Review: Gabby's Brunch

Like I said in one of my more recent posts, Ross and I have been enjoying Saturday or Sunday brunch.  On a most recent Sunday, I googled "brunch Cincinnati" to try to come up with somewhere new.  Half Day Cafe in Wyoming was listed in the top ten.  I checked out the website and made the decision--we were headed to Wyoming.  I really don't have much reason to go to this neck of the woods, but it's only about 15 minutes from my house.  Now--you are probably wondering why the title of this is called "Gabby's" when I planned to go to Half Day Cafe.  Well, as we spotted the restaurant on the corner of Wyoming Ave, and began to park, we realized it was CLOSED.  WTF?!  A brunch place closed on a Sunday!?  I was not happy. Especially because I  had looked at the hours of the restaurant and it did not say anything about being closed on Sundays.  Needless to say, I was disappointed.

Well, we headed down the business district of Wyoming and saw the only other restaurant on that street offers brunch.  Gabby's Cafe.  I had been her before for dinner and was really pleased with that, so we decided to give it a try.  (Check out my previous post for dinner information).

We arrived around 10:30 or so and there weren't many tables seated. We were taken to the back room near the bar and were the only ones in that area.  That was fine, but it just didn't feel very warm and inviting for a "brunch" place, it was still a "bar".  There was jazz-type music playing which was really kind of annoying.  I like jazz fine, but not in this setting on a Sunday morning.

The hostess gave us the brunch and lunch menus.  We both definitely wanted breakfast food, so we looked that menu over.  There weren't a TON of choices, but enough to choose from and a daily special.  The menu items were all pretty standard breakfast choices, omelettes, pancakes, breakfast burrito, and combos.  I decided to try the three cheese omelette and added onion and tomato which was served with breakfast potatoes and toast.  Ross ordered the "6 for 6" which was two eggs, two pancakes, and two pieces of bacon for $6.

We both sipped on our coffee which was pretty good and very hot until our meals arrived.  I'm just gonna say it--I didn't really care for my meal at all.  I thought the omelette was overcooked and the potatoes were not cooked enough at all.  The toast was fine, but the server didn't come back to check on use until our meal was half over and I wanted some jelly for the dry toast.  After she brought the jelly, she did a nice job of keeping our drinks filled and such.

Ross wasn't very impressed with his food either.  I thought the pancakes looked overdone.  He didn't care for the bacon, it was too "flaky".  He thought the eggs were fine.

Overall, I wouldn't go back to Gabby's for brunch at all.  I'd rather have a muffin from Starbucks.  I just didn't think the food was good and hated the ambiance for a Sunday breakfast.  When we walked back into the main dining area, it was more full with families and seemed a bit more inviting than the bar area.  I WOULD go back for lunch or dinner, however.
~Kate

Food: 1.5
Service: 2
Overall Experience: 1.5

Review: Bellevue Bistro

Ross and I have recently been enjoying Saturday or Sunday brunch.  We typically just go somewhere close to home, but I occasionally am able to talk him into trying some new places that are a bit further away.  I have read a couple blogs or reviews about Bellevue Bistro located on Fairfield Ave. in the heart of downtown Bellevue, KY. I really like this area of Bellevue.  It's a cute little town with a lot of character and appeal.  I'd like to go down here on an afternoon and check out some of the shops and other places it has to offer.

 Of all the information I had read, I remembered hearing that you need to get here fairly early because it fills up fast.  We headed out on a Saturday morning around 9:30 or 10:00 and did not have any problem.  The little bistro has a small town feel with an eclectic charm.  There are a couple wooden tables in the middle of the room and a wall with a booth bench and tables.  Some drink and daily specials were written behind a counter on a chalkboard.

Ross and I nestled in the corner near a window.  Our waitress greeted us and took our drink orders.  I felt like a coffee, but then I saw that they had a drink that was half coffee and half hot chocolate, this sounded awesome!  (It is called the Bistro Cafe for $2.25). There was also a Sangria drink, Mimosa, and other "eye openers" as they refer to on their menu.  Ross was satisfied with water this morning.

