25 Black-Owned Cincinnati Restaurants You Should Have Tried By Now

Just Q'in

975 E. McMillan St., Walnut Hills
Owned by Matt Cuff, Walnut Hills barbecue joint Just Q’in is “committed to the mission of Faith, Love and BBQ,” and offers their smoked brisket, ribs, chicken and more coupled with classic barbecue sides.
Photo: Lindsay McCarty

Ollie’s Trolley

1607 Central Ave., Over-the-Rhine/West End
Located in a bright yellow and red trolley car, Ollie’s Trolley is a soul food staple in the Cincinnati area. Ollie's serves a variety of smoked pork, including ribs, rib tips and pulled pork, plus plenty of sides, like collard greens, buttered corn and potato salad. Get a Big Ollie Burger, side of fries and a slice of chess pie for less than $10.
Photo: Jesse Fox

BlaCk Coffee

824 Elm St., Downtown
This coffee shop is from the owners of BlaCk OWned. BlaCk Coffee’s coffee is supplied by La Terza and their house “Wakanda” blend is a mix of Ethiopian, Rwandan and Brazilian beans. All of the food served at BlaCk Coffee comes from black-female-owned businesses in Cincinnati; pastries are provided by Sweet Petit Desserts, the cakes are from Shana’s Sweet Treats and sandwiches are made by personal chef Chanel Jordan of Chanel’s Upscale Homestyle Cooking.
Photo: Liz Davis

Conscious Kitchen

2912 Short Vine St., Corryville
Located on Short Vine near the University of Cincinnati campus, this health-conscious eatery offers a chef-crafted menu of items like salmon, turkey or portabella mushroom burgers; “aquatic” egg rolls with salmon spinach and feta; hearty salads; and even carrot fries.
Photo via Facebook.com/ConsciousKitchen513

Just Q'in

975 E. McMillan St., Walnut Hills
Just Q’in is “committed to the mission of Faith, Love and BBQ,” and offers their smoked brisket, ribs, chicken and more coupled with classic barbecue sides. All of their sides are vegetarian and all but the mac and cheese is gluten free.
Photo: Lindsay McCarty

Elm St. Social Club

1819 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine
Imagine if a deli and a bodega were joined in holy matrimony to create a place that serves Italian subs wrapped in butcher paper and breakfast sandwiches after 11 a.m. Maybe you could grab a black coffee, too, and a scoop of ice cream for dessert. That place exists and it’s called Elm Street Social Club (ESSC). It’s the collaboration of three culinary transplants: Jordan Anthony-Brown, Mikey Fabian and Willa Pelini, who became friends working in Washington, D.C.’s food scene.
Photo: Provided by Elm St. Social Club

Nostalgia Wine & Jazz Lounge

1432 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine
Owned by Tammi Scott, Over-the-Rhine's Nostalgia Wine & Jazz Lounge features bottles from women and minority winemakers, as well as eight wines on tap, live music, a limited selection of spirits and beer, and light bites from The Rhined.
Photo: Hailey Bollinger

Alabama Que

2733 Short Vine St., Corryville
Alabama Que was founded by Dwan Ward in 2008, a veteran of the U.S. Navy and former UC football player. An Alabama native, Ward’s restaurant oozes Southern charm and a food truck was added to the business to keep up with growing demand. Some meat options include smoked chicken, beef ribs, smoked salmon and their famous turkey tips.
Photo via Facebook.com/AlabamaQueFanPage

Pata Roja Taqueria

Pata Roja Taqueria serves cheap, Mexico City-style street food like spit-roasted pork and pineapple tacos or chips and tangy “salsa especial.” Owner Derrick Braziel operated the taqueria out of The Takeaway’s carry-out window for a stint, and recently received a grant to work in Northern Kentucky’s Incubator Kitchen Collective rent-free for all of 2021.
Photo: Provided by Pata Roja

Davis Cookie Collection

4926 Reading Road, Bond Hill
This local sweet shop specializes in gourmet desserts, offering over 20 varieties of cookies, in addition to ice cream and cookie cakes — all created without any additives or preservatives. Varieties range from chocolate chip to strawberry shortcake, and they also offer vegan and gluten-free options.
Photo via Facebook.com/DavisCookieCollection

