN

Photograph by GREG GRUPENHOF PHOTOGRAPHY Builder TERRY INMAN CUSTOM HOMES Designer SUSAN LEWANDOWSKI, VOLTAGE

THE BEST IN LOCAL DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

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ON THE RIVER L E T T I N G T H E V I E W TA K E C E N T E R S TAG E. Location: East End

Builder TERRY INMAN CUSTOM HOMES Designer SUSAN LEWANDOWSKI, VOLTAGE

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his home’s location along the Ohio River meant that showcasing the view and creating outdoor living and entertaining spaces would be

priorities. Builder Terry Inman Custom Homes, the homeowners, and designer Susan Lewandowski of Voltage collaborated from the start on this LEED Platinum rated home. “The client wanted a completely integrated, contemporary style,” says Lewandowski, who designed several features in the home, including the staircase railing, custom his-and-hers closets, an open-concept third floor that included the kitchen and bar, and an outdoor terrace. Lewandowski used the European manufacturers of furniture, lighting, kitchen, and outdoor spaces that Voltage is known for to achieve

OUTSIDE IN

The kitchen (above), designed by Lewandowski and manufactured by Poliform, has become the home’s entertaining space.

The sleek wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling cabinets feel built in.

The 12-foot island, with warm walnut snack top, doubles as a serving area for parties.

a sophisticated and cohesive design.

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RIVER FRONT

The terrace (above) is large enough to be divided into separate “rooms,� with a large dining table under cover, and a conversation area in the open air, surrounding a modular fire pit (far right). Glass panels in the railing keep the view unobstructed.

Cabinets in the kitchen (right) provide storage for glasses and bar accessories.

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SOURCES KITCHEN

Appliances – Miele and Thermador, The Appliance Loft, Oakley Cabinet Installation – V Collective, Milford Cabinets – Poliform Italy, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Chairs – Maxalto Febo chairs, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Countertop and Backsplash – Dekton in Orix, Greenerstock, Columbia-Tusculum Stools – Poltrona Frau Montera stools, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Table – B&B Italia Seven table, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Television – Masterpiece Audio Video, Ft. Wright Bar Countertop and Backsplash – Dekton in Trilium, Greenerstock, Columbia-Tusculum OUTDOOR TERRACE

Fire Pit – Flo Concrete Fire Table from Brown Jordan Fires, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Armchair – B&B Italia Crinoline armchair, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Chairs – B&B Italia Erica chairs, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Sectional – B&B Italia Ravel sectional, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Side Table – B&B Italia Butterfly table, Voltage Furniture, Oakley BEDROOM

Bed – Poltrona Frau Aurora Due King Bed in leather, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Armchair – Poltrona Frau Archibald armchair, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Wall Lamps – Foscarini Caboche lamps, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Closet Cabinetry (not pictured) – Poliform Italy, Voltage Furniture, Oakley BATHROOM

Countertops – Dekton in Aura15, Greenerstock, Columbia-Tusculum Cabinets – Sims-Lohman, Carthage Light Fixtures – Terzani Frame pendants, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Mirror Frame – Larson-Juhl, Westcott & Schaff, Oakley Tile – Belmont’s Flooring, Oakley Tub – Keidel Supply, Paddock Hills ENTRY

Mural (not pictured) – Custom hand-painted wall canvas, One Red Bird Studio, Cincinnati Staircase – Custom designed wood and metal spiral stair, Cincinnati Stair Company, Wyoming Light Fixture – Bocci 14 pendants, Voltage Furniture, Oakley SEATING AREAS

JUST DREAMY

In the south-facing master bedroom (above), Lewandowski started with the drapery. It’s “a bit atypical,” she says, but she wanted to frame the wonderful river views, using sheer panels behind the darker silk panels. There’s no door separating the bedroom from the master bath (top right), so Lewandowski connected the space through the color of the flooring.

SPIRAL LIGHT

The compact spiral stair (middle right) leads to the rooftop terrace from the seating area near the kitchen, which features a sleek fireplace (above right).

Fireplaces and Hardware – Bona Decorative Hardware, Oakley Gray Sofa – Minotti Hamilton sofa, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Ceiling Fixture – Catellani & Smith Macchina della Luce chandelier, Voltage Furniture, Oakley THROUGHOUT

Additional Furniture – B&B Italia, Maxalto, Minotti, Poltrona Frau, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Additional Lighting – Bocci, Foscarini, Catellani & Smith, Terzani, Voltage Furniture, Oakley Artwork –Art Design Consultants, O’Bryonville Audio Visual System – Masterpiece Audio Video, Ft. Wright Builder –Terry Inman Custom Homes, East End Electrician –Deyhle Electric, Blue Ash Metal Work –Hawkins and Hawkins Custom, Deer Park Wallpaper Hanging –Fancy Finishes, Alexandria

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HUMANITY IS THEIR JOB CONTINUED FROM PAGE 53

they’re just analogies.”

The professor/rabbi/writer/lecturer has studied the Holocaust for most of his adult life and served as the project director of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.; CEO of Cincinnati-born Steven Spielberg’s USC Shoah Foundation (formerly known as Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation); and one of the HHC’s key consultants before its move to the Museum Center. For him, there’s a difference between hiding from something for an unknown duration when you fear the entire world is bent on your destruction, and

don’t have the collective experience of a film, which is when everyone is scared or cries at the same time.”

The difference in a museum, according to Berenbaum, is that you have captive imagery and a moving audience.“You want the audience to move in order to grasp the story, and the difference from a film, again, is everyone sees the museum differently,” he says. “The Holocaust as a narrative has this enormous power to raise all of the issues that are prevalent within a society, and people will see it differently depending on what the narrative of their society is at this moment.”

Berenbaum ticks off a list of topics addressed by the HHC that are even more relevant right now, a few of which, yes, might feel analogous: the nation’s suddenly strict, restrictive policy on immigration; the fragility of our democracy and polarization in the hands of a norm-breaking leader; and economic scarcity and depression caused by record-high unemployment. The Center’s designers probably never imagined

RENDLER SAYS SHE’S NOT AFRAID OF THE VIRUS. “IT BROUGHT SOME PEOPLE TOGETHER, AND SHOWS US IF WE DON’T COME TOGETHER EVEN WORSE THINGS CAN HAPPEN.” the advice we received about COVID-19 that our safety is dependent on voluntary physical distancing and working from home.

“There’s a great phrase by [Jewish poet] Hayim Nahman Bialik, who said, Reading a poem in translation is like kissing [your new bride] through a veil,” Berenbaum says in an inviting, wizened smile of a voice that comes through the phone from his home in Los Angeles. It’s his way of explaining that an essential element is removed when we’re stuck inside and can’t experience the HHC in person. Using a rhetorical method familiar to any Hebrew school student, Berenbaum asks what the difference is between a museum and a movie. Before there’s time to fully consider the question, though, he kindly offers up the not-so-easy answer. “Film is one of the most effective ways of telling a story in the modern world,” he says. “A captive audience and moving imagery. But we lose something when we

these issues would be relevant again when they dreamed up the space. “But [they’re all] part of the Holocaust story and part of what makes it a paradigmatic evil,” says Berenbaum.

Of course, if you add on the historic economic collapse caused by COVID-19, the rending racial divide ignited with the killing of George Floyd by white Minneapolis police officers, and the rise of anti-Semitism over the past few years, we’re facing a strange, toxic brew this summer. How, Berenbaum wonders, will the HHC’s audience be different when they return to the museum space?

“I think they’re going to ask a new series of questions,” he says, including,“How do you rebuild after all of this?”

SITTING ON THE FRONT PORCH OF HER Blue Ash home on a sunny afternoon in early June, Rendler shifts forward in her highbacked wicker chair as she contemplates

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how she’ll be changed and how the telling of her story will transform when life returns to a “new normal.” With a cartoon-decked mask resting on her right knee and a small blue menorah peeking out from the window between us, Rendler sounds exactly like the worried great-grandmother she is.

Watching the sporadic violence and looting amid the many peaceful protests after Floyd’s death, Rendler says she trembled and shivered at footage of burning buildings and shattered glass. Like Berenbaum says, they’re not quite analogies, but nonetheless she had to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming of another time. “Is it really happening?” she asks in a gentle, quizzical voice. Rendler was shaken by what she saw, but careful to remind herself that she was indeed here, here to stay, with so much to celebrate—reminded once again that “Hitler did not succeed.”

The lifelong educator asks me if it’s OK to present her story as she would during one of her lectures about the Holocaust, and she begins reading from her laminated script. She was born Golda Feuerberg in Stryi, Poland, on March 30, 1941. Her father owned a successful leather goods factory, which was taken away when Germans occupied their town. A loyal factory employee urged the family to go into hiding in an underground bunker, where Rendler and her sister were the only children among 26 adults. Given sleeping pills to keep her from crying so as not to give them away, Rendler escaped with falsified papers to live with a Polish woman in a nearby city under a new name: Olga Pachulchak.

After nearly two years with the woman, she then spent just as long in a Catholic convent with other Jewish children amid rumors of a German advance, at which point her parents lost track of their daughter. When the war ended in 1945, Rendler’s father, Mendel Feuerberg, exited the bunker and asked the nuns where she was, only to have them deny she was staying in their care. After returning daily to look for his daughter, Feuerberg met a child who knew of Zahava, and he proceeded to bribe one of the nuns with a kielbasa sausage to give up her location. Spotting his daughter on a playground, he grabbed her and ran off with a plan to emigrate to Palestine along with other European Jews. Their boat was

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HUMANITY IS THEIR JOB caught by British troops, who sent them to a displaced persons camp in Cyprus, as was the custom before the State of Israel was established in 1948.

They eventually made it to Israel, where Golda changed her name to Zahava (Hebrew for “gold”), then immigrated to Cincinnati in 1963. She never saw a Nazi and has no memories of their atrocities, but our long afternoon together includes several stories of anti-Semitism she’s encountered—while getting her teaching degree, on an airplane, from children who asked questions that would be impertinent coming from an adult—all of which touched on familiar hateful tropes, Holocaust denial, and cutting insults. In each case she politely deflected the attempt to bait her, but says knowing what she knows now she might react differently, with a healthy dose of what Jews refer to as “chutzpah.”

Rendler says even at her age she doesn’t fear the coronavirus as much as she fears the hiding. Tapping into the Passover story, she looks at the currently incurable virus as an “11th plague,” though safe in the knowledge that she can sit on her porch without fear that someone is going to drop a bomb on her neighborhood or take her family away because she’s Jewish. “I’m not afraid,” she says. “The corona? It’s not the same fear. In a way, it brought some people together and shows us if we don’t come together even worse things can happen.”

And then she fast-forwards from her story to the present again, drawing an invisible line between the 70-plus-year gap.

“Now at my age, I still have to be sad and afraid? What is this nonsense? All these riots? Does the color of our skin really matter?” Rendler says, her kind, liquid brown eyes softening as she laments the unrest convulsing the nation and her hometown in the wake of Floyd’s killing. “Is it the shape of our eyes that matter? Didn’t we learn from history what really happened to us?”

