CityBeat | Dec. 12, 2021-Jan. 11, 2022 by Chava Communications

2021 YEAR IN REVIEW

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MEMI CONCERT CALENDAR December 23 December 29 December 31 December 31

Straight No Chaser Rick Springfield with Stranger Sal Vulcano & Chris Distefano Clutch with Stoner and Native Howl

Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center

January 8 January 14 January 15

The Andrew J Brady Music Center Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center

January 15 January 20 January 26 January 27 January 28 January 29

Dillon Francis x Yung Gravy with KITTENS Nate Bargatze (7PM & 9:30PM) Falling In Reverse with Wage War, Hawthorne Heights, and Jeris Johnson Oliver Wood (of The Wood Brothers) The Ghost of Paul Revere with Early James Lucky Chops Dancing with The Stars: Live! Alice Cooper Erasure with Bag Raiders

The Ballroom at Taft Theatre The Ballroom at Taft Theatre The Ballroom at Taft Theatre Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center The Andrew J Brady Music Center

February 9 February 10 February 12 February 12 February 16 February 19 February 26 February 27

Sleigh Bells Whitney Cummings The Regrettes Foxy Shazam with Robert Finley Dream Theater with Arch Echo Beth Hart with Quinn Sullivan Letterkenny Live! Gaelic Storm

The Ballroom at Taft Theatre Taft Theatre The Ballroom at Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center The Andrew J Brady Music Center Taft Theatre Taft Theatre Taft Theatre

March 2 March 4 March 5 March 11 March 12 March 12 March 13 March 14 March 18 March 22

Postmodern Jukebox The Fab Four - The Ultimate Beatles Tribute Mat Kearney with The National Parks Billy Strings - SOLD OUT Billy Strings - SOLD OUT Yola with Jac Ross Papa Roach with Hollywood Undead and Bad Wolves Little Feat with Ida Mae Jukebox The Ghost Underoath with Every Time I Die and Spiritbox

Taft Theatre Taft Theatre Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center The Andrew J Brady Music Center Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center Taft Theatre The Ballroom at Taft Theatre The Andrew J Brady Music Center

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YEAR IN REVIEW

NEWS

Cincinnati’s Mayor-elect Aftab Pureval (left) and his vice mayor, Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney P H OTO : A L L I S O N BA B K A

20 Greater Cincinnati News Stories from 2021 That We’ll Never Forget BY A L L I S O N BA B K A

hat can we say about 2021? Year two of the COVID-19 pandemic was slightly more interesting than 2020 was, since safe, effective vaccines emerged and we could finally leave our homes and hug relatives again (unless they remained unvaccinated). But there were plenty of other interesting happenings in Cincinnati that had nothing to do with a virus that continues to wipe out the country’s population at a pretty devastating clip. Below, read the Greater Cincinnati news stories that made 2021 memorable in both good and bad ways.

Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley Finally Enters Ohio Governor Race, with Legal Weed as a Platform Centerpiece After months of teasing that he’d make a run for a higher office, Cranley announced in August that he would officially enter the race to become Ohio’s next governor in 2022. Cranley’s campaign largely is framed around Cincinnati’s population and civic “comeback,” as he calls it, with criminal

justice reform, job creation and legal recreational marijuana as focuses.

Cincinnati Elects Aftab Pureval as Its First New Mayor in Eight Years A changing of the guard is coming in 2022. By defeating opponent and longtime politician David Mann in November’s election, the 39-year-old Pureval cemented two important firsts: the first new mayor since Cranley took office two terms ago, and Cincinnati’s first Asian American mayor. Cincinnati City Council member and Cincinnati Herald publisher Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney will join Pureval’s administration as vice mayor.

Kentucky Sees Its Most Devastating Tornado Ever More than 20 tornadoes descended

upon the Midwest and mid-South on Dec. 10 and early Dec. 11, hitting Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Missouri and Tennessee. At least four of them zipped through the Commonwealth during the multi-state blitz, including one that the National Weather Service says stayed on the ground for at 227 miles. The tornado cluster is considered to be one of the most devastating in history. At least 75 people were killed in Kentucky, ranging in ages from 2 months old to 97, and the death count still could rise as recovery efforts continue. U.S. President Joe Biden said the U.S. government will cover 100% of the disaster relief costs for the first 30 days.

Cicadas Invade Cincinnati — and We Were Ready Following a 17-year residency underground, billions of cicadas emerged throughout Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky this summer. Brood X, as this generation of insects

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Cincinnati was obsessed with cicadas in 2021. P H OTO : P H OTO : R . E . S N O D G R AS S, P U B L I C D O M A I N

is called, is the largest of all the cicada broods; we last saw them in 2004. Prior to their arrival, Gene Kritsky, the dean of behavioral and natural sciences at Mount St. Joseph University, and his team created the Cicada Safari app, which lets users search, photograph, record and map cicadas in their area. Users can submit their findings to scientists, who then study the info to learn more about the health and habits of the creatures. And if you wanted to totally avoid the swarm instead of photographing it? Local company Under the Weather had you covered, literally, with their wearable mesh pod. The screened-in box came with shoulder straps to slip over your body and keep the bugs off of you.

CNN Crowns Cincinnati as Ohio’s New State Capital

The Brent Spence Bridge Is Finally Fully Open

Controversial legislation in Mason was aborted in December. After months of attempting to become a “sanctuary city for the unborn,” Mason finally gave up its mission to ban abortions when the city council voted 6-1 to repeal an anti-abortion ordinance that was supposed to have taken effect in November. Had the abortion ban stood, it would have outlawed abortion at all gestational stages within Mason’s city limits and punished those who “aid and abet” abortions through funding, transportation and more. Violators could have been fined $2,500 and spent a year in prison. In May,

What a glorious day Nov. 8 was! After more than eight months of lane closures, delays and unholy traffic jams, the Brent Spence Bridge connecting Cincinnati with Covington finally reopened to regular traffic. The nation’s No. 2 bottleneck for freight trucks was whole again.

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We weren’t expecting to become the most important city in Ohio, but we’ll take it. During CNN’s liveblog session about the snowstorms that befuddled the Midwest in February, the cable news channel inadvertently declared Cincinnati to be the Buckeye State’s capital city instead of Columbus.

The Future of Roe v. Wade Actually Seems to Be in Jeopardy

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The Brent Spence bridge finally fully reopened after months of construction. P H OTO : A N T H O N Y 2 2 / W I K I M E D I A C O M M O N S

nearby Lebanon council members unanimously passed a similar antiabortion ordinance; the ACLU of Ohio said Lebanon’s legislation was “blatantly unconstitutional” and ripe for legal challenge. These acts line up with recent Supreme Court decisions regarding controversial abortion bans in Texas and Mississippi that pose a threat to other precedent-setting abortion cases.

Ohio Can’t Kick COVID-19 During year one of the pandemic, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine spurned his Republican colleagues and ordered a number of public safety protocols — mandatory masks, resident curfews, limited business hours, industry closures — to slow the spread of the coronavirus. For a while, it worked, and Ohio’s cases dropped in January after a horrible fall and winter spike. But once DeWine took all of those measures away during year two — even before hitting expert-recommended benchmarks — the virus came roaring

Community members protested outside of Crossroads church in Oakley after a sermon that denigrated transgender individuals. P H OTO : M A RY L E B U S

back in the form of much deadlier variants, including ones that harm kids more than ever before. Doctors and scientists continue to warn that the state’s — and the region’s — case numbers are rising toward last year’s numbers and are begging for relief, and the CDC labels every county in Ohio as having the highest level of community transmission.

Even Ohio’s White-Tailed Deer Are Infected with COVID According to a report from NPR, scientists say white-tailed deer are increasingly carrying SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID19. The deer are picking up the virus and carrying it with them across the country, spreading it to other deer possibly “indefinitely.” But that’s not all — scientists say that the deer could pass the virus back to humans and create newer, more resistant strains. This is not good news for Ohio, where white-tailed deer are plentiful and serve as the state mammal. This means that COVID-19 could be here to stay for longer than we’d like, due both to humans’ refusal to mask up and get vaccinated and from deer being deer.

Former Bengal Chad Johnson Leaves $1,000 Tip at Cincinnati Restaurant The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic kicked off with diners leaving massive surprise tips in bars and restaurants throughout the city. But then “Ochocinco” went and upped the game — dramatically. He left a $1,000 tip for a server at Redlands Grill. In a post on Twitter later, Johnson took a photo of the receipt and captioned it, “Proverbs 11:25 (Cincinnati edition).” The Bible verse reads, “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”

3CDC Reveals Historic Architecture Behind Brick Façade While Renovating Downtown Building Cincinnati’s architectural elements always shine through. The former Chong Inc. building downtown was built in the late 1800s and several department and furniture stores inhabited the space, as well as a

Kroger store from 1960-1969. In 1951, the building went through a massive renovation, removing the 5th and 6th floors and covering the exterior with a new brick façade. While 3CDC was renovating the structure at the start of this year, the Midcentury brick was removed, uncovering the original beauty underneath.

