24 Things Only People in Cincinnati are Obsessed With

Grippo’s Chips

Grippo’s is just one of those brands that are synonymous with Cincinnati and the name automatically evokes the tongue-burning sensation that accompanies their BBQ chips. While the snack food company is best known for those chips and their caked-on seasoning that (while incredibly delicious) could burn the paint off a car, Grippo’s also offers plain potato chips and other flavors like Salt & Vinegar, Sour Cream & Onion and Sweet Maui Onion. They also have a line of pretzels, popcorn and pork rinds.

Richard Jones’ Resemblance to Doug Dimmadome

It’s just uncanny, isn’t it?

Cincinnati-Style Chili

Is it chili or meat sauce? Yes. Cincinnati-style chili is not what outsiders would automatically think of when you say “chili,” but most Cincinnatians will automatically picture the thin, meaty sauce slathered over a hot dog or spaghetti. It’s not chili in the traditional chili con carne sense, being closer to a Greek pasta sauce, but it’s a core part of our identity now and there’s no escaping it. As for Cincinnati chili’s origins, we can thank the founders of Empress Chili, brothers Tom and John Kiradjieff, for delivering this culinary masterpiece to our city.

Joe Burrow

Of course we’re obsessed with Burrow – he’s Cincinnati’s golden boy. Not only did our readers pick the Bengals’ star quarterback to win our Best Of Cincinnati category for Best Overall Athlete, he also won Best Cincinnatian. It’s easy to see why though: helping the formerly flagging football team to back-to-back post-seasons (including a Super Bowl game), his bromance with team member wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, his impeccable style and the fact that he’s just an all-around good dude who has his own charity fighting food insecurity, shares the spotlight and is polite to opponents. What’s not to love?

Telling People the Roebling was the Brooklyn Bridge’s Predecessor

At first glance it might appear the Roebling Bridge is just a smaller-scale model of the massive Brooklyn Bridge, but that’s not the case. The Roebling, which connects downtown Cincinnati to Covington, is actually the older (and, in our opinion, cooler) sibling to the Brooklyn Bridge, both having been designed and built by John A. Roebling. Construction on the Roebling was completed in 1866 and, at the time, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Construction on the Brooklyn Bridge wasn’t completed until 1883.

Flying Pigs

Cincinnati loves its flying pigs – but why? It goes back to our roots as Porkopolis – or, basically, a lot of pigs were slaughtered here for our booming pork-packing industry. And in the ‘80s, to celebrate Cincinnati’s bicentennial, artist Andrew Leicester created the Cincinnati Gateway, a sculpture in Bicentennial Commons in Sawyer Point. The sculpture features four smokestacks with winged pigs atop each one, meant to represent the souls of all the pigs killed so Cincinnati could flourish. The concept wasn’t a hit at first with some, with pushback coming from then-mayor Charlie Luken, but Cincinnatians later embraced the flying pigs and they became a symbol of the city – from the iconic statues you can find around town to the name of our annual marathon.

Telling People We Almost Had a Subway

Cincinnatians often speak of our legendary abandoned subway tunnels so reverently that they’re almost mythical. The reality is more a sad, doomed-from-the-start tale of inflation, poor budgeting and litigation. Real work on the subway began in 1920, but inflation following World War I in the two years prior to that had raised the costs of construction and caused a shortage of materials (wow, this sounds familiar), so the city planned to raise funds to complete the subway later. However, funds ran out in 1927 and by that time, the subway construction was causing the foundations of buildings along its route to crack, so then came the lawsuits. There were several attempts to complete the subway in later years, but it wasn’t meant to be. The project was scrapped in 1948 and is now used to house a water main and optical fiber cables. It’s also a popular urban exploration spot.

Graeter’s Ice Cream

Graeter’s is a Cincinnati brand that’s so iconic even Oprah loves it and Naomi Biden served it at her wedding. Not only does the ice cream parlor offer unique flavors – especially its legendary Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip – but the ice cream itself is uniquely crafted. Graeter’s still uses the French pot method of its founder, resulting in a creamy ice cream base that’s leveled up with the addition of gourmet chocolate, which is poured over the churning cream to make a shell that artisans then break up to create the gigantic chunks you know and love.

The Cincinnati Zoo’s Hippo Siblings

Who knew hippos could be so dang cute? Fiona stole the hearts of Cincinnati when she was born prematurely in 2017 and defied all odds to survive and grow into the sassy, loveable girl she is today. And our hearts only grew when her baby brother, Fritz, joined the bloat last year.

Goetta

Are you even a true Cincinnatian if you haven’t been hit in the face by a hot oat while cooking goetta? This breakfast sausage is Cincinnati through and through, with its roots in the city’s German immigrant population in the 19th Century. Goetta is typically made with pork and/or beef, pinhead oats, onion and a combination of spices like bay leaves, thyme, black pepper, rosemary and cloves. As for how you cook it, that’s personal preference, but many arguments have broken out around Cincinnati breakfast tables over whether the goetta is crispy enough.

