Cincinnati’s restaurant and bar scene is thriving, with new options popping up at every turn. Over the past three months, the Queen City has seen an influx of fried chicken joints, as well as a coffee/beer bar, a moonshine bar, a swanky food/drink spot inside of an old bank and more. We have plenty of exciting dining/drinking destinations to look forward to in 2019, including new breweries, bakeries, bars and restaurants. This list highlights some new spots you should plan to visit in the near future.

 

 

Coming Soon: Holiday Liquor Bar 1538 Race St., Over-the-Rhine This new bar concept from the team behind Senate/Abigail Street/Pontiac (aka the Queen City Hospitality Group) will be a “dive bar” off the main drag of nightlife destinations in OTR and will feature a food menu, though drinks will be the focus. Photo: Paige Deglow
Coming Soon: Oddfellows Liquor Bar and Mikey’s Late Night Slice 2014 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine This Columbus bar is expanding into the Queen City with a dual-purpose establishment just down the way from Rhinegeist. Slated to open March 18, the restaurant will have a full bar with 10 local and craft beers, pizza, appetizers and salads. Photo: Paige Deglow
Sugar Whiskey Sis 633 Madison Ave., Covington Opened in early February, this Eclectic moonshine bar in Covington has over 50 different types of moonshine, local beer, craft cocktails and Southern-inspired bites. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Coming Soon: BrewDog 316 Reading Road, Pendleton By summer 2019, Pendleton will have a BrewDog taproom and restaurant. BrewDog is England’s largest craft brewery whose American headquarters is just up north in Columbus. Photo via Facebook.com/BrewDogUSA
Coming Soon: Wódka Bar 1200 Main St., Over-the-Rhine An extension of Babushka Pierogies, Wódka Bar will carry an ambitious selection of vodkas, stocking upward of 60 types including many Russian, Polish and Ukrainian brands that are lesser known in the United States. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Fiery Hen 26 W. Court St., Downtown This Nashville-style hot chicken eatery opened in January and is from the team behind Court Street Lobster Bar. Photo via Facebook.com/FieryHen
Coming Soon: Hoppin Vines 8150 Montgomery Road, Madeira Hoppin’ Vines is opening a huge 9,000 square-foot craft beer and wine bar with a duckpin bowling alley this spring. Photo via Facebook.com/HoppinVines
The Baker’s Table 1004 Monmouth St., Newport Opened in December 2018, the organic, farm-to-table bakery and restaurant offers seasonally fresh and locally-sourced ingredients in dishes for breakfast, brunch and lunch. The Baker’s Table also offers coffee drinks and alcoholic beverages. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Coming Soon: Bridges Nepali Cuisine 133 E. Court St., Downtown Bridges Nepali Cuisine recently announced their plans to open a second location on downtown’s Court Street this April. The restaurant opened its first brick-and-mortar in Northside two years ago and is the first full Nepalese restaurant in the area. Guests can expect a similar experience in terms of menu and style as their first location, but they also plan to offer breakfast at their downtown location. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Social OTR 1819 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine Social O.T.R., a new “culinary training restaurant” located next to Findlay Market opened in February. Described as a collaborative social enterprise between Findlay Market and CityLink Center, Social O.T.R.’s purpose is to prepare the next generation of culinary professionals for the working world, acting as a 16-week educational program that serves the community’s unemployed and underemployed talent pool while still maintaining a fine dining experience in an operating restaurant. Photo: Paige Deglow
Platform Brewing Co’s LOCOBA 1202 Main St., Over-the-Rhine Craft brewer Platform Beer Co., which opened in Cleveland in 2014, opened a new bar in Over-the-Rhine in February. The company worked with local developer Urban Sites to open its third Ohio-based taproom — a 2,500-square-foot space at 1201 Main St. (that navy and red building across from Japp’s). They combine beer, coffee, barrel aging and light bites. Photo: Izzy Viox
CHX 1211 Broadway St., Pendleton CHX is owned and operated by Hickory Wald — the team behind 3 Points Urban Brewery, Nation Kitchen and Bar and Rhinehaus. Their signature menu item is Bantys, which are “lump-sized” chicken pieces named after a wild and soulful breed of Indonesian chickens called “Bantam,” in two different brined and golden-fried finishing options: original or hot. In addition to Bantys, the chicken joint also offers salads, sandwiches and sharable sides like CHX nachos, fried cheese curds, wavy fries and more. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Libby’s Southern Comfort 35 W. Eighth St., Covington Opened in late January, the Southern-style eatery is helmed by Brad Wainscott, whose local culinary lineage extends to longstanding Kentucky mainstays The Greyhound Tavern and Tousey House Tavern, owned by his father. The menu, overseen by executive chef Rick Winkler, pays tribute to Southern classics with a touch of Charleston and features dishes like goetta hush puppies, oysters on the half shell and fried chicken. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Street City Pub580 Walnut St., DowntownOpened in early January, this traditional Irish pub is located in the former O’Reilly’s Irish Bar and is managed by Prime.Photo: Provided
Coming Soon: Northern Row Brewery 111 W. McMicken Ave., West End This new brewery will be located in the old pre-Prohibition Christian Moerlein lager house. According to the brewery, the name is taken from an old Cincinnati nickname for Liberty Street and its role in the brewing industry. Northern Row will “pay tribute to our roots as a historic lager house, committed to revisiting traditional lagers but we also look forward, pledged to bring consistent, clean, and flavorful ales that drive the craft beer world today. Our spirits catalog will similarly mirror our beer portfolio. Old recipes will meet new, combining to push the envelope while also respecting tradition.” Chef Jose Salazar will be curating the food menu. Photo: Emerson Swoger
The Turf Club 4618 Eastern Ave., East End Formerly known as Terry’s Turf Club, The Turf Club reopened January 3 under two new owners, Tom and Mark Kunkemoeller, but still serves the same delicious burgers that have become popular around the area. Photo: Emerson Swoger
Coming Soon: Bad Tom Smith Brewing 5900 Madison Road, Madisonville Bad Tom Smith Brewing is moving from their Linwood location to 5900 Madison Road. A restaurant and taproom should be open in March. Photo: Scott Dittgen