HOUSED IN THE SPRAWLING, HISTORIC Art Deco treasure that tells the human story from the prehistoric ice age to the founding of the nation, the Industrial Revolution, and our VR present, one thing that makes the HHC’s Union Terminal home unique is its direct tie to the place where history took hold. The HHC, named in honor of

the couple who’ve played a major philanthropic role in the Jewish and larger Cincinnati communities, is what Weiss calls the only “positive space” of its kind in the U.S. It marks the arrival or transfer spot of more than 1,000 Holocaust survivors who first laid eyes on Union Terminal after disembarking from one of the trains that used to steam through the once-bustling rail hub. Rendler vividly recalls landing at Union Terminal by train on August 30, 1963. That’s why there’s a hole cut into one of the exhibits allowing visitors to peek out into the freight train yard behind the Museum Center. Weiss says this authentic, one-of-a-kind connection to its larger home makes the HHC unique among the dozens of Holocaust museums and research centers across the country.

Since its move to the Museum Center, the 7,500-square-foot HHC has drawn visitors from nearly every state, with an estimated 80 percent not identifying as Jewish.

A place that houses trains—in yet another analogy of sorts, the enduring symbol of the vehicles that transported Jews and other Nazi victims to death camps—has been turned on its head, serving as a means to transport the genocide’s history.

The key to keeping the HHC’s mission as vital as possible, Weiss says, is continued outreach to a new generation. That’s why hundreds of area schools engage with the HHC through visits, traveling exhibits, or the Coppel Speakers Bureau. After hosting 150 events in its first year in Union Terminal—including a twice-weekly Holocaust Speaker Series—those sessions went digital during the pandemic, reaching thousands of viewers via Zoom. There were also panels on anti-Semitism and the pandemic, Q&A sessions with the museum’s curator, and special guest lectures that drew virtual visits and viewer questions from California to Germany and Israel. Partaking in the new COVID-19 custom, several local Holocaust survivors were also the guests of honor at drive-by parades in June, in an effort to have some face time with the group, who are mostly in their 80s and 90s.

Taking a page from the stories of perseverance told on the walls around her, Weiss says that this moment of challenge and change is a chance for the HHC to consider new opportunities. A new look outward has

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led to creative efforts that might not have otherwise been taken. “To me the saddest part is the school groups not coming,” she says, surveying the darkened theater that first greets guests as they enter. One corner is stacked with dozens of gray cube-shaped stools that would normally fill the space. As the film featuring survivor stories, including Rendler’s, unspools, the 10 remaining seats at appropriately distanced intervals seem small in the now cavernous-feeling room.

The HHC was in the midst of yet another makeover as summer dawned, with Weiss and her team redesigning the interactive kiosks to move away from touch surfaces and buttons to manipulation with styluses. As sheets of plastic sneeze-guards await placement, Weiss says she’s been talking to other museums about how they’re handling the counterintuitive switch from encouraging participation and active listening to literally erecting barriers to keep visitors apart and switching to self-guided audio tours.

RENDLER’S FATHER ALWAYS TOLD HER not to be afraid to tell her story. He wanted her to keep describing what she and other Holocaust victims went through, as often as she could, wherever she could. “On the other hand, I’m looking and nothing has changed,” she says of the frightening images of fire and fury on the TV news, stopping to smile as a small deer materializes just feet away from the porch and squealing children ride by on their not-so-spacedout bikes. “It’s fear, it’s anger, it’s sadness.

It’s not appreciating again life. Why can’t we live in peace? We must work together.

We must make it a better life to live.”

So, like the HHC, Rendler will keep telling her story. It might look different—for a little while longer anyway—but the story will be told. “In my sense I always think, You cannot escape from evil. Maybe we’ll never be able to escape from evil, and that’s why we have to work together,” she says, happy that she’s bound to her comfortable home and not a dark, cramped hiding space.

The key is to keep moving forward, to learn whatever lessons we can about brutality inflicted on a minority group whose only crime was trying to survive and thrive.

“I don’t have to keep sharing my story,” says Rendler, clearly pained to say goodbye from a distance. “But humanity is my job.”

STORMING THE CASTLE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 57

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Storming the Castle Andy Farfsing embraces the challenges of remaking Purcell Marian High School “from scratch” in the face of changing Catholic education trends and uncertainty surrounding COVID-19.

By Polk Laffoon IV Illustration by Matt Herring

P H OTO G R A P H S BY J O N AT H A N W I L L I S

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and two months after the first contact, he was at work on Hackberry Street. “I spent the first semester on the phone, asking various people what had gone wrong,” he says.

“My shortest conversation was 44 minutes.

The school had had a series of leaders who made decisions for the wrong reasons. The blended learning lab was just one example.

It had been brought in to reduce staff and cost, but there were 80 kids doing math with one teacher.”

Farfsing says computers had replaced a number of the teachers at the school—a big mistake. “Computers are a piece of the picture, but they can’t be the whole picture,” he says. “The number one variable that de-

lenge. Should a school’s board of trustees want or need a new principal, it conducts a search and then makes a recommendation to the Archdiocese, which generally complies. Other Catholic high schools— notably St. Xavier, Summit, St. Ursula, and Ursuline—are independently owned, but have some accountability to the Archdiocese as well. They generally charge higher tuition and traditionally are thought to have higher academic standards. Not everyone agrees, of course; teachers at Purcell Marian, for instance, would rank their best students with those anywhere.

Throughout much of the 20th century, each of the diocesan high schools served well-defined areas of the community, fed by elementary schools in their geographic districts. By the 1970s and ’80s, however, that pattern began to break apart. Lots of Catholic families moved to the suburbs, with the schools they left behind suffering inevitable—and often dramatic—enrollment declines. In its heyday, circa 1960, Purcell High School enrolled as many as 1,000 boys. The number was markedly less by 1980, but after

“I WANTED SOMETHING THAT WOULD PUT US IN A NETWORK OF OTHER HIGH-MINDED EDUCATORS,” SAYS ANDY FARFSING OF THE INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE PROGRAM. termines a kid’s success in the classroom is the teacher, the person who can engage students in meaningful learning and lessons. Kids will ask, Why do I have to know this? The teacher has to be able to answer.

A group of Purcell Marian parents sounded the alarm to me. When I came in, 30 freshmen were transferring to other schools.”

The context in which Purcell Marian and other Cincinnati Catholic schools operate today has certainly changed in recent decades. A federation of high schools and “feeder” elementary schools serves under the Archdiocese’s oversight, with various forms of ownership and governance.

Schools like Purcell Marian and La Salle are owned outright by the Archdiocese, while others are owned by various religious orders. All charge tuition, and all have reputations for varying levels of academic chal-

adding the Marian girls enrollment jumped back up to about 800. Purcell Marian today has 335 students, with Farfsing citing an increase as a major priority.

At the same time, many of the nuns and brothers who had taught at Catholic high schools without compensation left their religious orders or died; the lay teachers who replaced them required salaries. In 2005–’06, the Archdiocese did away with districting, meaning that any student could go to any high school he or she chose—if the one nearby didn’t seem a good fit, it would be simple enough to move. Competition for bodies rose, and so did costs.

Purcell Marian was caught in the vise.

George Strietmann, a 1972 alumnus who served on the board of trustees for 10 years, recalls, “When I was there, we had a strong football team, wrestling excelled, discipline

was a big thing, and the education was very traditional. Maybe 75 percent of graduates went to college. The other 25 percent went to work at General Motors in Norwood.”

The population shifts, loss of “free” faculty, skyrocketing tuition costs, and lack of a strong alumni fund-raising effort all contributed to deterioration that, Strietmann says, made for “an incredibly challenging situation” at Purcell Marian. The “blended learning” initiative was rolled out over three years as a potential fix, affecting first math, then English and history, and requiring reoriented classrooms, new computers and software, and teacher training. It wouldn’t be cheap, but generous alumni stepped forward to underwrite the equipment.

It never worked, says Strietmann, because there were too many students in the room and not enough teachers, or teacher time, to go around. Before long, he recalls, “the blended learning program contributed to a negative reputation, and enrollment was dropping.” By early 2017, the board, which served largely in an advisory capacity and had been somewhat insulated from day-to-day operations, recognized that the school’s finances were seriously imperiled.

Its best, and perhaps last, option was to replace the principal.

THE FIRST THING ANDY FARFSING DID was begin weeding the Purcell Marian faculty, hiring the kinds of people he wanted and encouraging others who wouldn’t be comfortable in the environment he envisioned to leave. Since his arrival, the faculty turnover has been about 70 percent. “I’m good at identifying young teaching talent,” says Farfsing. “I ask them to be their best every day. I ask them to be willing to reinvent themselves and to adhere to certain values, like being internationally minded.

Education degrees are important, but I’m interested in people who understand what it means to be a mentor and a life coach.”

One early recruit was Bob Herring, a longtime acquaintance who, for 31 years, had been principal of Nativity Elementary School in Pleasant Ridge. After retiring in 2015 and hearing of Farfsing’s new post, he offered to help out as an unpaid teaching coach.

From the time he’d interviewed to become principal, Farfsing had proposed to

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STORMING THE CASTLE both the board and the Archdiocese that Purcell Marian become an International Baccalaureate school. “I wanted something that would be bold, to put us in a network of other high-minded educators,” he says. “Yes, we could have simply instituted Advanced Placement studies, but I didn’t want to do what other schools were already doing well. I wanted something that could be uniquely ours, and through which we could share resources, ideas, and even teachers.” He asked Herring to run it.

The IB curriculum grew out of a concept first introduced in the mid-1960s in Geneva, Switzerland, to offer challenging academics in a variety of subjects. Before graduating, students are required to give evidence of a well-considered “theory of knowledge” in oral and written presentations, do an extended essay of some 4,000 words on a topic requiring serious investigative research, and design a creative activity service project with an eye to making a societal difference in some way. IB professionals outside of Cincinnati evaluate student achievement in each of the areas.

IB programs can be found in nearly 5,300 schools worldwide, including 1,800 in the U.S., and qualifying for them is difficult. It demands training of the school’s principal and participating teachers, as well as a screening process by an outside verification team. Farfsing wanted every teacher to be IB-qualified, meaning that all would have to be trained. Herring, he knew, would be good at shepherding the school through the rigors. He also knew that Herring had a lengthy history of overseeing exchange programs with students in Ukraine and Ecuador, so his “international outlook” was proven.

Herring agreed to become the IB director, with nominal pay, and Purcell Marian’s IB program launched last fall. By February, 34 students were taking 77 classes in IB math, English, social studies, chemistry, Spanish, and the visual arts. “It’s experiential, problem-based learning in a local and global context, with emphasis on teamwork and collaboration,” says Herring. “The key is it provides the opportunity. If you want it, it’s here. We’re creating opportunities that to my mind are critical in a global era.”

Before the state closed down schools due to the pandemic, Farfsing and Herring used the IB network to find a COVID-19

protocol at a school in Taiwan and tweaked it for local purposes. They decided that classroom instruction would continue by computer—luckily, students already had their own school-issued laptops. Not every class met every day—“it was too much,” Farfsing says. Instead, each class met once a week for two and a half hours at a time.