LGBTQ+ Community and Allies Raise Voices After Anti-Trans Speaker Addresses Crossroads Church in Oakley This summer, members of Cincinnati’s LGBTQ+ community and their allies asked Crossroads to support everyone — or to stop pretending. In addition to welcoming a controversial speaker who denigrated transgender folks during a sermon, the megachurch has policies that prevent LGBTQ+ individuals from holding leadership positions. Community members protested outside Crossroads, pressing senior pastor Brian Tome to claim no prior knowledge of the contents of the speaker’s sermon and to profess supporting LGBTQ+ people despite Crossroads’ homophobic and transphobic policies.

Ohio Sees Multiple Lawsuits Around New Congressional Redistricting Maps Some voters aren’t thrilled with the Ohio Redistricting Commission and the recently passed legislative district maps. The Ohio Supreme Court has heard arguments from the League of Women Voters, the Ohio Organizing Collaborative and a cohort of state residents claiming the new maps are unconstitutional for violating antigerrymandering requirements. The maps were approved 5-2 along party lines, and Republicans have said there is no evidence they’re unconstitutional. Plaintiffs have also accused the maps of “packing and cracking,” which denies fair representation to immigrant communities and communities of color by compressing minority votes into the fewest number of districts (packing) or diluting them across districts (cracking).

Eric Deters Celebrates Trump on 9/11 with a ‘Freedom Fest’ Ousted Greater Cincinnati attorney Eric Deters didn’t think there were enough pro-Donald Trump events

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The Banks is now home to a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area, or DORA. P H O T O : P R O V I D E D BY G A M E D AY P R

this year, so he planned one himself. Deters, who has been suspended from practicing law in Kentucky due to ethical violations, organized Freedom Fest, a “kid-friendly” event in Morning View, Kentucky, about 30 miles south of Cincinnati. The date? Sept. 11, the day nearly 3,000 people died in 2001 due to four al-Qaeda terrorist attacks in the United States and a day that conservatives typically hold sacred. Freedom Fest was described by Deters as being for those “who are frustrated with the masks and the mandates and the vaxx and the lousy president,” “people who support Trump, people who support the Constitution, the Bill of Rights” and those who “believe in God.”

Josh Mandel Does a Lot of Bad Things What did U.S. Senate hopeful and Trumpy Ohio Republican Mandel accomplish this year? He was kicked off of Twitter for a poll with options for “Mexican gangbangers” and “Muslim terrorists.” He likened COVID-19 vaccine credentials to “Nazi Germany.” He set his face mask on fire, because “freedom.” He reportedly had staffers quit due to his toxic relationship with his campaign finance director. He got his ass handed to him after praising a waitress for going to work sick. Honestly, the better question is “What asinine thing has Mandel not done?”

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Jim Jordan Also Does Bad Things What’s with Ohio Republicans? Jordan, a House Representative for a ridiculously gerrymandered district, is another Trump supporter who lambasted COVID-19 safety protocols, ignored science from virus experts, wanted to use anti-Asian language freely, and falsely and repeatedly claimed that Trump would have another term as U.S. President if it weren’t for conniving Democrats. But a reckoning may be coming, as actor/ director/science believer George Clooney reportedly is working on a docuseries about the Ohio State sex abuse scandal, and Jordan’s alleged involvement in covering up those activities will surely get its due.

Cincinnati Councilman Chris Seelbach to Hamilton County Auditor Dusty Rhodes: “Fuck Off” Rhodes is well known for his controversial takes. But when Rhodes — who supposedly is a Democrat — tweeted out anti-trans remarks in January, Seelbach wasn’t having it. “You are such a bigoted piece of trash. Fuck off, Dusty Ass Rhodes,” Seelbach tweeted back, igniting a spectacle that had Cincinnati’s full attention. Rhodes has since said that he will not seek reelection when his term is up.

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Cincinnati Becomes a Flashpoint for the Conversation Around Ivermectin Controversy was raised earlier this year when some doctors began prescribing ivermectin — an antiparasitic and livestock dewormer — to COVID-19 patients. While conservative commentators and politicians touted it as a treatment and preventative, the CDC, FDA, American Medical Association and even the drug’s manufacturer warned against its use in COVID cases. The national drama played out on a local stage when a woman sued West Chester Hospital for refusing to honor a prescription of ivermectin written for her husband, who was on a ventilator. The woman initially won an emergency judgement that in essence would force the hospital to give her husband the drug, but a Butler County judge reversed that ruling saying there wasn’t enough evidence to prove ivermectin’s efficacy. Her husband later died.

A West Chester Rep Makes the Magnetic Vaccine Lady Famous Republican State Rep. Jennifer Gross of West Chester helped launch the claims of Dr. Sherri Tenpenny — a state-licensed doctor of osteopathic medicine — onto the late-night-comedy TV circuit when she invited the doctor to testify before the Ohio House Health Committee in support of the “Vaccine Choice and Anti-Discrimination

Act.” Tenpenny spouted her claims that COVID-19 vaccines turn people magnetic and “interface” with 5G cell towers. This prompted a slew of videos across social media of vaccinated — and clearly not magnetized — humans trying to get spoons to stick to their noses. The Center for Countering Digital Hate said Tenpenny was one of the top 12 most prolific disseminators of COVID misinformation on social media.

Cincinnati Designates The Banks as an 85-Acre DORA There’s a new DORA in, and she’s a beauty. In March, an 85-acre DORA (designated outdoor refreshment area) opened downtown at The Banks, ready for all the walking and drinking Cincinnati’s can handle. The district spans from Paul Brown Stadium to Heritage Bank Center and to the south sidewalk of Second Street and north sidewalk of Mehring Way (Smale Riverfront Park isn’t included).

YEAR IN REVIEW

ARTS & CULTURE

The Cincinnati Opera’s staging of Carmen at Summit Park P H OTO : P H I L I P G RO S H O N G

15 Top Arts & Culture Stories from 2021 BY C IT Y B E AT STA F F

his past year, Cincinnati saw new trends, welcomed back old favorites and planned for the future. These Arts & Culture highlights from 2021 touch on everything from celebrities and celebrations to big changes.

Vincent van Gogh Is Everywhere This year, immersive Vincent van Gogh exhibits from multiple international presenters have been traveling to cities across the U.S. The exhibitions create all-encompassing,

multi-sensory indoor environments by pairing the latest in digital technology with images recreated from van Gogh’s paintings. Newfields, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, converted its entire fourth floor into The Lume for its van Gogh show, on view through May 2022. And now, Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience (from a separate producer than the Lume show) is coming to Cincinnati. This digital “light and sound spectacular” will encompass 20,000 square feet, display van Gogh’s most popular masterpieces and include a virtual reality experience. As of press time, the location for the show — which

opens in June 2022 — is still secret. vangoghexpo.com/cincinnati.

Live Theater Returned to Cincinnati Stages Cincinnati theaters welcomed audiences back indoors this fall with the return of fan favorites and world premieres to local stages. Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati opened and closed Dominique Morisseau’s Pipeline on March 11, 2020; the show had a onenight run due to COVID-19 restrictions, but the set remained on ETC’s stage until Pipeline opened the 2021 season on Sept. 22. The Playhouse kicked off its 2021 season with two world premieres: playwright Keith Josef Adkins’ historical play, The West End, set in Cincinnati in 1941; and Need Your Love, a musical about the life of underrated King

Records star Little Willie John. The Playhouse also brought back the full staging of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol for the holidays (after it presented a one-man radio play version last year). Speaking of the holidays, Drunk Santa returned to the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s zany annual production of Every Christmas Story Ever Told (and Then Some!). To ensure live music, theater and other events can continue to happen during the pandemic, area venues — from major destinations like the Aronoff Center, Memorial Hall and Music Hall to smaller clubs like MOTR Pub in Over-the-Rhine — came together this year to require either proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test and, frequently, masks for entry.

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New Music Venues Opened on Both Sides of the River The state-of-the-art Andrew J. Brady Music Center (25 Race St., Downtown, bradymusiccenter.com) at The Banks opened in summer 2021 with a sold-out concert by the Foo Fighters. They played the 8,000-person-capacity outdoor stage, but there’s also space for 4,500 fans indoors. And while many entertainment arenas sell naming rights to companies or arts organizations to feature the name of a big donor, this spot is named for a longtime Cincinnati music educator and musician. In fact, the venue recently dropped the “ICON” from its original name to further elevate the tribute to Andrew J. Brady. Across the river, the new PromoWest Pavilion at OVATION (101 W. Fourth St., Newport, promowestlive.com) features three individual concert spaces — an outdoor amphitheater, an indoor music hall and an indoor club — and boasts “state-ofthe-art” lighting and acoustic systems as well as a moveable stage. It can accommodate up to 2,700 fans inside and 7,000 outside. The additions are a huge win for local music audiences as both venues were stacked this year with big-name touring acts from across multiple genres. And 2022 is shaping up to continue that trend.