As I looked over the menu, I also looked around at some of our neighbors who were enjoying their meals.  The couple next to us both seemed pleased with their breakfast and even began to tell us how good their dishes were.  They were very friendly!

Bellevue Bistro has a variety of Benedict specials, and Eggs Benedict is one of my favorite breakfast dishes ever!  After debating between two specialty benedicts, I opted for the Kentucky Hot Brown Benedict, consisting of bacon, turkey, tomatoes, crab, cheddarjack, and hollandaise which is served over fresh made biscuits and eggs.   Ross decided to get the Sausage Biscuit sandwich with two fried eggs served on a biscuit and served with a side of Rosemary Potatoes.

After chatting with the friendly couple next to us and discussing what the rest of our day was going to entail, our dishes arrived.  My meal sounded very decadent on the menu, but I have to say it wasn't too much at all.  I liked the mix of all the ingredients; however, I would have preferred less cheese and more hollandaise.  The crab was a unique addition to a breakfast dish for me and I really liked this meal overall.  The biscuit was soft and I loved the tomatoes for a bit of sweetness to the dish.  I really couldn't taste much bacon or hollandaise though, and I think more of that sauce would have made this a more memorable breakfast.

Ross' really enjoyed his sandwich. I didn't try the sandwich, but I did have the potatoes and have to say they were amazing!  Some of the best breakfast potatoes I have had in a long time.  There was just enough hint of rosemary and they were cooked perfectly.  I hate when you get under-cooked potatoes, which seems to happen a lot when you are having breakfast/brunch.  Ross loved these as well and asked why I don't make these at home :)

This quaint little bistro is a great neighborhood dining experience.  There are many other dishes I'd love to go back and try. There are sandwiches and salads for lunch that I'm sure are just as good as the breakfast and everything is fairly priced.  I forgot to mention service--it was fine!  Unfortunately, I do think it could have been a little better.  We had two different servers which was great; however, no one really checked on us after our food was delivered until we were finished eating, and they weren't really all that busy.  It didn't really impact my overall feel of the restaurant, but I do think that aspect could be improved.  Check it out! I hope to go back again soon!
~Kate

Food: 3.5
Service: 2
Overall Experience: 3

Review: European Cafe

Located in downtown Montgomery - just a few doors from Montgomery Inn - European Cafe is a great little place for brunch or lunch. They are known for their gyros; however that's not what I order. I absolutely loooove their hummus with pitas. They make their hummus fresh right in the restaurant, and it is delicious. Very authentic - nothing like the store bought kind. If you ask them, you can get a container of it to-go. You should ask at the beginning of your meal because they make it fresh and need time to prepare it. 

Needless to say, when I was there recently with my brother and sister-in-law, I had to get an order for the table to share. They really liked it too. The pita bread is served warm and toasted. Yum!

For my entree, I went with the greek salad with grilled chicken. As you can see in the photo, they give you quite a lot of chicken, which has a great flavor to it. The lettuce and veggies were fresh and crisp. There's greek salad dressing on the table and they also give you a cucumber-yogurt dressing on the side. I chose to use the greek salad dressing, which has a great peppery, lemon, olive oil and oregano flavor. I really enjoyed it and will definitely be back for this salad again.

My brother chose to get the burger...which was not at all surprising. He loves burgers and always orders them when we go out to eat. He seemed to really enjoy it. We were all having a debate on whether or not it was a fresh, handmade burger or a frozen patty. My brother thought it was fresh - so he must have really liked it. We finally asked our server, and she said that they are actually frozen. They had my brother fooled though - so that's pretty good! I did steal a few of his fries and they were great. Hot, salty and crispy! :)

My sister-in-law went with the traditional gyro. I was glad someone got it! And she really liked it! They forgot to bring her taziki sauce, so she used my cucumber yogurt sauce which I think is needed so it's not as dry. This is definitely a large portion size, so it may even be something you could split.

