Cincinnati’s Liberty Jazz Lab concert series wrapped up its inaugural 2018 season with The Bad Plus, one of many contemporary acts that have helped keep Jazz healthy and vital by pushing the music forward and making it appealing to younger audiences in the process. The acclaimed Minneapolis trio was a great closer for the concert series, and not just because they were one of the more widely-known acts to perform. A crossover favorite, The Bad Plus is incredibly reflective of Liberty Jazz Lab’s mission and dedication to modern, boundary-ignoring Jazz. The concerts are held at Liberty Exhibition Hall, a historic former vaudeville theater in Northside that hosts a variety of events by local arts groups like MamLuft&Co. Dance and The Clifton Players, which purchased the building in 2017. In its first year, Liberty Jazz Lab presented national Jazz acts like Progger, Triptych and Noah Preminger, as well as local groups like Spherical Agenda and Down Home Collective. “One of my missions is to find and cultivate the ‘new’ audience for Jazz in Cincinnati,” guitarist Brandon Coleman told CityBeat (Coleman was brought on by Liberty Jazz founders Craig Brammer and Tim Engle to book the shows). “The overall audience is aging and going out less to their regular haunts. We want to show a new audience how exciting and relevant Jazz can be by presenting an energetic and diverse lineup.” Liberty Exhibition Hall, 3938 Spring Grove Ave., Northside, libertyjazzlab.org.

2. The Blind Lemon

3. The Overlook Lodge

2. Sundry and Vice

3. MOTR Pub

2. Dutch’s

3. Oakley Pub and Grill

2. Fox & Hound

3. Back Porch Saloon

2. Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar

3. Bobby Mackey’s

2. The Crow’s Nest

3. Knotty Pine Rock Club & Tiki Bar

2. MOTR Pub

3. The Southgate House Revival

2. The Southgate House Revival

3. Madison Theater

2. Sundry and Vice

3. Queen City Exchange

2. Molly Wellmann (Japp’s)

3. Sara Hutslar (MadTree Brewing)

2. Giacomo Ciminello (Night Drop)

3. Nick Squeri (Queen City Exchange)

2. Higher Gravity

3. Queen City Exchange

If there’s one thing Cincinnatians love more than a local brewery, it’s a local brewery with an outdoor drinking area — especially if that drinking area happens to be elevated (cough Rhinegeist cough). So when Braxton Brewing Co. announced a $5 million expansion plan in January, which includes a 5,000-square-foot rooftop deck, it just gave us one more reason to love the Cov and Braxton. The plan permits the brewery to ramp up annual production to 30,000 barrels to allow them to better serve beer drinkers locally and throughout Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. Renderings show astroturf, lawn games (aka cornhole), outdoor seating, string lights and fire pits plus a view of the city. The upstairs bar will pour Braxton brews and serve cocktails and the brewery’s new Vive hard seltzer. The rooftop is currently under construction and is expected to open in summer 2019. Braxton Brewing Co., 27 W. Seventh St., Covington, braxtonbrewing.com.

2. Arnold’s Bar & Grill

3. Hang Over Easy

4. The Eagle OTR

5. Northside Yacht Club

6. Maplewood Kitchen and Bar

7. Higher Gravity

8. Taste of Belgium

9. Redwine & Co.

10. S.W. Clyborne Co.

At the end of February 2019, The Anchor-OTR announced it was closing its doors after seven years of slinging super-fresh seafood to Cincinnatians at the corner of 14th and Race streets. It’s always sad to lose a favorite neighborhood haunt, and the loss of the Anchor will be felt quite deeply by fish fans … and bloody mary stans. The restaurant conjured up what might be the city’s most decadent drink via its Longshorman’s Bloody Mary. Named in homage of 1934’s “Bloody Thursday,” when longshoremen went on strike along the Pacific Coast, this drink balanced spice, acidity, sweetness and several sea creatures. The housemade base consisted of tomato juice, horseradish, pickle and olive juice, four different hot sauces, sugar, cayenne, garlic and a touch of umami with Old Bay seasoning. But it went big with the garnish, showcasing the Anchor’s fresh seafood with the option to add a lobster claw, shrimp or an oyster for an upcharge. It was big, bold and beautiful. And its loss is enough to shed a salty tear over.

2. Sundry and Vice

3. Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar

2. Newberry Bros. Coffee & Prohibition Bourbon Bar

3. Wiseguy Lounge

2. Jungle Jim’s International Market

3. DEP’s Fine Wine and Spirits