Food + Wine Classic puts Cincinnati on the culinary map

September 1, 2014 By

chiefs-1-9-2014Who doesn’t know the Best-Kept-Secrets description used by travel gurus? As a September visitor to Greater Cincinnati, you are squarely in position to participate in a best-kept-secret of delicious and spectacular proportions.

This “secret” has a name: The Cincinnati Food & Wine Classic. The dates: September 12-13. The place: scattered, but primarily in downtown Cincinnati’s Washington Park, a city-block-large and beautifully rustic spot in Over-the-Rhine. The focus: Cincinnati’s restaurant, bar and wine scene, long established and also burgeoning, yet under-appreciated for its quality and depth.

“Cincinnati dining has been a flyover zone for the most part; not much national recognition,” said Courtney Tsitouris, co-founder of City Stories Company, and organizer of the first annual Cincinnati Food & Wine Classic. “We created this event to highlight the food scene in our area and bring national attention to a culinary tradition that holds its’ own with cities known for fine dining.”

She’s alluding to The Big Apple, Chicago, LA, and other metros of prominence in the fork and knife department. The national buzz will be provided by the likes of Andrew Knowlton, eats critique for Bon Appétit magazine; Keith Pandolfi, Senior editor at Saveur magazine; and Francis Lam, a writer focused on the hospitality industry, and also a Top Chef Masters judge. Inviting these foodie heavyweights is designed to tip the scales toward greater national recognition for a restaurant and bar scene that features outstanding performers.

“You can absolutely compare Orchids at the Palm Court (in the Netherland Hilton Hotel at 4th & Race Streets) to Daniel in New York City,” Tsitouris contends. “Todd Kelly (Orchid’s chef) offers dishes that are the same caliber of food as Daniel, but at a much more approachable price. And Kelly is just one of many chefs doing equally creative, imaginative, delicious cuisines in this city.”

The pantheon of chef stars featured in the event, and their extended bios, can be found at www.cincinnatifoodandwineclassic.com. Here, we’ll call attention to several who are leading the restaurant quality surge of the past 20 years or so, and are at the cutting edge of today’s dining craze.

In addition to the aforementioned Todd Kelly, some of the chefs include: Jean-Robert de Cavel of Jean-Robert’s Table, Daniel Wright of the Senate and Abigail Street, David Falk of Boca and Sotto, Paul Sturkey…Culinary Specialist of US Foods, Cristian Pietoso of Via Vite, Julie Francis of Nectar, Jose Salazar of Salazar, Michael Paley of Metropole at 21c Museum Hotel, Travis Maier of The Precinct, Steven Williams of Bouquet , Elias Leisring of Eli’s, Nick Marckwald of Hen in the Woods, David Cook of Daveed’s Next, Andrew Mersmann of La Poste, Jimmy Gibson of Jimmy G’s, Joel Molloy of Nicola’s, Renee Schuler of Eat Well, Paul Barraco of 20 Brix, Mike Florea of Maribelle’s, Joe West of The Palace in the Cincinnatian Hotel, Jackson Rouse of The Rookwood, Jean-Francois Flechet of Taste of Belgium, Michelle Brown of Jag’s and Adam Cobb of Enoteca Emilia.

chiefs-2-9-2014Friday Classic:
Celebration of Pork, Porkopolis
Nearly 200 years ago, circa 1835, Cincinnati had developed into a destination for hogs, and pork on the hoof came streaming in from farms in all directions for hundreds of miles round. So great was the influx of hogs to be slaughtered here that the city’s nickname became Porkopolis—hog capital of the world.

The Porkopolis heritage has been celebrated in Cincinnati lore for generations. Most notable may be the City’s Flying Pig Marathon, held annually and attracting thousands of runners the world over. Walk the City and you’ll come across the occasional “flying pig” statuary from past pig celebrations.

Hence, pork is on the menu for Day One of The Food & Wine Classic, to pay homage to Porkopolis. Friday’s Grand Tasting event will feature dishes using pork as the primary ingredient. Called Pork Chopped, selected chefs will go head-to-head competing for the best pork-inspired dish in the tasting tent in Washington Park.
Other Day-One events will include: Speakeasy in the City, where passwords get you in and everything from bathtub gin to boozy popsicles will be available; French Bohemian Rhapsody, at Jean-Robert’s Table, where a French cabaret dance party will break out; and Cocktails with a View from high atop 21c Museum Hotel, mingling with Chef Michael Paley and downing craft cocktails made by mixologist Catherine Manabat.

