Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati to Debut Thought-Provoking One-Acts on the Black Experience
Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati (ETC) continues its longtime commitment to socially conscious and thought-provoking contemporary theater with a pair of one-act, solo-performance plays about Black women: the newly commissioned world premiere of Isaiah Reaves’ I Shall Not Be Moved and the updated revival of Your Negro Tour Guide, based on Kathy Y. Wilson’s former CityBeat column…
Famous Ravioli Fundraiser Returns to Camp Washington Church
After taking two years off due to the pandemic, a beloved home-cooked tradition is back in Camp Washington. On April 10, Sacred Heart Church is hosting its popular ravioli dinner. Since 1911, the church has been offering old-fashioned, Italian-recipe ravioli dinners made by parishioners and volunteers using recipes brought to Cincinnati from the Old Country. Doors open…
KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia in Covington Closing for Repairs for Indeterminate Amount of Time
UPDATE: The restaurant reopened at 4:30 p.m. April 5 after repairs were quickly made, per a post on Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by KungFood Chu's AmerAsia (@kungfoodchu) Bad news for Covington’s lunch rush: KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia just posted on Instagram that they’ll have to close the restaurant an indeterminate amount…
Lloyd Library Exhibit ‘On the Wing’ Features Centuries-Old Field Guides and Modern Birding Art
As birds migrate back to Greater Cincinnati for spring and summer, they’ve also taken over downtown’s Lloyd Library and Museum. On the Wing: An Illustrated Chapter on Birds highlights the Lloyd’s treasure trove of ornithology books and bird field guides — an often-overlooked part of their collection — that date back as early as the…
Recent Grammy Winner Olivia Rodrigo Performs at Sold-Out Show at Andrew J Brady Music Center
Fresh off Olivia Rodrigo’s dazzling appearance at the 64th-annual Grammy Awards, where she snagged three Grammys, the singer is set to perform a sold-out show at the Andrew J Brady Music Center on April 22. It’s been a crazy year for Olivia Rodrigo, the Disney actress-turned-musical-powerhouse. The 19-year-old singer/songwriter’s debut album, Sour, which dropped last…
Ohio Republicans — Including Cincinnati’s Jean Schmidt — Introduce Version of ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill
On Monday, Republicans introduced HB 616 in the Ohio House of Representatives, legislation with broad, vague, and barely defined language designed to ban the promotion and teaching of “divisive and inherently racist concepts.” The bill contains specific bans on acknowledging or discussing LGBTQ+ identity. Sponsored by Representatives Mike Loychick (R-Bazetta) and Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland), the…
Ohio Republicans Claim Unfair New-Old Redistricting Map Is Actually Good
The GOP members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission who voted for a slightly reworked version of old legislative maps say they did the best they could “under the circumstances.” The Democratic members of the commission want the court to pick up the rejected plans of two independent mapdrawers instead, while rejecting the maps adopted at…
Here’s What to Know About Ohio’s Early Voting, Which Starts Tuesday
Despite drawn out legal battles over district lines for state legislative and U.S. House seats, yes, there’s still a May 3 primary in Ohio. April 4 was the final day to register to vote in time to participate in the May 3 primary. Early voting starts April 5. Here are some of the basics. What…
Owners of O Pie O Open Heyday Burger Restaurant in East Walnut Hills
A brand new burger joint in East Walnut Hills is sizzling with promise. Hailing from the owners of O Pie O, Heyday opened in the former pie cafe location on April 6. Owner Lou Ginocchio tells CityBeat in an email that Heyday will serve up a simple menu “using high-quality ingredients with employees who get the respect…
Tunes & Blooms Concerts Returns to the Cincinnati Zoo this Week
Throughout the month of April, visitors’ ventures through the blooming flowers at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden will be heightened by performances from local musicians. Starting this Thursday, April 7, guests will be able to enjoy a free family-friendly concert as well as the over 100,000 tulips on display at the zoo as a…
Voting Groups Ask Ohio Supreme Court to Reject Fourth Terrible Redistricting Map
Yet again asking the Ohio Supreme Court to reject the Ohio Redistricting Commission’s legislative maps, objectors said the fourth plan is merely the third plan in new window dressing. The League of Women Voters of Ohio, the Ohio Organizing Collaborative and a group of Ohio voters represented by the National Redistricting Action Fund, have all…
Monday Is the Last Day to Register to Vote in May’s Ohio Primaries
Primary season in Ohio is in full swing, and candidates are packing their schedules with debates and town halls, as we saw the Buckeye State’s Senate and gubernatorial candidates do last week. But for residents to vote in the May primary elections, voter registration must be up to date. Monday, April 4, — or 30…
Gov. DeWine and AG Dave Yost Announce $10 Million Investment to Fight Rising Ohio Gun Crime
In the face of spiking gun crime, the state’s top two officials on Thursday announced a $10.5 million investment in technology and personnel to trace fugitive guns across jurisdictions. As he announced the program, Gov. Mike DeWine denied that when he signed a bill earlier this month eliminating gun-permitting requirements, he might have helped to…
U.S. House Passes Bill to Federally Decriminalize Cannabis, But It’s Unclear if Senate Has the Votes
Cannabis prohibition is now quite possibly the closest it has ever been to ending in the United States — finally. On April 1, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve H.R. 3617, the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act. The legislation passed 220 to 204, largely along party lines, with Democrats in support…
West Chester’s Grainworks Brewing’s Latest Beer Is Refreshing Ode to Joe Burrow and Joey Votto
These Joes are far from average — so far from average, in fact, that they deserve their very own beer. In celebration of the exciting 2021 seasons of the Cincinnati Reds and Bengals, Reds first baseman Joey Votto and Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow are being honored with the limited release of Grainworks Brewing Co.’s latest…
The Beast at Kings Island Is Getting Longer and Breaking More World Records
The Beast, which currently holds the title of world’s longest wooden roller coaster, is about to break its own record. Kings Island’s popular ride, built in 1979, has recently added some inches and will be debuting in the 2022 season two feet longer, per a press release from the park. Previously, The Beast’s track measured at…
Kentucky Senate Passes Restrictive Abortion Bill, Includes 15-Week Ban
On March 29, Kentucky’s General Assembly passed a bill containing a host of new restrictions on abortions in the state. Following in the footsteps of states like Mississippi, Kentucky’s House Bill 3 would ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The Kentucky Senate previously had passed the legislation, which now will head to Gov. Andy…
Welcome to the Best of Cincinnati 2022
CityBeat has been in the business of curating the Best Of Cincinnati® for more than 25 years, highlighting the city’s most outstanding selections in Arts & Culture, Eats, Shops & Services, Music & Nightlife, City Life and Sports & Recreation. And the responsibility of selecting these exceptional entities is divided between our readers and publication…
CityBeat Celebrating the Best Of Cincinnati® with Giant Party at The Phoenix Downtown
CityBeat’s annual Best Of Cincinnati® issue is out, and we’re ready to celebrate. CityBeat has been in the business of curating the Best Of Cincinnati® for more than 25 years, highlighting the city’s most outstanding selections in Arts & Culture, Eats, Shops & Services, Music & Nightlife, City Life and Sports & Recreation — as selected by both…
Former Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley Goes After Gov. DeWine in Ohio Gubernatorial Debate
Two former mayors seeking the Democratic gubernatorial nomination shared the debate stage March 29, talking political corruption, energy policy, gun violence and more. Rather than spar with one another, former Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley and former Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley trained their words on incumbent Gov. Mike DeWine. Through an hour of back and forth,…
The National Is Going on Tour, But You Won’t See Them in Cincinnati
Cincinnati-bred band The National has announced its summer tour — but the Queen City is conspicuously missing from the itinerary. On March 29, The National shared on its owned media what it says is the “full tour itinerary for Summer 2022.” The lineup includes 23 dates throughout the United States and Canada and features a…
Best Holiday Light Display
1. Festival of Lights (Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden) 2. Christmas Nights of Lights (Coney Island) 3. Light in the Forest (Cincinnati Nature Center)
Best Dressed Exhibit at a Cincinnati Museum
As part of the Cincinnati Art Museum’s Simply Brilliant: Artist-Jewelers of the 1960s and 1970s exhibit — which derived from a private collection — the institution added some splendiferous clothing from its own holdings, perhaps to offer ideas as to what one could wear with all the gold and silver on display. Or, maybe, for…
Best Bet
Cincinnati’s freshly rebranded Hard Rock Casino (formerly JACK Casino) opened in July 2021. And, yes, that means you can get your official Hard Rock Cafe Cincinnati shirt from the in-house eatery. Bonus: Hard Rock in fact “rocks” with plenty of live concerts. As with other locations of the chain, the Cincinnati casino is full of…
Best Surprise Zoo Baby
A sad situation turned into a bit of tiny, unexpected joy at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden over the summer. Red panda Lin gave birth to a surprise new cub after miscarrying in May. Zoo scientists say it was the first documented case of a red panda miscarrying and having a cub in the…
Best Local Improv/Sketch Comedy Group
1. Improv Cincinnati 2. OTRimprov 3. Not My Boyfriend
Best Drive-Thru Market
1. Trotta’s Pizza & Drive Thru 2. Miami Market 3. Big Daddy’s Liquor Store
Best Place to Unlock the Mysteries of Magic
Do you believe in magic? There are so many ways to interpret what is and isn’t magical, so perhaps some thorough studying is needed before you can make that call. Hierophany & Hedge, Covington’s newest magic shop, is the place to learn about the mystical, the ethereal and the conjured. This isn’t the kind of…
Best Excuse to Break Out Your Tote Bags
Grab your favorite tote bag (or two) and head to the Covington Farmers Market to stock up on seasonal produce, baked goods, bread, wine, honey, meats, eggs, jams, pickles and more from local vendors. The year-round market is open every Saturday, rain or shine, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The location changes depending on…
Best Indoor-Outdoor Hotel Hot Tub
Sometimes you need a night away. And sometimes you just don’t feel like making the effort to go “out of town.” Maybe try AC Hotel in Liberty Center? This posh but attainably priced stay sits atop the back end of Liberty’s outdoor shopping mall. The mall’s DORA district offers a wide range of delicious restaurants,…
Best Local Brand Going National
When Cincinnatian Sylvia Brownlee was laid off from her corporate job in the cosmetic industry in 2015, she didn’t know what her next move was. As an esthetician and skincare expert with decades of experience, she knew she was passionate about helping clients feel comfortable in their skin, but she wasn’t sure what would come…
Best Bookstore
1. Joseph-Beth Booksellers 2. Half Price Books 3. Blue Manatee Literacy Project (now closed) 4. The Friends of the Public Library Warehouse 5. Roebling Point Books & Coffee 6. Downbound Books 7. Ohio Book Store 8. Shake It Records 9. Cincy Book Bus 10. Blue Marble Books
Best Real Estate Agent
1. Nick Foltz 2. Jordan Nicely 3. Pam Socha
Best Veterinary Care
1. Animal Care Centers 2. Noah’s Ark Animal Clinics 3. Grady Veterinary Hospital
Best Local Indie Craft Market Vendor
1. Fern 2. Stitches & Sass 3. City Chick BBQ Sauce
Best Lighting Store
1. Menards 2. IKEA 3. Lighting EFX
Best Bigger-on-the-Inside Bar
The OTR StillHouse is a distillery, winery and brewery in one. Located in a former 1890s ice manufacturing warehouse, it’s also home to an entertainment venue with indoor and outdoor space. But you wouldn’t necessarily know that from the outside, which looks a bit more like a shipping container than the entryway to a “half-acre…
Best Pet Adoption/Shelter
1. SPCA Cincinnati 2. Stray Animal Adoption Program 3. Cincinnati Animal CARE Humane Society 4. Louie’s Legacy 5. Animal Friends Humane Society 6. League for Animal Welfare 7. Joseph’s Legacy 8. 2nd Hand Paws Animal Rescue 9. Save the Animals Foundation 10. All Dogs Come From Heaven
Best No-Frills Watering Hole
1. Northside Tavern 2. The Belle and the Bear 3. Knockback Nat’s
Best Place to Shoot Pool
1. Northside Tavern 2. The Belle and the Bear 3. The Comet
Best Bourbon Selection (Bar)
1. Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar 2. Wiseguy Lounge 3. The Belle and the Bear
Best College-Crowd Bar
1. Murphy’s Pub 2. Fries Cafe 3. Mr. Pitifuls
Best Novel Way to Enjoy Cincinnati Chili
How many coneys and 3-Ways can one person eat before they need a change of Cincinnati-chili pace? Luckily, Cafe Mochiko offers those familiar flavors in a new way. It’s owned and operated by chefs Erik Bentz and Elaine Townsend, who have made an exceptionally good name for themselves in the culinary world, being highly revered…
Best Local Music Promoter
1. Leroy Ellington Productions 2. Dan McCabe 3. Far-i-Rome Creative
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (Downtown/OTR)
1. Coffee Emporium 2. Deeper Roots Coffee 3. BlaCk Coffee Lounge
Best Locally Produced Root Beer
There’s a void in the soul that can only be filled by really good root beer. Sharonville’s The Root Beer Stand serves up the soda equivalent of premium craft beer at its quaint, retro eatery. It’s so good because they use their own well water, which has a balance of inherent minerality. You can squeeze…
Best Double Dutch
Longtime pony keg and artisan food market Dutch’s Larder closed at the beginning of 2020 after a falling out between previous owners. That’s when Cincinnati restaurateur Brad Bernstein, well known for his upscale eatery Red Feather Kitchen in Oakley, stepped in. This past summer, Bernstein reopened Dutch’s after giving the interior a facelift and adding…
Best Bagels
1. Marx Hot Bagels 2. Lil’s Bagels 3. Bruegger’s Bagels 4. OTR Bagel Bar 5. The Bagelry 6. Big Apple Bagels 7. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 8. Everything Bagels 9. Skip’s BagelDeli 10. Bagel Brothers
Best Local Produce Hookup
Remember, good ingredients make better dishes. There’s nothing better than fresh, ethically grown and locally harvested fruits and vegetables if you want to eat well. The way ETC Produce & Provisions excels in this endeavor is that they’ve combined produce, meat, dairy and eggs, breads and other prepared food from local sellers and made it…
Best Dinner Date Spot for Picky Couples
Does any conversation lead to more Friday night fights between couples than “What do you want to eat for dinner?” If you want to avoid the culinary fallout, plan a trip to the Oakley Kitchen Food Hall. A former antique mall has been transformed into a business incubator for local food entrepreneurs. There are eight…
Best Sports Moment in Cincinnati in 33 Years
On Feb. 13, the Bengals went to Super Bowl LVI, Cincinnati’s first shot at the Vince Lombardi trophy since 1989. Our beloved team was just two minutes away from the win but ultimately lost 20-23 to the Los Angeles Rams. But despite the last-minute defeat, this Bengals team let Cincinnati fans dare to dream again…
Best Macaron
1. Macaron Bar 2. The BonBonerie 3. Jungle Jim’s International Market
Best Sports Surprise
In 2021, ESPN’s mega-popular pregame show College Gameday visited the Queen City for the first time ever for the University of Cincinnati’s homecoming football game. Bearcats fans were ecstatic to have the sports network broadcasting live from on campus in the lead-up to the match against Tulsa at Nippert Stadium. Fans also lined up in…
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (Downtown/OTR)
1. Nation Kitchen & Bar 2. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 3. Krueger’s Tavern
Best Team (Amateur/Semi-Pro)
1. Florence Y’alls 2. Cincinnati Rollergirls 3. Black-n-Bluegrass Roller Girls
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (Northern Kentucky)
1. Goodfellas Pizzeria 2. Dewey’s Pizza 3. Strong’s Brick Oven Pizzeria
Best Apartment Community
1. The Lofts at Shillito Place 2. Aqua on the Levee 3. American Can Lofts
Best Ribs
1. Montgomery Inn 2. Eli’s BBQ 3. Walt’s Hitching Post 4. Lucius Q 5. Pig Candy BBQ 7. Pickles & Bones Barbecue 8. Just Q’in 9. City Barbeque 10. Dead Low Brewing
Best Specialty Food Market
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. Findlay Market 3. Pipkin’s Market
Best Local Activist
1. Jim Tarbell 2. Brian Garry 3. Mass Action for Black Liberation 4. Triiibe 5. Mike Moroski 6. Cam Hardy 7. Michelle Dillingham 8. Al Gerhardstein 9. Billie Mays 10. Josh Spring
Best Playground
1. Smale Riverfront Park 2. Washington Park 3. Summit Park
Best Revamped Newport Hangout
After two years of renovation plans and reconstruction, Newport on the Levee hosted a grand reopening Memorial Day weekend. New businesses were added to the main gallery building, which itself got a makeover with the addition of new windows and a gray-and-white modern paint job. Green space was added, with plenty of seating. New bars…
Best Museum Exhibit
1. The Science Behind Pixar (Cincinnati Museum Center) 2. Frank Duveneck: American Master (Cincinnati Art Museum) 3. Dimensions in Testimony (Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center)
