I'm a Cincinnati native. A friend and I just got back from a week-long trip to San Francisco where we ate at all types and level's of restaurants, as well as went out to the Napa valley. We ate a lot of good food there, obviously. So when I returned to Cincy I was disappointed because Cincy's cuisine can not compare to the breadth and depth of San Fran's cuisine.
One night we headed over to Bockfest '09, but soon found we were too hungry to hang around. We google map'd a bunch of nearby restaurants and seen Nicola's had a good rating.
I wasn't expecting much, given it's in the Over-the-Rhine/Pendleton area--a gritty place with tons of potential--but when I got inside it was like stepping into a different world.
The only complaint is that the waitress gave off this ""are you sure you have enough money to be here"" kind of vibe, but she eventually lightened up. (The last place I was going to wander around dressed up all nice would be OTR!)
The long and short of it is that the food was great. The bread was great, it was all great. The food really was more complex and interesting than anything we had in San Francisco. Maybe we just didn't go to the right places, I dunno. Granted, we ate a lot of Asian food in San Fran, so we're not comparing apples-to-apples, but the complexity of the flavors at Nicola's superseded all the other places in San Fran. It's nice to discover a place in Cincy that can stand it's ground against bigger cities.
My friend and I got two entrees, a basket of bread (great), and two classes of wine. I don't remember what mine was, it was something odd, but his was basically a steak. It ended up being a little over $100 with tip. Not cheap, but it would be a good date place if you want to impress your date. I'll note I haven't been to Pigalle's or the Precinct, so I can't compare.
Note: I'm not saying the one star person is lying, but I didn't have any problems at all like he/she described. Overall, I recommend Nicola's if you have the $$$.
Pros: great food, atmosphere
Cons: expensive
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