CityBeat | Jan. 6, 2010

CONTENTS

513-281-8400

VOLUME 16 • ISSUE 9

with

this providence the swellers

jan 26 • 6:30pm

jan 27 • 6:30pm

BadFish a tribute to sublime w/ scotty don’t feb 24 new Found Glory w/ saves the day, hello Goodbye, Fireworks mar 3 FloGGinG molly w/ Frank turner, the architects mar 9 oVerkill w/ Vader, God dethroned, warbringer, evile apr 7

For a Complete list oF shows, Visit liVenation.Com charge by phone: 1-877-598-8703 • bogart’s box office is now open every mon-fri from 12-5pm & always open on show days at 2pm • tickets also available at shake it records

all dates, acts and ticket prices subject to change without notice. a service charge is added to each ticket.

4-pack offers are available for every bogart’s show at livenation.com while supplies last

VOICES

05

NEWS

09

TO DO PICKS

13

ARTS

23

DINER

27

FILM

35

CLASSIFIEDS

38

MUSIC 17

Americana’s Most Wanted:

The Tillers’ new album, celebrated with a release party Saturday, stretches the concept of “roots” music.

On the cover: The Tillers photo by Cameron Knight • Design by Jason Kidwell

ONLINE CITYBEAT.COM BLOGS

Local band Cari Clara signs a record deal, Asian food is delivered in Walnut Hills, the Bengals and UC Bearcats suffer a CityBeat cover jinx

PODCASTS

#42: Cincinnati’s radical media

ONLINE COLUMNS

I Shall Be Released: New CDs from Sister Hazel, Alec Ounsworth, Lisa Germano, Glenn Tilbrook & the Fluffers and even Frank Zappa On Second Thought: Predictions for the news media world in 2010

MUSIC TOWN MESSAGE BOARD

PHOTO GALLERIES

New Year’s Eve at Know Theatre’s speakeasy and at Northside Tavern, plus the Bengals fan champions

Which music genres are thriving locally, the end of music and promotional talk about upcoming local shows

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02

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january 06-12, 2010

4PORKOPOLIS

BY KEVIN OSBORNE

A Fight for the Local GOP’s Soul

I

t’s only the first week in January but already political campaigns are gearing up for what likely will be the most high-profile local race this year.

There was little surprise this week when Cincinnati City Councilwoman Leslie Ghiz finally confirmed months of speculation by announcing her candidacy for the Hamilton County commission.

Ghiz, a Republican, is running for the seat now held by Democrat David Pepper. He’s not seeking reelection, opting instead to run for Ohio auditor.

Pepper is one of two Democrats on the three-member county commission, along with Todd Portune. Republican Greg Hartmann rounds out the group.

When Pepper was elected in late 2006, he helped form the first Democratic majority on the commission since 1962, when pillbox hats and cigarette smoking were still in style. Like Janet Jackson, the local GOP wants to be in control once more.

To do so largely depends on running a strong enough candidate that can appeal to voters in places as diverse as Indian Hill, Norwood, Sharonville and Delhi Township.

Ghiz is getting a major boost by using Hamilton County Sheriff Simon Leis Jr. as her campaign manager. Love him or hate him, blustery old Si almost always ranks as the most popular local Republican in polls and still retains a lot of clout among party members.

Hoping to deflect some of Ghiz’s attention, Cincinnati City Councilman Chris Monzel announced the same day that he’s also running for the county commission, although he hasn’t yet formally kicked off his campaign.

The race is shaping up to be a fight for the local Republican Party’s soul, and could impact its direction for years.

On one side, there’s Ghiz who represents traditional “law and order” Republicans, but is generally centrist beyond that.

She’s consistently opposed police layoffs on council and endorsed county tax levies in 2006 and 2007 that would’ve paid for a new jail. Besides her focus on public safety issues, Ghiz also wants to reduce government spending but she isn’t dogmatic about it. Other than those core issues, Ghiz is something of a moderate, as witnessed by her frequent endorsements by Log Cabin Republicans, and is open to negotiation with her colleagues.

On the other side is Monzel, who is a hardcore conservative.

He’s supported by the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spend-

ing and Taxes (COAST) and activist Chris Finney.

That’s the same crowd who held sway over county government when their last pet candidate, Republican Phil Heimlich, was a county commissioner. Heimlich followed COAST’s advice and did things like appointing Finney as the chairman of the county’s Tax Levy Review Committee, along with cutting lopsided deals to rent jail space from Butler County and sell the Drake Center, all of which ended up driving county government in a fiscal ditch and doing little to solve a financial crisis that’s been brewing for more than a decade.

In fact, the situation was so bad that voters booted Heimlich from office after a single term, preferring Democrat Pepper.

Like the national GOP, the local Republican Party needs to decide whether it wants to hitch its wagon to ideological conservatives and so-called “values voters,” or take a more mainstream course that could appeal to a wider base. Unfortunately, as local GOP Chairman Alex Triantafilou recently booked loony U.S. Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.) as speaker at a major fundraiser next month, the signs don’t appear good for rationality.

As someone who’s covered Ghiz and Monzel for years, I can say both are genuinely nice people, no matter their policy positions. It will be interesting to see if their demeanor and campaigning styles change and toughen up once primary campaign season rolls around.

Already Ghiz has received some criticism for her style during last year’s City Council campaign. That’s when she took on a harder edge and began frequently using Twitter to harshly criticize Democrats on council. Her prime target was Councilwoman Laketa Cole, who Ghiz tweeted never shut up during meetings, and provided red meat for her followers.

Never one to let an opportunity for publicity pass him by, the Rev. Charlie Winburn — the third and final Republican on City Council — also hinted publicly that he’s considering a run for the county commission. Charlie must have a good sense of humor because there’s no way he will launch a campaign.

First, Ghiz and Monzel are starting their third council terms, having served more than four years on council. By comparison, Winburn is just starting his first term, and has been in office for 35 days. Crazy.

Also, there’s little chance that conservative voters in rural areas like Crosby Township would back a flamboyant politician of Winburn’s ilk.

Of course, county Democrats might not be facing the

VOICES current predicament of losing control of the commission if it weren’t for their poster boy, Portune.

Before the last commission election in 2008, Portune cut a deal with Hartmann to eliminate competition in their separate races. Under the backroom deal, the Democratic Party promised not to run a candidate against Republican Hartmann in his race, and in return the GOP wouldn’t endorse any candidate who challenged Portune, who was seeking his third term.

Why an incumbent like Portune, who had eight years in office under his belt, felt he needed the extra protection is anybody’s guess.

Many rank-and-file Democrats were angered by the deal, stating it forfeited the party’s best chance to win all three seats on the commission in a presidential election year that had a record-setting Democratic turnout. If a party-endorsed candidate had run two years ago, the entire issue of retaining control likely would be moot.

Instead, heavy-hitters like attorney Stan Chesley pushed party Chairman Tim Burke into supporting the deal, and exCincinnati Mayor Dwight Tillery endorsed the pact.

Swift move, fellas.

The least Portune can do to atone for his selfishness is work his ass off for whoever emerges as the Democratic candidate in the race later this year. ✽✽✽✽✽ A federal appeals court recently upheld a judgment that dismissed a defamation lawsuit against CityBeat’s sister alt-weekly newspaper that was filed by the co-developer of the controversial Heimlich Maneuver.

As reported by Toledo Legal News, the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals found Dr. Edward Patrick didn’t demonstrate the threshold requirement of falsity regarding an article published

by Cleveland Scene. The initial article noted that a supervising doctor refused to sign Patrick’s residency certificate for his time spent at Jewish Hospital, and that the hospital refused to certify Patrick had obtained any training in emergency medicine there.

“And the record supports the district court’s conclusion that although Dr. Patrick made some attempt to rebut this evidence, the rebuttal evidence is wholly insufficient to make the showing of falsity necessary to survive summary judgment,” wrote Chief Judge Alice Batchelder.

Patrick, 72, claims to have co-created the maneuver with Dr. Henry Heimlich, a Cincinnati resident and father of Phil Heimlich. Critics have complained that some uses for the maneuver advocated by the elder Heimlich are unsafe and questioned the credentials of him and Patrick.

january 06-12, 2010

05

4living out loud

by c.a. macconnell

Sun’s Gonna Shine Anyway I haven’t written about him. I haven’t been able to understand what happened. I wrestled with the beginning — and the ending, well, a mess.

Words surfaced here and there, but I shook them off. I didn’t want to hit that story lurking there, that not-so-old wound.

Last year at this time I was madly in love with a former hippie who still liked Phish, and I made fun of his band obsession every chance I got.

Damn, we’d kid and laugh. Inside jokes, Flight of the Conchords. On one of our first dates he wasn’t eating much so I asked him if he had an eating disorder. He cracked up, saying no, he was getting over the flu.

Shy but affectionate, he had long, dark hair.

He dressed like a rocker, with a collection of expensive jeans and hoodies. We’ll call him Ryan.

Tall and lean, Ryan had a wide chest, narrow hips and a flat stomach. I loved his hands. I even loved his goofy dog. Ryan was quiet and reserved. It was hard to tell what he was feeling, but if I wanted to know, I just flat-out asked, “What the hell are you thinking?” And he’d tell me, in a few short words.

Last New Year’s Eve, we hung out at my efficiency apartment, half-watching TV. Mostly, we watched each other. When he was next to me on the crummy couch, I felt safe. Calm.

I’ve always been a worrier, but with him there was never a question. I wanted him there. Just me, him, two pints of ice cream, a movie, the cats and a teeny tiny room. Us. We didn’t go out much. We didn’t rage on the town. Sometimes we’d hit a club or go out for fish but mostly we stayed in watching movies, touching and laughing and curling up on the bed again. Our world.

We hung out nonstop until one night last April.

We were on a date. He was driving. He looked at the road and stated, “I got into the University of Montana.”

I looked at him, smiling. “That’s great,” I said.

Then it started to sink in. “I’m happy for you,” I said. My eyes filled up.

Silence.

Back near my apartment, we sat in the car.

Clothes rustled as we shifted nervously. The tension made me twitch.

“What are you going to do?” I finally asked him.

“I’m going,” he announced flatly.

“Just like that, no conversation, you’re going?” I said, getting out of the car.

Ryan sped away.

Inside my apartment, I had a flashback. I envisioned the day when my Dad left my Mom. It all felt so similar — the silence, then the shock.

I had no warning and then, suddenly, my whole world was gone.

With Ryan, I felt the same way. I knew he was applying to schools, but I didn’t know he

was dead-set on leaving. Suddenly, I realized that I wasn’t in the picture.

That was followed by weeks of hashing it out, many tears, endless words that went nowhere. I was torn. I knew he wanted to leave Cincinnati. He wanted to stay together until he left. I refused.

And after countless painful talks, I realized this: He didn’t want to stay, and he didn’t want me to go with him. And I knew that if it were right, geography wouldn’t be an issue and the two people would make it happen. A hard truth.

We broke up. We got back together. We cut it off completely. I haven’t spoken to him since. By our last conversation, I didn’t know when or where or if he was going. I found out when someone posted Facebook pictures of his going-away party.

I saw these pictures minutes before I had to meet the band July for Kings to interview them. I cried,

I’ve always been a worrier, but with him there was never a question. I wanted him there. Just me, him, two pints of ice cream, a movie, the cats and a teeny tiny room. Us.

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06

washed my face, suited up and showed up. These things never have good timing.

It seemed ridiculous. In one moment, what had seemed like the right match turned into something nonexistent? He said he loved me, but when it came down to it, he wanted to leave. Alone.

Tonight, I sit in a coffee shop. While I write, in the background, Nina Simone sings, “The sun’s gonna shine in my back door someday.” Across from me, a woman stops knitting to listen. She breathes in, grinning, eyes shut tight. Then she looks at me, her smile turning bright and wide. Utter joy.

“It’s a good song, isn’t it?” I ask her.

She laughs, nodding. “Yeah!”

Sometimes, all we have are these moments — a good tune, a child learning a karate move for the first time, the morning a yellow rose opens. To me, these simple beauties are all moments of love, in the strangest of forms.

Unlike the movies, real love can be tricky. But I remember last New Year’s when we watched the ball drop in between mad, gorgeous, new touch, when we discovered a new cheek, hand, neck, eyelid, chest and lips. I remember his soft laugh, his cool socks, the way his long hair was always a mess, half-wet and tied back loosely.

Sometimes there is no explanation, life lesson or revelation involved other than this — when I watched him sleep, I knew deep down that someday he wouldn’t be there, but I thought, Right here, right now, this is just right.

CONTACT C.A. MACCONNELL: letters@citybeat.com

4awesome for everyone

Worst Week Ever!

Inappropriate

4by danny cross

WEDNESDAY DEC. 30 It is a fact of life that some people driving on the road have more alcohol in their blood than is legally allowed — there are just not enough TGI Friday’s locations for everyone to be able to walk home after a super-fun dinner. The State of Ohio in 2008 decided that although getting one DUI after drinking a fishbowl of Long Island Iced Tea is normal, accumulating five arrests for it is unreasonable and should be documented on a public database. The Enquirer reported today, however, that last-minute changes to Senate Bill 17 resulted in only 1 percent of the 36,000 such drivers being included, which was news to the bill’s sponsor, Ohio State Sen. Timothy Grendell, who said he thinks it’s weird when people who can’t walk think they can still push the pedal and turn the wheel OK enough to get home safely.

THURSDAY DEC. 31 God blesses everyone with different skills, that’s why we should never judge people who look like freaks because they might be able to do something cool like sing good. The Enquirer reported today that some young preachers are in a similar situation, as they’ve been blessed with the Bible’s words to tell people but not the delivery it takes to really get the message across. That’s why a collection of churches has organized the Festival of Young Preachers, which will take place in Louisville next week hoping to give rookie preachers feedback on content, mannerisms and methods of preaching. The festival will also feature seminars on specific preaching styles and a mandatory class on how to explain why God can make bets with the devil but humans aren’t allowed to steal fruit from him.

FRIDAY JAN. 1 We, as humans, don’t have to worry about any other species invading us because our consciousness and free will allow us to make awesome weapons to defend ourselves from even the scariest creatures on Earth. But that doesn’t mean some of the not so scary ones can’t mess up our habitats, which is potentially worse than whatever happens when a hippopotamus gets mad at you. Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray last week filed a brief to review the state’s defense of the Great Lakes from the Asian carps that have already usurped the Mississippi River’s bass population. In addition, Cordray says he is concerned with wild boars, Fallow deer and the creepy centaurs in eastern Ohio that wear shirts but no pants.

SATURDAY JAN. 2

SUNDAY JAN. 3 Fact: Cincinnati is one of few major cities to address a massive deficit without raising taxes or making big service cuts. Opinion: Cincinnati’s leaders are a bunch of dicks. The Enquirer today, via a surprisingly thorough analysis, supported both these statements, as City Council’s 2010 budget does little to address the city’s long-term financial problems. By utilizing one-time cuts and borrowed money to soften the $51 million deficit, City Council has assured that next year’s budget negotiations will be as difficult and annoying as this year’s and that they’ll continue to have union support for whatever office they choose to run for next year.

FAN OF THE WEEK

GRAND PRIZE WINNER

MONDAY JAN. 4 If the best things in life were free, society would better appreciate grocery store salad bars (yes, those are free). But the truth is that people only like free stuff when it’s good, which is why USA Today is so interested in free hotel breakfast consumption being on the rise despite the fact that hotel attendance is down and the food turns crunchy if you try to eat it after 10 a.m.

According to market research firm the NPD Group, which helps the restaurant industry figure out where people are eating if they’re not eating at restaurants (their houses?), free breakfast at cheaper hotels is part of a two-part problem that impacts both restaurants and high-end hotels.

NPD expects the trend to continue in 2010 but for people to not have learned their lesson when the economy picks back up.

TUESDAY JAN. 5 If you think that rich people hate poor people, you’re wrong. Rich people just hate poorness, which is a state of existence and not the real essence of the poors. But that won’t stop landlords from being disappointed in those of us whose small contributions to the economy are coming from our parents’ basement and not the apartment we used to rent from them. The Enquirer today reported that landlords are now giving generous offers to attract new renters, as rent prices fell 3.5 percent last year and are expected to drop further. Among the deals being offered by property owners who miss getting money for nothing are reduced deposits, new appliances and puppies to scratch up the floor so they can keep your deposit.

DO YOU NEED ANYTHING? E-MAIL: dcross@citybeat.com

CHRIS RICCI CONGRATULATIONS! GO BENGALS!

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We all know what a robber looks like — for years the white dude with a black mask across his eyes was the most typical suspect when a bank or corner store was knocked off. The Enquirer reported today that police have lately been adding to this description a ponytail and boobs, as more women have been robbing banks than ever before. The interesting aspect of the trend — aside from how women

get away when they’re such slow runners — is that women doing bad things without the help of men is actually an extension of women doing lots of things without men. Crime researchers say their biggest concern with women committing crimes on their own is that their husbands are probably somewhere else doing something even worse.

CITYBEAT’S BENGALS

07

RESTAURANTS ARE

TALKING

4guest editorial

Keeping Families Together Clergy: Time for immigration policy based on reason, not anger 4by the rev. jim schutte

D

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uring the holiday season, it’s nearly impossible to ignore the importance of family. Yet while many of us spent the holiday season celebrating and reconnecting with loved ones, we couldn’t avoid the fact that so many others in Cincinnati didn’t spend the season with their families — immigrants who are unable to reunite with families because of how utterly broken our immigration system has become.

I am reminded each Sunday as I lead services that family values transcend immigration status and country of origin.

Scripture teaches us to love our neighbor, describing stories of immigrants like Abraham or Ruth, people cast out of their native regions, seeking refuge in foreign places. It is in these teachings and stories that we find parallels with today’s immigrants living all around our country and in our own communities.

Sadly, though, our dysfunctional immigration policy and lack of action by Congress results in countless children in Ohio spending the holidays without a mother or a father.

These families are not alone. I hear stories from around the community about breadwinners who worry they will be deported. Mothers and fathers speak about their fear of losing their children or forcing their kids to leave the United States, the only home they have ever

known. My congregation, just like thousands of others across the country, is afraid.

We can no longer let this type of fear divide our communities. We must call on Congress to act and keep our communities and families together.

Faith groups nationwide are uniting in a new, unprecedented grassroots movement rooted in a theological and moral ground. In December, leaders of diverse faith communities launched a national postcard campaign. This month, members of Congress will receive hundreds of thousands of postcards from people of faith urging them to pass immigration reform that unites families rather than tearing them apart.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano recently reaffirmed the Obama administration’s commitment to enacting comprehensive immigration reform in early 2010. Now is the time for leaders from Ohio to stand up for a pragmatic, sensible approach that restores our values of compassion and lawfulness over the disorder and inaction that have won out in recent years.

It is up to us and our leaders in Congress to make sure our immigrant neighbors do not celebrate future holiday seasons afraid and alone.

The Rev. Jim Schutte is priest at St. Leo Catholic Church in Fairmount and is a member of The AMOS Project, a Tristate coalition of 30 churches dedicated to promoting social justice and reducing poverty.

NEWS

Slow Ride to Nowhere?

City’s new environmental law faces uncertain future 4By matthew cunningham

W

ith the election of a new City Council, the future looks uncertain for Cincinnati’s Environmental Justice Ordinance. The first-of-its-kind law, which was slated to go into effect Dec. 21, was touted by backers such as former councilman David Crowley as a way to ensure the city’s poorest residents are protected from heavily-polluting businesses.

But the ordinance failed to earn funding in the current city budget, approved after Crowley and fellow Democrat Greg Harris left the group. A motion submitted in June by Councilman Jeff Berding, an Independent, seeks to postpone implementation of the law by one year.

Berding’s proposal was scheduled to be voted on Jan. 5, just after CityBeat’s deadline.

One thing everyone involved in the dispute over the law agrees on is that 2010 will be its make or break time.

“It’s a big deal,” says Marti Sinclair, program director for the Environmental Community Organization. “The citizens and city advisers met for four years to work out this ordinance.”

Berding’s motion, which would call for a private firm to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of the ordinance, is more about politics than anything else, Sinclair adds.

“It’s a slap in the face to the citizens who worked so hard,” she says. “I think this has

kind of been pulled out of the hat. They know what the citizens want and what we’ve worked on.”

But Councilman Chris Bortz — a Charterite who is Berding’s ally — says the motion is about stopping an ill-conceived law that could do more harm than good in a former Rust Belt city trying to remake itself for the 21st Century.

“It could be a real burden to companies making investments in the city because it’s very hard to understand,” Bortz says.

At its most basic, the Environmental Justice Ordinance is a check on companies that are likely to produce toxins and dangerous pollutants in the course of business. The ordinance would establish a board and administrator who would review, then grant or deny, permits for potentially polluting businesses to build or expand operations in various city neighborhoods.

The idea is that the additional oversight could prevent a given neighborhood — historically, poorer and mostly minority — from suffering the effects of excessive pollutants in the local environment.

Specific categories of businesses and construction are exempted from the Environmental Justice Ordinance including office buildings, residential developments and “most commercial” projects, say officials. Reviews will be conducted only in neighborhoods defined

PHOTO: citybeat archive

Ex-Vice Mayor David Crowley, who left office last month, lobbied for the new law.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 104

4 winners and losers JOE DETERS: Poor Joe just can’t seem to catch a break lately. The Ohio Supreme Court last week voted 6-1 to issue a stay preventing Deters from firing the law firm hired by Hamilton County commissioners to handle legal issues connected to riverfront redevelopment. Deters had convinced 12 Common Pleas Court judges in October to sign an order axing the law firm, stating it was an unnecessary expense and the Prosecutor’s Office could handle future riverfront issues.

Commissioners, however, said the firm’s expertise was needed and that Deters lacked the authority to fire it. Also, commissioners questioned his motives because he opposes The Banks riverfront project. Deters’ order was to take effect Jan. 1, but the high court’s stay prevents that until it makes a final ruling in the matter, expected later this month.

CITY COUNCIL’S KINDLES: Try saying that three times quickly. At the suggestion of Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, City Council is buying 10 Kindle electronic readers — one each for the mayor and council members. The devices will cost $7,200 but will save $25,632 annually in paper costs by eliminating the need for hard copies of reports and resolutions. Republicans are crying foul, saying it’s an unnecessary expense when the city is facing deficits.

Apparently the local GOP doesn’t understand math. Still, politics is unfortunately all too often a matter of perception, and buying the devices now sends mixed messages to the public. The real test on whether the purchase is a good thing, however, will be seeing if the devices remain available to future council members and don’t mysteriously disappear when current members leave office.

ROB PORTMAN: Facts often are the enemy of many political campaigns. A case in point are the statements made in Republican Rob Portman’s campaign for the U.S. Senate. Portman is the former congressman from Terrace Park and budget director under George W. Bush who wants to replace the retiring George Voinovich next year. Portman has been stumping against the TARP bailout, a program he supported in 2008, as well as what he calls excessive spending by President Obama. As noted by Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, a Democrat who’s running against Portman, that’s blatant hypocrisy. “He decries the size of the budget deficit, but the debt swelled to $500 billion on Portman’s watch as director of the Office of Management and Budget under George W. Bush,” Fisher’s campaign manager rightly said. Own up to your past, Mr. Portman.

09

january 06-12, 2010

ALAN KALMANOFF: Local political junkies will remember Kalmanoff as the city of Cincinnati’s first federallyappointed police monitor, hired in 2002 to oversee the implementation of dozens of reforms to the Cincinnati Police Department. He left after six weeks, however, following a highly publicized dispute with city officials over allegations of excessive spending. We’ve written before about how some of The Enquirer’s articles on Kalmanoff’s billings at the time were distorted or just plain wrong, but he’s carried on as director of his consulting firm, the Californiabased Institute for Law and Policy Planning.

Now Kalmanoff can add “author” to his resume with the recent publication of Second Ticket to the Dance, a book about his battle with heart disease and the changes he made to his life as a result. Good for you, Kal.

by kevin osborne

4SLOW RIDE NOWHERE?: FROM PAGE 09

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as “environmental justice communities” as well as in one-mile radius around them.

The law was approved in June 2009 after more than three years of work and undergoing several alterations. Mayor Mark Mallory and most of council’s Democrats support it.

Bortz voices an argument made by Berding and by parties opposed to the ordinance, such as the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state environmental regulators, they argue, already regulate the companies that would be targeted by the ordinance.

“The scariest polluters in the city are the chemical manufacturing industry, and they’re monitored (by the state and EPA) very carefully,” he says. “I think for the most part they’ve been compliant and careful.”

Adding permits that only affect the city and not the surrounding suburbs would simply make it that much easier for a company to choose a location other than Cincinnati, opponents contend.

“To create that additional layer, I think was generally thought of as overkill,” Bortz says, adding that that scenario would see Cincinnati losing both jobs and environmental quality. “We can keep them out of the city of Cincinnati, but can’t keep them out of our air and water supply. Something like this needs to be national or international.”

The debate could be a moot point, at least for the near future. Council didn’t include funding for the ordinance’s manager, expected to be an employee under the city’s Office of Environmental Quality, and the organization of its board of appeals.

“For whatever reason — the budget, or whatever — there’s not a lot of loose cash hanging around,” says Bonnie Phillips, the Office of Environmental Quality’s environmental compliance manager.

Bortz had a more blunt assessment.

“Council didn’t put it back in the budget,” he says. “The administration — it was pretty clear from the beginning — they didn’t like it.”

Berding’s motion was originally submitted in June, and only came up this week under a so-called “sunset” review: The newly elected council is essentially sorting through unfinished business left from the prior group.

Both Bortz and new Councilwoman Laure Quinlivan, a Democrat, said they wouldn’t be surprised to see the motion vanish into the proverbial sunset, especially given the lack of funding for the ordinance.

That’s not to say the ordinance will go quietly into the New Year.

“We have to do something,” says Quinlivan.

“You just can’t have a new law in the books with no funding to support it.”

The first-term councilwoman campaigned in 2009 on a platform that, in her words, stressed making the city “cleaner, greener and smarter.” And a motion she planned to submit Jan. 5 in that spirit could provide for a very similar step to that proposed by Berding and the business community.

Quinlivan’s motion would call for a one-year delay in the implementation of the ordinance.

Her goal, she explains, is to give the new council a chance to both assess the ordinance and figure out a way to pay for it.

Cost estimates for implementation vary widely depending on which side is presenting: Supporters put the figure at around $150,000, while opponents suggest it could be $170,000 to $280,000 higher per year, mostly for appeals and legal fees from businesses that are denied permits.

“If the environmental justice ordinance could really help us and we could even market it to our advantage, it might be really good,” she says. “On the other hand, if it’s something that really discourages businesses from moving here, it might be really bad. That’s why I’m for gathering more information.”

Ellen van der Horst, then the Chamber’s president and CEO, wrote a letter last summer

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“On the local level you have to be focused on enforcement, and we already are,” he says. “We just don’t have a lot of that type of industry anymore.”

Bortz noted that due to specifications in the ordinance that focus on companies that produce and use toxic chemicals it wouldn’t have been able to prevent one of the area’s more recent environmental emergencies, the 2005 styrene leak from a rail car near Lunken Airport. That leak resulted in a mandatory evacuation of parts of the Columbia Tusculum neighborhood.

Supporters of the ordinance see the lack of funding and council’s potential plans as holding up a groundbreaking piece of legislation. For Quinlivan, the motion she’s submitting is an opportunity to approach the ordinance in a smarter, possibly more financially sound fashion. “(By next year) our budget situation could be all different. And if this is important to people, we can find the money to do the implementation.” ©

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to the mayor and City Council urging that the ordinance is rejected.

“In its current form, the proposed ordinance would have a significant negative impact on business development,” van der Horst wrote.

“At a time when the city of Cincinnati faces a projected $40 million budget deficit, creating a new unfunded mandate detrimental to business growth could only have a negative impact,” the letter added. “Without significant business growth, the city’s tax revenues will likely decrease and it will become more difficult to reduce the city’s projected deficit.”

But Quinlivan says that if her motion passes she’d like to talk more with both sides of the issue to sort truth from spin, determining, for example, whether the ordinance would have potentially hampered a recent expansion by Graeter’s Ice Cream, as ordinance opponents have claimed.

Bortz suggests that given the time and a cost-benefit analysis there is a chance the city will indeed find the ordinance a case of gilding an already effective lily.

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fragmented, the jolt of the metropolis is depicted with sacred ardor. Urban Rapture opens at the Carnegie this Friday with a reception from 6-9 p.m. and continues through Feb. 19. Visit www.thecarnegie.com for information.

— MATT MORRIS

Sparrow Bellows

SATURDAY09 4 PHOTO: Sean Hughes

WEDNESDAY06 4 ART: WESTON ART GALLERY hosts three very different exhibitions by three separate artists: Rick Mallette, Alice Pixley Young and Steve Zieverink. See review on page 26.

MUSIC: ARTIST IN RESIDENCE FEATURING SPARROW BELLOWS One of the many cool things about the Southgate House (24 East 3rd St., Newport) is the beloved venue’s “Artist in Residence” series, which puts an original local band onstage in Juney’s Lounge each Wednesday of the month. It’s a great chance to see your favorite local band in a super-intimate and super-loose setting — fans will often get an early peak at a new song or two or maybe hear a new cover song being tried out. You can also interact pretty easily with the performers, as they’re usually within arm’s reach, making it easier to hand them shots or give them hi-fives (but, conversely, making it easier for them to punch you in the face if you yell out “Freebird” in a drunken stupor one more time). The first A.I.R. band for 2010 is Sparrow Bellows, the awesomely melodic, rockin’ trio featuring guitarist/singer/songwriter Ric Hickey, singer/ bassist Sammy Wulfeck (also of Goose) and drummer Brian Kitzmiller. All A.I.R. shows are free and start at 9 p.m. www. southgatehouse.com. — MIKE BREEN

THURSDAY07 4

FRIDAY08 4

CONTINUES ON PAGE 144

january 06-12, 2010

COMEDY: BRENDON WALSH Comedian Brendon Walsh can’t decide whether he’s depressed or successful: “Is it a sign of depression if the only reason you take the sweatpants off you’ve been wearing for three days in a row is to use them as Brendon Walsh a napkin in bed? Or is it a sign of living the dream?” So far, he thinks it’s the latter, following a successful seven years doing stand-up. “I just wanted to

MUSIC: COLTRANE MOTION blends distorted guitar racket with a palpable keyboard atmosphere at the Northside have a job that paid me as much as loading trucks all day Tavern with Eagle To Squirrel and Bullying Ben Jones. See and let me drink on the job,” Walsh says. Before trying his Sound Advice on page 22. first open mic, he had a somewhat captive audience of city

workers. “One day I got up on the back of a flat-bed truck, MUSIC: THE TILLERS celebrate the release of By the Signs ‘Alright, guys, just so we’re clear my name is pronounced at the Southgate House with Magnolia Mountain and The Bren-don not Bren-dejo, which is how I heard some of you Dirt Daubers. See Music on page 17. pronouncing my name.’ ” Walsh recalls. “It really busted

up all the Mexican guys ’cause I think ‘pendejo’ means ART: FABRICATE Fabricate, Northside’s newest gallery asshole. Or motherfucker. I know ‘pendejo’ is a curse (and boutique and supply store), keeps the momentum word. I don’t know. I don’t even going with its third exhibit since get my own jokes!” Brendon Walsh opening in November. Their latest performs at Go Bananas Thursday art offering, A Shot in the Dark, through Sunday. Tickets are $8is a photographic survey of Rock $12. www.gobananascomedy.com. musicians and shows (local — P.F. WILSON and non) by area photographer

Scott Beseler. According to the press release, Beseler says, “My photographs are a thanks to the sound. Cincinnati was once ART: CARNEGIE VISUAL AND known as a music town and my PERFORMING ARTS CENTER photography is evidence that the Cedric Michael Cox makes use of tradition is still alive and well.”