Farfsing has made changes everywhere at Purcell Marian. He brought in a chief operating officer, Micki Spencer, whose first priority was to assure strong customer service in all its forms: teachers to staff, parents to teachers, administrators to parents.

The welcoming front desk person reflects her aspiration. “We needed to build trust back for everyone who walks into the building,” Spencer says simply. Now with eyes on admissions, the business office, counseling, and athletics, she says, “I thought I knew what I was getting into, but it was bigger than I imagined.”

Farfsing hired a new chief financial officer, Jenny Jostworth, to eliminate bad debt, create a “rainy day fund,” and put the school in better standing with its vendors.

He named Chris Wilke director of career initiatives to focus on preparing students for one of three post-graduate endeavors: college, employment, or the military. He hired Emma O’Connor to create a Spanish outreach program, Asistencia Latina, for the 8 percent of school families who don’t speak English as their primary language.

D.J. Dowdy, a University of Cincinnati graduate and football player, is the new athletic director, tasked with arresting what Farfsing perceived as a decline in sports success. Purcell Marian has long been strong in basketball, but less consistent with football. Farfsing withdrew the school from the Greater Catholic League to become part of the Miami Valley Conference, creating a more equitable level of competition, and eliminated physical education as a requirement. Instead, students play a school sport for two seasons.

To the existing options of football, basketball, baseball, cross-country, bowling, and cheerleading, Farfsing and Dowdy reinstated girls’ soccer, which had been canceled years ago; 17 players signed up for the spring season. They also brought back the marching band.

English teacher Barret Bell says she was

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drawn to the school three years ago because of the student body diversity and Farfsing’s embrace of new approaches. “It’s a genuine coming together with a grand sense of possibility,” says Bell. “It isn’t a foregone conclusion that these students will go to college, and we don’t have the kind of ‘diversity’ you find in schools that, in truth, are segregated within their own walls. It is truly diverse. I don’t think there’s another school in this region like it.”

Sister Janet Linz, a 20-year veteran of The Castle, connects students of limited resources to the tools they need to be successful, as co-director of the Lavatus Powell program. “I’m passionate about working with kids,” she says. “I want to know how I can be part of their graduation, their lives, giving them the skills to move forward. The kids have kept me here.” The revived Purcell Marian hosts students of varying ethnic backgrounds, varying abilities, varying psychological profiles, and varying aspirations.

Fewer than 50 percent are Catholic, but all take religion class in each of their four years.

They hear a prayer once daily, either on the intercom or led by a teacher in the classroom, and they attend mass once a month.

“We all share something in common when we look at a higher power,” says Linz.“But we express it differently.”

With the new school year set to launch this month, Farfsing has developed a three-pronged approach to reopening The Castle. Plan A calls for a return of the full student body with social distancing, including one-way traffic flows in the hallways and no use of the school cafeteria.

Plan B will go into effect if tighter protocols are required, mandating a 50 percent reduction in class sizes—meaning that half the students would attend one day and half the next. On the alternate days, when they remain at home, students would take class online. Farfsing says Plan C will be implemented only if COVID-19 resurfaces in a big way, which would mean a return to 100 percent remote learning.

As someone who likes to be bold while controlling as many variables as possible, Farfsing acknowledges that he needs to rely on faith and hope while plotting out students’ return to The Castle. He sees it as another opportunity to make a first impression.

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PHOTOGRAPH BY JEREMY KRAMER

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DINING OUT

FAMILY TABLE

PEPP & DOLORES serves good pasta in hard times.

M

—A K S H AY A H U J A

Y VISITS TO PEPP & DOLORES CAME AT A PARTICULAR MOMENT IN late May, the context too much a part of the experience to exclude from this review. The weather was suddenly beautiful, and after months of being shut down because of the novel coronavirus, parts of the city felt like they were releasing a breath that had been held for months as restrictions on indoor and outdoor restaurant service were loosened. Restaurants and bars were full of people—staying apart, but not all that far apart—and the only indication that anything was out of the ordinary was masks on the servers.

The city blocked off side streets to traffic to help restaurants accommodate more guests while adhering to capacity limits as they reopened, including 15th Street, where Pepp & Dolores built a dining tent. All the nearby windows were open and the breeze was blowing inside the tent; people were chatting like they hadn’t seen each other in years; and I was drinking a cold blood orange cocktail—lovely and longed for on a warm day. Meanwhile, my son was hypnotized by the Pepp & Dolores pasta machine, seen through a window from the street, as it extruded perfectly studded lumache.

With the sun shining, it was one of those days so beautiful it felt almost unreal.

This day was, it turned out, a kind of mirage. A few days later, George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, and protests started around the country, including here in Over-the-Rhine. I spoke to Joe Lanni, cofounder of Thunderdome Restaurant Group, which owns Pepp & Dolores among several other restaurants in the city, when the demonstrations were still gathering steam. That afternoon, he had just learned of the city’s 9 8 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

FYI

Pepp & Dolores 1501 Vine St., Over-theRhine, (513) 419-1820, peppanddolores.com Hours Please call ahead to confirm hours and services.

Prices $6 (marinated cucumbers)–$19 (lobster squid ink fusilli) Credit Cards All major The Takeaway A wonderfully solid Italian restaurant, reliable even in tough times.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEREMY KRAMER

PROUD TR ADITIONS (From left)

The airy dining room at Pepp & Dolores; limone pasta with creamy Meyer lemon sauce; eggplant involtini with seasoned ricotta and housemade tomato sauce; Chef Justin Uchtman.

8 p.m. curfew. The staff, which had just returned after weeks of shutdown, was about to be sent home.

The restaurant industry, already hurting badly during the pandemic, was now facing another upheaval. Pepp & Dolores had done its best to pivot during the shutdown, introducing family meal kits with antipasti, sauce, and fresh boil-at-home pasta, and simpler online ordering. They were trying, with carryout, to generate the sense of family and community that is at the heart of their latest restaurant.

Pepp & Dolores is named after Joe’s and his brother and fellow cofounder John’s Italian immigrant grandparents, Giuseppe and Addolorata. As with all of Thunderdome’s restaurants, you get a sense that they want to deliver a meal that satisfies many different kinds of people. (There is a reason they’re always packed.)

The prices are reasonable, and the pasta entrées at the heart of the menu are about $15. The dishes are familiar in their flavors, but everything feels balanced and modulated and gradually perfected, an indication of the way their culinary team works together to get things right.

Within the borders of this crowd-pleasing fare, there is lovely variety: the limone pasta is zippy with lemon and chili flakes, and just the right mixture of tart and creamy; the deep meaty flavors on the mushroom toast are balanced with a nice acidity; and the heat in dishes like the eggplant involtini is just enough to wake up the sauce without overwhelming the flavor. The menu has a wealth of excellent vegetarian and pasta-alternative options. Even classics like the wedge salad, which could have been spoiled by too heavy a

hand on the gorgonzola, are in perfect balance, and enlivened with touches like blistered tomatoes.

One of the pleasures at Pepp & Dolores is the extraordinary variety of pasta shapes and colors on display, including a squid ink fusilli that sort of reminded me of a black pasta caterpillar. They join other unfamiliar shapes like campanelle and casarecce, all of which are lovely, firm, and toothsome. Nothing is more ordinary than pasta, or more satisfying at its best.

It is one of Thunderdome’s special talents to find the surprises within the familiar and the comforting, from the long-simmered pork added to the signature Sunday Sauce to the airy amaretti biscuits that are served at the end of the meal in place of dessert.

When I asked Lanni what he had learned from this period that might prove useful going forward, he mentioned a few pragmatic things, like introducing carryout, for example, and more streamlined online ordering. But then, speaking more generally, he mentioned that this whole period has been a kind of stress test for their organization. They were seeing which parts broke under the strain and which managed to come through intact.

You can learn a lot from these crises. Not only about which people and institutions you can count on, but also about what you care enough to save. Particularly if those things are, it turns out, fragile. As Lanni points out, as a community we have built something special in Cincinnati. We have a dining scene that far outstrips, in breadth and quality, what you would expect for a city this size. Pepp & Dolores is another fine addition to this mosaic, one that depends on the survival of many other quality establishments to keep itself going. Right now, it is undeniably facing a life-threatening challenge. If we care enough about it, we need to work to sustain it.

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TABLESIDE WITH...

ANDREA SUTTON LEE

FINE DIVING

FOUR YEARS AGO THIS EDUcator took a chance, trading her textbooks for baking tools, and started her own boutique bakery, Sugar. Despite setbacks from COVID-19, she’s reemerged with a new line of products and a delivery model to sustain the business in the meantime.

What sets Sugar apart? Our shop is really small. We sell a variety of cookies and cupcakes, usually, and dessert jars, pudding, Rice Krispie treats, brownies, you name it. The biggest thing is we don’t mass produce anything. We value freshness and quality, so everything is available on a preorder basis.

Flying Two Flags WITH ONE, CINCINNATI HAVING SUCH A LARGE GREEK POPULATION; TWO, THE MEDITERranean diet being so popular; and three, Greek food being the best stuff on the planet, it stymies me that there’s not an “authentic” Greek restaurant on every corner here. Sure, we have plenty of chili parlors, and it seems almost every diner is Greek-owned, but when you want the mouth-melting pork of a souvlaki or those amazing layers of meat and eggplant in a moussaka, where do you go? Well, now you’ve got Tino’s. This little west side establishment is the real deal, with both Greece and America well represented on the menu. There’s pastitsio (noodles with spiced meat layered with a béchamel cream sauce, kind of like moussaka with training wheels), homemade spanakopita (a fresh spinach and feta phyllo pastry that Tino’s dad hand rolls in the back daily), and their ever-popular and juicy gyros. Tino also knows his American fare, with roast beef and fresh-mashed potatoes, still-sizzling half-pound Angus burgers, liver and onions (for those who must), and double-deckers galore with homemade tuna, chicken, and egg salad.

You have to end it all with some homemade baklava. Honestly, Tino’s food is so good it’s the kind of place you’ll want to order five entrées, Tino’s Greek American Family take a bite of each, bring the rest home as leftovers, and consider that Restaurant, 5826 your grocery shopping for the week. I know this for a fact, because, Cheviot Rd., White Oak, (513) 245-0095 well, I did that. — J . K E V I N W O L F E 1 0 0 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

What led to your career switch?

I was an educator for almost 10 years.. . . I observed a lot of predatory practices [where I was working].

I made a decision [in 2016] to leave, because I felt like every day I was in there I was giving a stamp of validation. .. . I spent a lot of time baking as a release. . . . I was looking for work... but the [baking] business had picked up in such a way that I thought, Hey, why don’t I try to make this into something and ride this wave?

How has COVID-19 affected Sugar?

It was tough. . . but I had to stop [for the safety of my family] and plan my pivot. . . . We made the decision to reopen every other weekend [for delivery]. Our products have changed, though not entirely. I’ve moved a little bit away from custom cakes... [toward] things people want to have as a treat at home.