All in all, European Cafe is a nice little brunch/lunch spot. Our server was friendly and nice - not anything outstanding, but definitely good enough. We didn't try anything on the brunch menu, but they did have breakfast options available. You can sit inside or outside - which is my favorite because you can watch the people walking, jogging or driving by on Montgomery Road. If you're in the area sometime, I'd definitely give it a try!

~Kris

Food: 4

Service: 3.5

Overall: 4

Review: Keystone Bar & Grill

Keystone Bar & Grill is located in Covington, KY right by Molly Malone's and across from the new bar and restaurant, Blinkers Tavern.  This is one of my favorite places to go eat and grab a drink.  It also has great patio seating on the corner of Greenup. There is plenty of parking located at meters nearby, I think the street is Park Pl., but someone please correct me if I'm wrong on that one! 

I went a couple weeks ago with my husband and our friends Anne and Ryan.  We snagged a great table outside just in time because they quickly filled up.  We all ordered a drink and hung out for awhile as we looked over the menu.  Keystone has a pretty nice beer selection, they also have a nice happy hour too which includes half priced bottles of wine M-F.  Keystone has a couple items they are "known" for:  mac n' cheese, a great brunch, and many different quesadillas.  I have had their mac n' cheese before and it is AWESOME. They have many unique types and are all named after famous bands: a Nirvana (chicken and roasted red peppers), Pink Floyd (bacon and carmelized onions) and Fleetwood Mac (fresh mozzarella, pesto, and tomatoes).  These are all half-price on Mondays too.  I definitely recommend going and trying these out, they are sooo delicious.  HOWEVER, I decided to try something different this night.

Keystone also offers a wide range of quesadillas.  I hadn't tried these before, so I thought this might be a good time to try it.  They also have 1/2 price quesadillas on Tuesdays!  (such great deals here).  I opted for the Veggie'dilla which had tons of veggies, mushrooms, spinach, tomatoes, marinated onions, roasted red peppers, and cheese.  This was served with sour cream and pico de gallo. This was REALLY good! I loved it.  All the veggies had been sauteed and all put together with the cheese for a great combination of a quesadilla.  It was toasted nicely and not soggy, which some quesadillas can be. 

My friends Anne & Ryan both decided to get the buffalo chicken wrap.  They had had this before, and they both got it again, so it must be good!  These are served with a side of Keystone chips, which are kettle type chips that are pretty good. 

Ross ordered his usual for Keystone, the Keystone burger.  This is just a traditional burger with cheese, lettuce, and tomato.  He really likes this burger, but I have not tried it.  It looks good and he keeps ordering it, so once again, must be good!  He ordered the sweet potato fries instead of the chips and these were excellent; I ended up eating about half of them myself.  They were a bit crunchy on the outside and soft on the insde.

My friend Christina made a late appearance and got the mac n' cheese! I was excited because I really wanted a bite!  She decided to try the mac n' cheese with bbq sauce and chicken.  This was great, of course.

This was such a nice night out, and some people brought their dogs for the outdoor patio as well:

Check out their website for more information on all their specials.  I have heard really great things about their brunch menu and bloody marys as well; I just haven't had the chance to get there yet, but I plan to soon! 

Service was pretty good here this night as well.  Our server was prompt, very friendly, and not over-bearing at all.  One thing though, when my friend asked what they have on tap, her response was, "what do you like?"  Which is not a response I typically like, I like to hear what they have, but she said that was what they are told to say!  I can deal with that, but I sometimes just randomly pick a beer when I hear what they have....just a note! 

All in all, I like Keystone a lot.  It's a great casual place to go for any meal of the day, and they have so many specials, there is no reason not to try it out for yourself.

~Kate

Food: 4
Service: 4
Overall Experience: 4

Review: Green Dog Café

On a recent Sunday morning, my good friend Peppy (no, that's not her "real" name) and I decided to go out to brunch. We had a few too many drinks at Stanley's (in Columbia Tusculum area) the night before and decided to take a cab home and leave her car there. When we went to pick her car up the next morning, we noticed the umbrella tables sitting outside at Green Dog Cafe right around the corner and decided to give it a try.