Best Bizarrely Mind-Bending Cincinnati Streaming Experience
As part of its CSO Proof new music initiative, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra co-commissioned an avant-garde and super-hip video production called The Meta Simulacrum Vol. 1, a look at the dangers and disorientations awaiting us in the future. The creation of composer/producer William Brittelle, filmmaker Isaac Gale and editor/computer coder Patrick Marschke and based on…
Best Church Festival
1. Panegyri Greek Festival 2. St. Cecilia Festival 3. Immaculate Heart of Mary Festival
Best Kickstart to the Arts
After almost two years of navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, local arts, cultural and educational organizations are cautiously hoping they can finally emerge from nightmare times with new ideas. A number are at least considering — and, in some cases, already constructing — new buildings or redesigning existing ones. That list includes the Cincinnati Art Museum,…
Best Local Photographer
1. Catie Viox 2. Samuel Greenhill 3. Lauren Burt
Best Dry Cleaner
1. Tide Cleaners 2. Widmer’s 3. Kroner Dry Cleaners
Best Hair-Removal Service
1. WAX Cincinnati 2. Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center 3. Woodhouse Day Spa
Best House Painter
1. Smith & Metz Painting 2. Hyde Park Painting & Carpentry 3. Steady Hand Painting
Best Bonus Bookstore
Several years ago, Covington’s only bookstore and coffee shop almost closed for good. The decade-old store — cherished by locals and visitors alike — was threatened by a significant rent increase, constant construction and closure of its main thoroughfare, the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge. Luckily for Roebling Point Books & Coffee, high market rates…
Best Auto Dealer (Used Vehicles)
1. Marshall Ford 2. Jake Sweeney Automotive 3. Joseph Toyota of Cincinnati
Best Camera Store
1. Dodd Camera 2. Western Hills Photo & Hobby 3. PROCAM
Best Real Estate Brokerage
1. Sibcy Cline 2. Comey & Shepherd 3. Keller Williams Realty
Best Vintage Clothing Store
1. Casablanca 2. Rad OTR 3. Down to Mars
Best Source of Harmony in an Era That Needs It
Making it as an a cappella group during the pandemic has been no small feat, but the eight hardy men who constitute the No Promises Vocal Band have found ways to share their vocal talents as a tight-harmony ensemble since 2015, especially with regular holiday performances. During the 2020 pandemic year, they raised nearly $7,000…
Best Bar/Club (Downtown/OTR)
1. Ghost Baby 2. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 3. MOTR Pub
Best Nursery/Greenhouse
1. A.J. Rahn Greenhouses 2. Natorp’s 3. White Oak Gardens
Best Use of an Underground Tunnel
Ghost Baby is a subterranean nightclub/music venue that operates beneath the streets of Over-the-Rhine. The bar is located five stories below Vine Street in a 170-year-old lagering tunnel formerly used by Champion Brewing (beer was aged and cooled in lagering tunnels before the advent of refrigeration). The historic space, which had been vacant since the…
Best Comfort Station Call-Out
Each year, Esquire magazine compiles a list of the best bars in America. And after the hell of 2020, the 2021 list was special — almost, but not quite, a “return to normal.” In 2021, Esquire editors gave 27 drinking destinations across the country the coveted title of “best bar,” and only one was in…
Best ‘Normal’ Concert Moment in the COVID Era
Trying to see a concert during the pandemic has been … weird. Are you comfortable with the capacity limits? Do you have to wear a mask? Are vaccinations required? Has the show been canceled or postponed? There’s been a lot to consider, especially during 2021’s different virus surges. But for a glorious moment in July,…
Best Seasonal Hybrid Pastry
In fall of 2021, North South Baking Co. opened a brick-and-mortar space in partnership with Ludlow, Kentucky-based Bircus Brewing Co. The latter takes the reins at night while Kate Nycz’s North South slings baked goods by day. Customers can treat themselves to fresh-baked bread, pastries, pies and more. But cruffins — a croissant-muffin hybrid, as…
Best Vegan Pie from a Pizza Chain
The meat-free fast-food game has exploded in recent years, and LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria came through hot and heavy in 2021 with their new plant-based pepperoni, Italian sausage crumbles, diced chicken and vegan cheese offerings. If you’ve transitioned to an animal-free diet, this is incredibly good news when looking for an easy go-to takeout or delivery…
Best Gas Station Creamy Whip
Creamy whip season is a big deal here in Cincinnati, where citizens wait all winter for their favorite walk-up window to open for the spring and summer. But what if you crave soft serve during the winter? No matter the month, the AmeriStop gas station in Bellevue is sure to be slinging some creative creamy…
Best Local Musician
1. Jamie Combs 2. Jess Lamb 3. Noah Smith
Best Sweet Tribute
Cincinnati City Council unanimously voted in August to give Allston Street in Oakley the honorary secondary moniker of James T. Aglamesis Way, so named for the longtime purveyor of Cincinnati’s famous Aglamesis Bro’s Ice Cream and Candy. Also known as “Jim” or “Mr. A.,” Aglamesis passed away Jan. 23, 2021, at age 93. “Dad’s passing…
Best Creamy Whip/Soft Serve
1. Putz’s Creamy Whip 2. Silver Grove Dari Bar 3. The Cone
Best Worst Long Goodbye
Many local restaurants have shuttered their doors after dealing with fallout from the pandemic for the past two years. And some have just closed anyway, as businesses sometimes do. Two longtime Cincinnati favorites called it quits this year. Landmark downtown restaurant Washington Platform closed at the end of 2021, with owner and chef Jon Diebold…
Best Brunch
1. Sleepy Bee Cafe 2. Taste of Belgium 3. First Watch 4. Maplewood Kitchen and Bar 5. HangOverEasy 6. Ivory House 7. National Exemplar 8. Cedar 9. Nation Kitchen & Bar 10. Greyhound Tavern
Best Neighborhood Grab-and-Go
Northsiders had been pushing for a community grocery store for a while, but plans for the Apple Street Market never came through. And while the neighborhood does have a bustling farmers market, there hasn’t been anywhere to go to grab fridge basics and pantry staples. Not anymore. Morsel & Nosh is a specialty delicatessen with…
Best Barre
1. Body Alive 2. Pure Barre (Oakley) 3. The Barre Code
Best Guacamole
1. Mazunte 2. Bakersfield 3. Nada
Best Japanese
1. Ichiban Japanese Restaurant 2. Kiki College Hill 3. Quan Hapa 4. Miyako Sushi & Steakhouse 5. Cafe Mochiko 6. Kyoto Japanese Cuisine 7. Soho Japanese Bistro 8. Matsuya Japanese Restaurant 9. Ando Japanese Restaurant and Sushi Bar 10. Mei Japanese Restaurant
Best Red (Current)
1. Joey Votto 2. Jonathan India 3. Eugenio Suárez (now with Seattle Mariners)
Best Sports Coverage
1. 700WLW 2. Fox Sports Ohio 3. ESPN 1530
Best Edible Good Luck Charm
Oh, Cincinnati, you are full of beautiful weirdos. During the Bengals’ run to the Super Bowl, local fans developed a new way to wish the team luck: chugging a can of Skyline Chili. It began as the Bengals went on a winning tear at the start of the playoffs, with fans posting video after video…
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (West Side)
1. Trotta’s Pizza & Drive Thru 2. Dewey’s Pizza 3. LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria
Best Governing Body
We’ve made no bones about our crush on Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. Honestly, doyou blame us? He’s one of the few state leaders in the country under age 50, his decisions are based on actual data and science, and he’s cute as hell. Our love for the Commonwealth’s hottest man only grew when Cincy Shirts…
Best Cincinnati Neighborhood
1. Northside 2. Over-the-Rhine 3. Hyde Park
Best Vietnamese
1. Pho Lang Thang 2. Wild Ginger 3. Song Long
Best Local Cause
1. Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region 2. Freestore Foodbank 3. Matthew 25: Ministries 4. SPCA Cincinnati 5. The Friends of the Public Library 6. Cincinnati Public Radio 7. ArtWorks 8. Maslow’s Army 9. ArtsWave 10. Save the Animals Foundation
Best TV Anchor
1. Megan Mitchell (WLWT) 2. Sheree Paolello (WLWT) 3. Bob Herzog (WKRC)
Best Yearly Tradition
Oh, Ohio, we sure do love your nerve. Every year, the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles releases its list of vanity-plate applications that it rejects for being too suggestive, hostile, racist or violent. The 827 application dismissals in 2021 were as laugh-inducing as ever, with many focused on bodily parts and functions. Last year, the…
Best Instagram Account
1. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (@cincinnatizoo) 2. Cincinnati Refined (@cincyrefined) 3. Megan Mitchell (@megan.mitchellll)
Best Award to a Local Museum
If you tell someone that the Taft Museum of Art won the 2021 American Alliance of Museums’ Excellence in Exhibition Label Writing Competition, you might get a laugh back. Outside the world of museum exhibition label writing, it wouldn’t seem to be of interest. Well, you should care a lot and be very proud of…
Best Place to Dance in Walnut Hills
Just downhill from the building where Baldwin pianos were once manufactured, on deserted land that was just a driveway to a parking garage, Cincinnati Ballet in August opened its new facility, the Margaret and Michael Valentine Center for Dance at 1801 Gilbert Ave. For nearly $31 million, the company now has its own offices, classrooms,…
Best Trip Back to the Excess of the Early 2000s
Cincinnatians who remember Club Clau, an early-2000s nightlife hot spot that brought celebrities and socialites to Over-the-Rhine, were able to revisit that excitement through the FotoFocus exhibition Return to the Velvet Ropes at The Annex Gallery in Pendleton. The show featured 60 black-and-white photographs (along with some color photography) snapped by Clau’s art director Andrew…
Best Chiropractic Practice/Clinic
1. Oak Hills Back & Neck Care Center 2. Mt. Lookout Chiropractic & Sports Injury Center 3. Norwood Chiropractic & Sports
Best Electronics Repair
1. Micro Center 2. uBreakiFix 3. iPhone Dude, LLC
Best Place to Pick Up (or Drop Off) a Free Movie
Hey, boomer, remember late fees? “Be kind, rewind?” Does any of that ring a bell? Thanks largely to streaming services like Netflix, the once-mighty video rental shop went belly up. Now that we’ve had enough time to process and appropriately mourn its loss, we can try to recapture the joy we used to feel when…
Best Place to See Artists at Work
After Susannah Tisue graduated from Walnut Hills High School, she learned about ceramic arts at New York University. For years she and her husband Michael Miritello, a woodworker, had a studio in Brooklyn where she fulfilled orders from stores across the country for her beautiful glazed ceramic bowls, plates, pitchers, vases, mugs and more, decorated…
Best Adults-Only Skate Night
Ever since a handful of videos went viral on social media, roller skating seems to be everywhere. But long before the social media algorithm started highlighting skate videos, Cincinnati has been home to thousands of passionate skaters who have been keeping the community of eight wheels alive. For the grown-up crowd, The Place Cincy in…
Best Way to Explore the Paranormal
Are noises in your 100-year-old attic keeping you awake? Are you convinced that somebody is watching you from your fog-filled cornfield? A professional ghost hunt from PINK may help suss out any supernatural activity. PINK (Paranormal Investigators of Northern Kentucky) investigators and husband-and-wife duo John and Lisa Trump frequently are called upon to ask spirits…
Best Candy Store
1. Aglamesis Bro’s 2. Schneider’s Sweet Shop 3. Jungle Jim’s International Market
Best Shoe Repair
1. Mt. Lookout Shoe Repair 2. Clarence Howell Shoe Repair 3. D&P Shoe Repair
Best Wedding Cakes
1. The BonBonerie 2. A Spoon Fulla Sugar 3. 3 Sweet Girls Cakery
Best Overall Bar/Club (Not Brewery/Taproom)
1. Good Judy’s 2. Northside Yacht Club 3. The Belle and the Bear 4. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 5. Queen City Radio 6. Longfellow 7. Hoppin’ Vines 8. MOTR Pub 9. Below Zero Lounge 10. Sundry and Vice
Best Massage Therapy Practice/Clinic
1. Woodhouse Day Spa 2. Mystic Magick Massage 3. Massage Envy
Best Nostalgic Blue Brew
Mason’s Sonder Brewing teamed up with Kings Island in the summer of 2021 for a boozy collab featuring one of Cincy’s most nostalgic sweet treats. Blue Ice Cream Ale, inspired by the amusement park’s signature blueberry- and vanilla-flavored “blue ice cream,” offers a grown-up version of a childhood classic. Sonder says it was very important…
Best Pet Boarding/Daycare
1. PetSuites 2. Red Dog Pet Resort & Spa TIE 2. Animal Care Centers TIE 3. Puppywood Pet Resort
Best Taco-and-Burger Bang for Your Buck
Mount Adams recently welcomed a new dining establishment to its quaint hilltop neighborhood. El Barril Mexican Sports Bar & Grill opened last fall and takes over the space formerly occupied by Next Chapter. As its name suggests, the eatery is part restaurant — boasting both Mexican street food and bar bites — and part sports…
Best Homemade Vegan Goetta
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 brunch, lunch and dinner. There are salads, soups, a…
Best Bourbon Selection (Retail)
1. The Party Source 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. DEP’s Fine Wine & Spirits
Best Comedy Club
1. Go Bananas Comedy Club 2. Liberty Funny Bone 3. Chameleon
Best Dance Club
1. MixWells 2. Tokyo Kitty 3. Below Zero Lounge
Best Local Taproom
1. MadTree Brewing 2. Rhinegeist 3. Urban Artifact 4. Dead Low Brewing 5. Braxton Brewing Company (Covington) 6. Fretboard Brewing Company 7. Esoteric Brewing Company 8. Sons of Toil Brewing 9. March First Brewing and Distilling 10. Nine Giant
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (East Side)
1. Coffee Emporium (Hyde Park) 2. Deeper Roots Coffee 3. Awakenings Coffee and Wine
Best Overall Restaurant
1. Sotto 2. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 3. Pepp & Dolores 4. Ivory House 5. Boca 6. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 7. The Eagle 8. Incline Public House 9. Taste of Belgium 10. Agave & Rye
Best Overall Local Athlete
1. Joe Burrow 2. Rose Lavelle 3. Jonathan India
Best Big Batavia Food Park
Food parks seem to be the next big trend in dining, with spots like Bridgeview Box Park and Covington Yard opening in Greater Cincinnati in the past year or so. Now, Cincinnati’s deep East Side is home to its own. Located at the corner of Old State Route 32 and Half-Acre Road in Batavia (on…
Best Cake Shop
1. The BonBonerie 2. Nothing Bundt Cakes 3. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 4. Brown Bear Bakery 5. 3 Sweet Girls Cakery 6. North College Hill Bakery 7. Happy Chicks Bakery 8. Fat Ben’s Bakery 9. Busken Bakery 10. Tres Belle Cakes
Best Taco for Stoned People
Bandito Food Park calls itself a “one-of-a-kind restaurant and event venue featuring an atmosphere that expresses an outer parklike celebration complete with fun food and beverages offered to match.” So how does that manifest for the Columbia Tusculum eatery? The restaurant brought outdoor vibes in by adding a vintage trailer and shipping-container-esque counter to order…
Best New Walking Trail Through a Previously Little-Known Park Space
In 2021, Wasson Way was continued through East Hyde Park and then into a mysterious, “secret” corner of Ault Park that once held the tracks of the Cincinnati Eastern Railway. What had previously been traversed on foot only by those who were hardy and in the know, this new section has since introduced a paved…
Best Macaroni & Cheese
1. Keystone Bar & Grill 2. The Eagle 3. Eli’s BBQ 4. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 5. Sweets & Meats BBQ 6. Lucius Q 7. Mama Bear’s Mac 8. The Mac Shack 9. Pig Candy BBQ 10. Ivory House
Best Way to Bingo Bengo
Back in 2015, Cincinnatian Kyle Gasnik drew a crude but lovable cartoon of the Bengals mascot (well, sort of) and jokingly titled his creation the “Cinati Bengo.” As a lark, Gasnik — then working at a sign shop — made some stickers at his job and distributed them among friends. Someone posted a photo of…
Best Neighborhood Bakery (Northern Kentucky)
1. Moonrise Doughnuts 2. Emerson’s Bakery TIE 2. North South Baking Co. TIE 3. The Baker’s Table Bakery
Best Overall Pizza (Non-Chain)
1. Taglio 2. Adriatico’s 3. Two Cities Pizza Co. 4. Strong’s Brick Oven Pizzeria 5. Krimmer’s Italianette Pizzeria 6. Fireside Pizza 7. Trotta’s Pizza & Drive-Thru 8. Saint Francis Apizza 9. Catch-a-Fire Pizza 10. Joe’s Pizza Napoli
Best German
1. Hofbräuhaus 2. Mecklenburg Gardens 3. Wunderbar Covington
Best Builder
1. Drees Homes 2. Urban Sites 3. Fischer Homes
Best Romantic Restaurant
1. Sotto 2. Orchids at Palm Court 3. Primavista 4. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 5. Pepp & Dolores 6. Ivory House 7. Via Vite 8. Alfio’s Buon Cibo 9. Salazar 10. Somm Wine Bar
Best Steakhouse
1. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 2. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 3. Walt’s Hitching Post 4. Jeff Ruby’s Carlo & Johnny 5. Losanti 6. Ivory House 7. Maury’s Tiny Cove 8. Tony’s 9. Jag’s Steak & Seafood 10. Eddie Merlot’s
Best Local Elected Official
1. Aftab Pureval 2. Kari Bloom 3. Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney
Best Private School
1. Saint Xavier High School 2. Elder High School 3. Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy
Best Sign the Apocalypse Is Nigh
According to a report from NPR, scientists say white-tailed deer are increasingly carrying SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The deer are picking up the virus and carrying it with them across the country, spreading it to other deer possibly “indefinitely,” they say. But that’s not all — scientists also speculate that the deer could…
Best Museum
1. Cincinnati Museum Center 2. Cincinnati Art Museum 3. National Underground Railroad Freedom Center 4. American Sign Museum 5. Contemporary Arts Center 6. Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum 7. Taft Museum of Art 8. Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center 9. Cincinnati Fire Museum 10. Heritage Village Museum
Best Expanded Services