—KAILEIGH

PEYTON

Sugar, cakesbysugar.com Read a longer conversation with Andrea at cincinnatimagazine.com

PH OTO G R A PH BY W E S B AT TO C LE T TE / ILLU S TR ATI O N BY C H R I S DA N G E R

OFF THE MENU

LEAP OF FAITH

PH OTO G R A PHS CO UR TE S Y G O O D PL ATE S E ATERY

THIS COUPLE STARTED WORKING ON THEIR OWN EATERY DURING THE SHUTDOWN. — J A C L Y N Y O U H A N A G A R V E R

In the middle of an industry shakeup caused by the coronavirus, Northside couple Andrew and Jamie Schlanser were just getting started on their dream of opening their own restaurant, Good Plates Eatery, set to open this month.

Earlier this year, when the owner of Cilantro Vietnamese Bistro in Clifton Heights decided to close his restaurant, he asked if Andrew might be interested in taking over the space. “That was late January,” Andrew says.

“We were kind of going back and forth, trying to work out the details.

[We] actually put down a small deposit, while we figured things out, on March 11.”

On March 15, the Ohio Department of Health ordered all restaurants in the state to close to dine-in customers—which is how the couple found themselves opening Good Plates Eatery during a global pandemic that has stalled restaurant businesses worldwide.

As ominous as this venture might sound, things worked out better than they hoped. Andrew’s former employer, Chapter Mt. Adams, permanently closed due to the coronavirus, which gave him more time to work on Good Plates than he had anticipated. Jamie was ready to get back into the workforce after taking a hiatus from the restaurant industry to stay home with the couple’s twins.

Originally they planned to spend a month working on todos like painting, hiring staff, and figuring out the menu, with a goal of opening just before the end of the school year to catch UC students

before they left for the summer.

“It was like, Oh, shoot. The world has basically come to a halt and left us without the restaurant,” Andrew says, but then the “dominos fell into place, and everything just worked out exactly how we needed it to.”

Over the summer the Schlansers have been able to work at a more leisurely pace, with a goal of opening in time for the fall rush of students. The restaurant is located in the southwest corner of the UC’s main campus, which gives the Schlansers the exact customer base they wanted:

students looking for a taste of something familiar. Good Plates Eatery’s menu will feature scratch-made salads, soups, and twists on classic sandwiches, like an adobo grilled cheese.

The hope is to create a place for students to feel at home. When Jamie went away to school, she says she remembers feeling uneasy about all the changes and living in a new setting. “I want [diners] to feel comfortable and like they can come in any day,” she says. “Even if they’re far from home, they’re safe and can eat and hang out [at the restaurant].”

Good Plates Eatery, 235 W. McMillan St., Clifton Heights, instagram.com/goodplateseatery

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TRY THIS

BOXED IN IN CASE YOU missed it (somehow): COVID-19, um, changed a few things this year. Not least of which being how we acquire and consume food. In a range of responses to the sharp reconstruction of our daily norms, The Welcome Project—an arm of Camp Washington’s Wave Pool Art Fulfillment Center—has one of our favorites. For a few years, they’ve hosted large community dinners, which, of course, got shut down. So the Wave Pool crew quickly kicked a new project into gear: Welcome Table Boxes. “They are to-go, pre-prepared, heat-andeat dinners for four [or six], prepared by refugees and immigrants in Cincinnati that tell their story,” says Wave Pool Executive Director Calcagno Cullen. “It’s a collaboration with Dean’s Mediterranean [at Findlay Market],” where the first set of meals was prepped and cooked.

But it’s not only about the food; it’s about the interactive, artistcreated packaging that includes the recipe and the chef’s story. First up: Iraqi biryani from chef Azzezah Ali, followed by poulet braisé with riz au gras from Manzara Reed (pictured). The first one sold out fast, so we suggest you get on that welcome train stat.

—A LYSS A KO N E R M A N N Welcome Table Boxes, wavepoolgallery.org/ welcome-table-boxes

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DINING GUIDE CINCINNATI MAGAZINE’S

dining guide is compiled by our editors as a service to our readers.

The magazine accepts no advertising or other consideration in exchange for a restaurant listing.

The editors may add or delete restaurants based on their judgment.

Because of space limitations, all

of the guide’s restaurants may not be included. Many restaurants have changing seasonal menus; dishes listed here are examples of the type of cuisine available and may not be on the menu when you visit.

To update listings, e-mail: cmletters@cincinnati magazine.com

CABANA ON THE RIVER

7445 Forbes Rd., Sayler Park, (513) 941-7442, cabanaontheriver.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $

ICON BY REDKOALA/STOCK.ADOBE.COM

COPPIN’S

With wine on tap and an extensive local beer list, Coppin’s is an ideal place to meet for drinks. In addition to plenty of Kentucky bourbon, much of the produce, meat, and cheese comes from local growers and producers. House-cured meat and cheese from Kenny’s Farmhouse and cheese from Urban Stead populate the “Artisan Cheese and Charcuterie Board,” which dresses up the main attractions with honey, dijon mustard, house pickles, and Sixteen Bricks grilled sourdough. The mussels—made with seasonally rotating sauces and chorizo from Napoleon Ridge Farms in Gallatin County—were served with a peppery tomato sauce, perfect for sopping up with bread. The seven-ounce Sakura Farms Wagyu rib eye with wild mushrooms, roasted parsnip, and beef jus is a must have. Or try the striped bass with grape farro roasted broccolini and mussel cream sauce. 638 Madison Ave., Covington, (859) 905-6600, hotelcovington. com/dining/coppins. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days. MCC. $$

COZY’S CAFÉ & PUB

On a visit to England, Jan Collins discovered the “cozy” atmosphere of London restaurants built in historic houses. She brought that warm, comfort-

Named a

Top 10 Best Restaurant March 2020

able feeling back to the United States in opening Cozy’s. Though the atmosphere in the restaurant is reminiscent of Collins’s London travels, the food remains proudly American. The produce in virtually every dish is fresh, seasonal, and flavorful.

The 12-hour pork shank stands out with its buttery grits and root vegetable hash, along with a portion of tender meat. And when it comes down to the classics, from the biscuits that open the meal to carrot cake at the end, Cozy’s does it right.

AMERICAN Like a big outdoor picnic with a view of the serene hills of Kentucky and the Ohio River rolling by, this is one of those places west-siders would rather the rest of Cincinnati didn’t know about.

Its annual debut in late spring marks the official beginning of summer for many. People flock to the Cabana for good food prepared well: grilled mahi-mahi sandwiches, pork barbecue, steak on a stick, Angus beef burgers, Italian and steak hoagies, white chicken chili, and interesting salads. While some of the fare is familiar pub grub, nothing is sub-standard. Even potato chips are made in-house and seasoned with Cajun spices.

KEY: No checks unless specified.

AE American Express, DC Diners Club DS Discover, MC MasterCard, V Visa MCC Major credit cards: AE, MC, V $ = Under $15 $$$ = Up to $49 $$ = Up to $30 $$$$ = $50 and up

6440 Cincinnati Dayton Rd., Liberty Twp., (513) 644-9364, cozyscafeandpub.com. Dinner Tues–Sat, brunch Sat & Sun. $$$

NEW BREW

Sharonville’s first and only craft brewery Third Eye Brewing Company, which opened in June, was a dream realized for cofounder Tom Collins, a former product designer who had his sights on opening a brewery for a decade.

Its initial offerings combine the brewing mastery of Kelly Montgomery (formerly of Brink Brewing) and Chloe Schaefer for a creative selection of six beers on tap, along with bites from its full-service kitchen.

thirdeyebrewingco. com

CWC THE RESTAURANT

Founded by the sister duo behind the culinary multimedia platform Cooking with Caitlin, this eatery makes comfort food feel a notch more au courant, imbuing a true family-friendly philosophy. Its burgers are topped with a generous ladle of gooey house-made cheddar sauce and served with hand-cut French fries that many a mother will filch from her offspring’s plate.

Portions—and flavors—are generous, eliciting that feeling of being royally indulged. Similarly, every item on the Sunday brunch menu virtually dares you to go big or go home. Make a reservation for parties of more than four and plan to be spoiled rotten. Then plan to take a lengthy nap.

1517 Springfield Pke., Wyoming, (513) 407-3947, cwctherestaurant.com. Dinner Fri & Sat, brunch Sun. MCC. $

MR. GENE’S DOGHOUSE

Cumminsville is home to arguably the best hot chili cheese mett and chocolate malt in Greater Cincinnati. A family owned business that began as a simple hot dog stand more than 50 years ago, Mr. Gene’s still attracts lines of loyal customers at its windows. Can’t stand the heat? Order the mild chili mett—more flavor, fewer BTUs. And if you still haven’t embraced Cincinnati-style coneys, try the Chicago-style hot dog with pickles, onions, relish, mustard, tomato, and celery salt; a barbecue sandwich; or wings (a sign proclaims “So hot they make the devil sweat”). Although the chocolate malt is the biggest seller, we love the $3.25 pineapple shake, made with real pineapple. 3703 Beekman St., South Cumminsville, (513) 541-7636, mrgenesdoghouse.com. Open Feb–Dec for lunch and dinner Mon–Sat. MC, V. $

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AMERICAN BARBECUE CAJUN/CARIBBEAN ECLECTIC INDIAN ITALIAN KOREAN MEDITERRANEAN MEXICAN STEAKS THAI

GOOSE & ELDER

The third restaurant from chef Jose Salazar, Goose & Elder is a more everyday kind of joint compared to his others. The prices are lower, and most of the dishes, from burgers to grits, are familiar. Salazar’s menus have always hinted that the chef had a fondness for, well, junk food.

But junk food is only junk if it is made thoughtlessly. Everything here is made with little twists, like the cumin-spiced potato chips and delicate ribbons of housemade cucumber pickles with a sweet rice wine vinegar. Even the fries, crinkle cut and served with “goose sauce,” a mildly spiced mayonnaise, are wonderfully addictive.

The restaurant demonstrates that what we now consider “fast food” can be awfully good if someone makes it the old-fashioned, slow way. 1800 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 579-8400, goose andelder.com. Lunch Tues–Fri, dinner Tues–Sun, brunch Sat & Sun. MCC. $$

THE NATIONAL EXEMPLAR

The classics are here—prime rib with horseradish and au jus; liver and onions; an eight-ounce filet with bernaise—plus some new favorites, including short rib pasta. Or have breakfast, English-style: fried eggs, bacon, sausage, stewed beans, roasted tomatoes, and buttered toast.

The dinner menu also features burgers, risotto, pasta, seafood, and plenty more lighter options.

6880 Wooster Pke., Mariemont, (513) 271-2103, nationalexemplar.com. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $$

PUTZ’S CREAMY WHIP

When your tongue touches the frozen white Nirvana on top of a Putz’s cone, every moment of every joy of every summer of your life is condensed into one simple swipe. It’s the sweetness, the creaminess, the cloud-like texture. I dare you to close your eyes, taste it, and not think of your first summer love, or getting invited to the new neighbor’s pool on the second day of August.

