Cincinnati

Cincinnati by night and day
Cincinnati isn't a bad town after all. I had been growing to hate it with every fiber of my being but that was largely due to a culturally imposed, illogical and unneccesary migratory pattern in the dead of winter, otherwise known as going home for Christmas. But that tradition is cooked and served.

Since I will be sitting by the beach, climbing volcanoes and sailing through treetops on a thin wire during the holidays this year, I did Christmas in September with my sister and her family in Cincinnati. Sister's girls were thrilled with their present, a Wii. We spent about 4 hours making Mii's and I was pretty impressed with my niecelettes ability to kick ass on Wii boxing.


Niecelettes discover they are Wii owners

Since it was also my birthday there were a few birthday treats.

Freedom Center
50 E Freedom Way
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513.333.7606

I'm not going to say go to Cincinnati to see this museum but if you are in the area, definitely make an effort. The building design and layout combined with very interesting and innovative multimedia content make the Underground Railroad Freedom Center one of the best single-focus museums I've seen.


Freedom Center, Portrait


Freedom Center, Fiber Art


Freedom Center, Downtown Cincinnati

Nada
600 Walnut St
Cincinnati, OH
513.721.6232

Downtown Cincinnati is kinda happening. I didn't see that the last time I stayed downtown because it was winter; a season during which noone should be further north of Houston. Nada is a new entry into the downtown arena. I'm not sure about the food, since we only stopped for drinks, but the drinks were well-done. Definitely opt for the Passion Fruit Caipirihna, which will no doubt be delivered by an impossibly cute server.



Nada, Downtown Cincinnati

Bootsy's
631 Walnut Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513.241.0707

Ever wonder what happened to the king of late 70's, early 80's funk? Bootsy Collins apparently took his collection of crazy sunglasses and music awards back to his hometown and opened a restaurant. A Spanish-laced restaurant with a fun, hi-vis, lounge-esque feel. I dont know why this happened but despite the tacky advertisement clad exterior and an interior requiring a pair of polarizing sunglasses, the food here is mostly excellent. Applause for Patatas Bravas and Ceviche. Total walkout on Paella, it was uninspired.



Bootsy's, Downtown Cincinnati

Party City
You have to love a Home Depot sized liquor store that has wine tastings on Sunday. It was Argentinian wines at this tasting. Frankly I have not had good luck with wines from Argentina. Apparently I just needed to try the right wines, thanks to Party City's wine expert, Danny Gold, I found them. I was impressed with this wine tasting. 8 wines and a delicious collection of high brow nibbles for $15. Danny was personable and informative; you could immediately tell he absolutely loved his job. If you are wondering how Party City could put on a wine tasting like that for $15, I will tell you that I spent $100 in the store afterwards and sister spent close to $400. Clever, very clever.

Deweys
Oakley Square
3014 Madison Rd
Cincinnati, OH 45209
513.731.7755

You simply can't visit Cincinnati without a stop to the indigenous pizza parlor. Get over the small, crowded conditions and get ready for pizza that rivals NYC's most authentic. Thin crust, numerous vegetarian options, friendly staff and a mind boggling array of microbrews make Deweys an entry into my pizza favorties.



Lastly, I wanted to mention that sister has a new addition to the family, Rex. This is the world's largest puppy. He's 105 pounds but only a year old, another 50-60 pounds to go. Despite his appearance, he has the friendliest personality, which is good since he outweighs both of my nieces significantly.


Rex, the puppy

Cincinnatti

Christmas was good this year. We spent it in Cincinnati where my sister moved 2 years ago. Even though my sister lives only 15 minutes from downtown we had not spent much time there in previous years. This year I decided to do 2 days at her house and the rest of the time downtown.

I liked downtown Cincinnati! It has a surprisingly urban feel; polished in some parts, gritty in others and downright south central LA in an area known as Over The Rhine (which I mistakenly walked through at length).

I stayed at The Cincinnatian, a great 5-star in the smack of things. Service is way over-the-top. And I mean that in a good way. My room was over-sized and extraordinarily comfortable. Everything I wanted to see and do was no more than a four block walk. If for some reason you find yourself in downtown Cincinnati, I recommend it!


The Cincinnatian

I had to twist my sister and bro-in-law's arms to get them into downtown to try some new restaurants. Actually I could barely finish the mere suggestion before my parents were assigned to the babysitting task and sister was dressed and ready to go!


Jean Ro's Bistro
413 Vine St.
Cincinnati, OH
(513) 621-1465

Jean Ro's is a casual French. Its owned by the same guy that owns Jean Robert's, which we tried the night following. I asked a couple of people at the hotel the difference between the two. I think the 20-something bellman hit it : "Comparing Jean Ro's Bistro to Jean Robert's is like comparing a Big Mac to a Fillet Mignon"

True, but Jean Ro's is still very good and I'll definitely go back. I tasted everyone's entrees and they were all great. What I liked about JeanRo's, unlike other French bistros, was that they didn't rely on flavor by saturation with sauces. In fact, my pan-fried trout was thankfully devoid of sauce and the plate wasn't pooling with butter either.



Jean Ro's Bistro



Jean Robert's @ Pigalls
127 W. 4th St.
Cincinnati, OH
(513) 721-1345

I was skeptical of claims that Jean Robert's was rated the best restaurant in the country for 2006. IN THE COUNTRY. Considering all the great meals Ive had at home in Dallas as well as NYC and Chicago, I just found it hard to believe. Believe it. This goes down as one of my top 3 meals ever.

The 3-course tasting menu is the way to go. And definitely have the wine guy pick out which wine would be best. He was very knowledgeable and very personable.

Recommendations:

• Indiana goat cheese en croute with french green beans and currants.
  
• Scallops in red pepper sauce with mushroom-pumpkin risotto.
  
• The cheese plate or the warm chocolate torte with cherry ice cream.
  

With every course I looked over at my sister and brother in law and they both had their eyes closed and looked like they were going to need a tissue. I usually forget most everything after a week but I still remember this meal vividly.



Jean Robert's @ Pigalls