Cincinnati?

MDS wrote:
>We will be moving from the DC area to Cincinnati in a couple of weeks.
>I'd love to hear recommendations for great places to eat in the area.
>We're particularly fond of Thai food and sushi (and I'm also a big
>steak fan!), but any recommendations at all would be wonderful.
>We're also anxious to hear recs for where we can get great
>buffalo wings, as we're leaving behind our fave wing place...

Briefly, there's Cincinnati Chili, which is a local specialty. Many chains, everyone has their favorite; Skyline is mine (try locations at Montgomery Rd or Clifton/Ludlow near UC).

Ice cream: you will never find another ice cream like Graeter's. About six locations...try the "chip" flavors like Mint Chocolate Chip or Chocolate-Chocolate Chip.

Steak: back when I lived there, there was a really fine steak house just outisde of town called the "Red River Cattle Company." I have no idea if it's still there. A hint, though, you'll find better steak in that area of the country than seafood.

Another regional specialty is Montgomery Inn ribs. Granted someone from Memphis, Texas or Kansas City will probably not like the place. For Ohio though, everyone loves them.

For Michelin 5-star, there is the Maisonette downtown. There were a whole bunch of 4-star restaurants at one time. Who knows how many are still around.

For casual dining, I always liked Zino's (Clifton, or Hyde Park) and Jeckle's in Hyde Park.

Back then, Thai and sushi didn't exist (I'd bet that old-time Cincinnati types wouldn't touch anything as exotic as that...it's a very midwestern place!). There was maybe one Indian restaurant in the whole area (there may be more now) and while there were lots of Chinese restaurants, only one was good at the time (House of Hunan, downtown).

There used to be a passable deli called Izzy's. After Izzy died, quality (and atmosphere) really suffered. I would hope that it stuck around and got better again.

Guy