Saturday Classic: Best of the Best
Saturday’s Grand Tasting will feature more than 40 chefs, craft brewers and vintners, participating in a tasting trail that will salute Cincinnati’s fine-dine (and drink) history. As an attendee, you will bite, sip and sample your way through the Washington Park tasting tent. The evening Grand Tasting will be followed by late-night parties, from the Sake & Sliders party at Kaze to a Retrosonic bash recalling themes of the 50s and 60s.
Before all that takes place, there will be plenty of activity in and around the tasting tent. Start with the Rising Stars Brunch at Zula in Over-the-Rhine, where sous chefs and chefs de cuisine will whip up a by-the-bite brunch. Throughout the day, the tasting tent will be the site of demonstrations on veggie charcuterie, perfect pie crusts, sweet and savory tastings with Paul and Pam Sturkey, Ohio’s bounty of seasonal produce, meat mastery, great craft cocktail making, a goetta smack-down with chefs competing for the best goetta dish, secrets in sauce-making with Jean-Robert, wines of Spain, inspired Italian dishes with the Food Network’s Vic Vegas, sommelier blind-tasting competition, hog and hooch dishes for tasting, a bourbon tasting and seminar with Molly Wellmann, a chocolate tasting with Summer Genetti, and fig fancies using figs in treats that go well beyond Newton.

See you at Cincinnati Food & Wine Classic September 12-13!

Filed Under: Food & Entertainment of the Month

Garfield Suites Hotel offers more room for you

September 1, 2014 By

darrenschreiber-guestservicemanagerAs a visitor to Greater Cincinnati, you likely think the claim that “bigger is better” is accurate when suites in hotels are the subject of discussion. At Garfield Suites Hotel, you will find bigger suites, according to Darren Schreiber, guest service manager for the property. The hotel is located at 2 Garfield Place, fronting Vine Street in Cincinnati’s downtown grid. The hotel also features Café Martin, where breakfast, lunch, dinner and room service are offered.

The suites at the Garfield hotel tend to be significantly larger, he said, because each suite was built on the order of a residential apartment rather than just a hotel suite. The cumulative result is more square footage and larger rooms, as well as larger kitchen and bath areas. “We get a lot of guests here who comment on the added space they enjoy in our suites, and that’s to be expected since they are a lot roomier than what you find in the average suites hotel,” Schreiber said.

Schreiber and his front-desk staff cater to business and leisure travelers alike, and guests range from singles to couples and families. The focus at the front desk is to help every type of guest fully enjoy the stay and the visit to Greater Cincinnati.

He said one of the most appreciated services offered at the front desk is the courtesy shuttle provided by Garfield Suites Hotel to help guests needing a lift. The shuttle takes guests to downtown grid locations such as Great American ballpark, Paul Brown Stadium, The Banks and Over-The-Rhine entertainment districts, Findlay Market and the Union Terminal Museum Center. “Everybody likes the courtesy shuttle,” is the word from the front desk.
Trying to anticipate guest needs is central to the job at the front desk. “If a guest comes to us needing change for the hotel laundry, we’ll ask them if they need laundry soap and fabric softener sheets, and give them that as a courtesy,” he said. That kind of little extra may be why the Garfield Suites Hotel has been recipient of the Best Front Desk award offered by Cincy Magazine in area-wide competition.

Mostly, people come to the front desk wanting to know where to eat, according to Schreiber. Many more want good bar scenes, or places to take kids for special fun things to do, or good places to shop for special gifts.
“When we have information on places of interest that we can point out to guests, we do that, and they can make decisions based on that,” he said. “For us (at Garfield Suites), we are working to exceed guest expectations. If we do that, then they are going to be happy with us and with their visit.”

Filed Under: Hotel Of The Month

CiTiRAMA®: A showcase for urban living

September 1, 2014 By

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CiTiRAMA is to established in-city neighborhoods what HOMERAMA® is to those more suburban, semi-rural areas—a collection of homes that showcase what is new and exciting for the urban dweller. Cincinnati’s bi-annual CiTiRAMA is at Witherby Meadows in College Hill, September 13-21.

CiTiRAMA Cincinnati-style is a bit more than these kinds of events have proven to be in other metro areas around the country, according to Dan Dressman, an official of the local Homebuilders Association. “This marks our 12th continuous event in partnership with the City of Cincinnati,” he said. “That’s the longest continuous streak by far of any city in the United States.”

CiTiRAMA in Cincinnati is held every two years, for the most part (back to back a few times since its inception), and has been a feature of the area since the mid 1990s. This years homes range in price from $239,000 – $289,000.

