Where to eat in Cincinnati, the Ohio city championing beer and bacon doughnuts

Among the dozens of flavoured spice rub blends arranged in tins at Colonel De Gourmet Herbs and Spices, I’ve singled out Ole’ Bourbon Trail. It seems the ideal souvenir from this stall in Cincinnati’s Findlay Market, which is set barely a mile from Ohio’s border with Kentucky, America’s ‘bourbon state’. It’s bold stuff: brown sugar and smoky paprika giving way to a burst of coriander, hickory and chilli.  

Established in 1855 to sell produce from surrounding farms, Findlay Market has evolved to offer significantly more. Across the central aisle, a woman buys chicken sausages from Neil Luken Meats, fresh in from Gerber’s Amish Farm, in northeast Ohio. A group of construction workers swagger past, seemingly immune to the warm, bready wafts of baking pizza at Bouchard’s. They opt instead for crimp-edged, Ukrainian dumplings filled with potato and cheddar, and spinach and provolone, at Babushka Pierogies.

An aromatic dukkah blend reminiscent of a Middle Eastern souq draws me into Dean’s Mediterranean Imports, lined with glass jars of Levant spices and refrigerators packed with tubs of homemade falafel, hummus and tzatziki. I buy a wrap containing all three, plus a crunchy slaw, chunks of ripe tomato and a garlicky hot sauce. Despite the generous American portion, I still can’t resist the doughy aroma coming from The Arepa Place, which serves the titular South American ground corn patties with salsa. Filled with mozzarella cheese and then grilled, the arepa is the ultimate comfort food. I use it to scoop up the tomato-based sauce, whose potent chilli kick slowly unfurls.

“Findlay has been in operation in this location for more than 170 years,” says Barb Cooper of Cincinnati Food Tours, who I’ve joined in the market. “There’s only a handful in the United States that have been around longer.”   

Attracting some 10,000 visitors at weekends, Findlay Market is at the heart of the resurgent Over-the-Rhine or ‘OTR’ district, an area named after the now-covered canal at Cincinnati’s downtown boundary. “OTR’s architecture is something we treasure, built mostly between 1860 to 1890 by German immigrants,” says Barb, gesturing towards pastel-painted facades above shopfronts as we tour the neighbourhood.

German heritage can be found, too, in Cincinnati’s food, where butchers have long used offcuts to make an inexpensive but filling, protein-rich sausage meat called goetta. Pronounced ‘getta’, Barb explains, the delicacy is barely known beyond a 50-mile radius of the city. We call in at Ecklerlin Meats, a Findlay business established in 1852, where John Holloway introduces himself. “I’m sixth generation,” he says, proudly. Holding up a brick-sized goetta loaf, John says he’s just pan-fried a few slices in butter. The soft texture and peppery seasoning remind me of haggis. He smiles at my approving nod. 

In the 1800s, Cincinnati was America’s hub for processing pork, and is still known as ‘Porkopolis’. The meat is the main ingredient in goetta, often mixed with beef. “Back in the day, when there was a hog or cattle slaughter from farms outside town, anything that didn’t have fur or bone went into your goetta pot,” says John. “You’d add steel-cut pinhead oats, season with onion, salt, pepper and a couple of special ingredients to differentiate from your neighbour and cook it all day long, let those oats break down. Cool it overnight and that would be another meat option for the family.”

Our final stop is Makers Bakers Co, where Barb introduces co-founder Kevin Foston, who encourages me to tuck into a luscious mound of banana pudding — spongy cake and sliced banana bound by cream and drizzled with a sticky bourbon-caramel sauce. Kevin recently collaborated with a brewery taproom, Samuel Adams, to create Cinnamon Roll Breakfast Bock. The German-style bock beer is dark and strong, typical of those originally brewed to give monks energy during their Lent fast, with added spice inspired by the sweet rolls.

Thanks to high demand from German settlers, brewing was once commonplace in OTR. Below its streets, vast lagering tunnels were hewn from bedrock to store fermenting beer at a cool, constant temperature for the likes of the defunct John Kauffman Brewing Company. Today, Cincinnati is packed with critically acclaimed craft breweries. Two top venues — Rhinegeist Brewery and Northern Row Brewery and Distillery — are within easy staggering distance. But I head to Moerlein Lager House in Smale Riverfront Park, a modern microbrewery with a long history.

This riverside venue offers much beyond the giant pretzels and German sausages that may have fed its Bavarian blacksmith founder, Christian Moerlein. At a hefty wood table that wouldn’t look out of place in a Munich beer hall, diners enjoy the likes of barbacoa short ribs, loaded fries and sriracha-spiced cauliflower. I order a pint of refreshing Das Über Oktoberfest-style lager and gaze at the eddying Ohio River. I’m preparing myself for a Cincinnati classic.