When you first enter the restaurant, you go to the counter and place your order, and you're given a number to put on your table so they can bring your food to you. If you've ever been to a Noodles & Co., it reminded me a little of that set up. Although the decor is way more interesting and fun. It's contemporary and very colorful with bright abstract artwork throughout.

Green Dog Café has a wonderful menu focused primarily on using quality, local, sustainable and organic ingredients. They have plenty of vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, which Peppy- who is a vegetarian - definitely appreciated. Although the restaurant itself is pretty casual, the menu is creative and the food is delicious. The dining experience is far nicer than you'd expect with a walk-up ordering system and casual seating. 

Peppy decided to try the "Rossz Kutya" burrito. This was quite a burrito! It was filled with organic eggs, black beans, fried poblano and red peppers, green and red salsa, white cheddar cheese, potatoes and sour cream. Peppy said it tasted just as good as it looks. The ingredients look and taste very fresh, and even their salsas are homemade. Yum! Peppy even had half leftover to take home and share with her family.

I chose to order the Bacon and Roasted Tomato Omelet - ordered with egg whites only. I started ordering egg white omelets to save on fat and calories when I did Weight Watchers a few years ago, and I decided I actually liked it better than regular omelets! It's one of the few healthy things that I don't consider a sacrifice, so I'm going to stick with it! This omelet was absolutely wonderful. It was filled with chevre cheese (which tasted very similar to goat cheese), rocket (arugula), roasted tomatoes, and pieces of crispy bacon. All the elements combined to make a a wonderful flavor and texture combination! I'd highly recommend it!

The side of potatoes was my one and only complaint. They had the potential to be very good; however they were cold and you could tell they had been sitting a while. They had a good flavor to them and were clearly freshly cut, homemade potatoes. I wish we'd had them fresh out of the oven.

Peppy happened to know one of the guys working in the kitchen, so he sent us out an order of their signature, fresh "cathead" biscuits with jam and honey butter. This was soooo good. It was nice and warm and flaky, and I love that they serve it with honey butter. Such a simple upgrade to add honey, but it's so much better than regular, old butter.

Peppy and I absolutely loved this place. I have nothing but good things to say about the food, the service, the decor and the overall concept of the restaurant. I would highly recommend giving them a try...I know I'll be going back to try their dinner menu in the near future! Oh, and I almost forgot one of the best parts....you can bring your dog with you if you're sitting outside! Oh yeah...and they have Jeni's homemade ice cream shipped in from Columbus! I'll be trying the Salty Caramel next time I go back!

~Kris

Food: 4 (because of the potatoes)
Service: 5
Overall: 4.5

Guest Blog: Bottomless Mimosas!

My co-worker Beth will be our guest blogger again today! She has a great review about brunch at Poco a Poco, a restaurant in Hyde Park Square that specializes in Latin cuisine. I think the first sentence of her post pretty much says it all!!   ~Kris
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Bottomless mimosas, anyone? If you’re looking for good food, good drinks and a warm environment then Poco a Poco is your place on a Saturday or Sunday morning. I've been to the restaurant before  for dinner and wasn't overly impressed with my food but they definitely redeemed themselves with brunch! I'm glad I gave them another chance!

What really enticed me to join my friends last Sunday was the bottomless mimosas. That’s right – bottomless! Where could you go wrong with drinking carafes of refreshing mimosas on a Sunday morning with your best friends? When I arrived around 11AM, the place only had a few people seated at various tables around the room and also at their café tables outside in front of the restaurant. We were quickly seated and welcomed by our server, Jared, who was great and made sure our glasses were filled and our stomachs were satisfied.

At first glance of the menu, we all instantly noticed the very interesting item of pork and doughnuts. Yes, that is exactly what I wrote, pork and doughnuts! Two of the guys decided that they had to try this. The pork and doughnut dish consists of slow roasted pork with a Krispy Kreme doughnut that is layered with maple syrup. When the dish arrived it definitely looked interesting…and actually somewhat good. The combination between the sweet Krispy Kreme glazed doughnut and the tender, slow roasted pork made for a very complimentary taste of flavors in your mouth. Add a little bit of the maple syrup and you have a very sinfully, sweet treat! The guys left nothing on their plates and were very satisfied with this interesting combo.

