Free Walking Tour Kindle Book!

From LOOK UP, OHIO!

There is no better way to see Ohio towns than on foot. And there is no better way to appreciate what you are looking at than with a self-guided walking tour from the LOOK UP, AMERICA! series. All walking tours from walkthetown.com are available for your favorite tablet or mobile device. Look Up, Ohio! includes walking tours of Akron, Canton, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Toledo, and Youngstown.

A walking tour can be many things. Interested in heritage tourism? Looking for an educational day trip for the kids? Need a fun exercise plan? Want to find subjects to take great photographs? These Ohio walking tours are ready to explore when you are.

Doug Gelbert, who has authored over 400 such walking tours, describes a mix of historical, architectural, cultural and ecclesiastical Ohio landmarks. Street addresses and step-by-step directions lead the way. A quick primer on identifying architectural styles seen on Ohio streets is included.

Doug is offering his book for Free Feb 20-24. So check out what Cincinnati has to offer!

Collective Espresso

On Woodward St, just down from Neon’s is a much needed espresso shop in OtR. Now that the weather is getting a little colder (maybe, hopefully?) this is a great place to get a steaming hot fresh cup of yummy!

Mmmm… cappucino!

These guys are really passionate about what they do, and making sure you have an awesome cup. If you ask, they’ll explain anything to you. They order their drinks on the board from most caffinated to least, so you know what you’re getting into, whether its in the morning, or as a night cap, you’ll get what you want.

You can take a seat at the bar and watch everything being made. You won’t get coffee sitting in a pot for hours here either. They filter the coffee right there, so it’ll take some time (5 minutes-ish) but it’s going to be fresh and wonderful! If you’re in the area definitely check them out!

Kaze

The back bar in Kaze

OtR has yet a new joint open. This one with sushi! It’s great to see all the new restaurants opening up, especially when they cater to different people. Bakersfield’s tacos were welcomed, and now a Japanese place, in which a partner, Hadeki, is actually Japanese!

Bamboo lined hallway connecting the dining room and separate bar

The almost finished dining room

Sushi bar

I got to meet John, the owner the other night when we stopped in for sushi, pork belly buns and drinks. He really cares about the neighborhood and what he’s doing. He was incredibly welcoming and gave us the run down of what was going on. He also told us that dining room would officially be open on Monday the 14th! It’s very clean and laid out well. He said they still had to add screens around the booths along the wall. It’s going to be “very personal dining”. You’ll have the booths to yourselves, and can kind of forget about everyone else out there.

You can also just pull up to the counter if you’re just wanting some in and out sushi. I of course had to go with their basic California Roll, because if a place screws that up, you’re in trouble. While I wished I had a few more pieces, as an appetizer it was perfect. It wasn’t enough to fill you up, but was enough for a small meal. And the taste and texture was perfect and fresh. The avocado was under the roll presented on the plate, which took me a few bites to realize, but it was really good. The Cobra Roll with the jalapeno was ok. Jalapeno’s not too spicy, but the texture was a little off for me, the Hubby enjoyed it though.

And then the pork belly buns… disclaimer, I don’t care for pork. There are very few pork products I will eat, don’t hurt me. But this… this was delicious! Just the right amount of glaze, some sore of sprout topping that paired perfectly and squishy steamed bun. It was amazing!

fyi girls, you have to take an elevator down to get to your restroom.

John of course also told us we had to check out the bathrooms. The mens had some very tastefully provocative art work on the walls. Very Lady GaGa-esque. Ther womens was a whole bright room of its own.

Beta fish at the bar

Sake Sangria

If you like fruity, and sangria, I totally suggest the Sake Sangria. It’s sweet though, but too overly in your face. You get the plum, the apple, the pear. It packs a punch though, be warned. There are also beta fish at the bar, and if you ask you can find fight stats for them. It’s kind of interesting really. The kitchen is open til midnight every night, so I suggest a stop. There’s a separate entrance for the bar around the corner as an fyi.

Left: Cobra Roll Right: California Roll

Bingo!

So this past weekend I was looking for something different to do. I didn’t just want to sit at home on a Friday night, like I had done for the i don’t even know how many Fridays. Thank goodness for Jenny Kessler, for throwing out Bingo at St Anthony of Padua in Walnut Hills.

It starts at 7 and is done every Friday, in the building behind the church. There will be a line just fyi, get there early. We opted for the cheap simple 9 face cards, and kind of glad we did. We spent $9 each as we bought the dobbers for a $1 each. The computers confuse me… I’m not gonna lie. Maybe I’ll try them. I guess you get more cards on them, that play themselves? I’m not really sure.

We also got 2 tickets, one for a free drink, and one for a bag of cheezits. We also got a raffle ticket for a door prize. They don’t tell you at the door, but if you take your receipt and a dollar to the lady up front by the caller, she’ll stamp your reciept. They call out a number before everything starts and if you bingo on that number, you win the jackpot as well. Seriously, this is some hard core bingo playing going on! I was beyond confused. Thank goodness for the friendly ladies sitting next to us who didn’t mind helping us out. There are also people walking around selling $1 pull tab cards that you can play to win extra money. We managed to make $50 off of that before we even won a bingo! (Sorry I’m a pull tab addict. My family has a hisory of winning big with them 9 times out of 10 )

They play all sorts of different ways you can win. The Hubby won $125 on the middle card with 3 postage stamps! The lowest prize I think was $75? Maybe $50 at the lowest And you normally play 2-3 games on one sheet of paper. For example, normal straight line bingo, wins $75, then after that whoever gets 2 bingo lines on the same card wins $100, then they might play whoever gets all the outside rows filled, making a “large picture frame”. All on the same giant sheet of paper as seen above. It’s pretty interesting. And this location has a whole mix of age groups. No one under 18 is allowed, fyi.