PHOTO courtesy Cedric Michael Cox Cincinnati’s ornamental Italianate Calling the images “stills that Painting by Cedric Michael Cox architecture and gritty textures in show motion and sound, tears city-themed paintings on display in and beers, sweat, blood, spit, alcohol, smoke and mirrors, a number of exhibitions. Soul Within Structure is a series of tattoos, friends and fools,” his subjects include the likes paintings at the Contemporary of locals The Heartless Bastards, The Lions Rampant, Arts Center’s UnMuseum The Sundresses and many others. The opening reception that remain up until March 8. starts at 7 p.m. at Fabricate with potable beverages, hors Concurrently, a new exhibition d’oeuvres and a special performance by The Cut in the Hill of Cox’s work is set to open Gang (frequently photographed by Beseler) at 10:15 p.m. this Friday at the Carnegie After Fabricate, head to Mayday for an afterparty with 11 Visual and Performing Arts bands including The Cincinnati Suds, The Chocolate Horse, Center in Covington (1028 The Jellyhearts, Wonky Tonk and others who have been Scott Blvd.). Cox exaggerates photographed by Beseler. The opening reception runs from the geometry of the city, 7-11 p.m. at Fabricate, 4012 Hamilton Ave. color-coding it in brilliant www.fabnorthside.com. Mayday is located 4227 Spring reds, golds and blue-greens Grove Ave. — MAIJA ZUMMO borrowed from luminous PHOTO courtesy go bananas

stained glass windows (or, in an alternative reading, patchwork quilts). Lively and

13

Screenprint of Two-Headed Pig

photo courtesy chelsey Hughes

Up. The all-ages “Screamo Unplugged” show (our name, not theirs) starts at 8 p.m. and also features Mark Rose of Spitalfield and Josh Hill of the local band Ellison. Tickets are $8, $10 day of show; go to www.southgatehouse.com to get yours early. The Southgate is at 24 East 3rd St., Newport. — MIKE BREEN

WednesDAY06 4

january 06-12, 2010

ART: NVISION Through the end of this month, Chelsey Hughes will be showing her strange etchings and screenprints of medical anomalies, human oddities and other comparable subject matter at NVision (4577 Hamilton Ave., Northside). Hughes is a student at the Art Academy of Cincinnati focusing on illustration and printmaking. Her work will share NVision’s space with its usual conglomeration of locally designed and/or vintage clothing, furnishings and objects of art. Hours are 2-9 p.m. WednesdaySunday. Call 513-542-4577. — STEVEN ROSEN

14

4TO DO: FROM PAGE 13

ART: CINCINNATI ART MUSEUM Rookwood Pottery is widely considered to be some of the highest quality, massproduced pottery ever made. Hand-painted and fired, each of the works is unique and a local treasure. The Cincinnati Art Museum houses an excellent collection of the works in its Cincinnati Wing, featuring vases that date back to the 1880s when Maria Longworth founded Rookwood Pottery. Each work presents a character and Rookwood Vase style unique to its era.

The vivid, colorful glazes offer visitors a peek into our local heritage and shine with a vibrancy that’s as breathtaking today as it was when they were first produced.

Tour CAM’s collection with a trained docent, who will offer context and details on Rookwood’s rich history. Free. Parking is $4. 2-3 p.m. www. cincinnatiartmuseum. org. — STEPHEN CARTERPHOTO courtesy cincinnati art museum NOVOTNI MUSIC: JT WOODRUFF When you hear the soaring Post Hardcore roar of Dayton, Ohio’s successful Hawthorne Heights, the first thing you think is probably not, “Wow, that tune would sound great around a campfire and performed on just an acoustic guitar.” But singer JT Woodruff will do just that (minus the campfire) this Saturday at the Southgate House (in the cozy Parlour room), the same venue in which the Heights filmed a music video and, more recently, performed the final show of its ’09 tour, just before Christmas. Expect to hear some acoustic versions of HH faves as well as songs slated for the band’s new album, Skeletons, due within the next few months on Wind-

SPORTS: HAMILTON COUNTY PARKS WINTER HIKE SERIES Every Saturday through Feb. 6, Hamilton County Parks offers up a 4 to 5.5-mile hike along some of the city’s best trails. Fight cabin fever by finding some friends, bundling up and getting your ass out of bed before 10 a.m., which is when the hikes start. As an added bonus and warm reward, a bowl of soup will be served to each hiker at the end of the hike. Hikers will also each receive one free walking stick. This Saturday, the hike takes place at Winton Woods (10245 Winton Woods, Springfield) and the soup of the day is bean soup with cornbread. On Jan. 16, head to Sharon Woods (11450 Lebanon Road, Sharonville) for a hike and chicken noodle soup. On Jan. 23, Miami Whitewater Forest (9001 Mount Hope Road, Crosby Twp.) hosts the hike with chili soup and crackers. Then on Jan. 30, hike around Woodland Mound (8250 Old Kellogg Road, Anderson) for some chicken wild rice soup. And, last but not least, go to Shawnee Lookout (2008 Lawrenceburg Road, Miami Twp.) for some exercise and vegetable beef barley soup. $5 per person, per hike. Register for hikes at www.greatparks.org. — MAIJA ZUMMO

MONDAY11 4 MUSIC: THE BLED, Tuscon’s Post-Hardcore quintet, drums up anticipation for its upcoming fourth album Heat Fetish at Covington’s Mad Hatter with I Am Messenger and The Paramedic. See Sound Advice on page 22.

TUESDAY12 4 ONSTAGE: EIGHTH BLACKBIRD, the wildly innovative, Grammy-award winning sextet, performs at CCM’s Corbett Auditorium. See Arts on page 24.

EVENTS: TUESDAY NIGHT MOVIES AT GRAMMER’S Bored on Tuesday nights? Head to Grammer’s for their weekly movie night. Each Tuesday the bar screens two cult classic movies like The Breakfast Club or Dazed and Confused inside the Tarbell Room. The action has moved indoors because it’s freaking cold out, but in the spring the movies will be projected outside, “bike-in” style, in the beer garden. And, as always, Grammer’s will be providing drinkers and movie-goers with limitless free popcorn. To learn what movies are being screened each week, join the “Tuesday Night Movies at Grammer’s” group page on Facebook. They send out an e-mail the Monday before. Or just stop by the bar at 10 p.m. Free. Corner of Walnut and Liberty in Over-the-Rhine. www.grammers.net.

— MAIJA ZUMMO

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Pete Rose will be at the Cavalcade of Customs

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FRIDAY08 4 EVENTS: CAVALCADE OF CUSTOMS If you don’t like cars, baseball and SpongeBob Square Pants then you hate America. This weekend’s Cavalcade of Customs will have everything for the red-blooded American in all of us (and don’t try to act like SpongeBob is gay — that was one of the Teletubbies). In addition to showcasing dozens of hot rods and custom cars, the event will include an autograph session with Reds legend/banned MLBer Pete Rose, kid-friendly mascots like SpongeBob, Mr. Red and Dora the Explorer, and lots of other stuff for those who don’t know the difference between a camshaft bolt and a camshaft button (the bolt is smaller). The main draw, of course, will be the many “sweet,” “badass” and “awesome” cars, along with special exhibits, noted designers, collectible toys and charity auctions. $14; $5 children ages 6-12. 3-10 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday at the Duke Energy Convention Center. www.autorama.com. — DANNY CROSS

So here we are in 2010 and still no teleportation (a la Star Trek) nor jet packs (a la The Jetsons). What a rip-off!

Oh well, at least we do have an iPhone app that lets you know the right moments to go take a leak when you are at the movie theater. Also cool in these futuristic times— free stuff from citybeat.com. Head to the site and click on “Free Stuff” to win tickets to see the unique teaming of Indie bands CALEXICO (pictured) and THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT with the LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA later this month in Louisville. You can also still register to win tickets to ANI DIFRANCO’s show at Covington’s Madison Theater this February.

PLAN AHEAD

PHOTO COURTESY myspace.com/borgesrocks

After an impressive performance at the MidPoint Music Festival last year, rising Americana stars SARAH BORGES AND BROKEN SINGLES (pictured) play the Southgate House on Jan. 15. The Tony Award-winning musical SPRING AWAKENING, with its mix of sex, nihilism and Rock & Roll show tunes, begins its run at the Aronoff Center Jan. 12. And the ONE MORE GIRL ON A STAGE music fest featuring many of the finest area acts with a female presence comes to Newport’s York Street Café on Jan. 15 and 16.

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MUSIC

4SPILL IT By mike breen

Hot Blast of Blues The Blues can often conjure images of sweltering heat and sweat-inducing sun rays (like in that movie, Crossroads, with the Karate Kid), but a swift winter chill can be just as fitting. Be it Seasonal Affective Disorder or just the need for some down and dirty grooves to grind to (and keep warm), the Blues can be your best friend come wintertime. Luckily, Cincinnati Blues doesn’t take the winter off.

The Cincy Blues Society’s annual “Winter Blues Fest” is coming up at the end of January (two nights, three stages and 26 bands at the Southgate House, Jan. 29-30). But Monday you can get your Blues fix via a stellar lineup at Play By Play in Silverton. And it’s for a good cause — helping area artists spread the good word of Midwestern Blues. The “Road to Memphis 2010” showcase kicks off at 7 p.m. and raises money to help local musicians get to Memphis at the end of the month and battle in the International Blues Challenge (check blues.org for more on the IBC festivities).

Monday’s benefit show will feature IBC competitors Cheryl Renee with Them Bones (competing in the “Band” category and representing the Cincy Blues Society) and Ricky Nye (CBS rep in the “Solo/Duo” category), as well as Twelve-Eight (participating in the new Youth Showcase at the IBC) and Jimmy D. Rogers, who is the Columbus Blues Alliance’s entry in the “Solo/Duo” category (oddly, Cincinnati’s Sonny Moorman Group — not performing at the benefit — is the CBA’s “Band” competitor and the band’s Live as Hell album is up for Best Self-Produced CD honors).

Next Sunday (Jan. 17), the Kentuckiana Blues Society’s IBC representative Dick and the Roadmasters team with Nye and Them Bones for another “Road to Memphis” show at Covington’s Madison Theater (6 p.m. start time).

More Local Notes

contact mike breen: mbreen@citybeat.com

PHOTO: cameron knight

The Tillers have plenty of reasons to toot their own horn.

Licensed to Till With a new album at the ready, The Tillers have ambitious goals for 2010 4interview by brian baker

A

s the members of The Tillers awaited their Cincinnati Entertainment Awards Folk/Americana win this past November, the trio was busy fomenting a feud. In a Queen City Folk version of the East Coast/West Coast WASSUP Rap skirmish, The Tillers and Magnolia Mountain THE TILLERS (myspace.com/thetillersthree) had crafted a war of celebrate the release of By the Signs Satwords. urday at the Southgate House with guests “A few weeks prior, I Magnolia Mountain and The Dirt Daubers. told (Magnolia Mountain’s) Mark Utley we should do something crazy at the CEAs and stage a Folk fight,” says Tillers vocalist/banjoist Mike Oberst with a wry smile. “So the music scene in Cincinnati will know not to screw with us. We’re not just singing ‘Where Have All the Flowers Gone.’ ” Magnolia Mountain’s Utley hacked The Tillers’ Face-

book page (“You should vote for Magnolia Mountain … we bow down to Magnolia Mountain”) and ultimately posted a photo of The Tillers’ acceptance speech with a nicely Photoshopped image of Kanye West (“Magnolia Mountain had one of the best albums of the year!”) on the Tillers’ MySpace page. And his Misfits-inspired rendering of The Tillers’ “new album cover” was real enough to upset Tillers bassist Jason Soudrette’s grandmother.

“She called me up irate and said, ‘Is that your new album? I’m not buying it,’ ” Soudrette says with a bemused laugh. “I thought she was going to disown me.”

It was all fiction. In fact, Utley provided The Tillers with their favorite song from their soon-to-be-released sophomore album, By the Signs.

“It’s one of the best songs we do,” Oberst says of the Utley-penned “There Is Enough.” “It pretty much blows CONTINUES ON PAGE 184

january 06-12, 2010

• Local Hardcore band Paralyzer — formed from the ashes of File & Claw and featuring members of several other current/ former bands — will release its new CD, Counting Catastrophe, Saturday at the CS13 gallery/performance space in Overthe-Rhine. The show is free (though donations for CS13 won’t be frowned upon) and all-ages. Showtime is 8 p.m. Till Plains and White Walls will also perform. (paralyzer.net) • When CityBeat profiled Butler County kinda Roots, kinda Indie/Alt rockers Sohio a few months ago about the band’s forthcoming album, it was confirmed that the release was finished (after more than three years in the making) and that it would hit streets in early 2010. What the band members didn’t know was what the full-length would be titled. Well, it’s early 2010, the album is being released Friday and it finally has a name — Impossible Hope. For the release show Friday, the group is joined at the Southgate House by local Indie Rock/Pop bands Black Owls, Cash Flagg and The Transport.

Show starts at 9 p.m. (sohiomusic.com) • OK, here’s the deal. A “new rule,” if you will. If you move to Cincinnati and are in a really good, active band, even though your bandmates may not live here, we still get to claim you as an honorary “local band.” (If your band sucks … we’ll pass, thanks.) So, with this new edict in place, head to the Blue Wisp Jazz Club this Saturday to see and hear Cincinnati’s newest “revved-up Swing/Rockabilly/Blues/Jazz” band, Neon Swing X-perience. The group is based in Pittsburgh but singer/trumpeter Mike Urick moved to Cincy to go to grad school, so the band members split travel time. The group has been a popular hire around the country, having performed at The Derby in Hollywood and Central Park in the Big Apple, and NSX already has steady tour dates booked into the summer. (www.neonswing.net)

17

4LICENSED TO TILL: FROM PAGE 17

4 club directory Allyn’s Cafe — 3538 Columbia Parkway, Columbia-Tusculum.

513-871-5779.

Madison Theater — 730 Madison Ave., Covington. 859-491-2444.

Arnold’s Bar and Grill — 210 E. Eighth St., Downtown. 513-421-6234.

Mayday — 4227-4231 Spring Grove Ave. , Northside. 513-541-0999.

Bella Luna — 4632 Eastern Ave., Linwood. 513-871-5862.

Black Angus Burgers & Brew — 10575 Chester Road, Glendale.

513-772-1500.

The Black Sheep — 3807 North Bend Road, Cheviot. 513-481-6300.

Blue Rock Tavern & Speakeasy — 4114 Hamilton Ave., Northside.

513-542-6644.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — 318 E. 8th St., Downtown. 513-241-9477.

Charlie’s Throttle Stop — 7121 Dixie Hwy., Fairfield. 513-874-6111.

Chez Nora — 530 Main St., Covington. 859-491-8027.

Claddagh Irish Pub — 1 Levee Way,Newport on the Levee, Newport.

859-581-8888.

Comet — 4579 Hamilton Ave., Northside. 513-541-8900.

Crow’s Nest — 4544 W. 8th St., Price Hill. 513-921-2980.

Mansion Hill Tavern — 502 Washington St., Newport. 859-581-0100.

Miller’s Fill Inn — 52 Donnermeyer Dr., Bellevue. 859-431-3455.

Mr. Pitiful’s — 1323 Main St., Over-the-Rhine. 513-369-0202.

Northside Tavern — 4163 Hamilton Ave., Northside. 513-542-3603.

Play by Play Rock Cafe — 6923 Plainfield Road, Silverton.

513-793-3360.

R.P. McMurphy’s Irish Pub & Coffee House — 2910 Wasson Rd., Oakley. 513-531-3300.

The Redmoor — 3187 Linwood Ave., Mount Lookout. 513-871-6789.

Rick’s Tavern & Grille — 5955-5 Boymel Dr., Fairfield.

513-874-1992.

Rohs Street Cafe — 245 W. McMillan St., Clifton Heights.

513-238-7647.

Shady O’Grady’s — 9443 Loveland-Madeira Road, Loveland.

513-791-2753.

CS13 — 1219 Sycamore St., Over-the-Rhine. 000-000-0000.

Silverton Cafe — 7203 Montgomery Road, Silverton. 513-791-2922.

Dee Felice Cafe — 529 Main St., Covington. 859-261-2365.

Deer Park Inn — 7228 Blue Ash Road, Deer Park. 513-791-3178.

Dirty Jack’s — 5912 Vine St., Elmwood Place. 513-242-2800.

Dollar Bill Tavern — 8074 U.S. 42, Florence. 859-746-3600.

The Greenwich — 2442 Gilbert Ave., Downtown. 513-665-4700.

Havana Martini Club — 441 Vine St., Downtown. 513-651-2800.

HD Beans And Bottles Cafe — 6721 Montgomery Road, Silverton. 513793-6036.

Southgate House — 24 E. Third St., Newport. 859-431-2201.

Southgate House (Lounge) — 24 E. Third St., Newport.

859-431-2201.

Southgate House (Parlour) — 24 E. Third St., Newport. 859-431-2201.

Stagge’s Saloon — 8450 Blue Ash Rd., Sycamore Twp. 513-794-1234.

Stanley’s Pub — 323 Stanley Ave., Columbia-Tusculum. 513-871-6249.

Terry’s Turf Club — 4618 Eastern Ave., Linwood. 513-533-4222.

InCahoots — 4110 Hunt Road, Blue Ash. 513-793-2600.

The Underground — 1140 Smiley Ave., Forest Park. 513-825-8200.

Inner Circle Entertainment Complex — 4343 Kellogg Ave., East End. 513-321-0220.

Waterfront/South Beach Grill — 14 Pete Rose Pier, Covington. 859581-1414.

Jefferson Hall — 1 Levee Way, Newport on the Levee, Newport.

859-491-6200.

Win Place or Show — 9933 Cincinnati-Columbus Road, West Chester.

513-777-2920.

Jim and Jack’s on the River — 3456 River Road, Riverside.

513-251-7977.

Wine Cellar — 1101 Saint Gregory St., Mount Adams.

513-241-9009.

Jim Dandy’s Family BBQ — 2343 E. Sharon Road, Sharonville.

513-771-4888.

Woodies Tavern — 10020 Demia Way, Florence. 859-282-1264.

York Street Cafe — 738 York St., Newport. 859-261-9675.

Knotty Pine — 6947 Cheviot Rd., White Oak. 513-741-3900.

Zion United Church of Christ Norwood — 2332 Sherwood Lane, Norwood. 513-531-5400.

Mad Frog — 1 E. McMillan St., Corryville. 513-784-9119.

everything we do out of the water. He wrote it just for us. He said, ‘I think this says everything there is to say about you guys.

Do whatever you want with it.’ ” What The Tillers did is surround Utley’s song with nearly a dozen more of equal wonder and beauty. Drawing on new influences as well as the trio’s core inspirations, By the Signs is an amazing achievement by any yardstick, especially coming on the heels of the band’s 2008 debut, Ludlow Street Rag. “We wrote a lot more on the new album,” says guitarist Sean Geil. “The first album was more traditional songs, but we still tried to be fresh with those, too. We can’t deny the generation we grew up in.”

“With the new one, we just let it be more free and more melodic,” Oberst says. “We didn’t try to hold too close to any specific style of Folk.”

“It’s a little more Tillerish,” Soudrette says. “It’s more of us than our influences.”

The Tillers evolved quickly, with Geil and Oberst’s jams in mid-2007 shifting to a full-fledged band with Soudrette’s addition a few weeks later. Although all three come from Punk backgrounds, Oberst and Geil channeled their longstanding love of Folk/ Bluegrass/Old Time music into band work.

“I was playing in the Mt. Pleasant String Band and Mike was with the Blue Rock Boys,” Geil says. “We played a show together and met and liked what we were doing. I checked out Mike’s MySpace page for his own songs and found out we were into a lot of the same stuff.”

The pair’s first eight-hour jam revealed their mutual love of the Carter Family, Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly and Roscoe Holcomb; within a week, they played their first show. After club gigs and numerous hours spent busking on local street corners, Geil and Oberst decided a bass player was essential and recruited Soudrette, Oberst’s bandmate in the Punk band Disarmed, in 2000.

“We knew he was a hard working guy and could catch on quick,” says Geil. “We’d

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do a two chord song, throw in a three chord song, then give him a one chord song and take it easy on him. Before we knew it, he was able to play a half a night with us.”

Soudrette was unfamiliar with the songbooks that inspired his bandmates, plus they wanted him to play stand-up bass, which he had never attempted. With a few rehearsals and gigs under his belt, Soudrette accompanied Geil and Oberst on an afternoon slot at a music festival then sat in for a second set at the old Northside haunt, The Gypsy Hut, that night.

“My fingers were numb,” Soudrette says.

“I’m not even sure if there were flatwound strings on there; roundwounds are like cheese graters.”

In addition to the CEA win, By the Signs’ imminent release and the upcoming festival season, The Tillers are excited about their inclusion in an upcoming USA Network documentary and series of reports about people who live along Route 50, produced and hosted by veteran TV newsman Tom Brokaw.

Oberst heard about the special and sent Ludlow Street Rag, featuring their original song “There is a Road (Route 50),” to Brokaw, but he never received the package. Weeks later, Oberst received a call from a producer who had Googled songs about Route 50; The Tillers’ popped up near the top.

“At first they just wanted to use the song,” Oberst says. “But we talked for a long time and he liked our story and said, ‘We might want the band to be featured as a part of the documentary.’ So we’re representing Cincinnati and struggling Folk musicians.”

Last June, Brokaw arrived at Oberst’s Sayler Park home on Route 50 to interview the band. They arranged a backyard show with a few dozen friends as an audience, which was taped, and then Brokaw sat down with the band for an interview.

“Tom Brokaw was a super cool guy,” Geil says. “I don’t think he’d ever seen our (‘Route 50’) video, so we watched him watch it. He said, ‘Well, we’ve got everything we need,’ then he kept talking to us. All of a sudden, he was like, ‘Get the cameras up again, we’ve got some good stuff going on.’ He has that way; that’s why he is who he is. He probably had that planned all along.” ©

4music

Painting with Sound Pete Fosco makes Ambient music with a melodic heart and discernible texture 4interview by brian baker

T

PHOTO courtesy pete fosco

Pete Fosco Herzog, the soundtracks to their movies” have been inspirational, says Fosco. “And music like Popol Vuh, and Brian Eno was huge for me, the Ambient series and Music for Airports, and early minimalism like Terry Riley. Even early Spiritualized and Galaxie 500; I love their guitar tone. I listen to a lot of Pop music, too. I come home and listen to Townes Van Zandt, but I don’t ever have any thoughts of, ‘How can I sound like this?’ ” While a good deal of Fosco’s sound is based in improvisation, there is a compositional element to his work as well.

“I’m not a great guitar player; I have a hard time remembering long, complicated passages,” Fosco says. “But it’s kind of half and half. Some is improv and some is stuff that I’ve practiced in my bedroom and basement, and then I just see where it goes. It usually ends up not at all what I thought it would be, which is good and bad, I guess.”

Fosco has definitely kept himself occupied with his Ambient explorations during the

past four years. He’s recorded a number of self-released and distributed cassettes and CD-Rs, culminating in the 2008 release of Crescent Avenue through Dead Pilot Records. That turned out to be a banner year for Fosco — he got married, bought a house, adopted a pair of dogs, released Crescent Avenue, recorded In Electric Nights, did a number of dates at the Art Damage Lodge (“We’re really lucky to have a venue like the Lodge,” Fosco says) and a limited 10-day tour of the Midwest and East Coast, live work that he hopes to continue in the new year, if at a slightly lighter pace.

“This year, I think I’ll just sleep,” he jokes. “I’m going to work one week out of every month … I’m kidding.”

PETE FOSCO (www.myspace.com/petefosco) performs Sunday at the CS13 Gallery (1219 Sycamore St., Over-the-Rhine) with Andrew Weathers, Slicnaton and Discerning Crane.

january 06-12, 2010

here is a hypnotic quality to Pete Fosco’s guitar manipulations, an Ambient drone that suggests the casual intensity of Steve Reich or Brian Eno. At the same time, there are melodic and harmonic touches that lift Fosco’s sonic texturalism above the realm of simple ambience, to a place where tone poems and more traditional song structures and, perhaps more to the point, people co-exist and collide.

“Werner Herzog talks about ecstatic truths and this direct connection that happens betweens two humans, and not just as performer to audience,” Fosco says over lunch at the Greenup Café in Covington. “There’s this interaction that happens. It’s hard to explain; in three years of playing out, I’ve maybe hit it once or twice. You know when it happens. As far as the recordings, different people will take different things out of it.”

Fosco’s latest album, the about-to-drop In Electric Nights, is slightly more organic and cerebrally psychedelic than its predecessor, last year’s Crescent Avenue. Like a dreamy, Ambient vision of Funkadelic’s Maggot Brain, In Electric Nights is also more typically “song based,” featuring five shorter compositions, as opposed to Crescent Avenue’s 30-minute opus and two shorter codas.

“The new one’s more compact,” Fosco says.

“There’s just five shorter tracks. There’s one song that’s nine or 10 minutes, but it’s going to be vinyl only, so I wanted to keep it to like 17, 18 minutes per side. You don’t want to compromise the quality of the sound for the format.”

Oddly enough, music came secondarily for Fosco, who began studying in the University of Cincinnati’s Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) program, then shifted to the College-Conservatory of Music’s (CCM) electronic media curriculum, from which he graduated in 2004. Originally intent on becoming a filmmaker, the self-professed “music nerd” shifted his focus to music, learning guitar after his CCM experience.

“I studied digital film editing and did a little music stuff, but I was never really totally satisfied,” Fosco says. “When I got done with school, I applied to grad school for film and didn’t get in anywhere. I was really angry at first but, looking back on it, it was because my stuff wasn’t very good. I understand now.”

Turning to his interest in guitar, Fosco bought a Telecaster and practice amp and began to learn. Although he took lessons from some adept teachers (local singer/songwriter/ guitarist Roger Klug, among them), Fosco felt his creative muse being sparked by his previous ambition.

“A lot of film music, like Ennio Morricone soundtracks and Akira Kurosawa and Werner

19

4music listings

Havana Martini Club — DJ Rudy Alvarez (Chris Comer Trio with Jazz at 5 p.m.). Dance/Latin. Free.

Inner Circle Entertainment Complex — The Nigel Dupree Band |

CityBeat’s music listings are free. Send info to MIKE BREEN via email at mbreen@citybeat.com or fax at 513-665-4369.

Listings are subject to change. See Club Directory for all club locations.

H is CityBeat staff’s stamp of approval.

Concerts Trey Songz & Friends — R&B. Friday, January 8. 9 p.m. Bogart’s,

H2621 Vine St., Corryville. $39. 513-281-8400.

Allstate Gospel Superfest with The Whispers, Vickie Winans, Richard Smallwood & Vision, Karen Clark H Sheard, Hezekiah Walker & LFC, Dorinda Clark Cole, J. Moss,

James Fortune, Melvin Williams and more — Gospel. Saturday, January 9. 6 p.m. Cintas Center, 1624 Herald Avenue, Evanston. $15-$35.

513-745-3411.

Clubs

Black Angus Burgers & Brew — Sonny Moorman Group. Rock/

Blues. Free.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Jim Connerly, Ron Enyard and Ed Felson. Jazz. $5.

Dee Felice Cafe — Lee Stolar Trio. Jazz. Free.

Dirty Jack’s — Future Without a Face | Beneficial Genocide | Another Wasted Youth. Metal. Cover.

Dollar Bill Tavern — Kat’s Meow. Pop/Dance. Free.

The Greenwich — iolite. Jazz/R&B/Soul. $5.

Havana Martini Club — Jack Doll (5 p.m.). Jazz. Free.

Jefferson Hall — 4th Day Echo. Rock. Cover.

Rohs Street Cafe — Emily Ash. Jazz. Free.

Southgate House (Lounge) — Hillbilly Thursday: The Sloes. Folk/Roots

Rock. Free.

Wednesday January 6 Arnold’s Bar and Grill — Justin Wade. R&B. Free.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Blue Wisp Big Band. Jazz/Swing. $10.

Charlie’s Throttle Stop — Open jam with Sonny Moorman Group.

Rock/Blues/Open jam. Free.

Crow’s Nest — Bob Cushing. Acoustic. Free.

Dirty Jack’s — Black Don Promotions | Slum Muzik Ent.. Hip Hop. Cover.

The Greenwich — Midnight Sun Cafe & Open Mic Jam. Open mic. Cover.

Havana Martini Club — DJ Rudy Alvarez. Dance/Latin. Free.

HD Beans And Bottles Cafe — Open mic. Open mic. Free.

Northside Tavern — Wade Baker | Ayo Awosika. Jazz. Free.

Southgate House (Lounge) — Artists in Residence: Sparrow

HBellows. Rock. Free.

Stanley’s Pub — Super-Massive. Reggae. Cover.

Thursday January 7 Arnold’s Bar and Grill — Wayne Shanon and Dottie Warner. Lounge.

Friday January 8 Arnold’s Bar and Grill — The Flock (The Catfish Evans Trio with Jazz/ Swing at 6 p.m.). Rock/Roots/Irish. Free.

Bella Luna — Blue Birds Trio. R&B/Soft Rock. Free.

The Black Sheep — Fine Line (6 p.m.). Acoustic. Free.

Blue Rock Tavern & Speakeasy — Tater Famine. Folk/Punk. Free.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Dan Dorff Group (Steve Barone/Jack Doll Trio at 4:30 p.m.; Delbert Williams with Blues at midnight). Jazz. $10.