The Cincinnati Opera Was Finally Able to Celebrate Its Centennial The Cincinnati Opera’s entire summer season was held outdoors this year for the first time since 1971, when the company decamped from the Cincinnati Zoo to Music Hall. The decision to move performances to Blue Ash’s Summit Park came in the wake of COVID spikes at the end of 2020, said opera Artistic Director Evans Mirageas. In fact, the company had to cancel its entire 2020 centennial season and instead marked its 100th anniversary in 2021, a year late. The opera performed three classics on the Summit stage in July: Carmen, Tosca and The Barber of Seville. The company announced it return to Music Hall (and SCPA) for 2022, with more fan favorites and two world premieres, Fierce and Castor & Patience. cincinnatiopera.org.

Cincinnati Got a Hard Rock Casino Cincinnati’s freshly rebranded Hard Rock Casino Cincinnati (formerly JACK Casino) opened in July. And, yes, that means you can get your official Hard Rock Cafe Cincinnati shirt from the

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The set for The West End at the Playhouse in the Park P H OTO : M I K K I S C H A F F N E R P H OTO G R A P H Y

in-house eatery. Bonus: Hard Rock in fact “rocks” with plenty of live concerts. As with other locations of the chain, the Cincinnati casino is full of celebrity memorabilia. Inside you’ll see iconic keepsakes worn or owned by a wide genre of artists, including outfits from Stevie Nicks, KISS and Lady Gaga, plus you can get a look at Eddie Van Halen’s 1996 933 Porsche. Local artist Jenny Ustick also created a vibrant mural for the space, representing famous Ohio musicians. 1000 Broadway St., Pendleton, hardrockcasinocincinnati.com.

The Truth Is Here: MUFON Set Up Headquarters In Cincinnati Cincinnati is once again home to nonprofit UFO investigation organization Mutual UFO Network, or MUFON (MUFON left Cincinnati in 2012 to relocate to Irvine, California but has now set up headquarters near Lunken Airport). Launched in 1969, MUFON has more than 600 trained investigators and 4,200 members across the world to help investigate UFO sightings and collect the data, promote UFO research and educate the public about UFO phenomenon. Executive Director David MacDonald says making the move to Cincinnati permanent is valuable because of the city’s proximity to Wright Patterson Air Force Base, and because it was once home to famous UFO pioneer

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Hard Rock Casino P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

The immersive Vincent van Gogh exhibit at Newfields in Indianapolis P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

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The new Andrew J. Brady Music Center downtown (formerly known as the Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center) P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

Len Stringfield. mufon.com.

Court Street Plaza Unveiled Its New Look 3CDC unveiled its $5.5 million Court Street Plaza revitalization project in June. The plaza — located on Court Street between Vine and Walnut streets — is a pedestrian-friendly urban promenade with enough space to accommodate outdoor dining, events and popups and boasts public art. With wide sidewalks and a “festival-style street,” the area can easily be closed to cars and vehicle traffic as needed. New bars and restaurants have popped up along the development including the Ernest Hemingway/Key West-inspired cocktail lounge Pilar (pilarcincinnati.com), and Mid-City (midcitycinti.com), from the team behind popular Over-the-Rhine bar Longfellow. courtstreetcincy.com.

Nick Lachey Won The Masked Singer When The Masked Singer TV show welcomed a celebrity disguised as a pig to its slew of singers, citizens of Porkopolis took notice — especially since we’re the hometown of one of America’s topselling boy bands, 98 Degrees. “Piglet”

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ended up winning season 5 of the show and was revealed to be none other than Cincinnati native Nick Lachey (who also runs a production company called Flying Pig Productions). Lachey later told People magazine that he went on the show at his kids’ behest and that his daughter recognized his voice immediately. Our big question now is: Will Lachey grace the Taft Theatre stage when The Masked Singer tour comes to Cincinnati in June?

The Cincinnati Zoo Welcomed a Surprise Baby Panda While Fiona typically takes the crown as the Cincinnati Zoo’s miracle baby, everyone — including zoo staff — was surprised when Lin the red panda gave birth to a new and entirely unexpected cub in July. Lin had a miscarriage in May and the zoo said, to their knowledge, this was the “first documented case of a red panda losing her pregnancy and then having another embryo come along and implant in the same year.” And speaking of Fiona, her mom Bibi got a new boyfriend this year. “Huge, dark and handsome” 18-year-old Nile hippo Tucker was transported from the San Francisco Zoo

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in September as a potential mate. 3400 Vine St., Avondale, cincinnatizoo.org.

Cincinnati Was Named One of the Best Cities to Make a Movie Cincinnati was named America’s No. 13 Best Place to Live & Work as a Filmmaker by MovieMaker Magazine this year, making it the fourth straight year the Queen City has earned the honor. The city moved up one spot from its No. 14 showing in 2020. The magazine highlights Cincinnati’s downtown skyline, low cost of living and Ohio’s 30% motion picture tax credit as chief among the reasons for the city’s emergence as a stalwart that has lured films such as 2015’s Carol, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara; 2017’s Killing of a Sacred Deer, starring Nicole Kidman and Colin Farrell; and 2019’s Dark Waters, starring Mark Ruffalo and Anne Hathaway. And we saw plenty of celebrity action in 2021, including Academy Award-nominated dream team Luca Guadagnino and Timothée Chalamet (Call Me by Your Name) filming Bones & All and Oscar winner Regina King filming Shirley, the story of America’s first Black congresswoman.

The CSO Appointed a Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra appointed Harold Brown as Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer in March. This position marked a first, not only for the CSO, but also for a major American orchestra. Brown’s position will review all of the CSO’s policies to ensure equity; expand internship opportunities to encourage, mentor and retain Black, Indiginous and people of polor; develop and strengthen relationships with underserved communities; and implement cultural competency/ implicit bias training for musicians, staff and board members. The CSO’s new Andrew J. Brady Internship Program was launched this year to give “students from backgrounds not significantly represented in the orchestra industry” experience in orchestra management. cincinnatisymphony.org.

Major Arts Stars Stepped Down Three of the city’s major arts institutions are seeing big changes. Longtime Cincinnati Ballet Artistic Director Victoria Morgan has announced she’ll be stepping down at

Court Street Plaza P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

the end of the 2021-22 season — her 25th year with the organization. The CSO announced that Music Director Louis Langrée is not renewing his contract and would depart at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season. (Langrée has taken a gig as director of the Opéra Comique in Paris.) And Raphaela Platow, the Contemporary Arts Center’s Alice & Harris Weston Director, left her role in July to take a new position as the director of the Speed Art Museum in Louisville.

But Cincinnati Arts Organizations Have Big Plans After almost two years of navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, local arts, cultural and educational organizations are cautiously hoping they can finally emerge from nightmare times with new ideas. A number are at least considering — and, in some cases, already constructing — new buildings or redesigning existing ones. That list includes the Cincinnati Art Museum, which has launched a $65 million fundraising campaign to create a sweeping “New View” of the institution’s main entrance, as well as the main branch of the Cincinnati Public Library, the Playhouse in the Park, the Taft Museum of Art, the Vent Haven Museum, the Clifton Cultural Arts Center, Lloyd Library & Museum, Cincinnati Type & Print Museum and others.

We Talked a Lot About Dave Chappelle Comedian Dave Chappelle made headlines during the pandemic for hosting a series of celebrity-packed, socially distant outdoor music and stand-up shows in his hometown of Yellow Springs, Ohio. It was the hottest

ticket in town (if not the country) in 2020, and he brought the shows back in May of this year. He also screened his Untitled documentary about the stand-up series, made with Oscar and Emmy-winning filmmakers Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar, at the Heritage Bank Center in 2021. And he’s reportedly opening a comedy club in Yellow Springs. But it wasn’t all rosy for the storytelling comedian after he intentionally misgendered a transgender friend who had died in his Netflix special The Closer. In an anythingbut-funny moment, Netflix employees staged a walk-out to protest Chappelle’s anti-trans jokes as well as his ongoing anti-cancel-culture comedy sets.

The Queen City Is One Step Closer to Its CROWN It was a good year for biking in Cincinnati. Afar magazine named the Little Miami Scenic Trail as one of the five best urban trails in America and the bike trail was also a factor in Forbes naming Cincinnati as a top 2021 destination for travelers. The Cincinnati Riding or Walking Network (CROWN) also surpassed a major milestone in June when it secured $6 million of an $8 million goal to complete segments of a 34-mile mixed-use walking/biking path. Led by Tri-State Trails, Wasson Way, Ohio River Way and a publicprivate partnership, CROWN aims to connect over 100 miles of pre-existing and to-be-constructed trail systems while boosting economic development, improving transportation options, stimulating businesses and promoting healthy activities. CROWN will serve as a “hub” to access the aforementioned Little Miami Scenic Trail, Wasson Way (which recently opened Phase 5) and more. crowncincinnati.org.

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022 |

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10 Stories That Seared Cincinnati Sports Our Brains in 2021 SPORTS into BY A L L I S O N BA B K A A N D M A I JA Z U M M O YEAR IN REVIEW

Cincinnati Reds fans might not be in the MLB rivalries they assume. P H O T O : L I T T L E S I S T E R , F L I C K R C R E AT I V E C O M M O N S

Even with COVID-19 restrictions (at least until late spring), economy woes and snack shortages, 2021 was a great year for sports in Cincinnati. Against a backdrop of excitement that the athletic gods were finally back, fans could enjoy the highs and lows of watching their favorite teams do their favorite things — win.

