Atmosphere, staff was amazing. Highly recommend the New York bone in strip steak. Dessert was…read moredelicious. Much better than going to a steakhouse.

We celebrated my parents' anniversary tonight. The staff was so gracious with changes we needed to…read moremake to our reservation. We had great service at the bar and at our table. They allowed us to bring our own cake. They brought it out on a cake stand for pictures and then took it in the back to cut and serve it to us. They also had a card on the table for my parents. It was a wonderful celebration. Dishes that we tried tonight that were new to us: Mushroom Bisque - 8/10 Bread and Butter - 7/10 Burger - 6/10 Scallops - 7/10 Cannelloni - 8/10 Coffee - 5/10 Our favorites remain the fries with the delicious sauce 10/10 and the vodka rigatoni 10/10. Best smelling bathrooms in the city. Love the house wine, the bar, the patio, and the service!

Had an unforgettable dinner at Sotto! Cozy, intimate, and warm atmosphere paired with world-class…read morefood. Every single plate brought out was a hit. The staff is super knowledgeable about wine pairings and ingredients. Perfect spot for date nights, celebration dinners, or taking family out for something special. 10/10 experience!

We decided to try this restaurant because it advertised home made pastas. We were not…read moredisappointed!! From the bar, my GF had an espresso martini and I enjoyed a Zombie Dust IPA. We both thoroughly enjoyed our pasta dishes, tagliatelle con porcini and piccola Misti. We shared the asparagus and also the charcuterie board as a starter. Our Server, Sophie C, and the supporting staff were excellent The place was a bit dark for us. But we are an older couple but overall we loved it.

Late dinner after show. It's 10:30 but we are not the only…read moreone table at the restaurant. Our bellies are grumbling as we read the menu, so many things to try. . As family of 4 we got several appetizers: arancini, meatballs and house made ricotta. All gone in a blink. So tasty. For the main dishes we had Limone pasta, Spicy Vodka and The Sunday Sauce, all homemade pasta with incredible flavor and texture, we shared the plates and all were amazing and delicious . Our server was patient and very kind.and had good recommendations. Great Saturday night dinner, can't wait to eat it again and again.

My first time in Cincinnati and we went here for dinner. We came on a Friday night around 8pm and…read morehad to wait about an hour to be seated at the bar. We also had the option to sit outside. Service at the bar was fine. To start, we ordered "the dunk" which is french bread and olive oil for dipping and we ordered the marinated cucumbers. The cucumbers were really good! I definitely recommend them. To eat, I got the spicy vodka pasta. It was great with a hint of spice. The pasta was perfectly al dente. I got too much fresh grated parmesan on mine because the woman doing it couldn't hear me lol. My bf got the squid ink lobster pasta and he loved it. Love that they gave us complimentary italian cookies with our check.

Had a wonderful experience at Boca! The food was fantastic, the atmosphere was lively, and the…read moreservice was excellent--attentive, friendly, and genuinely welcoming. The drinks were a little pricey for the hint of alcohol they contained , but honestly, the food and service more than made up for it. Overall, a great experience and definitely a place I'd come back to. Highly recommend!

What more can I say that hasn't been said before about Boca, the fanciest restaurant in all of…read moreCincinnati, Ohio?? Because it is so exxxxxxpensive, this is not a restaurant you casually dine at. But since it was my sister's Bachelorette weekend, my group of 7 treated the bride-to-be to a luxurious dinner here in May 2026. And she had a wonderful experience! The interior is gorgeous, elegant, and smells amazing. The staff is professional and runs with the efficiency of a Michellen-starred restaurant. I always enjoy watching a staff of 7 deliver the table their food like they are performing a choreographed dance. I ordered the cheapest drink on the menu - a yummy local beer from MadTree for $7. The others had much more expensive cocktails that were $20+. You won't have to worry - while their food menu is small and selective, the drink menu is HUGE. They surprised us with glasses of in honor of my sister's upcoming nuptials. That was a lovely treat! I kept to being a cheap-o and ordered the $18 "Arpege" salad as my main. It didn't have any meat but it had a lot of cheese! Yum! Others ordered more substantial mains like the scallops, the beef tartare, the halibut, etc. All were plated beautifully. I had a bite of the bolognese, and while a small portion, it was superb. You do have to pay for bread service but it is unlimited refills so on $8, the 7 of us went through 6 loaves of bread and 6 trays of delicious salted butter. I personally probably had 2 loaves on my own. My god, it was the best thing I ate the entire trip! After we ate our mains, we then ordered a variety of desserts. Most of us got ice cream (get the strawberry!!). My sister and another girl got the famous "candy bar" dessert and the cheesecake. I had a bite of the candy bar and for $15, it was the most dense candy bar ever! Sooooo much chocolate! I'll end here but with tax and tip, we paid about $630ish. My portion was $51, by far the lowest of the group. I got out relatively cheaply because I filled up on bread but feel free to treat yourself and indulge a bit more!

