The 39th-annual Taste of Cincinnati is slated to fill downtown with good eats and good music Saturday through Monday. The longest running free culinary fest in the nation, Taste will feature more than 100 delicious dishes and nearly nonstop musical performances all weekend

The festival, which is expected to attract 500,000, will span four blocks of Fifth Street, between Main and Sentinel streets. This year will be the first to feature a Taste of Cincinnati cocktail: the Fifth and Vodway, made with citrus vodka, triple sec, cranberry and Sprite. Also new: Taste of Findlay Market, which will offer up Findlay faves, including bites from Babushka Pierogies, Dean’s Mediterranean Imports, Maverick Chocolate Company and more, on the ramp to I-71.

This year’s fest will also feature more than 100 beer varieties — 44 of which will be locally brewed. Braxton Brewing Company will even be tapping limited-release beers in the Braxton Beer Gardens in P&G Gardens, including a black IPA, cherry saison and Mentor, a Belgian-style tripel.

There won’t be a shortage of tasty bites, but make the best of your visit by trying the Best of Taste. Five restaurants and five food trucks —which will be parked at the Rhinegeist Food Truck Alley on the Fifth Street ramp from Columbia Parkway — earned these awards meant to showcase the city’s best cuisine.

Warm up with some appetizers. This year’s Best Appetizer award goes to the crab cake from Market Street Grille and the stroll from food truck Adena’s Beefstroll. Next up try dishes from the Soup, Salad and Side category. Go for the first place Birra Chiarra Italian greens from Rivertown Brewery & Barrelhouse and jalapeño mac n’ cheese from Packhouse.

Best Entrée options include a pulled pork sandwich with sauce and slaw from Eli’s BBQ and a battered cod platter from Alabama Fish Bar. End the night with sweet treats from the Best Dessert round: crème brûlée from Market Street Grille and fried cheesecake from Hungry Bros.


Here’s a full list of this year’s winner:

Restaurant Best Dessert 

  • First Place: Crème brûlée – Market Street Grille
  • Second Place: Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Mascarpone Cheesecake – Alfio’s buon cibo
  • Third Place: Cannoli – Pompilio’s

Restaurant Best Appetizer 

  • First Place: Crab Cake – Market Street Grille
  • Second Place: Jerk Chicken Pasta – Island Frydays
  • Third Place: Risotto Balls – Pompilio’s

Restaurant Best Soup-Salad-Side

  • First Place: Birra Chiarra Italian Greens – Rivertown Brewery & Barrelhouse
  • Second Place: Sidewinder Fries – Market Street Grille
  • Third Place: Mandy’s Che’ Chili – Che’

Restaurant Best Entrée

  • First Place: Pulled Pork Sandwich with BBQ Sauce & Cole Slaw – Eli’s BBQ
  • Second Place: Jerk Chicken with Rice and Peas – Island Frydays
  • Third Place: Bacon Jelly Slider – Sammy’s Craft Burgers & Beers

Food Truck Best Dessert

  • First Place: Fried Cheesecake – Hungry Bros.
  • Second Place: Belgian Sugar Waffle with Sea Salt, Caramel & Maker’s Mark Whipped Cream – Marty’s Waffles
  • Third Place: Pineapple Strawberry Swirl streetpop – streetpops

Food Truck Best Appetizer 

  • First Place: The Stroll – Adena’s Beefstroll
  • Second Place: Mini Chicken Quesadilla – Red Sesame
  • Third Place: The Kevin Bacon – Hungry Bros.

Food Truck Best Soup-Salad-Side

  • First Place: Jalapeno Mac n Cheese – Packhouse
  • Second Place: Tostones – Empanadas Aqui

Food Truck Best Entrée

  • First Place: Hand Battered Cod Platter – Alabama Fish Bar
  • Second Place: Bangin’Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Slaw – Best Thing Smokin’
  • Third Place: Hickory Smoked Brisket Taco with Island Slaw – Wicked Hickory

If all of that sounds heavy, check out some healthier options. This year the fest is partnering with go Vibrant! to keep healthy options in mind and on the menu. According to the fest, go Vibrant! menu items adhere to the American Heart Association per-serving standards of 6.5 grams or less of total fat, 1 gram or less of saturated fat, a half gram or less of trans fat, 20 milligrams or less of cholesterol and 480 milligrams or less of sodium. These dishes don’t sacrifice on taste — they even got their own award category. Try the winning Silver Ladle salad from Silver Ladle and lamb slider from Hungry Bros. food truck.

Restaurant Best go Vibrant! 

  • First Place: Silver Ladle Salad – Silver Ladle
  • Second Place: Spicy Chicken Wrap – Market Street Grille
  • Third Place: Buns n Roses – Tickle Pickle

Food Truck Best go Vibrant! 

  • First Place: Lamb Slider – Hungry Bros.
  • Second Place: Korean BBQ Taco – Red Sesame
  • Third Place: Hairy Empanada – Empanadas Aqui

Whether you stop by for one meal or dedicate breakfast, lunch and dinner to Taste, enjoy a bit of what Cincinnati has to offer.

Street Closings

Closing at 6 p.m. Friday and reopening at 5 a.m. Tuesday:

  • Fifth Street between Main and Sentinel streets
  • Sycamore Street between Fourth and Sixth streets
  • Broadway between Fourth and Sixth (no access to I-71 or I-471)
  • Sentinel from Eggleston to Fifth Street
  • Columbia Parkway West must exit at either Third or Sixth Streets for Downtown Access

TASTE OF CINCINNATI runs 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday. Free admission. Fifth Street between Main and Sentinel streets, Downtown, tasteofcincinnati.com.

This article appears in May 24-31, 2017.

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