Charlie’s Throttle Stop — Scotty Bratcher. Blues. Cover.

Dee Felice Cafe — The “New” Sleepcat Band. Jazz/Swing. Free.

Deer Park Inn — Sonny Moorman. Blues. Free.

Dirty Jack’s — 859 Stylz Ent. Hip Hop. Cover.

Dollar Bill Tavern — One Night Stand. Pop/Dance. Free.

The Greenwich — The Last Boppers. Jazz. Cover.

Jefferson Hall — The Websters. Rock. Cover.

Jim and Jack’s on the River — Cold Smoke. Classic Rock/Oldies. Cover.

Knotty Pine — Bad Habit. Rock. Cover.

Mad Frog — The Skeetones | Ninefold | Elemental Groove Theory. Rock.

Cover.

Mad Hatter — Bazookas Go Bang | Make This Your Summer | Papa

Shango | The Masses. Rock. Cover.

Mansion Hill Tavern — Chuck Brisbin & the Tuna Project. Blues. $4.

Mayday — The Portions | The Signals | Rocket 00000. Rock. Free.

Northside Tavern — Nathan Holscher | The Kiss Me Everlasting. Roots/ Indie. Free.

Putter’s Two-Putt Tavern — Basic Truth. Funk/R&B/Soul. $3.

R.P. McMurphy’s — Cover Model. Rock/Alternative. $3.

The Redmoor — DJ Perry Simmons. Dance/DJ/R&B. Cover.

Rick’s Tavern & Grille — The Whammies. Rock/Pop/80s. $5.

Southgate House — Sohio (CD Release Party) with Black Owls,

H Cash Flagg and The Transport. Americana/Roots Rock. $8 for 21 plus, $11 for 18-20.

Stanley’s Pub — Rocky Cash | Katty Whomp Us. Rock/Americana. Cover.

Terry’s Turf Club — Eric Campbell & The Bevadors. Jazz. Free.

Win Place or Show — Nine Story Plunge. Rock. $3.

Wine Cellar — 1969 Band. Classic Rock. Free.

Woodies Tavern — Sunset Betty. Rock. Cover.

York Street Cafe — Rebecca Williams | Eric Falstrom. Acoustic. Cover.

Saturday January 9 Arnold’s Bar and Grill — Cincinnati Dancing Pigs. Americana. Free.

Bella Luna — Blue Birds Trio. R&B/Soft Rock. Free.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Neon Swing X-perience (Blues Wisp High

HSchool All Star Jazz Band at 6 p.m.; Steve Barione with soft Jazz at midnight). Jazz/Rockabilly/Swing (see Spill It, page 17). $10.

Charlie’s Throttle Stop — Black Bone Cat. Rock/Blues. Cover.

CS13 — Paralyzer (CD release show) with White Walls and TIll Plains.

HHardcore/Punk (see Spill It, page 17). Free.

Dee Felice Cafe — The “New” Sleepcat Band. Jazz/Swing. Free.

Dirty Jack’s — SpazOut Ent. | Los D Hustle | Down Bottom. Hip Hop.

Dollar Bill Tavern — Sheer Fantasy. Rock/Pop/Dance. Free.

The Greenwich — “Purple Lotus”. Open mic/Various. $5.

Havana Martini Club — Tropicoso. Latin. $10.

InCahoots — John Fox. Classic Rock. Free.

Jefferson Hall — Lt. Dan’s New Legs. Rock. Cover.

Jim and Jack’s on the River — Main Stream. Classic Rock/Oldies. Cover.

Jim Dandy’s Family BBQ — Pete Snow & Caroline Rose. Acoustic. Free.

Knotty Pine — Bad Habit. Rock. Cover.

Mad Hatter — A Wayward Heart | Cardboard Derby | Lights Down Low.

Win Place or Show — The Truth. Rock. $3.

Wine Cellar — Austin Lee Speigel. Rock. Free.

Woodies Tavern — Delirious. Rock. Cover.

York Street Cafe — Red Idle Rejects. Rock/Blues. Cover.

Mad Hatter — The Bled | I Am the Messenger | The Paramedic.

HRock (see Sound Advice, page 22). $10.

Sunday January 10

Cheryl Renee with Them Bones, Ricky Nye, Twelve-Eight, Jimmy D. Rogers and Noah Wotherspoon. Blues (see Spill It, page 17). Cover.

Allyn’s Cafe — Blue Birds Big Band. Classic Rock/R&B. $3.

Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Play it Forward presents: Toca Madera, Viaje and Chico Futuracho. Jazz/Latin. $5-$10.

Madison Theater — Higher Ground | Detached | Last Days | America’s Nightmare. Hard Rock. $10.

Chez Nora — Mary Ellen Tanner. Jazz. Free.

Comet — Comet Bluegrass Allstars. Bluegrass. Free.

CS13 — Andrew Weathers | Pete Fosco | Slicnaton | Discerning Crane.

Mansion Hill Tavern — II Juicy. Blues/R&B. $3.

Mayday — Fabricate After-Party Rock-n-Roll Extravaganza with The Lions

Dirty Jack’s — Cali D. Productions presents Sweat it Out Sunday. Hip Hop/

Rock. Cover.

H

Rampant, You, You’re Awesome, The Jellyhearts, The Chocolate Horse, The Cincinnati Suds, Oxford Cotton, Matthew Shelton, My Wife the Tiger, J. Dorsey All-Stars and Wonky Tonk. Indie/Various. Free.

Miller’s Fill Inn — Better Late Than Never. Rock. Free.

Mr. Pitiful’s — The Jones’s. Jazz/R&B/Soul. $5.

Northside Tavern — Coltrane Motion | Eagle to Squirrel | Bullying

HBen Jones. Rock/Indie (see Sound Advice, page 22). Free.

Play by Play Rock Cafe — July for Kings | Bottom Line | Mark Borison.

Rock. Cover.

R.P. McMurphy’s — Ten Foot Big. Rock. $3.

The Redmoor — Boo Radley. Rock. Cover.

Rick’s Tavern & Grille — House Party. Rock/Pop. $5.

Rohs Street Cafe — My Brother Benjamin | Sasha Colette and the

Magnolias. Roots/Americana. $5.

Silverton Cafe — Groove Crew. Rock. Free.

Southgate House — The Tillers (CD Release Party) with Magnolia

H Mountain and The Dirt Daubers. Americana/Folk (see interview, page 17). $8, $10 day of show.

Southgate House (Lounge) — Hickory Robot. Americana/Bluegrass.

Free.

Southgate House (Parlour) — JT Woodruff (Hawthorne Heights)

H| Josh Hill (Ellison) | Mark Rose (Spitalfield). Acoustic. $8/$10 day of show.

Stanley’s Pub — Bubble LIfe. Jazz/Funk. Cover.

Terry’s Turf Club — Eric Campbell & The Bevadors. Jazz. Free.

The Underground — Kutless | Mile 7 | The Great Transparency | Brent

Reed Band. Rock/Contemporary Christian. $13/$16 day of show.

HExperimental (see Pete Fosco interview, page 19). $5.

DJ. Cover.

Jefferson Hall — Matt Cowherd and Jamie Combs. Rock/Acoustic. Cover.

Mad Frog — Hip Hop Revival with Jamo. Hip Hop. Cover.

Mansion Hill Tavern — Open Blues Jam with Them Bones. Blues. Free.

Stanley’s Pub — Tater Famine. Acoustic/Folk/Punk. Free.

Zion United Church of Christ Norwood — Leo Coffeehouse with

Prudence Hunt, Vedge and The Sloes. Acoustic. Cover.

Monday January 11 Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Jazz Jam Session with Sandy Suskind. Jazz. Cover.

Jefferson Hall — DJ Toad. Dance/DJ. Cover.

Mad Frog — Tropicoso. Latin/Salsa. Cover.

Mansion Hill Tavern — John Redell. Blues. Free.

Northside Tavern — Northside Jazz Ensemble. Jazz. Free.

Play by Play Rock Cafe — “Road to Memphis 2010” with

H

Shady O’Grady’s — No Saints - No Saviors. Classic Rock. Cover.

Southgate House (Lounge) — Open Mic Night: Mike Kuntz. Open

mic. Free.

Stanley’s Pub — Wade Baker Jazz Collaborative. Jazz. Free.

Tuesday January 12 Blue Wisp Jazz Club — Jack Finucane Quintet. Jazz. $5.

Claddagh Irish Pub — Sonny Moorman. Blues. Free.

Dee Felice Cafe — “Fat Tuesday” with the Royal Palm Orchestra.

Jazz. Free.

Jefferson Hall — Donny Bray and Dustin Ivey. Acoustic. Cover.

Mad Frog — Open Mic with Celebrity Status Ent. Open mic/Various.

Cover.

Northside Tavern — Megan Hutch. Acoustic. Free.

R.P. McMurphy’s Irish Pub & Coffee House — Open Mic Night. Open mic. Free.

Southgate House (Lounge) — Karaoke with DJ Swirl. Various.

Free.

Stagge’s Saloon — Bob Cushing. Acoustic. Free.

Stanley’s Pub — Rumpke Mountain Boys. Bluegrass/Jam. Cover.

Waterfront/South Beach Grill — Blue Birds Trio. Classic Rock/R&B. Free.

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Stanley’s Pub — Bubble Life. Jazz/Funk. Cover.

Win Place or Show — Snow Shoe Crabs. Rock/Alternative. Free.

Wine Cellar — Tim Hinde. Acoustic. Free.

Parable Heresy | Session9 . Rock. Cover.

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january 06-12, 2010

20

21

4 sound advice

CBrecomMends

The Bled music news tid-bits and other morsels of relative insignificance

Bono Dictates New Decade All was not quiet on the day after New Year’s Day this year, especially in The New York Times — hard to keep quiet when you give U2’s singer some big op-ed space. Bono wrote an extensive piece for the “Liberal Rag” (copyright: Fox News Corps.) offering 10 ways to make the next 10 years “more interesting, healthy or civil.” It was actually an entertaining piece that tempered Bono’s perceived over-the-top didacticism with amusing, interesting observations and ideas, from making cars sexy again and organizing a sort of massive “Abrahampalooza” arts festival celebrating Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the name of peace (“No politicians allowed. Artists only.”) to real-deal issues like rotavirus vaccines and allowing free-for-all pollution (if the biggest polluters pay for it). Bono might not be a philosopher king but he’d be one of the best people in the world to close a bar down with.

january 06-12, 2010

“Also, Please Stop Playing Gary Glitter Songs at Football Games” Child AbuseWatch.net seems like a noble enterprise — spreading information in the name of child abuse prevention. But a press release from the organization denouncing the NFL’s “hiring” of The Who for the Super Bowl halftime show this year seems a bit odd. Are they huge Led Zeppelin fans? Old Who fans still smarting from the It’s Hard album?

Actually, The watchdog Web site is expressing its objection due to guitarist Pete Townshend’s sketchy child pornography charges in the U.K. a few years back. The group’s founder called The Who “a great band,” saying they only had beef with Pete and his indiscretions. (Townshend maintained he was doing “research” by looking at a kiddie porn site but entered a guilty plea, admitting what he did was illegal and receiving a “caution” from the police. He was cleared of possession charges, as no illegal images were found on his computers.) Minimum Gauge formally issues its objection of the halftime hiring as well. Not because of the porno allegations, but because Townshend can’t seem to stop killing our memories by selling his songs to any advertiser with a big enough wallet.

22

Superuncool Chris Cornell gave the supergroup thing a whirl with the dreadful Audioslave, then put out an “of-the-moment” Pop album that got him laughed out of the room. Where to go from there?

Back to the money. Cornell announced Soundgarden would reunite in 2010, “tweeting” about it on New Year’s Eve. The band has been gone for about 12 years and the other members have done a better job keeping their dignity (drummer Matt Cameron’s job in Pearl Jam has kept him busy but he isn’t exactly the tabloid-level star Cornell seems to want to be). You know what all this means? We are one Kurt Cobain Zombie away from the Grunge Oldies Allstar Revue Tour!

PHOTO: Kyle Dehn

THE BLED WITH I AM MESSENGER AND THE PARAMEDIC Monday • The Mad Hatter Over the past nine years, The Bled has lived up to its name in more ways than one. The Tucson Post-Hardcore quintet formed in 2001, initially billing itself as the Radiation Defiance Theory and then almost immediately (and wisely) shortening it to The Bled. A pair of EPs within their first year raised the band’s profile, making them a hot local club draw and ultimately leading to the band signing with Miami’s Fiddler Records.

On the eve of recording their debut full-length, frontman Adam Goss opted out of the band and recommended James Munoz to take his spot. With Munoz at the mic, The Bled recorded 2003’s Pass the Flask and began touring nationwide for the first time, gaining positive notices for their Metal/Math/Hardcore diversity.

After changing labels and bassists, The Bled recorded its sophomore album, Found in the Flood, for Vagrant Records; the album cracked Billboard’s Top 100 and earned the band a slot on the Vagrant stage at 2006’s Warped Tour.

In 2007, The Bled released a third full-length, Silent Treatment, and toured with My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Linkin Park, among others.

At the end of that run, the band members announced that they were taking a lengthy break from the road. Finding themselves mired in debt, The Bled’s members took day jobs and outside band gigs to make ends meet; three members ultimately left the band, leaving only Munoz and original guitarist Jeremy Ray Talley.

The arrival of new members was tempered by the band losing their Vagrant deal, but The Bled announced last November its signing with Rise Records and its fourth album, Heat Fetish, which will be released in February.

They’ve done their share of bleeding but they’ll never be desanguinated completely — The Bled has plenty more where that came from. (Brian Baker)

COLTRANE MOTION WITH EAGLE TO SQUIRREL AND BULLYING BEN JONES Saturday • Northside Tavern It wasn’t so long ago that Michael Bond and Matt Dennewitz packed up their respective keyboards and guitars and headed for Chicago after plying Cincinnati fans with their eclectic vision of droning noisy Dance Punk. As Coltrane Motion (“More Roscoe P. than John C.” as is stated on the duo’s MySpace page), Bond and Dennewitz have crafted a sound

and join the adrenalized fray.

The past couple of years have been hectic for CM. The duo’s debut full-length, 2007’s Songs About Music, was a critical smash, prompting at least one blog to predict the duo’s imminent appearance in an iPod commercial. The duo’s recent blasts of touring have been punctuated by cool single releases, the most recent being “The Year Without a Summer” b/w “Maya’s Tune,” and CM’s spin on two Bruce Springsteen tracks, “I’m Going

Coltrane Motion

PHOTO: JACOB HAND

that blends sheets of distorted guitar racket with a palpable keyboard atmosphere, itself a hybrid of ’60s Phil Spectorish girl groupisms, ’70s Soul, ’80s Synth Pop and contemporary lo-fi bedroom laptop flights of fancy. Like a bizarre mind meld of New Order, My Bloody Valentine and They Might Be Giants, Coltrane Motion has created a fascinating and vibrant tumult in the studio which is amped up to almost seismic proportions in front of an audience, as the two launch themselves around the stage with frenetic abandon, inspiring audiences to follow suit

Down” and “I’m On Fire.”

Bond and Dennewitz still make regular pilgrimages back to Cincinnati — they did a show with The Seedy Seeds back in May and they tore shit up at their MidPoint slot in September — but don’t take their presence for granted. It’s just a matter of time before Coltrane Motion gets noticed in a major way and their indoor musical maelstroms make them a buzzy sensation on the coasts. You’ll wish you’d seen them when, which is now. (BB)

ARTS

CURTAIN CALL

BY RICK PENDER

A Youthful Perspective

CONTACT RICK PENDER: rpender@citybeat.com

PHOTO courtesy steven goldstein

Steven Goldstein

A Chair with Flair Steven Goldstein comes to CCM with inspired teaching philosophy 4interview by anne arenstein

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or aspiring musical theater performers, the expectation — and reality — is that you have to have it all: a great voice, dancing skills and acting chops.

Opera singers increasingly face the same demands from audiences who want nothing less than performances that are compelling dramatically as well as musically.

WASSUP There’s little argument that For info on CCM’s upcoming great opera can’t exist without preformances, go to www.ccm.uc.edu great voices, and the challenge for future opera singers is learning the acting skills to bolster their vocal performance — creating a love scene that is more than two people belting out timeless melodies, looking emotionally blank.

Steven Goldstein is uniquely qualified to take on the challenge. The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music’s recently appointed Weinberger Chair of Acting for the Lyric Theatre has impressive stage, film and opera credits, appearing in productions staged

by David Mamet, William H. Macy and renowned opera director Francesca Zambello.

Along with CCM’s opera department chair Robin Guarino, Goldstein brings a breadth of experience

along with New York cred. How did CCM get so lucky?

Timing, for one thing. If the work wasn’t steady, it was solid. But Goldstein acknowledges what every singer, actor and dancer knows, pre-conservatory: “It’s a difficult career. I was at a point in my life where I was trying to expand my own career and, luckily, Robin Guarino knew my work. When the job opened up she kept telling me I’d be perfect for it.”

Going through the interview process, Goldstein saw the opportunities “to direct, to teach acting for a singer who acts or for an actor who sings, those were the perfect storm of my interests.”

Goldstein works with students in the opera department’s graduate and artist diploma programs and with musical theatre students. He taught for the Atlantic Theatre Company, a company he co-founded after graduating from NYU, but the CCM appointment is his first university teaching position and his first experience working with opera singers.

And what was his first impression of students far from the mecca of Broadway and larger drama and opera programs?

CONTINUES ON PAGE 254

january 06-12, 2010

The new year often prompts thoughts of new beginnings, perhaps leading to a resolution or two. As I thought about my first column of 2010, it occurred to me that such beginnings could be focused on introducing young people to the theater for the first time.

Adults who help children experience the arts have a particularly powerful influence on future appreciation. With the beginning of the year, I’d like to suggest several ways to share theater with a child that might establish a lifelong love for this vibrant art form.

The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park is our area’s most sophisticated and established professional theater, currently marking its 50th anniversary. But the Playhouse offers more than shows for grown-ups at its Eden Park facility’s two stages. In fact, its outreach program connects with as many as 60,000 kids throughout our area.

The Next Generation Theatre Series, the Playhouse’s Touring Company, takes productions for young audiences to area schools and offers public performances at community centers across the Tristate. The program is overseen by veteran director Mark Lutwak, previously artistic director at Honolulu Theatre for Youth. The touring works are performed by young professional actors from the theater’s Bruce E. Coyle Intern Company.

Last fall Dennis Foon’s New Kid was presented at 13 venues during October and November, focusing on kids in grades 3-7. The script is about a boy who moves to a new country with a different language and who struggles to make friends and fit in. (The boy and his mother speak English, while others — including a bully — use a comic invented language.) The play was an impetus to talk about bullying and prejudice, demonstrating how theater can foster better communication and more profound understanding.

Two more shows will be toured by Lutwak and his crew: a reduction of Edmond Rostand’s romantic drama, Cyrano de Bergerac, for older students (grades 6-12), offered Jan. 16-Feb. 14; then The Garden of Rikki Tikki Tavi, adapted by Y York from one of Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories, will find its way to younger audiences (grades K-3), touring March 27-April 25.

Rikki Tikki Tavi debuts as culmination of the Rosenthal Next Generation Theatre Series on March 27. The series is another way the Playhouse seeks to ignite kids’ interest in theater. Presented on Saturday mornings in February and March in the Playhouse’s lobby plaza space, each show is 30-60 minutes long and offered at 10:30 a.m. (Tickets are just $5 for kids 4-18.) Most of the eight programs feature professional actors and storytellers who are veterans with young audiences.

This year’s works include some titles that sound like fun regardless of your age, including The Mouse that Barked (Feb. 6) and The Stinky Cheese Man (Mar. 13), adapted from Jon Scieszka’s popular children’s books and using puppets to tell the story. You can find a complete list of shows at www.cincyplay.com.

Another good option to give kids a taste of theater is Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati, whose next production at the Taft is Jack and the Beanstalk (Feb. 26-March 6). This group has been charming kids with productions since 1924.

Info: www.thechildrenstheatre.com Regardless of where you go, taking a youngster to the theater is something you’ll be glad you did. Might even be worth a New Year’s resolution.

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4arts

Flipping the ’Bird Acclaimed ensemble eighth blackbird continues to shatter Chamber music expectations

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january 06-12, 2010

To be included: Submit information for CityBeat calendar listings in writing by noon Wednesday, seven days before publication.

Mail to: Maija Zummo, Listings Editor, CityBeat, 811 Race St., Fifth Floor, Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Phone: 513-665-4700, ext. 145 Fax: 513-665-4369. e-mail calendar@citybeat.com Please include a contact name and daytime phone number. Due to space considerations, we cannot guarantee that all submitted information will make it to print.

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4ART

4interview by anne arenstein

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4calendar listings

he new year for Chamber music opens with strings.

And flutes. And clarinets, prepared piano, flexatones, harmonicas, bongos and cowbells. That’s standard operating procedure for eighth blackbird, the wildly innovative, Grammyaward winning sextet acclaimed as the country’s premier contemporary music ensemble.

Acknowledges flautist Tim Munro, “We like to wreak havoc, PHOTO: Luke Ratray in a creative way.”

Back in black: eighth blackbird The group makes a welcome return to Cincinnati next week for a sextet playing against a recording with Meanwhile…, a program of of themselves, six CCM students will join five works by established masters and exciting eighth blackbird for the local premier of the young composers, all but one commissioned live version. by eighth blackbird. Expect that grand diver“Collaborating with other musicians — sity of sound to be accompanied — literally — the next generation of Chamber musicians with eye-catching details, wit and irreverence, — is an enormous rush,” Munro says, “and and performed with consummate artistry. this piece is 500 percent better live.”

Meanwhile… gets its name from Stephen Midway through its 14th concert season, Hartke’s Meanwhile: Incidental music to eighth blackbird returns to familiar terriimaginary puppet plays (2007). Munro detory. They met as undergraduates at Oberlin scribes both the program and the composition Conservatory and honed their ensemble as “a magical mystery tour.” Each of the six skills in CCM’s Artist Diploma program movements “open onto different landscapes from 1996-99. Munro joined in 2006. A nawith different tonalities and different combinative of Australia, he also studied at Oberlin. tions of instruments. That’s our program as a Having played all over the world, eighth whole.” blackbird spends more than half the year on Missy Mazzoli’s “Still Life with Avalanche,” tour. Since 1997, they have commissioned from 2008, “is a pile of melodies collapsing in more than 80 compositions, recorded four a chaotic free fall,” according to the comalbums and racked up major prizes, composer. Just shy of her 30th birthday, Mazzoli is mission grants and a Grammy in 2008. widely sought after as a composer and soloist What counts for the group’s burgeonthroughout the world. Indie Rock is a major ing audiences is the unique performance influence on her music, says Munro. art. The performers’ sheer exuberance and George Perle’s “Critical Moments 2” (2001) affection for the music is as much a draw as pays tribute to the doyen of new music who the music itself. The two are inextricable, died in early 2009. Munro recalls that Perle was Munro asserts, the Down Under persona the first eminent composer to write for them, emerging. and the nine short, highly individualist pieces “That’s our reason for existence,” he will be played from memory. Although eighth says, “incorporating drama and movement blackbird has played the work since 2001, into it. People apologize for new music: Munro admits that “it’s a hard knot.” But what’s You’d bloody well get it or you’re an idiot. missing on the music stands is more than made We want everyone to love it.” up for by “the intensity of our interactions.”

Munro adds that eighth blackbird is Also performed from memory is Thomas taking baby steps in fulfilling its mission to Adès’ “Catch” (1991), a musical game of make new music experiences relevant and monkey-in-the-middle for four performers, one entertaining to all audiences. Major strides of whom really gets into the action. is more like it.

The program highlight is Steve Reich’s “Double Sextet” (2007), co-commissioned by Chamber Music Cincinnati presents EIGHTH BLACKBIRD the University of Cincinnati College-Conserva8 p.m. Tuesday at Corbett Auditorium. Tickets: $10-$25. Call tory of Music’s “Music X” series and awarded 859-581-6877 or buy tickets online at www.brownpapertickets. a Pulitzer Prize in 2009. Originally written com.

Openings Carnegie Visual & Performing Arts Center — A New Year H of Art features paintings, drawings and sculpture works by artists Jommi Chung, Marc Leone, Christopher John Troutman, Scott Donaldson, Cedric Michael Cox and Matt Tullis. $8; $5 students/seniors. Opening reception: 6-9 p.m.

Jan. 8. Carnegie Visual & Performing Arts Center, 1028 Scott Blvd., Covington, 859-491-2030.

Fabricate — A Shot in the Dark is a collection of Scott Beseler’s sweetH ass photographs of area musicians including The Lions Rampant, You, You’re Awesome, The Jellyhearts and more. Musical guests, The Cut In The Hill Gang, will play at 10:15 p.m. at Fabricate with additional entertainment provided by PROJECTMILL DJ’s, along with potable beverages and hors d’euvres. The afterparty will be at Mayday featuring 11 bands. Opening reception: 7-11 p.m. Jan. 9. Fabricate , 4012 Hamilton Ave.,Enter through Red Polly Northside, 513-541-2394.

Sandra Small Gallery — Interior Views is a narrative figuration exhibit

that focuses on classical realism. Opening reception: 5:30-8 p.m. Jan. 8. Sandra Small Gallery, 124 W. Pike St. , Covington, 859-291-2345.

Galleries & Exhibits Art Central Foundation — Homeless: Telling Our Own Stories includes

three series of work, each asking the viewer to explore homelessness. Telling Our Own Stories is a group of self-documenting photographs; Mark Anthony Mulligan exhibits brightly colored, primitive city landscapes; and In Three Years is a collaborative effort by several homeless individuals and a group of visual artists.

Through Jan. 9. Art Central Foundation , 1504 N. Breiel Blvd., Middletown, www. artcentralfoundation.org.

Artisan Enterprise Center — Bright Ideas celebrates color through the works of Baker hunt family artists, including Bob Hebenstreit, Stephen Kenkins, Gilda Horn, Kurt Einhaus, Valma Morris, Lisa Molyneux and David Laug. Through Jan. 13. Artisan Enterprise Center, 25 W. Seventh St., Covington, 859-292-2322.

Bromwell’s Gallery — Represent features a collection of printmaking, abstract paintings, photography and sculpture by various artists. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Through Jan. 16. Bromwell’s Gallery, 117 W. Fourth St., Downtown, 513-315-4622.

CS13 — Partially Buoyed features paintings and paper collages by Cincinnati

based artist, Michael Stillion. His folklore is dominated by tales of humanoid characters who navigate a blend between a post apocalyptic world and the wild west. 1-4 p.m. Sundays. Through Jan. 10. CS13, 1219 Sycamore St., Over-theRhine, cs13gallery.com.

Iris Bookcafe — Tables and Walls: Photographic Work by Iris Artists presents 46 photographs by seven photographers who have previously shown at Iris, either on walls as exhibiting artists, or on tables at Second Sunday Portfolio Reviews. 8 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Saturday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday. Through March 20. Iris Bookcafe, 1331 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-381-2665.

Manifest Creative Research Gallery — Backyard is a regional H exhibit featuring work from artists within 100 miles of Cincinnati. 2-7 p.m.

Tuesday-Friday; noon-5 p.m. Saturday. Through Jan. 8. Manifest Creative Research Gallery, 2727 Woodburn Ave., Walnut Hills, 513-861-3638.

Manifest Creative Research Gallery — Past Tense-Marking Time

features modern paintings that bear a strong echo of Fauvism and Expressionism.

2-7 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; noon-5 p.m. Saturday. Through Jan. 8. Manifest Creative Research Gallery, 2727 Woodburn Ave., Walnut Hills, 513-861-3638.

NVISION — Chelsea Hughes exhibits etchings and screenprints that explore medical anomalies. 2-9 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. Through Jan. 31. NVISION, 4577 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-542-4577.

PAC Gallery — Soviet Propaganda Paintings & Posters features Russian works of propaganda. By appointment. Through Jan. 30. PAC Gallery, 2540 Woodburn Ave., East Walnut Hills, 513-321-5200.

Phyllis Weston-Annie Bolling Gallery — From Moscow to St.

Petersberg: A New Collection of Russian Impressionism and Realism Paintings features unseen works from the prestigious Union of Russian Artists. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Through Jan. 30. Phyllis Weston-Annie Bolling Gallery, 2005 1/2 Madison Road, O’Bryonville, 513-321-5200.

St., Downtown, 513-977-4165.

YWCA Women’s Art Gallery — Reflections Over Afternoon Tea features

realistic paintings of MaryBeth Karaus and ceramics by three outstanding ceramicists: Jancy Jaslow, Pam Korte and Brenda Tarbell. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. MondayFriday. Through Jan. 15. YWCA Women’s Art Gallery, 898 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-241-7090.

York Street Cafe — Gone Baby Gone is the final exhibit of photographer of Linda Tabler before she moves. Look for images of classic cars, the Red River Gorge, Arizona and more. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Through Jan. 10. York Street Cafe, 738 York St., Newport, 859-261-9675.

Museums Cincinnati Art Museum — The Cincinnati Art Museum houses an excellent collection of Rookwood Pottery in its Cincinnati Wing, featuring vases that date back to the 1880s when Maria Longworth founded Rookwood Pottery. The vivid, colorful glazes offer visitors a peek into our local heritage and shine with a vibrancy that’s as breathtaking today as it was when they were first produced. Tour CAM’s collection with a trained docent, who will offer context and details on Rookwood’s rich history. 2-3 p.m. Jan. 9. Cincinnati Art Museum, 953 Eden Park Drive, Mount Adams, 513-721-2787.

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Contemporary Arts Center — Soul Within Structure, this H UnMuseum installation, is by local artist Cedric Michael Cox, who uses the historic Cincinnati neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine as inspiration. $4.50-$7.50.

10 a.m.-9 p.m. Mondays; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday. Through March 8. ... Standard Definition is a multi-sensory experience with a multi-channel sound and video installation by artist/musician C. Spencer Yeh in his first solo museum exhibition. $7.50; $6.50 seniors; $5.50 students. 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Mondays; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Through Jan. 24. ... Marilyn Minter: Chewing Color is a solo exhibition of recent paintings and photographs that reveal the sometimes flawed side of glamour. $7.50 adults; $6.50 seniors; $5.50 students.

10 a.m.-9 p.m. Mondays; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesdays-Fridays; 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Saturdays and Sundays.Through May 2. Contemporary Arts Center, 44 E. Sixth St., Downtown, 513-345-8400.

