Eats
Best of Cincinnati
Voting results from CityBeat’s 2021 readers’ poll*
New Restaurant
1. Ivory House 2. The Governor 3. Fifty West Burger Bar 4. Good Plates Eatery 5. Khora 6. Galactic Fried Chicken 7. Pepp & Dolores 8. Dear Restaurant & Butchery 9. Taqueria 251 10. OTR Chili Co.
Overall Restaurant
A 3-way and oyster crackers from Skyline Chili.
24 Essential Foods Every Cincinnati Visitor Should Try
Skyline Chili
Here’s a list of foods you can’t skip eating as a Cincinnati visitor (or resident) — although probably not all in one sitting.
Skyline Chili
The history of Cincinnati-style chili goes back to the 1920s, when it was invented by Greek immigrants who used Mediterranean-inspired spices to create a meat sauce used initially to top hot dogs sold out of a cart. The beef-based sauce — it’s kind of like a runny pasta sauce with hints of cinnamon, chocolate and other spices — eventually became the key ingredient in the 3-Way, a plate of pasta topped with chili, an unnecessary amount of shredded cheddar cheese and a side of oyster crackers. Adding onions to the 3-Way makes it a 4-Way; onions and beans make a 5-Way. Local chain Skyline Chili was founded by Greek immigrant Nicholas Lambrinides in 1949, inspired by his mother’s family recipes from their hometown of Kastoria, Greece. In an eternal regional chili war, locals are divided over whether Skyline has the best chili and the other popular local chain, Gold Star, is for losers, or if it’s the other way around. You’ll find die-hard supporters of both.
Annual Manual 2021/2022
But if you want to go non-chain, there are more than 150 chili parlors in Cincinnati — restaurants big and small offering their own take on this regional favorite. Most people, however, start with Skyline. Multiple locations, skylinechili.com.
Graeter’s Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Since its founding in 1870, Graeter’s French Pot Ice Cream, handmade chocolate confections and fresh-baked goods have become Queen City traditions. Today, the Graeter family still faithfully uses century-old recipes and methods of production, including making each 2-and-a-half-gallon batch in a French pot freezer and packing each pint by hand. Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip is their signature flavor — and an Oprah Winfrey favorite. The flavor is crafted with black raspberries from Oregon’s Willamette Valley and bittersweet chocolate chunks. Instead of boring old chips, Graeter’s pours liquid chocolate into each batch resulting in
1. Sotto 2. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 3. Good Plates Eatery 4. Court Street Lobster Bar 5. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 6. Ivory House 7. Boca (TIE) 7. The Eagle (TIE) 8. Taste of Belgium 9. Incline Public House 10. Pepp & Dolores
Overall Restaurant (Northern Kentucky)
1. Pompilio’s 2. Bouquet Restaurant 3. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia 4. Greyhound Tavern 5. Otto’s 6. Agave & Rye 7. Libby’s Southern Comfort (TIE) 7. Walt’s Hitching Post (TIE) 8. Coppin’s at Hotel Covington 9. Tuba Baking Co. 10. York Street Café
Neighborhood Restaurant (Downtown/OTR)
1. The Eagle 2. Sotto 3. Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey
Neighborhood Restaurant (Northern Kentucky) 1. Pompilio’s 2. Otto’s 3. Greyhound Tavern
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