travel ohio – Joining Jordan

Cincinnati has a lot of great food choices! There were so many places to go in so little time, but here are a few we got to enjoy and would definitely recommend!

For starters, you need to visit the iconic Skyline Chili. In 1949, Greek immigrant Nicholas Lambrinides came to the states and started Skyline Chili with his family recipes. It’s an Ohio staple! The restaurant has a very casual atmosphere with prices you just can’t beat! We went there for lunch and so did everyone else! It was really cool looking around the room seeing everyone on their lunch break. You have people in suits and ties sitting next to construction workers. I’d say that alone would make it a fan favorite! Oh, and I can’t forget to mention, they do all of the cooking right in front of you! The restaurant is set up with the kitchen in the middle of the room. You can sit at a table with friends or at the bar surrounding the cooking area- similar to a hibachi grill set up. My table got the chili dogs with chili cheese fries and a soda. Classic. You can tell by our cleaned plates in the photo below that it was good!

Next on the list is the Moerlein Lager House. The best part about this restaurant is the location. It sits in the middle of the Smale Riverfront Park so you can grab a seat out on the terrace and enjoy the views. Watch the boats float down the river, people strolling through the park and take in the nice weather while you enjoy your lunch! My table ordered the Spicy corn chowder, Beer Can Chicken Melt Sandwich, and the Philly Cheesesteak with Sweet Potato Chips.

60798501_10200508847296283_7621808693868232704_o

A cool, local dinner spot is Bakerfield OTR (Over The Rhine). Taco ’bout good food! Their tacos and queso dip were recommended to us, and I’m definitely passing on that recommendation. I also recommend ordering various taco options to explore all the combinations of flavors. The decor and vibes were on trend. If I lived here, this would definitely be my go-to spot for a casual date night!

After dinner, take a stroll around the block for dessert at Simply Rolled Ice Cream! This company is Ohio’s original rolled ice cream shop. If you haven’t heard of rolled ice cream, click here to watch my video! Simply Rolled has three locations- each of which are in Ohio and use locally sourced ingredients. They even have a vegan option! I did a create-your-own type deal with various chocolate toppings and cookie dough bites. NOM! Fun fact: Their spoons change color with temperature. You can kind of see in the photo below that the spoon is purple by the ice cream.

IMG_3905 3.JPG

My husband and I are on a mission to watch the Atlanta Braves play in every major league baseball park. We set out on a road trip to Ohio in order to catch back-to-back games against the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds.

Cleveland was first on the itinerary, so we planned to attend the Friday night game. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate. A storm came through with heavy rain, lots of fog, and cold temperatures. This led to the first game getting postponed to Saturday at 3pm- resulting in a double header. Our money was refunded and we bought new tickets for Saturday. Luckily, we didn’t have solid plans for Saturday night, so it worked out in our favor. We got to watch two games for the price of one!

IMG_1609 4.jpg

Traffic was pretty bad as Eric Church was touring in town that weekend, but our Lyft driver was able to drop us off a block away from the stadium. We arrived early when the gates opened so we could check out the park and find our seats before the action started.

The park was nice and easy to navigate. The extra large broadcasting screen was flanked with buildings from downtown creating a nice view of the outfield.

The food options were great! I had wanted to go eat at Momocho, a popular Mexican restaurant in town, and lucky me- they were serving food at the stadium! It was too cold to take a picture of my food.. Sorry (lol) but it was yummy!

Every baseball game has that ONE obnoxious fan. We were right behind the Braves dugout, and this guy chose to get his seats there so the players could hear him. His jokes were over the line and getting personal. He would even turn and mock the Braves fans! I know this sounds terrible, BUT I am saying all this to say that the Progressive Field staff handled it like champs! They very discreetly talked to the man and then to us Braves fans. The usher told us they were watching him and if he said anything to us again, they would remove him from the park. They checked back in with us a few times as the games continued to make sure we felt comfortable. Three cheers to the staff! I have never encountered such attentive and thoughtful security at a game.

No one can control the weather or the people around you, so we certainly didn’t let those elements ruin our experience. We had a great time and really enjoyed being at the park! Incase you were wondering, the Braves lost the first game but won the second game. I’ll take it!