DRINK

FOOD

& DRINK

Inside Symposium, a new wine bar and cafe in East Walnut Hills.

PHOTOS BY HAILEY BOLLINGER

Im-peck-able Drinks

Symposium’s three bars nestle into East Walnut Hills with avian-inspired cocktails and “American tapas.”

BY MAGGY MCDONEL

Anew wine bar and cafe has entered the East Walnut Hills culinary scene, albeit with a tricky start.

Symposium had a soft opening May 6 only to be closed down days later due to a leaky sink. e wine bar and cafe nally hosted its grand opening on May 11, and as co-owner J. Matt Nickels tells CityBeat in an email, the business has been going strong ever since.

Nickels knows his way around Cincinnati dining, especially when it comes to drinks. After all, he worked in food and beverage service at Metropole for years, moving on to become the general manager of Boca Group. en, he was a local wine and sake wholesale importer, and, most recently, the beverage director for E+O Restaurant Group.

His newest venture, Symposium, sports a relaxed Hemingway

cafe-style atmosphere. He says of the space, “We [Nickels and Owen] have always romanticized cafes in literature, Hemingway for example, and stories from the old country [Italy] (Aaron’s nonna and my great grandmother). We love the Impressionist examples of cafe life as well.” e space features a main dining room with a lounge known as e Nest, a private dining and event space called the Rumpus Room, an outdoor patio that currently seats 10 (weather permitting) and Symposium’s three bars.

Nickels says that the business also has added two church pews that are orientated towards the St. Francis de Sales church at the corner of Madison Road and Woodburn Avenue – “a little homage to our tall neighbor across the street,” he says.

Each bar o ers something di erent — one serves co ee, the other has drinks and the last, food. e co ee bar presents classic espresso drinks – including lattes, cortados, macchiatos and cappuccinos – all at a very reasonable cost, priced between $3-4. e bar also has drip co ee and cold brew.

An abundance of drink options at Symposium can be attributed to the establishment’s full-service bar that has 16 beers on tap, wine, sake, root beer and more. Cocktails known as “Birdtails” are delicious, imaginative and avian-inspired and include the Magpie Gin and Tonic, Macaw Mojito and Bird on a Wire espresso martini.

Owen, who previously was the executive chef of Nicola’s Restaurant

and sous chef of ne dining establishments Boca and Salazar, has created a menu that serves breakfast, dinner and – soon – lunch, Nickles says.

Breakfast items include croissants, overnight oats and ricotta toast made with sourdough from local Allez Bakery and topped with fresh strawberry jam. ere also is a rotation of pastries and doughnuts.

For dinner, Owen o ers small plates, canapés, charcuterie and cheese boards, all of which are collected as “American tapas.” e canapés, including the tru ed grilled cheese with fontina and an onion doughnut with caviar, crema and chives, are unique and delectable. e cheese and charcuterie boards feature ingredients that range from aged ham to marinated melon.

Symposium has set up shop in a neighborhood bustling with many new and exciting establishments from hip bars to cafes and salons. East Walnut Hills has been welcoming, Nickels tells CityBeat.

“To date, folks have been wonderful,” he says

Nickels adds that he and Owen have become close with sta from neighborhood establishments like Branch, Anjoy, Solstice and Mochiko – they’ve even gotten tattoos by artist Stephanie Merrill at Lumen Ink, just a few blocks south on Woodburn Avenue. ey’ve also enjoyed meeting folks from Woodburn Brewing, Growler House and HeyDay, who have all o ered them a warm welcome, Nickels says.

Nickels says he is thrilled to be a part of this community “We aspire to be an all-day destination for the neighborhood.”

Symposium, 2835 Woodburn Ave., East Walnut Hills. Info: symposiumcincinnati.com.

EATS The Empanada’s Box Brings Argentinian Flavors to Covington

BY SEAN M. PETERS

Lucas (L) and Diego (R) Nunez, owners of The Empanada’s Box.

