25 New Restaurants in 2011

[Kwyjibo]

Tom Chee is the Groupon today.  $6 for $12.

[Doug]

Tom Chee is the Groupon today.  $6 for $12.

I got two!

[Kwyjibo]

I picked up one, they're good for a year and I didn't see any other restrictions.  I imagine we can make it there sometime in the course of a year.  I want to try the place but we're never downtown.

[The Hegemo]

1. Maggiano's (Kenwood Towne Centre, Cincy) 
2. Sonoma Mediterranean and American Grill (Oakley Square, Cincy) 
3. Basil (Short North, C-bus) 

4. Market 65 (Capitol Square, C-Bus) -- This is co-owned by a friend's sister's boyfriend. They just opened yesterday, so still working out the kinks. They specialize in salads. I had the cobb salad with blackened chicken. We were after the lunch rush and they were out of some ingredients, so I had it with spinach. Which is fine, because I love spinach. Salad was tasty, even with my taste buds impaired by a cold. I will definitely go back. 8/10

[MissKitty]

1. New China Buffet - Pavilion Blvd., Newport.
2. Mellow Mushroom Pizza - Wilder, KY.
3. The Grove - Spring Grove Avenue, Northside
4. Cafe Bistro - St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood, KY

5. Vintage Wine Bar & Restaurant - Hebron, KY

This place strives to be posh but doesn't quite hit the mark. It's rather devoid of atmosphere and reminded me of a hotel or airport restaurant. The food was hit or miss - my field green salad was AMAZING, but the fettuccine entree fell flat. (herbed olive oil had little taste - it needed garlic in a big way - and asparagus so thin it couldn't be pierced with a fork tine - WTF!?) Then came dessert. The chocolate terrine was by far the best I'd ever had; rich, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate bars drizzled with tart raspberry and thick, meaty walnut halves. Gorgeous. They have a great selection of wine and beer, and do something called "flights" where they pair three courses with wine or beer. I might go back and give that a try to see what it's like before I completely dismiss Vintage. Service was outstanding, but even with our discounted Groupon I felt as though I wasn't getting my money's worth.

[The Hegemo]

1. Maggiano's (Kenwood Towne Centre, Cincy) 
2. Sonoma Mediterranean and American Grill (Oakley Square, Cincy) 
3. Basil (Short North, C-bus) 
4. Market 65 (Capitol Square, C-Bus)

Just back from Portland...I ate very well there, and there were so many more places I would have liked to have tried. What a great city on a number of different levels, but especially food!

5. Honkin' Huge Burritos (Pioneer Courthouse Square, Portland) -- Due to flight delays, I'd had nothing to eat except for two Luna Bars and a couple Delta bags of peanuts, and it was 2PM Pacific Time. This food cart serves veggie burritos. I got the small one, which was still pretty giant. Hit the spot. Tasty. Because of timing and weather, this was the only food cart I made it to in Portland, which was unfortunate. But it was a good one. 8/10
6. Deschutes Brewery (Pearl District, Portland) -- Had the Bachelor Bitter and the Cascade Ale, both of which were excellent. Fish and chips for dinner -- panko-crusted halibut. Nom nom nom 9/10
7. Isabel (Pearl District, Portland ) -- I'd intended to go somewhere else for breakfast, but I missed the streetcar, and it was raining, and this place was closer and not too crowded, so I ducked in. Roast beef hash. Pretty good. Coffee was excellent. 7/10
8. Pho Van (SE Hawthorne, Portland) -- Crispy rolls and seafood soup. I've had a spicy Vietnamese seafood soup sized hole in my heart since leaving Kingston and Dong Nai's version. I didn't like this quite as much as I liked that, but it was still nice on a cool, rainy day. 7/10
9. Doug Fir Lounge (E Burnside, Portland) -- I was seeing Dan Mangan here Saturday night, and it seemed easiest to just eat at the attached restaurant. Had a couple more pints of Deschutes beer. Cheeseburger and fries. It was perfectly good, although nothing outstanding. 6/10
10. Ken's Artisan Bakery (NW Portland) -- Brunch. Stumptown coffee and a pear and goat cheese sandwich. I needed something lighter after overindulging the day before, and this was very nice. Their baked goods also looked delicious, although I didn't get anything 9/10
11. Baja Fresh (Pearl District, Portland ) -- Not really a new restaurant. I just crave Baja Fresh all the time and they closed all of the ones in Columbus a couple years ago. So it was awesome to get to go in and get my favorite chicken burrito ultimo. They didn't have the mango salsa, though, which was a little bit of a bummer. There are still Baja Fresh locations around Detroit. I need to take a day trip up there some weekend and eat there.
12. Laughing Planet (SE Belmont, Portland) -- Stopped in to fuel up after hiking up Mt. Tabor in the rain. This is a local chain that specializes in veggie-friendly burritos. I had the "Che Guevara," which included plantains and sweet potatoes. It was tasty. Although the highlight may have been the bottle of Hotlips blackberry soda (a local brand) I had along with it. 7/10
13. Thai Peacock (somewhere in downtown Portland) -- I took an afternoon excursion to a wine bar near my hotel, and $140 later, I was well lit up. But still game to go seek out dinner. I had plans to go to the Rogue Alehouse in the Pearl District, but got off the streetcar in the wrong place, had somehow deleted Google Maps from my BlackBerry, and couldn't figure out what I was doing. I wandered drunkenly around the Pearl for awhile, looking at menus in windows, then started walking back in the direction of my hotel. I finally ducked into this place because I figured I needed to eat something. I had vegetarian salad rolls, tofu pad thai, and a Thai iced tea. I couldn't tell you how it was, though, as most events of that evening are pretty hazy. Incomplete.
14. Godfathers Pizza (Minneapolis Airport) -- Back to food reality. $7 for a personal pepperoni pizza that wasn't very good. 3/10.
7.