Taft Museum of Art — Antique Christmas features vintage Christmas decorations from area private collectors in the galleries of the H Taft Museum of Art over the holidays. A variety of rarely displayed objects and toys

created during the years that the former house was inhabited (1820-1931) will grace its halls and rooms. $8; $6 students/seniors. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. WednesdaySunday. Through Jan. 10. ... Drawn by New York: Drawings and Watercolors features drawings and watercolors from the New York Historical Society. The works in this exhibition convey the many transitions of the United States, which began as a dependent colony but soon grew to become a frontier nation, then a burgeoning industrial giant and finally a world power. $8; $6 students/seniors. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. Through Jan. 17. ... Explore the exhibition Drawn by New York with either Tamera Muente, curatorial assistant and exhibitions coordinator, or Nancy Huth, curator of education. Free with admission. 1:30 p.m. Jan. 7, 9 and 15. Taft Museum of Art , 316 Pike St. , Downtown, 513-241-0343.

4ATTRACTIONS Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal — Mummies:

Secrets of the Pharaohs follows researchers and explorers in recalling the discovery of ancient Egyptian mummies all while being narrated by award-winning actor Christopher Lee. Extended through Feb. 11. $5.50-$7.50. Shows start at 1 p.m. Monday-Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. ... In honor of the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s landmark publication,On the Origin of the Species, Museum Center will present an exhibit featuring the personal and scientific aspects of the man who changed the way biologists view the natural world and the history of life on Earth. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Sunday. Through Feb. 15. ... Ring of Fire is about the immense natural force of the great circle of volcanoes and seismic activity that rings the Pacific Ocean and the varied people and cultures who coexist with them. $5.50-$7.50. 7 and 9 p.m.

Saturdays through January. ... Search for the Great Sharks at the OMNIMAX lets viewers accompany expeditions of Dr. Eugenie Clark and Rodney Fox, who have studied sharks since the 1950s. $5.0-$7.50. 7 and 9 p.m. Fridays in January.

Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, 1301 Western Ave., West End, 513-287-7000.

RoHo Photo Gallery — Body of Work is a juried photo exhibition. Noon-5 p.m. Saturday. Through Jan. 30. RoHo Photo Gallery , 331 W. Fourth St.,Loft #1 Downtown, 513-254-7646.

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden — Penguin Days offers half price admission and cool-weather entertainment like “fishing” penguins, elephants breaking frozen blocks of fruit, polar bears and seal lions eating fish-cicles and snow monkeys snacking on delicious frozen treats. $7 adults; $4.50 children. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. Through Feb. 28. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, 3400 Vine St., Avondale, 513-281-4700.

Semantics Gallery — Melanie e. Derrick and Phil Valois exhibit objects

EnterTRAINment Junction — During the month of January, EnterTRAIN-

and graphics. Derrick presents 11 Biscuits, new work inspired by The Daily Puppy, an online newsletter where owners can create a profile and post pictures of their dogs. Valois exhibits /*Power and Persuasion*/ offers future artifacts as tools to perpetuate new myths. Noon-4 p..m Sundays. Through Jan. 31. Semantics Gallery, 1107 Harrison Ave., Brighton, 513-207-5262.

U-turn Art Space — Colony looks at how cultural identity is revised,

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stereotyped and mythologized through the work of Adam Longbonz, Travis Meinolf, and two collaborative groups - Maidens of the Cosmic Body Running and Tenthaus. Noon-4 p.m. Saturdays. Through Jan. 30. U-turn Art Space , 2159 Central Ave. , Brighton, uturnartspace.blogspot.com.

Weston Art Gallery — Painting and Wall Drawing features oil HPaintings from 2009 and a 36-foot wall drawing by artist Rick Mallete. ...

Live Station is a site-specific installation by Steve Zieverink. ... Nightfall features installations by paper artist Alice Pixley Young. ... 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. TuesdaySaturday; noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Through Feb. 28. Weston Art Gallery, 650 Walnut

ment Junction offers buy-one-get-one admission. Come inside and see over 80,000 square feet of fun and trains. $12.95 adults; $9.95 kids. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday; noon-6 p.m. Sundays. Through January. EnterTRAINment Junction, 7379 Squire Court, West Chester, 513-898-8000.

Newport Aquarium — During Winter Family Days two children (ages 2-12) will be admitted free with each adult paying full price. $20 adults. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. Through Feb. 28. Newport Aquarium, One Aquarium Way, Newport, 859-261-7444.

4EVENTS Cavalcade of Customs — Do you like cars and car stuff? Head to the Cavalcade of Customs for Drag City racing exhibits, Toyarama Collectible Toys, Survivor’s Alley featuring Traditional Rods, Customs & Bobbers, special guest

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appearances by celebrities like Pete Rose and Chip Foose, and a BMX extreme freestyle show. $14; $5 ages 6-12. 3-10 p.m. Jan. 8; 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Jan. 9; 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Jan. 10. Duke Energy Cincinnati Convention Center, 525 Elm St., Downtown, 513-352-3750.

Peiter Griga at Prairie Gallery — Artist Peiter Griga will stage a live

performance of Retrieval #1, his dramatic interpretation of the ancient mellification ritual in which humans were embalmed with honey. This performance will be taped and shown at the opening for Griga’s solo show at Praire which is opening on Jan. 22. 7 p.m. Jan. 8. Prairie Gallery , 4035 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-703-5729.

Sunday Jazz Brunches in the Park — At the Stonewood Banquet

Center listen to swinging Jazz piano by the Chris Comer Trio and enjoy a buffet with over 25 items, a carving station and an omelette bar as well as fresh salads, pastries, desserts and other Sunday favorites. $13.95 adults; $6.95 children.

10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Jan. 10, 24, Feb. 14, March 7 and 21. Sharon Woods, 11450 Lebanon Road, Sharonville, 513-563-4513.

Tuesday Night at the Movies — Each Tuesday the bar screens two cult classic movies with all the free popcorn you can eat. 10 p.m. Tuesdays.

Grammer’s, 1440 Walnut Street, Over-the-Rhine, 513-421-8300.

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4GET INVOLVED Art Opportunities Manifest Creative Research Gallery — Manifest seeks to present and document the best painting of the most varied types being made in the world today. PAINT is an exhibit that calls for works of painting from around the world, made by students or professionals, as they carry the tradition forward, or reform it for another day. Postmark deadline for entries is Jan. 22. Manifest Creative Research Gallery, 2727 Woodburn Ave., Walnut Hills, 513-861-3638.

Theater Opportunities Shadowbox Cabaret — Shadowbox: The Sketch Comedy and Rock andΩ

Roll Club is a non-profit entertainment ensemble holding auditions for singers, actors, dancers, and musicians. Full time, part-time, and intern positions are available. For more information or to schedule an audition contact Tom Cardinal, Recruiting Director at 614-416-7625. Ongoing. Shadowbox Cabaret, 1 Levee Way, Newport, 859-957-7625.

prepare a one-minute musical theater song, preferably from shows written since the 1980s, in a Pop/Rock style. Be prepared with sheet music in proper key. An accompanist will be provided. Singing and dance placement will take place so please have comfortable clothes for dance and appropriate shoes. 7 p.m. Jan. 10 and 11. Stained Glass Theatre, 802 York St., Newport, 859-291-7464.

4HOLIDAY Betts House Holiday Decor — Explore 19th century holiday traditions at the Betts House this Christmas, as the house will be decorated for the season and featuring guided tours. $2. 12:30-5 p.m. Saturdays.

Through Jan. 6. Betts House, 416 Clark St., West End, 513-651-0734.

Holiday Fest: The Beach on Ice — The Beach’s tropical paradise has been transformed into a winter wonderland with millions of festive lights and over 12 holiday rides and attractions. $9. 5-10 p.m.

Friday; 3-10 p.m. Saturday; 3-8 p.m. Sunday through Jan. 10. 5-9 p.m.

Monday-Thursday and normal Friday-Sunday hours Dec. 14-27. The Beach Waterpark, 2590 Waterpark Drive, Mason, 513-398-7946.

Holiday Treasures Guild Show at the Kennedy Heights Arts Center — Holiday Treasures Guild Show features one-of-a-kind

handmade treasures created by local artists. Work includes paintings, photography, jewelry, ceramic works, fiber creations, mosaics and sculpture.

10 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays. Through Jan. 9. Kennedy Heights Arts Center, 6546 Montgomery Road, Kennedy Heights, 513-631-4278.

Light Up the Levee — This holiday light show will illuminate the

exterior Riverwalk from the Gallery Building to the Newport Aquarium with LED lights dancing, synchronized to holiday music. 6:10 p.m. and every 20 minutes through 11:50 p.m. daily. Through Jan. 10. Newport on the Levee, 1 Levee Way, Newport, 859-291-0550.

4LITERARY Readings, Signings & Events 15th Annual Author-Signed Poster Auction Party — Posters in the live auction include ones signed by Greg Mortenson, Jeff Kinney,

MORE ON PAGE 264

4GOLDSTEIN: FROM PAGE 23

Sometimes, he adds with a rueful laugh, knowing nothing about it can be more helpful.

Goldstein’s first production will be Strauss’s “Die Fledermaus,” scheduled for CCM’s spring quarter as part of the Studio Series. He’s circumspect about ambitions for future seasons. He’s looking forward to more directing opportunities and working with departmental curriculum that will have its own challenges as UC switches to semesters. He wants to gauge where his students are in order to determine directions for next year, a time, he says, when he can “calm down a little.”

Aside from adapting to a university setting, a new job, new colleagues and students, Goldstein is adjusting to Cincinnati, not an easy task for a native New Yorker used to walking everywhere and finding necessities within a couple of blocks. On the other hand, he and his spouse, Rabbi Steven Greenberg, are purchasing a home in University Heights — “something we could never afford to do in Manhattan.”

Cincinnati’s conservative reputation proved less daunting in reality.

“We were warned about the city by friends who lived here and left (after the state issue outlawing same-sex marriage was passed in 2004),” he says. But he says that colleagues, students and community members he’s met in rare moments of spare time are sources of encouragement.

So when I ask again what’s been the biggest surprise in his first months here, he responds with a broad smile and warm laughter. “I’m actually having a good time.” ©

“I’m blown away by their talent and their commitment,” he says. “At the beginning of the quarter, the students staged a couple of musical numbers, one of them from Mary Poppins. It’s a full-out extravaganza and they were phenomenal.”

Goldstein’s directorial debut later in the quarter with Michael John LaChiusa’s Hello Again was “fantastic,” he says. He credits a process inspired by one of his NYU mentors for the performers’ success and his own comfort level: “Set up your rehearsal room as a great place to be. If everyone’s glad to be there, they’ll feel safe to explore and to have fun.”

Opera singers, as he freely admits, are a bit more challenging. “The seniors and the Master’s students are able to soak up more in terms of language and their ability to use it. AD (Artist Diploma) students are more set in their ways. That’s understandable — they’re already set on their career paths. I’m there to give them another tool.”

The techniques Goldstein brings to his students are grounded in his experiences with the Atlantic Theatre Company and especially with Mamet. Honesty is a ground rule along with the promise of a supportive atmosphere. The easiest way to define it, according to Goldstein, is “no bullshit. Tell the truth.”

Opera singers may turn to video and sound recordings as a jumping off point but Goldstein wants them “to find out what’s really going on deep down and do your performance, the one that no one else can do. The magic is that the audience will see you as the character and you are bringing the truth of what you know, not your ideas of what someone else did.”

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4art

literary

Points of Departure

Rick Riordan, Buzz Aldrin, William Paul Young, Oliver North, Robin Meade, Jeannette Walls, John Hodgman, Richard Paul Evans, Mike Huckabee, Gary Burbank and Greg Hoard. 5 p.m. Jan. 9. Books & Co. at The Greene, 4453 Walnut St., Beavercreek, 937-429-2169.

Tracy Chevalier — From the New York Times-bestselling author of Girl With

Three artists wonder as they wander in their work

a Pearl Earring comes the stunning novel, Remarkable Creatures, of how one woman’s gift transcends class and social prejudice to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the 19th century. 7 p.m. Jan. 6. Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 2692 Madison Road, Norwood, 513-396-8960.

4review by matt morris

Robert Christopher — Discusses and signs To Everything There is a

T

he three recently-opened exhibitions at downtown’s Weston Art Gallery in the Aronoff Center for the Arts couldn’t be more different, with Rick Mallette, Alice Pixley Young and Steve Zieverink each boasting their own flair.

Rick Mallette originates from Saginaw, Mich., and earned his BFA from Western Michigan University. He earned his Master’s in Painting and Drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he stayed on as a teacher until moving to Cincinnati in 2002.

His 21 paintings all depict grotesque, tragicomic faces alongside a vast wall drawing filled with nervously doodled cartoons.

A list of pan-cultural associations is seemingly suggested by his work — the images especially resemble the faces of spirits and demons as depicted on ancient Mongolian and Tibetan artifacts. But they could as easily evoke Mayan and Incan iconography, gargoyles or Italian Renaissance painter Giuseppe Arcimboldo’s fanciful portraits of faces constructed from fruits and vegetables.

In other words, these soupy, sticky, colorful works feel elaborately informed by art history. The confectionary “Split” is smeared with wide, horizontal strokes and built-up layers that demonstrate the painter’s fidgeting search for a stopping point. “Green Teeth, One Eye” is the most vibratory, with roiling areas of knifed-on paint shoved into a generally facial configuration.

Mallette’s requirement for a subject onto which he can anchor his luscious paint adventures is not unlike that of Pierre Bonnard, another nearly abstract painter who used his wife, kitchen or cat as points of departure. (Incidentally, they both use fiercely acidic violet in small, well-considered places.) Mallette’s playful, gummy paintings are a sufficient cushion between two installations that couldn’t be further apart in concept.

Alice Pixley Young is a well-established force in the local art community; she is currently an instructor at the School for Creative and Performing Arts. Young’s Night Fall brings folk tales and horror films to mind (especially in the darkly lit, wrecked children’s bedroom that concludes the exhibition). Her artist statement’s reference to Carl Jung’s term “Hell Descent” is terribly appropriate.

While the exhibition begins brightly with silver-tape hexagons and burnished metal birds flashing across blue walls, night certainly does fall in a twilit space with a

Season, which shows how the personal story, character building and refining of the human ethos is continually evolving, never predestined and we all have our seasons. 1 p.m. Jan. 9. Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 2692 Madison Road, Norwood, 513-396-8960.

Jerry Dowling — Discusses and signs Drawing Super Wars: The Early years of Bengal Football in Drawings. 7 p.m. Jan. 12. Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 2692 Madison Road, Norwood, 513-396-8960.

Tami Hoag — Discusses and signs Deeper Than Dead, a thriller where three children running in the woods behind their school, stumble upon a partially buried body. 7 p.m. Jan. 7. Joseph-Beth Booksellers, 2692 Madison Road, Norwood, 513-396-8960.

4ONSTAGE Classical Music

PHOTO courtesy alice pixley

Alice Pixley Young’s Night Fall stylized felt, cardboard and Astroturf forest along the back wall.

The disorder of a nightmare and the dark beauty and intimacy of fairytales ensconce a central collision between Young’s focus on patterns of all sorts and her more literary, narrative-driven tableau. Geometric patterns painted directly on walls and paper lanterns sewn together with red thread foreshadow the haphazard quilt and upturned bed of the final installation. She has collapsed the various meanings of the word “pattern” in her investigations, making use of both pattern-as-instruction and pattern-as-repeated motifs.

In contrast to Young’s flight of fancy, Chicago artist and Unit 2 Art Collective member Steve Zieverink’s installation in the upstairs gallery is an educational experience through which he offers prescriptions for simpler living and information about the environmental crises along the coasts of Alaska.

To fully utilize Zieverink’s experimental classroom requires time, reading and listening. Those who look only to Zieverink’s aesthetics will find an environment like those of Conceptual artists Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. Central to his installation is a Living Station — a rugged self-sufficient shelter that he hopes to relocate to the outdoors after the exhibition. Inside and out, Zieverink provides reading materials, a documentary, a listening station and a table of preparatory work that preceded the barn he built.

Piano Power with the CSO — Consistently compared to the great virtuoso Vladimir Horowitz and praised for his intelligent musicianship and fiery showmanship, Mr. Denis Matsuev returns to Music Hall for performances of the lushly beautiful but also fiendishly difficult “Rach 3.” $10-$95. 11 a.m. Jan. 8; 8 p.m. Jan. 9; 3 p.m. Jan. 10. Music Hall, 1243 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-744-3344. eighth blackbird — The wildly innovative, Grammy-award winning H sextet plays with CCM students. $10-$25. 8 p.m. Jan. 12. Patricia Corbett Theater, West Corry Street, Clifton, 513-556-4183.

Comedy Brendon Walsh — Comedian Brendon Walsh can’t decide whether he’s depressed or successful. “Is it a sign of depression if the only reason you take the sweatpants off you’ve been wearing for three days in a row, is to use them as napkin in bed? Or is it a sign of living the dream?” $8-$12. 8 p.m.

Thursday-Sunday; 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Go Bananas Comedy Club, 8410 Market Place Lane, Blue Ash, 513-984-9288.

H

Gary Owen — Gary Owen has been entertaining America for over a decade with his side-splitting comedy. $14-$16. 8 p.m. Thursday; 8 and 10:15 p.m.

Friday and Saturday; 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Funny Bone on the Levee, One Levee Way ,Suite 3124 Newport, 859-957-2000.

Dance Exhale Dance Tribe — View original choreographic works by L.A. chore-

ographer Kristin Denehy and Artistic Directors Andrew Hubbard and Missy Lay Zimmer, including new works and premieres of “Valley of the Dolls” and “Motion Pictures.” $20. 8 p.m. Jan. 8 and 9. Aronoff Center for the Arts, 650 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-721-3344.

Mixed Media Curious George Live — Curious George swings and flips his way through

a fun-filled story that takes the audience from home to Rome. Follow Curious George on his quest to win the Golden Meatball Contest. $12-$28. 7 p.m. Jan. 8; 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Jan. 9; 1 and 4:30 p.m. Jan. 10. The Bank of Kentucky Center, 500 N. Nunn Drive,,Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights, 513-562-4949.

Holiday Hoopla — Enjoy an evening full of sketch comedy that pokes fun at our desire to make the holidays perfect, seasonal tunes from house band BillWho?, and the hilarious musical send-up “The Santa Babies.” $30; $20 students/seniors. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 7; 7:30 and 10:30 p.m. Jan. 8 and 9. Shadowbox Cabaret, 1 Levee Way, Newport, 859-957-7625.

Theater Murder the Devil — An al Qaeda reject slips through a crack in Homeland Security on a bloodthirsty mission, recruits a treacherous Chicago street gang eager to profit off the jihad, but learns too late who is hustling who. $7; $4 students. 7:30 p.m Jan. 12. Aronoff Center for the Arts, 650 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-721-3344.

Spring Awakening — Broadway Across America brings this groundbreaking fusion of morality, sexuality and Rock that has awakened Broadway like no other musical in years to the Aronoff. $22.50-$64.50. 8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Through Jan. 24. Aronoff Center for the Arts, 650 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-721-3344.

4SPORTS

These three exhibitions continue at the WESTON ART GALLERY (650 Walnut St., Downtown) through Feb. 28. A lecture and film screenings curated by artist Steve Zieverink occur Saturday at 7 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public. Visit www. westongallery.com for information about upcoming artist talks.

Spectator UC Men’s basketball — The Bearcats welcome Cal State Bakersfield to Cincinnati for a basketball whoopin. $10-$28. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 6. Fifth Third Arena at Shoemaker Center, 2700 O’Varsity Way,UC campus Clifton Heights, 513-556-2287.

DINER

THE DISH By anne mitchell

Dining in the New Year: Fresh Spots and Old Faves

dining tips and news: amitchell@citybeat.com

PHOTO: keith rutowski

When in Roma...

White Oak’s Roma Italian offers good service, a casual atmosphere and Italian food done American-style 4review by brian cross

E

very time I venture to the West Side or Mount Adams it strikes me how easy it is for outsiders to get lost in these areas. In Mount Adams it’s because of the narrow one-way streets ROMA ITALIAN that all seem to be Go: 6900 Cheviot Road, White Oak oriented opposite the Call: 513-407-3865 direction you want to Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday go. On the West Side Entrée Prices: $6.95-$22.95 it’s myriad things: Red Meat Alternatives: Varied long winding roads, Accessibility: Fully accessible odd intersections and redundant scenery.

But among the sea of strip malls we know as the West Side, Roma Italian restaurant stands out visually because of its three-storytall illuminated signage and its inherited West Side landmark status. You know the building — it’s the former home of The Chili Company at the corner of Cheviot and Blue Rock roads in White Oak, the one in the odd intersection with the really tall sign.

The familiar site might be part of the reason for the

crowd that fills this home-style Italian joint right around dinnertime, but it’s the extensive menu of good hearty food that will keep them coming back.

Entering the restaurant, it was apparent that that there had been no major remodeling done to the front of the house. Roma’s appearance and menu doesn’t scream “Authentic Italian,” but it is what Americans are used to, and there’s nothing wrong with that. In this era of renewed interest in comfort food, Roma has a lot to offer … except alcohol. They don’t have a liquor license.

My girlfriend and I sat down in one of the many booths and perused the giant menu. After a while, some bread and marinara appeared on our table. We were a little confused at first. Did we just get someone else’s order of garlic bread? About 30 seconds later we couldn’t take it anymore (or didn’t care anymore) and dug in. The bread was soft and fluffy with a little bit of garlic and the marinara was delicious and slightly tangy.

Turns out it was complimentary — and very good.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 334

january 06-12, 2010

What’s old, new and different for the New Year? Long-awaited Ko-Sho, the sushi spot that was hidden on Ninth Street downtown, has re-opened in Northside at 3172 Hamilton Ave. Ko-Sho’s sushi was a best-kept secret. I always found it to be top-quality, but the building they were in left a lot to be desired.

I hope this new high-traffic spot brings them the crowds they deserve. Call 513-665-4950 or check kosho-restaurant.com.

Sushi really is healthy food. Italian healthy food? Maybe not so much, but that’s what Capri Tavola Calda (420 Walnut St., Downtown) is offering. Grab a slice of their Vesuvio-style pizza and see for yourself. They’re using fresh buffalo mozzarella and fresh basil on their Margherita for $2.35 a slice and have a good selection of toppings — from arugula to zucchini — that actually are healthier than the average antipasta. Call 513-345-7985.

Also hotly awaited is the opening of Senate Restaurant at 1212 Vine St., in the Gateway Quarter of Over-the-Rhine. The downtown crowd has been watching Senate’s Facebook page since summer, thirsting for cocktails and curious to see what “gourmet street food” turns out to be. Call 513-602-3222.

The longer I live in Cincinnati — which also could be phrased as “the older I get …” — the more I give terrible directions based on things that aren’t there. Like “Oh, you know, over by the planetarium by Eden Park.” Helpful only to other people who are tottering about in an alt-universe where Shillito’s is a place to shop downtown.

Anyway, if you remember a big date night catching Blue Velvet at The Real Movies on Race Street, you probably stopped next door afterwards for some damn fine pie at Mullane’s Parkside Café.

If so, you’ll be happy to hear that Mullane’s is coming back in 2010.

Mullane’s was a perennial winner of “Best Vegetarian” honors in CityBeat, with a crowd of PHOTO: cameron knight devoted fans Mullane’s new space on Race St. who loved their Red Beans and Rice and big, beautiful salads with curried yogurt dressing. My personal favorite was the Spinach Sauté, the iced herb tea and the pie (of course). And I loved the staff — including John the waiter, who defended me after a grouchy patron complained that I shouldn’t be allowed to dine in public until I learned how to laugh more quietly. On the patio! Hey, pal, who’s got the last laugh now?

Owner Ellen Faeth has not set an opening date yet, as it will depend on how the rest of their building renovation goes.

Look for updates on Facebook or at friendsofmullanes.weebly. com. Faeth says that they’re keeping “Parkside” in the name, although the new location will be further north, at 1222 Race St. You can still stop by after a show at the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. You know, where Moviola used to be.

Oh, nevermind.

27

4RESTAURANT PICKS Compiled from CityBeat’s 2009 Where to Eat Dining Guide plus recent restaurant reviews, these capsules are listed by area of town. Menues and times are subject to change. “Best of Cincinnati” readers pick winners are listed, as are review dates and reviewers’ initials if applicable. Contact Maija Zummo at CityBeat, 811 Race St., Fifth Floor, Cincinnati, OH 45202. Phone: 513-665-4700. Fax: 513-665-4369. Check out the searchable Dining Guide online at citybeat.com and the restaurant section of our “Best of Cincinnanti” Web site at bestofcincinnati.com.com

Central

½ Off Wine

Thurs, Fri & Sat (Glass Only)

Lunch Combos Available Mon – Sat (11a.m. to 3 p.m.)

Now serving Thai beer!

Open Mon – Sat Lunch 11am to 3pm | Dinner 5pm to 10pm Thai * Lao * Chinese & Vietnamese Cuisine Tel. 513.233.0444 fax. 513.233.0446 website: www.karmaasianbistro.com

The Bonbonerie — The Bonbonerie is best known for its delicious

pastries and cakes, but it also offers up lunch and tea for a relaxing afternoon. After wanting to “create a space where the quaint and archaic practice of tea taking could gain new life,” they created a Tearoom with lunches ranging from the childhood favorite Peanut Butter and Jelly to the Quiche du jour made fresh in house. There are many tea options to help you escape from the chaos of daily life, without having to put on your white gloves. Restaurant is divided into the tearoom, which serves the sit-down lunches and snacks, and a bakery that caters mostly to take-out orders. Tea is also available by the ounce. Winner of “Best Bakery” and “Best Desserts.” Entrees: $4-$7. 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday; 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday. 2030 Madison Road, O’Bryonville, 513-321-3399.

Cactus Pear — Cactus Pear offers consistently good Tex-Mex cuisine

and service, great outdoor dining and some of the strongest Margaritas and Mojitos known to humankind. But when we say Tex-Mex, we’re not talking vegetable and steak fajitas and chili con queso. Oh, no. At the Pear, you’ll find original takes on classics, like Spinach Queso with jack cheese and herbs and Caribbean Fajitas with jerk BBQ chicken, sweet potatoes, zucchini and pineapple salsa. Everything comes together — great food, strong drinks, reasonable prices, fast, friendly service and an atmosphere where you can chat. They also have a location in Blue Ash (HS 8-05-09). Entrees: $7.95-$18.95. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. MondayThursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday; 5-11 p.m. Saturday; 5-10 p.m. Sunday.

3215 Jefferson Ave., Clifton, 513-961-7400.

Honey — People rave about Honey’s fries, but don’t let that stop you from experiencing the rest of the amazing menu. Try the pulled Guatemalan braised pork butt appetizer with shredded pork in a mole-like sauce served with house-made guac, a Ponzu corn relish and lime corn chips or the house made seafood ravioli entree. On top of stellar food they support local farmers like Sallie Ransohoff, Bob Portmann and Andrew Kartal. This chef-owned restaurant isn’t just Northside-friendly; the staff is just damn friendly. Add knowledgeable on top of that and you have a must-do dinner location. Come in and see which kitschy apron the chef is wearing, chat with the amiable staff about everything from hiking to the latest David Lynch movie. Open Sunday for brunch.Entrees: $15-$26. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. 4034 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-541-4300.

Mac’s Pizza Pub — Mac’s will hit you with a slice on-the-go or a fancy gourmet pizza in a booth while you watch sports on dozens of TVs or music on its small stage. Mac’s has some of the city’s best pizza. It might even be some of the best pizza in the country: PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) named Mac’s one of the Top 10 vegan-friendly pizzerias in the United States. It was also voted “Best Pizza in Clifton” by 300 UC students in a blind taste test.

Plenty of apps and tasty bar food make this place more than a college-dude imbibing spot. A bar on one side, a more restaurant-like space on the other, a second bar behind that and a newly remodeled patio out back. Eat a college student’s favorite food, drink a beer and get free WiFi access while watching your favorite local sports team all at the same time. Entrees: $4.95-$24.95.

11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday-Monday; 11 a.m.-2:30 a.m. Tuesday-Saturday. 205 W. McMillan St., Clifton Heights, 513-241-6227.

Maki Express — This sushi bar and Asian kitchen is small but mighty.

The Celestial — The recently re-vamped Celestial is a steak-lover’s dream, serving hand-cut slabs of beef like the Cowboy, an 18-ounce bone-in ribeye and the 28-ounce hand-selected bone-in Porterhouse.

Not in a steak mood? Try the seafood additions or the half or full Rack of Lamb. Many gourmet side accompaniments are also available from black truffle butter to rock shrimp scampi. The polished oak and brass dining room will throw you into a world where the women arrive in furs and the men drink Grey Goose martinis shaken hard with crystal on top in a Hollywood glass. This is the quintessential romantic spot, with everything from elegant service to a breathtaking view of the Cincinnati skyline. Entrees: $19-$54. 5-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 4-9 p.m. Sunday. 1071 Celestial St., Mount Adams, 513-241-4455.

Cilantro Vietnamese Bistro — Healthy, affordable and quick

Vietnamese food featuring stir-fried noodles, vermicelli salads and pho soups, all served vegetarian or with shrimp, pork, chicken or beef. It’s feel-good food with plenty of cilantro and lemongrass to soothe the tummy. Not to worry: Fried spring rolls with fiery dipping sauce offer one satisfying guilty pleasure. A small, laid-back diner with good, friendly college vibes and plenty of sizzling action behind the counter. Great for when you’re on the go, but plenty of counter and table seating for dining in. Entrees: $6-$6.50. 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Friday; 4:30-8:30 p.m.

Saturday. 2516 Clifton Ave., Clifton Heights, 513-281-1732.

Daveed’s at 934 — Chef David Cook serves up delicious, sophisti-

cated fare with artistic flair, all served by a professional, friendly staff in a sleek, intimate setting. While the menu can be pricey, you can get a taste of the flavor and flair. They’re best served with Chimay, a soft and creamy Belgian beer brewed by Trappist monks, who must be enlightened. This trendy, upscale restaurant fits in well with its high-class Mount Adams neighbors. The tempting dishes and excellent wine selection complement one another and the room’s warm and wonderful collection of expressionist art. In the warmer months, outside dining is a heavenly alternative, but only if you like the Blind Lemon’s entertainment du jour next door.Entrees: $20-$36. 5:30-9:15 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5:30-10:15 p.m. FridaySaturday. 934 Hatch St., Mount Adams, 513-721-2665.

