Greater Cincinnati Restaurant Week Returns September 18-24, 2023

17 New Suburban Cincinnati Restaurants That Opened This Year

By CityBeat Staff on Fri, Dec 11, 2020 at 11:45 am

The Queen City's culinary flair spans far beyond Over-the-Rhine and downtown. This year, Greater Cincinnati welcomed a handful of new eating and drinking establishments to try, ranging from elevated diner food to a burger bar, Venezuelan cuisine and more. Here's a few that are worth the trip to the 'burbs.

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Best New Restaurant

1. Ivory House, ivoryhousecincy.com
2. The Governor, governordiner.com
3. Fifty West Burger Bar, fiftywestbrew.com
4. Good Plates Eatery, goodplateseatery.com
5. Khora, khorarestaurant.com
6. Galactic Fried Chicken, galacticfriedchicken.com
7. Pepp & Dolores, peppanddolores.com
8. Dear Restaurant & Butchery, dear-restaurant.com
9. Taqueria 251, taqueria2five1.com
10. OTR Chili Co., otrchilico.com

Photo: Hailey Bollinger

Empanadas Aqui

322 Reading Road, Mason
Venezuelan food truck Empanadas Aqui opened their highly anticipated brick-and-mortar restaurant in early 2020 in downtown Mason. The restaurant, owned by Pat Fettig, Brett and Venezuela native Dadnitri Johnson, offers a plentiful menu featuring a selection of arepas like the Gringo Pepiada and the caprese; entrees like the pabellon, the national dish of Venezuela; and of course empanadas, like the Carne Mechada and the queso and plantains.
Photo via Facebook.com/EmpanadasAqui

Genki Ramen

5005 Deerfield Blvd., Mason
Mason needed a ramen spot and Genki filled that void perfectly. Cooking up seven different takes on the classic ramen dish, the eatery also offers rice bowls like their curry chicken katsu don and gyoza for a starter.
Photo via Facebook.com/genkiramenmason

Westwood Nation Kitchen & Bar

3435 Epworth Ave., Westwood
Nation Kitchen & Bar offers a variety of burgers and sandwiches like the popular Nation burger, with a 6-ounce brisket patty, smoked cheddar, whiskey barbecue sauce, onion straws and horseradish aioli on a challah bun. Slingin’ patties in Pendleton since 2015, the Best of Cincinnati award-winning eatery opened a second location in Westwood in the revitalized Junietta Avenue Firehouse in October.
Photo: Hailey Bollinger

Adesso

125 E. Main St., Mason
Offering traditional Italian espresso beverages as well as a menu focused on seasonal bites that represent the flavors of the Ohio Valley, "Adesso" means "now," which owner Chuck Pfahler says is the "essence of coffee." The shop offers ethically sourced coffee, teas from around the world, dishes that explore both local and global flavors and seasonal cocktails.
Photo via Facebook.com/Adess0coffee

The Governor

231 Main St., Milford
Brothers Paul and Neil Barraco had been working in fine dining for years when they returned to their East Coast roots to open a classic diner with a modern twist. The mission of the Governor is to offer the perks of fine dining — locally procured meat and produce, a menu made from scratch, a carefully designed cocktail list — at a medium price point in a laid-back environment. The menu at the Governor features cuisine ranging from Asian to Italian to classic Americana.
Photo: Savana Willhoite

Third Eye Brewing

11276 Chester Road, Sharonville
Third Eye is one of the newest breweries to hit the Cincinnati beer scene; it hosted its grand opening June 17. Walk in to the brewery and you are faced with a vibrant and whimsical atmosphere, with a colorful and slightly psychedelic mural by David Jonathan Uy serving as the centerpiece of the bar and giving the industrial space some “warmth and character,” says co-owner Tom Collins. The creative design of the space goes hand in hand with their unique and playful brews. Chef Steven Vanderpool has designed a menu to match the creativity of the rest of the experience with “a bit of Southern and Cajun flare to spice things up,” says Collins, including a chicken sausage gumbo and Cajun garlic herb wings.
Photo: Savana Willhoite

The NBL CKN

4450 Eastgate South Drive, Eastgate
The Noble Chicken opened their first brick-and-mortar spot in Jungle Jim’s after winning “fan favorite” at a food festival. Their menu boasts “remixed” fried chicken sandwiches like the MNRCHY (pimento cheese, bacon jam and bourbon mayo) and the IMPRL (habanero-ghost cheese, pico de gallo and avocado). Go classic with some chicken tenders or spice it up with some Fyre Frys topped with ghost-pepper ranch.
Photo via Facebook.com/NBLCKNeastgate

Taqueria Los Compadres Mexican Grill

2780 Dixie Highway, Hamilton
Los Compadres serves up “delicious Mexican food, made the Mexican way.” With a menu featuring burritos, quesadillas and the "classicos" like carne asada and chilaquiles, your mouth will be watering. Finish your meal with some flan or take home tamales to go if you just can’t get enough.
Photo via Facebook.com/TaqueriaLosCompadresMexicanGrill

MPH Brewing

7880 Remington Road, Montgomery
Cousins Jim Christmann and co-founder and president of Colorado-based Left Hand Brewing Eric Wallace returned to their Cincinnati roots to offer a taste of the Wild West in suburban Ohio. MPH Brewing serves over a dozen of their own craft beers, select wines and features seven of Left Hand’s brews as well. Order one of their five signature pizzas or some loaded tots to complete the experience.
Photo via Facebook.com/MPHBrew