[Poolio]

13. Thai Peacock (somewhere in downtown Portland) -- I took an afternoon excursion to a wine bar near my hotel, and $140 later, I was well lit up. But still game to go seek out dinner. I had plans to go to the Rogue Alehouse in the Pearl District, but got off the streetcar in the wrong place, had somehow deleted Google Maps from my BlackBerry, and couldn't figure out what I was doing. I wandered drunkenly around the Pearl for awhile, looking at menus in windows, then started walking back in the direction of my hotel. I finally ducked into this place because I figured I needed to eat something. I had vegetarian salad rolls, tofu pad thai, and a Thai iced tea. I couldn't tell you how it was, though, as most events of that evening are pretty hazy. Incomplete.

HA! Awesome...

[Butter]

1. The Senate - Vine St., couple blocks north of Central Pkwy. - 5
2. Wipeout - Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco, CA - 8
3. Bella Trattoria - Geary Blvd., San Fran - 9.5
4. Hot Spud - Mason Street, near Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco - 9
5. Perry's - at San Francisco Airport - 5
6. Tom+Chee - East Court St. - 8

7. Brio's - The Greene - 7

Really really good meal, really really highly priced.  I had lasagna, Andrea had some kind of chicken with fettuccine number.  The chicken was very soft and delicate, almost like tuna.  So, I was almost worried it was undercooked, but it tasted fantastic.  The lasagna was very good, almost in an enchilada type shape, but very flavorful.  The salads were good, the dessert (we split a tiramisu) was good, nothing outstanding there.  I would not eat there again unless I wanted to blow about 30 more dollars than I really need to without getting some kind of steak.  If high-falutin' is your thing, then this must be your place.  I guess it's nice to eat at these kinds of places every so often.  Like, really really rarely.  To make yourself feel high class or something.  I just felt a hole in my wallet where the money I paid for the meal used to be.

8. Oink-a-Doodle-Moo - Far Hills Ave., Kettering - 3

Heeding vizzah's warning, Andrea and I split a plate so as not to get too financially invested here.  Well, the first red flag is that one plate which includes a meat, 2 sides, and a drink, was $11.98 for dine-in.  Jesus Christ.

Then as far as drinks go, our preferred Coke Zero was spitting out clear water from the fountain.  Add to that that 2 other drinks were already not working, and that's strike two.  Strike three was the mac and cheese, which really could've been called just mac.  There was very little cheese, and frankly it tasted close to foodservice-y... and not in a cheesy, gooey way.  In a bland and completely dull way.  

The beef was good, and I thought the potatoes were decent.  I much prefer the City Barbeque method of sauce dispensing, which is having all flavors on the table for consumption, or on a small bar if you would rather have them warm.  OADM says: hey, just pick one sauce and we'll dispense it for you.  Because you're already paying $12 for this, but we really need to ration out the sauce.

We'll just go to City BBQ instead next time.  Or we'll try some other local place we haven't hit yet for BBQ.  There are a bunch of them, it seems.

[Rafe]

Oink-a-Doodle-Moo. Classic

Your dining experience aside, that is a fucking brilliant name for a Restaurant. Made me chuckle, anyway.

[Buzzstein]

It sounds like they would specialize in questionable meat-like substances...

[Cockney Rebel]

7. Brio's - The Greene - 7

Brio do a really good Happy Hour deal on food if you sit in the bar area. They have a selection of things from their menu that are priced at just $3, including a burger that is normally $9 and a couple of bruschetta variations etc etc. We go to the Brio at the Levee a lot before Reds games for this deal (and whilst the drinks aren't cheap) the service and food is almost always impeccable.

[Butter]

Brio do a really good Happy Hour deal on food if you sit in the bar area. They have a selection of things from their menu that are priced at just $3, including a burger that is normally $9 and a couple of bruschetta variations etc etc. We go to the Brio at the Levee a lot before Reds games for this deal (and whilst the drinks aren't cheap) the service and food is almost always impeccable.

We might try to hit this sometime.  Andrea and my problem is, by the time we get there, the bar is usually packed.  We tried this at McCormick and Schmick's one night, and the bar was like 3 deep and all the tables were gone.  Brio has a slightly more expensive version, but we usually just can't get there early enough on Friday night.