The Cincinnati Public Library doesn’t stop expanding its services. Last year, the library’s 41 branches — including the fabulous new Deer Park branch in the Dillonvale shopping center — ramped up their menus as the community struggled with lockdowns, illness and isolation. In addition to outsize numbers for annual in-person visits (2.4 million) and digital…
Best Scavenger Hunt That Never Gets Old
Stroll through Glendale and you might notice the town’s rambunctious mascot — the black squirrel — scurrying up trees or across lawns. According to legend, businessman Thomas Carruthers III brought back two black squirrels from Harbor Springs, Michigan, in the 1940s, and those squirrels had a bit of a baby boom. Since then, Glendale has…
Best Important Exhibit Addition
Cincinnati’s Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center honored International Holocaust Remembrance Day in January 2022 by unveiling a new story as part of its Dimensions in Testimony exhibit. Eva Schloss, a Holocaust survivor and the posthumous stepsister of Anne Frank, shared her experience with the museum and recorded it for the exhibit. Dimensions…
Best Carpet Store
1. McSwain Carpet & Floors 2. Big Bob’s Flooring Outlet 3. JP Flooring Design Center
Best Eyewear Store
1. LensCrafters 2. Warby Parker 3. Wing Eyecare
Best Hair Salon
1. High Five Salon 2. 501 Salon & Spa 3. Parlour
Best HVAC Company
1. Schneller & Knochelmann 2. Apollo Home 3. Zimmer Heating & Cooling
Best Boutique to Find Mosser Glass
Mosser Glass is a family-owned glassmaker in Cambridge, Ohio. In operation since 1971 — but with a family glass history that goes back even further — Mosser crafts stunning, vintage-styled cake stands, dinnerware, candy bowls, tumblers, night lights and even decorative animals. Colors range from jadeite and milky “Crown Tuscan” pink to clear cobalt hues.…
Best Lady-Led Tattoo Shop
Over-the-Rhine’s appointment-only tattoo studio Lonesome Town is helmed by three hyper-talented owners/artists: Jaclin Grace Hastings, Annie Bone and Emily Sites Karns. Book directly with each tattooer for everything from retro-inspired traditional pieces and art nouveau portraits to slightly psychedelic nature scenes. The shop’s vibe is as cool as the owners, and offers a unique and…
Best Children’s Clothing Store
1. Once Upon a Child 2. The Spotted Goose 3. Castle House
Best Skin Care Service
1. Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center 2. Organic Glow Skincare and Spa 3. Alba Salon & Spa
Best Wedding Dresses
1. Bridal & Formal 2. David’s Bridal 3. Hyde Park Bridal
Best Otherworldly Escape in OTR
Something extraordinary has taken root in Over-the-Rhine, but if you’re not looking for it, you just might miss it. Tucked away on McMicken Avenue, Somerset is a sprawling hangout destination. An immersive escape from the hustle and bustle of the city, guests enter the courtyard through utterly massive and ornate over-170-year-old gates imported from India.…
Best Hometown Return to the Stage
Cincinnati legends Foxy Shazam went on hiatus in 2014, switched up band members and reunited in 2019 with new music. The band planned to tour then, but alas, COVID-19 had other ideas. But after nearly two years of foiled plans, Foxy Shazam finally roared back with double-barrelled fury in February with a show at the…
Best OB/GYN
1. Axia Women’s Health 2. TriHealth Women’s Services 3. Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region
Best Place to Sing Your Heart Out
Some days we just need to get drunk and sing some karaoke — and the best place we’ve found in the city to do that is at the immersive Japanese-inspired bar Tokyo Kitty. If you’re feeling bold, belt it out at the main bar or reserve a private room where you can order specialty cocktails…
Best Bar That Feels Like a Basement
Northside’s The Lounge at Liberty Exhibition Hall is a very low-key hang, open to everyone. Specializing in live music — with a focus on Jazz nights — the bar offers cocktails, wine, beer and non-alcoholic tea concoctions in an environment that feels very much like a 1970s swingers basement. The dim, red-hued lighting is accessorized by…
Best Bar/Club Staff
1. The Belle and the Bear 2. Northside Yacht Club 3. Below Zero Lounge
Best Dadaist Live Set
If their laissez-faire approach to capitalization didn’t clue you in, then pressing play on their latest album, Last Chance at the Pharmacy, will: Fruit LoOops are a band that relishes in bending the rules. Pushing the anarchic spirit of late-’70s Punk acts like The Raincoats or Swell Maps to abstract extremes, the band thrashes, skronks…
Best Cheap AF Taco Tuesday
How does your family follow “Meatless Monday?” If it’s not with Taco Tuesday, you’re missing out. For a medium-size Midwestern city, Cincinnati offers up a shit-ton of delicious taco options. On Tuesdays, though, we get our tacos from Tortilleria Garcia. For cheaper-than-Taco-Bell prices, you can load up on good AF, authentic tacos with a few…
Best Hotel Bar
1. Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar 2. The Bar at Palm Court 3. Metropole
Best Bar Chandelier
MadTree Brewing opened a new multi-level bar, restaurant and event space in Over-the-Rhine in early March 2022. Called Alcove, the heavily windowed space features areas to lounge, drink and dine, including inside a greenhouse or on a large outdoor patio. The food is focused on farm-to-table dishes created by chef Stephen Williams of Bouquet Restaurant…
Best Rooftop Bar
1. Rhinegeist 2. Braxton Brewing Company 3. 21c Cocktail Terrace 4. Top of the Park 5. City View Tavern 6. The View at Shires’ Garden 7. AC Upper Deck 8. Pins Mechanical Company 9. Bishop’s Quarter 10. The Blind Pig
Best Goetta-Infused Poutine
Could there be a better combination than the marriage of the Canadian classic, poutine and the Cincinnati staple, goetta? The Breakfast Poutine from Northside Yacht Club is the deliciously decadent offspring of the two, featuring fresh-cut fries, homemade goetta gravy, Wisconsin cheese curds, scallions and a fried egg. It’s only available on Sundays, for the…
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (East Side)
1. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 2. Mazunte 3. BrewRiver Creole Kitchen
Best Burritos
1. Gomez Salsa 2. Mazunte 3. The Comet
Best Late-Night Burger Spot
Jack Brown’s Beer & Burger Joint started as a dream shared between two longtime friends, Aaron Ludwig and Mike Sabin. The duo now has more than a dozen Jack Brown locations in the U.S., including one right here on Main Street in Over-the-Rhine. The eatery’s burgers are 100% Wagyu beef, sourced from a family-owned and…
Best Chinese
1. Oriental Wok 2. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia 3. Shanghai on Elm 4. First Wok 5. Fortune Noodle House 6. Uncle Yip’s 7. Blue Gibbon Chinese Restaurant 8. China Gourmet 9. Pacific Kitchen 10. Chung Ching Restaurant
Best Use for Semi-Deserted Tennis Courts
Pickleball, which has nothing to do with pickles, has been around since 1965, but it became a phenomenon in 2021 spreading as fast as the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Legend goes, the bored family of a Washington State congressman invented the game when they had access to a badminton court but no equipment, so instead…
Best Mediterranean/Greek
1. Aladdin’s Eatery 2. Sebastian’s Gyros 3. Andy’s Mediterranean Grille 4. LEYLA Mediterranean 5. Greek to Me 6. Phoenician Taverna 7. Forty Thieves 8. Chicago Gyros & Dogs 9. Abigail Street 10. Fillo Greek Bake Shop
Best Neighborhood Bakery (Burbs)
1. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 2. Holtman’s Donuts (Loveland) 3. Wyoming Pastry Shop
Best Food Delivery Service
1. DoorDash 2. Green Bean Delivery 3. Domo
Best Kitchen Surprise
Sometimes surprises are great. Other times… it’s debatable. Some Skyline fans were in the latter camp this winter when they opened their grocery-store cans of chili and found… yellow stuff. Wait, what? Hundreds of Skyline connoisseurs took to social media to post photos of their discoveries, declaring that the substance decidedly was not the ingredient…
Best Boxing Statue
This fall saw the groundbreaking for a statue of Cincinnati hero and world heavyweight boxing champion Ezzard Charles. The 13-foot-tall statue will honor Charles’ legacy and should be fully in place at its home Laurel Park in the West End in 2022. John Hebenstreit, who also designed the Black Brigade monument in Smale Riverfront Park,…
Best Chase Scene
It was a ready-made joke just begging for a punchline. In November, two officers from the Cincinnati Police Department responded to a call to help capture a skittish runaway pig in Bond Hill. A Facebook video shows the officers following the piggy around some apartment buildings on Yarmouth Avenue, chuckling as they tried to complete…
Best Tacos
1. Mazunte 2. Agave & Rye 3. Condado Tacos 4. Bakersfield 5. La Mexicana 6. Tortilleria Garcia 7. OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez 8. Gomez Salsa 9. Taco Casa 10. Pata Roja Taqueria
Best View From Your Table
1. Incline Public House 2. Primavista 3. Montgomery Inn Boathouse 4. Moerlein Lager House 5. City View Tavern 6. The View at Shires’ Garden 7. The Chart House 8. Eighteen at the Radisson 9. Le Bar a Boeuf 10. Fausto
Best Local Podcast
1. Cincinnati Zoo Tales 2. That’s So Cincinnati 3. Accused 4. Autism Stories 5. True Crime Historian 6. Art Palace 7. Cincinnati Soccer Talk 8. Cincy Brewcast 9. The Jungle Jim’s Podcast 10. Takes All Over the Place
Best TV Newscast
1. WLWT (Channel 5) 2. WXIX (Channel 19) 3. WCPO (Channel 9)
Best City Steps for Walking
Where would we be during this pandemic without the many hillside steps that let us get some fresh air and exercise without having to be in extended proximity to big crowds? Cincinnati Art Museum’s nicely landscaped Art Climb, which debuted in 2020, got most of the attention, but it’s hard to beat the Main Street…
Best New Thing
1. Joe Burrow/Winning Bengals season 2. Vaccinations 3. Mayor Aftab Pureval 4. TQL Stadium 5. Somerset 6. Ghost Baby 7. Art Climb at Cincinnati Art Museum 8. “Feed Me” mural in Covington 9. Wasson Way 10. The Jungle Jim’s Podcast
Best Place to be One with the Kangaroos
Walk among kangaroos as they lounge, graze and hop at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden’s Australian-themed Roo Valley. Surrounded by lush foliage and trees, the 15,000-square-foot walkabout features a path upon which guests can stroll as the animals roam. The path leads to another species native to Down Under — little blue penguins (the…
Best Charity Festival/Event
1. Cincinnati Pride 2. Flying Pig Marathon 3. Cincy Beerfest
Best Irreverent Street Art
Mononymous and anonymous Cincinnati street artist Technique2012 specializes in blending humor, pop culture and social commentary in their singular creations. Pasted throughout the city, spotting one of Technique2012’s pieces offers a moment of irreverent joy, as the best street art does — an unexpected, welcome and often thought-provoking interruption in the day-to-day. For example, there’s…
Best Clothing Consignment
1. Snooty Fox 2. Once Upon A Child 3. Clothes Mentor
Best Financial Planning Service
1. Fidelity Investments 2. The Rosselot Financial Group 3. Fifth Third Bank
Best Way to Greet the Day
Waking up early on a Monday — or, let’s be real, any day — can be a slog, but a tantalizing scent waiting in the bathroom means we’re less apt to pull the covers back over our head. That’s where &Sundries comes in. The East Walnut Hills shop founded by University of Cincinnati grad John…
Best Spot to Find Vintage Sportswear
Since Rad OTR first opened in November 2017, owners and University of Cincinnati grads Billy Luther and Jake Courtney have curated their collection — made up of 1980s and ’90s vintage clothing and accessories — to reflect the community they’ve built. A feature wall showcases both vintage shoes and recent releases from some of the…
Best Boon for Bookworms
For any bookworm out there who loses their sense of time when wrapped up in a good novel, the Campbell County Public Library says not to worry. The library system decided to go permanently fine free in August after adopting that model in March 2020 because of COVID-19. CCPL said they saw an overwhelmingly positive…
Best Auto Detailer
1. Mr. Bubbles Detailing 2. carZmedics 3. Sharonville Car Wash & Detail Center
Best Carpet Cleaning
1. Widmer’s 2. Stanley Steemer 3. Teasdale Fenton Cleaning & Property Restoration
Best Smoke/Tobacco Shop
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. High on the Hill 3. Hemptations
Best Wedding Photography Service
1. Steph Keller Photography 2. Jessica Wiggins Photography 3. Eleven:11 Photography
Best Locksmith
1. Larry’s Lock, Safe & Security 2. Acme Lock 3. Mr. Lock Security
Best Medi Spa
1. Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center 2. Your Wellness Center 3. Godiva Medspa
Best Outdoor/Outfitters Shop
1. REI 2. Cabela’s 3. Bass Pro Shops
Best Bar/Club (Central)
1. Northside Yacht Club 2. Good Judy’s 3. Northside Tavern
Best Spritzer Hour
The owners of HomeMakers Bar in Over-the-Rhine have created a space inspired by a retro vibe and the domestic cocktails of the 1950s through the 1970s. It’s a cozy, colorful spot for a drink featuring lesser-known liqueurs. They have plenty of theme days, like a gin and tonic bar on Sundays, but we like Spritzer…
Best Bartender (with Bar Affiliation)
1. Molly Wellmann (Japp’s) 2. Ceris Christopher (The Belle and the Bear) 3. Valerie Diehl (Lost & Found)
Best Streaming Alternative Radio Station
At a low point in the Cincinnati music scene just a few years ago, there was no radio arena that showcased independent music artists and local performers. Beloved Independent Rock station WOXY-FM had finally shuttered and WNKU-FM had been sold. But then streaming platform Inhailer Radio came along to fill the void, offering its tagline…
Best Escape Room
1. Breakout Games 2. The Escape Game 3. OTR Escape
Best Frozen Dumplings
There are so many dumpling options in the city, but how many of them are good enough to change the way you think about what a dumpling can accomplish? At Bridges Nepali Cuisine, the humble momo does just that. The Chipalu family, which owns and operates Bridges, brought their recipes from the Kathmandu Valley in…
Best Place to Get a Meat and Three Sides
Some seriously Southern food has been served up near Findlay Market since Mighty Good: Meat n’ Three on Elm Street opened its doors in October. The restaurant focuses on “simple, delicious, fresh, Southern food at an approachable price.” And as the “Meat n’ Three” name implies, customers can select one meat and three sides (family-style…
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (Northern Kentucky)
1. Carabello Coffee 2. Unataza Coffee 3. Roebling Point Books & Coffee
Best Cupcakes
1. The BonBonerie 2. Abby Girl Sweets Cupcakery 3. Gigi’s Cupcakes 4. 3 Sweet Girls Cakery 5. North College Hill Bakery 6. SugarSnap! Truck 7. Happy Chicks Bakery 8. Cakes & Pastries by George 9. Tres Belle Cakes 10. Wyoming Pastry Shop
Best Donuts
1. Holtman’s Donuts 2. Moonrise Doughnuts 3. Marcella’s Doughnuts & Bakery 4. Busken Bakery 5. Starlight Doughnut Lab 6. Bonomini Bakery 7. Peace Love & Little Donuts 8. Graeter’s Ice Cream 9. North College Hill Bakery 10. Emerson’s Bakery
Best Pilates Studio
1. Body Alive 2. Shellates Studio 3. Pendleton Pilates
Best Cheap Eats
1. Skyline Chili 2. Zip’s Cafe 3. Goodfellas Pizzeria
Best Chocolates
1. Aglamesis Bro’s 2. Maverick Chocolate Co. 3. Esther Price
Best Hidden Gem
1. Mazunte 2. Incline Public House 3. The Blind Lemon 4. The Governor 5. Ivory House 6. Galactic Fried Chicken 7. Joe’s Pizza Napoli 8. Kiki College Hill 9. Nine Giant Brewing 10. Good Plates Eatery
Best Indian
1. Ambar India Restaurant 2. Baba India Restaurant 3. Dusmesh Indian Restaurant 4. Shaan Indian Cuisine 5. Amol India 6. Adeep India Restaurant 7. Delhi Palace Indian Cuisine 8. Jot India 9. Guru India Restaurant TIE 9. Maya Indian Restaurant TIE 10. Krishna Indian Restaurant & Carryout
Best Viral Moment for an MLB Player’s Kid
As of press time, there’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding pro baseball: MLB had canceled — and then un-canceled — the first few weeks of the season, and we still don’t know where Reds right-fielder-turned-free-agent Nick Castellanos will end up (update: Castellanos has since gone to the Philadelphia Phillies). But damn if Castellanos’ kid didn’t…
Best Neighborhood Bakery (West Side)
1. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 2. Busken Bakery 3. Regina Bakery
Best Reason Not to Drink a 30-Year-Old Can of Hu-Dey Beer
There has always been a symbiotic relationship between Cincinnati’s Hudepohl Brewing Company, founded in 1885, and the Cincinnati Bengals, established in 1967. And, yes, part of that is built on the rumor that the team’s Who Dey slogan is a derivative of fans shouting for “Hudy” beer at games. The popular origin story even prompted…
Best Reason for Finial Lovers to Rejoice
Look up the next time you walk by Music Hall to see 10 sandstone finials newly restored by the Friends of Music Hall. Built in 1878, the decorative ornamentations were damaged or went missing from their perch on the roof. Also restored was a sandstone lyre, an ancient symbol of music, fittingly placed in the…
Best Common-Sense Decision
Controversial — some might say ill-conceived — legislation in Mason was aborted in December. After months of attempting to become a “sanctuary city for the unborn,” Mason finally gave up its mission to ban abortions when the city council voted 6-1 to repeal an anti-abortion ordinance that was supposed to have taken effect in November.…
Best Cincinnatian
1. Fiona the hippo 2. Joe Burrow 3. Megan Mitchell 4. Rose Lavelle 5. Molly Wellmann 6. Brian Garry 7. Anthony Muñoz 8. Pete Rose 9. Bob Herzog 10. Nick Lachey
Best Subs/Sandwiches
1. Melt Revival 2. Carl’s Deli 3. Silverglades
Best MBA Program
1. University of Cincinnati 2. Xavier University 3. Northern Kentucky University
Best Progressive
1. Aftab Pureval 2. Brian Garry 3. Kari Bloom
Best Kid-Friendly Attraction
1. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 2. The Children’s Museum at the Cincinnati Museum Center 3. Kings Island 4. Newport Aquarium 5. Cincinnati Parks 6. Smale Riverfront Park 7. Great Parks of Hamilton County 8. Washington Park 9. Cincinnati Art Museum 10. Cincinnati Nature Center