The Reds’ Jonathan India Is the Rookie of the Year and Every Other Superlative The Cincinnati Reds’ second baseman Jonathan India secured a cabinet full of hardware recognizing his outstanding 2021 season. The Sporting News named India as its National League Rookie of the Year for 2021; he was named the National League’s Outstanding Rookie in the MLB Players Choice Awards; and Baseball America named India as its Rookie of the Year. But he also snagged the big, big award: India was named the Baseball Writers’ Association of America’s 2021 Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year for Major League Baseball’s National League. reds.com.

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Soccer Star Rose Lavelle Uses Cincinnati Moxie to Kick Some Ass Oh, Rose Lavelle, look at you now. 2021 was extremely kind to the Mount Notre Dame High School alumna, who continues to prove that Cincinnati breeds winners. In November, Lavelle and the U.S. Women’s National Team demolished Paraguay in the first-ever U.S. Soccer match at TQL Stadium in the West End, with Lavelle scoring in just the fourth minute of the match. The midfielder also helped the USWNT to a bronze medal in the 2020 Olympics this summer, scoring the team’s first goal of its annihilation of New Zealand (though the Tokyo Olympics happened in 2021, they still were considered to be the 2020 Olympic Games due to the coronavirus pandemic delay). And earlier this year, Lavelle was named MVP during the winning match of the 2021 SheBelieves Cup. There’s a reason Lavelle’s mural at The Banks remains a must-see for soccer fans. ussoccer.com.

FC Cincinnati Sees Lots of Changes 2021 was not the season of dreams for Queen City soccer fans — FC Cincinnati

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Cincinnati Cyclones President Ray Harris is going into the ECHL Hall of Fame. P H O T O : P R O V I D E D BY C I N C I N N AT I C YC L O N E S

finished the year with a 4-22-8 record, tying it with the 2019 season for losses. But there’s hope for change in 2022 with the recent announcement of a new

head coach. FC Cincinnati has tapped Pat Noonan, a former player and assistant coach for various MLS teams, to step into the role. Other changes

Rose Lavelle lit up TQL Stadium.

University of Cincinnati fans were ready for ESPN.

P H OTO : T W IT T E R . C O M / U S W N T

P H O T O : FA C E B O O K . C O M / U O F C I N C I N N AT I

The Bengals’ secret weapon? New uniforms. P H OTO : T W IT T E R . C O M / B E N GA LS

happened in 2021: Former general manager Gerard Nijkamp departed in August, and the club released former head coach Jaap Stam and two assistant coaches in September. However, the team also broke in its brand-new $250 million TQL Stadium in the West End this year. The venue played host to the United States Men’s National Soccer Team’s 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Mexico, and the United States Women’s National Soccer Team (featuring Cincinnati’s own Rose Lavelle) pounded Paraguay during an international friendly there. On the horizon: the city is bidding to host a 2026 World Cup match. 1501 Central Parkway, West End, fccincinnati.com.

The Bengals Get New Uniforms and Win a Surprising Amount of Games We don’t live in a comic book universe, but it sure seems like the Cincinnati Bengals have superpowers thanks to some new duds. After a monthslong tease, the Bengals revealed “New Stripes” uniforms in April — the team’s first significant change in 17 years. The only thing untouched? The Bengals’ iconic tiger-striped helmet. The uniform change seems to have given the team some spark, as the Bengals have

already crushed the Pittsburgh Steelers (twice!) and won more games so far than anyone outside the franchise had predicted. Can the magic push the team to the Super Bowl? We wouldn’t bet against them these days. bengals.com.

Nick Castellanos + Cincinnati Reds = Ross & Rachel? Are they done for good, or will they get back together? This winter, Castellanos and the Reds have embodied the “Will they or won’t they” energy of the famous couple on Friends. After Castellanos had a fantastic season that

earned him an MLB Silver Slugger Award, the outfielder opted out of the final two years of his contract, forfeiting $16 million per year. The Reds then made a qualifying offer (set across the league at $18.4 million), which Castellanos rejected, later saying that he’d consider another offer from the team — something Reds fans are clamoring for. As of press time, the relationship still is stalled, but we’re hoping for a holiday (armadillo) miracle — and, yeah, we know it’s a longshot. Castellanos is considered to be one of the best free agents available and has drawn interest from multiple teams. reds.com.

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Puckchop and Twister welcome Cincinnati Cyclones hockey fans back to Heritage Bank Center. P H OTO : A L L I S O N BA B K A

University of Cincinnati Gets Major ESPN Screentime For the first time ever, ESPN’s mega-popular pre-game show College Gameday visited Cincinnati for UC’s homecoming game. Bearcats fans were ecstatic to have the sports network broadcasting live from on campus in the lead-up to the game against Tulsa at Nippert Stadium. Fans also lined up in the wee hours of the morning to be part of the Gameday team’s live shots for Good Morning America on ABC. Homecoming already is pretty special, but having the Bearcats’ game-winning, last-minute field goal beamed live to the nation and around the globe? Absolutely priceless. gobearcats.com.

Cincinnati Cyclones Return to the Ice after Nearly Two Years of Pandemic Delays For a long time during the COVID19 pandemic, Cincinnati had a big

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puck-shaped hole. The Cincinnati Cyclones hadn’t played an official, regular-season game since March 11, 2020 — that is, until Oct. 23 of this year, when the Cyclones visited the Indy Fuel. The return of our favorite ice sport gave fans a new head coach in Jason Payne (the only currently active head coach of color in professional hockey), a 2022 ECHL Hall of Famer in Cyclones president Ray Harris and all the dollar beer nights anyone could want. Hockey is back, baby. cycloneshockey.com.

A New York Mets Announcer Hates Cincinnati Chili. Like, Haaaaaaates it We’ll admit that Cincinnati-style chili isn’t for everyone, but show a little respect, huh? New York Mets announcer Gary Cohen went off on the dish during the broadcast of a Reds vs. Mets game, calling Skyline’s 5-Way “disgusting chili gravy.” Showing a video of someone expertly preparing the aforementioned dish, Cohen narrated its construction: “The 5-Way, with the spaghetti and the beans and the cheese — first the disgusting chili gravy. After the onions comes the cheese, and

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

The Cincinnati Reds didn’t make the postseason but still spawned plenty of star players. P H O T O : F R A N C I S C O H U E R TA

The U.S. Women’s and Men’s Teams crushed their opponents in special games at TQL Stadium, but FC CIncinnati didn’t fare quite as well. P H O T O : F R A N C I S C O H U E R TA

that’s what makes it the 5-Way. There’s the cheese. They put like 10 tons of shredded cheese on there. And this is supposed to be food that you actually eat.”Cohen then told co-broadcaster Ron Darling, “Try it once, and then you’ll never eat it again.” The Cincinnati Twitterverse immediately jumped into action defending the local delicacy, including the home team. “Two facts: Jonathan India is good. Skyline Chili is good,” the Reds said. We can’t argue with that logic

A Delhi Township Bar and LeBron James Get into a Weird Social Media Fight Yes, this was a thing. Jay Linneman, who owns Linnie’s Pub in Delhi Township, reacted strongly on Facebook

after former Cleveland Cavaliers/ current Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James shared a now-deleted tweet targeted at the white Columbus police officer who allegedly shot and killed 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant, who is Black, in April. “If anyone wants to watch an NBA game, don’t come to Linnie’s Pub. We will not air them until Lebron [sic] James has been expelled from the NBA,” Linneman posted to his personal Facebook account, which was linked from his bar’s website and which had shared controversial ideas. Linneman later either deleted the post or set it to private, but James posted his reaction to it on Twitter. “Aww, damn! I was headed there to watch our game tonight and have a drink! Welp.” James also had tweeted and then deleted tweets directed at the officer and lamented the number of Black people who are killed by police. But the story doesn’t end there! A few days later, the contact form on the Linnie’s

Pub website was amended to require the user to confirm that they supported law enforcement. A link for those who “feel the need to use vile or threatening language” directed users to hell.com, a very basic, rainbow-adorned site that poses questions to visitors such as “What happens to me in Hell?” and “Am I a sinner?” James probably didn’t care. After all, the four-time NBA champion, successful businessman and developer of a STEM-based school for disadvantaged children in Akron, where he’d grown up, recently saw his 2003-2004 Upper Deck rookie card sell for $5.2 million.

Cincinnati Reds Fans Get a Shock about MLB Rivalries

Kentucky University, has led students in surveying more than 30,000 baseball fans across the country about teams they perceive as their biggest rivals in Major League Baseball. According to Cobbs’ research, Cincinnati Reds fans claim prestige rivalry with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs. Fans of neither team care much about the Reds, though, preferring instead to keep their own century-plus rivalry going. “Sometimes fans don’t feel the same towards one another. It’s like a little brother versus big brother situation,” Cobbs said. That’s disappointing news, but Reds fans can lessen the sting by knowing they’re No. 3 in the country for boozing it up during games, according to research from a gaming media group.