The Ohio River

She may be murky and her contents questionable, but the Ohio River is as much a symbol of Cincinnati as our skyline and cheese coneys are, and residents will find any excuse to flock to its riverfront. Going to a Reds game? The Ohio River’s in the background. New restaurant on The Banks? There better be tables where we can see the river and whatever washes up from it. We also have miles of parks that stretch along its banks, because even if the water smells a little funky and something suspicious floats by, we need to enjoy a sunny day near our beloved river.

LaRosa’s

Love it or hate it, LaRosa’s pizza is the official pizza of Cincinnati. Buddy LaRosa started his pizzeria in 1954 with only $400 and his Aunt Dena’s pizza recipe, and the pizza’s sweet sauce and thin crust have been a source of contention ever since. But, it’s arguably the best-known pizza chain in Cincinnati and the go-to for all school pizza parties and workplace special occasions, plus the Smashed Cannoli slaps and there’s no denying it.

The Florence Y’all Water Tower

She’s big and looks slightly like a candy cane, what’s not to love? And how she got her name is a great local tale: The water tower was originally painted to say “Florence Mall” (and to this day is still used to remind you what exit to take to get to said mall), but because it was finished before the actual mall, Florence was told they couldn’t use the water tower to advertise something not actually there. Repainting the whole thing would be too expensive, so the Kentucky city drew on its good, ole Southern hospitality and replaced the “M” with a greeting for everyone driving down I-71/75.

The Fact the Super Friends’ Hall of Justice is Based on Union Terminal

Not only is Union Terminal a gorgeous Art Deco train station-turned-museum, it was also the inspiration for the Super Friends’ Hall of Justice, as any Cincinnatian will be more than happy to point out to you. After ABC acquired the rights to DC Comics characters in 1973, they partnered with Hanna-Barbera to adapt the Justice League comic books into a cartoon. Hanna-Barbera background supervisor Al Gmuer was then tasked with creating a “grand headquarters” for the Super Friends, which he then modeled after our landmark, later saying the task of drawing the building gave him nightmares. And while Union Terminal may be a nightmare to draw, she’s also damn pretty and was recently immortalized as a U.S. postal stamp.

Joey Votto

If Joe Burrow is Cincinnati’s golden boy, Joey Votto is the loveable class clown. Not only did the Reds first baseman take to Instagram to share he lost a chess tournament to a kid, he also made some pretty wild predictions about the upcoming baseball season on the platform. In February, MLB’s Instagram account asked users to "Drop your boldest NL Central prediction" and tagged players from the division's teams to answer, including Votto, who in turn wrote: “Extra terrestrials arrive on earth, April 15th. The 12-2 Reds and the rest of the planet learn from, communicate with, and befriend our alien friends. This process takes 5 months. Play resumes in October. The Reds sweep the playoffs and are World Series champs. Side note: the aliens ask if I would like to accompany them on their ship back to their [planet]. I oblige. Never to be seen again.” While the prediction obviously didn’t come true, Cincinnatians still stan a funny man who doesn’t take himself too seriously.

The Brent Spence Bridge

A nightmare to drive on no matter what time of day, the Brent Spence Bridge is a source of ire and anxiety for many of us, and our obsession with it is more on its functionally obsolete status and the fact it makes us question if we’re putting our lives in jeopardy every time we cross it. The companion bridge we’ve been promised can’t come soon enough.

Jungle Jim’s

Jungle Jim’s is an amusement park for foodies, and not just because of its kitschy statues and animatronics. The huge store (more than 6 acres) contains equal parts weekly shoppers scanning the aisles for super fresh seafood, exotic produce and international eats from more than 70 countries and visitors wandering, mouths agape at the wacky decor, likely with a beer in hand. The singing soup can is a beloved sight to snap a photo of; same goes for the elaborate restroom hidden behind a port-a-potty facade. This Hogwarts of grocery stores also offers nearly 1,500 different kinds of hot sauce, and the aisle is pretty hard to miss: It’s the one with the giant fire truck on top of it.

Hug Me Jesus

You’d think after God literally struck down the Touchdown Jesus statue with lightning, Solid Rock Church would rather spend money on more Christian-y things like, you know, feeding and clothing those in need, but instead we’ve been blessed with another big-ass statue. Cincinnatians love pointing out Lux Mundi, a.k.a. “Hug Me Jesus” while driving on I-75 and reveling in the cosmic irony of it all.

Blue Ice Cream

Graeter’s isn’t the only ice cream game in town. What is it about indulging in Kings Island’s famous blueberry soft-serve ice cream on a hot day after screaming your head off on The Beast? Simply known today as “blue ice cream,” this treat was introduced in the park in the early ‘80s as Smurf ice cream. Kings Island says it didn’t even realize how popular the ice cream was until it went on hiatus in 1992 and guests demanded its return. Nowadays though, if you’re craving the frozen treat without the crowds and the screaming-your-head-off part, you don’t need to pay the $49.99 to get into the park. Creamy whips around town, like Whipty-Do! in Maineville, Back 2 the Dipper in Silverton and Norwood Delite, offer the same blue ice cream.

What High School You Went To

Nobody cares. (Unless you’re famous.)