One of my friends had been looking at the lunch menu and chose a burrito she thought looked delicious. When she went to order it, we were told that we couldn’t order anything on the lunch menu. L My friend was a little disappointed, but Jared assured her that he could check with the Chef and see if she could still have the burrito. He was successful! She received her very own custom burrito that the Chef had made just for her. She was very pleased with the combination of veggies, beans and pork all wrapped in a soft tortilla shell and served especially for her. (sorry no pic of this one)  

I decided on the Latin Benedict. I am a big fan of eggs Benedict and thought the slow poached egg, ham, smoked cotija cheese and pico de gallo sounded delicious!  All of the ingredients were well put together and added a slight Latin flare compared to the typical eggs Benedict. I really enjoyed the pico de gallo and smoked cotija cheese and would recommend this dish to anyone.

My other friends decided on the French toast, which consisted of crispy pork belly, two eggs and maple/agave syrup. They were very pleased with the combination of the pork and eggs with their French toast.

Not only was the food good, so was the service. Throughout the meal Jared was very friendly and conversational and always had our glasses filled with mimosas. We never once felt rushed to leave, even though the place began filling up around noon.  We ended up spending a couple of hours enjoying one another’s company with great food, great drinks and great service.

~Beth

The Denver Edition

My husband and I were lucky enough to take a recent trip to Denver, CO to visit our friends Grant and Abbey who have been living there for about two years now. Upon my request to stay with Grant, he was immediately excited to take me to some of his favorite restaurants in Denver…of course, I was game! I should begin by saying that this was my first trip to Denver and loved it! It’s a great town that has many restaurants, shops and bars within walking distance of many apartments and houses. The other thing that I noticed about Denver that is different from Cincinnati, was how big breakfast/brunch is here, which I loved!  I don’t often eat breakfast at home, but I love going to breakfast on the weekends. 

The Hornet:

Our first morning there, Grant and Abbey took us to their weekly brunch spot called the Hornet.  The first thing I heard about this place was $2 mimosas and $2 bloody mary bar. I have tried many times to love bloody marys, but I haven't been able to yet.  I didn't end up getting one here, but I did try my husband's and have to say, it was the best I have had.  Just look at these pictures to see how fun this was :

Everything on the menu sounded awesome. I went with the omelette which had asparagus, feta, and a couple more things that I can’t remember, but it was excellent!  The potatoes were just okay, a little too crunchy for me and I would like more potato.  The fruit was delicious as well.  I was glad to see there wasn't any honeydew....I feel like a lot of fruit cups have too much honeydew and I don't care for that.  My husband went with Grant’s favorite the Dixie Chicken, which I also tried, and it was really good! Can't go wrong with fried chicken and gravy.  

Wymans No. 5:

That night, after a couple drinks around town and a visit to Red Rocks, we stopped at one of their favorite pizza places: Wyman’s. This place offers thin crust and Chicago style pizza, which I usually am indifferent to. I started with a salad which was fine….but the pizza was awesome!! This was sooo good!  The crust was almost like a corn bread, which sounds weird, but it was good.  The pizza is very filling though.  After that salad I was full from one piece (I think the beer had something to do with that too).  We finished off our meal with a game of Taboo.  We loved that Wymans had a wall of board games, so we had a blast munching on our food and playing the game.

Denver Biscuit Company:

When Grant told me about this place, I couldn’t wait to try it.  He said this restaurant makes their own biscuits and tops it with basically anything you can imagine.  Sounded fantastic! The restaurant was very modern, as many of the places are in Denver. It had a bar in the center and was very busy.  We sat in the back and looked over the menu.  Once again, everything sounded great.  There were biscuits topped with gravy, eggs, and cheese, “French toast” biscuits topped with a fresh compote of the day, and a shrimp and grits biscuit, just to name a few.  I wanted to try it all!  However, I decided to do a “build your own” with scrambled egg, cheese, ham, and gravy….very healthy.  :)

This was soooo good!  I loved it!  This place was so fun, different, and affordable!  I should note that I had ordered a side of their homemade pickles because I love pickles, but our waitress forgot to bring them.  It was okay though, I was stuffed from this delicious biscuit!  I really wish we had a place like this here in Cincy!