Dusmesh — Settled right between Northside’s eclectic restaurant

scene and the Indian-food Mecca that is Clifton’s Gaslight District, Dusmesh offers an attention to detail in their food and service. The menu explains that they tone down the chili pepper content of their food to showcase the flavor of the dishes using fresh, quality ingredients, which is an idea that foodies can admire. Great Saag Paneer, Lamb Rogan Josh and a variety of seafood and vegetarian dishes, Biryani and other rice dishes and a lunch buffet.Glass-top tables with white tablecloths, warm orange walls with big windows and nice curtains. The Dusmesh staff exhibits an attention to detail that gives them an edge over the competition in a neighborhood replete with Indian restaurants. And that’s exactly what’s going to keep this restaurant going. It’s not just another Indian restaurant in Clifton. It is arguably the best. Entrees: $8.49-$14.99. 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5-10 p.m. Monday-Friday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. SaturdaySunday. 944 Ludlow Ave., Clifton, 513-221-8900.

january 06-12, 2010

The Hideaway — Your meal here is likely to be casual, comfortable

28

and a lot of fun. The kitchen serves up a broad range of tasty dishes — vegetarian tamale pie served with dirty rice and salsa; catfish or tilapia with sauteed hominy and cornbread; homemade meatloaf; a flank steak and sharp provolone sandwich; and the new “tarted up” grilled cheese with roasted garlic and basil on ciabatta. Located on a stretch of Northside’s Hamilton Avenue, The Hideaway serves its homey dine-in fare amongst hipster garage-sale leftovers — framed string art, velvet Elvises, and lots of Virgin Mary candles. Its kitschy, retro vibe and funky, earnest soundtrack might make you feel like you’ve gone back in time when you hid out in your best friend’s basement playing Jim Morrison and Todd Rundgren. Entrees: $12.95-$21.95. 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 4163 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-542-2444.

Besides being insanely delicious, it’s incredibly cheap. For lunch, spend only $8.50 and walk away with three rolls of vegetarian sushi and a miso soup. It’s authentic, carefully crafted, mom-and-pop-style sushi, and they seriously have the best avocado you’ll ever eat. The friendly owners offer a wide selection of things other than sushi like noodle and rice dishes, including homemade ramen. This local little diner feels like the sort of place you find in Chicago or New York, not in Cincinnati. Getting a spot at one of the coveted three or four tables in the tiny dining space is lucky. If you can’t sit, bring it home. Entrees: $6-$11. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday. 209 W. McMillan Ave., Clifton, 513-721-6999.

Melt — Healthy and gourmet all at once? Be still my beating heart! Perk up

those wholesome taste buds with a Yeehaw BBQ sandwich with seitan, red onion, smoked mozzarella, tomato, banana peppers and BBQ sauce or the Joan of Arc with roast beef, red peppers, garlic, blue cheese, caramelized onion and provolone. Melt is dedicated to good-for-you ingredients serving various seitan and tofu sandwiches and lots of vegan options. The restaurant is also committed to local businesses; they have desserts from Take the Cake and bread from Shadeau. Winner of “Best Sandwiches” and “Best Vegetarian.” Entrees: $4.50-$6.95. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday. 4165 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-681-6358.

P.F. Chang’s — This national chain offers an unusual selection of Chinese dishes including a variety of seafood, chicken, beef, vegetarian and noodle dishes such as Spicy Chicken in Lettuce Wraps and Kung Pao Scallops. Or try the Mongolian Shrimp or the grilled lemongrass prawns. Steak eaters will appreciate the soy-and-mild-chile-marinated N.Y. Strip served with bok choy. The hip, fashionable decor provides an excellent backdrop for a night out on the town. Unlike most of the other popular chains, they take reservations. Winner of “Best Chinese” Entrees: $7-$20. 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.midnight Friday-Saturday. 2633 Edmondson Road , Norwood, 513-779-5555.

Portofino Pizza and Deli — In addition to traditional pizzas and hoagies, Portofino’s offers Mediterranean and Middle Eastern items such as falafel sandwiches, gyros and spanikopita. Or combine flavors with a Greek pizza. A true neighborhood joint with friendly staff and bicycle delivery from Flying Food (513-591-FOOD). Entrees: $3-$17. 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Saturday; noon7 p.m. Sunday. 1609 Chase Ave. , Northside, 513-542-5858.

Potbelly Sandwich Works — Not your average brown-bagged sandwich.

Potbelly sandwich choices range from turkey breast with Swiss cheese to what they call A Wreck: salami, roast beef, turkey and ham with Swiss cheese.

To accompany the made-to-order sandwiches, they have shakes, malts and smoothies to help tame the post-lunch sweet tooth. Soups and chili are also available as sides. For a group lunch, try a Box O’ Sandwiches and each hungry mouth gets a sandwich, chips and a chocolate chip cookie. This Chicago-based chain is starting down the path Friday’s blazed before that organization became obsessed with “flair.” The interiors are a burst of energy and imagination, from the pressed tin ceilings to the “music porch” from which guitarists occasionally serenade customers. Entrees: $4-$5. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. 210 Calhoun St.,#228 Multiple Locations, 513-961-1500.

Qdoba Mexican Grill — Serves fast, fresh, quality Mexican fare. Try the

Chicken Mole Burrito (marinated grilled chicken flavored with a rich, slightly spicy mole sauce) or the Poblano Pesto Burrito, made with marinated grilled chicken and covered with an excellent poblano pesto sauce made of roasted poblano peppers, cilantro, almonds and pine nuts. Decor is faux-minimalist modern, with desert colors and open space to carry your finely crafted burrito to a seat. Entrees: $5-$6. Hours vary by location. 9749 Kenwood Road, Multiple Locations, 513-984-2629.

Sidewinder Coffee & Tea — The cafe offers a small collection of yummy items like vegan and non-vegan baked goods, soup, the turkey and Swiss breakfast burrito (get there earlier, they sell out fast) and mac and cheese, as well as locally roasted fair-trade and organic coffees, espresso drinks and a large selection of blended and loose-leaf teas not found anywhere else.

If you’re hungry, try some of their tasty treats like vegan baked goods. When you’re ready to come over to the hip side, start in Sidewinder’s funky inside or courtyard. There’s acoustic music 1-3:30 p.m. Sundays; 7-9:30 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and semi-regular open mics and poetry slams. Check out the latest art exhibit, hook up your WiFi and answer your e-mail, then, fortified on the elixir of life (espresso), go forth and explore Northside. Entrees: $1.25-$5. 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Friday; 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. 4181 Hamilton Ave., Northside, 513-542-8321.

The Summit — The Summit is the new restaurant run by Cincinnati State’s

Midwest Culinary Institute, a culinary training program that is giving rivals such as the Culinary Institute of America and Johnson & Wales a run for their money.

The Summit’s executive chef, Matthew Winterrowd, is a graduate of the culinary program and touts experience as the former Chef de Cuisine of Daveed’s at 934, a stint at Chicago’s Trio and work with the Jean-Robert Group and Boca.

They take ownership of The Summit and it comes through in their work. And if service isn’t enough to bring you back for a second visit (I made mine the very next night), the food certainly will (LA 7-09-08). Entrees: $24-$29. 5:30-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday 3520 Central Ave.,Cincinnati State Campus Clifton, 513-569-4980.

Thai Express — A favorite stop for inexpensive, good Thai food and friendly service. Most dishes come with your choice of tofu, chicken, pork or shrimp.

All-time favorites are Pad Thai and the Red Curry with chicken, spring rolls or the Waterfall beef salad. The tiny, no-frills kitchen puts out some very tasty Thai food. Everything is cooked in one of the two giant iron woks and nothing on the menu is outside a student’s budget. Winner of “Best Takeout.” Entrees: $6-$9.

11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 213 W. McMillan Ave., Clifton Heights, 513-651-9000.

What’s for Dinner? — Chicken potpie made from scratch, crab cakes, chicken enchiladas, Mexican black bean lasagna — is this getting to you? It’s killing us, and we haven’t even told you about the grilled eggplant sandwich with fresh spinach, sauteed peppers and onions, goat cheese and spicy mayo.

Where are our car keys? If you decide to stay and savor your cranberry-oatmeal cookie here, well, it’s like eating in grandma’s kitchen. But the carryout is fantastic. Did you know that the biggest night of the week for dinner to go is Monday? It’s true. Entrees: $6-$18. 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Friday; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. 3009 O’Bryon St., O’Bryonville, 513-321-4404.

ZZ’s Pizza — The original incarnation of the Walnut Hills eatery closed in

2005. The new ZZ’s Pizza has clean white walls with red glossy accents and simple black tablecloths. They also have a glass wall so you can watch your pizza being made. They offer original pizza options like Seafood Pizza and the Shiitake Mushroom along with standard pies. The pies come in three sizes (8-, 12- and 16-inch), with a perfectly cooked, soft sourdough crust that manages not to be too doughy. Even though parking can be a pain, ZZ¬ís provides a great experience and a warm atmosphere. They are still waiting for their liquor license. (BC 12-9-09). Entrees: $8-$23. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday; 1-10 p.m. Saturday; 3-8 p.m. Sunday. 2401 Gilbert Ave., Walnut Hills, 513-961-3456.

Downtown Alabama Fish Bar — The motto at this Over-the-Rhine institution is “Eat Fresh Fish Live Longer.” We wonder if this still holds true when the fish is gobbed with thick batter, deep-fried and laid over a bed of fries. Aw, who cares?

Take-out only, and barely enough room for that. Service is brisk and efficient.

You’ll be amazed at how quickly they swaddle your order with wax paper, wrap it in a bag and send you on your way. Entrees: $7-$8. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. MondaySaturday. 1601 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-241-2255.

Bistro JeanRo — Though sadly without Jean-Robert de Cavel, this is still

a great French bistro. Everyday authentic with some of the best Pommes Frites, French Onion Soup Gratinee and Mashed Potatoes in town. Will satisfy both comfort food cravings and gourmet tastes. Try the Wild Rice Burger with Smoked Tomato and Fresh Mozzarella (aka the best veggie burger in town) and the Ground Beefsteak “JeanRo” on Toast with a Sunny Side Up Egg. There’s no more French place in the city. The lively decor and intimate, well-stocked bar are worth a visit in their own right. Entrees: $16-$31. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner: 6-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 6-10 p.m. FridaySaturday. 413 Vine Street, Downtown, 513-621-1465.

BlackFinn — If you stop by the downtown hotspot, be sure to bring a big

appetite. It also helps to have a love of sports and a hankering for martinis.

For starters, try the ever-popular non-greasy Sliders. There are four versions: Classic Beef, BBQ Bacon, Pulled Pork and Chicken Parmesan. Or opt for the Spinach and Artichoke Dip, a creamy blend of three cheeses, spinach, garlic and artichokes-”broiled until browned and bubbling.” Entrees include steaks, Fish and Chips with hand-battered haddock and vegetarian pasta. Meat.

Sports. Patriotism. Ball caps. If you like these (that is, if you’re American) you’ll love BlackFinn. Entrees: $8.99-$25.99. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; bar: 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Sunday-Saturday. 19 E. Seventh St., Downtown, 513-721-3466.

The Cricket Lounge — The food in this quiet, laid-back bar in the central atrium of the Cincinnatian Hotel comes from the same kitchen as The Palace, one of Cincinnati’s premier fine dining spots. The menu offers a range of soups, salads, sandwiches and pasta as well as a tasty Black Angus burger and entrees that are way beyond ordinary bar food. The bartender claims they have the biggest and best martinis in town. Them’s fightin’ words. Mellow and low-key, this isn’t a bustling hot spot. Tables are spaced out, providing lots of privacy for conversation. Entrees: $13-$24. 11:30 a.m.-midnight daily. 601 Vine St., Downtown, 513-381-3000.

Fred and Gari’s — With a loyal following among downtown workers who

head there for great sandwiches made with fresh-baked meats, Fred and Gari’s roast their own turkey, ham, pork tenderloin and chicken breast daily and also make gourmet pizzas on sourdough or honey whole-wheat crust. For dessert, try the homemade pies. There’s not much ambiance; this place is all about the food. An open kitchen behind the counter gives you a look at the cooking action. Service is friendly and animated, and regulars liven up the scene. Open for lunch, carryout and delivery only. Entrees: $3-$10. 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Monday-Friday. 629 Vine St., Downtown, 513-784-9000.

Hathaway’s — The old-fashioned flavors of the soda counter, including the best darn chocolate shakes in town, classic cheeseburgers or Hathaway’s specialty salad with a scoop of cottage cheese, yogurt, coconut, walnuts, raisins, fruit, and apricot dressing, served with a hot cinnamon muffin. Also serves up excellent breakfasts. Recently refurbished but still a classic diner. The decor and the lighting are bright, with vintage boomerang patterned Formica countertops, lots of chrome and tile in turquoise and black. There are great historical photos on the walls and vintage music circa Bobby Darin and Ella Fitzgerald.

Entrees: $4-$9. 6:30 a.m.-4 p.m Monday-Friday; 8 a.m -3 p.m. Saturday. 441 Vine Street,In Carew Tower Downtown, 513-621-1332.

It’s Just Crepes — A welcome addition to the downtown restaurant scene,

It’s Just Crepes offers several options to choose from in your crepe quest, including savory and sweet choices. In fact, it seems anything can be turned into a crepe. Take, for instance, the Pizza with mozzarella, pepperoni, mushroom and pizza sauce and the Three Cheese with cheddar, feta and mozzarella. Sweet options range from the Elvis with peanut butter and banana to the S’mores with Nutella, graham crackers and It’s Just Crepes marshmallow cream. Also offers tasty breakfast options. Four people in a small space behind the counter, three making crepes at lightening speed for its dedicated patrons. Tables on the front sidewalk are the perfect setting for a quick lunch or breakfast. Entrees: $3.79$5.99. Breakfast/lunch: 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

Saturday. 39 E. Court St., Downtown, 513-632-7373.

Izzy’s — It’s all about the beef at Izzy’s — corned beef and Reubens, of

course, but lots of new choices like the Izzy’s Mex with Jalepeno’s. Aye caramba? Oy vey! For those who know their beef, Izzy’s is lean and a little on the dry side, but the potato pancake makes up for it with moist, greasy goodness.

And vegetarians, fear not, Izzy’s offers up a delicious Veggie Ruben. A great man once defined Judaism as “3,000 years of beautiful tradition, from Moses to Sandy Koufax.” Somewhere in that pantheon falls Cincinnati’s own Izzy Kadetz, the man and the legend, and his family still owns and operates the deli that bears his name. Winner of “Best Deli.” Entrees: $6-$9. 8 a.m-8 p.m. MondayFriday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. 800 Elm St., Downtown, 513-721-4241.

Javier’s Mexican Restaurant — Downtown’s favorite burrito stop

recently became so much more: Javier finally procured a liquor license, adding to this already excellent Mexican restaurant’s well-armed arsenal. Prime options are the famous Huevos Rancheros - a breakfast burrito stuffed with eggs and chorizo sausage - the Enchiladas Con Pollo with Mole Sauce and the “burrito of the day.” Escape from your dreary office to check out the new digs. The staff is excellent at serving fast lunches, with Javier himself manning the cash register or circulating through the dining room to make sure everyone has what they need. Dancing on weekends! Entrees: $1.50-$6. 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. for lunch; 4-11 p.m. for dinner; and drinks until 2 a.m. Monday-Saturday. 100 E. Eighth St., Downtown, 531-381-3287.

Jeff Ruby’s — It’s all about the meat at this upscale downtown steakhouse,

which proudly claims to be the only steakhouse in the Midwest that dry-ages its own beef on the premises. Other choices include the rack of lamb, wood-grilled salmon and Beer Can Chicken. With a brand-new chef on board, watch for a new menu in late May or early June. Yep, Jeff Ruby certainly gets his flair on.

This is definitely a place to see and be seen. The upscale clientele seems to be dry-aging as well as or better than the beef. Entrees: $20-$43. 5-10 p.m.

Monday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 700 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-784-1200.

Lavomatic — Lavomatic defies all categorization. Just when you think it’s French fare, they throw in chili or chicken breast with mojito marinade. Rustic is the term they like to use, and we agree. Other descriptions would be delicious, seasonal and as locally sourced as possible. If you like to graze and are looking for staff that can give you pairing recommendations, this is your place. If you want heartier fare, try the Overloaded Pot of Chili, Lavo Burger or Pork Tenderloin. Housed in what was most likely a neighborhood Laundromat, the airy, sun-lit space embraces an environmentally sound future in its design, which features bamboo floors and tables, a bar made of cork and table bases that are recycled from Grammer’s. Entrees: $8-$18. 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. MondayThursday; 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Sunday. 1211 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-621-1999.

Le Tea Room Cafe — Offers lunch and dinner customers an array of fresh

soups and salads such as Nicoise Salad and White Bean Chicken Chili.

Sandwich options include the Jamon (made with Virginia smoked ham, Swiss cheese and mayonnaise on a baguette) or Chicken Salad prepared with almonds and lemon dressing. A cheerful, open room with deli-style counter, the cafe has a friendly waitstaff, free wi-fi and espresso drinks. Entrees: $3-$7. 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday. 151 W. Fourth St., Downtown, 513-651-2465.

Le’s — This diminutive deli is known for its scrumptious ham and turkey sandwiches with all the fixins as well as the more exotic spicy Vietnamese Pork sandwich. From lo mein to lasagna, you’re always sure to find something different depending on the day. Hiding inside the Main Public Library, this tiny shop does big business during the week. It mostly caters to library patrons and bookworms, but some of downtown’s working class has discovered the gem. It’s the perfect stop for a quick lunch on the go or a more leisurely lunch with a good book in the library’s courtyard. Entrees: $1-$5. 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Saturday. 800 Vine St., Downtown, 513-665-3339.

Local 127 — Local 127 isn’t the electricians’ union. The “Local” part is about

Mayberry — Mayberry, which calls its niche “grassroots American food,”

has been open for just over a month for breakfast and lunch. It’s in a great location, right between Hamburger Mary’s and Scotti’s on Vine Street, but is so small that it’s easy to overlook. There are six small courses featured, priced at $8 each or three for $20. The dishes, which will change often, aren’t fullsized entrees, but they are generous enough to share. (AM 12-16-09). Entrees: $8

Mixx Ultra Lounge — Mixx makes a stylish first impression with the

Palomino — Specializes in fresh fish, pasta and rotisserie meats as

McCormick and Schmick’s — This national chain keeps it real across

curved sushi bar in the front window and a water feature on the way to the dining tables of the first floor. Think New York City circa 1990. The clubs are hopping, music throbbing and the velvet ropes define the line between cool and uncool, who gets in and who stays out. That being said, the owner and staff were very friendly, even if they tend to forget their tables. It’s a long wait for something not that great, but definitely hit Mixx for socializing and sushi. You might want to ease out of the mix if you’re looking for more standard menu fare for dinner (LA 10-15-08). Entrees: $7-$18. Lunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. TuesdayFriday. Dinner: 4-11 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. 1203 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-621-6499.

Morton’s The Steakhouse — Known for its high-quality beef, elegant service and oversized martinis, Morton’s is steakhouse dining at its finest.

Where else can you experience a drive-by cart laden with cuts of raw meat, seafood and vegetables so you can view your meal-to-be in the raw? There are also excellent salads, seafood and a nice selection of vegetable side dishes for two (or more). The happy-hour food specials in the new bar area are a coup for those on a budget. The new location’s atmosphere is still steakhouse deluxe, with lots of dark woods and tuxedo-clad waiters. In addition to your appetite, better bring your wallet. Entrees: $23-$45. 5:30-11 p.m. MondaySaturday; 5-10 p.m. Sunday. Bar opens at 5 p.m. 441 Vine St., Downtown, 513-621-3111.

Ms. Helen’s Grill — It’s worth the wait for some of Ms. Helen’s charcoal-

grilled, slow-smoked barbecue slathered in her secret-recipe sauce, but you’ll even find the side dishes addictive- especially the crowd-pleasing mac and cheese and the cheesy garlic potatoes. Drag a couple of small tables together and park yourself in the middle of the Findlay Market action for a ringside seat at Ms. Helen’s, which is sandwiched between The Waffle Man and Luken’s Poultry and Seafood Market. Entrees: $3-$10. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. 126 Market House,Findlay Market Over-the-Rhine, 513-381-5678.

Nada — Nada takes dinner on an authentic Mexican culinary trip with a

menu that offers a variety of small bites, including a variety of tacos, as well as traditional-style stews and innovative entrees like a citrus-marinated roasted chicken served with frijoles charros, rice and braised kale. David Falk’s new endeavor has a very chic, serious interior, but it has an impish side as well. A quick look at the Mexican movie and comic pop art on the menu covers clues you in. And don’t miss the show in the bathrooms — for the ladies there are telenovelas (Mexican soap operas). Fellas — you get Mexican pro wrestlers.

Winner of “Best Appetizers” and “Best Mexican.” Entrees: $14-$22. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday; dinner: 5-11 p.m. Monday-Friday and 5 p.m.-midnight Saturday. 600 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-721-6232.

New York Fresh Deli — Serves up premium quality cold cuts up to left

coast standards. The restaurant, an upscale version of the Subway concept, offers a variety of gourmet salads and sandwiches, including panini, New Yorkstyle subs (6, 12 and 24 inches) and wraps including the Cuban Panini made with layers of roast pork, ham and pickles and served with provolone after being pressed and heated between slices of crusty white bread. In fine Gotham fashion, NY Fresh Deli names it subs for glamorous landmarks such as Soho (turkey salami and provolone cheese) and the Statue of Liberty (the Lady Liberty sub with chicken breast, bacon and havarti cheese). Entrees: $3.35-$7.25.

8 a.m.- 3 p.m. Monday-Friday. 255 E. Fifth St., Downtown, 513-721-3354.

Nicholson’s — There’s nothing like a warm, comforting dish of Shepherd’s

Pie served with a good malty ale next to a warm, cozy fire. Well, except for winning the freakin’ lottery, but what are the odds? So we suggest heading downtown to Nicholson’s for a sure thing. The wood-grilled salmon is a best-seller, but the Osso Bucco is awfully good, too. Fresh seafood is market price. There are lunch and dinner specials daily. The great mahogany bar — which offers 90 single-malt scotches — is the centerpiece, but even the urinals were made in Scotland! Now that’s attention to detail. Entrees: $10-$33. 11 a.m.-10 p.m Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 4-9 p.m. Sunday. 625 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-564-9111.

Nicola’s Restaurant — Nicola’s serves cutting-edge Italian-based cuisine that can’t be found anywhere else in the city. If you can see the beauty in a little oxtail, try the exquisite Carnaroli Risotto with spring onions, red endive and vaccinara sauce (a flavorful, tomato-based sauce made with oxtail stew.)

If seafood is more palatable, try the Alaskan halibut with hen of the woods mushrooms, crispy potatoes and cream of artichokes. You can also indulge in Chef Cristian Pietoso’s Grand Tasting menu Monday through Thursday. Quite simply art on a plate. Pietoso uses the plate like a canvas. Such a shame to ruin his masterpiece, but hey, once you start you won’t stop until you’ve licked the canvas clean. Entrees: $23-$35. 5:30-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5:30-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 1420 Sycamore St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-721-6200.

Orchids at Palm Court — Chef Todd Kelly uses the finest ingredients; the tuna comes from Hawaii, the lobster from Maine and the micro cilantro travels from the Chef’s Garden in northern Ohio. Try the Duck Confit with chanterelle mushrooms, baby artichokes and bee pollen. Not salivating yet? Let Chef Kelly prepare a tasting menu just for you. Orchids is a singular experience. You don’t have to be an architectural geek to marvel at the craftsmanship of Orchids at Palm Court. The dining room’s Art Deco design features sweeping shapes that reach for murals on an ornate ceiling. Potted palms and mauve-colored booths fan out like seashells to provide a sense of privacy. Entrees: $32-$43.

5:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday;5:30-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 35 West Fifth St., Downtown, 513-421-9100.

The Palace Restaurant — A chef’s reputation includes the places he

well as delicious pizza and salads. The restaurant definitely takes fish seriously; their Cedar Wrapped Salmon and Sole Saltimbocca are divine.

They also have a great wine list with daily happy hour specials and exciting appetizers like Grilled Prawns.The restaurant occupies one of the best spots downtown. From its second-story perch above Fountain Square, the city glitters, the fountain fizzes and you can forget yourself in the bright lights and clinking glasses. An open kitchen lets you see the buzz and energy that keep the food coming fast. Winner of “Best Business Lunch.” Entrees: $8-$35. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 3 p.m.-11 p.m. Sunday. Bar: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-midnight Friday-Saturday. 505 Vine St., Downtown, 513-381-1300.

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BEST INDIAN

Scotti’s — Serves authentic Italian food, with pasta and veal dishes

as the specialty. Established in 1912, Scotti’s offers a large selection of pasta to accompany a large selection of sauces, many of which can be meatless. There is an extensive wine list to pair with any meal. For veal lovers, try the Veal Cutlet a la Parmigiana, breaded veal in a tomato sauce topped with Mozzarella cheese. Inside is a dark cave-like interior with red-checked tablecloths, stalactite-like wine bottles layered with years of candle drippings and multi-colored tiles psychedelically plastered everywhere. Entrees: $19-$30. Lunch 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday.

Dinner 5 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5 p.m. - 9 p.m. FridaySaturday. 919 Vine St., Downtown, 513-721-9484.

350 Ludlow • 513-281-7000

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3120 Madison Road • 513-321-1600

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Sophia’s Deli — Home cooking from the Greek “gigia” (grandmother)

Kanak IndIa

(by Ambar India Restaurant)

Sung Korean Bistro — Sung tries to stay true to authentic Korean

food while making it more approachable, offering traditional favorites such as dolsot bibimbab as well as more familiar stir-fried dishes. A phenomenal appetizer option is Haemul Padjun, a pancake with egg, shrimp, crabmeat, squid, green onion and pepper that could easily feed four. The dining room includes traditional-style floor seating in the back of the room. There are plans for a sushi bar in the works. Entrees: $14-$19.

Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday. Dinner: 4:30-10:30 p.m.

Tuesday-Wednesday; 4:30 p.m.-1 a.m. Thursday; 4:30 p.m.-midnight

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Rolls to Shrimp Tempura to the more unusual Shanghai Ravioli (spinach, tofu, ginger, siricha and hot mustard). For main dishes, choose among a wide selection of Shanghai Flatbread (scallion pancakes), noodle bowls and rice bowls. With a setting meant to suggest a 1920s Chinese noodle house, it’s dark and inviting. Friday and Saturday it’s open until 3 a.m., serving up food and drink to weary post-clubbers and chefs and servers from Downtown restaurants looking for a bite to eat and a rest for tired feet. Entrees: $6-$10. 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m-3 a.m. Friday; 5 p.m.-3 a.m. Saturday. 216 E. Sixth St., Downtown, 513-241-7777.

you never had. Features daily homestyle specials and sandwiches that are cheap and cheerful, plus homemade baklava for dessert and the best tzatziki sauce ever. This place is so friendly you’ll feel like a regular after just one visit. Clean Formica tables and green Fiestaware plates, and when the cook makes a special trip over to ask how your food is, it’s because he sincerely cares. Entrees: $4-$6. 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday.

811 Main St., Downtown, 513-723-1055.

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24 East 6th Street • 513-723-1300

Shanghai Mama’s — Serves up a range of starters from Spring

Silverglades — Offers great specialty sandwiches with entertaining names like the Louisiana Lightning (salsa turkey, pepper jack cheese, hot mustard, red onion, salsa and lettuce). Also serves hot panini sandwiches and wraps as well as soups and daily hot meals like home roasted pork loin, beef stroganoff and pulled pork barbecue. Silverglades looks and feels like the owners know what they’re doing. And they should — it’s been a family business for three generations, starting back when Al Silverglade Sr. opened a stand at Findlay Market in 1922. With its high ceilings, big windows and corner location in the renovated Renaissance Building, Silverglades has a hometown feel with a bit of big-city flair. Entrees: $6$8. 7:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday. 236 E. Eighth St., Downtown, 513-361-0600.

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Paula’s Cafe — Offering hot and cold sandwiches, oversized salads and filling homemade soups, Paula’s is more than a cafe — it’s an institution. The food here never fails to satisfy; just try the Cuban Sandwich: roast pork loin, ham and melted Swiss cheese pressed between slices of dense, fresh Shadeau Bakery bread to see just how good a sandwich can be. This year, a bustling new downtown storefront joined its older sibling, still located in the heart of Findlay Market. At either spot, grab something on the run or hunker down for a well-deserved break from work or shopping. Entrees: $4-$8. 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. 41 E. Fourth St. , Downtown, 513-381-3354.

Rock Bottom — This microbrewery always has fresh ales to quench the beer thirst and a menu to cure any hungry appetite. Some of the most popular specialty dishes include Brown Ale Chicken with shiitake mushrooms, Mahi tacos served with a pineapple slaw and black beans and jambalaya with shrimp, sausage and chicken. Steaks, burgers and lighter salads are also offered. Great meeting place for before or after a Reds or Bengals game. Rock Bottom’s location also is a great place to take out-of-town guests or just for a night on the town. Entrees: $10-$16.

11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Saturday; noon-9 p.m. Sunday. 10 Fountain Square, Downtown, 513-621-1588.

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10040-B Montgomery Road • 513-793-6800 Across from Montgomery Kroger

january 06-12, 2010

the local food movement. According to Executive Chef Steven Geddes, “127 is our address, and we start there. Everything is sourced as close to this address as possible.” The menu is manageable. It changes with availability of ingredients. Geddes loves having vegetarian guests and will gladly tailor a meal to their tastes. The lounge next door to Local 127, Tonic, will be open by the time this review goes to press and claims a real commitment to cocktail culture. (Local 127 is in the space formerly occupied by Jean-Robert at Pigall’s, while Tonic is the former Twist Lounge space.) (AM 10-28-09). Entrees: $17-$28. 5:30-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5:30-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. 127 W. Fourth St., Downtown, 513-721-1345.

the street from Fountain Square. The oyster sampler offers a dozen fresh and flavorful oysters on the half-shell to slide down yo throat. The menus are printed on paper twice daily to ensure diners are offered the freshest seafood options available in Cincinnati. The dark wood interior makes business folks feel comfortable. Entrees: $10-$20. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday; 4 p.m.-11 p.m Saturday; 4 p.m.-11 p.m. Sunday. 21 E. Fifth St., Downtown, 513-721-9339.

or she has been before. The Palace’s new staff includes Executive Chef and New York native Jose Salazar as well as Sumer Genetti (from Pho Paris and Chalk). Chef Salazar has had a wide range of influences on his cooking, which includes dishes such as a grilled organic salmon with green and white asparagus, potato gnocchi and hollandaise mousseline.