I took my Love to Carmelo's for her birthday, and it was the perfect place to celebrate! The…read morerestaurant has a beautiful atmosphere that blends historic charm with a stylish, modern feel, and the service was amazing from beginning to end. The fresh mozzarella appetizer was easily the highlight of the meal. It's essentially a dish of fresh mozzarella served in flavorful oil, which you spread onto the warm, freshly baked breadsticks...absolutely delicious and unlike any traditional mozzarella sticks we've had before. For our entrées, I had the tomahawk pork chop, which was beautifully prepared, tender, and full of flavor. She had the chicken with a side of alfredo, topped with plenty of freshly grated cheese. Everything tasted incredibly fresh and was presented beautifully. They also brought her a small scoop of milk gelato with a candle for her birthday. It had a light, creamy vanilla-like flavor and was such a thoughtful touch. We finished with the rich chocolate pudding topped with toasted hazelnuts, which was the perfect ending to an amazing meal. Carmelo's made her birthday dinner feel truly special. Between the atmosphere, wonderful service, creative dishes, and excellent food, we highly recommend it and will definitely be back!

We had a lovely couples dinner at Carmelo's. Great service and food and beer and apps and…read moredessert!! A Covington gem! Highly recommended

Came here during restaurant week just to try the restaurant and can say I will be back!…read more I ordered the Ceaser salad with the short rib empanada and short rib gnocchi. The Ceaser salad was the best Ceaser salad I ever had! The short rib empanada and the gnocchi was good as well but the gnocchi was covered in scallions. That wasn't stated on the menu or by our server when I asked if onions were in the dish, so unfortunately I did have to send that back and have it remade then ate the rest once I got back home. I also tried the Black Angus NY and it melt in my mouth like butter. They were busy and it did take a while for the food to come out but the wait was worth it.

Wow! What a way to spend our 1 year wedding anniversary! I loved this place…read more It has been a few months since eating here but I still find myself thinking about it. Our next trip to Cincinnati; It will be extremely difficult to stay away from here. We spent the day in Newport and around Cincinnati and wanted somewhere nice for the occasion. I was iffy on this place at first... you can throw a rock all over America and hit a place with 'Barrel' in the name these days. The Yelp reviews swing both ways here but I'm here to tell you my take... because it swings so far towards the 5 stars that it's very much a 6 or 7 star place(maybe more). We gauged our arrival time based on other activities that day. We wanted ample time at the nearby Lego exhibit so when we arrived there, we made a reservation for 4:30-5. Eating early and making our way back to Louisville was a great idea. The entire time we were there, no one else came in so we had the entire place to ourselves(It was a Friday). The atmosphere is homey but during busy times, I could see it being noisy. The booths could easily fit 6 people comfortably... probably 8 in some cases depending on how wide some of you are. Special Note: This place highlights The Parrillada Experience for Two on their menu and we wanted it! We didn't order it because at a price tag of 130-and pictures online, we didn't want it to be a failed outing. After our first trip, The Parrillada Exp will be on the agenda next time. It's a mixture of different steaks, sausages, shrimp, sides, and salads. Definitely worth the cost. On to the food: Sausage App - Argentine Chorizo. Farmhouse Sausage. Grilled Ciabatta. Hearts of Palm. Green/Red chimichurri. Pepper Relish. I don't like ordering this type of dish when I go places because you never know if it's going to be delicious or very bad. It ended up being super delicious. We couldn't make up our mind which sauce we liked the best and which meat we liked the best. App PERFECTION! Land and Sea - This is what my wife went with. Asada Skirt Steak. Jumbo Shrimp. Asparagus. Red chimichurri butter. I had bites of the shrimp and it was good. I had to save room for my dish. Wagyu Denver Cut - I went back and forth. Lobster ravioli being on the menu almost made my decision instant but I was going back and forth between ravioli, steak, and a few other things. I asked the server which he recommended of the 4 Chef's cuts. He recommended two... one of which was the Wagyu so I went with it. I wasn't disappointed AT ALL. He mentioned that the Wagyu Denver Cut was a new addition to the menu... I'm not sure but you could definitely tell it was cooked, arranged, and presented with care. I savored every angle of every bite. We also ordered a side of brussels because of course! Originally we were going to dessert somewhere else but went ahead and ordered the Hazelnut Vanilla Creme Brulee here. Perfect ending to the meal. This brulee was light and had the right amount of crunch. It was also larger than expected. We had no complaints with this place. Easily one of the better restaurants I've had in Cincinnati. If you're doubting visiting this place, take the dive! Other notes: They have beer and a small cocktail variety but they primarily seem focused on wine(plenty of options to choose from).