There is an attractive wild card for purchasers, dealt by the City of Cincinnati. The homebuyers receive a real estate tax abatement of 10, 12 or 15 years, depending on the home purchased. The land on which the home sits is taxed, but the improvement—the home value—is not taxed. This abatement can be as much as $78,000 in tax savings over the life of the arrangement, and it’s transferrable if the home is sold prior to expiration of the deal. The standard home receives a10-year abatement; a more easily accessible home obtains a 12-year deal; and a LEED energy-environment designed home gains the 15-year tax break.

“There has been a resurgence in urban living all across the country in recent years,” Dressman stated. “Our event gives people the opportunity to experience or get an idea of new-home ownership in an urban setting. And the city has been very aggressive in creating tax incentives to get people to relocate in the city. It’s a program that works for everybody.”

A prime reason for visiting this years’ CiTiRAMA is to see what is new: new in home construction, new in appliances and systems supporting the home, new in decorating and colors in vogue. “Each CiTiRAMA helps us show prospective homebuyers what the latest features and trends are in the new homebuilding market,” said Dressman.

In addition, there is a more important goal shared by homebuilders and the City. “We want to reintroduce people to urban lifestyles. Sometimes neighborhoods may be in decline and an infusion of new homes can help elevate them. That happened with our first CiTiRAMA in the Betts-Longworth area,” he said. In other cases, the new homes simply give people a reason for looking at an area they would not have considered if the CiTiRAMA experience did not encourage them to take a look.

No matter what your reason for attending, this years’ CiTiRAMA is waiting to show you it’s stuff. Food, snacks and beverages will be available. See you there!

Filed Under: Cover Story

Savor summer with Palomino “Save & Taste” offers

July 31, 2014 By

restuarnantofthemonthaugust2014

August is THE month to visit Palomino Restaurant & Bar overlooking Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati.

Why? Because there are summertime specials you can enjoy all month long, according to Nelson Castillo, GM at Palomino. He related three deals in place for those who visit Palomino during August.

“We wanted to create excitement for the summer, so we have the $10 lunch special for all our guests,” he said. The $10 luncheon special includes these choices: the bianco pizza; the salsiccia fresca pizza; the pollo e spinaci pizza; any soup and salad combination; and the pasta with soup or salad combination, which must be accompanied by the purchase of any beverage. The $10 lunch special will spill over into September as well.

The “Play of the Day” Happy Hour is another summertime deal at Palomino. Anytime the Cincinnati Reds play a home game, head to the Palomino lounge and enjoy $2 draft beer, $4 bloody Marys, and $5 artisan pepperoni pizzas all day. The special game-day pricing is available before, during and after the games, and the lounge at Palomino is a great gathering place for socializing. So game-day, head to Palomino’s lounge.

A third opportunity to enjoy a great deal at Palomino is Greater Cincinnati’s summer Restaurant Week. The week is August 11-17, and participating eateries generally offer a special meal deal. Palomino has taken that deal to a higher level, according to Castillo. “We wanted to make our offering something really special, really top notch. So we included a diner’s choice of a glass of house wine or draft beer to the fixed-price 3-course meal. And also, we created a special Chef Selection menu with a variety of entrée items on it, so that our guests can pick from a variety of meals rather than just one or two,” he said.

The Chef Selection menu includes two steak features, along with seafood and other options. Palomino has raised the bar even farther for Restaurant Week by featuring USDA prime steaks. One is an 8-ounce New York strip with creamed spinach and herb-roasted redskin potatoes. The second is a 12-ounce rib-eye, lightly blackened, and served with Yukon mashed potatoes, caramelized onions and mushrooms.

The Palomino Restaurant Week entry is a knockout, based on what we at Key magazine know about this annual event in Greater Cincinnati. Combined with the $10 lunch special and the Play of the Day Happy Hour, visitors and area residents alike have three delicious ways to experience one of Cincinnati’s finest fine-dining restaurants for less.

You can learn more about Palomino specials and other happenings on Facebook social media or check out the full menu at www.palomino.com.

Filed Under: Restaurant Of The Month

Spring Hill Suites prime location overlooks downtown Cincinnati

July 31, 2014 By

hotelofmonth-august2014Visitors to Greater Cincinnati may not find a better voice for this area’s dining and entertainment options than the folks at Cincinnati midtown Spring Hill Suites. The Marriott property overlooks Cincinnati’s downtown skyline from north of the city, located at 610 Eden Park Drive.

