April 25, 200718 yr that seems like one of those cursed buildings. It was a steakhouse a while back wasn't it. If they developed the lot next to it and the two lots across the street with some residential units, it might be in better shape.
April 25, 200718 yr Thai and classic rock?? This is one wierd town. Why not take inspiration from Stephen Starr's Buddakan restaurants? http://www.buddakan.com/ http://www.buddakannyc.com/ Somewhat clubby, innovative Asian cuisine, and no trace of Creedence Clearwater Revival.
April 25, 200718 yr I think that a Panera Bread would be great downtown! But so far my rants have fallen on deaf ears with the franchise owners here. However, I think us UrbanOhioans can make an impact. They conduct these online surveys and have an comment section at the end of the survey. I am asking that you fill out the survey and tell them that you would like to see a Panera Bread downtown. They are always looking for new locations, lets steer them in the direction of downtown! The franchise owners and their corporate staff actually read these things...so we CAN make a difference! Here is the link to the survey. It will ask you a couple of questions that you will need to know. Fill out 3055 for the store number at the beginning of the survey (that is for the Calhoun location). Then enter a 3 digit number for the order number...use a number between 200-400 to be safe. Then the rest is up to your imagination, it is a quick survey and I really do think this can make a difference and get another place to expand into downtown! http://www.panerasurvey.com/
April 25, 200718 yr Panera? We already have Atlanta Bread Company downtown ;) Yeah, but Panera is better. Their food is better. The ABC downtown is not as good as it used to be, and their hours are crappy. I actually hear quite a few downtown residents and workers say they would love to have Panera down here.
April 26, 200718 yr I don't argue that, I am simply busting on Rando's chops since he works at Panera.
April 26, 200718 yr I don't argue that, I am simply busting on Rando's chops since he works at Panera. Ah.... Yeah, Atlanta Bread Company is fine. Who needs Panera? ;)
April 26, 200718 yr Two things I noticed recently on Court St: - The Passage Cafe, which is near Avril's, is trying some Saturday hours. They are usually only open M-F, 11-3. They were open this past Saturday, and the owner said he's trying 10-3 on Saturdays. It looked like they were open on Sunday as well. I've never eaten there, but their prices look reasonable. The menu includes sandwiches and soups. I intend to try it out soon (on a Saturday, of course). - It looks like a new restaurant will be opening up soon called "Poppa Joe's." I know absolutely nothing about this place, but their sign advertises chicken fingers and french fries. This is located near the court house, next to Chamber's.
April 27, 200718 yr Another FYI, Spicy Pickle on W. Clifton (old Roly Poly location) will be opening up this coming week. I think it opens on Tuesday or Wednesday. Looks interesting...they've done a nice job cleaning the place up and making it presentable again.
April 27, 200718 yr I like to stay positive about new development and nightlife options, but this one does zero for me. I don't Karaoke nor do I enjoy other's Karaoking so maybe that's my problem, but their entertainment plan sounds a little sketchy to me... Cinema Grill gets new life BY JEFF MCKINNEY | [email protected] MOUNT LOOKOUT – Tony Rossini and Brian Feldkamp are hopeful that live music, dance shows, hamburgers and steaks will become smash hits and breathe new life into the former Mount Lookout Cinema Grill. The pair is spending more than $500,000 to open Jaspers, a restaurant and nightclub where patrons will be able to showcase their talents – including singing a tune or two – in an open mike-type forum. No link available for article.
April 27, 200718 yr oooh... a karaoke nightclub... I am so gonna have to hit that next time I'm in Cincy... thanks for the update, PRidge!
April 27, 200718 yr "He says the nightclub will offer a variety of entertainment, including live music from local and national acts, dance shows and karaoke." I'm interested to see the kind of acts they book. If it is heavy on that this could add to Mt. Lookout's draw as a growing nightlife area. If it is heavy on dance shows and karaoke, not so much. Karaoke belongs in a hotel or dive bar, or in the backyard.
April 29, 200718 yr ^ I respect your thoughts on Karaoke as I pretty much felt the same way but as I traveled around the world more I realized how popular and different Karaoke bars are in different cities. I am interested in seeing how this concept pans out. Does anyone know how much the Cinema Grill sold for? I know it was assessed at around $250K a couple of years ago when a buddy of mine and I were inquiring about the place.