Over the last seven years, Joe Cobbs, Ph.D., a professor of sports business and event management at Northern

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022 |

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YEAR IN REVIEW

FOOD & DRINK

Anjou P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

25 Restaurants and Bars That Opened in 2021 BY C IT Y B E AT STA F F

he pandemic has not been kind to the hospitality industry. While many bars and restaurants have been able to weather the storm of health restrictions, supply chain shortages and staffing issues, some have been forced to close their doors (the Ohio Restaurant Association says more than 3,000 have shuttered across the state in 2021). But the year hasn’t been a complete downer. The Queen City also has welcomed plenty of new places to drink and dine. Just in case you missed them, this list offers a taste of what’s new to savor here in Cincinnati.

Anjou Named after Margaret of Anjou, wife of King Henry VI, this cocktail bar aims to offer “familiar flavors introduced in a different way,” says co-owner Chris Wolfe. And the drinks live up to that credo with colorful compositions and botanical incorporations. For example, the She-Wolf is a delightful concoction, featuring Old Tom Gin and pear, ginger and elderflower liqueurs. It is a vivid purple color and comes served in a tumbler with a rose-shaped ice cube. 2804 Woodburn Ave., East Walnut Hills, anjoucinci.com.

The Baker’s Table Bakery Despite the struggles of the pandemic-riddled past year on local small business, it’s clear that the team and reputation behind The Baker’s Table was strong enough to not only pull through, but also find themselves in a position for growth. Chef David Willocks and his wife Wendy Braun have opened The Baker’s Table Bakery, right across from the beloved restaurant. The menu features sourdough breads, pastries, espresso and sandwiches as well as farm-to-table pizzas and sustainably made Italian wines. 1001 Monmouth St., Newport, bakerstablebakery.com.

Cackleberry Squeezed into a bite-sized vintage trailer, husband-and-wife duo Nate and China Kautz serve eggy breakfast sandwiches as the pop-up Cackleberry (a term for a hen’s egg). The petite

menu blends Queen City staples with Filipino-fusion ingredients to offer options like the Lolo, with longanisa sausage and atchara pickled slaw, and a goetta sandwich called the Porter with muenster cheese and mustard aioli. The food truck parks in various locations on weekends and operates until all sandwiches are sold out. eatcackleberry.com.

Cafe Mochiko Originally a Japanese-style pop-up run by Elaine Townsend and Erik Bentz, the duo opened their first storefront in East Walnut Hills in spring of 2021. The shop specializes in a fusion cuisine known as “yoshoku,” which borrows elements from Asian and Western cooking styles. A pastry chef, Townsend focuses on the daytime baked goods, crafting items including a delicious ube halaya (purple yam) croissant, various melonpan and loaves of shokupan. At night, the dinner menu offers options like a Hokkaido Smash Burger, shoyu ramen and intermittent specialities

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The Baker’s Table Bakery P H O T O : P R O V I D E D BY T H E B A K E R’ S TA B L E B A K E RY

including a beloved Cincinnati-chilistyle ramen. 1524 Madison Road, East Walnut Hills, cafemochiko.com.

Mythos beer pairs well with any lunch entrée. 1505 Race St., Over-the-Rhine, fillogreekbakeshop.com.

Copper & Flame

Gulow Street

Pour-your-own-drink concept Copper & Flame opened in the former Rook OTR space in June. The bar boasts 68 different taps of draft beer, plus craft cocktails and wine, all priced by-theounce and poured by the individual. But don’t expect to see familiar brews. Copper & Flame highlights rare beer varieties that you likely won’t find on draft lists around the neighborhood. Just load money onto an RFID card when you enter and use that to buy your drinks. In addition to sips, the bar offers a menu of elevated street food, with a fusion of Central/South American and Southeast Asian flavors. 1115 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, copperandflame.com.

Gulow Street is a cozy yet sophisticated bar and restaurant located at the corner of Hoffner and Gulow streets (the establishment’s namesake). Gulow Street’s food menu is small but mighty, offering dishes ranging from breakfast to dinner, with stand-out items including sesame noodles, a pimento-stuffed breakfast sandwich, rigatoni bolognese and a cheeseburger. The cocktail menu sports signature craft cocktails with spirits from bourbon and vodka to gin, including a popular take on a Moscow mule that’s infused with fresh carrot juice. The bar/restaurant also has a dog-friendly patio. 1614 Hoffner St., Northside, gulowstreet.com.

Fillo Serving up an assortment of flaky, buttery pastries and a robust menu of Mediterranean offerings, Fillo brings a slice of Greece to Over-the-Rhine. The café is named after phyllo, the thin pastry dough included in so many of the eatery’s menu items. The restaurant is a full-fledged family affair — husband-and-wife duo Evan and Evi Papanikolaou operate Fillo with their daughters. Customers can expect delicious standards like baklava, but Fillo also serves lunch items, including a halloumi panini and a classic Greek lamb kebab. To keep it authentic, an ice cold

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Cafe Mochiko P H O T O : F R A N C I S C O H U E R TA

Hello Honey Hello Honey has been serving up small-batch ice cream in the heart of downtown since 2012. Now, it has expanded into East Walnut Hills (and is moving the downtown destination to a new storefront soon). The cultfavorite ice cream is crafted with fresh ingredients and options rotate based on the seasons, with flavors including banana honeycomb, Thai iced tea and brown butter caramel. Every item in Hello Honey’s sugary portfolio is worth every single calorie, and it’s a necessity to top your scoop with one

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Mighty Good: Meat n’ Three P H O T O : C AT I E V I OX

Oakley Kitchen Food Hall P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

of the shop’s homemade, toasted marshmallows.1530 Madison Road, East Walnut Hills, hellohoneyicecream. com.

Mama’s Mornings Drawing inspiration from Andy Warhol’s Birth of Venus (modeled after Italian artist Sandro Botticelli’s original masterpiece), Mama’s Mornings is the pastry and espresso bar portion of a forthcoming larger concept from Northern Kentucky restaurateurs Emily Wolff and Paul Weckman (Otto’s, Frida 602, The Standard, Larry’s). Chase Maus, who helmed the recently shuttered rose&mary bakery, is behind the menu of baked goods, which include goodies like tiramisu donuts, custard buns with polenta custard and pine nut croissant sticky buns. Mama’s itself is slated to open in 2022 with a menu that “draw(s) on the classics, but ‘brighten(s)’ them up,” Wolff tells CityBeat. 621 Main St., Covington, instagram.com/ mamas_mornings.

Mid-City Mid-City moved into its spot downtown off the recently refurbished Court Street Plaza in early October. Helmed by the same team as popular Over-the-Rhine bar Longfellow, the self-described “small, relaxed restaurant” serves easy eats, classic cocktails and vintage dessert, including a baked Alaska with Fernet and mint chip ice cream. On the savory side, there’s a chicken and artichoke skewer,

a griddled English muffin with pickle butter and the Mid-City Plate with assorted meats including a frankfurter and pork belly and loin, with potatoes and sauerkraut. 40 E. Court St., Downtown, midcitycinti.com.

Mighty Good: Meat n’ Three Mighty Good: Meat n’ Three opened its door just outside Findlay Market in early October. The restaurant offers “simple, delicious, fresh, Southern food at an approachable price.” As the “Meat n’ Three” title implies, customers choose one meat and three sides (family-style and vegetarian options are also available). Proteins range from Mississippi pot roast to spare ribs and sweet-tea-brined turkey, with sides like macaroni casserole, hominy grits, fried okra, hot slaw and more. 1819 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine, mightygoodotr.com.

North South Baking Co. North South Baking Company is slinging baked goods in a new home shared with Ludlow, Kentucky-based Bircus Brewing Company. For baker and owner Kate Nycz, it’s a dream years in the making. On any given day in the shop, visitors may find sweet or savory danishes, buns, cheese knots, brownies or cookies. For bread lovers, there are plenty of varieties to pick up here, too. One menu staple is the flaky, soft “cruffin,” a croissant-muffin

hybrid filled with creams or jams. Nycz makes and sells baked goods during morning hours while Bircus takes the reins at night. 39 W. Pike St., Covington, northsouthbaking.com.

Oakley Fish House This Oakley eatery takes inspiration from owner Chanaka Delanerolle’s former Mt. Adams Fish House, which closed about a decade ago. The menu includes everything you would want in a seafood-oriented establishment, with a couple of landlubber offerings. The lobster ravioli and the Mediterranean fish stew are standouts. 3036 Madison Road, Oakley, oakleyfishhouse.com.

Oakley Kitchen Food Hall Greater Cincinnati’s culinary scene is expanding rapidly, and with the opening of incubator kitchen and event space Oakley Kitchen Food Hall, area chefs and food entrepreneurs have the opportunity to develop their ideas, skills and products even further. The establishment features eight kitchen pods for start-ups and ghost kitchens, plus a Cutaway bar (with the team behind Over-the-Rhine’s Longfellow at the helm) and a marketplace that offers local products from both new and established local businesses. Grab food and a drink to go from any vendor and enjoy your meal at indoor seating or outside. 3715 Madison Road, Oakley, oakley-kitchen.com.