Putz’s coneys are also very popular. But it’s the simplicity of vanilla on a cone that has made this place. When I-74 was being built, the expressway would have landed three feet from Putz’s back door. As bizarre as this sounds, the U.S. Department of Transportation actually moved the freeway for Putz’s. They do that kind of thing for holy shrines. 2673 Putz Place, Westwood,

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MAIN WHERE REVIEW TO EAT NOW

(513) 681-8668, putzscreamywhip.com. Lunch and dinner seven days, seasonally. Cash. $

BARBECUE ELI’S BBQ Elias Leisring started building his pulled pork reputation under canopies at Findlay Market and Fountain Square in 2011. Leisring’s proper little ’cue shack along the river serves up ribs that are speaking-in-tongues good, some of the zazziest jalapeño cheese grits north of the MasonDixon line, and browned mashed potatoes that would make any short order cook diner-proud.

The small no-frills restaurant—packed cheekby-jowl most nights—feels like it’s been there a lifetime, with customers dropping vinyl on the turntable, dogs romping in the side yard, and picnic tables crowded with diners. The hooch is bring-your-own, and the barbecue is bona fide.

3313 Riverside Dr., East End, (513) 533-1957, elis barbeque.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC. $

PONTIAC BBQ

GOODBYE, MAYBE? After nine years in Over-the-Rhine, A Tavola announced in June it would close temporarily, with no time frame for reopening. Fans of the pizzeria and bar flooded the restaurant’s Facebook post with messages of disappointment, encouragement, and hope that it would reopen. The eatery’s Madeira location remains open, as well as sister restaurant Taglio in OTR and ColumbiaTusculum.

Dan Wright’s BBQ dream comes to life in a honkytonkish setting, delivering inexpensive barbecue that draws from multiple traditions—Kansas City, Memphis, and Texas—a few basic sides (baconand-pickled-jalapeño-topped white grits and a silky mac-and-cheese), and plenty of bourbon.

Snack on fried pickles or smoked wings, then move on to brisket (both fatty and lean), pulled pork, and smoked-on-the-bone short ribs. This is ridiculously high-quality comfort food at a friendly price point. 1403 Vine St., Over-theRhine, (513) 579-8500, pontiacbbq.com. Lunch and dinner Tues–Sun, brunch Sun. MCC. $$

WALT’S HITCHING POST A Northern Kentucky institution returns. Roughly 750 pounds of ribs per week are pit-fired in a small building in front of the restaurant, with a smaller dedicated smoker out back for brisket and chicken. Walt’s ribs begin with several hours in the smokehouse and then are quick-seared at the time of service. This hybrid method takes advantage of the leaner nature of the baby-back ribs they prefer to use. Each rib had a just-right tooth to it where soft flesh peeled away from the bone. One hidden treasure: Walt’s housemade tomato and garlic dressing. Slightly thicker than a vinaigrette yet unwilling to overwhelm a plate of greens, the two key elements play well together. 3300 Madison Pke., Ft. Wright, (859) 360-2222, waltshitchingpost.com. Dinner seven days. MCC. $$

atavolapizza.com

CAJUN/ CARIBBEAN BREWRIVER CREOLE More than 800 miles from New Orleans, this may be as close as you can get to the real deal here in your own backyard. The menu fully leans into Chef Michael Shields’s penchant for cuisine from the Crescent City. His six years of training under NOLA’s own Emeril Lagasse comes through in a scratch kitchen menu that spans a range of the city’s classics. The enormous shrimp and oyster po’ boys—the former protein fried in a light and crispy beer batter and the latter in a hearty cornmeal breading—are served on fluffy French bread loaves and dressed with lightly spicy rémoulades. The jambalaya packs all the heat of a late summer day in the French Quarter without masking a hint of its satisfying flavors.

Paired with a Sazerac and nightly live jazz, you

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4632 Eastern Ave., Linwood, (513) 861-2484, brewrivercreolekitchen.com. Dinner Tues–Sun, brunch & lunch Fri–Sun. MCC. $

that sets its food apart. The hamachi crudo, an old standby on the menu, takes Japanese flavors and gives them new dimensions with grapefruit suprêmes and slivers of shishito pepper. This is food of extraordinary creativity and flair.

SWAMPWATER GRILL

114 E. Sixth St., downtown, (513) 542-2022, bo cacincinnati.com. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DS. $$$

may just feel tempted to start a second line.

At first blush, this place is a dive where homesick Cajuns can find a good pile of jambalaya. But thoughtful details like draft Abita Root Beer and char-grilled Gulf Coast oysters on the half shell signal its ambition. Bayou standards like jambalaya, gumbo, and fried seafood also make an appearance. But the extensive menu also features amped up pub-style items for those who may be squeamish about crawfish tails (which can be added to just about anything on the menu). You’ll also find a roundup of oyster, shrimp, and catfish Po’Boys, as well as a selection of hardwoodsmoked meats. 3742 Kellogg Ave., East End, (513) 834-7067, swampwatergrill.com. Lunch and dinner Wed–Sun, brunch Fri–Sun. MCC. $$

KNOTTY PINE ON THE BAYOU The Pine serves some of the best Louisiana homestyle food you’ll find this far north of New Orleans.

Taste the fried catfish filets with their peppery crust, or the garlic sauteed shrimp with smoky greens on the side, and you’ll understand why it’s called soul food. Between March and June, it’s crawfish season. Get them boiled and heaped high on a platter or in a superb crawfish etouffee. But the rockin’ gumbo—a thick, murky brew of andouille sausage, chicken, and vegetables—serves the best roundhouse punch all year round. As soon as you inhale the bouquet and take that first bite, you realize why Cajun style food is considered a high art form and a serious pleasure. And you’ll start planning your return trip. 6302 Licking Pke., Cold Spring, (859) 781-2200, letseat.at/KnottyPine. Dinner Tues–Sun. MCC, DS. $$

ECLECTIC Top 10

ABIGAIL STREET

Most people who’ve eaten at Abigail Street have favorite dishes that they order every visit: the Moroccan spiced broccoli, for example, or the mussels charmoula, with its perfect balance of saffron, creaminess, and tomatoey acidity. Many of the new items on the menu have the same perfected feeling as these classics. Working within a loose framework of Middle Eastern and North African flavors, Abigail Street has never fallen into a routine that would sap its energy. New offerings like the duck leg confit, with spicy-sour harissa flavors, firm-tender butternut squash, and perfectly made couscous, feel just as accomplished as old favorites like the falafel, beautifully moist and crumbly with a bright parsley interior. The restaurant is always watching for what works and what will truly satisfy, ready to sacrifice the superficially interesting in favor of the essential. 1214 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 421-4040, abigailstreet. com. Dinner Tues–Sat. MCC, DS. $$ Top 10

BOCA

With its grand staircase, chandelier, and floor-to-ceiling draperies, Boca has an atmosphere of grandeur and refinement. There is a sense of drama not only in the decor but in everything it serves. In some dishes, there is a painterly sense of contrast and surprise, like violet-derived purple sugar beside the pain de Gênes (French almond cake). In others, there is a dramatic suspense, like the whole egg yolk quivering in the center of the Fassone tartare waiting to be broken. While staying mostly grounded in the fundamentals of Italian and French cuisine, Boca has an air of international sophistication

Top 10

BOUQUET RESTAURANT AND WINE BAR

Normally diners aren’t pleased when a restaurant runs out of something. At Bouquet, though, surprise changes to the menu are simply a sign of integrity. Chef-owner Stephen Williams is serious about using seasonal ingredients, and if the figs have run out or there is no more chicken from a local farm, so be it. The flavors at Bouquet are about doing justice to what’s available. Preparations are unfussy, complexity coming from within the vegetables and proteins themselves.

A tomato salad—wonderfully fresh and vibrant, so you know the tomatoes have just come off a nearby vine—is dressed with chopped shiso, a crimson herb that tastes like a mysterious combination of mint and cilantro. This determination to make something delicious out of what’s on hand, to embrace limitations, gives the food at Bouquet a rustic, soulful quality. 519 Main St., Covington, (859) 491-7777, bouquetrestaurant.com.

Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DS. $$

COMMONWEALTH BISTRO Everything from the old jukebox by the entrance to the sepia-toned rabbit-and-pheasant wallpaper exudes an appreciation for the antique. But rather than duplicating old recipes, Covington’s Commonwealth uses history as a springboard to create something elegant and original. Two dishes get at what makes this place special: biscuits and fried rabbit. Their biscuit, served with tart quince butter, is perfection—moist and flaky, without being coat-your-throat buttery or crumble-to-ash dry. The rabbit is crisp, light, and not at all greasy, with just the right touch of seasoning and a bright biz baz sauce, a cilantro and garlic sauce of Somali origin that tastes like a creamy salsa verde. Brunch offers the same sort of mashup, including salsa verde pork with pickled jalapeño grits made creamy with the yolk of a 75-degree egg and a smoky, spicy, not too salty Bloody Mary. 621 Main St., Covington, (859) 916-6719, commonwealthbistro. com. Dinner Tues–Sun, Brunch Sat & Sun. MCC. $$

CROWN REPUBLIC GASTROPUB What makes Crown Republic special isn’t its handful of outstanding dishes. It’s the place’s sheer consistency. No single dish is absolutely mind-blowing or completely original, but when almost everything that comes out is genuinely tasty, the service is always friendly and attentive, and (stop the presses!) the bill is quite a bit less than you expected, you sit up and pay attention. The crab and avocado toast, served on grilled bread with lime juice and slivers of pickled Fresno chiles, is a prime example of what makes Crown Republic tick. The cocktails are equally unfussy and good, like the Tipsy Beet, made with vodka, housemade beet shrub, cucumber, mint, and citrus peel. Crown Republic has a mysterious quality that I can only describe as “good energy.” 720 Sycamore St., downtown, (513) 246-4272, crgcincy.com. Lunch and dinner Tues–Sat. MCC. $$ Top 10

MITA’S

It’s fitting that chef Jose Salazar named this restaurant after his grandmother, because there is something deeply homey about the food at Mita’s. With a focus on Spanish tapas, it always feels, in the best possible way, like elevated home cooking. Its sophistication is modestly concealed. The flavors are bold ICON BY CARLIE BURTON

and direct, whether the smoky depths of the chimichurri rojo on skewers of grilled chicken or the intensely bright sourness of the pozole verde. In dishes like the mushroom soup, the chef hits every register: the acid of red piquillo peppers to balance the earthy mushrooms, the crisp fried leeks against the delicately creamy soup. But what mainly comes through is the warm-hearted affection a grandmother might have put into a meal for a beloved grandson. It’s the kind of big hug everyone needs from time to time. 501 Race St., downtown, (513) 421-6482, mitas.co. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC. $$$ Top 10

ORCHIDS AT PALM COURT

Executive chef George Zappas is maintaining the proud traditions of Orchids with food that is wonderfully complex, diverse, and surprising. A dish of parsnip soup has a quinoa chip and apple butter, along with salty duck prosciutto, notes of smoke and spice from the espelette pepper at the base of the bowl, and a touch of acid that crept in on the roasted parsnip. In a few dazzling bites it all comes together like a highly technical piece of music. A Southeast Asian–inspired halibut dish, with its green curry paste, adobo, and peanut brittle, shows how Zappas can break out of the restaurant’s traditionally European comfort zone. Aside from the food, part of the pleasure is simply being in the space, enjoying the jazz band, and watching the grace and assurance of the staff as they present the meal. 35 W. Fifth St., downtown, (513) 564-6465, orchidsatpalmcourt.com. Dinner seven days. MCC. $$$$

PLEASANTRY

20 BRIX Paul Barraco mixes Mediterranean influences with homespun choices, and he comes up with some marvelous food.

Lamb meatballs with melted onions and romesco sauce are sweet and peppery, and their simplicity partners well with a lush Zinfandel. And his chicken and waffles could inspire you to regularly take a solo seat at the bar. The excellent wine list, arranged by flavor profiles within the varietals, features dozens of varieties by the glass in fiveounce or two-ounce pours, which makes it easy to try several. 101 Main St., Milford, (513) 831-2749, 20brix.com.

