Wednesday, March 28, 2012
There once was a place...
...called Over the Rhine. Claudio shared with me this blog and I read this post this morning. The article was written in 1875 and depicts the bustling and panoramic area of Over the Rhine in the 19th century. It is amazing to read about a neighborhood that is still present today, but so much different. Not a Cincinnatian myself, I do not know the history of the area but I know it went downhill quite some time ago. It is good to see the neighborhood rebuilding with new businesses and affordable housing. Read this blog and take a walk in what Over the Rhine use to be.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Bakersfield: Another Dining in OTR
This Friday Claudio and I pushed further toward our goal of trying each restaurant in the Over-the-Rhine Gateway Quarter area of Cincinnati. I had heard a little about Bakersfield and thought it would be a good night to give it a try. Bakersfield is a authentic "street-style" Mexican restaurant on the growing Vine street of OTR. I noticed the brick building a few weeks ago when we visited 1215 just next door. I love this area of Cincinnati and so far, all of the restaurants we have tried have been delicious.
As we arrived in the area, the street was bustling as usual on a Friday night, a great improvement probably from what it was years ago in this area of town. We walked across the street to Bakersfield to put our name on the waiting list for a table. The facade matches those of a few other restaurants nearby with its moving glass windows floor-to-ceiling. This creates a great atmosphere of being inside with the ability to feel the outside cool breeze. We only waited about 15 minutes for our small table near the door.
I enjoy a restaurant with a small menu like Bakersfield where I am not overwhelmed with the array of possible choices. They keep it simple with a la carte tacos, chips and salsa and/or queso, and a couple house margaritas as well as different drafts. I selected the Bakersfield margarita served in a Mason jar with a salted rim. Claudio chose a "boot" of PBR.
The tomatillo salsa and chips was a delicious start to our meal. We chose four different tacos to share, each with its unique take on street food. My favorite was the Pastor, ground seasoned pork with the sweetness of pineapple. Melt-in-your-mouth good! Each taco is about three to four dollars and they serve everything family-style just as you will find in Mexico.
Overall, I enjoyed the atmosphere and the food was great too. It's not a place I am dying to go back to, but it was well worth the visit!
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Thoughts for Today and Tomorrow
My heart begins to beat just a little faster than usual.
The breeze wisps my hair along my sun-kissed face as I gaze out the window.
My mind goes back to lingering thoughts of places gone, places also undiscovered.
These feet used to come alive to the rhythmic Latin sounds that seemed to be my own.
The songs danced in my head, creating bright colors that spilled over my canvases.
Each day, something new.
Traveling to places unseen by my eyes and people there to welcome me.
It may be the coarse sand under my toes, touched by the salty cold ocean water.
The mountains may soar over me, cutting through the sheer clouds above.
Voices of friendly strangers, in languages not often spoken from my own mouth.
My heart desires to travel to these places,
To roll those foreign words off my tongue.
I want to feel my chest swell in excitement of where the next day will take me.
For now, I can just dream out this window as the wind continuously blows.
The sun will glitter through my eyes and be enough for this moment.
The breeze wisps my hair along my sun-kissed face as I gaze out the window.
My mind goes back to lingering thoughts of places gone, places also undiscovered.
These feet used to come alive to the rhythmic Latin sounds that seemed to be my own.
The songs danced in my head, creating bright colors that spilled over my canvases.
Each day, something new.
Traveling to places unseen by my eyes and people there to welcome me.
It may be the coarse sand under my toes, touched by the salty cold ocean water.
The mountains may soar over me, cutting through the sheer clouds above.
Voices of friendly strangers, in languages not often spoken from my own mouth.
My heart desires to travel to these places,
To roll those foreign words off my tongue.
I want to feel my chest swell in excitement of where the next day will take me.
For now, I can just dream out this window as the wind continuously blows.
The sun will glitter through my eyes and be enough for this moment.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
1215 Wine Bar & Coffee Lab
A plus to living in a city is the plethora of places to explore. And if you know me, you know I love exploring! Friday night I was so graciously blessed to be invited on a date by my special someone. I, of course, obliged and chose the spot for the night: 1215 Wine Bar and Coffee Lab. The name in itself raised some interest in me before realizing it is in one of my favorite locales of Cincy, that Gateway Quarter in Over-the-Rhine.
Claudio and I have tried Senate, A Tavola, Taste of Belgium, and also perused a few of the quirky shops in the area. I recently heard about the newly-opened 1215 in a local newspaper and it was somewhere I definitely wanted to check out. While I am not a wine connoisseur whatsoever, I am trying to broaden my horizon by tasting different wines and find something I like. This is definitely the place to do that!
1215 is located just across the street from Senate in a small brick building, connected to other store fronts. We walked inside and took a look at the menu to see many choices of wine flights and cheese and meat plates. A lovely server greeted us and offered us the last little table by the window. She was very knowledgeable about the offerings and helped us make our choices.
Claudio chose a red wine flight and I a white. With the flights you get three half-glasses. We were given cards with the names and descriptions of each wine, and the glasses had corresponding numbers. Our server suggested we try guessing which was which, and we did fairly well! I really enjoyed tasting the different wines as Claudio and I had good conversation in a relaxed environment.
After a couple hours, Claudio and I decided to have a taste of the coffee as well. The owner of Tazza Mia actually helped start this bar, thus the different coffee selections. All in all it was a delightful date night, trying somewhere new with something new. Even if you are not a wine-y, you can still enjoy what 1215 has to offer. I want to go back and try more wines and maybe even a cheese or meat plate along with it!
Claudio and I have tried Senate, A Tavola, Taste of Belgium, and also perused a few of the quirky shops in the area. I recently heard about the newly-opened 1215 in a local newspaper and it was somewhere I definitely wanted to check out. While I am not a wine connoisseur whatsoever, I am trying to broaden my horizon by tasting different wines and find something I like. This is definitely the place to do that!
1215 is located just across the street from Senate in a small brick building, connected to other store fronts. We walked inside and took a look at the menu to see many choices of wine flights and cheese and meat plates. A lovely server greeted us and offered us the last little table by the window. She was very knowledgeable about the offerings and helped us make our choices.
Claudio chose a red wine flight and I a white. With the flights you get three half-glasses. We were given cards with the names and descriptions of each wine, and the glasses had corresponding numbers. Our server suggested we try guessing which was which, and we did fairly well! I really enjoyed tasting the different wines as Claudio and I had good conversation in a relaxed environment.
After a couple hours, Claudio and I decided to have a taste of the coffee as well. The owner of Tazza Mia actually helped start this bar, thus the different coffee selections. All in all it was a delightful date night, trying somewhere new with something new. Even if you are not a wine-y, you can still enjoy what 1215 has to offer. I want to go back and try more wines and maybe even a cheese or meat plate along with it!
Friday, March 2, 2012
"The Parking Lot"
The Parking Lot Movie Official Trailer from The Parking Lot Movie on Vimeo.
Claudio and I stumbled upon this gem of a documentary earlier this week. I thought, "let's just watch a few minutes." The movie looked interesting, but it was more than what I expected as I became enthralled and watched the whole thing! Some of you may know I work at the Cincinnati Art Museum, and once a week I work in the parking booth. Because of my experience here, I could relate to a lot to the characters in this film.
These guys are hilariously blunt, ironically philosophical, and just generally entertaining. I only wish I could do some of the things they do at their job. I encourage you to watch even just a few minutes of this film, especially if you have a job in which you work with the public. You surely will relate to some of the happenings you will see!
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