Okto Cincinnati-based Earth & Ocean Restaurant Group (the team behind Hyde Park’s E+O Kitchen) has brought the fresh flavors of the Mediterranean to the Queen City with the opening of Okto downtown. The menu at Okto includes traditional Greek dishes, like savory tiropita and spanakopita pastries, kebabs, flaming saganaki (a pan-fried cheese) and baklava, as well as branzino (deboned at the table), lobster pasta and octopus carpaccio. Okto’s bar is stocked with a selection of wine and liquors imported from Greece as well as cocktails created to pair nicely with the restaurant’s Mediterranean flavors. 645 Walnut St., Downtown, oktocincinnati.com.

OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez The folks behind Covington’s Gutierrez Deli recently opened OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez in town. The eatery serves up Mexican-style street food, and the menu is stacked with tacos, burritos, nachos and “Guti fries,” with nine different meat/veggie options (including birria) to choose from. There are also entrees, sides and drinks. 302 W. MLK Jr. Blvd., Covington, facebook. com/OllaCov.

OTR Stillhouse The OTR Stillhouse is a distillery, winery and brewery in one. Located in a former 1890s ice manufacturing

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Okto

Gulow Street

P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

Somerset

PearStar

P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

P H O T O : C AT I E V I OX

warehouse, it’s also home to an entertainment venue with indoor and outdoor space. From entrepreneur Michele Hobbs (who launched PetWants) and partners including Master Distiller Chris Mitchell, a founder and former head brewer of Woodburn Brewing, and Dr. Tom Asquith, who worked as a whisky scientist for Brown Forman, the in-house Knox Joseph Distillery produces award-winning gin, bourbon and blended whiskey. Describing itself as a “half-acre of relaxation within OTR,” the Stillhouse also serves a small menu of smoked and grilled food. 2017 Branch St., Over-the-Rhine, otrstillhouse.com.

PearlStar Located in the former A Tavola storefront on Vine Street, PearlStar is the brainchild of Nashville restaurateur Terry Raley. PearlStar offers both East and West Coast oysters and other raw delicacies including crudo, ceviche and tartare. The kitchen — overseen by former Senate executive Chef Leroy Ansley — also features a wood-burning grill to create (non-raw) burgers and steak sandwiches. The bar pours “oldschool martinis, frozen drinks and Lone Star Beer on tap.” 1220 Vine St., Overthe-Rhine, pearl-star.com.

The Pitch Soccer-themed sports bar The Pitch, located directly across from TQL stadium, opened before the first home match of FC Cincinnati’s 2021 Major League Soccer season in May. Housed in the former two-story Metropolitan

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Baptist Church space, the bar boasts artificial turf on the ceiling, a secondfloor scarf wall and a 9-foot-tall wall of 4K TVs (there are another 50 TVs spread throughout the bar). And from the coveted rooftop patio, patrons can almost see into soccer stadium. 1430 Central Parkway, Over-the-Rhine, thepitchcincy.com.

Pilar Pilar celebrates Ernest Hemingway’s oceanic legacy and acts as a bridge between Over-the-Rhine and Fountain Square. The bar takes its name from Hemingway’s black 38-foot fishing boat that he sailed around Florida, Key West and Cuba, and Pilar intends to synthesize the feeling of freedom that comes from a salty breeze over calm waves, giving the Queen City a chance to take a quick trip to the tropics any time. Pilar’s menu gravitates around the drinks Hemingway was known to enjoy, including a daiquiri. 56 E. Court St., Over-the-Rhine, pilarcincinnati.com.

Proud Hound Coffee After several years of growing its brand through pop-ups, wholesale operations, events and collabs, Proud Hound Coffee opened a new café and kitchen in its 4,000-square-foot warehouse and roasting facility. In addition to drip coffee, house and single-origin espressos, the café offers a variety of milk and milk alternatives for all your coffee-infused beverage needs, plus Vancouver-imported teas from 05 Tea, housemade flavor infusions and blue matcha. The food menu offers Southern-inspired breakfast and

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

brunch with a focus on locally sourced ingredients and seasonal dishes. 6717 Montgomery Road, Silverton, proudhoundcoffee.com.

like the pepperoni and olive and the Fancy White. Customers can also build their own. 3392 Erie Ave., Hyde Park, saintfrancisapizza.com.

Baked from Rooted Juicery + Kitchen

Somerset

Vegan-centric juice bar Rooted Juicery + Kitchen expanded its local imprint with a storefront in Findlay Market, located in the former Mainwood Pastry space. But this location — called “Baked” — focuses on the titular baked goods. Rooted prepares and serves housemade baked goods out of this spot, along with menu items found at the other three Rooted locales, including pressed juices, smoothies, toasts, bowls, et al. Baked also serves alcohol, so you can have a glass of rosé with your oat milk latte. 113 W. Elder St., Findlay Market, Overthe-Rhine, rootedjuicery.com.

Saint Francis Apizza Saint Francis Apizza opened in Hyde Park in February. Formerly known as Parlor Pizza Project, the team had to rebrand after just over a month in the new shop due to a trademark issue. Owner Alex Plattner, a Cincinnati native, has made pizza for many years, from when he lived in Minneapolis to after he moved back to Cincinnati in June 2020. Before the rebranding, Parlor Pizza Project did a series of Sunday night dinner pop-ups at Oakley Wines from August 2020 to January 2021 before opening the brick-andmortar shop in Hyde Park. The popular pizzeria offers a variety of house pies,

This sprawling drinking and dining destination offers an immersive escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Somerset features two bar spaces — one in the plant-filled and glass-roofed conservatory and another in the cozy lounge space. The grounds are also home to a double-decker bus that has been converted into a kitchen, and, the pièce de résistance, Somerset’s aweinspiring garden space, loaded with tropical plants, unique seating nooks and imported pieces from co-founder and creative lead James Fisher’s collection, as well as the collections of his friends and family. 139 E. McMicken Ave., Over-the-Rhine, somersetotr.com

Yuca Jeremy Faeth, co-owner and executive chef of popular Covington brunch restaurant Cedar, has opened his second restaurant, Yuca, in Bellevue. The eatery took over the space formerly occupied by Fairfield Market. This Latin American restaurant is open for breakfast, brunch and lunch, serving items like The Hangover: two sunny side-up eggs laying on a bed of spicy chorizo and homemade potatoes with pico de gallo and avocado on top. All of Yuca’s recipes are made from scratch with locally sourced ingredients. 700 Fairfield Ave., Bellevue, yucabycedar.com.

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NOV. 24 – DEC. 30, 2021 Give your spirits a lift with this holiday family favorite! Special price for kids! “If you haven’t seen it, give yourself a present and do so.” — CityBeat

Season presented by SCHUELER GROUP and HEIDELBERG DISTRIBUTING CO. Season Sponsor of New Work: THE ROSENTHAL FAMILY FOUNDATION The 2019 cast of A Christmas Carol. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022 |

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YEAR IN REVIEW

THE DISH

The Year in Dining Out BY PA M A M IT C H E L L

Year two of the pandemic brought some easing of the challenges Cincinnati restaurants faced in 2020. But 2021 placed a few more roadblocks in the way of recovery from the first, hard shocks of COVID-19. Overall, though, after talking with several restaurant owners, chefs and chef/owners, I picked up a feeling of cautious optimism — not from everyone, to be sure. But despite the continuing troubles the dining industry faces, the positivity of these folks is heartening. “Restaurant people are a scrappy bunch,” says Dan Wright, owner of Abigail Street, Senate, Pontiac and Holiday Spirits/Forty Thieves. Unlike in 2020, there were no statewide closures of dining establishments this year. After COVID vaccines became widely available this spring, it appeared customers returned — at least in my estimation — with many restaurants I talked to seeing some encouraging revenue growth. By December, and despite clear signs of another potential COVID surge, many places seemed to inch closer to prepandemic levels of guests. While it may not be true in all corners of the city, our restaurants seem to be in recovery mode for the most part. When I tried to book a table at popular downtown and Over-the-Rhine spots — Sotto, Pepp & Dolores and Boca, for example — I had to go several weeks out to find anything between 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Chef Jose Salazar says that his restaurants (Mita’s, Salazar and Goose & Elder) are operating at capacity. Frank Eversole, an owner of Ivory House in Westwood, paints a similarly rosy picture of community support and fully booked evenings at his steak-andseafood restaurant. The aforementioned Wright agrees, saying, “Things are very much looking up compared to last year.” He will soon open an expanded and somewhat reimagined version of his Over-theRhine tapas spot Abigail Street, which I think has long been one of Cincinnati’s best places to eat. Wright says he’s excited about the expansion and is also excited about the success he’s had at the Blue Ash location of Senate in Summit Park (he closed Senate’s Over-the-Rhine flagship earlier this year to make space for Abigail Street’s expansion). That’s not to say the dining crisis is over. Perhaps the greatest problem now is one that we are all feeling: rising costs. Restaurants are facing shortages and delays in getting supplies

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Branch in East Walnut Hills welcomed a new chef this year, Alessandro Urbisci. P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

The Ivory House is Westwood was voted the best new restaurant of 2020 by CityBeat readers. P H OTO : H A I L E Y B O L L I N G E R

and ingredients, and also a startling inflation for everything from meat to premium spirits to seafood and produce, which has put a big hurt on many businesses. Salazar is among several owners who say that while patrons fill his tables and he has few job openings in his three restaurants, inflated food costs have hit hard.