Lunch and dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DS, DC. $$

ZULA For a restaurant whose name loosely derives from an Israeli slang term for “hidden treasure,” it seems apt that a dish or two might sneak in and stun—like the mussels Marseilles, with its bouillabaisse-style broth, rich with saffron, tomato, and fennel. But Zula is no one-trick pony.

With a wood-fired oven on the premises, it’s incumbent on you to try the flatbreads. One zula is the eggplant option, where caramelized onions and marinated red bell peppers pair well with subtly sweet fontina. Not every bite at Zula is a game-changer, but one is all you need.

1400 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 744-9852, zulabistro. com. Dinner Tues–Sat. MCC. $$

INDIAN

118 W. 15th St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 381-1969, pleas antryotr.com. Dinner Tues–Sat, brunch Fri–Sun. MCC. $

(513) 821-2021, ammaskitchen.com. Lunch buffet seven days (all-vegan on Wed), dinner seven days. MC, V, DS. $

PLEASE

Muthu “Kumar” Muthiah serves traditional southern Indian and Indo-Chinese vegetarian cuisine, but with a sizable Orthodox Jewish community nearby, Muthia saw an opportunity: If he was going to cook vegetarian, why not also make it kosher? Muthiah prepares every item— from the addictively crunchy gobhi Manchurian, a spicy Chinese cauliflower dish, to the lemon pickle, tamarind, and mint sauces—entirely from scratch under the careful eye of Rabbi Michoel Stern. Always 80 percent vegan, the daily lunch buffet is 100 percent animal-product-free on Wednesdays. Tuck into a warm and savory channa masala (spiced chickpeas) or malai kofta (vegetable dumplings in tomato sauce) from the curry menu. Or tear into a crispy, two-foot diameter dosa (chickpea flour crepe) stuffed with spiced onions and potatoes. 7633 Reading Rd., Roselawn,

BOMBAY BRAZIER

the-Rhine, (513) 405-8859, pleasecincinnati.com. Dinner Wed–Sat. MCC. $$$

Indian food in America is hard to judge, because whether coming from the kitchen of a takeout joint or from a nicer establishment, the food will rarely taste all that different.

It will generally be some twist on Punjabi cuisine. Bombay Brazier does it just right. Chef Rip Sidhu could serve his dal tadka in India, along with several other extraordinary dishes, and still do a roaring business—and this is not something that can be said of most Indian establishments in America. Try the pappadi chaat, a common Indian street food rarely found on American menus, and you will see what sets this place apart. They do everything the way it is supposed to be done, from the dusting of kala namak (a pungent black rock salt) on the fried crisps to the mixture of tamarind and mint chutneys on the chopped onion, tomatoes, and chickpeas—having this dish properly made is balm to the soul of a homesick immigrant, and fresh treasure for any American lover of this cuisine. 7791

TASTE OF BELGIUM

Cooper Rd., #5, Montgomery, (513) 794-0000, bombaybra ziercincy.com. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC. $$$

Jean-François Flechet’s waffle empire grew from a back counter of Madison’s grocery at Findlay Market to multiple full-service sit-down spots. There’s more on the menu than the authentic Belgian treat, though it would be a crime to miss the chicken and waffles: a dense, yeasty waffle topped with a succulent buttermilk fried chicken breast, Frank’s hot sauce, and maple syrup. There are also frites, of course, and croquettes—molten Emmenthaler cheese sticks—plus a gem of a Bolognese. And let’s not forget the beer. Six rotating taps offer some of the best the Belgians brew, not to mention those made in town.

1133 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, (513) 381-4607, and other locations, authenticwaffle.com. Breakfast and lunch Mon– Sat, dinner Tues–Sat, brunch Sun. MCC. $$

A TAVOLA In 2011, Jared Wayne opened A Tavola Pizza with two friends just as OTR was blowing up. A Ferrara pizza oven was ordered from Italy; Wayne, a skilled woodworker, built custom tables; and the menu was fleshed in with trendy crowd-pleasers like charcuterie and craft cocktails. Fast-forward three years.

Brother Nick is now a co-owner, and the Waynes have opened a second pizzeria: A Tavola Madeira capitalizes on the menu from the Vine Street location, including the fresh and zesty asparagus, artichoke, and feta pizza on a Neapolitan crust; gooey mozzarella-filled arancini, or risotto fritters; and the unequaled Blue Oven English muffin eggplant sliders. Wash down your small plates with a glass of crisp and grassy Sannio falanghina or an ice-cold Peroni lager. Not ones to rest on their laurels, they also fire up a third Italian import—an Italforni Bull Oven—for their take on Roman-style pies (with a thinner, crispier crust). They’re definitely going to need a bigger parking lot. 7022 Miami Ave., Madeira, (513) 272-

FORNO

AMMA’S KITCHEN

It’s hard to describe the food at Please to a person who hasn’t been there, except that it’s like nothing else in Cincinnati. Some of chef-owner Ryan Santos’s culinary experiments have been bizarre, some fascinating, and some simply delicious—and all of it emerges from a dining room–centered kitchen that seems like it belongs in a small apartment. Almost all of his risks hit their marks, from the frothy bay leaf–grapefruit mignonette on the oysters to the cedar-rosemary custard. What has made Please increasingly wonderful is a willingness, at times, to deliver something straightforward, like an outstanding course of rye gnocchi or a spicy green kale sauce with a lemony zing.

That this weird and wonderful restaurant exists at all, and is actually thriving, is a compliment not just to Santos and his staff but to the city as a whole. 1405 Clay St., Over-

I TA L I A N

0192, atavolapizza.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC. $

With only 40 seats inside, Daniel Souder and Joanna Kirkendall’s snug but spare OTR gem—they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner like a true neighborhood spot—features an engaging wine program aimed at broadening your palate alongside small plates that are equally ambitious. Classic technique and fresh produce anchor an approachable menu—“everything” biscuits with cured salmon, burgers, and chicken salad sandwiches are available at lunch, and the cauliflower with sambal is a comforting mash-up of a rich cauliflower-and-coconutcream schmear topped with a head of sambal-roasted cauliflower, grapefruit segments, toasted cashews, and cilantro. This is not to say that the proteins aren’t something special. Traditionally a much less expensive cut, the small hanger steak was decidedly tender, served with braised cippolini onions and sauteed mushrooms.

Top 10

769-4549, brijmohancincinnati.com. Lunch and dinner Tues– Sun. MC, V, DC. $

BRIJ MOHAN Order at the counter the way you might at a fast food joint, except the shakes come in mango and there’s no super-sizing your mint lassi. The saag, full of cream in most northern Indian restaurants, is as intensely flavored as collard greens in the Deep South—real Punjabi soul food. Tarka dal is spectacular here, the black lentils smoky from charred tomatoes and onions, and the pani puri, hollow fried shells into which you spoon a peppery cold broth, burst with tart cool crunch. Follow the spice with soothing ras malai, freshly made cheese simmered in thick almond-flavored milk, cooled and sprinkled with crushed pistachios. 11259 Reading Rd., Sharonville, (513)

Cristian Pietoso’s second restaurant has all the bones of an upscale eatery, but the menu is infused with enough Italian soul to make nonna proud. In most instances, raving about a side of creamed corn wouldn’t bode well for the rest of the menu. Here, that side dish—kernels swimming in a pool of truffle-laced heavy cream that demands sopping up—is evidence that each component prepared by chef de cuisine Stefano Carne is purpose-driven. The red wine–braised honeycomb tripe, which carries a warning label (“Don’t be scared!”), and the pappardelle with spiced cinghiale (wild boar) ragu are examples of the elevated, adventurous comfort food that Pietoso strives for. 3514 Erie Ave., East Hyde Park, (513) 818-8720, fornoosteriabar. com. Dinner Tues–Sun, brunch Sun. MCC. $$

Top 10

NICOLA’S

Nicola’s has entered a new era of exuberant creativity under the leadership of chef Jack Hemmer. You can still get the old Italian classics, and they’ll be as good as ever, but the rest of the menu has blossomed into a freewheeling tour of modern American cuisine. Any establishment paying this level of attention to detail—from the candied slice of blood orange on the mascarpone cheesecake to the staff’s wine knowledge—is going to put out special meals. Rarely have humble insalate been so intricately delicious, between the perfectly nested ribbons of beets in the pickled beet salad or the balance of bitterness, funkiness, and creaminess in the endive and Gorgonzola salad. Order an old favorite, by all means, but make sure you try something new, too.