April 29, 200718 yr Mount Lookout gets new view BY JEFF MCKINNEY | [email protected] April 29, 2007 PHOTO: Brian Feldkamp (left) and Tony Rossini are preparing to open Jaspers, a restaurant and nightclub, in Mount Lookout in July. THE ENQUIRER/CARA OWSLEY MOUNT LOOKOUT - Tony Rossini and Brian Feldkamp are hopeful that live music, dance shows, hamburgers and steaks will become smash hits and breathe new life into the former Mount Lookout Cinema Grill. Click on link above for article.
April 30, 200718 yr A place called Portofino's has finally opened in Northside. There was a place with the same name on Winton Rd. (?) that met with some acclaim. Dunno if this is the same place or not. They have a MySpace page here: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=179872450 The place looks ok. I have no idea what their hours are. It is on Chase - west of Hamilton on the south side just behind the pharmacy.
May 7, 200718 yr Brothers serving up second Los Cabos Mexican restaurant After more than a year of searching for new locations, Los Cabos restaurant, the Mexican eatery that entered Cincinnati four years ago, is finally opening its second area store, in Milford. Click here for article: http://dayton.bizjournals.com/dayton/othercities/cincinnati/stories/2007/05/07/newscolumn3.html?b=1178510400^1457469 "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
May 7, 200718 yr I hate the word "nostalgia" it sounds like a type of bacteria or disease. Im glad more Mexican restaurants are opening up.. Cincinnati doesn't really offer a lot of authentic Mexican. Don Pablos doesn't count.
May 7, 200718 yr Surprised theres none in Lower Price Hill. There is at least one on State Ave that I can think of. I would venture to say more, but I don't know all of LPH yet. If you are wanting to find the Mexican influence in that area...look particularly to the north side of W 8th St.
May 8, 200718 yr What we need are low end Mexican diners. Like a Mexican Tuckers. There are pleny in the area - just not in Cincinnati. There are a bunch of inexpensive authentic Mexican joints in NKY particularly around Florence - Rio Grande, El Pueblito, Camino Real, Alcupalco, Taquerio Mercado to name a few- same thing around Fairfield to the north. It just seems that most of the Hispanic population located to the north and south of the area near the 275 loop so thats where those places are. I would suggest El Rio Grande in Newport. It's authentic, fairly inexpensive, the food is good, and it's not too far South if you live in Ohio (exit 3 off of 471, Grand Ave). I hit it for lunch all the time and it is always packed.
May 8, 200718 yr Well if we're talking about outside of Cincinnati...then I would say that Hamilton has some FANTASTIC places! My favorite has to be 'Taqueria Paisanos' on High Street. Delicious!!!
May 8, 200718 yr I agree that downtown Cincy needs a cheap authentic mexican place. A Mexican grocery would be cool too.
May 8, 200718 yr What about Javier's or Jalepenos downtown? Their menus are limited but I would still classify it as "authentic". I am not that into chain restaurants but Chi-Chis was one of my favorites!
May 8, 200718 yr Aren't there 4 Mexican restaurants downtown alone? Margarita's (Tower Place) Margarita's ( Sixth Street) Javier's Jalepenos My favorite Mexican restaurants in the metro are: Jalapenos in Maderia El Picante in Loveland El Rancho Grande in West Chester I tried to eat at Javier's on Cinco De Mayo but they were closed so we ate at Margarita's at Tower Place before we made our way to Fountain Square to drink OTR Ale, disgusting Mint Juleps and watch the Kentucky Derby. To top it off it decided to rain (pour) 4 minutes before the race started.
May 8, 200718 yr ^ There is also Burrito Joe's. Burrito Joe's and Javier's are only open Monday through Fridays, though.
May 8, 200718 yr Javier's is good but you pretty much need to work downtown to go there since they are not open evenings and weekends. That hellhole in Tower Place, Margarita's, is terrible. There used to be taco/burrito stands along the street in LA that were more akin to Mr Pig's. Those are the places I am looking for.
May 8, 200718 yr Those places are fine (I haven't been to Jalepenos or Margaritas) but they are not the cheap Mexican Diner that is built for Mexicans, like Taquaria Mercado (Fairfield) is. I really like Javier's especially because the owner is there all the time and is interested to talk with customers.