Summer’s reputation as the most inventive pastry chef in town follows her to her new gig. Check out offerings like her Milk Chocolate-Sesame Mousse with dark chocolate sorbet and soy caramel sauce. The historic building and class A service are perfect for special night out. For less formal occasions the bar and bar menu provides a way to feel moneyed without spending much of it. Entrees: $15-$55. Open Monday-Saturday for dinner; 7 days for breakfast. 602 Vine St., Downtown, 513-381-3000.

each or three for $20. Lunch 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday; dinner 5:30-9 p.m. Friday-Saturday; brunch 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday. 915 Vine St., Downtown, 513-381-5999.

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RESTAURANTS Friday; 5 p.m.-midnight Saturday; 5-10:30 p.m. Sunday. 700 Elm St., Downtown, 513-721-7864.

Trattoria Roma — Entrees feature seafood, veal, fresh pasta,

chicken and aged Angus beef, including a mouth-watering lasagna made with homemade pasta and sauce, ground beef and a blend of five cheeses. Trattoria makes all their pasta, bread, sauces and desserts from scratch. A cozy, romantic venue tucked between the flashier theater district restaurants, this unassuming spot has a small front room decorated in Mediterranean tones and a larger room in back. Both are filled with tables topped with the standard red-and-white tablecloths and candle-filled Chianti bottles. Service can be personality-dependent, but it’s all a part of the charm. Entrees: $16-$33. Lunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Monday-Friday. Dinner: 5-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. FridaySaturday. 609 Walnut St., Downtown, 513-723-0220.

Tucker’s — Well known for its hearty, fresh food, with the best vegetar-

ian omelet and deluxe hash browns this side of hash heaven. The owners buy most of their products at nearby Findlay Market. Try the Big Tucker, a double-decker burger with cheese and special sauce. Other standbys include biscuits and gravy and the fried cod sandwich. The milkshakes, sadly, are no more, but there are always big, hearty portions. A vibrant piece of history, Tucker’s has been a fixture on Vine Street since 1949. It’s definitely no-frills and very high on atmosphere, with lots of regulars and walls hung with memorabilia from the past half-century. Entrees: $4-$7.

8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Saturday. 1637 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, 513-721-7123.

Via Vite — Little sister to its chic sibling Nicola’s Ristorante Italiano in the Over-the-Rhine, Via Vite serves more casual fare, but the creative juices are just the same — owner Nicola Pietoso and his son Cristian again pair up to give us another dining treasure. The menu includes appetizers, wood-fired pizzas (check out the one with pesto, artichokes and goat cheese), salads, pastas, entrees such as a grilled swordfish that features Grandma’s peperonata or an oven-braised lamb shank with dreamy creamy polenta. Via Vite fills an appalling gap in the Fountain Square renovation — a new high-end restaurant that’s locally owned. Entrees: $18-$27. 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Monday - Thursday; 11 a.m.-2 a.m. FridaySaturday; 1-10 p.m. Sunday. 520 Vine St. , Downtown, 513-721-8483.

Washington Platform Saloon & Restaurant — Perhaps

best known for the recently concluded Oyster Festival that takes place every year, this place has more specialties coming: Next up is the May 16 Clam Bake. For $24.95 enjoy all-you-can-eat clams, crawfish, shrimp, mussels, corn on the cob and baby red potatoes. Regularly serves fish, steak, pasta and Cajun-style entrees such as Grilled Salmon topped with Lobster Butter and the Creole Combo (Cajun grilled chicken with Southern fried oysters). The bar area offers a relaxed, old-school saloon atmosphere while the Canal Room provides a more fashionable experience with white linens and glass-topped tables. Entrees: $13-$20. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 4-8 p.m.

Sunday. 1000 Elm St., Downtown, 513-421-0110.

East

january 06-12, 2010

Amarin — Amarin is friendly, delicious and a great value. The Thai Jade Noodle is the the most flavorful spinach pasta we’ve ever tasted. Better yet is the duck, a boneless duck half seasoned and crisp fried, sliced and fanned into a big ceramic bowl and surrounded by fresh green beans and carrots.The small space is chic, if not flattering, and comfortably padded chairs surround the dark, wood tables that line the room. Entrees: $9$15. 3514 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, 513-321-5533.

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Avari Bistro and Deli — If you’ve ever lived in Manhattan, you owe it to yourself to come to Avari for a kosher meal that will bring back such memories as homemade matzoh ball soup, chicken shwarma, corned beef and brisket.

If you’re not a fan of Jewish food, then try the Pasta Pomodoro and Buffalo Chicken Tenders. Move beyond the deli case and chalkboard that greet you at the entrance and you’ll find a clean, contemporary space where one family might be saying grace to start their meal while another is bensching after finishing theirs. But everyone’s welcome! Entrees: $8-$22. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday; 4-9 p.m. Sunday. 4858 Hunt Road , Blue Ash, 513-984-9804.

BBQ Revue — The smell of hickory wood hits your olfactory sense before

you even make it in the door. Once inside you’ll find all the necessities of a good neighborhood BBQ joint: lots of smoked meat slathered in a sweetish hot sauce with sides like creamy mac and cheese, green beans flavored with pork and cole slaw. BBQ should never be served on anything other than paper plates and eaten with plastic forks. Take your cafeteria-style tray to one of the banquet tables in the dining rooms and dig in to the sounds of local news and neighborhood chatter amongst the old Hudepohl, Schoenling and Wiedemann signs. Entrees: $3-$18. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; noon-8 p.m. Sunday.

4725 Madison Road, Madisonville, 513-871-3500.

Cumin — Cumin is indeed chic, eclectic, fun and flavorful. The “flavorful”

springs from multiple ethnic heritages and a vivid passion for fresh food.

Cumin’s co-owners are Yajan Upadhyaya, originally from Mumbai, India, and Alex Mchaikhi, who was born in Tunisia in North Africa. The venture began with Upadhyaya’s fresh take on Indian cuisine and Mchaikhi’s front-of-house flair and broadened to a pan-Asian world fusion menu. They were recently joined

by Owen Maass, a chef with an impressive pedigree that includes stints in New York, Chicago and recently L’Auberge in Dayton. Maass helped edit the menu down to a selection of real gems. Cumin’s drinks menu is festive and features several champagne cocktails. (AM 9-16-09). Entrees: $17-$29. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday; Dinner: 5-10:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 3520 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, 513-871-8714.

Dancing Wasabi — It looks like a mild-mannered sushi bar until you see

local celebrity sushi chef Charlie Choi mixing up a Hot Mama (one of his Chef’s Special Rolls) behind the bar. With deeply flavorful, and at times indulgent, sushi, such as the tasty Sunday Morning Roll deep-fried with salmon and cream cheese, Dancing Wasabi serves up both creative and traditional Japanese and Korean cuisine. Korean favorites include Bibimbap with marinated beef, fried egg, vegetables and rice served steaming in a hot stone pot. Surprises include the well-chosen list of refreshing, ice-cold sakes that evoke warm summer nights, including Snow Maiden, with cream of coconut and passion fruit undertones. Also enjoy playful presentations such as the Mochi Ice Cream, with quintessential green tea ice cream wrapped in a chewy, taffy-like rice cake and delivered as a Sunday with a cherry on top. Open into the wee hours of the morning on the weekends. Entrees: $5-$35. 5 p.m.-2 a.m. Sunday-Thursday; 5 p.m-4 a.m. Friday-Saturday. 1018 Delta Ave., Mount Lookout, 513-533-9218.

Dinner’s Ready — Their menu changes monthly, but you might find Four Cheese Ravioli Bake with Italian Sausage, Honey-Almond Chicken with Mediterranean Vegetables or Prawns and Pesto Saute with Jasmine Rice. Package them up, freeze them and reheat at home for gourmet-style meals anytime without the fuss and bother of all that shopping and chopping. They have new serving sizes, which are no longer designed to be split in half, so keep that in mind.

This national franchise outlet let’s you customize and assemble meals for your family in their clean, spacious kitchens from prepared ingredients. Or, if you just need a meal for tonight, use their convenient grab-and-go service! Go online to check out their current menu. Entrees: $12-$20. Call ahead to see if they’re open. 7201 Wooster Pike, Mariemont, 513-272-6325.

The Echo — A favorite since 1945 with Eastsiders, The Echo is a no-frills diner serving Midwest classic homestyle favorites from meatloaf to grilled cheese and eggs, goetta and home fries to chef’s salads and fish sandwiches.

The breaded cod and beef and cheese loaf are some new fare. None really, not even any wisecracking, surly waitresses. Just a straightforward, family-friendly, relaxed neighborhood gathering place — like eating in your great aunt’s kitchen without having to help her wash the dishes. Entrees: $7-$17. 6 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Wednesday; 6 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Sunday. 3510 Edwards Road, Hyde Park, 513-321-2816.

El Coyote — The area’s pioneer Tex-Mex establishment now numbers three local locations, dishing out fabulous steaks, fajitas, enchiladas, empanadas and quesadillas. The grilled pork chop served with mashed sweet potatoes is a classic, and the garlic-mashed potatoes have a huge fan club.Homey and friendly. Cozy and casual. Locally owned and operated, and proud of it.

Entrees: $9-$25. 4-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 4-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 7404 State Road, Anderson Twp., 531-232-5757.

Emanu — Emanu was born from a simple concept: Take the family kitchen and open it to the public. That’s certainly how you feel when Sam Yhdego waits on you. His mother is in the kitchen, and his father is “helping in any way that he can,” Sam says. If you go to Emanu looking for instant gratification, you won’t find it. This isn’t fast food. It takes a lot of time to prepare food like this. This food is made fresh. That’s why it might take up to an hour to get it. But that’s the price you pay for this remarkable fare (HS 9-3-08). Entrees: $10-$22.

11 a.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 6063 Montgomery Road, Pleasant Ridge, 513-351-7686.

Embers — Embers offers rooms for upscale private parties up to 48 deep.

With a big wine list and a menu that spans steak, seafood and sushi, Embers has become a dining destination for many fancy East Siders. Lighter appetizers like sushi, vegetarian wraps or crabs cakes are a nice lead in to more substantive steak and seafood entrees. Decor is muted and elegant, with dark woods and soft lighting that create an atmosphere of satisfied sophistication. A roomy bar adjoins the dining room for drinking cocktails and chatting. Live music on the weekends. Entrees: $19-$37. 5-10:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-11:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 5-9 p.m. Sunday. 8170 Montgomery Road, Kenwood, 513-984-8090.

Essencha Tea House — There is really no substitute for the quality of a

cup of tea from Essencha. They precisely brew each cup and offer more than 80 types, including the standard varietals, flavored teas and herbal tisanes.

The bubble tea here is a more adult version of the sweet Taiwanese snackmeets-beverage sensation. (That is to say, more grown-up, not sexier.) Light lunch items such as sandwiches, creative crepes, soups, salads and fabulous desserts make for a tasteful experience no matter what you’re in the mood for.

Stop by during lunch on a Saturday and it’ll be a bustling hangout for all ages.

Go during an off-time and its a quiet place for a refreshing break from everyday life. Décor is minimalist, earthy and calm. Entrees: $3-$13. 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Monday-Friday; 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday; 12:30-6 p.m. Sunday. 3212 Madison Road, Oakley, 513-533-4832.

Four Seasons Boatyard Grill — A recent menu change offers a more

affordable dinner with the same high-quality dishes. Four Seasons still offers fresh seafood with all types of fish, shrimp items and pastas, but it didn’t forget about its great salmon, prime rib, pork chops and chicken. Unique appetizers and an expanded sandwich menu. More casual, less expensive. The accommodations are snug and private, with portholes delivering modest vistas of the yachts docked outside. An open-air dining area and live music from an array of local bands add another dimension. Entrees: $9-$20. 5-9:30 p.m. Sunday, Tuesday-Thursday; 5-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 4609 Kellogg Ave., ColumbiaTusculum, 513-871-1820.

Fuel — Well, cars don’t run on coffee yet, but there is a place in Greater Cincinnati that exemplifies a kinship between cars and coffee. Fuel, a new coffeehouse in the former Koka location, makes use of a former gas station lot during their Car and Coffee Saturdays. Between 8 a.m. and noon, car enthusiasts and collectors roll in to chat and show their vintage, muscle or just plain badass rides. Fuel serves a good strong cup of Joe (a few blends available each day) along with specialty drinks, fruit smoothies and pastries (DC 5-13-09). 2726 Riverside Drive, East End, 513-533-3835.

Fuji’s House Japanese Restaurant — Fuji’s is a hibachi grill tucked back behind Servatti’s bakery at the Bigg’s end of the shopping center. When it’s hibachi time, a cart loaded with diced meat and veggies is pulled alongside the grill, the chef smiles broadly and food starts flying. Nothing is done without a flourish. Oil is swished onto the surface. Broad swaths of veggies are flipped

in an arc. Sliced onion is stacked to resemble a mini Mt. Fuji, filled with alcohol and set aflame. Voila, volcano! A fun place for a celebration dinner.

But don’t expect the subtleties of gourmet Japanese cuisine (AM 9-10-08).

Entrees: $11.95-$24.95. 4:30-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 4:30-11 p.m. Friday; 12-11 p.m. Saturday; 2-9:30 p.m. Sunday. 3836 Paxton Ave., Hyde Park, 513-871-0500.

The Hitching Post — “World’s Best Fried Chicken” is this diner’s claim to fame, but we’re there in a New York minute for mac ‘n cheese or any, and we mean any, of Aunt Ruth’s pies, which have an almost cult following (you can order them whole to go as well, and we do). Made from scratch Fetuccini is available every Friday. Checkered tablecloths and the whole diner nine yards with kitschy-cute memorabilia and family photos adorning the walls. Entrees: $4-$13. 8:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.

2715 Madison Road, Hyde Park, 513-871-9201.

Hugo — Chef/owner Sean Daly concentrates on Low Country food, a regional cuisine of South Carolina that combines English, French, Spanish, African and Caribbean influences with a “metropolitan twist.” His menu includes traditional recipes such as a small plate of Burgoo with tomato, white beans and rabbit.

Hugo, named for the hurricane that roared through Charleston, S.C, in 1989, roared into Oakley this past summer bringing a torrent of good food, excellent service and Southern charm. People seem to come out of the woodwork to greet you as you enter a dining room that whispers “old money.” The hip set can be found at the bar discussing and sharing their selections of small plates.

Entrees: $21-$29. 5:30-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 5:30-10:30 p.m. FridaySaturday. 3235 Madison Road, Oakley, 513-321-4846.

Ichiban — Ichiban has replaced Aqua in Mount Lookout Square. What¬ís fun

about Ichiban’s menu is that you don’t have to order two traditional dinner entrees. You can mix it up with several “tapas-like” Robata-Yaki (kebab) options and then you can then follow this up with a Noodle dish. The sushi is artfully presented with garnishes of cucumber slices fanned across the plate.

The service is superb. (HS 10-21-09). Entrees: $10-$20. 11 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 1020 Delta Ave., Mount Lookout, 513-321-8686.

Iron Skillet — Goulash is most definitely the flavor here, with five different

types from which to choose on the lunch menu alone. Other favorites include stuffed cabbage, sauerbraten and chicken paprikash. As the self-proclaimed home of the “Best Schnitzels in Town,” it is your solemn duty to try one of the 10 different kinds available. The hot slaw is a delicious surprise, both sweet and pleasantly sour at the same time. For the less adventurous, there are plenty of steak and sandwich options. Lots to enjoy in this spacious and airy dining room. Entrees: $9-$22. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 11 a.m.9:30 p.m. Friday; 2-9:30 p.m. Saturday; 3-8 p.m. Sunday. 6900 Valley Ave., Newtown, 513-561-6776.

Jean-Paul’s Paradiso — Sure they offer great soups- try the creamy roasted portobella mushroom- and pastas, panini, wraps and calzones. But many say they make the best pizzas in town. Find out for yourself: Try the Northern Woods, topped with wild mushrooms sauteed with rosemary and thyme, roasted red peppers and goat cheese. Jean-Paul Belmont, a master chef and baker from Switzerland, is building his own little culinary empire around the Clough Pike Market in Mount Washington. The environment might be casual but the attention to detail is impeccable. Entrees: $7.50-$13.50. 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. 6732 Clough Pike, Mount Washington, 513-231-2780.

menu is a safe bet. Some popular items are the Pad Thai, Yellow Curry or Lemon Grass Noodles served with egg, green and yellow onions, celery, bean sprouts and tomatoes. This family-owned restaurant offers all the comfort of home, with intimate seating, friendly service and an overall good dining atmosphere. It’s centrally located right next to Rookwood Pavilion. Entrees: $9-$11.

Lunch: 11-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner: 5-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-10:30 p.m. Friday; 4-10:30 p.m. Saturday; 4-9:30 p.m. Sunday. 2666 Madison Road, Hyde Park, 513-321-2882.

Lucy Blue — This place is all about focus. It’s open limited hours (late

at night and during lunch), and all it serves is pizza. The pizza is good, with chewy dough, full-flavored sauce and plenty of cheese. During lunch, there’s soup, salad, soda and as many slices as you can eat for only $6. There’s something vaguely illicit about buying food out of a little opening in the side of a building at 2:30 a.m. The help is cheery, friendly and seemingly amused by the ever-changing nocturnal spectacle. Entrees: $12-$15. 5-10 p.m. SundayMonday; 5 p.m.-3 a.m. Tuesday-Saturday. 3200 Linwood Ave, Mount Lookout, 513-321-2540.

Maribelle’s Tavern — A favorite of locals, Maribelle’s is the ideal East End

spot for comfort food in friendly, upscale environs. An airy, renovated house with colorful outdoor dining, Maribelle’s delivers on every comfort combination you can imagine, including burgers, grilled cheese, mashed potatoes, veggies, mac & cheese, roasted sweet potatoes, and, oddly, mandarin oranges. Best thing: Tuesday night Burger Jackpot with three toppings for $6, one of the best burger deals around. Restoration Hardware decor and a friendly staff in the heart of the East End. Some tables have river views, and the dining room is warm and inviting. Entrees: $4-$14. 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Bar is open until 1 a.m. 2062 Riverside Drive, East End, 513-861-2484.

Molly Malone’s Irish Pub — Irish dishes, like the popular fish and

chips, Shepherd’s Pie and variations on a boxty theme: traditional beef and some twists, including chicken tikka and Seamus Ramirez’s jalapeno version.

There’s also a filet, Sugar and Spice Salmon, Salmon and Cod Salad, Bow Tie Chicken Pasta and meatloaf. Wash your meal down with one of the many English or Irish ales. The pub’s cozy interior is a great neighborhood gathering place. Live music in the bar on Friday and Saturday nights, quieter in any of the three dining rooms. Entrees: $8-$16. 11 a.m.-midnight Tuesday-Sunday. 6111 Montgomery Road, Pleasant Ridge, 513-531-0700.

The Napa Grille — Located on the first floor of the Regency Condos, the

Napa Grille’s hidden location feels a little like a private club. The interesting selection of seafood and steaks with a smattering of vegetarian, chicken, pork and lamb options, make it difficult to settle on an entree. But once you do, the menu offers traditional and adventurous wine selections for each dish. Entrees: $17-$48. 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 2444 Madison Rd,Regency Condominiums Hyde Park, 513-871-9463.

The National Exemplar — An area standby since 1983, The National

Karma Asian Bistro — Owning a business and working together might

Exemplar serves an exceptional breakfast menu of standards, plus crepes, frittatas, Belgian waffles and hearty skillets. Both light and hearty salads and sandwiches at lunch and dinner, but the dinner menu also features Ohio-raised Amish chicken, Nieman Ranch free-range pork and excellent Angus beef.

Imbued with lots of character and history, located in the historic Mariemont Inn, constructed in the mid-1920s as part of the unique Mariemont community (the area was envisioned by its founder, Mary Emery, as a “national exemplar” in practical town planning). Good service and a crowd of loyal regulars give this the feel of a well-loved club. Entrees: $18-$28. 7 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-10 p.m.

Monday-Thursday; 7 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-10:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 7 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-9 p.m. Sunday. 6880 Wooster Pike, Mariemont, 513-271-2103.

Kinneret Cafe — This menu had the Israeli basics- Falafel, Baba

Nectar — Owner/chef Julie Francis features contemporary cuisine, using local and organic products whenever possible. The menu, which changes with the season and is prepared with a French Mediterranean flair, is creative and delicious.Dinner Club is one of the coolest things about Nectar. Get on the mailing list to learn about the monthly five-course dinners that focus on one ingredient: goat cheese or garlic or chocolate — always something special that’s delicious and interesting. Seating is limited and reservations are required. Entrees: $17-$26. Dinner: 5:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 5:30-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday; brunch: 10 a.m-2 p.m. Sunday. 1000 Delta Ave., Mount Lookout, 513-929-0525.

be a tough test for most newlyweds, but it’s working for Noi and Sa Sithideth, proprietors of Karma. There’s an excellent selection of appetizers on the menu.

No matter what entree you choose, I recommend that you spring for an order of Lao Fried Rice to share. We tried this out of curiosity, but I would definitely call it a must-have. There’s Thai, Laotian and Vietnamese food available. The area seats maybe around 30. The same menu is served at lunch and dinner (AM 2-25-09). Entrees: $9-$15. Lunch: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday- Sunday; dinner: 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. 7418 Beechmont Ave., Anderson Twp., 513-233-0444.

Ghanoush, Grape Leaves and Israeli Salad, but because it’s kosher there are also a few Old World surprises like Yemenite fried pancakes with spicy tomato sauce and a hard-boiled egg. Karen Chriqui, owner of Kinneret with her Moroccan-born husband Avner, makes the restaurant authentic by seeking out ingredients from only the best Israeli bakeries and delis. The feta cheese for the Greek salad is flown in from Israel, and the buttery pita bread comes from an Israeli bakery in Boca Rotan. Karen says that she has developed Kinneret’s menu to be kosher, Israeli and mainly vegetarian, which makes it a unique mix for Cincinnati and appeals to a wide range of people. The menu even includes pasta dishes and no-cheese pizza for vegans (HS 5-06-09). 11:20 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday. 8316 Plainfield Road, Deer Park, 513-791-1777.

La Petite Pierre — A modest, seasonal menu big on flavor with well-

crafted food served without pretense. From the “small plates” menu, enjoy a light choice or go for comfort food. Desserts are made in-house. Thoughtful, personal and near perfect service in a delightful settings. This isn’t a place to see or be seen, it’s a place to relax and savor delicious, attentively prepared fare. Entrees: $18-$26. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; Dinner: 6-9 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 6-9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 7800 Camargo Road, Madeira, 513-527-4909.

Latitudes — Tapas with a seafood emphasis in the heart of Milford. Ahi

Lemon Grass — Try the Crab Crispies (crab rangoons) appetizer, as Lemon Grass makes the best in town. From there, anything you choose from the varied

Tropical Paradise,” Pirate’s Cove Tropical Bar and Grill is pretty much just that.

One half expects Ricardo Montalban to show up in his finely tailored white suit and say something exotic like, “Would you like to try one of our Tropical Appetizers? They’re deeeelicious.” Nestled amid hundreds of boats and lush green trees, the cove is something of a floating oasis complete with a wellstocked bar (the Red Ale is excellent), live music and a dance floor. Hungry?

No problem: The menu offers everything from a vast array of tasty appetizers and salads to wraps and specialty dishes like the Barbequed Pork Ribs or the Island Tilapia and Shrimp. And how about this for another unique enticement: Smokers are always welcome. Entrees: $8.95-$13.95. 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Friday-Saturday. 4609 Kellogg Ave., Columbia-Tusculum, 513-871-1820.

The Precinct — You can always rely on a Jeff Ruby restaurant for a big, rare steak and platters of seafood. The Precinct, the first in a long line of Ruby steakhouses, has been doing it since 1981. Next time skip the Steak Collinsworth and Steak Munoz — try Hussey’s Table, “in homage to Jimmy Hussey, the king of tableside cooks,” which includes Cajun Shrimp, Shrimp and Crab Saute or Hussey’s Famous Fettuccine for Two. Or try the new Reds players’ menu items such as the Dusty Baker or the Bronson Arroyo. The Precinct is a great place to people watch. Play spot the local celebrity over drinks in the bar before dinner.

Winner of “Best Splurge,” “Best Steaks” and “Best Waitstaff/Service.” Entrees: $26-$46. 5-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 311 Delta Ave., Columbia-Tusculum, 513-321-5454.

Quarter Bistro — The sangria is a smashing way to start your evening,

perhaps with the popular Tuna and Smoked Scallop Martini appetizer. Although there are lots of elegant entrees, don’t overlook the menu’s sandwiches and pizzas section that includes the Serious Burger, crab cakes and the Torta Cubana, crispy ciabatta stuffed with roasted pork, ham, chorizo, chihuahua cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato and spicy mayo.A see-and-be-seen scene with mirrors on the walls in case you miss anyone. And before you ask, the

Red — Start your meal with mussels mariniere or exquisite beef carpaccio, garnished with the wonderful tempura onion petals, and then try a steak with a side of pesto mashed potatoes. They’re the best you’ve ever eaten. On the pricey side, this is a see-and-be-seen bistro in front, cozy date banquettes in back and eponymous Red touches throughout. Very friendly service, excellent steaks and seafood. Entrees: $8-$65. 5:30-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 5:30-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 2724 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, 513-871-3200.

Sake Bomb — The menu features an extensive sushi selection that includes the usual suspects and innovative roll options. The regular menu is no slouch, either, with offerings that range from spicy kim chee soup, steamed dumplings with wasabi pork or shrimp, tempura and teriyaki dishes as well as items from the grill. Where do the cool kids go for sushi after midnight? Sake Bomb! Naturally, the drink of choice is a shot of sake suspended on chopsticks over beer, knocked into the pint by a pound on the table (3, 2, 1, Sake Bomb!) and swiftly gulped. Entrees: $5-$15. 5 p.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Saturday; 5 p.m.-midnight Sunday. 3672 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, 513-533-0555.

Schoolhouse Restaurant — While it is not the peanut butter

sandwiches and Twinkies mom packed your Ninja Turtle lunchbox with, it is comfort food only a mother could make. Fried chicken, meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn fritters, roast beef, cobblers, ice cream sundaes, cakes and pies — all written in perfect cursive on the chalkboard and served by clones of our elementary school lunch lady. A Civil War-era schoolhouse (and the first two-story school building in the Midwest), it fills with area families. Entrees: $11-$17. Lunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday-Friday. Dinner 5-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; noon-8 p.m.

Sunday. 8031 Glendale-Milford Road, Camp Denison, 513-831-5753.

Trio — One of the original upscale/casual restaurants in Cincinnati, Trio features a California-style menu of pizza and pastas, salads, sandwiches and entrees that still turns out consistently good food. From a Nicoise Salad to Thai Chicken or Smoked Salmon Pizza and main courses such as Chilean Sea Bass, Trio’s kitchen is always dependable and delicious.

Usually crowded with dating couples, family celebrations and business meetings or gal pals sipping wine at the bar from the extensive wine menu. Despite its country club vibe and definite swank appeal, Trio is never pretentious and one of our top choices when we need “something for everyone.” Entrees: $20-$30. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday. 7565 Kenwood Road, Kenwood, 513-984-1905.

Vineyard Cafe and Wine Room — The Vineyard strives to bring its customers something familiar yet different. Take, for instance, the ordinary chicken breast: At The Vineyard it becomes Artichoke-Crusted Chicken, pounded out chicken breast with pureed artichokes, parmigiano-reggiano and panko bread crumbs, flash-fried and finished with roasted Yukon potatoes, shallots and lemon beurre blanc.Wine and food pairings are what The Vineyard is all about. The candlelit dining room is often filled with couples sharing a bottle over dinner or tables of people conducting a private little tasting of their own. The service staff is wine savvy and polite.

The Wine Room, two doors up, is one of those little secret gems you might miss if we didn’t tell you. Entrees: $16-$30. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. MondayThursday, 1-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday. 2653 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, 513-871-6167.

Wild Ginger — This sleek venture from Lemon Grass owner Dao Yee has a full range of Thai, Vietnamese and even some Chinese food, but sushi is the way to go here, with selections like the Spicy Tuna Roll or Spider Roll. A new favorite is the Heema Roll with shrimp tempura, asparagus and avocado, topped with yellowfin tuna and sprinkled with crabmeat and tempura flakes. Order sushi by the boatload- a Boat for One or a Boat for Two. Other menu selections include curries and Pad Thai. Beer and wine now available. Wild Ginger conjures up visions of pungent, spicy Asian cuisine, but the low-key atmosphere, soft colors and bamboo furnishings create an intimate way to enjoy the flavor party in your mouth.

As of press time, an expansion is under construction. Look forward to a pair of hibachi grills and a full bar! Entrees: $9-$15. Lunch: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner: 5-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-10:30 p.m.

Friday; 4-10:30 p.m. Saturday; 4-10 p.m. Sunday. 3655 Edwards Road, Hyde Park, 513-533-9500.

Northern Kentucky Argentine Bean — The Bean’s new chef has cooked for celebrities

like Demi and Bruce and Arnold and Maria — and now, you and me. The new menu for spring is lighter, including mozzarella caprese and curried chicken salad, and very creative. Try the shrimp with avocado salsa — it’s served on the fork — or the crab tower. Delicious pastries for dessert.

Lunch is ladylike, but dinner gets lively with great wine selections, half price on Mondays and Wednesdays. Live music most nights, great salsa lessons and a gypsy Latin Jazz combo. Argentine Bean, the highlight of Crestview Town Center, is tucked away near the northeast corner of Dillards. Entrees: $7-$12. 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday. 2875 Town Center Blvd., Crescent Springs, 859426-1042.

Bouquet Restaurant and Wine Bar — Share a cheese plate

that includes New York cheddar, sage derby, smoked mozzarella and a Spanish drunken goat cheese, served with crackers, chutney and slices of Granny Smith apple. The complex flavors of the cheeses complement a sip of a big red wine. A small and intimate space, with just a handful of tables bordered on one side by an attractive curving bar — brick-walled, comfortable and pleasant. Bouquet is a world away from the nearby party bars of Mainstrasse. Entrees: $10-$25. 5-10 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday.

Wine bar open until 1 a.m. 519 Main St. , Covington, 859-491-7777.

MORE ON PAGE 324

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tuna spring rolls, crab cakes, Buffalo-style shrimp and sauteed mussels are all great choices. Or go veggie with portabella mushrooms, grilled and topped with herbed cheese and crabmeat or ravioli stuffed with pumpkin and goat cheese.

There’s even a miniature bison burger! The dining is light and suited more for active couples than families. A great place to enjoy street-side seating on a nice spring night or cozy loft seating on a more intimate occasion. Remember, there’s no better date food than tapas. Entrees: $6-$11. 4:30 p.m.-2 p.m.