Shells and Sauce:

 I love Italian food.  So when Abbey and Grant suggested a place called Shells and Sauce, of course I wanted to try it.  We went there wanting to sit on their covered upper patio; however, it was not open that evening.  So, we sat outside on their front patio.  It was a bit chilly out that night, but our wine quickly warmed us up. They served warm bread with a fantastic balsamic dipping sauce.  This was sooo good, I probably could have just eaten this. Grant ate almost an entire loaf by himself before we ordered. 

Grant and I each started with a spinach salad topped with red onion, mushrooms, and gorgonzola, and Abbey and my husband had the Caesar. These were both very good salads. 

I ended up ordering one of the specials, which was a bison stuffed ravioli with mushrooms, onions, spinach, cheese…I don’t remember everything, but I know that this was one of my favorite Italian dishes I have ever had!  It had a wine sauce that was light enough for this dish and all the components were a nice touch, including the pine nuts.  I loved this!

Abby got a penne pasta dish that was really good as well. 

My husband and Grant got the chicken parmesan.  This was the biggest piece of chicken I have ever seen for chicken parm.  AND it was good!! I liked this as well; but it wasn’t nearly as good as mine J

All in all, Denver was amazing and the food was definitely as equally fantastic as the views.  If you ever find yourself visiting this area, take into consideration some of these places.  They were all fun, different, and affordable!  I can’t wait to visit again and have some more brunch, Italian, and chicken! Special thanks to Abbey and Grant for a great trip!

~Kate

Guest Blog: forkheartknife

As part of our Friday Guest Blogger Series, Kris' sister-in-law Jen will be telling us all about her awesome experience at forkheartknife! I've never been there, but after reading this I definitely want to try it! Thanks, Jen!!
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I am very excited to be a part of the famous “Girls who Grub” food blog.  As a long time food lover myself, I truly enjoy reading about new restaurants and different types of foods that I may want to try.  That is the main reason that I was so excited to try a small restaurant in Over the Rhine called forkheartknife.  This restaurant has an amazing back story-I encourage you to read it here .  Basically, one of the owners decided to start cooking for her sister when she became ill with cancer.  Her sister ended up passing away, and she then decided that she didn’t want to waste any more time of her life doing anything she didn’t love; so she decided with a friend to open this small, 4 table restaurant in Over the Rhine.  When I say small, I mean walk-through the kitchen to use the restroom small! (Which was also surprisingly small).  A good friend of mine, Jess, has been several times so she was the perfect person to ask for my first time, and we also invited our good friend Katie along.

We planned to meet at 10 which is when they are supposed to open.  Jess got there 5 minutes early, which was a good thing because the tables were already full and we were put on the list.  When you are put on the list, they take your cell phone number and encourage you to hit up some of the local shops and bars in OTR and will call you when they have a table ready for you.  Since we were in for a wait we decided to walk down the street to a bar called MOTR to have a drink.  They also serve brunch so if you are in the area and don’t feel like waiting, this is another place that you could try. 

After a round of drinks we got the call that our table was ready!  We were seated with another couple which made things kind of intimate.  Like I said, the place only has 4 tables so you take what you can get.  The menu changes each week and is displayed on a big sheet of butcher paper on the wall.  There were so many delicious and enticing items on the menu that we had trouble deciding.  We easily decided that we were not allowed to order the same things and that we would share everything that we had.  Katie decided on the blueberry almond coffee cake and the honey greek yogurt with nuts and berries.  These were both fabulous options.  I tend to shy away from coffee cake because it tends to be dry and overly sugary.  This was neither-the cake was dense and moist and the tartness of the blueberries helped to balance out the sweet almond topping.  The yogurt was one of my favorite things.  It had strawberries and a mixture of about ten different types of nuts on top of the sweet and smooth yogurt.  Katie was very pleased with her selections, as were well!