At a nearby branch of Skyline Chili, one of many in the city, I tuck into Cincinnati’s best-known dish. Characterised by a thin sauce with hints of cinnamon and clove, this local version of chilli is far milder than the jalapeño-laced Tex-Mex iteration. “We’re celebrating our 75th anniversary this year,” says Skyline Chili’s Sarah Sicking. “Nicholas Lambrinides opened his first Skyline with his sons in 1949, using his mother’s chilli recipes. It’s still a family business.” The diner-style setting sees most patrons eat and leave within 20 minutes. Complimentary oyster crackers arrive seconds after I’ve ordered. On surrounding tables, people dig into cheese coneys: hot dogs in steamed buns served with chopped onions and chilli, and almost buried in grated cheese. Others order their chilli with spaghetti using what sounds like a secret code.

“A three-way is spaghetti with chilli and cheese,” explains Sarah. “A four-way adds onions or beans, and five-way adds both.” Asking for the dish to be inverted puts the cheese at the bottom and spaghetti on top. At under $10 (£8), a regular-sized three-way is an inexpensive way of filling up while experiencing some unique local culinary heritage. 

It’s hearty stuff, so I take a digestive evening stroll — into the next state. This actually takes just minutes, crossing the Ohio River via the John A Roebling Bridge to arrive in Covington, Kentucky. While a city in its own right, it has the feel of a well-to-do suburb, and is considered part of metropolitan Cincinnati, even playing host to its international airport.

Here, at Revival Vintage Bottle Shop, I find shelves lined with bottles more akin to museum objects than standard off-licence wares. I spot a 2016 bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle bourbon with a price tag of $999.99 (£792). A 1950 bottle of Old Wilmore costs $899.99 (£713). There are also dozens with double-figure prices, displaying labels with retro fonts and antiquated designs. 

“I think the best spirits have already been made,” says co-founder Brad Bonds, who seeks out old bottles from collectors, and those idling in attics across the US. If the original seals are intact, he’ll buy anything from bourbon, rye and other types of whiskey, with the occasional foray into other spirits including rums and tequilas. “One man’s trash is another’s treasure,” says Brad, who opens a ‘new’ bottle every day, allowing customers to sample a $5 (£4) pour of a spirit that may have been distilled before they were born. 

Ordering a sample of 1983 Kentucky Tavern bourbon, I sit at one of the four leather-topped stools by the bar and swirl the golden liquid around the glass. As a relative newcomer to bourbon, I can’t identify the characteristics that warrant buying a bottle from my birth year. But at least I can try it.

A 10-minute taxi ride back to OTR brings more vintage fun. Here, I descend to Ghost Baby, a nightclub set in a 170-year-old lagering tunnel, where I’m shown to a booth lit by a tasselled lamp to watch a jazz trumpeter play a muted melody. The scene reminds me of a classic film, prompting the order of an old fashioned. The cocktail’s barrel-proof bourbon warms my chest and causes me to exhale rapidly — an experience, I’m told, that’s known locally as a ‘Kentucky hug’. It’s a fitting farewell to this borderlands city.  

Four of the best restaurants in Cincinnati

1. Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse
The crystal chandeliers and mother-of-pearl baby grand are an ideal backdrop for a ‘cowboy steak’ (22oz, bone-in ribeye) or Wagyu filet mignon. Oysters, sushi and dover sole also feature on a menu whose sides include lobster gnocchi. Steaks from $62 (£49). 

2. Metropole On Walnut
Ingredients sourced from Ohio’s farmers, distilleries and wineries feature on a bistro-style menu. Served with smoked aioli and pepper jack cheese, the smash burger pairs well with a glass of Kentucky bourbon. Mains from around $18 (£14). 

3. Boca
This is fine dining from a native chef, David Falk. The menu of steaks, seafood, house-made pasta and seasonal sides features dishes such as scallops with caramelised brussels sprouts, while desserts include the chocolate and nougat ‘candy bar 3.0’. Falk’s basement spot, Sotto, offers a rustic Italian experience. Mains from $22 (£17). 

4. Sleepy Bee Cafe
Colourful glass art installations celebrate the importance of the pollinating insects that lend this casual restaurant its name, inspiring a menu that’s big on locally sourced ingredients. Egg scrambles, granola and original and vegan versions of goetta feature alongside gluten-free options such as ‘bee cakes’ pancakes. Breakfasts from around $7.50 (£6). 

Five dishes to try in Cincinnati

1. Cincinnati Chilli
Distinctively spiced with cinnamon, allspice and cloves, Cincinnati’s mild chilli has been served with a hot dog or spaghetti since the 1920s.

2. Goetta
Typically served as a breakfast option or snack, this heavily seasoned local meat and oat sausage began as an affordable source of protein for German immigrants.

3. Graeter’s Ice Cream
Louis Graeter started selling ice cream on Cincinnati’s streets in 1870. It’s still made in spinning ‘French pot’ freezers, with established and seasonal flavours available in 18 citywide stores.

4. Grippo’s Chips
Family-run Grippo’s has been making preservative-free, salty snacks for over a century, starting with pretzels in 1919. The zingy ‘Bar-B-Q’ flavour and beef jerky are firm favourites.

5. Holtman’s Donuts
Famed for bacon-topped yeast doughnuts with maple icing, Holtman’s has four very popular stores which close when supplies are exhausted. Expect queues.