Tuesday-Friday; noon- 2 a.m. Saturday-Sunday. 18 Main St., Milford-Miami Township, 513-831-9888.

Pirates Cove Tropical Bar and Grill — Calling itself “Cincinnati’s

bathrooms are next door at the movie theater. Entrees: $16-$35. 5-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 5-9 p.m. Sunday.

6904 Wooster Pike, Mariemont, 513-271-5400.

31

RESTAURANTS Brio Tuscan Grille — Upscale Tuscan-inspired dining featuring

Mama’s Lasagna Bolognese made from the founder’s original recipe.

Give them a try for Saturday and Sunday Bellini Brunch, featuring Frittata al Forno, Tuscan French Toast with marscapone cheese and more. Great date place, as it’s not terribly loud and there are lots of things to split. The al fresco area is nice, but you sometimes feel forgotten out there if they’re not fully staffed. Entrees: $15-$22. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday. 1 Levee Way,Newport on the Levee Newport, 859-431-0900.

DEe Felice Cafe — New Orleans-style right in Covington with a Portabella Etouffee for that rarest of dining species, a Cajun vegetarian.

Blackened steaks and seafood, not too spicy despite the menu warning, and nightly specials. Jazz rules here, with excellent live music Tuesday and Thursday-Saturday complementing the crisp linens and shiny brass rails. MainStrasse’s most upscale eatery now allows smoking only at the bar, which, is one more spot than you can smoke on this side of the river.

Entrees: $15-$37. Dinner: 5 - 10 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays; 5-9 p.m.

Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays; 5-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. 529 Main St., Covington, 859-261-2365.

Fontova Mexican Restaurant — Peppers are roasted on site and tortillas are made daily here. Enjoy a variety of authentic Mexican meals like tortilla soup and enchilada casserole are made from family recipes, as well as the ubiquitous tacos, burritos and quesadillas. Good, clean, honest linoleum and Formica. Entrees: $4-$9. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. MondayFriday. 336 Scott St., Covington, 859-581-8226.

Hofbrauhaus — Take it from someone who grew up thinking

sauerkraut was one of the four food groups — this is the real deal. Order the Schweinsbraten mit Kruste; after all, who doesn’t love roast pork loin?

Sauerbraten is their most popular dish, and they have a wurst for every occasion. Genuine German beer hall mit der gusto. You can stand on your chair and yell “More beer!” over and over and not get thrown out. And if you start singing “Edelweiss” after your third Munich Weizen, you’re not the first. Winner of “Best German.” Don’t miss the traditional German house band, playing every day after 1 p.m. Oompah! Entrees: $10-$25. 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-midnight Sunday. 200 E. Third St., Newport, 859-491-7200.

La Cherie Bakery and Bistro — La Cherie focuses on something

its owners felt was missing on the south side of the Ohio River: simple, healthy, home-cooked food. They make all their food from scratch including their French bread and bakery goods like the Cranberry Almond scones. One of our favorite things about the bistro is that breakfast never ends — we can get quiche Lorraine, French toast with baked apple slices and a side of Glier’s goetta, and time we want. Try the new made-from-

scratch Blueberry Belgian waffles. Service is as charming and personal as the space, which includes a larger table in the front window with a crotchet tablecloth, both heirlooms from co-owner Susan Burnett’s family. Entrees: $4-$8. 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday. 522 Main St. , Covington, 859-261-8889.

La Mexicana — This is the place for authentic Mexican. Diners have the choice between tacos, burritos, tortas (sandwich), gorditas (fried, thick corn tortilla), quesadillas and sopes (defined on the menu as a topped thick corn tortilla). You can also get enchiladas, chili relleno, flautas and tamales, among other standards. There are 13 versions of meat you can put into your taco, burrito, torta, gordita, quesadilla or sope,from asada (seasoned skirt steak) to bistec (seasoned ribeye steak) to milanesa (fried breaded steak). There are some vegetarian ingredients, as well, including flor de calabazas (seasoned pumpkin flowers) and huitlacoche (seasoned corn flower). (HS 12-02-09).

Entrees: $2.49-$11.99. 10 a.m.-9 p.m. daily. 642 Monmouth St., Newport, 859-261-6112.

Martha Jeanne’s Eatery — Simple, homemade food without frills,

flavored with affection. Traditional breakfast with biscuits and gravy, eggs and hash browns, pancakes and French toast. For lunch, soups, salads and sandwiches, as well as a blue-plate special. The desserts are homemade, too, and half-portions are available. Perfect — a sliver of pie is just what we wanted! Clean and cozy with bright vinyl tablecloths, unmatched chairs and the unbreakable Corel plates our grandma used to have. There are no strangers here. Entrees: $3-$8. 6:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Saturday. 511 Fairfield Drive, Bellevue, 859-491-9258.

Matsuya — Delicious, authentic Japanese cuisine in a comfortable family setting. The sushi is fresh and delicious. Matsuya also offers nabemono hot-pot cooking at your table and traditional kaiseki five-course meals with a sampling of three appetizers, then sunomono, nimono, yakimono and tempura. Small, family-run restaurant attached to the MatsuyaMart grocery, which is stocked with imported Japanese ingredients, sushi rice, breads and pastries from local bakeries and a large selection of Japanese magazines, books, DVDs and personal care products. Entrees: $11-$35. Lunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Dinner: 5-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 4:30-10:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 4-9 p.m. Sunday. 7149 Manderlay Drive, Florence, 859-746-1199.

Miyoshi — Opening a bento box of barbecued eel at Miyoshi is better

than opening a present on your birthday: delicious, fresh sushi, sashimi and tempura, of course, but also a wide variety of less-familiar authentic dishes.

Seafood arrives daily. Excellent, friendly service in a relaxed yet refined setting, with sushi bar seating to watch the action or comfortable tables. Zen garden entry. Reservations required for the private tatami room (non-smoking). Entrees: $12-$25. Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner: 5:30-10 p.m.

Monday-Thursday; 5:30-10:30 Friday-Saturday. 8660 Bankers St., Florence, 859-525-6564.

The Pub — Once upon a time, the sun never set on the British empire — so the pub calls all the world’s food British, including cheeseburgers, chicken

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wings and ahi tuna satay. Whatever. Still, there are bangers and mash! And in spite of the dubious links to the peerage, it’s good, well prepared bar food. Happy hour is 3-7 p.m. and 9 p.m. until close weekdays. Fun, casual atmosphere in the popular Crestview Hills mall, the Pub gets a good young professional crowd. Great selection of beers and ales imported from Scotland, England, Belgium and Ireland. Entrees: $8-$26. 3 p.m.-1 a.m. MondayWednesday; 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Thursday; 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Friday-Saturday; noon11 p.m. Sunday. 2853 Dixie Highway, Crestview Hills, 859-426-7827.

Tousey House — Start off with a selection from an extensive wine list or

just go straight for the Echelon Pinot Noir, which goes surprisingly well with Kentucky Beer Cheese. Specials like the Macadamia-Encrusted Mahi-Mahi and regular items like the melt-in-your-mouth halibut served gratinee style and baked to a golden brown with crabmeat, artichoke hearts and parmesian make the reopened Tousey House more than just Southern food and hospitality. Sit by the fire in one of the Tousey House’s dining rooms and feel the energy of the last 186 years, the lifespan of this Kentucky federal-style home. The two-story red brick house with sprawling porches, lazy palm-leaf ceiling fans and white whicker couches, the perfect place to share fried green tomatoes and mint juleps, is a rare find only 20 minutes from downtown. Entrees: $8.75-$28.25.

5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 5-9 p.m. Sunday.

5963 N. Jefferson St., Burlington, 859-586-9900.

Vito’s Cafe — The menu is filled with original dishes yet retains a trattoria’s essential honesty. The sauces and the flavors of each dish are rich, complex and satisfying. The beauty of Vito’s menu is that it will please everyone. What makes an evening at Vito’s truly unique, of course, is the music. Vito and his talented waitstaff, accompanied by Piano Pete, sing their way through classic melodies, show tunes and even opera arias. Don’t think that it’s corny. These are skilled songsters who are also superb servers. Entrees: $8-$30. 5-10 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 5-9 p.m. Sunday. 654 Highland Ave., Fort Thomas, 859-442-9444.

Walt’s Hitching Post — Walt’s offers a full menu that includes steak,

chops and its signature fried chicken, but it’s best known for the barbeque: The pork is hardwood smoked for five hours. Don’t forget the tomato garlic salad dressing- it’s a must try. Unlike the usual BBQ joint, Walt’s ambiance includes linens and real silverware. The wood paneling and gun decor create a hunting lodge feel or what was once described as “a holiday dinner at your better-off uncle’s house.”;Entrees: $10-$30. 11 a.m.-midnight daily. 3300 Madison Pike, Covington, 859-331-0494.

Waterfront/South Beach Grill — At this Jeff Ruby restaurant, the steaks have to share the stage with live Maine lobsters, a sushi bar and seafood entrees such as the Coconut-Crusted Salmon and Roasted Sea Bass.

Still, the Collingsworth Steak is one of the most popular choices: 12-ounce filet mignon topped with 2 ounces of Alaskan King Crab, a wild mushroom Bordelaise sauce, fresh steamed asparagus and Bearnaise sauce.Fashionable dining on the river, where you can stop by the bar that’s topped by a white piano reminiscent of a swanky Miami dinner club, a never-ending parade of leggy women and men with big cigars.Entrees: $18-$42. 5:30-9:45 p.m. Monday-Friday; 5-10:45 p.m. Saturday. 14 Pete Rose Pier, Covington, 859-581-1414.

4WHEN IN ROMA...: FROM PAGE 27

We ordered two appetizers. The Fried Calamari ($7.95) came with marinara, too, and was just OK. It was a pretty large serving and it looked nice, with parmesan sprinkled on top, but I would pass it up on a second visit. The Bruschetta ($4.95) was different than any I’ve had. Six pieces of toasted super-buttery buntype bread was covered with onions, tomato and basil. I mention the onions first because they made up a large proportion of the topping.

It was actually pretty good, but the bread was a bit too moist with that buttery substance.

I tend to order things that are a little fancy or exotic at restaurants that are less than fancy or exotic, and I’m always disappointed with my choice. This time I wanted to try one of the veal entrées. Why do the same old chicken when there’s veal, right? The Veal Cacciatore ($15.95) comes with grilled veal, peppers, onions and

Zebo’s Bistro — As a general rule we never sleep in restaurants or eat in

hotels, but Zebo’s is a surprisingly tasty exception to humdrum rule of most hotel cafes. Their dinner selections are paired with wine suggestions, and there are fresh fish entrees like Seabass along with signature items such as duck breast stuffed with boursin cheese and marinated in a bourbon glaze. This Marriott overall is a cut above with an exceptionally amiable staff throughout.

Zebo’s has a great river view of the downtown skyline and the servers are very accommodating. Entrees: $15-$35. 6:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Friday; 7 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday; 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday. 10 W. RiverCenter Blvd., Covington, 859-392-3750.

West

mushrooms in red sauce with a bit of spaghetti.

I wasn’t crazy about the meat itself, but the rest was fine. One of the many seafood or chicken dishes might have been a safer bet.

My girlfriend ordered the Pasta Trio ($9.95), found under the “Homemade Baked Pastas” on the menu. It consisted of a cheese ravioli (ricotta), lasagna and manicotti topped with that tasty marinara sauce and a mess of mozzarella cheese. I thought this was a good dish and the serving size wasn’t overkill. The lasagna seemed to be at least 50 percent pasta by volume. The sheets were tightly packed with cheese and meat and it had a rich and interesting flavor. I liked the texture of the pasta in the manicotti — a bit more al dente than any of the other varieties. It was rich and cheesy as well.

The salads that accompanied the entrées deserve a mention, but really only because of Roma’s house dressing. It is tomato based with a little garlic, and we both liked it a lot. Other-

wise the salad was simply iceberg lettuce and a couple slices of tomato.

For dessert we took home a slice of Lemon Meringue Pie ($2.99) because there was a picture of it stuck to the wall next to our table, wooing us the whole meal. It was pretty standard, but delicious is the standard for lemon meringue pie, so no complaints there.

Steak, pizza and discounts for seniors and kids fill out the menu. The service was good, if a little spotty. Our server seemed to disappear for extended periods of time, but other employees filled in as needed, refilling our drinks and boxing up leftovers.

We ended up waiting a while to receive our check as the restaurant was filling up.

Overall, we thought Roma was a nice casual restaurant with good food and service.©

makes sharing easy, and the menu offers plenty of unusual dishes as well as classic Chinese. With a decidedly Asian decor, Chung Ching boasts a healthy number of regulars. The mom-and-pop atmosphere makes you feel like you’re eating at someone’s home rather than in a restaurant. Entrees: $7-$10. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday, noon-10 p.m. Saturday, 5-9 p.m. Sunday. 5842 Hamilton Ave., College Hill, 513-541-1243.

Queen Mary Family Restaurant — The Queen serves breakfast,

Goodie’s Barbecue — Mr. Goodie sure knows his pork butt- pork pit-

smoked slowly ‘til the fat has completely dissolved and a crunch caramelized crust has formed on the outside, resulting in a deep but delicate smoked flavor.

For those now tempted by the sauce, there are more standard items like the fish sandwich or fried okra. And we’ll eat the chess pie until we’re as plump as a tick. Complete with neon signs, this down-home restaurant screams good eatin’ at reasonable prices. The waitstaff is always friendly, making each trip here feel like eating at home. Winner of “Best Soul Food.” Entrees: $5-$18.

11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-midnight Friday-Saturday. 5841 Hamilton Ave, College Hill, 513-542-4663.

Chung Ching — The amount of food and variety of Chinese dishes here

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Dinners (none cost more than $9.50) range from a selection of grilled entrees to Eastern European dishes like goulash to 3-ways and hamburgers.The restaurant is owned by Tase Palitov and his wife Mary. According to the blurb on the menu, the restaurant is named for her. What the restaurant lacks in terms of a food experience, it certainly makes up for as an interesting dining experience. (LA 9-30-09). Entrees: $5.99-$9.50.

8 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 7:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday 4050 North Bend Road, Cheviot, 513-661-8400.

Walt’s Barbeque — This place is meat-tastic, boasting a menu

dominated by ribs, pulled pork and beef brisket all smoked and slowcooked on site. The all-you-can-eat ribs deal on Tuesdays is worth the fight to secure a seat, which is now much easier given Walt’s new larger space. Entrees: $10-$19. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; noon-8 p.m.

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january 06-12, 2010

FILM

4OPENING FILM

By JASON GARGaNO

Terry Gilliam’s Vast Imagination There’s no denying that Terry Gilliam has a vast imagination. But is that a good thing for his films and those who have to watch them?

Brazil (1985) has long been dubbed a masterpiece, a sentiment I do not fully share. Sure, it’s a presciently satirical look at an Orwellian society that relies on ineffective, out-of-date machinery and governmental procedures, but it also succumbs to excessive art direction and a lack of narrative clarity, a problem that has reared its head on a number of Gilliam projects — most acutely on Brazil’s follow-up, The Adventures of Baron Munchhausen (1988), and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), a surreal adaptation that was better left on the page.

On the other hand, I’ve enjoyed the company of Gilliam’s Time Bandits (1981), The Fisher King (1991) and 12 Monkeys (1995) enough to revisit each multiple times. (In fact, I took in back-to-back screenings of 12 Monkeys the second day of its initial theatrical release, a snow- and ice-laden January matinee that resulted in what was essentially a private viewing of a public screening).

The difference between these two groupings of three, each featuring films from across Gilliam’s four-decade career? The latter trio seems tempered by a visual and narrative restraint the former lacks.

All of which brings us to Gilliam’s latest, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which I’ve yet to see. In typical Gilliam fashion, it endured a troubled shoot — Heath Ledger died during production, forcing the director to cast three different actors (Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law) to finish Ledger’s scenes.

It also promises a smorgasbord of visual effects, a fact that’s not exactly reassuring — the advent of CGI has done nothing but exacerbate Gilliam’s penchant for visual indulgence (see Fear and Loathing or 2004’s lackluster The Brothers Grimm), which can no longer be reigned in by the limiting presence of handcrafted sets.

Yes, there is now literally no limit to what Gilliam’s imagination can conjure for the screen. But is that a good thing?

DAYBREAKERS — Sibling Australian filmmakers Michael and Peter Spierig flip Hollywood’s teen-friendly vampire trend on its head with Daybreakers, a gory sci-fi world run by a majority population of bloodsuckers. (See fulllength review on this page.) (Opens wide Friday.) — Cole Smithey (Rated R.) Grade: BCONTINUES ON PAGE 364

PHOTO courtesy lionsgate

Ethan Hawke (left) and Willem Dafoe in Daybreakers

Vampire Majority Blood is a commodity in latest vampire flick 4review by cole smithey

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retort to the vampire bubblegum genre that horror fans have had to tolerate lately.

Dalton is a kind of conscientious objector vampire.

He’s working on a synthetic blood that will substitute for the actual red body juice that Bromley envisions selling at a premium price to wealthy vampire connoisseurs as supplies dwindle. The subplots involving Neill’s diabolical character work better than the predictable resistance-group storyline that functions more as an impetus for some memorable chase scenes.

With less than 5 percent of the human race left, the vampire population is protected by police and military forces whose primary function is to hunt down and capture every last human for harvest. The problem is that Dalton’s synthetic blood isn’t ready for primetime, as is proven in one of the Daybreakers’ more spectacularly gory scenes.

Still, Edward’s connection to the underworld of human freedom fighters brings him closer to delivering an actual cure to the problem of blood-fueled immortality.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 374

january 06-12, 2010

PHOTo courtesy sony classics

Terry Gilliam, director of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

ibling Australian filmmakers Michael and Peter Spierig flip Hollywood’s teen-friendly vampire trend on its head with Daybreakers, a gory sci-fi world run by a majority population of bloodsuckers.

In 2019 vampires outnumber humans, and blood supplies are running out. Sam Neill’s sharp-toothed corporate villain Charles Bromley WASSUP runs a monopoly that harvests blood from nude human bodies Go to citybeat.com for comprehenconnected chockablock to sive movie times and reviews, includa vast blood milking system. ing our take on Leap Year.

Yum. Hematologist vampire Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke) is working on a vampire cure that Bromley and his well-armed minions want to prevent.

It’s not a reach to see the filmmakers’ satirical connection between blood and oil as battle breaks out between the vampires and a group of survivalist humans led by Willem Dafoe in full badass mode. The film’s pacing misses a few beats and the capitalist satire never quite pops, but Daybreakers comes as a welcome

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opening film THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS — Terry Gilliam is popularly considered the victim of a terrible curse that brings disaster down on his nearly every film. Gilliam’s editing battles over his masterpiece Brazil are the stuff of legend. So hellacious were the director’s attempts at making The Man Who Killed Don Quixote that a documentary (Lost in La Mancha) was made as a sad document of that film’s doomed fate. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus automatically receives the status of a notable film as the late Heath Ledger’s final performance. That this trippy movie opens with Ledger’s character hanging by a noose from a London bridge inevitably lends a ghostly air to the proceedings. Ledger’s character Tony Shepherd is on the run. Some angry men want to kill him, which is understandable since his work overseeing a children’s charity was conducted in less than savory ways. Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) is the aged leader of a small traveling performance troupe that includes his nearly-of-age daughter Valentina (Lily Cole) and Anton (Andrew Garfield), Parnassus’s assistant. Anton is hopelessly smitten with Valentina. The troupe doesn’t know that Tony (Ledger) has perfected faking his own suicide when they “rescue” him from the aforementioned bridge. Doctor Parnassus is a gambling addict and devout Buddhist monk who makes bets with the Devil, aka Mr. Nick (Tom Waits). Mr. Nick being Mr. Nick, he lures Parnassus into a pernicious bet with Valentina as the unwitting prize. The first bettor to collect five souls wins. With Tony’s help, the Imaginarium attracts four unsuspecting women to enter a surreal land through a magic mirror. It’s in this abstract dimension that souls are claimed, and where Ledger’s character takes on different qualities as performed alternately by Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law. For the first time in a decade, since 1998’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Gilliam has made a film that delivers on his reputation as a master of cinematic fantasy. While he hasn’t made a flawless film, Gilliam manages to preserve the memory of Ledger in an appropriate and inspired way. He takes us on a journey we’re happy to take for every surprise, large and small, that the film has in store. (Opens Friday at Esquire Theatre.) — CS (Rated R.) Grade: B LEAP YEAR — Amy Adams continues her perky routine in this romantic comedy about a woman who goes to Dublin in an effort to marry her longtime boyfriend (apparently ladies are permitted to propose to a man on a Leap Year date in Dublin). Anand Tucker, the guy who brought you the reasonably effective Shopgirl and Hilary and Jackie, directs. (Opens wide Friday.) — Jason Gargano (Rated PG.) Not screened for review YOUTH IN REVOLT — Director Miguel Arteta adapts C.D. Payne’s 1993 novel to predictably comic, if not full-blown, outrageous effect.

Michael Cera is well cast as Nick Twisp, the precocious lust-driven teenage son of separated low-life parents played by Steve Buscemi and Jean Smart. Nick hopes for an end to his virginity when he runs into the similarly nerdy but super-cute Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday). Some ill-conceived advice from Sheeni — become a bad boy — prompts Nick to create a dual identity in order to win over Sheeni. Thanks to a pencil-thin mustache and Euro-chic clothes, Nick reinvents himself as François, an alter ego with a penchant for various criminal shenanigans involving cars, drugs and fire. That Sheeni’s parents happen to be religious freaks (played

by M. Emmet Walsh and Mary Kay Place) only adds to the kookiness of the adult world that Nick navigates like a bull in a china store. Over the course of just a few films, Cera has established himself as one of the most enjoyable young comics of his generation.

Cera’s scenes with Ray Liotta (as a local cop dating Nick’s mom) are priceless. He might not be Holden Caulfield, but in this day and age Nick represents a fresh breeze of youthful rebellion. (Opens wide Friday.) — CS (Rated R.) Grade: B

imagine. But as long as no one in Avatar is talking, it’s a thoroughly mind-blowing experience. Never has the creation of an alien world felt this comprehensive. And even after a 12-year layoff, Cameron still knows how to put together an action sequence with genuinely cinematic pop. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.)

— Scott Renshaw (Rated PG-13.)

THE BLIND SIDE — (Grade: B) The true story of Baltimore Ravens rookie Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) gets the big-screen treatment from writer/ director John Lee Hancock (The Rookie), who at this stage appears to be the only filmmaker in Hollywood who understands that in real-life dramas about athletics, sometimes there is no big game moment that changes lives forever.

Oher’s a project kid with no one looking out for him until Leigh Anne Touhy (Sandra Bullock) and her family offer a helping hand. Hancock soft-pedals the whys of such assistance, teasing us with the notion that everyone wants to turn Oher into a game-changing offensive lineman, but it is that light touch that lets us know Hancock believes there’s more to this story than a winning season or even a bright future on the field. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

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BROTHERS — (Grade: B-) Jim Sheridan reworks Danish director Susanne Bier’s Brodre in this timely story of a U.S. Marine captain (Tobey Maguire) who, once thought killed in Afghanistan, returns home to discover his black-sheep brother (Jake Gyllenhaal) has grown close to his wife (Natalie Portman) and two daughters. Sheridan, an Irish filmmaker who made his name with a series of films starring Daniel Day-Lewis (My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father, The Boxer), gets dedicated, affecting performances from his cast — though Maguire’s transformation from all-American family guy to disturbed, post-deployment soldier borders on artifice. But Brothers’ frequent narrative shifts from Afghanistan to the U.S. home-front come off less convincing, yielding a well-meaning but tonally disjointed look at the emotional and psychological toll of war on the battlefield and off. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — Jason Gargano (Rated R.) A CHRISTMAS CAROL — (Grade: C+) Robert Zemeckis, the writing-directing wizard who has thrilled and captivated audiences with rousing adventures like the Back to the Future trilogy and then shifted gears dramatically with Forrest Gump and Cast Away, has been bewitched by the siren call of motion-capture technology. His remake of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol follows on the heels of The Polar Express and Beowulf and strives to bring real human threedimensional aspects to the characters, ideally to move us beyond videogamestyled computer generated images. But Zemeckis and his crew have struggled to fully render soulful eyes complete with an intangible sense of movement behind the reflective surfaces. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG.) CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS — (Grade: B-) Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, adapted from the children’s book by Judi and Ron Barrett, feels like the kind of meal the whole family can enjoy without too much consideration for the high junk factor because it goes down quick and easy. Inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) has always wanted to create something memorable and important, but every one of his crazy ideas has gone awry, usually with catastrophic consequences for his small town. Family issues, a cute love interest and the hopes of a sinking community bubble up in this stewy concoction, but with dependable voice work from Hader, James Caan, Anna Faris, Mr. T and Bruce Campbell, to name a few, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs tastes like a less filling version of the Pixar confectionary delights of the last few years. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG.) COUPLES RETREAT — (Grade: D) — If ever there was need for an example of the whole not adding up to the sum of its parts, then let Couples Retreat hereby stand as Exhibit A. How can you get a sub-par movie if you take the comic motor-mouth that is Vince Vaughn, pair him with his swinging buddy Jon Favreau — both in front and behind the camera as co-writers — add Jason Bateman to the mix and drop them in a tropical paradise? Leave them to their own devices without any sense of direction, that’s how. The movie assembles four couples in relationships in various stages of duress and quickly trots them off to an island where all of their problems will be solved — but not before they go out of their ways to make things much worse for both themselves and the audience. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

EVERYBODY’S FINE — (Grade: C+) Like a great athlete past his prime, we keep watching Robert DeNiro on the off chance that we’ll catch glimpse of what once made him unstoppable — and then kicking ourselves that we wasted the time.

Everybody’s Fine is exactly the sort of role that DeNiro doesn’t need at this point in his career — one so low-key and inoffensive that he doesn’t seem to know what to do with it. In Kirk Jones’ drama, DeNiro plays Frank Goode, a recently widowed retiree looking forward to a weekend visit from all four of his now-grown children.

Instead, they call up one by one to bail out. So, despite recent health concerns, Frank decides to surprise his far-flung progeny over the course of a single crosscountry journey, only to discover that their circumstances generally aren’t what he believed them to be. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — SRe (Rated PG-13.)

PHOTO courtesy dimension films

Michael Cera and Portia Doubleday in Youth in Revolt

january 06-12, 2010

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ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THE SQUEAKQUEL — (Grade: D) This sequel to the update of the singing cartoon chipsters picks up right where the first installment left off — with Alvin and the boys smart-alecking their way through the new millennium (and apparently into school) until they meet their match: the Beyonce-inspired Chipettes. David Cross returns as the shady manager intent on creating and exploiting the latest and greatest trend — the next generation of helium-voiced singing chipmunks covering Pop tunes like “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).” It’s time to restore some sense of order in the world, which means we need an executive command halting all uses and variations of this song in the media (followed close behind by a similar ban on Jay-Z’s “Empire State”). (AMC, Mariemont Theatre, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tt stern-enzi (Rated PG.) ARMORED — (Grade: C-) In terms of being a throwaway action-oriented programmer, Armored settles into B-movie groove quite nicely. The barely topical story of a young war vet (Columbus Short) who, returning home to few prospects

and family commitments he can hardly afford to keep, joins an armored car crew (featuring Matt Dillon, Laurence Fishburne and Jean Reno) intent on stealing a big haul ($42 million) doesn’t get too bogged down in specifics and rolls along towards its unsurprising (yet adequate) finish. Director Nimrod Antal (Vancancy) mixes in glancing references to Quentin Tarantino’s Reservior Dogs and even David Fincher’s Panic Room for audiences with more active imaginations, but he’s not exactly concerned with being too clever or all that technical in his execution. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

AVATAR — (Grade: C+) For all his gee-whizzery, James Cameron’s really an oldschool melodramatist at heart, so it’s no surprise that he’d crib from something as sweeping as Dances With Wolves. It’s a bit more perplexing to realize that whatever monetary sum he spent on Avatar, he’s using it to re-jigger the plot of FernGully. That latter part is bound to get folks on the right-hand side of the political spectrum lathered up, because Avatar turns into about as clumsily obvious an analogy for rapacious Western imperialism as you could possibly

FANTASTIC MR. FOX — (Grade: B+) Wes Anderson is famous for his quirky H sense of absurdist humor. Although he might argue against it, Anderson seems to have finally found his forte — in animation, vis-à-vis Roald Dahl’s 1970 children’s book Fantastic Mr. Fox. Anderson, who co-wrote the script with fellow filmmaker Noah Baumbach, creates a magical stop-motion animation world inhabited by a family of foxes, various other woodland creatures and a group of human farmers who don’t take kindly to having their livestock and cider carried off by animals. George Clooney applies his signature leathery voice to Mr. Fox, a snappily dressed family guy whose animal nature wars with his interest in his family’s safety as they keep house in their peaceful foxhole. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — Cole Smithey (Rated R.) INVICTUS — (Grade: B+) A natural lack of nonsense is what Morgan H Freeman and Clint Eastwood bring to Invictus, which could mistakenly be considered the story of Nelson Mandela’s first days as president of South

Africa. It’s not that story at all. In typical Eastwood fashion, he has produced and directed something more basic and elemental than that because Invictus is nothing more than a bare recounting of a country and its first inspired steps towards unification. The formerly long-imprisoned Mandela (Freeman) assumes control through democratic election and dedicates himself to refashioning the country as the best reflection of what the country should always have been. And sports — in this case rugby — proves to be the most finely tuned instrument at his disposal. (AMC, Esquire Theatre, Multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

IT’S COMPLICATED — (Grade: B) One could spend much time on the H shortcomings of It’s Complicated, writer/director Nancy Meyers’ latest romantic comedy about the love lives of the middle-aged and wealthy: its tone

is out of synch with our recessionary times, its soundtrack seems lifted from a dentist’s office, Meryl Streep gives a flighty performance that often feels light and

slight and the young actors playing her kids appear to have been sedated. But forget all that: It’s Complicated has Alec Baldwin in full flower, hilariously rascally and poignantly tender, as Streep’s lawyerly ex-husband who starts a new affair with her when he becomes weary of his much-younger new wife’s demands upon him. The film’s point is that love and divorce are complicated. But there’s nothing complicated about why this movie is worth seeing: It’s Alec Baldwin.

(AMC, Mariemont Theatre, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — Steven Rosen (Rated PG-13.)