Jessica chose the cornbread and chicken chorizo.  Katie was not overly enthusiastic about getting this dish because she doesn’t like cornbread-she changed her mind.  This thick piece of cornbread was mixed with peppers, cheese and chicken chorizo which gave it just the slightest kick.  It literally melted in your mouth.  It came with a simple salad on the side with a homemade dressing.  To be honest, I was least interested in the salad so most of the salad went in the to-go box.

I had a lot of trouble deciding between the pizza strata which was something I had never had before, and the breakfast burrito.  Both sounded great but I asked Sierra (who is the waitress, hostess, cashier, and sometimes bus girl) and she said that I had to get the strata.  I was glad that I did!  It is made mostly from egg but you would never know because it took on an almost doughy consistency.  It was filled with cheese and tomatoes and if I closed my eyes I could have sworn I was eating a piece of pizza.  I really enjoyed it and the strata also came with a salad but I didn’t touch much of it! 

As a side we also got a plate of red potatoes.  I honestly don’t remember what all went into these potatoes but they were really good, and half of them went into the to-go box as well.  All in all we got 2 entrees, the yogurt, coffee cake, potatoes and two coffees and our bill was $32.  I did not think that was bad for stuffing three girls for brunch! 

Overall, I enjoyed my experience at forkheartknife.  It was a cozy, intimate atmosphere that was different from most of the places that I eat.  They served interesting and heart felt food and you can taste the love they put in everything they do.  I like their story-having been affected by cancer in my life I appreciate their willingness to take a risk and do what they love.  Now for the bad news-they’re closing up shop.  They have decided not to renew their lease because they have gotten too big for their little space!  So, if you want to try it out you better act fast.  They are open for Thursday dinner and Saturday and Sunday brunch.  They will have more seating outside when it is warm and they also do carryout.  If you do decide to go, take your own beer and take cash! 

Food: 4
Service:4
Overall:4

Review: Lavomatic Cafe

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about Lavomatic Cafe in the past year or two, so I’ve been anxious to try it myself and form my own opinion. Most of the positive reviews I’ve heard have been about brunch (versus dinner), so Kate and I decided to go there for brunch one Saturday morning.  

The eclectic atmosphere of Lavomatic is cute and inviting. Throughout the restaurant, there is exposed brick, unique, modern chandeliers and bright artwork of Cincinnati landmarks. Unfortunately, the atmosphere was deceiving and the food did not stand up to it.

I ordered The Whistling Dixie, which consists of two biscuits topped with poached eggs (not cooked properly), chorizo goetta, hollandaise sauce, asparagus and tomatoes. I was really disappointed that the food came out cold. It really ruined the whole meal for me. The chorizo goetta was without a doubt the best thing on the plate. It was very crispy, which is the only way to eat goetta in my opinion. The asparagus and goetta gave the dish a nice crunch, but overall I was not impressed. It may have been better if it was served hot.

Kate ordered the Eggs Lavo – poached eggs and bacon served over toast with hollandaise sauce. Unfortunately, Kate was even more disappointed by her meal than I was by mine. Her dish was served cold as well. On top of that, the toast was burnt, there was little to no hollandaise sauce on the plate, and there were two different types of eggs. One was a poached egg (which was what it was supposed to come with) and the other one, well we aren't even sure exactly, it was like a hard-boiled egg.  We were both very confused by this. Kate ordered a side of hollandaise sauce after tasting how dry it was, and that helped it a little but didn’t make up for all the other things that were wrong with it.

Kate and I also split a side of potatoes. These were a letdown as well. They were undercooked and hard. I think they may have tasted okay if they were cooked properly, but it was hard to tell.

I rarely treat myself to brunch, so this was a major letdown and turned out not to be a treat at all. At least I was with good company! That was the only saving grace for this meal.

~Kris