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

“We’re busting our butt and are at capacity but not turning a profit,” he says. That calculation has affected other establishments, as well. Branch coowner Matt Distel says that of his three restaurants (Branch in Walnut Hills and The Littlefield and Second Place in Northside), the upscale Branch has had

such issues. While the Northside businesses are nestled within a residential neighborhood and have recovered quickly, Branch is more of a destination restaurant. East Walnut Hills “isn’t in the middle of OTR,” Distel notes. Recovery for Branch has meant altering days and hours of service month by month,

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UPCOMING SHOWS Dark Star Orchestra (The Grateful Dead Experience) September 24th & 25th Chef Jose Salazar P H O T O : G I N A W E AT H E R S BY

figuring out how to match staffing levels to customer demand and tweaking menu offerings to respond to price hikes and shortages. Branch made a brilliant move in hiring Chef Alessandro Urbisci a few months ago; his refreshed menu and solid talent, especially with pasta, should have patrons lining up on Madison Road. In Westwood, Ivory House continues its successful run after having been named the best new restaurant of 2020 by CityBeat readers. Eversole and his partner, Rick Pouliot, are redeveloping a former funeral home near Ivory House into two new restaurants in the neighborhood’s up-and-coming entertainment district — a clear indication that they expect good times ahead. “We had a fantastic year,” Eversole says about Ivory House’s performance since opening in July 2020. He and Pouliot have been stung by inflation, too, but have so far avoided significant hikes in menu prices. The task of hiring, training and retaining kitchen and other staff has eased since earlier in the year, several local restaurateurs report. Salazar says that he was unable to open patio tables at his eponymous OTR restaurant this past summer because he didn’t have enough servers. With the cold weather upon us and most outdoor dining stopped for the season, that’s no longer a problem. However, up to one-third of his team are new hires of two months or less. “We are fortunate to have many employees who have been with us for a long time, but we also have a much higher turnover than we did prepandemic,” Salazar says. Wright says that the labor shortage

continues to affect his restaurants, but there are bright spots. “We’ve been pretty well staffed throughout the year (and) over the past 10 months we’ve opted to focus more on our staff training,” he says. Holding a team of reliable staff together while protecting everyone’s health during the pandemic has been a crucial goal for many Cincinnati restaurant owners. Several credit the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans authorized by Congress in 2020 and again 2021, which were designed to help small businesses keep their people employed even when the revenue had slowed to a trickle. “It’s why we’re here,” says Mary Kroner, co-owner of Ruth’s Parkside Café in Northside. She and partner David Tape credit that loan — along with smaller grants from city, county and state sources — for keeping the business going. Nobody knows how hard the winter will be as we endure yet another COVID variant, but restaurant owners remind patrons to have patience when they venture out to their favorite places to eat. Staffers struggle with many of the same worries we all do about how to live our lives and conduct our businesses amid so much uncertainty. These dining rooms will not feel like 2019 as we enter 2022. Menu prices may inch up, and service lapses will occur. “But if something isn’t right, just please let us know,” Salazar says. Tape of Ruth’s Parkside expects another rough winter with fewer customers willing to dine in. “I hope next spring might be the spring I had hoped for in ’21,” he adds. Amen to that.

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YEAR IN REVIEW

MUSIC

Ben Levin P H OTO : B E N L E V I N P I A N O. C O M

10 Local Albums from 2021 That You Should Listen to Before 2022 Even with the pandemic and a slightly shredded economy, Cincinnati’s music community released a lot of incredible music BY B R I A N BA K E R

ost people agree that 2021 was a crappy funhouse mirror image of 2020. The world reopened just in time for the Delta and Omicron coronavirus variants to further screw

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with us, travel restrictions were eased but reimplemented, mass shootings were back to No. 1 on the hit parade, and jackboot conservatives are trashing everyone’s civil rights but theirs in a

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

paleolithic return to the social Dark Ages. Despite those ill winds, local musicians returned to studios with inspiration to spare and produced some of the city’s best music in recent memory. Here are 10 releases that made us forget our troubles in 2021, in no particular order.

Ben Levin, Still Here It’s exquisite irony for Ben Levin, in college and barely ankle deep in his 20s, to title his sophomore album Still Here. Levin, piano protégé of local/global veteran pianist Ricky Nye, began his studio journey with 2017’s Ben’s Blues, but he took piano lessons at age 4 and gigged with his weekend-musician

father (Northern Kentucky University professor Aron Levin) at age 13. Sonically, Still Here mimics its predecessor with Levin’s supple Boogie-Woogie piano skills and oldsoul Blues voice front and center along with his father’s equally silky guitar accompaniment providing perfect counterpoint. The big difference is Still Here is dominated by Levin’s original compositions (particularly the wonderfully current “I’m Your Essential Worker”) with only a handful of covers. Levin is still here for now, but his destiny is clearly on a bigger stage. benlevinpiano.com.

Matt Baumann’s The Ivory in the Narrows

Andrew Gabbard’s Homemade

P H O T O : A R T BY PA M E L A G R E E R

P H O T O : A N D R E W G A B B A R D. B A N D C A M P. C O M

Matt Baumann, The Ivory in the Narrows A while ago, St. Louis native/ Cincinnati resident Matt Baumann made ambient minimalist tone poems with his saxophones and help from likeminded friends on several self-released albums. Baumann credited Albert Ayler and John Coltrane for inspiring his experimental Jazz style but was equally enamored of Warren Zevon and Tom Waits. Those latter influences bubbled up when Baumann shifted gears to singer/songwriter mode under the banner of WolfCryer a decade ago. After several engaging releases, Baumann has returned to recording under his own name while retaining his expansive acoustic/electric Folk sound on the patently compelling The Ivory in the Narrows. Baumann provides acoustic elements, vocals and a novelist’s knack for lyrical storytelling, while estimable sidekick Jeremy Smart brings the electricity. Spartan atmospherics exist in the spaces between and around the two guitarists. There’s a sense of Dave Alvin’s ragged emotional passion on The Ivory in the Narrows, especially within the sinewy power of “St. Anthony,” and the weary quietude of “If Longing Were a Two Letter Word.” But any reference points in Baumann’s work are evidence that influence is rather like a compass — neither one determines the nature of your trip, they just point you in the direction you’re looking to go. mattbaumannmusic.com.

Andrew Gabbard, Homemade For nearly 20 years, Andrew Gabbard has been guitarist of record for Thee Shams, Buffalo Killers and the Gabbard

Brothers, but he’s always written and tinkered on his own time. A 12-hour marathon recording session resulted in his first solo album, 2015’s Fluff, and the similarly constructed Plenum Castle in 2017. His new album, Homemade, is billed as his “debut” solo album, but it’s just his debut for local Colemine Records imprint Karma Chief. Gabbard cites The Beatles, the Beach Boys and obscure but influential singer/songwriter Emitt Rhodes as influences, and those touchstones loom large — especially Brian Wilson, given Gabbard’s do-it-all-yourself home studio approach (save for pedal steel provided by Buffalo Killers utility stringsman Sven Kahns) — but there are flecks of James Gang/Joe Walsh on Homemade, as well. The laconic “Wake Up, Brother” sounds like Walsh fronting the Fabs on Abbey Road, while Gabbard channels vintage Pet Sounds on “Brand New Cut.” As usual, it’s not who influences Gabbard, it’s what he does with it, and what he does is spectacular. andrewgabbard.bandcamp.com.

Lung, Come Clean Right Now Lung is the oddest couple since Oscar Madison and Felix Unger. Former Foxy Shazam bassist-turned-drum-beast Daisy Caplan and electric-cellist-to-thestars Kate Wakefield team up to either A) slap on spandex onesies and fight crime in Metropolis or B) comprise a completely unexpected musical duo that upends genre expectations and pummels Grungy Indie Rock into new and unclassifiable shapes. Come Clean Right Now is Lung’s third and best album so far, a brilliantly dark document of feral intensity and agitated ferocity. “Sugar Pill” and “Landlocked” suggest Tony Iommi teaching a Nirvana class at Julliard, while the title track is

Lung P H OTO : B I L L C U N N I N G H A M

the melodic cacophony of a Classical Punk chamber duo being menaced by murder hornets. Lung doesn’t try to fit in — they pry their way in with a velvet crowbar. lungtheband.com.

Jeremy Pinnell, Goodbye L.A. Like many young Country converts, Jeremy Pinnell found commonality between his Punk roots and the early flag wavers of down-home music (“Honesty, truth, integrity and

outlaws. Good Hardcore and Punk to good Country — they all have those qualities,” Pinnell told CityBeat in 2012, the year he and his band debuted). After two straight Country gems, Pinnell’s new album, Goodbye L.A., finds the former Light Wires guitarist pursuing a more aggressive Americana direction to great effect. “Big Ol’ Good” could earn Pinnell a slot on Dierks Bentley’s tour, “Night Time Eagle” swings and jumps with Dwight Yoakam’s Bakersfield influence, and the title track tips a cowboy hat to Jerry Jeff

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Vacation’s Existential Risks and Returns P H O T O : VA C AT I O N . B A N D C A M P. C O M

Walker and Butch Hancock. Pinnell has found acceptance outside of Cincinnati from the start, but Goodbye L.A. could punch his ticket to an even crazier ride. jeremypinnell.com.