Best Place to Find the Real Truth, Man
You don’t need to fear being ousted as a weirdo anymore if you think you have seen a UFO (or, as the government now refers to them, Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, or UAPs). Unexplained things going on in the sky are more and more common these days and better verified or dismissed with the advances in…
Best Artistic Director Hanging Up Her Toe Shoes
Victoria Morgan has led the Cincinnati Ballet for a quarter century, one of just three women to direct a big-budget American ballet company. She has been a dynamic leader, championing classical and contemporary works and choreographing some of the company’s most beloved productions, including King Arthur’s Camelot, The Nutcracker, Cinderella and Snow White. Before arriving…
Best Art Academy Expansion
In August, the Art Academy of Cincinnati expanded into a neighboring space to expand the school’s mission. SITE 1212 is the AAC’s “new center for community impact.” Located at 1212 Jackson St. in the former BarrelHouse — a popular music venue and one of the city’s first wave of modern microbreweries — the spot remained…
Best Caterer
1. Vonderhaar’s Catering 2. Funky’s Catering Events 3. Jeff Thomas Catering
Best Cellphone Service Provider
1. Verizon 2. AT&T 3. T-Mobile
Best Handyman
1. Hyde Park Painting & Carpentry 2. Mr. Handyman 3. Crist Construction LLC
Best Insurance Agency
1. State Farm 2. Cincinnati Insurance Companies 3. Geico
Best Inclusive Craft Shop
Jennifer Cox, an avid crafter who recently returned to Cincinnati, was looking for a community and space to feel at home as a maker. But when she couldn’t find what she was looking for, she decided to take matters into her own hands. Cox opened Make.Do, a craft store in Pleasant Ridge that offers fabric,…
Best New Store
1. Fern (Walnut Hills) 2. Creative House of Art & Design 3. The Daily Vintage
Best Physician/Healthcare Practice
1. TriHealth 2. The Christ Hospital 3. Mercy Health
Best Sporting Goods
1. Play It Again Sports 2. Koch Sporting Goods 3. Dunham’s Sports
Best Wedding Reception Hall
1. Bell Event Centre 2. The Madison Event Center 3. Drees Pavilion
Best Bar/Club (Northern Kentucky)
1. Southgate House Revival 2. Crazy Fox Saloon 3. Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar 4. Jerry’s Jug House 5. Gypsy’s 6. Wiseguy Lounge 7. Bobby Mackey’s 8. JerZees Pub & Grub 9. The Hannaford 10. The B-List
Best Medical Marijuana Dispensary
1. Sunnyside 2. Verilife 3. Have a Heart Cincy
Best Dropping of Letters
Quite a few Cincinnati venues are a mouthful to say, and honestly, nobody needs that when you’re trying to breathlessly gush about your favorite band you’ll soon be seeing there. But at least one now has two fewer syllables. In December, the Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center, received a new name — er, at…
Best Pet Grooming
1. Wüf Pet Spa 2. Animal Care Centers 3. Puppywood Pet Resort TIE 3. Animal Ark TIE
Best Bar/Club for Live Music (Local Bands)
1. MOTR Pub 2. Southgate House Revival 3. The Belle and the Bear
Best Place to Throw Darts
1. Murphy’s Pub 2. Crazy Fox Saloon 3. The Belle and the Bear
Best Bowling Alley
1. Western Bowl 2. Madison Bowl 3. Pins Mechanical Company
Best Concert Venue
1. Riverbend Music Center 2. Bogart’s 3. Southgate House Revival
Best Jukebox
1. The Comet 2. Anchor Grill 3. Madonna’s Bar & Grill
Best Sports Bar
1. The Holy Grail Tavern and Grille 2. Knockback Nat’s 3. Second Place 4. Hoppin’ Vines 5. Rhinehaus 6. Queen City Exchange 7. Higher Gravity 8. Cobblestone OTR 9. The 859 Taproom and Grill 10. The Pitch
Best Overall Restaurant (Northern Kentucky)
1. Pompilios 2. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia 3. Bouquet Restaurant 4. Agave & Rye 5. Walt’s Hitching Post 6. Otto’s 7. The Baker’s Table 8. Greyhound Tavern 9. Libby’s Southern Comfort 10. Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (Northern Kentucky)
1. Pompilios 2. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia 3. Otto’s
Best Barbecue
1. Eli’s BBQ 2. Lucius Q 3. Montgomery Inn 4. City Barbeque 5. Sweets & Meats BBQ 6. Pig Candy BBQ 7. Pickles & Bones Barbecue 8. Just Q’in 9. Bee’s Barbecue 10. Harmon’s BBQ
Best Raclette Night
Want to hear a joke about raclette night at Oakley Wines? Nevermind, it’s too cheesy. But the food menu and wine selection at Oakley Wines is no laughing matter, especially during the winter. During the colder months, the bar offers up a weekly raclette night. If you’ve never had raclette, it’s an event that dominates…
Best Cincinnati-Spawned National Day
Celebrated the Friday after Lent begins, National Tartar Sauce Day is a uniquely Cincinnati holiday — and not just because the city is full of Catholics. Apparently local restaurant chain Frisch’s Big Boy is the one that started National Tartar Sauce Day to honor the tangy condiment. The restaurant says it launched the initiative five…
Best Way to Get the Meat Sweats at the Ballpark
Ballpark fare can make anyone salivate. Honestly, who doesn’t love a thick frank or a sundae in a plastic baseball cap? But the Montgomery Inn’s Smokehouse Parfait at Great American Ball Park scratches our itch for something a little more interesting and a lot more meaty. Introduced during the Cincinnati Reds’ 2021 season, Montgomery Inn’s…
Best Menu (Most Innovative)
1. Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey 2. The Governor 3. Sotto
Best Running/Biking Event
1. Flying Pig Marathon 2. Queen Bee Half Marathon 3. Cyclones Frozen 5K/10K
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (East Side)
1. Zip’s Cafe 2. Arthur’s 3. The Turf Club
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (‘Burbs)
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. A Tavola 3. LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria
Best Beer at The Banks
Any beer is really the best beer at The Banks after the development of the area’s DORA district. The 85-acre “Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area” officially opened last March and allows those of legal drinking age to wander around a specific space with an open container. The Banks’ DORA spans from Paul Brown Stadium to Heritage…
Best Building
1. Union Terminal 2. Music Hall 3. Carew Tower
Best Salads
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. Maplewood Kitchen and Bar 3. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse
Best Waitstaff/Service
1. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 2. Sotto 3. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 4. Pepp & Delores 5. Ivory House 6. Dewey’s Pizza 7. Dead Low Brewing 8. Aladdin’s Eatery 9. Abigail Street 10. Alfio’s Buon Cibo
Best Northern Kentuckian
1. George Clooney 2. Kathrine Nero 3. Cris Collinsworth 4. Nick Clooney 5. Michael Monks 6. Otto M. Budig Jr. 7. Jean-Robert de Cavel 8. Amy McGrath 9. Maryanne Zeleznik 10. Tom Browning
Best TV Sportscaster
1. Dan Hoard (Bengals, Bearcats) 2. George Vogel (WLWT) 3. Joe Danneman (WXIX)
Best Reason to Research Your Doctor – and Your Elected Officials – Very Carefully
Last summer, Republican State Rep. Jennifer Gross of West Chester helped launch the claims of Dr. Sherri Tenpenny — a state-licensed doctor of osteopathic medicine — onto the late-night-comedy TV circuit when she invited the doctor to testify before the Ohio House Health Committee in support of the “Vaccine Choice and Anti-Discrimination Act.” Tenpenny spouted…
Best Old Thing
1. Findlay Market 2. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 3. Union Terminal 4. Roebling Suspension Bridge 5. Krohn Conservatory 6. Spring Grove 7. Over-the-Rhine 8. Music Hall 9. Eden Park 10. Cincinnati Art Museum
Best Theater Al Fresco
During the pandemic, most local theaters had to get creative for production locales. Perhaps the most striking was The Carnegie, stepping away from its historic library venue on Scott Street in Covington to the new Covington Plaza outdoor amphitheater. In August they produced Little Shop of Horrors, the fun and frothy horror-flick-inspired musical. The tale…
Best Opportunity to See a Starry Night
This past year, immersive Vincent van Gogh exhibits from multiple international presenters have been traveling to cities across the U.S. The exhibitions create all-encompassing, multi-sensory indoor environments by pairing the latest in digital technology with images recreated from van Gogh’s paintings. Newfields, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, converted its entire fourth floor into The Lume…
Best Summer Blow-Out
After canceling 2020’s large public event due to COVID-19 (they still shot off fireworks from a secret location), the 45th annual Riverfest took place over Labor Day weekend in 2021. Launched more than four decades ago to celebrate the 10th anniversary of radio station WEBN (102.7 FM), this bash officially signals the end of summer…
Best Comic Book Store
1. Queen City Comic and Card Company 2. Up Up & Away! 3. Shake It Records
Best Findlay Market Vendor
1. Eli’s BBQ 2. Blue Oven Bakery 3. Pet Wants
Best Spot for Coffee, Kombucha and Cacti
If you were to create a shop that is basically catnip to millennials and Gen-Z-ers, it would be Newport’s headquarters for Fleurish Grounds and Flow coffee. Fleurish Grounds started out as a pop-up in co-owner Christine Funke’s garage before it turned into a popular brick-and-mortar storefront in Madisonville. Funke closed that shop last year and…
Best Airbnb and Art Exhibit Combo
The Swing House is a whole-building art project — a freestanding 1880s three-story brick home in Camp Washington where owner and artist Mark DeJong has removed the interior walls and upper floors and built a swing right in the middle of the opened-up interior. Made from pine he salvaged from third-floor joists, the swing is…
Best Antique Store
1. Ohio Valley Antique Mall 2. Wooden Nickel Antiques 3. Flamingo Haven Antique Mall
Best Overall Boutique (Local)
1. Cincy Shirts 2. BlaCk OWned Outerwear 3. The Native Brand 4. Kentucky Botanical Co. 5. Kismet 6. Rose & Remington 7. Homage 8. MiCA 12/v 9. Queen City Alchemy 10. Fleurish Home
Best Lingerie Store
1. Knickers of Hyde Park 2. Victoria’s Secret 3. Hustler Hollywood
Best Tailor/Seamstress
1. Peppe Ramundo 2. Romualdo 3. Janet Morris
Best Wedding Venue (Indoors)
1. Cincinnati Art Museum 2. Hotel Covington 3. The Monastery Event Center
Best Law Firm
1. Treleven & Klingensmith 2. Keating Muething & Klekamp 3. Law Offices of Shannon C. Smith
Best Cincinnati Band in a James Gunn Production
Foxy Shazam’s “Welcome to the Church of Rock and Roll” sounds like an acid-fueled James Bond theme made by The Stooges and Robert Plant. It caught lots of attention when the song was used in James Gunn’s Peacemaker series on HBO, and Gunn even tweeted a shout-out to Foxy Shazam in response to fans asking…
Best Paint Store
1. Sherwin-Williams 2. Ace Hardware Clifton 3. Oakley Paint & Glass
Best Playful Pinnell
Like many young Country converts, Jeremy Pinnell found commonality between his Punk roots and the early flag wavers of down-home music (“Honesty, truth, integrity and outlaws. Good Hardcore and Punk to good Country — they all have those qualities,” Pinnell told CityBeat in 2012, the year he and his band debuted). After two straight Country…
Best Fuck You to Putin
Sarah Dworak is the granddaughter of Ukrainian immigrants and the mastermind behind both Babushka Pierogies and Over-the-Rhine’s Wodka Bar. As the name would suggest, Wodka Bar carries an ambitious selection of vodkas, stocking upward of 60 types, as well as several dozen house-infused vodkas with flavors like smoked Earl Grey, beet and horseradish, cherry jalapeño…
Best Use of Avocado in a Mexican Restaurant
You might think this designation would be reserved for guacamole. It’s not. Crown Restaurant Group (Crown Republic Gastropub, Losanti, Rosie’s Cocktails & Pies) opened its newest restaurant, La Cantina in the former Cheapside Cafe location downtown in February. Offering a self-described mix of “contemporary, authentic Mexican cuisine and cocktails,” the kitchen is helmed by chef…
Best Casino
1. Hard Rock Casino 2. Belterra Park 3. Hollywood Casino
Best Breakfast Trailer
Squeezed into a bite-sized vintage trailer, husband-and-wife duo Nate and China Kautz serve eggy breakfast sandwiches as Cincinnati-based pop-up Cackleberry (a term for a hen’s egg). The petite menu blends Queen City staples with Filipino-fusion ingredients to offer options like the Lolo, with longanisa sausage and atchara pickled slaw, and a goetta sandwich called the…
Best Karaoke
1. Tokyo Kitty 2. Northside Yacht Club 3. Tostado’s Grill
Best Carb Crown
Cincinnati’s food scene is historically well known for a couple of unique contributions to the world — chili and goetta — but Food & Wine magazine recently gave props to the city for something other than meat: bread. In its January list of the “Best Bread in Every State,” three bakeries took home top honors…
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (West Side)
1. BLOC Coffee Company 2. Muse Cafe 3. Biggby Coffee
Best Fresh Tortillas
The quality of Tortilleria Garcia’s fresh, housemade tortillas is so superior that it’s just not fair to other taco joints. Woe betide any fool that orders a flour tortilla at this spot. Well, that’s harsh, but the majority of the menu is best served with those golden maize disks, so simple in their ingredients and…
Best Worst Lunchtime Goodbye
Lunch just won’t be the same in the Central Business District after two decades-old staples closed their doors. Both Total Juice Plus and Fred & Gari’s received an ultimatum from their landlord telling them they had to be out of their longstanding, neighboring storefronts on Vine Street by the end of January this year. The…
Best Beer Selection (Restaurant)
1. Yard House 2. Northside Yacht Club 3. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia
Best Fast-Food Expansion
One of Ohio’s most beloved hamburger joints finally is fully operational in Cincinnati. Akron-based Swensons Drive-In opened its first Queen City location in Union Township in January. Established in 1934, the fast-food chain largely operates on an old-timey drive-in model, in which patrons park near the restaurant and a server takes orders at their car…
Best Coffeehouse (Local)
1. Coffee Emporium 2. Deeper Roots Coffee 3. Mom ‘n ‘em Coffee & Wine 4. Unataza Coffee 5. BlaCk Coffee Lounge 6. The Coffee Exchange of Pleasant Ridge 7. Kitty Brew Cafe 8. Urbana Cafe TIE 8. Proud Hound Coffee TIE 9. Carabello Coffee 10. Luckman Coffee
Best Hot Dog/Sausage
1. Senate 2. The Root Beer Stand 3. Eli’s BBQ
Best Mexican
1. Mazunte 2. La Mexicana 3. Tortilleria Garcia 4. El Rancho Grande 5. Taqueria Mercado 6. Cancun Mexican Restaurant 7. Agave & Rye 8. Rio Grande 9. Frida’s 10. El Jinete
Best Neighborhood Bakery (Central)
1. The BonBonerie 2. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 3. North College Hill Bakery
Best Food Festival or Event
1. Taste of Cincinnati 2. Oktoberfest 3. Glier’s Goettafest
Best Team (College)
1. University of Cincinnati Football 2. Xavier University Men’s Basketball 3. University of Cincinnati Men’s Basketball
Best Cure for the Need for Speed
Street safety has been a growing concern in Cincinnati neighborhoods in recent years, with the number of automobile-pedestrian crashes, injuries and deaths rising. Speeding vehicles typically are the culprits, and local leaders are enacting measures to try to curb the practice. A speed-reduction pilot program in Winton Hills has proven effective, with average vehicle speeds…
Best New COVID-19 Tool
The year 2020 was a dark one, as the onset of the coronavirus pandemic claimed hundreds of thousands of lives with few remedies in sight. But 2021 brought hope with the release of three FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines in the United States. Later, there was even more good news as booster shots became available. Scientific trials…
Best Seafood
1. Pelican’s Reef 2. Ivory House 3. Oakley Fish House
Best Sushi
1. Cloud 9 Sushi 2. Ichiban Japanese Restaurant 3. Wabi Sabi 4. Teak OTR TIE 4. Wild Ginger TIE 5. Drunken Bento 6. Green Papaya 7. E+O Kitchen 8. Kyoto TIE 8. Kanji TIE 9. Fusian 10. Dancing Roll
Best Northern Kentucky Neighborhood
1. Covington 2. Newport 3. Bellevue
Best Public School
1. Walnut Hills High School 2. School for Creative and Performing Arts 3. Oak Hills High School
Best Cicada Invasion
They’re coming! At least, that’s what entomologists predicted. Following a 17-year residency underground, billions of cicadas were set to emerge throughout Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky last summer. And while the insects did arrive and cause a buzz in certain places, Brood X, as this generation of insects was called, didn’t quite blanket the region…
Best Local Artist
1. Pam Kravetz 2. Kevin Necessary 3. Anthony “Tank” Mansfield
Best Edible Addition to the Dictionary
As one of the largest dictionaries in the world, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary periodically adds words to its considerable archives, updating as definitions change or something becomes part of the zeitgeist. In its October updates, Merriam-Webster added a term that Cincinnati is all too familiar with: “Goetta.” The German dish appears on menus all around Greater…
Best Fountain Square Event
1. Reds Opening Day Rally on the Square 2. Ice Rink on Fountain Square 3. Salsa on the Square
Best Prost with the Most
Another favorite festival that returned after a COVID hiatus was Oktoberfest Zinzinnati. Because the giant public party was canceled in 2020, organizers made up for it by adding an extra day in 2021. The festival — which celebrates Cincinnati’s German heritage with beer, bratwurst, racing wiener dogs and the world’s largest chicken dance — spanned…
Best Florist
1. Adrian Durban Florist 2. Daisy Jane’s Flower Truck 3. Gia & the Blooms
Best Hardware Store
1. Ace Hardware 2. Lowe’s 3. Home Depot
Best Interior Designer
1. David A. Millett 2. High St. 3. Honor & Grace
Best Cincinnati Art Icon We Said Goodbye to in 2021
Cincinnati lost an icon in July. Beloved and before-her-time fashion illustrator Anne Wainscott died at the age of 104. Her life was full of color, adventure and creativity. Wainscott was born to immigrant parents and raised largely in Cincinnati, where she remained throughout her life and work. Her love of fashion merged with illustration, and,…