PHOTO: SEAN M. PETERS

International travel is expensive, so the easiest way to visit Argentina is at a table loaded with empanadas and chimichurri alongside a gourd of yerba mate in e Empanada’s Box, which opened on Covington’s Pike Street in June.

Empanadas – baked turnover-like hand pies stu ed with a variety of savory and sweet llings – are extremely common across Latin America and have become prevalent in our region thanks to Argentine families like Lucas Nunez, his aunt Fabiana and his uncle Diego at e Empanada’s Box.

After graduating from Findlay Launch, the storefront accelerator program for food-related businesses at Findlay Market, e Empanada’s Box now runs its own brick-and-mortar location where Tuba Baking Co. previously had operated in the Mainstrasse area.

Co-owner Lucas Nunez, who also serves as head of sales and marketing, moved to Cincinnati from Miami when Diego suggested they work alongside each other in the kitchen at Ché, the bar/restaurant responsible for introducing a lot of Over-the-Rhine residents to Argentine cooking, including Diego’s empanadas. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020 and a ected restaurants everywhere, the Nunezes decided to work for themselves, con dent that Diego’s talents as a chef would be put to good use in a kitchen of their own.

“ is is our passion and we want to show people a little piece of our culture,” says Nunez, the family’s uent English speaker who tends to act as both their voice and interpreter. “We love Cincinnati, we live here, and now being part of Covington, Kentucky,

Chimichurri is traditionally served over grilled meat, but goes really well on empanadas.

An array of empanadas with rice, salad and alfajores.

PHOTO: SEAN M. PETERS

we love that area too. We just want to spread our empanadas and make people happy through our food.”

As they worked toward this recent opening, Findlay Launch was a massive asset for the burgeoning family business. e Nunezes were introduced to the program after working in Findlay Kitchen, a non-pro t food business incubator. Findlay Launch provides startups in the food industry with learning opportunities, connections and resources, and a select few applicants like the Nunez family are invited to set up shop temporarily in one of the program’s storefronts on Elm Street. e Empanada’s Box began its limited run at that location in September and wrapped up in June to take the business to Covington. e menu at e Empanada’s Box features more than 20 di erent llings for the empanadas. Sample traditional Buenos Aires-style bites with ground beef, onion, red pepper and scallions, or have a Cincinnati chili-style empanada seasoned with Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices’ Cincinnati style seasoning chili powder. e array of empanada llings is international, with avors from Jamaica, Singapore, Louisiana, India, the Phillipines and more.

Have a sweet tooth? ere are many options to explore. e apple empanada – lled with green apple, brown sugar, raisins and cinnamon – is an indulgent dessert that happens to be vegan. ere’s also a selection of imported Argentine candies along with housemade cookies lled with dulce de leche and powdered sugar that are perfect bitesize treats.

Yerba mate is one of the specialties of e Empanada’s Box. is green tea is an essential part of the day for many in Argentina, sipped through a ltered metal straw from a specially prepared gourd. Originally cultivated in Argentina’s neighboring Paraguay, Diego drinks it three times daily as a way to relax with his wife Fabiana, who handles the restaurant’s nancial aspects along with helping in the kitchen. e beverage is best served at 180° F, though people increasingly are enjoying it served over ice and sweetened with agave

Patrons can enjoy food from e Empanada’s Box in several ways. If you’re looking for a table, the new restaurant seats about 20 people, with each table able to accommodate two to three diners. ere, you can order at the counter and take a seat while you wait for empanadas fresh from the oven. ese empanadas also travel extremely well, maintaining their temperature and structure even after a lengthy car ride. Frozen empanadas are an enticing option, too, as you can select individual pastries from the full menu, easily prepared in the oven at home.

No matter which route you go, buy a jar of Diego’s chimichurri, an herbaceous salsa-like sauce that’s traditionally served over grilled meats but accompanies empanadas perfectly with its acidity and saltiness, punctuated by the chopped aromatics.

Alfajores are small caramel cookie sandwiches dusted in powdered sugar.

PHOTO: SEAN M. PETERS

e Empanada’s Box, 212 Pike St., Covington. Info: theempanadasbox.square.site.