25 Restaurants Featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Within Driving Distance of Cincinnati

Big Jays Place

930 Hempstead Drive, Finneytown
Season 38, Episode 1
Big Jays Place in Finneytown offers a menu bursting with flavor from its Caribbean comfort food dishes, like the Soul Food Plate, featuring jerk chicken, macaroni and cheese, collard greens and cilantro rice, or the half-pound Jerk Burrito, which comes with a choice of shrimp, jerk chicken or salmon. But what Big Jays is best known for is its oxtail, which Fieri got to try on his visit, saying, “If you don’t like oxtail, then come on down here to the oxtail conversion program.”

Lucius Q

1131 Broadway St., Pendleton
Season 37, Episode 9
Sporting a modern industrial vibe, Lucius Q’s mission of “peace, love & BBQ” aims to bring everyone together with the help of their menu of authentic barbecue, Southern-style sides and a variety of craft beers, cocktails and spirits. The meat comes from Avril-Bleh and is smoked low and slow over oak and cherry wood. Fieri tried the BBQ joint’s Cincinnati-style brisket chili — which made him admit that now whenever he eats chili, he craves pasta with it — and the Pendleton Porker sandwich.

Taste of Belgium

Multiple locations
Season 21, Episode 6
Taste of Belgium’s Vine Street location was visited by Fieri and a few of his family members, though the restaurant has several locations across Cincinnati. The eatery offers authentic Belgian-style dishes with an American twist, but it’s best known for its signature Belgian waffle, which Fieri truly loved.

Island Frydays

2826 Short Vine St., Corryville
Season 21, Episode 4
Island Frydays is the definitive restaurant to break out of culinary monotony, featuring authentic Caribbean cuisine made by former University of Cincinnati football captain and Jamaica native Leo Morgan. Though the restaurant has a petite and unassuming interior, they pack a whole lot of flavor. Their Carribean jerk chicken and spicy snapper were approved by Fieri on the show.

The Governor

231 Main St., Milford
Season 37, Episode 10
Milford’s The Governor diner feels like a bit of Over-the-Rhine out in the suburbs. With subway tile, industrial decor and a walk-up window — where you can grab a boozy slushie to-go to enjoy in the DORA district — the menu offers modern fare for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are salads, soups, a fun invention called the fromelette (basically a giant frittata) and sandwiches, like the Asian-inspired chicken, the Governor Tso, which got the approval of Fieri.

Kiki College Hill

5932 Hamilton Ave., College Hill
Season 37, Episode 11
Kiki College Hill features a menu of not-your-typical Japanese cuisine crafted by chefs Hideki and Yuko Harada. The menu features favorites like the seafood ramen, house-made kimchi, a poke bowl and chicken karaage (fried chicken). But Fieri got to try the pork gyoza, which he called “fantastic.”

Senate

1100 Summit Place, Blue Ash
Season 21, Episode 6
Senate features delicious, glammed-up hot dog creations, plus appetizers like oysters, poutine and roasted marrow bones. While Fieri visited the former Over-the-Rhine location, you can still get much of the menu at the restaurant’s newer location in Summit Park.

The Schoolhouse Restaurant

8031 Glendale Milford Road, Camp Dennison
Season 37, Episode 12
Built in the 1860s, this former Hamilton County schoolhouse was bought and saved from demolition by Donald and Phyllis Miller, who turned it into the Schoolhouse Restaurant. Keeping the schoolhouse theme, the restaurant features windows, yellow oak floors and blackboards, on which the menu is written, from the late 1800s. The menu features American comfort food like fried chicken, mashed potatoes, smoked ham, country-fried steak and homemade meatloaf. The Schoolhouse whipped up some of their sides – country-style green beans and cornbread – and fried chicken for Fieri, as well as their famous Peanut Butter Pie for dessert.

Melt Revival

4100 Hamilton Ave., Northside
Season 21, Episode 2
Formerly known as "Melt Eclectic Cafe," this funky little eatery moved down the street on Hamilton Avenue. Since Fieri’s visit, it has changed ownership and is now owned by former employees of the original. The eclectic cafe serves healthier food options, such as salads and sandwiches with plenty of vegan options. Fieri particularly enjoyed their creative spin on vegan chili and barbecue chicken.