Best Auto Repair Service
1. Tire Discounters 2. Donovan’s Auto & Tire Center 3. AAA | Bob Sumerel Tire & Service
Best Piercing Studio
1. Beelistic Tattoo 2. Skincraft Piercing & Tattoo 3. Cincinnati Tattoo & Piercing Co.
Best Tanning Salon
1. WAX Cincinnati 2. Palm Beach Tan 3. Organic Glow Skincare and Spa
Best Wedding Venue (Outdoors)
1. WoodBottom Quail Farms 2. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 3. Cincinnati Nature Center
Best Mall/Shopping Center
1. Kenwood Towne Centre 2. Rookwood Commons & Pavilion 3. Liberty Center
Best Men’s Clothing Store
1. BlaCk OWned Outerwear 2. Cincy Shirts 3. Duluth Trading Company
Best Astroturf Ceiling
Soccer-themed sports bar The Pitch, located directly across from TQL Stadium, opened before the first home match of FC Cincinnati’s 2021 Major League Soccer season. Housed in the former two-story Metropolitan Baptist Church space, the bar boasts plenty of nods to its sporty namesake (the term for the field upon which soccer is played). There’s…
Best Pet Supply Store
1. PetSmart 2. Pet Wants (Over-the-Rhine) 3. Pet People
Best Swiftie
“Look What You Made Me Do.” Cincinnati-bred Aaron Dessner of The National may have uttered those words when he came to collaborator Taylor Swift’s defense in January after Blur and Gorillaz singer Damon Albarn suggested during an interview that Swift doesn’t write her own songs. Musicians who had collaborated with Swift chimed in with their…
Best Beer Selection (Bottles & Cans)
1. Higher Gravity 2. The Comet 3. Northside Yacht Club
Best Garlic Naan on the Other Side of the River
Family-owned restaurant Jot India opened its doors in Newport in early 2021. Its strip-mall location may be unassuming, but its food is anything but. Sopping up the vegetarian, chicken, lamb and seafood specialties with a side of fresh garlic naan is a must. Warm and topped with fresh herbs, it’s the perfect sidekick to any…
Best Happy Hour (Drinks)
1. Northside Yacht Club 2. Dead Low Brewing 3. Hoppin’ Vines 4. Queen City Exchange 5. Righteous Room 6. Igby’s 7. Higher Gravity 8. R.P. McMurphy’s 9. Streetside Brewery 10. S.W. Clyborne Co. Provision & Spirits
Best Fishy Facelift
After closing in October of 2021 for renovations, Alabama Fish Bar reopened at the start of 2022 to once again serve the self-proclaimed “best fried fish in Cincinnati.” 3CDC acquired and revamped the three-decade-old eatery as part of its $50 million Willkommen project, which includes building or rehabbing several buildings across Over-the-Rhine to create residential…
Best Bengal (Current)
1. Joe Burrow 2. Evan McPherson 3. Ja’Marr Chase
Best Golf Course (Public)
1. Blue Ash Golf Course 2. Devou Park Golf Course 3. Elks Run Golf Club
Best Hiking Trail
1. Cincinnati Nature Center 2. Loveland Bike Trail 3. Ault Park 4. Mount Airy Forest 5. Sharon Woods 6. Miami Whitewater Forest 7. Winton Woods 8. Devou Park Backcountry Trail 9. Bender Mountain Nature Preserve 10. East Fork State Park
Best Farmers Market
1. Findlay Market 2. Hyde Park Farmers’ Market 3. Northside Farmers Market
Best Business Lunch
1. Montgomery Inn 2. Skyline Chili 3. Nada
Best Cheese Shop
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. The Rhined 3. Share Cheesebar
Best Apizza Carry-Out
In true hidden-gem fashion, Saint Francis Apizza’s brick-and-mortar location in East Hyde Park doesn’t look like anything special. It’s a clean, well-lit little kitchen and counter designed only for customers to pick up their order — no dine-in at present. Once that pizza box is open, though, things start to get great. “Apizza” distinguishes itself…
Best Way to Celebrate the Cyclones’ Post-COVID Return
For a long time during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cincinnati had a big, puck-shaped hole. The Cincinnati Cyclones hadn’t played an official, regular-season game since March 11, 2020 — that is, until Oct. 23, 2021, when the Cyclones visited the Indy Fuel. Indy came to Cincy a week later for the home opener for not only…
Best Player to Make Us Love Soccer
Oh, Rose Lavelle, look at you now. The Mount Notre Dame High School alumna keeps racking up the kudos and extended her contract with OL Reign in February. The year 2022 is just starting, but 2021 was fire for Lavelle, who continues to prove that Cincinnati breeds winners. In September, Lavelle and the U.S. Women’s…
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (Burbs)
1. Arthur’s 2. Fifty West Burger Bar 3. Quatman Cafe (Mason)
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (Northern Kentucky)
1. Bard’s Burgers & Chili 2. Barleycorn’s 3. Herb & Thelma’s Tavern
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (Central)
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. Adriatico’s 3. Fireside Pizza
Best Restaurant Design
1. Sotto 2. Orchids at Palm Court 3. Dead Low Brewing
Best Restaurant for Fine Dining
1. Sotto 2. Jeff Ruby’s The Precinct 3. Boca 4. Orchids at Palm Court 5. Ivory House 6. Jeff Ruby’s Carlo & Johnny 7. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 8. Nicola’s 9. Pepp & Delores 10. Primavista
Best Takeout
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. Eli’s BBQ 3. Gomez Salsa 4. City Barbeque 5. Mazunte 6. Lucius Q 7. Currito 8. Good Plates Eatery 9. Revolution Rotisserie 10. Pig Candy BBQ
Best College/University
1. University of Cincinnati 2. Xavier University 3. Northern Kentucky University
Best Park (City)
1. Smale Riverfront Park 2. Eden Park 3. Washington Park
Best TV Weathercaster
1. Steve Horstmeyer (WXIX) 2. Randi Rico (WLWT) 3. Kevin Robinson (WLWT)
Best Murder Birds
Northsiders are obsessed with the neighborhood’s black vultures. The omnipresent birds can be seen by the dozens circling taller buildings or perched atop St. Boniface Catholic Church, like stone gargoyles, before swooping down to devour some unfortunate rodent. Like the turkey vulture, black vultures are carrion-eaters, but they also aren’t afraid to kill. Northside residents…
Best Local Author
1. Phil Nuxhall 2. Curtis Sittenfeld 3. J.M. Clark
Best Gallery Exhibit
1. Gee Horton: Coming of Age Chapter I – In Search of Self…Identity (Weston Art Gallery) 2. Panorama of Cincinnati Art (Cincinnati Art Galleries) 3. SPACE: A Solo Show by Tenzing (DSGN CLLCTV)
Best Trips Down Cincinnati’s Memory Lane
Our city loves its history, and author Jeff Suess is serving it up in many different ways. He’s the Cincinnati Enquirer’s historian and archivist, which gives him access to photos and stories from days gone by that show up regularly in the newspaper’s Sunday edition. Suess has also produced a handful of books that revel…
Best Glow Up
ArtsWave confirmed in February that the wildly popular BLINK art and light festival is returning to Cincinnati this October. While there are scant details yet — ArtsWave says to follow @blinkcincinnati on Instagram — former Mayor John Cranley announced in 2021 that the city had earmarked $1 million of its American Rescue Plan funds for the…
Best Costume Shop
1. Cappel’s 2. Talk of the Town 3. Theatre House
Best Frame Shop
1. Michaels 2. Hobby Lobby 3. Fabulous Frames & Art
Best Place to Shop for Odd Ephemera
Come for the records, stay for everything else. Clifton’s Torn Light Records is a music store first and foremost, but its eclectic collection of pulp sci-fi novels, Japanese horror VHS tapes and bootleg Ghanaian movie posters is an invaluable resource for underground heads. That’s not to discount their music taste, though. From Hardcore Punk to…
Best Jeweler
1. Richter & Phillips 2. Schwartz Jewelers 3. Montgomery Jewelers
Best Vintage Sweatshirt Selection
The Daily Vintage near Findlay Market is helmed by a handful of local vintage experts and carries everything from Space Jam-style 1990s fashion to duds from the 1940s and ’50s. A wall in the back room is devoted fully to super-soft sweatshirts and T-shirts. Arranged by color, you could get lost trying to decide whether…
Best Car Wash
1. Mike’s Carwash 2. Johnny’s Car Wash 3. Sharonville Car Wash & Detail Center
Best Place for a Kid’s Birthday
1. Cincinnati Museum Center 2. Parky’s Farm 3. Dave & Buster’s 4. Super Parties 5. Entertrainment Junction 6. Jump & Jack’s 7. Full Throttle Adrenaline Park 8. DEFY 9. Totter’s Otterville 10. Beechmont Rollarena
Best Tattoo Shop
1. Designs by Dana 2. White Whale Tattoo 3. Flying Tiger Tattoo
Best Wedding Videographer
1. Pinelight Films 2. Harmon Films 3. Vivid Wedding Videos
Best Place for Comic Book Nerds to Get Drunk
Cosmic Gorilla, a comic book and board game shop near Findlay Market, not only offers the latest issues of your favorite superhero’s adventures, but also a full bar with signature cocktails — both fortified and non-alcoholic. There’s the Dark Knight with cold brew, espresso vodka, almond milk, Cocoa Puffs and peanut butter fluff, or the…
Best Shout-Out to Cincinnati from a Visiting Rock God
In November, the 80-year-old Bob Dylan and his band played the Aronoff Center’s packed Procter & Gamble Hall to show off that he’s been weathering the pandemic by preparing some brilliant new music, intriguingly reworked versions of old classics, and a reinvigorated, strong and expressive voice. It put everyone in a good mood, including the…
Best Papergoods Store
1. Joseph-Beth Booksellers 2. M. Hopple & Co. 3. Paper wings
Best Pharmacy
1. Kroger 2. Yost Pharmacy 3. Schaeper’s Pharmacy
Best One-Stop Cannoli Shop
You may have heard the buzz about its Who Dey cannoli, stuffed with Oreo cream and drizzled with orange chocolate, but there’s much more to Del Gardo’s than Super Bowl-commemorating desserts. Opened in 2018, the Covington cafe serves up a rotating menu of more than 100 different cannoli varieties, espresso drinks and a unique invention…
Best Icon-Level Concert Announcement
Find your squeeze box and hop onto the magic bus, because The Who is finally returning to Cincinnati on May 15 — the band’s first local performance since Dec. 3, 1979, when tragedy struck at Riverfront Coliseum. On that day, 11 people were trampled to death when an impatient crowd pushed its way through the…
Best Celtic/British Pub
1. Molly Malone’s 2. O’Malley’s in the Alley 3. The Pub (Rookwood Commons)
Best Kids’ Menu in a Mexican Restaurant
Mi Cozumel in Springfield Township has already made a name for itself. Their giant, flaming fajitas come in a variety of flavors, and their margarita towers are so popular we’ve spotted a local police officer offering crowd control on more than one occasion. But, don’t get it too twisted: Mi Cozumel is still a family…
Best LGBTQ Bar
1. Good Judy’s 2. Below Zero Lounge 3. e19 4. The Birdcage 5. Crazy Fox Saloon 6. Tillie’s Lounge 7. Chameleon 8. Old Street Saloon 9. Bar 901 10. Main Event
Best Biking Trail
1. Loveland Bike Trail 2. Wasson Way 3. Miami Whitewater Forest
Best Trivia Night
1. Northside Yacht Club 2. Dead Low Brewing 3. March First Brewing and Distilling
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (‘Burbs)
1. Silver Spring House 2. Blue Ash Chili 3. Mellow Mushroom
Best Bourbon Selection (Restaurant)
1. Goodfellas Pizzeria (Wiseguy Lounge) 2. The Littlefield 3. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse
Best Place to Camp
1. Red River Gorge 2. Hocking Hills State Park 3. Winton Woods
Best Cheesesteak
1. Penn Station 2. 13th Street Alley 3. Cincy Steak & Lemonade
Best Oysters
1. PearlStar 2. Swampwater Grill 3. Pelican’s Reef 4. Knotty Pine on the Bayou 5. Rich’s Proper Food & Drink 6. Somm Wine Bar 7. Red Feather Kitchen 8. Dear Restaurant & Butchery 9. Losanti 10. BrewRiver Creole Kitchen
Best Ice Cream
1. Graeter’s Ice Cream 2. Aglamesis Bro’s 3. United Dairy Farmers
Best Noodles
1. Pho Lang Thang 2. KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia 3. Kiki College Hill
Best Soccer Facility
1. Soccer City 2. Town & Country Sports Complex 3. Cincy Sports Nation
Best Overall Burgers (Chain)
1. Five Guys 2. Red Robin 3. Bru Burger Bar
Best Food Truck
1. Red Sesame Korean BBQ 2. Tacos Locos 3. Sweets & Meats BBQ 4. Empanadas Aqui 5. Rock N Rolls 6. Marty’s Waffles 7. Stellar Street Eats 8. Pata Roja Taqueria 9. Cackleberry 10. The Poutine Machine
Best Reason to Believe in Cincinnati’s Future as a Farming Community
One of the last working farms in Cincinnati city limits — maybe the last — was facing extinction when its owners and operators since 1972, Dale and Carol Bahr, retired in 2021. Their 32-acre Bahr Farm, along West North Bend Road across from Greenfield Drive in College Hill and between super-busy Winton Road and Hamilton…
Best Animal Rescue
After Gertie the dog went missing in her Northside neighborhood in July, her guardian’s neighbor heard a whimpering sound coming from behind the wall of a garage. Apparently Gertie had somehow become trapped between the cinder-block wall and the original wall of the garage — an area so tight that the dog could not move…
Best Small Plates
1. Nada 2. Mita’s 3. Abigail Street
Best Waterfront Dining
1. Montgomery Inn Boathouse 2. Moerlein Lager House 3. Cabana on the River 4. Buckhead Mountain Grill 5. Chart House 6. Pirate’s Cove Tropical Bar & Grill 7. Sinners & Saints Tavern 8. Skipper’s River Cafe and Steamboat Marina 9. Eighteen at the Radisson 10. The Monkey Bar & Grille
Best Park (County)
1. Cincinnati Nature Center 2. Sharon Woods 3. Miami Whitewater Forest
Best Radio Show
1. “Jeff & Jenn” (Q102) 2. “All Things Considered” (WVXU) 3. “Cincinnati Edition” (WVXU) 4. Bill Cunningham (WLW) 5. “JonJon and Friends” (KISS 107.1) 6. “Married with Microphones” (WGRR) 7. “Eddie & Rocky” (WLW) 8. “Around Cincinnati” (WVXU) 9. “First Thing in the Morning with Bridget & Nick” (96ROCK) 10. “The Big Dave Show” (B-105)
Best COVID-19 Silver Lining
Getting people in Ohio — or anywhere — to procure their COVID-19 vaccines proved to be difficult once the initial excitement wore off about a month after their full availability last March. So Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine had a plan: launch a Vax-a-Million promotion with the Ohio Lottery to incentivize wider vaccine adoption in Ohio.…
Best Opportunities for Local Artists
1. The City Flea 2. ArtWorks 3. Summerfair
Best Local Trip to the Other Side of the World
The Cincinnati Art Museum has had an Ancient Middle East Gallery for a long time. But in December, after an extensive renovation, it became a 2,800-square-foot showcase of works from across the Middle East, including the United States’ most significant collection of art by the Nabateans, people who carved the sandstone city of Petra in…
Best Return of the Shillito’s Elves
This past holiday season, Findlay Market brought back a beloved and classic Cincinnati Christmas tradition: the Shillito’s Elves. These mechanical elf dolls have been around the Queen City for years and were on display this winter at the old Leader Furniture Store. From the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s, the Shillito’s department store served as a…
Best Literary Scavenger Hunt
Cincinnatian Samantha Evans created Under Cover Book Club — a project in which she hides copies of books in public places each month for people to find — in 2018 “to help people continue to read, to continue to learn,” she tells CityBeat. You could call it guerilla literacy. Evans calls it “glorified littering.” However…
Best CBD Retailer
1. Kentucky Botanical Co. 2. Ohio CBD Guy 3. Hemptations
Best Fresh Seafood Store
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. Luken’s Poultry, Fish & Seafood 3. Lobsta Bakes of Maine
Best Health Food Store
1. Whole Foods Market 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. Trader Joe’s
Best Musical Mural
“Feed me, Seymour!” Joshua Stout’s colorful Little Shop of Horrors-inspired mural is hard to miss on the side of Covington’s Garden Grove Organics. The spray-painted piece features everyone’s favorite bloodthirsty plant-alien, Audrey II, grinning — presumably post-suppertime. Take in the mural, but don’t take it as a sign to adopt any demanding, vampiric plants. Garden…
Best Arts & Crafts Classes
1. Cincinnati Art Museum 2. Queen City Clay 3. Silk Road Textiles
Best Acupuncture Practice
1. Cincinnati Acupuncture 2. Alliance Integrative Medicine 3. Acupuncture Wellness Center of Mason
Best Place for an Adult’s Birthday
1. MadTree Brewing 2. Top Golf 3. Tokyo Kitty 4. Pins Mechanical Company 5. Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar at Hotel Covington 6. Urban Axes 7. Crossgate Lanes 8. Streetside Brewery 9. Manitou Candle Co. 10. Chroma Vino Paint Bar + Gift Shop
Best Tax Service
1. H&R Block 2. Financial Clarity Group 3. Barry Blank
Best Wine Shop
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. DEP’s Fine Wine & Spirits 3. Marty’s Hops and Vines 4. Oakley Wines 5. Hyde Park Wine & Spirits 6. The Wine Merchant 7. Water Tower Fine Wines 8. Market Wines 9. Higher Gravity 10. Ludlow Wines
Best Bar/Club (‘Burbs)
1. Fretboard Brewing Company TIE 1. Dead Low Brewing TIE 2. The Belle and the Bear 3. The Monkey Bar & Grille
Best Motorcycle/Motorsports Dealer
1. CinCity Harley-Davidson 2. Metro Scooter 3. Eastgate Harley-Davidson
Best New All-Ages Bar and Arcade
Owned and operated by Leslie and Bill Rich, Wondercade opened its doors in Westwood in 2021 to the delight of gamers across the region. Wondercade aims to be a fun, safe place for all ages to enjoy throughout the day. Many arcades now cater specifically to the drinking-age crowd, widely overlooking those youngsters that arcade…
Best Booze-Free Beer
Non-alcoholic drinks and booze alternatives are gaining traction in the American market. According to market research firm IRI, U.S. sales of non-alcoholic beer were up 38% in 2020 to roughly $188 million in total sales, even as regular beer sales have declined in the past four years. Local breweries are starting to jump on the…
Best Open Mic Night
1. The Belle and the Bear 2. MOTR Pub 3. Urban Artifact
Best Patriotic Burrito
Sometimes, a regular burrito just isn’t excessive enough. If you’re feeling extra — like, really extra — La Mexicana’s flag burrito just might be the thing to satiate your appetite. Prepared with your choice of meat or vegetables, the massive entree unfurls across a plate like a banner, with green and red sauces divided by…
Best ‘Bad’ Veggie Sandwich
Finding a not-basic vegetarian sandwich is a feat. Luckily, Lil’s Bagels delivers. House-pickled radishes, housemade sauerkraut and spicy greens are sandwiched between a spicy beet-turmeric bagel and slathered with garden and chutney schmears. The Bad Judy is a collision of flavors that will leave even the most carnivorous satisfied. Make it vegan by swapping the…
Best Happy Hour (Food)
1. Knockback Nat’s 2. Dead Low Brewing 3. Second Place
Best Local Band (Covers)
1. The Naked Karate Girls 2. DV8 3. The Rusty Griswolds
Best Climbing Gym
1. University of Cincinnati Campus Recreation Center 2. RockQuest 3. Climb Time (Oakley)
Best Baked Oysters
Located in the former A Tavola storefront on Vine Street, PearlStar is the brainchild of Nashville restaurateur Terry Raley, serving up both East and West Coast oysters (the menu lists the provenance of the recent catch) and other raw delicacies like crudo, ceviche and tartare. But if you like your seafood graced with a touch…
Best Delicatessen
1. Izzy’s 2. Avril-Bleh Meat Market 3. Carl’s Deli
Best Personal Training/CrossFit Gym
1. ProForce Sports Performance 2. Queen City CrossFit 3. Iron Sharpens Iron
Best Alternative to Nachos
Covington’s OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez serves up Mexican-style street food with some extravagant twists. The eatery is owned by Sergio Gutierrez — whose father owns Gutierrez Deli just down the street — and the menu is stacked with your typical street dishes like tacos, burritos and quesadillas. Customers can choose from nine different meat/seafood/veggie options (including…