1420 Sycamore St., Pendleton, (513) 721-6200, nicolasotr. com. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DC, DS. $$$

PRIMAVISTA Besides offering the old world flavors of Italy, Primavista also serves up a specialty no other restaurant can match: a bird’s eye view of Cincinnati from the west side. The kitchen is equally comfortable with northern and southern regional specialties: a Venetian carpaccio of paper thin raw beef sparked by fruity olive oil; house-made fresh mozzarella stuffed with pesto and mushrooms; or artichoke hearts with snails and mushrooms in a creamy Gorgonzola sauce from Lombardy. Among the classics, nothing is more restorative than the pasta e fagioli, a hearty soup of cannellini, ditali pasta, and bacon. Most of the pastas are cooked just a degree more mellow than al dente so that they soak up the fragrant tomato basil or satiny cream sauces. The fork-tender osso buco Milanese, with its marrow-filled center bone and salty-sweet brown sauce (marinara and lemon juice), is simply superb. Desserts present further problems; you’ll be hard-pressed to decide between the house-made tiramisu or bread pudding with caramel sauce, marsala soaked raisins, and cream. 810 Matson Pl., Price Hill, (513) 251-6467, pvista. com. Dinner Tues–Sun. MCC, DC, DS. $$

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L

nying pot of gochujang, a fermented Korean chili paste, adds its own sweet and spicy note. The result is a homey, soulful, and satisfying taste that appeals even to those who’ve never eaten a bite of Korean food before. 628

MAIN WHERE REVIEW TO EAT NOW

Vine St., downtown, (513) 381-0947, harucincy.com. Lunch and dinner Mon–Sat. MCC. $$ Top 10

SOTTO

There are certain books and movies that you can read or watch over and over. Eating at Sotto is a similar experience: familiar, but so profound and satisfying that there is no reason to ever stop. Unlike other restaurants, where the techniques are often elaborate and unfamiliar, the magic at Sotto happens right in front of you, using ordinary elements and methods. When you taste the results, though, you realize that some mysterious transmutation has taken place. Penne with rapini and sausage comes in a buttery, lightly starchy broth with a kick of spice that you could go on eating forever. From the texture of the chicken liver mousse to the tart cherry sauce on the panna cotta, most of the food has some added element of soulfulness. 118 E. Sixth St., downtown, (513) 977-6886, sottocincinnati.com. Lunch Mon–Fri, dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $$$

KOREAN HARU After the closing of Sung Korean Bistro, Haru is a welcome addition to the downtown scene. Dishes are served along with the usual Korean accompaniment of pickles, kimchi, fish cakes, and other mysteriously delicious dainties. A favorite is the japchae, a traditional dish sporting silky sweet potato noodles with sesame-and-garlic sauce, matchsticks of assorted crisp vegetables, and behind it all a wonderful smokiness that pervades the whole meal. The accompa-

RIVERSIDE KOREAN RESTAURANT

The two-pepper kimchi jjigae stew marries fermented Korean cabbage with hunks of tofu and shards of pork in a bubbling tomato-based broth. Make sure to order a bowl of the bone noodle soup for the table—a comforting combination of thick noodles and bits of flank steak floating in a umami-rich marrow broth that magically soothes the burn. 7876 Mason-Montgomery Rd., Mason, (513) 204-3456, surakorean.com. Lunch and dinner Mon–Sat. MCC. $$

Come for the jo gi mae un tang—a bowl of sizzling, happy hellbroth pungent with red pepper, garlic, and ginger, crowded with nuggets of fish, tofu, and vegetables. Come for the restorative power of sam gae tang, a chicken soup for the Seoul—a whole Cornish hen submerged in its own juices and plumped with sticky rice and ginseng, dried red dates, and pine nuts. Revered for their medicinal properties, both dinner-sized soups will leave your eyes glistening and your brow beaded with sweat. They’re a detox for your overindulgence, rejuvenation for when you’re feeling under the weather. Expect crowds on weekends. Expect too, that dozens of them have come for dolsot bibimbap, the hot stone pots filled with layers of rice, vegetables, meat or tofu, egg, and chili paste. Characterized by its electric color and addictive flavors, Riverside Korean’s version is a captivating bowl of heaven. 512 Madison Ave., Covington, (859) 291-1484, riversidekoreanrestaurant.com.

Lunch Mon–Fri, dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $$

SURA This traditional Korean oasis has been flying well beneath the radar since 2010. Don’t let the pepper count on the menu deter you. Each entrée arrives with purple rice and assorted small bites aimed at cutting the heat—steamed broccoli, pickled radishes, soy-sauce-marinated tofu, pan-fried fish cake, and housemade kimchi. Korean barbecue staple osam bulgogi—one of only two items meriting a three pepper rating—swiftly clears sinuses with a flavorful duo of pork belly and squid lashed with Korean red pepper paste and served on a sizzling skillet.

MEDITERRANEAN CAFÉ MEDITERRANEAN Chef-driven Middle Eastern cuisine leans heavily on Turkish tradition here. The baba ghanoush uses seared eggplant, which adds a pleasant smokiness to the final product. Börek is described as a “Turkish Egg Roll,” wrapping feta and fresh and dried herbs into phyllo dough, and frying it lightly to brittle flakiness. The pastry arrives atop a vivid cherry tomato marmalade, which adds a welcome dimension of barely sweet fruitiness. While there is a smooth, simple hummus on the menu, you should go for the classic sucuklu hummus, which is spiked with sujuk, a common beef sausage popular all over the Middle East. 3520 Erie Ave., East Hyde Park, (513) 871-8714. Lunch Mon–Sat, dinner seven days.

MCC. $$

Top 10

PHOENICIAN TAVERNA

No matter how much restraint you go in with, meals at Phoenician Taverna quickly become feasts. There is just too much that’s good, and everything is meant to be shared. With fresh pita bread continuously arriving from the ovens, and a table of quickly multiplying meze (hummus, falafel, muhammara), there is a warmth and depth

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to the cooking that envelops you. With such traditional cuisine, you may think there isn’t much left to discover beyond simply executed classics prepared according to time-tested methods. But there are always new discoveries as the flavors mingle from plate to plate: the tabbouleh with the hummus, mixed with a touch of harissa, or the smoky baba ghanoush spooned onto falafel. Phoenician Taverna keeps taking these classics a little further. 7944 Mason Montgomery Rd., Mason, (513) 770-0027, phoenici antaverna.com. Lunch Tues–Fri, dinner Tues–Sun. MCC. $$

SANTORINI Steak, eggs, and home fries. Jumbo haddock sandwich with Greek fries. Chocolate chip hot cakes with bacon. Notice something wrong with this menu? Chicken Philly cheese steak sandwich with Olympic onion rings.

Yep, it’s obvious: What’s wrong with this menu is that there’s nothing wrong with this menu. Greek feta cheese omelette with a side of ham. It’s been owned by the same family for more than 30 years. Santorini has diner standards, like cheeseburgers, chili five ways, and breakfast anytime, but they also make some Greek pastries in house, like spanakopita and baklava. 3414 Harrison Ave., Cheviot, (513) 662-8080. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner Mon–Sat, breakfast and lunch Sun. Cash. $

SEBASTIAN’S When the wind is just right, you can smell the garlicky meat roasting from a mile away. Watch owner Alex Sebastian tend to the rotating wheels of beef and lamb, and you understand how Greek food has escaped the American tendency to appropriate foreign cuisines. Sebastian’s specializes in gyros, shaved off the stick, wrapped in thick griddle pita with onions and tomatoes, and served with cool tzatziki sauce.

Alex’s wife and daughter run the counter with efficient speed, and whether you’re having a crisp Greek salad with house-made dressing, triangles of spanikopita, or simply the best walnut and honey baklava this side of the Atlantic (often made by the Mrs.), they never miss a beat, turning

more covers in their tiny deli on one Saturday afternoon than some restaurants do in an entire weekend. 5209 Glenway Ave., Price Hill, (513) 471-2100, sebastiansgyros. com. Lunch and dinner Mon–Sat. Cash. $

SULTAN’S MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE The meze, a parade of small plates and appetizers—the refreshing yogurt dish with cucumber, mint, and garlic known as cacik, and its thicker cousin haydari, with chopped walnuts, dill, and garlic—is rounded out with flaky cheese or spinach boureks, falafels, soups, salads, and more, while baked casseroles or stuffed cabbage and eggplant dishes (dubbed “Ottoman specials”) augment the heavy focus on kebabs: chunks of lamb and beef on a vertical spit for the popular Doner kebab (a.k.a. Turkish gyro), peppery ground lamb for the Adana kebab, or cubed and marinated for the Shish kebab. 7305 Tyler’s Corner Dr., West Chester, (513) 847-1535, sultanscincin nati.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $$

MEXICAN EL VALLE VERDE Guests with dietary issues, high anxiety, and no Spanish may take a pass, but for hardy souls, this taqueria delivers a memorable evening. Seafood dishes are the star here— ceviche tostadas, crisp corn tortillas piled high with pico de gallo, avocado, and lime-tastic bits of white fish, squid, and crab; the oversized goblet of cocktel campechano, with ample poached shrimp crammed into a Clamato-heavy gazpacho; and simmering sopa de marisco came with langoustines, mussels, crab legs, and an entire fish—enough to feed three. 6717 Vine St., Carthage, (513) 821-5400.

Lunch and dinner seven days. $

HABAÑERO It’s easy to find a cheap burrito place around a college campus, but you’d be hard-pressed to find one as consistently good as Habañero, with its flavors of Latin America and the Caribbean wrapped up in enormous packages. Fried tilapia, apricot-glazed chicken breast, hand-rubbed spiced flank steak, shredded pork tenderloin, or cinnamon-roasted squash are just some of the ingredients for Habañero’s signature burritos. All salsas are house-made, from the smoky tomato chipotle to the sweet-sounding mango jalapeño, which is hot enough to spark spontaneous combustion. 358 Ludlow Ave., Clifton, (513) 961-6800, habanerolatin.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC, DC, DS. $

MAZUNTE Mazunte runs a culinary full court press, switching up specials to keep both regulars and staff engaged. Tamales arrive swaddled in a banana leaf, the shredded pork filling steeped in a sauce fiery with guajillo and ancho chilies yet foiled by the calming sweetness of raisins. The fried mahi-mahi tacos are finished with a citrusy red and white cabbage slaw that complements the accompanying mango-habañero salsa. With this level of authentic yet fast-paced execution, a slightly greasy pozole can be easily forgiven. Don’t miss the Mexican Coke and self-serve sangria (try the blanco), or the cans of Rhinegeist and MadTree on ice. 5207 Madison Rd., Madisonville, (513) 785-0000, mazuntetacos.com. Lunch and dinner Mon–Sat, brunch Sun. MCC. $

NADA The brains behind Boca deliver authentic, contemporary, high-quality Mexican fare downtown. You’ll find a concise menu, including tacos, salads and sides, large plates, and desserts. Tacos inspired by global cuisine include the Señor Mu Shu (Modelo and ginger braised pork) and fried avocado (chipotle bean purée). The ancho-glazed pork shank with chili-roasted carrots comes with a papaya

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guajillo salad (order it for the table); dreamy mac-and-cheese looks harmless, but there’s just enough of a roasted poblano and jalapeño punch to have you reaching for another icy margarita.

600 Walnut St., downtown, (513) 721-6232, eat drinknada.com. Lunch Mon–Fri, dinner seven days, brunch Sat & Sun. MCC, DS. $$

TAQUERIA CRUZ The menu at this four-table mom-and-pop welcomes you to “a little piece of Mexico.” The huaraches (spelled guarachis here), are flat troughs of thick, handmade fried masa dough the approximate shape and size of a shoeprint, mounded with beans and slivers of grilled beef or chili-red nubs of sausage, shredded lettuce, a crumble of queso fresco, and drizzle of cultured cream.

Should you have an adventurous side, you can have your huarache topped with slippery tongue, goat meat, shredded chicken, or pork. There are stews, carne asada plates, and sopes—saucers of fried masa much like huaraches, only smaller.

518 Pike St., Covington, (859) 431-3859. Lunch and dinner seven days. Cash. $

TAQUERIA MERCADO

AT LONG LAST!

Almost two years after Goodfellas announced a third outpost in Pleasant Ridge, the new location finally opened in July. The new spot has an atmospheric twist, reminiscent of New Orleans, compared to those in OTR and Covington.

The accompanying Wiseguy Lounge speakeasy is accessed via a hidden staircase and features jazz music.