Pho Lang Thang

1828 Race St., Over-the-Rhine
Season 21, Episode 9
Pho Lang Thang is a Vietnamese spot that has moved from its original, cramped Findlay Market location to a larger spot just down the street. The eatery serves up delicious bowls of pho and banh mi sandwiches. The restaurant also features an upbeat vibe where customers, such as Fieri, can easily warm up and feel free to slurp loudly.

Citrus & Sago

1004 Delta Ave., Mt. Lookout
Season 38, Episode 2
Citrus & Sago serves up delicious, authentic Malaysian eats, with influences from Cantonese, French and Asian cuisine. The menu features a list of favorites, like the Nasi Lemak with Beef Rendang and roasted duck – both of which Fieri tried – alongside special seasonal dishes, all made with fresh, quality ingredients sourced locally.

Bakersfield

1213 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine
Season 21, Episode 6
Bakersfield started in Cincinnati and now has locations in Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit and Indianapolis, among others. The restaurant serves up tacos and other Mexican-style dishes with lots of margaritas to go along with them. On the show, Fieri especially loved their killer short rib tacos and chicken torta.

The Turf Club

4618 Eastern Ave., East End
Season 9, Episode 6
This East End burger joint is known for its stacked burgers and diner vibe. When Fieri visited, the exterior of the eatery was bathed in vintage neon signs — one of the restaurant’s signature features, along with their famous over-the-top burgers loaded with adventurous toppings. Fieri seemed to especially enjoy the burger with burgundy mushrooms and mango curry sauces.

Blue Ash Chili

9525 Kenwood Road, Suite 5, Blue Ash; 11711 Princeton Pike, Springdale
Season 9, Episode 7
Blue Ash Chili offers a variety of Cincinnati-style chili combinations and double-decker sandwiches. On the show, Fieri described the Blue Ash location as a chili parlor that takes customer favorites to the next level.

Wallace Station

3854 Old Frankfort Pike, Versailles, Kentucky
Season 31, Episode 9
Season 31, Episode 9 This train station turned neighborhood eatery offers a slew of made-from-scratch bites ranging from their Inside Out Hot Brown to their country ham and pimento cheese. Fieri enjoyed the Big Brown Burger, which he named one of his top five burgers. It comes with beef, ham, bacon and creamy white cheddar mornay sauce.

The Table Cafe

1800 Portland Ave., Louisville
Season 25, Episode 11
Louisville’s The Table Cafe was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives for the “Turkey-Giving” episode, highlighting the establishment’s unique pay-what-you-can system, with a vision to serve, share, support and provide for the community. The menu features dishes like the meatloaf sandwich and the roasted squash falafel, but the real stars are the smoked chicken and pork sandwiches.

Gralehaus

1001 Baxter Ave., Louisville
Season 25, Episode 12
This Louisville comfort food haven serves up a mean menu of breakfast dishes, like its breakfast sandwich (scrambled eggs, country sausage, Haus Sauce and pimento cheese served on a biscuit or potato bun), biscuits and gravy or its Shrooms & Grits. When Fieri visited, he tried a fried cheesy bologna sandwich that he called “dynamite.” The eatery operates as the Gralehaus from morning to early afternoon and switches to its Holy Grale menu for dinner, featuring a seasonally driven food menu with German influences.

Momma’s Mustard, Pickles & BBQ

119 S. Hurstbourne Parkway & 102 Bauer Ave., Louisville
Season 25, Episode 13
This Louisville-based barbecue joint is owned by Kansas native Chad Cooley. The eatery serves pulled chicken, smoked turkey and a variety of sides like the Cheezy Corn and green beans, but Fieri enjoyed the wings, which he described as having a “good smoke, nice rub.”

Steer-In

5130 E. 10th St., Indianapolis
Season 11, Episode 8
Fieri headed to Indianapolis’ historic Steer-In Restaurant to try its famous meatball sub. The eatery opened in 1960 and serves a variety of comfort food dishes, ranging from country-fried steak and eggs to chicken livers and a patty melt.

The Tamale Place

5226 Rockville Road, Indianapolis
Season 12, Episode 3
The Tamale Place in Indianapolis has been slinging excellent tamales since 2003. The eatery creates its popular tamales daily by hand and with freshly ground corn, which Fieri learned about during his visit. In addition to tamales, they also offer tacos, tortas and sides like black beans, rice, salsa and chips and elotes (street corn) in a cup.