Best Chef (w/Restaurant Affiliation)
1. Jose Salazar (Salazar, Goose & Elder, Mita’s) 2. Jean-Robert de Cavel (French Crust Cafe & Bistro, Le Bar a Boeuf ) 3. Christian Gill (Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey) 4. Danny Combs (Sotto) 5. Paul Barraco (The Governor, 20 Brix) 6. Daniel Wright (Senate, Abigail Street, Pontiac, Forty Thieves) 7. Kayla Robison (Arnold’s Bar and…
Best Volleyball Courts
1. Fifty West Brewing Company 2. Knotty Pine Rock Club & Tiki Bar 3. Cabana on the River
Best Reason for Jonathan India to Buy More Shelving
The Cincinnati Reds’ second baseman Jonathan India secured a cabinet full of trophies recognizing his outstanding 2021 season, and we wouldn’t blame him if he needed to upgrade from Elfa shelving to something a little more sturdy to support all that weight. The Sporting News named India as its National League Rookie of the Year…
Best Outdoor/Patio Dining
1. Incline Public House 2. Cabana on the River 3. Fifty West Burger Bar 4. Little Miami Brewing Co. 5. Dead Low Brewing 6. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 7. Northside Yacht Club 8. The Monkey Bar & Grille 9. Barleycorn’s 10. The View at Shires’ Garden
Best Neighborhood Bakery (Downtown/OTR)
1. Holtman’s Donuts 2. Brown Bear Bakery 3. Blue Oven Bakery (Findlay Market)
Best Summer Camp
1. YMCA Camp Ernst 2. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 3. Cincinnati Nature Center 4. Camp Joy 5. Camp Kern 6. Cincinnati Reds Baseball Camp 7. Clifton Cultural Arts Center 8. Cincinnati Museum Center 9. DAAPcamps 10. Cincinnati Art Museum
Best Team (Professional)
1. Cincinnati Bengals 2. Cincinnati Reds 3. FC Cincinnati
Best Business Deal that Didn’t Happen
Can you imagine Shamu the killer whale owning the Beast? It could have happened, had Cedar Fair — the company that owns Kings Island and other amusement parks — accepted SeaWorld’s offer to buy its whole portfolio. But in February, Cedar Fair turned down the reported $3.4 billion cash offer to be acquired, keeping Kings…
Best Restaurant for Large Parties
1. Montgomery Inn 2. Moerlein Lager House 3. Dead Low Brewing
Best Tea Selection
1. Churchill’s Fine Teas 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. Coffee Emporium
Best Conservative
1. Mike DeWine 2. John Cranley 3. Joe Deters
Best Religious Leader
1. Chuck Mingo (Crossroads Church) 2. Fr. Michael Graham (Xavier University) 3. Rev. Damon Lynch Jr. (New Jerusalem Baptist Church)
Best Weekend Getaway (within 150 Miles)
1. Hocking Hills, Ohio 2. Red River Gorge, Kentucky 3. Yellow Springs, Ohio
Best Queen City Crown
It was a good year for biking in Cincinnati in 2021. Afar magazine named the Little Miami Scenic Trail one of the five best urban trails in America, and the bike trail was also a factor in Forbes naming Cincinnati as a top 2021 destination for travelers. The Cincinnati Riding or Walking Network (CROWN) also…
Best Local Tour
1. Spring Grove tours 2. Pedal Wagon 3. ArtWorks mural tours
Best Play (Professional)
1. Wicked (Aronoff Center for the Arts) 2. A Christmas Carol (Playhouse in the Park) TIE 2. The Lion King (Aronoff Center for the Arts) TIE 3. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company)
Best Book Bank
There’s a new bank in Cincinnati but it doesn’t deal in dollars, instead it deals in books. Located in a 20,000-square-foot headquarters in Queensgate, Queen City Book Bank aims to provide 10 books per year to underserved children in the Greater Cincinnati area, for a total of 350,000 books donated annually, as well as provide…
Best Surprise by a Hometown Boy-Band Member
Cincinnati native, 98 Degrees member and former Kings Island performer Nick Lachey caused a stir when he joined season five of The Masked Singer in 2021. On Fox’s hit reality show, celebrities perform while concealed within elaborate costumes — something Lachey excelled at. His costume? “Piglet,” which naturally made Greater Cincinnati grunt with early speculation…
Best Price Hill Performing Arts Venue
The former Price Hill Masonic Lodge that sat vacant on Price Avenue for 30 years gained a new identity and purpose in July. Local neighborhood development nonprofit Price Hill Will acquired the building in 2014 and by 2019 secured $10 million to renovate the structure. The redone space is now called ARCO. ARCO — a…
Best Craft Beer Store
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. The Party Source 3. Marty’s Hops and Vines
Best Funeral Home
1. T.P. White & Sons 2. Neidhard-Young Funeral Home & Cremation Service 3. Swindler & Currin Funeral Homes
Best Indie Comics Selection
Descend to the basement of Northside’s Shake It Records, and you just might stumble upon one of Cincinnati’s coolest assortments of independently published comics. There’s not much in the way of Marvel and DC, but if introspective graphic novels, photocopied zines or X-rated underground comix pique your interest, there’s a treasure trove of pulpy oddities…
Best Landscaping
1. Natorp’s 2. Native Roots 3. Wimberg Landscaping
Best Dinner and a Movie
If you’re looking for a spot to grab dinner and a movie, City Base Cinemas offers both in the same space. The theater, which opened in July at The Kenwood Collection (that building where Whole Foods and Crate & Barrel are), has all the bells and whistles audiences have come to expect from modern movie-going.…
Best Bank
1. Fifth Third Bank 2. Huntington 3. PNC
Best Place to Buy Art
1. Pendleton Art Center 2. Summerfair 3. Wave Pool
Best Tea Shop/Selection
1. Churchill’s Fine Teas 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. Coffee Emporium
Best Liquor Store
1. The Party Source 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. DEP’s Fine Wine & Spirits
Best Lawn Service
1. Oasis Turf & Tree 2. LawnScapes 3. Tepe Landscaping
Best Guest Appearances at a (Live) Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Concert
In retrospect, September may have been a little early for Bryce Dessner’s MusicNOW Festival to return to Cincinnati for the first time since 2018. The pandemic was still with us. That could have been the reason for the small crowds, but great music has a way of rising above adversity. As part of the two-day…
Best Pawn Shop
1. Ted’s Pawn 2. Facet Jewelry, Music and Pawn 3. American Trading Company
Best Local Winery
1. Revel OTR Urban Winery 2. Vinoklet Winery 3. Valley Vineyards 4. The Skeleton Root 5. Elk Creek Winery 6. Henke Winery 7. StoneBrook Winery 8. Indian Spring Winery 9. Burnet Ridge 10. Harmony Hill Vineyards
Best Book Uncovering Now-Closed Music Venues
Cincinnati may not be as associated with live music as Nashville or New Orleans, but reading Steven Rosen’s Lost Cincinnati Concert Venues of the ’50s and ’60s will make you wonder what could have been. Narrowing his focus on two decades that saw Jazz undergo an experimental renaissance while Rock & Roll rose to cultural…
Best Beer Selection (Draft)
1. Yard House 2. Higher Gravity 3. Dead Low Brewing
Best Haven for Cats and Coffee
Get your caffeine and cuteness fix at the Purrfect Day Cafe in Covington. At any given time, there are roughly 20 adoptable cats and kittens ready to cuddle and play. Purrfect Day works with three Tri-State-spanning animal rescues — Kenton County Animal Services in Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati Animal CARE Humane Society in Northside and P.A.W.S.…
Best Patio with a Side of Chicken Tenders
Wanna get wings and bask in that humid Cincy summer air? Look no further than Roosters — specifically the new(ish) West Side Roosters location. Everything on the Roosters menu is delicious, so you’ll catch a great meal even in the winter. But throwing down some chicken tendies while sitting on their large, sunny patio on…
Best Solo Buffalo Killer
For nearly 20 years, Andrew Gabbard has been guitarist of record for Thee Shams, Buffalo Killers and the Gabbard Brothers, but he’s always written and tinkered on his own time. A 12-hour marathon recording session resulted in his first solo album, 2015’s Fluff, and the similarly constructed Plenum Castle in 2017. His 2021 album, Homemade,…
Best Coach/Manager (Pro/College)
1. Luke Fickell (University of Cincinnati Football) 2. Zac Taylor (Cincinnati Bengals) 3. Travis Steele (Xavier University Men’s Basketball)
Best Wine Bar
1. Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant 2. The Listing Loon 3. Revel OTR Urban Winery
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (Central)
1. Adriatico’s 2. Quatman Cafe 3. Ruth’s Parkside Cafe
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (West Side)
1. Incline Public House 2. Ivory House 3. Primavista
Best Butcher Shop
1. Avril-Bleh Meat Market 2. Eckerlin Meats 3. Jungle Jim’s International Market 4. Wyoming Meat Market 5. Lehr’s Prime Market 6. Humbert’s Meats 7. Ebert’s Meats 8. Bridgetown Finer Meats 9. Hyde Park Fine Meats and Catering 10. LK at Findlay Market
Best Chicken
1. The Eagle 2. Galactic Fried Chicken 3. Silver Spring House 4. Ron’s Roost Restaurant & Bar 5. Revolution Rotisserie 6. Greyhound Tavern 7. CityBird 8. Libby’s Southern Comfort 9. Roney’s 10. Joella’s Hot Chicken
Best Gluten-Free Selections
1. Sleepy Bee Cafe 2. Pho Lang Thang 3. Galactic Fried Chicken
Best Korean
1. Riverside Korean Restaurant 2. BIBIBOP Asian Grill 3. Red Sesame BBQ 4. Stone Bowl 5. Drunken Bento 6. Korea House 7. Kanji OTR 8. Decibel Korean Fried Chicken 9. Kim’s Korean Restaurant 10. Dolsot Bistro
Best Region-Wide Haul from One Soccer Game
Cincinnati loves soccer — and so do the thousands of people who come here from elsewhere to see it. The Queen City scored big in November when it hosted the World Cup qualifying match between the U.S. Men’s National Team and Mexico. Not only did the match bring hot stars to town, but it also…
Best Leap of Faith for Reds Fans
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia/Ukraine war and Britney Spears’ long-won freedom from her tyrannical conservatorship, it’s safe to say that nobody can predict anything in this damn world. But that seems to be doubly true for the upcoming Major League Baseball season. Team owners forced a lockout in December after the old five-year…
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (West Side)
1. Incline Public House 2. Nation Kitchen & Bar (Westwood) 3. Maury’s Tiny Cove
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (Downtown/OTR)
1. Goodfellas Pizzeria 2. Taglio 3. Mikey’s Late Night Slice
Best Restaurant for a First Date
1. Sotto 2. Incline Public House 3. Nada 4. Abigail Street 5. Taft’s Ale House 6. Primavista 7. Ivory House 8. York Street Cafe 9. Libby’s Southern Comfort 10. Good Plates Eatery
Best Movement for Your Bowels
Everybody pees. Everybody poops. Why, then, aren’t there enough public restrooms in which to take care of business? PHLUSH — or Public Hygiene Lets Us Stay Human — is looking to change that. The organization, helmed regionally by Jason Haap and Justin Jeffre, advocates for equitable public toilet availability in an effort to change the way…
Best Smoothie/Juice Bar
1. Rooted Juicery + Kitchen 2. Smoothie King 3. Tropical Smoothie
Best Wine Selection (Restaurant)
1. Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant 2. Ivory House 3. Sotto
Best Scenic Overlook
1. Eden Park 2. Devou Park 3. Ault Park 4. Mount Echo Park 5. Smale Riverfront Park 6. Bellevue Hill Park 7. Alms Park 8. Shawnee Lookout 9. Mount Storm Park 10. Fairview Park
Best Radio Station
1. 91.7 FM (WVXU) 2. 101.9 FM (Q102) 3. 700 AM (WLW)
Arts & Culture
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Arts & Culture.
Best Free Attraction
1. Findlay Market 2. Smale Riverfront Park 3. Jungle Jim’s International Market 4. Cincinnati Art Museum 5. Washington Park 6. Cincinnati Public Library 7. Newport on the Levee 8. Contemporary Arts Center 9. Fountain Square 10. 21c Museum Hotel Cincinnati
Best Pumpkin Patch/Farm
1. Blooms & Berries Farm Market and Garden Center 2. Shaw Farms 3. Burger Farm & Garden Center
Best Art Museum
1. Cincinnati Art Museum 2. Contemporary Arts Center 3. Taft Museum of Art
Best Architectural Instagram
Cincinnatian Jerald Cooper is a self-defined creative director who is best known for running the popular Instagram account Hood Century (@HoodMidCenturyModern). Hood Century is dedicated to revealing the architectural history and importance behind otherwise unassuming locations — libraries, dry cleaners, apartment complexes, abandoned buildings and more — in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Mexico, Paris and beyond.…
Best Art Gallery
1. Cincinnati Art Museum 2. 21c Museum Hotel Cincinnati 3. Taft Museum of Art
Best CD/Record Store
1. Everybody’s Records 2. Shake It Records 3. Torn Light Records
Best Furniture Store
1. IKEA 2. Furniture Fair 3. Nadeau – Furniture With a Soul 4. Arhaus 5. Bargains and Buyouts 6. High St. 7. Crate & Barrel 8. Open Box Outlet 9. Algin 10. Home Emporium
Best Home Accessories Store
1. Habitat for Humanity ReStore 2. Artichoke 3. indigenous craft gallery
Best Toy Store for Last-Minute Gifts
Tucked away in Oakley, King Arthur’s Court has been a Cincinnati staple for over 40 years — and for good reason. Walk by and you may see kids pressing their faces to its storefront windows, marveling at giant sculptures, stuffed animals, games and more. The inside feels much the same: a toy store that encourages play…
Best Veterinarian’s Office
Whiskers and Paws Animal Hospital is the new independent venture from two very well-respected and well-loved veterinarians formerly with the Animal Hospital on Mt. Lookout Square. Located in Kenwood, doctors Kevin Rebrovich and Carrie Ellis have created a vet experience unlike any other. First, there are separate waiting areas for dogs and cats. Second, there’s…
Best Adult Toy Store
1. Hustler Hollywood 2. Dusty Flynt Sexy Gifts 3. High on the Hill
Best Place to Buy Sneakers
1. JackRabbit/Fleet Feet 2. Queen City Running 3. UNheardof
Best Thrift Shop
1. Society of St. Vincent de Paul 2. Valley Thrift Store 3. Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries
Best Bar/Club (East Side)
1. Mt. Lookout Tavern 2. Streetside Brewery 3. Pearl’s
Best Manicure/Pedicure
1. Ambiance Nail Spa 2. Spruce Nail Shop 3. Mitchell’s Salon & Day Spa
Best Moving Company
1. Two Men and a Truck 2. All My Sons Moving & Storage 3. Leaders Moving
Best Place to Get Drunk Like Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway wrote some incredibly important books in his time and his influence still resonates today. Plenty of folks go through their Hemingway phase: hang out in coffee shops, drink wine with lunch, pout over their worst exes and stare off into blankness any time “The War” comes up. Later in his life, Hemingway’s love…
Best Reason to Bite into a Stick of Butter
As Surrealist René Magritte would say: This is not a pipe. And the assorted grocery and home-good items posted to the Instagram account of Cincinnati’s Fat Ben’s Bakery aren’t what they look like either. Instead, they are hyperreal cake creations made by pastry chef Ben Arington, the “Ben” of Fat Ben’s. Arington, known for his…
Best Place to Drink While You Wait for a Table
1. Taft’s Ale House 2. Dead Low Brewing 3. The Lackman
Best Matcha-Flavored Treats
While not the flashiest item on the menu at MainStrasse’s Chako Bakery Cafe, the matcha roll cake is an understated work of art — perfectly formed, pillow-soft and filled with a sweet bean center. Chef Hisako Okawa (aka “Chako”) set up shop in Covington after studying at Le Cordon Bleu and Il Pleut Sur La…
Best Club/Party DJ
1. DJ Bobby G 2. DJ Airborne 3. DJ BOYWIFE
Best Hard Cider
1. Cidergeist (Rhinegeist) 2. MadTree Brewing 3. March First Brewing and Distilling
Best Local Band (Originals)
1. Foxy Shazam 2. Leggy 3. Over the Rhine
Best Coffeehouse (National)
1. Starbucks 2. Dunkin’ 3. Biggby Coffee
Best Meat-Free Italian Sub
Findlay Market’s Harmony Plant Fare is a New York-style deli that caters to vegetarians and vegans. They make their own seitan and meltable vegan cheese, along with a slew of dips, salads (no-tuna tuna, etc.) and heat-and-eat items. And, like any good deli, they also put together delicious sandwiches. The Italian sub features seitan ham…
Best Desserts (Restaurant)
1. O Pie O 2. Sotto 3. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse
Best Jello Mold Desserts
Consider, if you will, the gelatin mold. Sixty years ago you’d be hard-pressed to find a household that didn’t have one nestled in a cupboard with the bundt pans and pie plates. Jelly desserts and gelatin-encased foods were expected at dinner parties, but these days, your best shot at finding a gelatin mold is next…
Best Italian
1. Sotto 2. Pompilios 3. Pepp & Dolores 4. Nicola’s 5. Primavista 6. Giovanni’s Family Italian Restaurant 7. Scotti’s Italian Restaurant 8. Via Vite 9. Ferrari’s Little Italy & Bakery 10. Forno Osteria + Bar
Best Surprise Nighttime Pizza Parlor
Favorite Newport dining destination The Baker’s Table opened a new bakery across the street from the restaurant in October 2021, aptly named The Baker’s Table Bakery. By day, the destination specializes in bread and pastries — biscuits, buns, scones and shortbread — made with regionally sourced Janie’s Mill flour. But by night, The Baker’s Table…
Best Pub Food
1. Incline Public House 2. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 3. Dead Low Brewing
Best Late-Night Eatery
1. Skyline Chili 2. Goodfellas Pizzeria 3. Gomez Salsa 4. Anchor Grill 5. Camp Washington Chili 6. Shanghai on Elm 7. Mikey’s Late Night Slice 8. Dixie Chili 9. Pleasant Ridge Chili 10. Bub’s Pizza Bar
Best Overall Bakery (Breads)
1. Sixteen Bricks 2. Blue Oven Bakery 3. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli
Best Softball Fields
1. River City West 2. Schmidt Boat Ramp and Ballfields 3. Mid-America Ballyard
Best Overall Burgers (Non-Chain)
1. Zip’s Cafe 2. Nation Kitchen & Bar 3. Tickle Pickle 4. Quatman Cafe 5. Roney’s 6. The Turf Club 7. Arthur’s 8. Stellar Street Eats 9. Bard’s Burgers & Chili 10. Sammy’s Craft Burgers & Beer
Best French Fries
1. Taste of Belgium 2. Zip’s Cafe 3. Senate
Best Save of a Historic Black School
After a developer proposed demolishing a portion of Glendale’s historic Eckstein School in order to adapt what remained into senior housing, Cincinnati Preservation Association stepped in to save the whole structure by committing to purchase the building. The school educated the village’s Black children during the segregation years of 1915-1958 and also served as an…
Best Restaurant to Take a Foodie
1. Sotto 2. Salazar 3. The Eagle 4. Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey 5. Bouquet Restaurant 6. Ivory House 7. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 8. Pleasantry 9. The Baker’s Table 10. Good Plates Eatery
Best Thai
1. Thai Express 2. Green Papaya 3. Teak OTR 4. Bangkok Bistro 5. Wild Ginger 6. Lemon Grass 7. Ruthai’s Thai Kitchen 8. Thai Taste 9. Mai Thai 10. Basil Thai
Best Wings
1. Knockback Nat’s 2. Wild Mike’s 3. Buffalo Wings & Rings 4. Dead Low Brewing 5. Oak Tavern 6. Northside Yacht Club 7. Barleycorn’s 8. Knuk-N-Futz 9. Lucius Q 10. Good Plates Eatery
Best Philanthropist
1. Bootsy Collins 2. Anthony Muñoz 3. Jeff Ruby
Best Way to Shake Up Cincinnati
A changing of the guard has arrived. By defeating opponent and longtime politician David Mann in November’s election, the 39-year-old Aftab Pureval cemented two important firsts: the first new mayor since former mayor John Cranley took office two terms ago, and Cincinnati’s first Asian American mayor. City Council member and Cincinnati Herald publisher Jan-Michele Lemon…
City Life
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for City Life.
