The financial and emotional strain of the pandemic has affected just about every aspect of the humanity, and the local beverage and culinary scene was no exception. While some did not fall victim to the struggles of COVID — and ceased operations for other reasons — many had to make the difficult decision to close their doors amid the storm. Here’s a few Greater Cincinnati eateries that are gone but never forgotten.
Kaze 1400 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine Kaze and its 36 Chambers Bar ended business operations at the start of 2020. The OTR Japanese restaurant and bar was purchased by The Thunderdome Restaurant group — which also owns Currito, CityBird, Bakersfield and other Cincinnati favorites — in July of 2019. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Le’s Pho and Sandwiches 3 E. Court St., Downtown After serving traditional Vietnamese cuisine in Cincinnati for nine years, family-run Le’s Pho closed its doors at the end of February. The restaurant’s lease ended in March, and according to owners Hai and Le Bui’s daughter Huyen Bui-Gauck, closing their doors felt like the right decision for their family for multiple reasons. “It has truly been an honor getting to know each one of you and to serve you. No matter how long the lines got, no matter how badly we might have screwed up your orders or even how high the pile of dishes or the trash can get, you always have supported our little family business. We owe you all everything,” the family shared in a Facebook post. Video screenshot via Le’s Pho and Sandwiches’ Facebook
A Tavola 1220 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine A Tavola, a popular Italian eatery in OTR, close its doors as of June 15. Shared in a Facebook post, the restaurant stated, “After 9 years, it is with a heavy heart we have decided to temporarily close our doors at this location. Over the past three months we have worked hard to keep our doors open for both our team and for the neighborhood, however, after, continued hard work and dedication from our team we need some time to reset. We do not have a time frame for reopening. Please visit us at our A Tavola Madeira location and our sister restaurant, Taglio, around the corner on 12th and Walnut. We cannot thank the community enough for their support over the last nine years- we love you Cincinnati!” Photo via Facebook.com/ATavolaCincinnati
The Hyde Park Hitching Post 2715 Madison Road, Hyde Park The Hyde Park Hitching Post announced its closing in a Facebook post on Jan. 1. ”It is with deep regret that we have closed our doors after 33 years of serving our loyal and faithful customers. Thank you for the many years of business, support, and loyalty,” the post read. Owners Frank and Peggy Kashar had operated the Hyde Park Hitching Post since 1986 and used the homestyle recipes from the original Hitching Post franchise from the 1960s — known to serve “The World’s Best Fried Chicken and Outstanding Breakfast.” Photo via Facebook.com/HydeParkHitchingPost
Jean-Robert’s Table 713 Vine St., Downtown Chef Jean-Robert de Cavel announced a closing date for his flagship downtown restaurant, Jean-Robert’s Table, in the fall. The decade-old eatery’s closure isn’t affiliated with COVID or its impact on the dining industry, according to de Cavel. The building has been sold and will be demolished and redeveloped. The restaurant will close at the end of 2020 (late December), but de Cavel says he plans to find a new location for the restaurant by fall of next year. Photo via Facebook.com/JRTable
Parkers Blue Ash Tavern 4200 Cooper Road, Blue Ash Parkers Blue Ash Tavern, one of the more recognizable eateries in the Blue Ash area, announced their permanent closure in late April. The traditional steak and seafood restaurant had served the Blue Ash area since 1981, originally as James Tavern. Photo via Facebook.com/ParkersBlueAshTavern
Stone’s Restaurant 3605 Harrison Ave., Cheviot Stone’s announced their official closing back in January after 57 years of serving home-cooked meals to the Cheviot community. Owners Chris and Stephanie Stone maintained the mom-and-pop restaurant since its establishment in 1962. “Our humble little restaurant has never been just a business to us, it’s been our home and we loved sharing it with you,” they shared in a Facebook post. Photo via Facebook.com/StonesRestaurant
Sartre OTR 1910 Elm St., Over-the Rhine Upscale Over-the-Rhine eatery Sartre closed its doors after the new year. The restaurant was located beneath Rhinegeist Brewery and opened in the fall of 2017. The name behind French(ish) brasserie was conceived as a playful homage to philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. The space has since been transformed into OTR Chili Co., a Cincinnati-style chili parlor. Photo via SartreOTR
Fiery Hen 26 W. Court St., Downtown Downtown’s Fiery Hen, a Nashville hot chicken joint that opened in January of 2019 on Court Street, announced their plans to close the restaurant via a Facebook post on Aug. 6. The eatery explained that their difficult decision was due to the ways in which the virus shifted the overall way of life and said they “unfortunately could not keep the fire going.” Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Taco Bell Cantina E. Sixth St., Downtown Downtown’s Taco Bell Cantina opened its doors in 2017. The restaurant, the only alcohol-serving Cantina location in Cincinnati, closed permanently in November. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Restaurant L 301 E. Fourth St., Downtown Chef Jean-Robert de Cavel closed his downtown fine-dining restaurant in March. The exquisite eatery opened in 2016 and was one of several other restaurants helmed by the chef, including Le Bar au Boeuf and French Crust Cafe and Bistro and Jean-Robert’s Table, which closed this fall. Photo: Aaron Conway