A Downtown Delight! Choosing Nada for dinner was a great…read morecall. Located right in the heart of the city's high-end dining district, this place stands out even in a super competitive market. Our server, Alaura, was fantastic--super fast, attentive, and made the evening seamless. Great atmosphere. Follow me on Instagram - @thecannyadventurist for a deeper dive into my reviews.

Your bartender saved what could have been a disastrous dining experience…read more I don't like fusion y Mexican food and I am from California, so had the bartender not listened and recommended the Al pastor tacos as the most authentic style dish I probably would have eaten something weird with corn inexplicably in it and given this a 2 star. so thank your bartender but a lot of your menu sounds gross.

Absolutely fantastic experience here. The staff was extremely friendly and welcoming, giving us…read moregreat recommendations throughout. The interior is very cozy, it hardly felt like a blazing hot summer day in there, more like a nice cool fall. The food and drinks were excellent. Many of the cocktails have tea-inspired elements, which was a really excellent start to the meal (the old-fashioned especially). For food, we loved everything. The mushroom samosas were almost more like saag and delicious. The short rib curry and the burger were both delicious. We finished with the sticky toffee pudding and it couldn't have been better. Great experience.

Went to make a reservation here for a Wednesday night. We have a group of 4, but one may get…read morecalled into work. When I went to make the reservation, I found that that if we show up with 3 instead of 4 we would pay a $20 per PERSON fee. I have heard of no-show fees for a whole missed reservation, but a missing person is offensive. Do I get a discount if my service is slow because a server called in sick? What if the entree I came in for is sold out? I bet not. We were able to find a table at a different restaurant that puts an emphasis on the experience, not the profit times seats times turns equation. It's a shame. I liked the food here, but a policy like that puts in on my no-go list.

Absolutely phenomenal food and very comfortable atmosphere. Servers are knowledgable and attentive…read more Will be back for sure.

Excellent service with the option to place order through the wait staff or QR code on your table…read more The inside is fairly standard and nothing special, with a table cloth under a large glass/plastic sheet to hold it down. The food is the main attraction here and it's fantastic. Everything tasted amazing! Specifically the garlic naan and chicken tikka masala. Try the samosas, too!

Taj Mahal Indian in Covington is a five-star neighborhood gem. The vegetable samosas are on point…read more The chutneys are on point. The butter chicken is out of this world, honestly some of the best I've had. If you're into garlic naan, this might be the best in town. The price is well worth it for what you get. I'm a DC native, and I can say this easily beats any Indian food I've had in DC, New York, or anywhere else on the East Coast. The people are super friendly and quick, food comes out fast, and the atmosphere is great. Bonus: the owner also runs the convenience store right across the street, so it's a handy stop for liquor or tobacco needs too. Highly recommend. This is a real neighborhood spot.

First time at Taj Mahal Bar & Grill. My girlfriend and I met there for lunch at 11 a.m. There was…read morestreet parking right out front and I paid on the Cincy EZPark app. My girlfriend is a big lover of Indian food. They brought out the sauces/chutneys and they were cold, straight from the fridge and she was very disappointed in that. We ordered our drinks and neither one of us cared for the drinks at all. I ordered the chai tea and she ordered a manhattan. My chai tasted like milk and sugar and that is pretty much all, I was missing the spiciness of chai tea. Also a skin had formed on top of the tea as if the milk was scorched. She did not care for the manhattan at all, not really boozy and definitely not in the right glass and had a bunch of ice in it instead of none or just a single cube. On to the food. We both enjoyed our food. She ordered many items as she likes to take it home for the next day. I ordered the lamb kabob which is cooked in a Tandoor oven. I am going to say this is the single best dish I have ever had in an Indian restaurant and I would most assuredly order it again. My girlfriend said her meal was good in the restaurant and as leftovers at home as well. Our waitress did not have much of a personality and also it was clean inside but nothing spectacular.