May 8, 200718 yr Javier's is good but you pretty much need to work downtown to go there since they are not open evenings and weekends. That hellhole in Tower Place, Margarita's, is terrible. There used to be taco/burrito stands along the street in LA that were more akin to Mr Pig's. Those are the places I am looking for. I agree. Margarita's is mediocre. I haven't tried the Jalapenos downtown yet, but I did like the one at Northgate Mall. It's decent for a chain Mexican place. Some of the best Mexican food I've had was at this little hole-in-the-wall, no frills place in Santa Barbara. We would have easily missed the place if we had not received recommendations from relatives. It was authentic and dirt cheap. My husband and I had dinner there, and our bill was under $10 for both of us. The place was packed. I would love to see a place like this around here. Maui Tacos in Hawaii was also very good. Much better than the Mexican places around here, especially the chains.
May 8, 200718 yr LOL Oh damn...I got everyone talking about burritos again. Burrito Joes tastes like cafeteria food. Good Mexican places usually have Spanish names, not named after a pepper. Taquaria Mercado sounds like its probably what i'm looking for but its in bum #$%*ed Fairfield.
May 8, 200718 yr Are you sure it was Jalapenos that you ate at Northgate Mall? I thought the only one before the downtown location was off Montgomery Road in Madeira.
May 8, 200718 yr Are you sure it was Jalapenos that you ate at Northgate Mall? I thought the only one before the downtown location was off Montgomery Road in Madeira. Yes, I've eaten there more than once. It's in the location of the old Don' Pablo's.
May 8, 200718 yr I tried going to Jalepenos downtown twice last weekend and they weren't open. Friday night, all of the lights were off, no one was in there, and the door was wide open. Saturday (Cinco de Mayo), closed again. Quite disappointing.
May 8, 200718 yr A place called Portofino's has finally opened in Northside. There was a place with the same name on Winton Rd. (?) that met with some acclaim. Dunno if this is the same place or not. They have a MySpace page here: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=179872450 The place looks ok. I have no idea what their hours are. It is on Chase - west of Hamilton on the south side just behind the pharmacy. 10-10 mon-sat It is the place that used to be on Winton. Just got a Calzone about the size of a polar bear liver & I liked it.
May 8, 200718 yr Just got a Calzone about the size of a polar bear liver & I liked it. That is the best analogy I heard all day. I hope it didn't taste like liver though. I confirm that Jalepenos is closed in the evening. My hubby tried to go after work last week....Is ingredients still open until 7PM? I took my parents there over the weekend and they LOVED it!
May 8, 200718 yr Two of the newest restaurant chains to expand into the Tri State are now leaving! If you never got around to trying Bahama Breeze in Springdale, I'm afraid you're too late. And as for Smokey Bones, time's running out. Orlando based Darden restaurants is closing some its underperforming chains...so it can focus more on its main brands, Red Lobster and the Olive Garden. As its result, it's closing many of its Bahama Breeze and Smokey Bones restaurants. Bahama Breeze in Springdale closed two weeks ago. It apparently was not one of the chain's top performing eateries, despite the huge weekend crowds. The 3 Smokey Bones in Florence, West Chester, and Beechmont, remain open for now....but Darden says it will either close or sell them soon. The entire chain will soon be gone. from wcpo.com
May 8, 200718 yr if these were dowtown stores, the media would use this story as sign of how downtown is struggling.
May 8, 200718 yr Two of the newest restaurant chains to expand into the Tri State are now leaving! If you never got around to trying Bahama Breeze in Springdale, I'm afraid you're too late. And as for Smokey Bones, time's running out. Orlando based Darden restaurants is closing some its underperforming chains...so it can focus more on its main brands, Red Lobster and the Olive Garden. As its result, it's closing many of its Bahama Breeze and Smokey Bones restaurants. Bahama Breeze in Springdale closed two weeks ago. It apparently was not one of the chain's top performing eateries, despite the huge weekend crowds. The 3 Smokey Bones in Florence, West Chester, and Beechmont, remain open for now....but Darden says it will either close or sell them soon. The entire chain will soon be gone. from wcpo.com Two of my friends worked at that Bahama Breeze! They only found out about it like the day it closed! So weird how large corporations operate.