Best Local Vocal Arts Group
1. MUSE, Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir 2. May Festival Chorus 3. Cincinnati Youth Choir
Best Public Artwork
1. ArtWorks murals 2. Fiona the Hippo ballerina mural (Downtown) 3. “Northside – Keep it Beautiful” mural
Best Last Hurrah Onstage
In December, the Playhouse in the Park presented the final performances of its beloved, spellbinding production of A Christmas Carol. Between 1991 and 2021, it had more than 1,115 performances attended by 659,000 people. Actor Bruce Cromer played the miserly skinflint Scrooge for 17 years after spending eight seasons before that as Bob Cratchit. With…
Best Reason to Drive to the Middle of Nowhere with the Family
Take the drive to Timbuktu, or DeMossville, Kentucky, to go blueberry picking at Bright Star Acres, because it’s totally worth it. Bright Star’s berry patches are so clean, and they are covered with netting to keep the bugs away. They don’t use any pesticides or chemicals on their berry bushes, so they are delicious to eat…
Best Local Classical Music Group
1. Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra 2. Cincinnati Pops Orchestra 3. MUSE, Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir
Best Credit Union
1. General Electric Credit Union 2. Kemba Credit Union 3. Cinfed Credit Union
Best General Contractor
1. Build It Brothers 2. Hyde Park Painting & Carpentry 3. Cincy Craftsmen
Best Candle Combo
District 78 specializes in housemade soy wax candles, scented with a blend of fragrance oils, that are phthalate free, paraben free and 100% vegan. Owner Erikka Gray crafts unique, luxurious scents for shoppers (and also companies in search of some fragrant branding), like Velvet, a smoky blend of vanilla and cedarwood, or The Baldwin, named after poet…
Best Lasik Surgery Center
1. Cincinnati Eye Institute 2. Midwest Eye Center 3. LasikPlus
Best Arts & Crafts Supplies
1. Michaels 2. Indigo Hippo 3. Hobby Lobby
Best Barbershop
1. Bellevue Barbershop 2. Clifton Barbers 3. Bishops
Best Place to Buy An Engagement Ring
1. Richter & Phillips 2. Schwartz Jewelers 3. Genesis Diamonds
Best Tire Store
1. Tire Discounters 2. AAA | Bob Sumerel Tire & Service 3. Donovan’s Auto & Tire
Best Women’s Clothing Store
1. Rose & Remington 2. The Native One 3. Kismet
Best Carrot Cocktail
OK, so Gulow Street in Northside no longer has the Carrot Mule — a classic ginger-vodka cocktail with bonus carrot juice — on its menu, but this is a formal plea to bring it back. The cozy bar and kitchen at the corner of Hoffner and Gulow streets is a sophisticated take on the neighborhood…
Best Standing Ovation
The rousing production of Mozart’s sublime comedy The Marriage of Figaro by the opera department of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music earned an equally rousing, well-deserved standing ovation, one of the loudest we’ve heard in a long time. A breathtaking romp of brilliant singing and staging featured a nimble cast all performing in…
Best Pediatrician
1. Pediatric Associates of NKY 2. West Side Pediatrics 3. Queen City Physicians
Best Margarita
1. Bakersfield 2. Condado Tacos 3. Cactus Pear TIE 3. Taqueria Mercado TIE 4. El Coyote 5. El Rancho Grande 6. Mi Cozumel 7. Nada 8. Frida 9. e19 10. TAHONA Kitchen + Bar
Best ‘Seinfeld’ Salad
Want to order yourself a version of Elaine’s “big salad” from Seinfeld? Well, Goose & Elder’s Big Salad is modeled off of the sitcom offering. While it doesn’t have tomatoes the size of volleyballs, it does have seasonal veggies, hard-boiled egg, green olives, cherry tomatoes and the option to add avocado, grilled chicken, tofu or…
Best Bloody Mary
1. Northside Yacht Club 2. Crazy Fox Saloon 3. The Belle and the Bear
Best Donuts After Dark
Satisfy your late-night donut craving at Latonia, Kentucky’s Moonrise Doughnuts. Made fresh nightly and open in the evenings, Moonrise is proof that donuts aren’t strictly for breakfast. Treat yourself to fried goodness no matter the hour. Made in the tradition of the now-shuttered Latonia Bakery — which also sold donuts after dark — Moonrise offers…
Best Plan to Celebrate Local Music
Cincinnati has a storied history of amazing musicians, but the city’s accomplished, vital Black artists don’t always get their due. That’s about to change when the Cincinnati Black Music Walk of Fame is installed in 2022, thanks largely to efforts from Hamilton County Commissioner Alicia Reece. Prolific performers — initially those from Hamilton County, but…
Best Blue Matcha
Since 2019, Proud Hound Coffee has been helping Cincinnatians get their caffeine fix via pop-ups with its coffee truck and cart, wholesale operations, events and collaborations. And in June, the roaster opened a cafe in its 4,000-square-foot warehouse in Silverton. The kitchen specializes in Southern-centric breakfast and brunch with an emphasis on locally sourced ingredients…
Best Barbecue in a Former Jail
Local couple Paul Montgomery and Christina Goehrig opened Pig Candy BBQ in California, Ohio, in spring of 2021, right near Dead Low Brewing and the Lunken Airport bike path. The building in which their eatery sits was built in 1913 and served as the local jail for many decades. Far from being creepy, the 9-foot…
Best Cooking Classes
1. Jungle Jim’s International Market 2. Findlay Kitchen 3. Tablespoon Cooking Company
Best Neighborhood Restaurant (Downtown/OTR)
1. Sotto 2. The Eagle 3. Pepp & Dolores
Best Breakfast
1. Sleepy Bee Cafe 2. First Watch 3. Sugar n’ Spice 4. HangOverEasy 5. Taste of Belgium 6. Maplewood Kitchen and Bar 7. The Echo 8. The Original Pancake House 9. Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey 10. Half Day Cafe
Best Farmers Market Food Stall
1. Blue Oven Bakery 2. Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices 3. WoodBottom Quail Farms
Best Chicken Sandwich
1. The Eagle 2. Galactic Fried Chicken 3. Revolution Rotisserie
Best Raw Bar
1. PearlStar 2. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse 3. Jeff Ruby’s Carlo & Johnny
Best Live Music While You Eat
1. Arnold’s Bar and Grill 2. The Monkey Bar & Grille 3. The Comet
Best Way to Ensure Super Bowl Potential
We don’t live in a comic-book universe, but it sure appeared like the Cincinnati Bengals developed superpowers this season thanks to some new duds. After a months-long tease, the Bengals revealed “New Stripes” uniforms in April 2021 — the team’s first significant change in 17 years. The only thing untouched? The Bengals’ iconic tiger-striped helmet.…
Best College Playoff Run
While the University of Cincinnati Bearcats football team didn’t come away with a victory, making the College Football Playoff in 2021 was still a historic feat. Ending the season with an undefeated record, this was UC’s first trip to the playoffs — and the first time a team from a non-Power Five conference had attended.…
Best Food Fight
We’ll admit that Cincinnati-style chili isn’t for everyone, but show a little respect, huh? New York Mets announcer Gary Cohen went off on the dish during the broadcast of a Reds vs. Mets game in the summer of 2021, calling Skyline’s 5-Way “disgusting chili gravy.” Showing a video of someone expertly preparing the aforementioned dish,…
Best Tennis Courts
1. Sawyer Point Tennis Courts 2. The Club at Harper’s Point 3. Queen City Racquet & Fitness Club
Best Doctor’s Warning
It’s kind of nuts that it needs to be said, but here we go: Urine isn’t a magical COVID-19 cure. Unfortunately, Dr. Jon Klein — the vice dean for research at University of Louisville Medical School and an expert in kidneys — had to spell this out in what became a viral tweet in January,…
Best Way to Feel Like a Kid Again
Recapture the carefree spontaneity of childhood by running through the splash pad at Washington Park on literally any summer’s day. Something about the anticipation of being blasted with that unexpected spurt of cold water sparks enough joy to convince you that you might actually be 6 years old, running through the sprinkler. The 7,000-square-foot water park…
Best Soul Food
1. Lucius Q 2. Alabama Fish Bar 3. Sweets & Meats BBQ
Best Developer
1. 3CDC 2. Over-the-Rhine Community Housing 3. Model Group
Best Suburban Neighborhood
1. Mariemont 2. Loveland 3. Blue Ash
Best Place for a Cherry Blossom Picnic
There’s no better way to say goodbye to winter than by welcoming spring under Ault Park’s cherry blossom trees. According to Cincinnati Parks’ website, 1,000 Japanese cherry blossom trees were gifted to the city in the 1930s; and in 2008, 121 Somei Yoshino trees were planted by the Japan America Society. Come March and April,…
Eats
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Eats.
Best Local Actor/Actress
1. Bob Herzog 2. Annie Fitzpatrick 3. Mark Borison 4. Kali Marsh 5. Andrew Maloney 6. Maggie Lou Rader 7.Rachel Perin 8. Jeremy Dubin 9. Erin Ward 10. Terrance Huff
Best Washington Park Event
1. The City Flea 2. Summer Cinema 3. Bandstand Bluegrass
Best New Drive-Thru Light Display
While most Cincinnati drive-thru (and walk-thru) winter light displays lean heavily on Christmas imagery, Rockwern Academy Jewish day school in Kenwood set up the city’s first Hanukkah-centric illuminated event in November. Dedicated to the festival of lights, “Let It Glow” featured inflatable Hanukkah decor, including a giant menorah and dreidel, as well as blue-and-white-colored lights…
Best Cinematic Accolade
Cincinnati continues to up its reputation as a moviemaking city, and those strides haven’t gone unnoticed. The Queen City has once again snagged itself a top spot on MovieMaker magazine’s list of the “Best Places to Live and Work as a Moviemaker.” The magazine ranks us at No. 11, moving up two spots from last…
Best Local Comedian
1. Gary Owen 2. Josh Sneed 3. Kelly Collette
Best Dance Classes
1. Cincinnati Ballet Otto M. Budig Academy 2. Movement Emporium 3. DANCEFIX
Best Gift Shop
1. Cincinnati Art Museum 2. I Love Cincinnati Shop 3. Ten Thousand Villages 4. MiCA 12/v 5. indigenous craft gallery 6. Cincinnati Museum Center 7. Metallic Giraffe 8. The Village Junction 9. The Library Friends’ Shop 10. Puzzle Pieces – A Sensory Sensation
Best Hospital
1. The Christ Hospital 2. Cincinnati Children’s Hospital 3. Bethesda North Hospital
Best Gifts in a Coffee Shop
We get it. You run on coffee. Same. And College Hill Coffee Co. certainly offers up some delicious coffee (if only they had a drive-thru!). However, the coffee (and scrumptious food) isn’t even the best part of CHCC. The cafe is packed to the brim with local yumminess (Sixteen Bricks bread, for instance) and a…
Best Reason to Visit Clermont County
Greater Cincinnati has no shortage of holiday light displays; Kings Island, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden and Fountain Square all come alive with magic starting in November. But if you want to see something homegrown that will fill you with a real sense of wonder, you need to go to Jason Dunham’s house on…
Best Bed and Breakfast
1. Gaslight Bed & Breakfast 2. The Inn of Hyde Park 3. Weller Haus Bed, Breakfast & Event Center
Best Plant Store
1. Fern 2. Natorp’s 3. White Oak Gardens
Best Toy Store
1. King Arthur’s Court Toys 2. Coolest Toys on Earth 3. The Toy Department
Best Local Indie Craft Market
1. The City Flea 2. Art on Vine 3. WestSide Market
Best Lawyer (Individual)
1. John Treleven 2. Nick Klingensmith 3. Larry Hicks
Best Musical Instrument Store
1. Buddy Roger’s Music 2. Willis Music 3. Baroque Violin Shop
Best Steelers Bar
Since Joe Burrow managed to bring the Bengals to the Super Bowl for the first time in more than three decades, he can be forgiven for his controversial statement about Cincinnati’s drab nightlife during a press conference: “Fortunately, there’s not a ton to do in Cincinnati. Nobody is going out to clubs and bars and…
Best Martini
1. Japp’s 2. Longfellow 3. e19
Best Place to Play Games
1. Arcade Legacy: Bar Edition 2. Pins Mechanical Company 3. Scene75
Best Resource for Local Musicians
Performing isn’t the only important aspect about the music industry. The Cincinnati Music Accelerator is making sure local artists learn how to strengthen their careers through classes in finance, monetization, music licensing, entertainment law, marketing and branding, and other skills through its new Music Business Academy. That’s good news for aspiring musicians in the Queen…
Best Craft Soy Sauce Producer
Ohio grows more soybeans than any other crop. In fact, according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s 2020 Annual Bulletin, 4.87 million acres of soy was harvested in the state. That’s enough for buyers from China, Japan and Korea to line up for their exportable shares every harvest. Cincinnatians Sam Pellerito and Kendall Holmes…
Best Taste of Puerto Rico in College Hill
Wanna try a new dish? Or maybe hear some authentic Puerto Rican music? Is it time to learn a new dance? On any regular day, Mashroots in College Hill may look like your typical fast-casual lunch spot. The twist is, of course, that you won’t find soup and sandwiches here. Instead, you can dig into…
Best Local Brewery
1. Rhinegeist 2. Urban Artifact 3. MadTree Brewing 4. Dead Low Brewing 5. Braxton Brewing Company 6. Streetside Brewery 7. March First Brewing and Distilling 8. Darkness Brewing 9. Fifty West Brewing Company 10. Fretboard Brewing Company
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (Burbs)
1. Wyoming Community Coffee TIE 1. Kitty Brew Cafe TIE 2. Luckman Coffee 3. Kidd Coffee & Wine Bar
Best Wagyu Beef Hookup
Where’s the beef? If you’re looking for the grade-A, top-of-the-line hookup for wagyu beef in the area, then the Wyoming Meat Market is your No. 1 destination. What makes wagyu beef so dreamy? Wagyu is a breed of cattle prized for its meat’s exceptional tenderness and distribution of fat. Meat connoisseurs consider wagyu to be…
Best Desserts (Retail)
1. The BonBonerie 2. Graeter’s Ice Cream 3. Brown Bear Bakery
Best Appetizers
1. Sotto 2. Mita’s 3. The Eagle
Best Cajun/Creole
1. Swampwater Grill 2. Knotty Pine on the Bayou 3. Allyn’s Cafe 4. Dee Felice Cafe 5. BrewRiver Creole Kitchen 6. Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen 7. J. Gumbo’s 8. Rich’s Proper Food & Drink 9. Bishop’s Quarter 10. Mr. Crab House
Best Chili (Chain)
1. Skyline Chili 2. Gold Star 3. Dixie Chili
Best Baked Goods Boost
Hello Honey has been serving up small-batch ice cream in the heart of downtown since 2012. Now, it has expanded into East Walnut Hills (and is moving the downtown destination to a new storefront coming soon). The East Walnut Hills Hello Honey offers indoor seating and, obviously, their same delicious ice cream. The cult-favorite dessert…
Best Local Chain
1. Skyline Chili 2. Dewey’s Pizza 3. LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria 4. Thunderdome Restaurant Group 5. Taste of Belgium 6. Mazunte 7. Gold Star 8. Holtman’s Donuts 9. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 10. Agave & Rye
Best Sports Bandwagon
Are snazzy new uniforms the key to sports success? The Cincinnati Bengals changed theirs up for the 2021-2022 NFL season and were rewarded with a Super Bowl berth. Now FC Cincinnati officials are hoping the same will happen for their own team. FCC debuted a new secondary kit for the 2022 season, and it’s a…
Best Neighborhood Burger Spot (Central)
1. Quatman Cafe 2. Tickle Pickle 3. Nine Giant Brewing
Best Divisive Seasonal Delicacy
Nobody likes you? Everybody hates you? Guess you should go eat … cicadas. While fried worms are equally appalling to those who wouldn’t touch a bug, cicadas are on the menu for plenty of folks when the loud little buddies pop up every now and then. While a simple dry fry with salt and pepper…
Best Neighborhood Pizza Joint (East Side)
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. Taglio 3. Ramundo’s Pizzeria
Best Chili Promo
As the “Official Chili of the Cincinnati Bengals,” Gold Star served up a special deal every time the Bengals triumphed in a home or away game this year. The day after the team clinched a win, all Gold Star restaurants celebrated by giving away one free regular or super 3-, 4- and 5-Way with the…
Best Restaurant to Take the Kids
1. Skyline Chili 2. Chick-fil-A 3. Dewey’s Pizza
Best Vegetarian
1. Melt Revival 2. Aladdin’s Eatery 3. The Governor 4. Harmony Plant Fare 5. Rooted Juicery + Kitchen 6. Loving Hut 7. Good Plates Eatery 8. Dead Low Brewing 9. Happy Chicks Bakery 10. Condado Tacos TIE 10. Essen Kitchen TIE
Best Do Gooder
1. Matthew 25: Ministries 2. Ohio Innocence Project 3. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 4. The Friends of the Public Library 5. ArtWorks 6. Andy & JJ Dalton Foundation 7. ArtsWave 8. La Soupe 9. Cincinnati Nature Center 10. Freestore Foodbank
Best Place to Take a Visitor
1. Findlay Market 2. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 3. Jungle Jim’s International Market 4. Over-the-Rhine 5. Smale Riverfront Park 6. Cincinnati Reds game 7. The Banks 8. Cincinnati Museum Center 9. Carew Tower Observation Deck 10. Cincinnati Art Museum
Best Radio Talk Show Host
1. Jeff Thomas and Jenn Jordan (Q102) 2. Maryanne Zeleznik (WVXU) 3. Bill Cunningham (WLW)
Music & Nightlife
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Music & Nightlife.