Vacation, Existential Risks and Returns Recorded three years ago but shelved until 2021, Vacation’s latest full length, Existential Risks and Returns, lives way up to its self-appointed genre assignation: Grit Pop. Part Punk chaos, part Power Pop piss-on-an-electricfence melodic jolt, part Garage Rock

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rafter-rattling fuzz, part no-fucks-leftto-give Post Rock anthemics, Vacation is just like its name — a break from the grind and a metric ton of fun compressed into a short span of time. Imagine Guided By Voices with the Who fixation replaced by Minor Threat (“Liberty Tax Statue Man”). Imagine Minor Threat with a Crazy Horse fixation (“Lame Loss”). Imagine Crazy Horse guided by Heroes-era David Bowie (“Quantum Cafe”). Imagine one band imagining all of that. Vacation’s reality beats your imagination at its own game. vacation.bandcamp.com.

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

Sylmar, Glass Ladders Although Sylmar has only existed since 2016, the quintet has made a mighty noise in that brief time; its acclaimed self-titled debut and two Cincinnati Entertainment Award nominations came within a year of the group’s formation. After a handful of well-received singles and EPs plus a rhythm section shift, Sylmar finally dropped Glass Ladders, its long-awaited (and long-simmering) sophomore full length, as a vinyl release from Soul Step Records. Sylmar self-identifies

as “Stoner Jazz,” which is fairly apt, but there are many ingredients in the band’s sonic soup recipe, especially on Glass Ladders, which members feel plays more like a debut album. Sylmar’s Indie Rock ethos blends elements of Vampire Weekend’s smartass Pop, Style Council’s slinky cocktail Jazz, Radiohead’s headspinning experimentalism, Minus the Bear’s angular architecture and Rufus Wainwright’s woozy balladry. Sophisticated and raw, suspicious and naive, brash and guarded, sentimental and cynical, Sylmar is the perfect soundtrack for human dichotomy. sylmartheband.com.

New Sincerity Works’ Heirloom Qualities

The Dents’ 1979/80 Cincinnati

P H OTO : N E W S I N C E R IT Y WO R K S. C O M

P H O T O : H O Z A C R E C O R D S . B A N D C A M P. C O M

Jeremy Pinnell’s Goodbye L.A.

Sylmar’s Glass Ladders

P H O T O : S O FA B U R N R E C O R D S

P H O T O : S Y L M A R . B A N D C A M P. C O M

New Sincerity Works, Heirloom Qualities Mike Tittel is a freaking Indie Rock genius. In the ‘90s, he was Scott Miller’s touring drummer for the Loud Family; he formed New Sincerity Works (NSW) seven years ago as a recording project to document his personal songwriting prowess. The first three NSW albums comprised Tittel’s “mid-life crisis” trilogy, recorded and presented live by a rotating cast of local notables

including guitarist Roger Klug, bassist Bob Nyswonger and most recently multi-instrumentalist Mike Landis and vocalist/keyboardist Lauren Bray, among others. The fourth NSW album, Heirloom Qualities, is not a pandemic album — it was recorded in the wake of 2017’s Wonder Lust and was being mixed around the time of Tittel’s 2020 solo album, Sleeping In. Tittel’s catalog safely fits under his broad creative umbrella: thoughtfully contemplative lyrics and a mid-tempo soundtrack that would make Ryan Adams, Paul Westerberg and Jeff Tweedy swoon.

There are also the requisite Beatles/ Big Star references, but Tittel doesn’t appropriate influence; he paints original scenes with it. Heirloom Qualities is another brilliant portrait that is perfectly framed by his expansive talents. newsincerityworks.com.

The Dents, 1979/80 Cincinnati The sad reality is that many bands in local American music scenes create a sensation in their right-place-right-time

moment and elude wider exposure by never translating that excitement in the studio. The Dents are a Cincinnati case in point, hailed as forward-thinkers in retrospect. The late 1970s quintet welded Garage/Punk guitar/bass/ drums to an appropriately driven New Wave/Synth Pop vibe to create what has been dubbed “Synth Punk.” Chrome Cranks frontman/local archivist Peter Aaron was assembling the eventual 2019 compilation We Were Living in Cincinnati and received live tracks from Dents keyboardist Doug Hallet, who had raw 1979 and 1980 concert

DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022 |

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The Hiders’ Forever at the End P H O T O : T H E H I D E R S . B A N D C A M P. C O M

recordings of the band at Bogart’s. This year, Aaron released those tapes as 1979/80 Cincinnati, and it’s a time capsule revelation. The band spits out sparking, slamming riffs and squiggling synth lines while vocalist Vivien Vinyl focuses the energy with barely contained intensity. The album mixes inspired covers of Robert Fripp’s “You Burn Me Up (I’m a Cigarette),” the Voidoids’ “Love Comes in Spurts,” Patti Smith’s “Pumping (My Heart)” and the Real Kids’ “Do the Boob” with infectious originals like “Wild Bill,” “The Dented” and the

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before-its-time female empowerment anthem “Sleeping Around.” 1979/80 Cincinnati is a lost classic that’s been thankfully found. hozacrecords.com.

The Hiders, Forever at the End From The Hiders’ inception more than a decade and a half ago, the Americana/Folk band’s heart and soul has been the near-sibling synergy between vocalist/guitarist Billy Alletzhauser and vocalist Beth

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Harris. Regardless of the talented cast that has accompanied the duo along the way, from 2004’s Valentine to this year’s stunning Forever at the End, Alletzhauser and Harris have been the Hiders’ constant North Star. Oddly enough, Forever at the End might never have happened without the pandemic. Alletzhauser had written a fair amount of material and did some initial recording while Harris toured with the Heartless Bastards, and finishing the tracks became their lockdown project. Ironically, the album’s title track had been written

for Valentine but set aside. Harris had always championed the song, but the pandemic allowed them the time it took to successfully work out its intricacies and complexities which, like the album as a whole, suggests Neil Young fronting Drive-By Truckers. To cite Forever at the End as the Hiders’ best album is like identifying the best gem in a pile of 24 karat diamonds. thehiders.com.

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DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

IMITATES MUTTS CROSSWORD

BY B R EN DA N E M M E T T Q U I G L E Y W W W. B R E N DA N E M M E T TQ U I G L E Y.C O M

ACROSS

35. Son of, to a 33-Down

60. Bright bear

11. Falafel wrap

1. One of the three Schuyler sisters

36. They’re tapped for coffee

61. “Will you allow me?”

12. Middle Eastern dignitary

6. Frankenfood ingredients

37. Guy who’s a little too into cartoon horses

62. She might be fatale

13. Incredibly profound

63. Staffs

18. Island that constitutes the bulk of Honolulu County

10. Did a parody of

39. Super Bowl highlight, often

14. Unmatched

42. Everybody online now

17. Do some research on a dog?

43. Disrupt the dog industry with an app?

20. Cookie holders 21. Sportsball player: Abbr.

47. Celebrity

22. F soundalike 23. Pioneering computer programmer Lovelace 24. “All ___ Wants To Do Is Dance” (Don Henley song) 25. Strasbourg sweetie 26. Stump a dog? 32. Become grounded? 34. Rude dude

52. “The Day the Earth Stood Still” alien

5. “We’re not done ___”

10. Lady in a Grateful Dead song

32. Poisonous Japanese puffer fish 33. See 35-Across

9. “Attack, Fido!”

45. Weed also known as wood sorrel 46. BBQ finger food 50. Accuse

51. Made keen

56. Hearty bowlful 58. Drum’s site 59. Back on a plane

LAST PUZZLE’S ANSWERS:

53. Croft in a tomb 55. Snake tooth

52. Poser Heidi 54. NAACP mem.?

39. General of take-out

44. Gaucho’s neck ties?

38. React to a hit

42. Lethal weapon

37. Leave, but in a more flamboyant, almost hip-hop way

41. Inflicted upon

31. Wraps things up

57. “Finally, a dog”?

30. Skier’s transport

6. Squatting muscles

56. Capital in France’s Manche department

29. “Patience!”

8. Approvals for action

28. It gets dropped when things get serious in a relationship

55. “Nifty!”

27. Jr. naval rank

2. Medieval Moor fighter

25. It’s made up of many eras

1. Butterflies in the kitchen

7. Flame seeker

DOWN

4. Bearded beasts

49. “If we’re being frank,” initially

19. Wicker-producing tree 24. One who’s maybe on the case: Abbr.

3. Drink and drink and drink

48. Claudius’s dozen

65. Suit material

41. Per ___

16. Garnish fruit

64. Small measurements of work

40. Retch

15. Trickster of myth

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DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022 |

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DECEMBER 22, 2021 - JANUARY 11, 2022

CityBeat | Dec. 12, 2021-Jan. 11, 2022

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