[MissKitty]

1. New China Buffet - Pavilion Blvd., Newport.
2. Mellow Mushroom Pizza - Wilder, KY.
3. The Grove - Spring Grove Avenue, Northside
4. Cafe Bistro - St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood, KY
5. Vintage Wine Bar & Restaurant - Hebron, KY

6. The Paddy Wagon Irish Pub & Restaurant - Main Street, Richmond, KY

This place is more of a bar than a restaurant. Going in we thought it'd be something like the Dublin Pub or Nicholson's, but it was more of a college boozer than an eatery. Still, we were there so we decided to give it a shot. Mom got the blackened fish special and I chose a side salad and nachos, since the vegetarian options were limited to that or a veggie burger and I wasn't convinced that the burger wouldn't be prepared on the same grilling surface as regular beef burgers.

Mom thought her dish was okay (although it was supposed to be served on a bed of linguine with Alfredo sauce, but instead it came with penne, which doesn't work at all with blackened fish - if they didn't have any linguine left, why not substitute rice instead?).

My salad was huge - I swear it came in a bowl the size of a large casserole dish - but wasn't anything special; basic iceberg, diced tomato, red onion rings, shredded cheddar and croutons. The nachos, which I had to order sans chili but still had to pay full price for, were merely passable. The description said it came with shredded cheese, but when it came out it was that horrible yellow glop that you get at the ballpark. Nasty.

I guess if you're going someplace to drink (they had a great selection of local, craft and small batch beer) and shoot some pool or play darts, this is your place. As a restaurant, it's pretty much a big ole FAIL.

7. Michael's Restaurant - Ravenna, KY.

Ah now, that's more like it. Michael's is a small, all-you-can-eat buffet of completely made-from-scratch homestyle cooking for a mere $8, beverage included. I'm always a little wary about homestyle cooking because it usually means everything is cooked in or with some type of animal fat. I had to avoid several items on the hot buffet, natch, but was able to fill up on all the vegetable dishes as well as the salad and dessert bar. Their cornbread and (I never in a million years thought I'd ever say this) the cooked cabbage were to die for. Who knew cooked cabbage could be to die for?! That stuff was amazing. I also highly recommend their fried apples. They weren't as awesome as my grandma's fried apples, but they were good enough that I went back for seconds and thirds. From now on whenever I'm visiting the Estill County Genealogy & Historical Society or doing research at the Estill County Public Library, I'm heading to Michael's for lunch. YUM!

8. Cedar Village Restaurant - Richmond Road, Irvine, KY.

Another homestyle all-you-can-eat buffet. Cedar Village was originally opened in 1949 by the owner of Michael's, which explains why recipes at both restaurants are similar. The decor at Cedar Village is a little more up to date than it is at Michael's (Michael's looks like it hasn't been updated since 1976, Cedar Village since 1986) but who cares about the tired decor when the food is as good as it is here?

I found their mashed potatoes (real whipped potatoes; no Potato Buds here) a little too salty, but let's just fast forward right to dessert. Oh. My. God. They had the absolute best cherry cobbler that Mom and I have ever eaten. It was made from scratch the old hill-country way with both a bottom and top crust, and the top crust was coated with granulated sugar. And you know how canned cherry filling has a certain look and consistancy? Well this was definitely NOT a canned filling - it was the real deal; made from scratch the slow cooked way. Unbeatable. I would have gladly paid the $7.50 buffet price for the cobbler alone!

Both Michael's and Cedar Village offer an old-timey dessert called butter rolls. If your family came from the south you are probably familiar with butter rolls, but if not, here is a description and recipe. Country folk use nutmeg instead of cinnamon. NOM NOM NOM

[vizzah]

We'll just go to City BBQ instead next time.  Or we'll try some other local place we haven't hit yet for BBQ.  There are a bunch of them, it seems.

Check out Smokin' Aces in Xenia.  It's not too far of a hike from lower East Crackton (maaaaybe 15 minutes, straight off 35).  It's about the only place we'll eat BBQ around here.  Priced right, too.  Four dinners, two sodas and probably 4-5 beers ran me  right around $60 (plus tax and tip)

[MissKitty]

1. New China Buffet - Pavilion Blvd., Newport.
2. Mellow Mushroom Pizza - Wilder, KY.
3. The Grove - Spring Grove Avenue, Northside
4. Cafe Bistro - St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood, KY
5. Vintage Wine Bar & Restaurant - Hebron, KY
6. The Paddy Wagon Irish Pub & Restaurant - Main Street, Richmond, KY
7. Michael's Restaurant - Ravenna, KY.
8. Cedar Village Restaurant - Richmond Road, Irvine, KY.

9. Pho Lang Thang - Findlay Market, Over-the-Rhine

Finally got around to visiting this cozy Vietnamese restaurant and wow, it was worth the wait. Their homemade tofu is amazing! Review here.