Social OTR 1819 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine Findlay Market’s Social OTR opened in January of 2018 as a collaboration between Findlay Market and CityLink Center, which provides integrated services to help individuals break free from poverty. Social OTR offered a working internship in a fine dining restaurant for the community’s unemployed and underemployed talent pool. The eatery closed over the summer. The space is now temporarily being utilized as a retro-themed take-out eatery featuring creative spins on deli classics as well as bodega and take-and-bake items. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Lydia’s on Ludlow 329 Ludlow Ave., Clifton Back in February, Gaslight District eatery Lydia’s on Ludlow closed its door due to what the owner said was the strain of maintaining a business. The locally sourced restaurant offered homemade soups, salads, weekend brunches and open mic nights. Photo via Facebook.com/LydiasOnLudlow
Burrito Joe’s 328 E. Fourth St., Downtown “Burrito Addicts,” as fans of Burrito Joe’s were called, were informed on Jan. 10 that the downtown location would close. “After 25 years of serving you, we have had to make the difficult decision of closing Burrito Joe’s. We are forever grateful for your years of patronage and the wonderful memories,” the restaurant shared in a Facebook post. The lunchtime staple offered “handmade, fast and fresh” Mexican dishes and built a fiercely loyal following of hungry fans. Photo via Facebook.com/BurritoJoes
Dutch’s 3378 Erie Ave., Hyde Park Opened as a pony keg in 1947, Dutch’s officially closed its doors on Jan. 2. The larder/bar/eatery was known for — among other things — their Thursday Burger Nights which offered over-the-top burger creations. Photo: Google Street View
Muse 1000 Delta Ave., Mount Lookout Muse was a modern American eatery that focused on healthy, locally sourced foods with an abundance of vegan and gluten-free options. The restaurant announced that June 27 would be their last day of business in a Facebook post. Photo via Facebook.com/MuseMtLookout
Money Chicken 300 E. Seventh St., Downtown The team behind Pleasantry opened this fried chicken tender joint in 2018. Located downtown, the fast-casual eatery closed its doors in January. Folks loved their spicy chicken tenders, chicken sandwiches and tasty sides like cabbage slaw. Photo: Paige Deglow
Harvest Pizzeria 1739 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine Over-the-Rhine’s Harvest Pizzeria closed its doors to the community indefinitely on June 13. The Columbus-based eatery, located at Findlay Market and well-known for its wood-fired pizzas and local ingredients, explained in a Facebook post that they made the difficult decision to close “for a bit in the hopes that things will soon resume to a place where normal restaurant operations are sustainable.” Harvest Pizzeria opened its Cincinnati location in the fall of 2017 and was a top 10 Reader’s Pick winner in CityBeat’s 2020 Best of Cincinnati issue for the Best Overall Pizza category. Photo via Facebook.com/harvestotr
Frisch’s Big Boy Multiple Cincinnati locations Over the summer, Cincinnati-based restaurant chain Frisch’s Big Boy permanently closed seven of its Ohio and Kentucky locations. According to Frisch’s website, their decision was due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The restaurant closures include downtown Cincinnati’s Carew Tower location, which opened in the summer of 2018, and Liberty Township’s Yankee Road location. Photo: Hailey Bollinger Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Buona Vita Pizzeria 2513 Ritchie Ave. #1609, Crescent Springs “It is with sadness and joy that we announce the rumors are true. Buona Vita Pizzeria will be closing the restaurant doors March 9th. My brother Matthew and I are retiring from the daily grind of the restaurant business,” owners Joe and Matt Frommeyer announced in a Facebook post. Though Buona Vita closed its doors in March, the brothers have transformed the brand into a catering business, which is now located in Dayton, Kentucky. Photo via Facebook.com/BuonaVitaPizzeria
Cilantro 235 W. McMillan, Clifton Heights This Vietnamese bistro in Clifton Heights hosted its final day of business on Jan. 31. “We’d like to thank everyone — from those who helped build the foundation of the business, to our various staff members over the years, to our regular customers — for being a part of this incredible journey with us. We hope that you can stop in for one last bowl of pho, noodle bowl or stir fry with us this week. It will be a strange feeling waking up Saturday morning knowing that Cilantro will not be opening, but it’s a decision we know is right for us and our family at this time,” they shared in a Facebook post. The property is now home to a new restaurant called Good Plates Eatery, which offers flavorful spins on simple sandwiches and bowls for both meat eaters and vegetarians. Photo via Facebook.com/cilantrovietnamesebistro
Joe’s Crab Shack 25 Fairfield Ave., Bellevue Joe’s Crab Shack closed its Bellevue location in May due to complications brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The longtime seafood chain was known by customers for its buckets of seasoned crab legs and breezy view of the Ohio River. Photo via Facebook.com/JoesCrabShackBellevue
Bravo 3825 Edwards Road, Norwood The parent company of Brio Italian and Bravo! Italian Kitchen dining chains filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late 2019 and began closing restaurant doors on Jan. 10 of this year. The Bravo in Rookwood was one of 71 out of 92 restaurants that permanently closed as of April. The chain was founded by Chris and Rick Doody in Columbus in 1992. The chain was then sold in 2018 after growing throughout 19 states to FoodFirst Global Restaurants. Photo via Facebook.com/BravoRookwood
Sugarfire Smoke House 9039 US 42, Union, Kentucky This St. Louis-based barbecue joint opened its doors in the spring of 2019, featuring smoked meat sandwiches, sausages, sides and more. The restaurant closed its doors in the fall of 2020 due to the pandemic. Photo via Facebook.com/SugarfireOlivette
Mitchell’s Fish Market 9456 Waterfront Drive, West Chester Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mitchell’s Fish Market, which opened in West Chester in 2003, closed in May. Photo via Facebook.com/MitchellsFishMarketWestChester

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