LAW ABIDING CITIZEN — (Grade: B-) F. Gary Gray’s surprisingly engaging Law Abiding Citizen centers on a loving father and husband (Gerard Butler) who survives the vicious home invasion that takes the lives of his wife and young daughter. The more brutal of the two perps plays the system and escapes with relatively little punishment for his heinous crimes and the husband comes to blame that miscarriage of justice on the fast-rising assistant district attorney (Jamie Foxx) who is seemingly far more interested in protecting his conviction percentage. As with these kinds of scenarios, hubby was much more than a regular working stiff — he was a highly trained spy above spies, a big killer brain capable of devising Saw-like plots to strike fear into the hearts of the most heartless. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated R.) THE MESSENGER — (Grade: B+) “It must be hard for you,” a woman H apologetically tells the two officers from the Army’s casualty notification division who come to notify her of her husband’s combat death in our ongoing

wars in the Middle East. Her concern for their well-being stuns them — they don’t expect next-of-kin to care about anything other than their own loss. That concern for them is what makes The Messenger, naturalistically directed and co-written

by Owen Moverman so surprisingly compelling — who would think there’s drama and emotional revelation in the story of these guys, who are after all just doing a job, rather than in the deceased and their families? But Moverman had the confidence to believe their story is important, too, because, in a way, they also are war’s victims. And he wrote parts that inspired two excellent, underrated actors (Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster) to give their all. (Esquire Theatre.) — SRo (Rated R.) NINE — (Grade: B) Academy Award-winning director Rob Marshall (Chicago) H presents his version of the Tony Award-winning adaptation of Federico Fellini’s 1963 film 8 1/2 about a film director suffering from an artistic block stemming from the multiple and conflicting female muses in his life. Marshall’s director Guido Contini (Daniel Day-Lewis) certainly has his share of problems ranging from his suffering wife Luisa (Marion Cotillard) to the ravishing Carla (Penelope Cruz), Guido’s mistress eager to take on a more prominent and public role in his life. Among the multiple levels of viewing taking place in the proceedings, for Guido and Marshall, is how to frame or “stage” the musical elements, and it is here that Marshall makes the most wise and assured choices.

Yet he also unfortunately continues to succumb to the influences of the cutand-paste aesthetic of music videos. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

NINJA ASSASSIN — (Grade: D) Producers Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers prop up the latest offering from Matrix second-unit director James McTeigue (V For Vendetta) in this tale of a young orphan (Rain) trained in a physically and psychologically brutal manner and then betrayed by a secret society of assassins seems like another empty search for the next big box-office hit. Assassins has none of the literary underpinnings of Alan Moore’s Vendetta, which sets it up to be little more than a martial-arts genre exercise, but there’s still the potential for much fun to be had. Unfortunately, the movie lacks the guts to be a true B-movie classic. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated R.) OLD DOGS — (Grade: F) John Travolta and Robin Williams play best friends and business partners in a sports marketing firm who, as crazy plotting would have it, find themselves in charge of a pair of 7-year-old twins for a couple of weeks.

Everything and everyone other than Travolta and Williams waste screen time walking through this obvious minefield of mishaps and mangled comic mayhem, but I have to acknowledge that I have never seen two actors work so hard for a laugh in my life. Too bad that the effort is so embarrassing, although it is worth noting that even an old dog would have known to stay away from this piece of crap. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

PLANET 51 — (Grade: C+) Many of the comparisons that will be made about this animated tale will focus primarily on the space-age science-fiction variety because it is packed to the gills with references to everything from The Day the Earth Stood Still, Aliens, Wall-E, Star Wars and ET. But at its rather sweet core, Planet 51, despite all of the who’s-an-alien jokes being bandied about, the most appropriate and loving homage in the movie is towards the Back to the Future series. The human space captain (voiced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) might be from another world, but he’s really dragging these little green men and women into a brave new future. It’s just too bad we’ve already been there and done that (with more style). (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG.) PRECIOUS — (Grade: A) Lee Daniels, in adapting Sapphire’s decade-old novel about a Harlem-bred, barely functioning illiterate teenage mother (Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe) of two children by her own father living under the thumb of her own frying-pan-wielding mother (Mo’Nique), sharply — and some would say uncomfortably — focuses on the girl and her struggle to achieve some semblance of self-realization. She is big. She is black. She has been abused by life since life entered her. The film manipulates us, but what film doesn’t? It makes us look at this girl and her dreams and the forces that defer those dreams every second of every minute of every day. Daniels has crafted an urban fairy tale, and a far more cohesive narrative than the book, which was, by design, hemmed in by its illiterate narrator. (AMC, Esquire Theatre, multiple Showcase Cinemas.)

— tts (Rated R.)

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THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG — (Grade: B) Disney seeks to right a social wrong by adding an African-American princess to its hallowed galley of snow white maidens. Anika Noni Rose gives voice to Tiana, a New Orleans girl with dreams of opening her own restaurant in the Big Easy, but like most of the female heroines in the line, she’s not really the center of attention, nor for that matter is her charming cad Prince Naveen (Bruno Campos) despite his best efforts to dance and sing his way into our hearts. Usually it’s the villains or the magical creatures that have all the charisma, and sadly, The Princess and the Frog, while full of magic and mild mayhem, lacks that full-bodied focal point. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated G.)

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THE ROAD — (Grade: B) Director John Hillcoat (The Proposition), much like H Joel and Ethan Coen did with No Country for Old Men, has adapted novelist Cormac McCarthy’s bleak vision without sacrificing any of his own sensibilities.

The journey of The Proposition was a headlong ride towards a finale that was miles beyond what could be considered merely tragic, and The Road is even further past that point. In fact, that works against the film text versus the literary text. The end is as relentless as the hellhounds on the trail. There’s no hope, and

less chance for substantial engagement beyond the grim reality. Viggo Mortensen provides much-needed illumination into our dark souls, but it might be a long while before we’re able to wash away the grime after this trek. Not that it matters, because by the time the film ends, you’ll likely never want to see another apocalyptic tale ever again. (Esquire Theatre.) — tts (Rated R.) SHERLOCK HOLMES — (Grade: B-) Bromance is alive and well in Guy Ritchie’s rather popular adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved detective Sherlock Holmes. This is a big, slick studio production with its mind on franchise potential, and Ritchie (Snatch) remains one of the few head-banging hipsters in the Quentin Tarantino mold still skulking around the dark alleys of pulpy neo-noirville.

And, yes, Robert Downey, Jr. trades quips and quibbles with an astute and reliable Jude Law, so there are levels of intrigue beyond the shiny surface. Lest we forget, though, Holmes and Watson could be considered a pair of bromantic forefathers. Granted, in the past the high-octane violence might not have been a staple of the genre, but these two were as close as close could be. (AMC, Esquire Theatre, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

THE STEPFATHER — (Grade: D) First off, you know this is a remake of a relatively effective 1987 thriller focusing on the horrors within broken domestic situations.

The update sticks closely to that dynamic. Secondly, there’s never any doubt about the scenario because we see Dylan Walsh’s psycho calmly walk away from one family that he’s either broken or frozen in deadly perfection (take your pick) before he saddles up to Sela Ward’s newly divorced sexy mother of three in a grocery store. The plot hinges on the wayward oldest son (Penn Badgley) and his maturation into his role as the new protector of the family. Things step off quickly, and Badgley connects the rather large dots, but there is never any sense of true sleaze — definitely not even enough to inspire audiences to shout back at the screen. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — tts (Rated PG-13.)

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON — (Grade: C) I’ve never read any of the Twilight novels. That fact didn’t matter much when experiencing the first Twilight movie — like the rest of the book series’ hardcore devotees, I got swept up in the love story of an emotionally fragile teenage girl, Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), and a moody, uncommonly restrained vampire, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson).

The unexpected box-office success of Catherine Hardwicke’s first installment led to the quick green light of the second of Stephanie Meyer’s source novels, New Moon. Ironically, the latest movie flips the formula of the first: Its elaborate special effects, seamlessly guided by new director Chris Weitz, trump its inert, often incoherent story, a fact that likely won’t matter much to the lovelorn teenager girls who will geek out on every cheesy “I can’t live without you” line and swoon over the sight of the film’s various hunky, bare-chested dudes. (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.) — JG (Rated PG-13.)

UP IN THE AIR — (Grade: A-) Even when the narrative loses it’s footing H in the third act, Up in the Air remains charming in a way that far too few contemporary films manage to be. “Charming” certainly isn’t a way to describe

the professional life of Ryan Bingham (George Clooney), who makes his living as a hired-gun deliverer of bad news to companies’ laid-off employees. He also spends most of his days traveling from city to city, and that life-on-the-go seems

4VAMPIRE MAJORITY: FROM PAGE 35

The satire might not be on a par with a great film like Starship Troopers, but there’s enough social construct to extrapolate on how the film’s vampire logic reflects on a world owned and operated by the World Bank as it runs out of resources.

High-concept horror is a rarity. That Daybreakers is being dumped into the January doldrums bodes well for audiences looking for fast-twitch shocks and horrific, bloody action.

The look of the film is designed around the blue-tinted human harvesting machine prominently displayed on the poster. The potent image system becomes a visual touchstone to send your imagination reeling about the ability of a society to farm its own people and what that might look like. Frightening, too, is what 4 theater

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WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE — (Grade: B) To say that Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are sometimes plays like a wrenchingly melancholy, Bergman-esque domestic drama with furry creatures isn’t much help to people who want to know if children will like it. The answer to that is, “Got me.” It’s not much like current children’s movies. There are no cutesy, funny pop-culture references a la Shrek, and it’s not about delivering an uplifting life lesson on the order of Up!. It’s also basically not an animated film — the creatures are actors in vividly expressive Jim Henson Creature Shop-designed costumes, though the facial movements are computer-generated. All I can say is that it’s a very interesting movie for adults in the way it uses childhood fantasy to explore issues of loneliness, sadness, alienation and forgiveness. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — SRo (Rated PG-13.)

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THE YOUNG VICTORIA — (Grade: B) The secret to any period romance H drama lies in making it seem effortless. Without emitting so much as a sigh, Emily Blunt owns the role of Britain’s young Queen Victoria. Looking suspiciously like Orlando Bloom’s evil (and more compelling) twin, Rupert Friend eventually hits his stride in the supporting part as Prince Albert, the love of Victoria’s life. Director Jean-Marc Vallee renders screenwriter Julian Fellowes’ meticulous script with an open approach reflected by the film’s framing (courtesy of Hagen Bogdanski) and vibrant dramatic tone.

Young Victoria is a well-crafted period romance made personal by Blunt’s disarming performance. (AMC, Mariemont Theatre.) — CS (Rated PG.) ZOMBIELAND — (Grade: B) Perhaps conceived to ride the coattails H of Twilight, True Blood and other current living dead offerings (not to mention decades of George A. Romero’s genre-defining entries), this

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juicy piece of pop culture pleasure features the unlikely duo of Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson as humans with differing philosophies about how to eradicate zombies from their seemingly human-free United States of America. Along the way they meet up with a pair of sisters (played by a gothed-out Emma Stone and a rapidly maturing Abigail Breslin), a well-known Hollywood star in meta-cameo mode and, of course, piles of stupid (though relatively fast-moving) zombies. Ruben Fleischer’s directorial debut is a nice entry into the genre: crafty, well cast, funny and even oddly touching at times. (Multiple Danbarry Cinemas.) — JG (Rated R.)

happens to vampires that don’t get their daily doses of blood; they transmogrify into pale, winged bat-like monsters called Subsiders whose quick movements spell trouble.

The film’s greatest achievement could be that it keeps Generation X poster-boy Ethan Hawke in an action setting where his modulated style gets more traction than two Nicolas Cages put together.

Daybreakers might be nothing more than a guilty pleasure drawn of exploding bodies in a hermetic atmosphere of shiny surfaces, but when vampires drink blood from glasses and mugs you know you’re on equal footing with Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee. “The blood is the life, Mr. Renfield.” Grade: B-

go to citybeat.com for film times MUSEUM CENTER OMNIMAX — Cincinnati Museum Center, 1301 Western Ave., West End, 513-287-7000 RAVE WEST CHESTER 18 — 9415 Civic Center Blvd., West Chester, 513-463-2316 Showcase Cinemas FLORENCE — 7685 Mall Road, Florence, 513-699-1500 Showcase Cinemas KENWOOD — 7875 Montgomery Road, Kenwood, 513-699-1500 SHOWCASE CINEMAS KINGS ISLAND — 5937 Kings Island Drive, Mason, 513-699-1500 SHOWCASE CINEMAS MILFORD — 500 River’s Edge Drive, Milford, 513-699-1500 Showcase Cinemas SPRINGDALE 18 — 12064 Springfield Pike, Springdale, 513-671-6917 SHOWCASE CINEMAS CINCINNATI MILLS — 760 Cincinnati Mills Drive, Forest Park, 513-699-1500 SHOWCASE CINEMAS WESTERN HILLS — 5870 Harrison Ave., Green Twp., 513-699-1500

january 06-12, 2010

AMC NEWPORT ON THE LEVEE 20 — One Levee Way, Newport, 859-2618100 DANBARRY Cinemas CINCINNATI MILLS — 601 Cincinnati Mills Drive, Forest Park, 513-671-0537 DANBARRY CINEMAS TURFWAY — 7650 Turfway Road, Erlanger, 859647-2828 DANBARRY CINEMAS EASTGATE — 4450 Eastgate Blvd., Summerside, 513-947-8111 DANBARRY Cinemas WESTERN HILLS —5190 Glencrossing Way, Western Hills, 513-451-2300 ESQUIRE THEATRE — 320 Ludlow Ave., Clifton, 513-281-8750 FATH AUDITORIUM, CINCINNATI ART MUSEUM — 953 Eden Park Drive, Eden Park, 513-639-2195 GREAT ESCAPE 14 — I-275 Exit 77, Wilder, 859-442-0000 MAINSTREET CINEMA — Tangeman University Center Level 2, 2766 UC Main St., Clifton, 513-556-3456 MARIEMONT THEATRE — 6906 Wooster Pike, Mariemont, 513-272-2002

to suit Ryan just fine — so fine, in fact, that he’s rocked by his employer’s new go-getter hire, Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick. In attempt to show Natalie how it’s really done, Ryan takes her on the road with him, at the same time that he happens to be firing up a long-distance fling with another frequent flyer (Vera Farmiga). The performances are so strong and the socio-political context so hard to ignore that Reitman’s direction is likely to lurk in the background of most discussion about the movie. But his work is terrific here, and not just with his actors. — SRe (AMC, multiple Showcase Cinemas.)

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Classifieds 4 real estate, rentals & roommates Rentals 5 MINUTES FROM DOWNTOWN 1, 2 & 3 BR in spacious, restored Victorians. 1-2 BA’s, dining room, office, laundry room, porch, carpet/hdwd, all new equip kitchens. All new wiring, plumbing & hvac. Off street pkng. Must see. $400-$850/mo. 513-471-1530 or www.244-RENT.COM

LOOK

HERE

1 Bedroom near Mt. Adams. $475.

Heat paid, parking, laundry on site. No lease month to month.

10% OFF First Months Rent!

Call 513-652-5454

CLIFTON/UPTOWN APTS & HOUSES 1 & 2 rooms. $350$425. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 BR houses & apts. UC/CLIFTON/UPTOWN, Evanston, S. Fairmount, Camp Washington, Walnut Hills, Price Hill & Cumminsville. PETS OK. 859341-6050, 513-251-6050

CLIFTON 1BR Available Now. Across from U.C. $475/month.

Water Paid. 513-732-2432 or 513-535-2154 CLIFTON 3BR, 2BA. Updated 2 fam Near UC. New A/C, heat, windows. Families & pets welcome. $850/mo. Immediate occupancy.

513-732-2432, 513-535-2154

studios $300

COVINGTON Move home for the Holidays. Beautiful, affordable river view apartments. Secure building. Heat/Water paid. 1BR: $450/mo. 2BR, 2BA: $925/mo.

(859) 291-1414 COVINGTON Lrg 2BR, 2 Full BA. Spectacular Riverfront View. Luxury Apt w/Patio. Pool. Heat/Water Paid. Lndry. Quiet, secure bldg. $950. Also, ask about our 1BR Penthouse Apt. Spiral staircase, fireplace. $750. 859-291-1414 DOWNTOWN NEAR 2BR. Beautiful historic renovation. 950 sq. ft.

Deck w/view. Wood floors. Coin lndry. Near UC & Hopsitals. On Bus. $750 - 513-723-0522

Clean, Quiet, Affordable Close to uC, Clifton, CorryVille Only 2 miles away

1&2 Bedroom Apartments

email: brookwood@fuse.net

513-861-9037

513.481.1900

Acting/Auditions

DOWNTOWN OTR Awesome spaces for big city kids with Cheap-Ass Cincinnati prices!

400-2700 sf. $325-2600/mo.

Fabulous apartments, lofts & townhouses. Large open spaces. www.urbansites.net - Kris: 513621-6246, kris@urbansites.net - Condos available by contacting: gatewayquarter.com

E WALNUT HILLS/HYDE PARK Lrg 4 rm, 1BR in Victorian 3 fam. Big rms w/lots of closet space. Claw foot tub. Less than 10 min to HP Square/Downtown. Free washer/ dryer. Quiet tree lined st. $495/ mo. 513-661-8700 MONTGOMERY Huge 3 bed/3.5 bath w/ finished lower level town home in prestigious Sycamore Schools. Eat-in kitchen, WBFP, master suite w/attached full bath. $1785/mo. 513-489-4434 MONTGOMERY Perfectly priced and spacious 2bed/1.5 bath.

Wooded view, full W/D connection. $845. 513-489-4434.

MOUNT ADAMS: 1BR on estate. $475/mo. 10% OFF 1st month’s rent! Heat paid, no lease. Month to month. Laundry on site. Call 513-652-5454 SHORT TERM LEASE option in Montgomery! 3+ months. Furniture available. 513-489-4434.

Stuff for Sale GET DISH -FREE Installation–$19.99/mo. HBO & Showtime FREE-Over 50 HD Channels FREE Lowest Prices–No Equipment to Buy! Call Now for full Details- 1-877-238-8413 (AAN CAN)

WAREHOUSE LOFT APTS Available from Middle Earth Developers in Cincinnati & Newport, KY. Unique spaces from $795/mo. medevelopers.com 513.621.0808

TRUBONICS 101 Humorous Implications Exposed by Maurice E. Hayes. Outrageous interpretations of Phrases, Songs, Scriptures. $11.99 BN.com, Amazon.com

Land for Sale BRUNER LAND CO, INC LEWIS COUNTY, KY. 68 miles from I-275W, Exit 77! 8 acres, creek, woods & open. $23,900. 740459-9031 www.brunerland.com

Want to Buy/Trade DIAMONDS, GOLD & WATCHES: Top dollar paid. SELL GOLD WHILE PRICES ARE HIGH. Near Tri-County.

We also sell many antique items.

Call 513-884-3001. 137 E. Kemper Rd.

Roommates ALL AREAS - ROOMMATES. COM. Browse hundreds of online listings with photos and maps.

Find your roommate with a click of the mouse! Visit: http://www.

Roommates.com. (AAN CAN)

JUNK CARS WANTED. Clunkers, Junkers, Motorcycles, Wrecked Unwanted Vehicles, Cars Needing Repair. Fast service. $100 - $150 or more CASH paid! Also BUYING SILVER COINS at 12 times face value! Barry 513-257-8373.

Collectibles

4 musicians exchange

& C

LEAR

LO U D

Rehearsal Spaces

INC

BAND ROOMS AVAILABLE

Rehearsal rooms available in bldg. with security system.

Call 513-421-0488

Studios SMALLWOOD STUDIO A studio created for musicians. Located in a relaxed, country setting.

Starting at $25/hr. 24-Track Recording: Acoustic musicians to full bands. Full CD duplication service. Visit us on the web: www. handlebarproductions.com. Jaw with us: 937-289-1320. Text us through email: malkum@ handlebarproductions.com

Instruction GUITAR LESSONS Nicholas Tuttle Guitar Studio in Mt. Adams. All levels. Latin & Classical training available. 513-929-4462. www. nicktuttle.com BUILD YOUR OWN Handmade acoustic guitar using exotic woods of your choice. Sign up now for winter classes. 513-574-1997 www.haleyroseguitars.com DRUM LESSONS Elmer Monk, formerly Makin’ Music. Now accepting students in Beechmont studio. All ages, all levels. 5283786 rockdrumming.com

Equipment For Sale MARSHALL JCM 800 Half Stack.

100 watt tube 4x12 celestion cab.

Like new - flawless. Must see. Paid almost 3k at Sam Ash. 513-7976203, 513-617-5037

Musicians Seeking Musicians HARRY STRAWBERRY Looking for booking agent. www. harrystrawberry.com

january 06-12, 2010

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$

675- 875 $

Located at Liberty & Main

JIM MOLL LINK REALTY 513-623-2001

$$$HELP WANTED$$$ Extra Income! Assembling CD cases from Home! No Experience Necessary! Call our Live Operators Now! 1-800-405-7619 EXT 2450 http://www.easywork-greatpay.com (AAN CAN) PETITION CIRCULATORS Earn $15-$30/hr+ No Exp Nec! Fun & Easy! Make Your Own Hours! PT/ FT/Anytime! No Sales/Phones!

PAID 2X/WEEK! 513-334-4494

Business Opportunities BE YOUR OWN BOSS! Vast opportunities to own your own business. Franchising. www. rmcfranchiseconnect.com - Email info@rmcfranchiseconnect.com

Attorney/Legal DISSOLVE YOUR MARRIAGE Dissolution: An amicable end to marriage. Easier on your heart.

Easier on your wallet. Starting at $500 + court costs. 12 Hour Turnaround. Bertha Helmick, Esq 651-9666 UNCOLLECTED Court Awarded Judgement? CASH NOW!!! Call: 1-888-921-2127 (AAN CAN)

Career Guidance FREE ADVICE! We’ll Help You Choose A Program Or Degree To Get Your Career & Your Life On Track. Call Collegebound Network Today!

1-877-892-2642 (AAN CAN)

Workshops/ Seminars

Miscellaneous GET DISH -FREE Installation–$19.99/mo. HBO & Showtime FREE-Over 50 HD Channels FREE Lowest Prices–No Equipment to Buy! Call Now for full Details: 877-242-0974 (AAN CAN) HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA! Fast, Affordable & Accredited. FREE Brochure. Call NOW! 1-800532-6546 Ext. 97 http://www. continentalacademy.com (AAN CAN)

Announcements GAIN NATIONAL EXPOSURE. Reach over 5 million young, active, educated readers for only $995 by advertising in 110 weekly newspapers like this one.

Call Jason at 202-289-8484.

(AAN CAN)

Events HAPPY HOUR w/a Cause! Join Kristen Bailey & Elise Banks’ fundraiser for Mamelodi. Cadillac Ranch, Fri Jan 8. 5-7PM. $5. 50% off Appetizers/Drinks.

ART CLASSES for Kids. Hyde Park, Oakley. THE ART WORKSHOP. Ages 2-18, home-schooled children & adults of all ability levels. theartworkshopinc.net

4 employment Employment Opportunities

WHO DEY BEER From ‘88 and ‘89 Divisional and AFC Playoffs. Mint condition. Make offer. Call 888893-9387 or 513-330-5904.

TEACH ENGLISH ABROAD! Become TEFL certified. 4-week course offered monthly in Prague. Jobs available worldwide.

Lifetime job assistance. Tuition: 1300 Euros. http://www. teflworldwideprague.com info@ teflworldwideprague.com (AAN CAN) UNDERCOVER SHOPPERS Get paid to shop. Retail & Dining establishments. Need undercover clients to judge quality & customer service. No experience required.

Please call 888-720-1127

To advertise in CityBeat Classifieds call 513-665-4700 ext 118

4 wellness Wellness BEST BRAZILIAN BIKINI WAX Alesia was voted “Best of Cincinnati 2009” by CityBeat!

Over 20 years experience! www. cincyspa.com. Please call for your appointment 513-321-8252.

HYPNOTIC SOLUTIONS Feeling stressed, Overwhelmed, Still Smoking? In Pain?... It’s time to do something different.

Hypnosis works! Member Better Business Bureau. 513-772-9400. hypnoticsolutionsohio.com

4 adult 100s of SEXY LATINO SINGLES are waiting to chat with you.

Only the Sexiest Latinos call Axxess NOW! It’s FREE to try!

513-773-0000 330-593-0000

INTERNATIONAL BARBER STYLIST

803 Elm St., 45202.

Mention ad for $9.99 haircut on 1st visit. All hair types & razor lines. ∫ Full Service. )

513-421-6666

www.CITYBEAT.com

ADORABLE BLONDE FEMALE A desirable full body rub that will leave you amazed. Tall, very attractive female. Call 513-652-1081.

Drop It Like Its Hot Entertainment Bachelor/Bachelorette Parties Private Shows 24/7 ~ Prompt Service Male on Male Shows Always Hiring

859*409*7729

ALL KINDS OF SINGLES Browse & Respond FREE! 513-821-5050 Straight. 513-821-4500 Gay & Bi. Use Free Code 7563. Visit MegaMates.com, 18+ ALL MALE HOT GAY HOOKUPS! Call 513-587-6004 or 800-777-8000 FREE w/code 6696 InteractiveMale.com ECSTATIC REIKI/TANTRA M for M Gay/Bi male ADULT oriented FULL BODY WORK. Discretion Paramount.

Home Studio 513-509-9385 Kevin.

Photos available on backpage. com. Explore your desires! - Adult Entertainment and/or Body Rubs FUN FLIRTY CHAT! Try Free! Use Code 5230 513-587-6012 or call 800-210-1010 www.LiveLinks.com

HEY GENTS My name is Tera. 22.

5’7”, 120lbs. Well known as Barbie Bombshell offering Adult body rubs 24/7. In/Outcall. Ask about 2 lady specials. 513-591-9475

STOP HERE! Body Rubs by Krista.

Come see me. Let me satisfy your cravings. Any time day or night.

(513) 332-4307. Great Location.

SUPER HOT Stunning, blonde shemale offers exotic body rubs.

Double sessions available. Call Randi 513-479-8099.

LAVALIFE VOICE Talk to 1000s of singles in Cincinnati!

Free to browse and listen to profiles.

CALL NOW! 513.322.2386 Must be 18+.

OUTCALL PUSSYCAT BABES! High Class Professional exotic ladies, 2U in 60 minutes. Full fantasy body rubs. Young, Clean & Fit, Blondes, Brunettes. Freecall 1-888-9511555 www.relax2u.com Hiring!

PAMPER YOURSELF Times are tough. Come and enjoy a relaxing body rub from head to toe. The ladies are ready to fulfill your every fantasy. 859-957-5368 RELAXING BODY RUB 10am-8pm 7 days a week. No blocked calls or text messages. Telephone 513-4780278 by appointment.

SNOW BUNNY Secret touch. Come in and unwrap your surprise gift and indulge in a full body rub of your dreams. Call 859-409-1080.

ATTENTION ADULT ADVERTISERS! *All adult line ads must contain the exact phrase “Body Rubs” and/or “Adult Entertainment.” Illegal services may not be offered in any ad.

Cincinnati CityBeat does not accept, condone or promote advertisements for *Every ad purchase includes ONE phone number or e-mail address listing.

Additional phone numbers & e-mail addresses can be printed for $10 each. *Ad copy & payment must be received by MONDAY AT 5:00 P.M. for the Wednesday issue.

We appreciate your attention to these small, but important details.

CityBeat thanks you for your business!

january 06-12, 2010

*All ads must be PRE-PAID with a VALID credit card or in cash/money order. If a credit card is declined for any reason, the ad will be pulled from the paper and online.

39

4 backbeat

DISSOLVE YOUR MARRIAGE

PLAY ON WORDS

Learn to Record in 10 wks for $295

TRY THIS STUDIO FOR $25

PHANTASY EMPORIUM

WANTED: CLUNKERS, JUNKERS, MOTORCYCLES. BUYING SILVER COINS.

Dissolution: An amicable end to marriage. Easier on your heart. Easier on your wallet. Starting at $500+court costs.

12-Hr Turnaround. Bertha Helmick, Esq 651-9666

Steve’s Recording & Audio (513) 368-7770 (513) 729-2786 www.myspace.com/srastudios sfstevemusic@aol.com

10 3-hour sessions once per week with an engineer with over 20 years experience. Learn the secrets of how to use all that stuff and make GOOD recordings.

Ric Hopkins 513-607-9855 www.soundworkshop.net “Momma told me not to come.”

$100 - $150 or more CASH PAID for Junk Cars. Beautify the Earth! 513-257-8373

Pinnokios Hair Studio

www.premiumtickets.net

[pi-nö-kë-yos]

4179 Hamilton Ave., 45223 - 513.541.4668 Home of: Tina, Ashley, & Megan NEW Sunday & Monday Hours - 12 to 5 Bring this ad! $5 off salon services-Sun/Mon 12-5 Only 1 coupon per visit

Try This Studio For $25

Steve’S RecoRding & Audio

TATTOO & PIERCING

Located in 2 malls close to you

Aubrey is now in Hyde Park!

Specializing in Cut, Color, Styling, Texture Services, and Updos

Featured in 2008 Cincinnati Magazine

Best Updos

3423 Erie Avenue, 45208 513-560-6965 1175 W Galbraith Rd. • Cincinnati, OH 45231

Check out BestOfCincinnatiCard.com for all the details.

Ad_Cincinnati City Beat 311209.ai

513-671-4925 Dayton Mall

1

12/23/09

Funerals, Weddings, Exotic Plants & Tropical Arrangements

12:43 PM

“Multi-Award winner of the Cincinnati Flowers Show” Specializing in Weddings, Events, Funeral & High-Style with 15 years of designing experience

513.522.1719 • FlowersByThorn.com

Food Court Area

937-567-7971

15% OFF with ad expires 10/31/09

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

january 06-12, 2010

Taylor Jameson Hair Design

Floral Connection By Thorn Ad_Cincinnati City Beat 311209

Lower Level in Macys Wing

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Premium Tickets, 317 W. 4th, Downtown. 513-241-3301

For Example: Load $12 onto your Best of Cincinnati® Card using your Visa/MC/Amex and get $20 in credit to enjoy at any participating restaurant!

Tri-County Mall

K

The BEST seats @ the BEST price

Got Your Stimulus Package!

DO YOU LIKE TO EAT OUT? We’ve Save 40% When You Dine Out

(513) 368-7770 • (513) 729-2786 www.myspace.com/srastudios sfstevemusic@aol.com

BODY JEWEL

1st Corth 14:27 - If anyone speaks in a tongue let there be two or a least three, each in turn, and let one interpret.

Katrina Labayo Omoyosi

Molly, photographed at our factory in LA, is wearing the Sexuali-Tee with vintage glasses.

Made in Downtown LA—Sweatshop Free www.americanapparel.net