Goodies BBQ

7440 Hamilton Ave., Mount Healthy
Goodies knows their pork butt — pit-smoked slowly ’til the fat has completely dissolved and a crunchy, caramelized crust has formed on the outside. Lip-smackin’ rib tips and Buffalo wings are complemented by standard Southern sides of collard greens, red beans and rice or mac and cheese. For those not tempted by the sauce, there’s the fish sandwich or fried okra. Peach cobbler, sweet potato pie and chess pies are available.
Photo via Facebook.com/Goodiesbarbeque

Island Frydays

2826 Short Vine St., Corryville
Island Frydays is the definitive restaurant to break out of culinary monotony featuring authentic Caribbean cuisine made by Jamaica native and former University of Cincinnati football captain Leo Morgan. Though the restaurant has a petite and unassuming interior, they pack a whole lot of flavor. Guy Fieri visited Island Frydays in Sept. 2014 with Diners, Drive-ins & Dives, and you can try the same meal he had: The jerk chicken dinner.
Photo via Facebook.com/IslandFrydays

Cream & Sugar Coffeehouse

3546 Montgomery Road, Evanston
Serving up locally sourced organic coffee and tea, Cream & Sugar also offers breakfast and lunch with a focus on local and plant-based ingredients. Owned by longtime friends Taren Kinebrew and Crystal Grace, the coffee shop is designed to evoke a calming vibe, with shades of blue and teal, and window seating as well as lounge space for larger groups.
Photo via Facebook.com/CreamandSugarCoffeehouse

Burnett's Soul Food

1012 E. McMillan Ave., Walnut Hills
If you love soul food, hearty sides and delicious desserts, you can find it all at Burnett’s. Between breakfast platters, double decker sandwiches and fish dinner specials, Burnett's has something for everyone. Each day they have a new soul food special, so there is something different to try every time.
Photo via Facebook.com/Burnetts-Soul-Food

Sugar

6 W.14th St., Over-the-Rhine
Andrea Sutton Lee, Ph.D. turned her baking hobby into a business by opening Sugar in January of 2016, recently opening a storefront in OTR. Sugar has specialty cupcakes and cookies available in packs of a dozen or half-dozen. Some of the flavors include: birthday cake, peanut butter and oreo.
Photo via Facebook.com/Sugar513

K&J Seafood Co.

2516 Clifton Ave., Clifton/University Heights
This local restaurant, started by best friends Keyona and Joy, offers fresh, Louisiana-style seafood with a large menu that satisfies non-fish eaters as well. They have chicken and sausage gumbo, shrimp po boys and seafood fries, Cajun seasoned fries topped with lump crab meat and a shrimp, homemade cheese sauce--among other things.
Photo via Facebook.com/KJSeafoodCo

Aunt Flora’s

9501 Colerain Ave., Colerain (inside of Northgate mall)
Aunt Flora is well-known both locally and nationally for her spin on comfort food, including her famous cobbler, appearing on both Martha Stewart’s and Oprah Winfrey's TV shows. Sample the best of Aunt Flora’s eats at her Colerain restaurant, found inside the foodcourt at the Northgate mall. All of the recipes are from their aunt, the original Flora Saunders who travelled the country in the 1940s as Aunt Jemima.
Photo via Facebook.com/AuntFloras

Teranga Restaurant

8438 Vine St., Hartwell
This African-American fusion restaurant offers a diverse and affordable menu. Find $6 meals, like the Senegalese Senburger, or full dinners like grilled tilapia and Jamaican oxtail with rice and peas. It’s a great place to try West African dishes such as Michoui Gigot (stuffed lamb leg with onion sauce). Sides range from couscous and French fries to fufu and attiéké.
Photo via Facebook.com/Teranga

Jazzy Sweeties

1006 E. McMillan St., Walnut Hills
Jazzy Sweeties on McMillan is currently offering custom orders at this time, and you can order a strawberry crunch cake, pecan caramel cheesecake and/or a dozen cupcakes of your choice.
Photo via facebook.com/JazzySweetiesBakery/

Express Wings

7617 Reading Road, Roselawn
Express Wings doesn’t just do wings well. Enjoy their chicken sandwich that rivals some of its corporate competitors, or their famous chicken and waffles. They also offer catering, burgers and cheese, bacon and chive covered french fries.
Photo via facebook.com/ExpressWings513/