For the first time, guests have their barrel pick of Weller bourbon to pair with a New York slice.

goodfellaspizzeria. com

On a Saturday night, Taqueria Mercado is a lively fiesta, with seemingly half of the local Hispanic community guzzling margaritas and cervezas, or carrying out sacks of burritos and carnitas tacos—pork tenderized by a long simmer, its edges frizzled and crispy. The Mercado’s strip mall interior, splashed with a large, colorful mural, is equally energetic: the bustling semi-open kitchen; a busy counter that handles a constant stream of take-out orders; a clamorous, convivial chatter in Spanish and English. Try camarones a la plancha, 12 chubby grilled shrimp tangled with grilled onions (be sure to specify if you like your onions well done). The starchiness of the rice absorbs the caramelized onion juice, offset by the crunch of lettuce, buttery slices of avocado, and the cool-hot pico de gallo. A shrimp quesadilla paired with one of their cheap and potent margaritas is worth the drive alone. 6507 Dixie Hwy., Fairfield, (513) 942-4943; 100 E. Eighth St., downtown, (513) 381-0678, tmercadocincy.com.

Lunch and dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $

STEAKS

in this urban steakhouse is generous—from the portions to the expert service. White-jacketed waiters with floor-length aprons deliver two-fisted martinis and stacks of king crab legs, or mounds of greens dressed in thin vinaigrettes or thick, creamy emulsions. An occasional salmon or sea bass appears, and there’s a small but decent assortment of land fare. But most customers, even the willowy model types, inhale slabs of beef (dry aged USDA prime) like they’re dining in a crack house for carnivores. The best of these is Jeff Ruby’s Jewel, nearly a pound-and-a-half of bone-in rib eye. This is steak tailor-made for movers and shakers. 700 Walnut St., downtown, (513) 7841200, jeffruby.com. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DC. $$$$

MORTON’S THE STEAKHOUSE No one has replicated the concept of an expensive boys’ club better than Morton’s. Amid the dark polished woods and white linen, the Riedel stemware and stupendous flower arrangements, assorted suits grapple with double cut filet mignons, 24 ounces of porterhouse, pink shiny slabs of prime rib, overflowing plates of salty Lyonnaise potatoes, or mammoth iceberg wedges frosted with thick blue cheese dressing. Jumbo is Morton’s decree: Oversized martini and wine glasses, ethereal towering lemon soufflés, roomy chairs, and tables large enough for a plate and a laptop. Even steaks billed as “slightly smaller” weigh in at 8 to 10 ounces.

441 Vine St., downtown, (513) 621-3111, mortons. com. Dinner seven days. MCC. $$$

THE PRECINCT Part of the appeal of the Ruby restaurants is their ability to deliver deep, comfort-food satisfaction. And the steaks. The meat is tender with a rich mineral flavor, and the signature seasoning provided a nice crunch, not to mention blazing heat. The supporting cast is strong—the basket of warm Sixteen Bricks bread with a mushroom truffle butter, the addictive baked macaroni and cheese, the creamy garlic mashed potatoes, the crisp-tender asparagus with roasted garlic and lemon vinaigrette—and dinner ends on a sweet note with a piece of Ruby family recipe cheesecake. Neither cloyingly sweet nor overwhelmingly creamy, it’s a lovely slice of restraint. 311 Delta Ave., Columbia-Tusculum, (513) 321-5454, jef fruby.com/precinct. Dinner seven days. MCC. $$$$

knowledgeable—help you. When the food arrives, you’ll need only a deep inhale to know you made the right choice. The Green Papaya sushi rolls are as delicious as they look, with a manic swirl of spicy mayo and bits of crabstick and crispy tempura batter scattered atop the spicy tuna, mango, cream cheese, and shrimp tempura sushi—all rolled in a vivid green soybean wrap. 2942 Wasson Rd., Oakley, (513) 731-0107, greenpapayacincinnati.com.

Lunch Mon–Sat, dinner seven days. MCC. $$

SUKHOTHAI Nestled in the nearly hidden Market Place Lane, this tiny restaurant isn’t exactly slick. A chalkboard lists the day’s specials, usually spicy dishes worthy of an adventurous diner. But if it’s noodle dishes and curries you’re after, Sukhothai’s pad kee mao—wide rice noodles stir-fried with basil— is the best around. Served slightly charred, the fresh and dried chilies provide enough heat to momentarily suspend your breath. Pad Thai has the right amount of crunch from peanuts, slivers of green onion, and mung sprouts to contrast with the slippery glass noodles, and a few squeezes of fresh lime juice give it a splendid tartness. The crispy tamarind duck is one of the best house specials, the meat almost spreadably soft under the papery skin and perfectly complemented by the sweet-tart bite of tamarind. 8102 Market Place Lane, Montgomery, (513) 794-0057, sukhothaicincy. com. Lunch Mon–Fri, dinner Mon–Sat. DS, MC, V. $

THAI NAMTIP Classic Thai comfort food on the west side from chef/owner Tussanee Leach, who grew up with galangal on her tongue and sriracha sauce in her veins. Her curries reign: pale yellow sweetened with coconut milk and poured over tender chicken breast and chunks of boiled pineapple; red curry the color of new brick, tasting of earth at first bite, then the sharply verdant Thai basil leaves, followed by a distant heat. Tom Kha Gai soup defines the complex interplay of flavors in Thai food: astringent lemongrass gives way to pepper, then Makrut lime, shot through with the gingery, herbaceous galangal, all yielding to the taunting sweetness of coconut. Even the simple skewers of chicken satay with Thai peanut sauce are rough and honest, dulcified by honey and dirtied up by a smoky grill. 5461 North Bend Rd., Monfort Heights, (513) 481-3360, thainamtip.com. Lunch and dinner seven days. MC, V. $

TONY’S CARLO & JOHNNY The stars of the menu are 12 delectable steaks that could sway the vegi-curious to recommit. Not sure which to choose? If you prefer brawny flavor over buttery texture, go for one of the three bone-in rib cuts. Or if it’s that melt-in-your-mouth experience that raises your serotonin levels, C&J features several tenderloin cuts, including the hard to find bone-in filet. There are the usual suspects of raw bar, seafood, pork chops, et al, if you’re interested in non-beef alternatives. 9769 Montgomery Rd., Montgomery, (513) 936-8600, jeffruby.com. Dinner seven days. MCC. $$$$

JAG’S STEAK AND SEAFOOD Chef Michelle Brown’s food is deeply flavored, if occasionally a bit busy, her steaks of the butterymild variety, with not too much salty char crust.

All seven cuts are served with veal demi-glace and fried onion straws. According to my steakcentric dining partner, his cowboy rib eye is “too tender and uniform” (as if that’s a crime). “I like to wrestle with the bone,” he adds, though that’s a scenario that, thankfully, doesn’t get played out in this subdued dining room. 5980 West Chester Rd., West Chester, (513) 860-5353, jags.com. Dinner Mon–Sat. MCC, DC. $$$

JEFF RUBY’S Filled most nights with local scenesters and power brokers (and those who think they are), everything

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He is a captivating presence, Tony Ricci. Best known for his 30 years in fine dining—including the Jeff Ruby empire while managing the venerable Precinct—Ricci has built a life in the hospitality industry. Much of Tony’s menu is right out of a steakhouse playbook: jumbo shrimp and king crab legs from the raw bar; Caprese, Greek, and Caesar salads; sides of creamed spinach, mac-and-cheese, asparagus, and sautéed mushrooms; toppings of roasted garlic or Gorgonzola butters to accompany your center cut of filet mignon. There are boutique touches, though, that make it stand out—a garlic herb aioli with the calamari, steak tartare torchkissed and topped with a poached egg, a superb rack of lamb rubbed with aromatic sumac and served with mint pesto. 12110 Montgomery Rd., Symmes Township, (513) 677-8669, tonysofcincin nati.com. Dinner seven days. MCC, DS. $$$$

THAI GREEN PAPAYA Inside this simple dining room, replete with soothing browns and greens and handsome, dark wood furniture, it takes time to sort through the many curries and chef’s specialties, not to mention the wide variety of sushi on the something-for-everyone menu. Have the staff—friendly, attentive, and

WILD GINGER Wild Ginger Asian Bistro’s ability to satisfy a deep desire for Vietnamese and Thai fusion cuisine is evidenced by their signature Hee Ma roll—a fortress of seaweed-wrapped rolls filled with shrimp tempura, asparagus, avocado, and topped with red tuna, pulled crab stick, tempura flakes, a bit of masago, scallions, and of course, spicy mayo.

It’s tasty, even though the sweet fried floodwall of tempura and spicy mayo overpowered the tuna completely. The spicy pad char entrée was a solid seven out of 10: broccoli, carrots, cabbage, succulent red bell peppers, green beans, and beef, accented with basil and lime leaves in a peppercornand-chili brown sauce. 3655 Edwards Rd., Hyde Park, (513) 533-9500, wildgingercincy.com. Lunch and dinner Mon–Sun. MCC, DS. $$ CINCINNATI MAGAZINE, (ISSN 0746-8 210), August 2020, Volume 53, Number 11. Published monthly ($14.95 for 12 issues annually) at Carew Tower, 441 Vine St., Suite 200, Cincinnati, OH 45202-2039.

(513) 421-4300. Copyright © 2020 by Cincinnati Magazine LLC, a subsidiary of Hour Media Group, 5750 New King Dr, Ste 100, Troy, MI 48098. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or reprinted without permission. Unsolicited manuscripts, photographs and artwork should be accompanied by SASE for return. The magazine cannot be held responsible for loss. For subscription orders, address changes or renewals, write to CINCINNATI MAGAZINE, 1965 E. Avis Dr., Madison Heights, MI 48071, or call 1-866-660-6247. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, Ohio, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Please send forms 3579 to CINCINNATI MAGAZINE, 1965 E. Avis Dr., Madison Heights, MI 48071. If the Postal Service alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation unless we receive a corrected address within one year.

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CINCY OBSCURA

Row Your Boat WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU give four guys with a passion for building and racing cardboard boats the keys to a dilapidated gas station in New Richmond, Ohio? They open the world’s only known Cardboard Boat Museum, of course. Brothers Tommy and Ed (who is now deceased) Lemon and buddies Tim Young and Kenny Smith opened the museum in 2007 to display boats for New Richmond’s annual cardboard boat regatta, which has been held every August since 1993, but was canceled this year due to COVID-19. Participants race homemade boats built from cardboard, paint, and tape 200 yards down the Ohio River. “There’s a race where the fastest boat wins, but there’s also a race to see if you can make it to the finish line,” says Tommy, who has raced in the regatta since 2000 and now helps host the event. The museum awards 29 canoe paddle– shaped trophies, including The Titanic for the boat displaying the most dramatic sinking. Last year’s big sinker was a comical 8-foot-tall toilet-shaped boat. The museum, which runs solely on donations and volunteer hours, offers tours and boat-building tips to visitors year-round on Saturdays, Sundays, and Tuesday evenings. — K A T I E C O B U R N 1 1 2 C I N C I N N AT I M A G A Z I N E . C O M A U G U S T 2 0 2 0

PHOTOGRAPH BY JEREMY KRAMER

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