GM Mike Houle has an extraordinary approach to promoting Greater Cincinnati and all it offers to his guests at Spring Hill Suites. He sees his front-desk personnel as concierges for the hotel, and here’s what he says about that: “We really like all our guests to have a good idea of the city—and we use all our resources, such as Key magazine, to help educate (our front desk personnel) on the city and all the great things we have to offer here in Cincinnati. Guests want to know first-hand, and we want our front-desk personnel to be able to say ‘hey, I’ve been there,’ to be able to talk from experience.”

Houle does more than might be expected to assure his personnel have the experience. “We like to send our front-desk team out to local attractions, like lunch at the Horseshoe casino, or a trip to the Art Museum in Eden Park, or the restaurants in Mt. Adams, so they know what they are talking about.”

Management at the Midtown property has put together special sheets for guests wanting to take advantage of the sights, shopping and eateries in Greater Cincinnati. A sheet of nearby restaurants features 30 options, with phone numbers, addresses and types of food. A similar sheet exists for shopping areas, with 10 areas listed. And there is a “Cincy Eats” sheet that highlights local, hometown favorites such as Skyline Chili, Graeter’s ice cream, Montgomery Inn ribs and more. “We do that little extra to help make the stay of our guests’ more enjoyable,” he said.

As for the suites at Spring Hill, each is at least 20 percent larger than a typical hotel room. Plus, each has a fold-out sofa for added sleeping space, making it easier for a family to fit in a suite in comfort.

The breakfast at Spring Hill is included in the room cost, and Houle stated it’s a better breakfast than most hotels offer. “Weekdays, the breakfast includes fresh fruit, meats, cheeses, ham and eggs, sausage, things like that,” he said. In fact, in July of last year, Spring Hill upgraded its breakfast offering across the whole chain, and Houle says his guests love the change.

Spring Hill’s Midtown location features a pool with a handicapped lift for getting in and out of the water. Next to the pool area is a fitness center, and individual machines are equipped with TV screens. There is a small market next to the front desk for those you may need a personal item, want a quick snack or a beverage. Also, there is a bar in the lobby area, serving guests in the evenings from 5 to 11 p.m.

See you at Spring Hill Suites Midtown!

Filed Under: Hotel Of The Month

Art Beyond Boundaries worthy tributary of mainstream venues

July 31, 2014 By

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Artists can be a quirky lot. Creative impulses often place the artist on a path that veers away from the ones most traveled. Nowhere is the less traveled path more notable than on the walls of Art Beyond Boundaries gallery at 1410 Main Street in Cincinnati’s Over the Rhine enclave.

The gallery is devoted to artists with disabilities that have nothing to do with the creative process. The disabilities can be physical or cognitive, according to J. H. “Jymi” Bolden, gallery director and curator. “What we display here on these walls is ability, not disability. These artists (on display) have talents every bit as compelling as other artists, but they have been shut out of the mainstream art venues for reasons that have nothing to do with their creative abilities,” he said.

The gallery has been a showcase for the artists Bolden describes for more than a decade, and has weathered the Great Recession as well as the sputtering economic times on both sides of that 2008 meltdown. “The economy really doesn’t matter where art is concerned,” Bolden stated. “If art reaches out to you, and touches you, speaks to you, then you want to possess it, and the state of the economy is of no significance.”

Currently a show entitled “Say It Loud” is being exhibited at the gallery. The artists featured are: Ricky Michaels, Michael Todd and Kelvin Poole. The show runs into September, and draws patrons of the arts from the tri-state area (Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana), as well as regionally and nationally, and even internationally.

As the current Say It Loud exhibition illustrates, the art found at Art Beyond Boundaries is eclectic and diverse. “The artists whose works are displayed here bring the perspectives of their experience to these walls,” said Bolden, himself a practicing creative photographer with a degree in fine arts from the Art Academy of Cincinnati.
Primarily, patrons who visit the gallery will find collections of paintings that carry messages as well as graphics. Some of the compositions are conventional flat art with 3-dimensional aspects incorporated as part of the graphics. Paintings are done in oils and acrylics. The paintings include several with strong, vibrant colors and a diverse palette. There is a Picasso-inspired quality to some pieces in the exhibit, and a wonderful random intricacy to other pieces in the show.

“Really, we can talk of the pieces in the exhibit and describe them and all the rest. But the experience of the gallery is worth seeking out,” Bolden said. He encourages everyone who visits the city to put Art Beyond Boundaries on the list of must-visit stops, because there is nothing to substitute for seeing the actual art and experiencing the totality of the exhibition now on display. Call for gallery hours at 513-421-8726.

Filed Under: Hot Spot Of The Month
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