It took a couple of tries for me to fully appreciate the allure of Mid City, a relatively new bar and restaurant on Court Street. Last summer, I stopped in for a quick snack and to meet a new editor. All I recall is that the “small plates” struck me as really tiny and included a couple of items that seemed exceptionally unusual. Chicken hearts, anyone? We tried them, I found them not to my liking and left thinking this place might not be my cup of tea.
But friends kept telling me to give Mid City another shot. They loved the food, drinks and ambiance and said that the menu had enough variety that I could avoid anything that didn’t suit my taste. The location certainly is prime – at the northern edge of downtown and easily accessible to Over-the-Rhine – as well.
Turns out, the chicken hearts were a hit, according to owner Mike Stankovich, whom I talked with recently. They’re off the menu for now but could well make a return, he said.
Stankovich also owns the laid-back OTR bar Longfellow and spent many years in the restaurant business in other cities, such as Boston and Washington, D.C. All of that experience seems to have given him a clear notion of what he wanted to do with Mid City.
“I like casual, simple but effective food and places where the focus is on having a good time,” he said. That’s exactly what I found on a recent visit with friends. Every seat in the bar and dining room was filled, and the whole place resounded with conversation and laughter. The décor is rather minimalist – Stankovich said he was inspired by “old dining cars and old pizza restaurants” – which helps keep the focus on one’s companions and, of course, the food and drink. I also got a kick out of the well-appointed restroom, which to me is a test of a proprietor’s attention to customers’ comfort. It’s not fancy or especially creative, but all the little thoughtful touches made me feel cared for.
The kitchen team at Mid City includes veterans of many of Cincinnati’s finest dining establishments, including Mita’s and Fausto. Ever since the dining room opened over a year ago, chef Francisco Alfaro and sous-chef Joe Cheek have cooked most of the hot dishes on a plancha – a metal griddle – or by using a deep fryer. With a few cold items such as salads and a couple of desserts, the team manages an efficient use of space in what is overall a fairly small footprint.
Although they opened the bar in October 2021 and the dining room a little later, Stankovich said Mid City got a “big lift” when Bon Appétit magazine selected it as one of the best new restaurants in the U.S. That happened last summer, and pretty soon it became hard to snag a table or bar stool even on weeknights.
We made a reservation a couple weeks ahead and had to settle for Thursday instead of Friday or Saturday. Our table in the small dining room was one of the first to fill, but within a half-hour the room was packed with high-spirited downtowners.
Our food came out in two rounds, approximating first and second courses as chosen by the kitchen staff. We’d already been set up with cocktails: a couple of martinis, a Manhattan and a rum-based drink dubbed El Presidente. Soon thereafter, a profusion of plates showed up and we dug in.
Everyone smiled and nodded as we passed the dishes around. Almost everything about this course pleased our palates. Chilled radicchio salad satisfied my desire for a light, crunchy bite and contrasted well with several fried preparations of other veggies. Those included tempura Brussels sprouts, tender artichokes and expertly prepared sweet potato fries, though I later wished they’d held the fries to go with my burger delivered in round two.
A dish simply called Mushrooms in Foil stood out as well, with the tiny, exotic mushrooms cooked in butter and soy sauce and given a welcome bitterness with a hint of turnip greens. All of this went great with the griddled baguette – I love grilled bread in all its iterations – accompanied by pickle butter.
By now, there was no room at the bar, either, but service remained efficient. With the table cleared of spent dishes and another round of drinks offered, our second course arrived. Maybe I already was getting full, but none of these plates quite measured up to what we’d already enjoyed.
Friends had advised me to order the Skipper Burger, which was offered as a special. Basically, it’s a small hamburger with saucing that includes a schmear of peanut butter. Stankovich pointed out that many cultures pair meat with peanuts, such as satay. But alas, my burger was so overcooked that it didn’t matter what sauces had been added; to me, it was close to inedible. The chicken skewer my friend ordered was similarly dry from too long on the fire and its sauce was too bland to make up for that. Someone else selected fried smelts and I had a bite, but the flavor was too strong for my taste.
There was one definite hit on this round – the Mid City Plate, a best-seller from opening day, according to Stankovich. It’s a medium-sized plate of three kinds of fairly mild sausages, a mound of well-seasoned sauerkraut, boiled potatoes with a side of zippy mustard that was only slightly more than one person could finish. It also comes in small or large sizes.
The wine list is limited but well chosen, and don’t miss the port and sherries offered with dessert. Sweet bites are Baked Alaska or a slice of Slab Pie. I loved that a tiny bit of the meringue on the Alaska had been scorched black. I dig a hint of “burned” on some foods, such as popcorn, grilled bread or French fries, but not everyone does, as I learned from my table mates.
The tab for such a feast did not break the bank, which is always nice. We rolled out of Mid City when the crowd was starting to thin, happy to have figured out the allure of this addition to the Court Street renaissance.
Mid City Restaurant, 40 E. Court St., Downtown. Info: midcitycinti.com.
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