May 8, 200718 yr Two of the newest restaurant chains to expand into the Tri State are now leaving! If you never got around to trying Bahama Breeze in Springdale, I'm afraid you're too late. And as for Smokey Bones, time's running out. Orlando based Darden restaurants is closing some its underperforming chains...so it can focus more on its main brands, Red Lobster and the Olive Garden. As its result, it's closing many of its Bahama Breeze and Smokey Bones restaurants. Bahama Breeze in Springdale closed two weeks ago. It apparently was not one of the chain's top performing eateries, despite the huge weekend crowds. The 3 Smokey Bones in Florence, West Chester, and Beechmont, remain open for now....but Darden says it will either close or sell them soon. The entire chain will soon be gone. from wcpo.com Its interesting...I've been working with Panera Bread for almost 5 years now, and the stores way out in the 'burbs are some of the WORST performers (Union Centre Blvd, VOA and the likes). While stores closer to the city core are the BEST performers (Western Hills, Calhoun aka UC, Hyde Park). There are the exceptions like Crestview Hills, but there is a clear trend over the successful/best performers and the others. Higher density (more potential customers) = Higher profits ***The Union Centre location is actually the WORST in the entire franchise, and I believe it barely turns any profit.
May 9, 200718 yr ***The Union Centre location is actually the WORST in the entire franchise, and I believe it barely turns any profit. I wonder why they keep this open.
May 9, 200718 yr Two of the newest restaurant chains to expand into the Tri State are now leaving! If you never got around to trying Bahama Breeze in Springdale, I'm afraid you're too late. And as for Smokey Bones, time's running out. Orlando based Darden restaurants is closing some its underperforming chains...so it can focus more on its main brands, Red Lobster and the Olive Garden. As its result, it's closing many of its Bahama Breeze and Smokey Bones restaurants. Bahama Breeze in Springdale closed two weeks ago. It apparently was not one of the chain's top performing eateries, despite the huge weekend crowds. The 3 Smokey Bones in Florence, West Chester, and Beechmont, remain open for now....but Darden says it will either close or sell them soon. The entire chain will soon be gone. from wcpo.com Two of my friends worked at that Bahama Breeze! They only found out about it like the day it closed! So weird how large corporations operate. I've heard they do that to prevent stealing from employees, bad blood boiling over into customers, and apathy. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
May 9, 200718 yr Two of the newest restaurant chains to expand into the Tri State are now leaving! If you never got around to trying Bahama Breeze in Springdale, I'm afraid you're too late. And as for Smokey Bones, time's running out. Orlando based Darden restaurants is closing some its underperforming chains...so it can focus more on its main brands, Red Lobster and the Olive Garden. As its result, it's closing many of its Bahama Breeze and Smokey Bones restaurants. Bahama Breeze in Springdale closed two weeks ago. It apparently was not one of the chain's top performing eateries, despite the huge weekend crowds. The 3 Smokey Bones in Florence, West Chester, and Beechmont, remain open for now....but Darden says it will either close or sell them soon. The entire chain will soon be gone. from wcpo.com Two of my friends worked at that Bahama Breeze! They only found out about it like the day it closed! So weird how large corporations operate. I've heard they do that to prevent stealing from employees, bad blood boiling over into customers, and apathy. They threw everything out after they closed...needless to say, the employees got some use out of the wine glasses, wine, liquor etc.
May 9, 200718 yr I work near Bahama Breeze and it was a lunch time favorite with my office! It was slow at times, but the food was fresh and somewhat healthy. Oh well, we still have Pappadeux's.
May 9, 200718 yr Author Bootsy Ruby's update Just got off the phone with restaurant owner Jeff Ruby, who says things are moving ahead for a new restaurant on Walnut Street downtown, just across from the Aronoff Center for the Arts. Ruby and funkmaster Bootsy Collins want to use the old Uno's Pizzeria space, with the first floor as a museum to Cincinnati's music history. Click here for article: http://frontier.cincinnati.com/blogs/business/
May 9, 200718 yr I ate at Bahama Breeze once, about two years ago. I thought it was just OK. I am not surprised to see Smokey Bones fail in Cincinnati, when you have Montgomery Inn BBQ and City BBQ why eat any other BBQ, especially chain BBQ? Montgomery Inn and City BBQ, cover the bases of price too.
May 10, 200718 yr Downtown Mexican eatery calls it a day May 10, 2007 | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER DOWNTOWN - Citing a lack of business, the casual Mexican chain Jalapeños has shuttered its downtown Cincinnati location, just three months after opening. Click on link above for article.
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