Best Movie Theater
1. Esquire Theatre 2. AMC Newport on the Levee 20 3. Mariemont Theatre
Best Regional Arts Theater
1. Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (Dayton, Ohio) 2. Human Race Theatre Company (Dayton, Ohio) 3. Actors Theatre of Louisville (Louisville, Kentucky)
Best Artworks Mural
1. “Fiona and Bibi at the Cincinnati Zoo” 2. “Cincinnati Toy Heritage” 3. “Charley Harper’s Beguiled by the Wild” 4. “Ezzard Charles: The Cincinnati Cobra” 5. “Martha, the Last Passenger Pigeon” 6. “Democracy!” 7. “Dream Big and Fly High” 8. “Homecoming (Blue Birds)” 9. “Swing Around Rosie” 10. “Mr. Dynamite”
Best Trip to the Land of Sweets
After canceling in-person performances in 2020 due to COVID-19, Clara, her prince and all of the characters from the Land of Sweets returned to Music Hall in 2021 for the Cincinnati Ballet’s annual rendition of The Nutcracker. And, with appropriate fanfare, it was a return to “full pre-pandemic splendor,” with Tchaikovsky’s score performed live by…
Best Local Dance Group
1. Cincinnati Ballet 2. Cin City Burlesque 3. McGing Irish Dancers
Best Day Spa
1. Woodhouse Day Spa 2. Mitchell’s Salon & Day Spa 3. 501 Salon & Spa
Best Green/Sustainable Goods Store
1. Kentucky Botanical Co. 2. Hemptations 3. Fill More Waste Less
Best TikTok-Famous Tailor
Chuck Hellman of Hellman Clothiers in Carew Tower is known for his prowess when it comes to dressing local and national sports stars, including members of the Bengals for their Super Bowl appearance in Los Angeles. But his bigger audience is somewhere else. Currently, Hellman Retail Group’s TikTok, run by social media editor Christian Barker,…
Best ‘Free Spirit’ Floral Bouquets
Flohemian Floral Design, located in Dayton, Kentucky, is a relatively new florist to the Greater Cincinnati area. The business opened only a couple years ago, and since then has proven to be an obvious choice for those looking for unique and trendy bouquets. Flohemian’s social media is filled with magnificent arrangements that offer a carefree…
Best Relaxing Eyebrow Service
Eyebrow care and grooming became a big deal during the pandemic, when masking put an extreme emphasis on the top half of your face. That, plus the current bushy-eyebrow beauty trend, had many seeking out salons that could dye, shape and laminate eyebrows (aka basically perm the hair into fluffy goodness). Being dyed, waxed, plucked…
Best Bicycle Store
1. Montgomery Cyclery 2. Spun 3. Reser Bicycle Outfitters
Best Plastic Surgery
1. Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center 2. The Plastic Surgery Group 3. Holzapfel + Lied Plastic Surgery
Best Tree Service
1. Back Tree Service 2. Madison Tree Care and Landscaping 3. Canopy Crew
Best Bar/Club (West Side)
1. West Side Brewing 2. Knotty Pine Rock Club & Tiki Bar 3. Maury’s Tiny Cove
Best Martial Arts Studio
1. Club MMA 2. Patten’s Martial Arts 3. Cincinnati Taekwondo Center
Best Amateur Burlesque Group
Smoke & Queers has entertained and empowered Cincinnatians since its inception in 2019. Unabashedly weird and fiery, the queer-led, coed burlesque, drag and performance-art troupe hosts shows at bars, restaurants and events throughout Greater Cincinnati. Come for the fun, accepting atmosphere and stay for the experimental expressions of self, gender, identity and sexuality. smokeandqueersburlesque.com.
Best Pest Control
1. Scherzinger Pest Control 2. Sure Thing Pest Control 3. Delhi Pest Control Services
Best Music Festival/Event
1. Cincinnati Pride 2. Cincy Blues Fest 3. Whispering Beard Folk Festival
Best Farm-Fresh Bloody Mary Mix
Want to make a bar-style bloody mary at home but don’t want to make your own mix? Farm to Hangover is the next best thing to doing the work yourself. Susan Beresford is the mastermind behind the local bloody mary mix. Growing produce on a plot of land in Dayton, Kentucky, she blends her own…
Best Bourbon Cocktail
1. Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar 2, Japp’s 3. The Littlefield
Best Cocktail Bar/Lounge
1. The Blind Lemon 2. Japp’s 3. Ghost Baby
Best Thing to Happen to Cincinnati Dining as a Result of COVID-19
Everybody has suffered as a result of COVID-19, some exponentially more than others. In terms of the hospitality industry, we saw a lot of beloved bars, shops and restaurants close their doors as a direct result of the pandemic, so it’s nice when there’s a tiny silver lining to this predominantly bleak period in history:…
Best Bagel Donut
Norwood got a little sweeter this year with the addition of over-the-top donut maker Starlight Doughnut Lab. In operation since the start of 2019, owner/baker Ben Greiwe has been crafting small-batch baked goods with a unique ingredient. Starlight donuts use mashed potatoes in the dough, which “boosts moisture, sweetness, flavor, and adds a crispy outside…
Best FC Cincinnati Player (Current)
1. Nick Hagglund 2. Beckham Sunderland 3. Haris Medunjanin
Best New Restaurant
1. Decibel Korean Fried Chicken 2. PearlStar 3. Saint Francis Apizza 4. Pig Candy BBQ 5. Rosie’s Cocktails & Pies 6. Bee’s Barbecue 7. Proud Hound Coffee 8. Cork N Crust 9. Cafe Mochiko 10. OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez
Best Opa! and Octopus
While Cincinnati is home to dozens of high-end eateries, downtown’s Okto holds its ground as being one of the only upscale Greek restaurants in the area. The menu includes traditional Mediterranean dishes, like savory tiropita and spanakopita pastries, kebabs, flaming saganaki (a pan-fried Greek cheese) and baklava, as well as branzino (deboned at the table),…
Best Grocery Store News
Hold onto your gourmet takeaway containers: There’s some thrilling news afoot. You will no longer have to drive to Dayton to visit Dorothy Lane Market — the cult-favorite regional grocer has announced plans to open its first Greater Cincinnati store in Mason (so, yes, you still have to drive to Mason …). The new store…
Best Public Pool
1. Sunlite Water Adventure at Coney Island 2. Ziegler Pool 3. Soak City Water Park at Kings Island
Best Chili (Non-Chain)
1. Camp Washington Chili 2. Pleasant Ridge Chili 3. Price Hill Chili 4. Zip’s Cafe 5. OTR Chili 6. Empress Chili 7. Pig Candy BBQ 8. Bard’s Burgers & Chili 9. Melt Revival 10. The Chili Hut
Best Yoga Studio
1. Body Alive 2. Embra Studio (formerly Modo Yoga) 3. College Hill Yoga
Best Local Farm
1. Blooms & Berries Farm Market 2. Gorman Heritage Farm 3. 80 Acres Farms
Best Rose-Colored Glasses
Joe Burrow — aka Joe Shiesty, aka Joey B., aka Joe Cool, aka Joe Brrr — has become a local hero of sorts. Since the Bengals drafted him in 2020, Burrow has thrown for more than 8,000 yards, bounced back after a season-ending knee injury in 2020 and had been instrumental to the Bengals reaching…
Best Fish & Chips
1. Alabama Fish Bar 2. The Pub 3. Cock & Bull Public House
Best Way to Add a Little Gas to Your Tank During the Flying Pig Marathon
Pay attention to the droves of Cincinnatians cheering on (mostly) total strangers along the Flying Pig course. Nothing puts a little pep in your step quite like the support of the residents of the Panorama Apartments senior care facility in Covington. Their signs are the best, held with a sweet, smirky smile: “They Actually Got…
Best Gelato/Sorbetto/Frozen Ice
1. Graeter’s Ice Cream 2. Aglamesis Bro’s 3. Dojo Gelato
Best Colorful Maze for Kids
There aren’t enough fully fenced playgrounds in the world. But, in Hamilton County, we’re lucky to have a few. West Fork Park Playground is one option. With swings and zipline-like features, plus tunnels and slides built into hills, the park offers up a full afternoon of fun. The best part? The colorful “glass” maze with…
Best Pedestrian-Friendly Development
3CDC unveiled its $5.5 million Court Street Plaza revitalization project in 2021. The plaza — located on Court Street between Vine and Walnut streets — is a pedestrian-friendly urban promenade with enough space to accommodate outdoor dining, events and pop-ups. With wide sidewalks and a “festival-style street,” the area can easily be closed to cars…
Best Soup
1. Pho Lang Thang 2. La Soupe 3. Zoup!
Best Friend to the Environment
1. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden 2. Great Parks of Hamilton County 3. Cincinnati Parks
Best Remodeling Company
1. Green City EcoStruction 2. Arlinghaus 3. 3 Day Kitchen & Bath
Best Inclusive Playground
Anyone else feel like playgrounds are terrifying? The parking lot. The strangers. The strange way playground equipment just ends in midair, with drop-offs above your head, as if most 5-year-olds can totally handle a fire pole. Enter Makino Park. Not only is it entirely fenced in and surrounded by soft rubber, but much of the…
Shops & Services
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Shops & Services.
Best Haunted House
1. The Dent Schoolhouse 2. Kings Island’s Halloween Haunt 3. The USS Nightmare
Best Regional Museum
1. COSI (Columbus, Ohio) 2. Children’s Museum of Indianapolis (Indianapolis, Indiana) 3. National Museum of the United States Air Force (Dayton, Ohio)
Best Conqueror in Butler County
Late last summer, the great Genghis Khan of the Mongol Empire extended his reach to the land just north of Cincinnati. The charismatic 12th- and 13th-century leader was known to crush all resistance in his path as he added conquered peoples to his empire. There was no actual threat to residents of Butler County, of…
Best Outdoor Opera
The Cincinnati Opera’s entire summer season was held outdoors in 2021 for the first time since 1971, when the company decamped from the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden to Music Hall. The decision to move performances to Blue Ash’s Summit Park came in the wake of COVID-19 spikes at the end of 2020, said opera…
Best Local Filmmaker
1. Cincy Stories 2. Evan Holt 3. Biz Graves Young
Best Dental Practice/Clinic
1. Vita Dental 2. Andrew J. Marck 3. Beckett Dental Care
Best Grocery Store
1. Kroger 2. Jungle Jim’s International Market 3. Trader Joe’s
Best Hotel
1. 21c Museum Hotel 2. Hotel Covington 3. The Lytle Park Hotel
Best Architectural Salvage
Need an old door? Or a used washer and dryer? Are you dying for an OG all-metal kitchen suite? You’re likely to find this and more at Building Value. With show-stopping salvages like a wooden bird cage big enough to house a toddler and a collection of vintage fireplace mantles, Building Value offers so much…
Best Auto Dealer (New Vehicles)
1. Marshall Ford 2. Jeff Wyler Automotive Family 3. Jake Sweeney Automotive
Best Birthing/Maternity Center
1. Good Samaritan Hospital 2. The Christ Hospital 3. Bethesda North Hospital
Best Plumbing Company
1. Zins Plumbing 2. Jolly Plumbing 3. Holtmeier Plumbing
Best Vape Shop
1. Cincy Vapors 2. Lefty’s Tobacco Plus 3. Cloud 9 Vapor Lounge TIE 3. King Vapors Shop & Lounge TIE
Best New Bar
1. Good Judy’s 2. Somerset 3. Hard Rock Cafe 4. Anjou 5. Copper & Flame 6. Bar Saeso 7. Cosmic Gorilla 8. Revival Vintage Spirits & Bottle Shop 9. OTR StillHouse 10. The Pitch
Best Botanical Ice Cube
Anjou cocktail bar in East Walnut Hills takes its name from Margaret of Anjou, wife of King Henry VI. The bar is located in The Henry building and plays on the duo’s central role in the Wars of the Roses — an uprising against Henry’s reign in the 15th century. Anjou’s decor subtly plays off…
Best Neighborhood Shopping District
1. Rookwood Commons & Pavilion 2. Kenwood 3. Over-the-Rhine
Best Drive-Ins to Recapture Simpler Times
What percentage of the population do you think was conceived in a drive-in? While these days it’s more about Netflix and chilling, the drive-in is now a great spot to have an innocent and platonic night out. When you want to achieve a truly perfect summer evening, there’s nothing better than a double feature of…
Best New Spot for a Boilermaker
From the team behind Queen City Radio comes Bar Bar OTR, a hip dive purposely located in a part of the neighborhood between Findlay Market and the drinking and dining destinations closer to Washington Park. Slightly off the beaten path, the bar specializes in a variety of boilermakers — or a beer and a shot, either…
Best Bar/Club for Live Music (National Acts)
1. Bogart’s 2. Ludlow Garage 3. Southgate House Revival
Best Bedroom Pop
Counting SOPHIE, Kanye West and Kate Bush among her influences, rapper/producer Chloe Hotline makes brooding Bedroom Pop that’s unconcerned with genre. Behind the boards, she crafts reverb-drenched soundscapes from retro synths and slowed-down samples, blending contemporary R&B with club-centric percussion that recalls Chicago House or New Orleans Bounce. 2021, which saw the release of her…
Best Drag Queen
1. Stixen Stones 2. Sarah Jessica Darker 3. Molly Mormen
Best Hard Seltzer
1. VIVE Hard Seltzer (Braxton Brewing Company) TIE 1. Astra Hard Seltzer (March First Brewing and Distilling) TIE 2. Sequel Hard Seltzer (Sonder Brewing) 3. Dead Low Brewing
Best Local Distillery
1. New Riff Distilling 2. Northside Distilling Co. 3. Second Sight Spirits
Best Neighborhood Coffee Shop (Central)
1. Mom ‘n ‘em Coffee & Wine 2. College Hill Coffee Co. 3. Sidewinder Coffee
Best Health Club/Gym
1. YMCA of Greater Cincinnati 2. Mercy HealthPlex 3. Planet Fitness
Best Jogging Route
1. Loveland Bike Trail 2. Smale Riverfront Park 3. Wasson Way
Best Pick-Up Basketball Court
1. Cincinnati Athletic Club 2. Oakley Playground 3. Blue Ash Recreation Center
Best Pickle Butter
The team behind Longfellow in Over-the-Rhine opened a new bar and restaurant called Mid-City on the recently revamped and pedestrian-friendly Court Street Plaza. It’s an unassuming but geographically accurate name for one of downtown’s best new spots to grab a classic cocktail (the list includes a Gibson, Manhattan and Tom Collins) and small plates. The…
Best Biscuit Bounce Back
At the start of 2022, Boomtown Biscuits & Whiskey owner and chef Christian Gill announced he was going to have to close his flagship Pendleton location (there’s a second Boomtown in Union, Kentucky) toward the end of January. Citing “all of the surrounding circumstances that have plagued the industry over the last two years,” he…
Best Goetta
1. Glier’s Goetta 2. Eckerlin Meats 3. Avril-Bleh Meat Market
Best Local Snack
1. Grippo’s 2. Hen of the Woods 3. Stellar Street Eats pimento cheese
Best Overall Bakery (Sweets)
1. The BonBonerie 2. Brown Bear Bakery 3. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 4. North College Hill Bakery 5. North South Baking Co. 6. Wyoming Pastry Shop 7. Happy Chicks Bakery 8. Cafe Mochiko 9. Oliver’s Desserts 10. Makers Bakers Co.
Best Neighborhood Bakery (East Side)
1. Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli 2. Busken Bakery 3. The Cheesecakery
Best Overall Pizza (Chain)
1. Dewey’s Pizza 2. LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria 3. Goodfellas Pizzeria
Best Fried Feta
Serving up an assortment of flaky, buttery pastries and a robust menu of Mediterranean offerings, Fillo Greek Bake Shop brings a slice of Greece to Over-the-Rhine. The café is named after phyllo, the thin pastry dough included in so many of the eatery’s menu items. The restaurant is a full-fledged family affair — husband-and-wife duo…
Best Use of Vacant Land Turned Urban Farm
Domonique Peebles founded Brick Gardens in 2016 on a simple premise: He wanted to convert vacant building lots into outdoor urban farms and indoor hydroponic/aquaponic grow spaces with the end goal of providing accessible fresh produce in food desserts. The nonprofit now operates four different plots that help feed residents in Madisonville, Bond Hill, Evanston,…
Best Restaurant to Take Visitors
1. Montgomery Inn Boathouse 2. Incline Public House 3. Skyline Chili 4. Sotto 5. Taste of Belgium 6. Ivory House 7. Primavista 8. Dead Low Brewing 9. Salazar 10. Pepp & Dolores
Best Veggie Burger
1. Tickle Pickle 2. Krueger’s Tavern 3. Arthur’s 4. Nation Kitchen & Bar 5. Maplewood Kitchen and Bar 6. Taste of Belgium 7. Nine Giant Brewing 8. Essen Kitchen 9. BrewRiver at Sonder Brewing 10. Dead Low Brewing
Best Journalist
1. Megan Mitchell (WLWT) 2. Bob Herzog (WKRC) 3. Tana Weingartner (WVXU) 4. Jessica Schmidt (WXIX) 5. Paul Daugherty (Cincinnati Enquirer) 6. John Matarese (WCPO) 7. Kathrine Nero (Cincinnati Enquirer) 8. Nick Swartsell (WVXU) 9. Tricia Macke (WXIX) 10. Keith Pandolfi (Cincinnati Enquirer)
Best Troublemaker
1. Bill Cunningham 2. The Hub OTR 3. Cincinnati City Council
Best Ongoing Bridge Drama
We all know the Brent Spence Bridge, which carries the freight equivalent of 3% of the nation’s gross domestic product according to the National Association of Manufacturers, is in dire need of improvements and repair after seven decades in existence. Opened in 1963, the bridge moves traffic north and south on I-71 and I-75 across…
Sports & Recreation
Here are the 2022 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Sports & Recreation.
Best Local Theater Company
1. Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park 2. Cincinnati Shakespeare Company 3. Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati
Best Chicken and Waffles
Brought to Cincinnati by the crew behind Dope!, Decibel Korean Fried Chicken is the city’s first purveyor of the favorite Asian street food. For the uninitiated, Korean fried chicken is an airier, crispier iteration of Southern-style fried chicken. Gone are the browned crunchy bits that stud American fried chicken; instead, Korean-style chicken is sheathed in…