If you’re interested, I’m looking at maybe getting together a Bingo Crawl. We had a ton of fun, got some extra cash, and did something different already this year! And I had a lot of people say they wanted to join. I’ll be posting get togethers on Yelp and you can follow #BingoCrawl on twitter. If you want to see all the tons of Bingo places I’ve scouted, I’ve got a board up on Pinterest

Cincinnati Santacon

This past weekend upwards of around 500+ Santas decended on downtown and OtR Saturday. There’s was much merriement, candy canes, alcohol, and questions… And people taking pictures everywhere!

For more info check out Cincinnati Santacon.

And to make sure you don’t miss out next year RSVP now!

Fountain Square:

Toby Keith’s

Holy Grail:

Tin Roof:

Moerlein Lager House:

Fountain Square’s Downtown Dazzle:

Righteous Room:

Penguin Dueling Piano Bar:

Yes, that is a Santa taking over the piano

Post Secret Play

Last night I did something awesome. If you haven’t yet, I recommend you check out PostSecret, every Sunday. I had seen a few weeks ago, all the recent college appearances Frank Warren (creator of PostSecret) would be doing. But there were a few at the bottom of the page about a play. When I first saw it though it said “Sold Out”. Fortunately that didn’t stop me from going to Playhouse not eh Park’s website and attempting to buy tickets. As luck would have it, they weren’t completely sold out!

And for once I was kind of glad I didn’t have a bunch if friends to gather with. Hubby and I got there a half hour early and still struggled for parking. As we got inside I took a detour to the bathroom, and was pleasantly surprised to see quite a few post-it’s on the mirrors, already with some secrets written on them. Once inside the incredibly tiny theatre that holds probably 200, I realized quickly that I knew no one else here. But that didn’t stop people having some great chats via tweets on the big screen with the #pscincy hash tag. It was a great way to get in the mood.

The theatre wasn’t filled, and I was in the front row only 2 feet from the edge of a round stage, surrounded on 3 sides with 3 lone empty stools. It was going to be an intimate show. From the program:

“Two weeks ago I was placed in a psych ward for attempting to take my own life. I was sitting alone until another boy came up to me and simply said, “You’re not the most fucked up person anymore.” For the first time in my life I didn’t feel like I was the only one struggling.”
Like many of the secrets shared with me, this email about an intimate encounter between strangers is One I will never forget. It’s the story of a boy telling a girl the secret she needs t hear. It’s a twisted and beautiful Valentine.

Tonight’s performance is a love letter to PostSecret.
-Frank Warren

The show featured 2 actors and a third, Abby Rowold, the lucky Cincy actress for the show. They acted out secrets and read ones that were projected on the screen behind them… And it was…. Magical. I truly have no words. I laughed. I cried. I cringed. I was confused. I was in love. It was just a workshop, as they are still figuring out what works and what doesn’t and where they want to go with the project. We had a little constructive criticism session afterwards, and for their almost perfect. Frank also stuck around to answer questions and sign things after.

Seriously, if you get the chance to go see the PostSecret Play, do it. It’s worth any amount of driving. And Cincy was lucky to have the perfect setting in Playhouse in the Park

For those that have a relationship with PostSecret, Frank will be at Xavier next Monday the 29th. Xavier students get the first shot at tickets this week, but there are some tickets set aside for the general public. They are available at the Cintas Center starting tomorrow (Weds) from 9-5. First come first serve. If anyone gets extras before I get there, I’d love to get one

Ps. For those that went last night, the Japanese secret was “I live in Japan. I want to change my gender. I want to get married.”

FotoFocus – Taft Museum

I got the privilege of attending the Taft Museum’s FotoFocus feature, Star Power: Edward Steichen’s Glamour Photography.

So what exactly is this FotoFcus you’ve been hearing about? From their website:

The FotoFocus biennial presents an unprecedented opportunity to learn about and experience the diverse currents of photography. FOTOFOCUS brings together museums, galleries, and universities showcasing world-renowned artists and national and regional standouts. Pop-up venues, community art centers, and other grass roots organizations explore current trends in photography with exhibitions featuring the work of emerging talents and students.

I also found this video to be helpful in explaining just what it’s about

The Taft Museum is one such venue featuring the works of Edward Steichen. He is most known for being Vogue’s photographer back in the 20′s -30′s. He brought naturalism to fashion, and did away with the cute perkiness. There was a quote thrown out that night that he makes every cutie look like a woman.

Steichen took a lot of pictures in his apt on 5th ave in New York City. He helped to bring in the modernism of photography. He played with lines and diagonals, and truly changed fashion photography in that time.

That Taft has even a few magazines in which his pictures appear, as well as some that never made it to print. A lot of his work wouldn’t appear for a few years, like the photo of Gloria Swanson above. It didn’t apppear until 4 years after he originally took this photo. This is one of my favorites of the exibhit. Nancy, the curator says the same. If you don’t come to see this one, then you should see the one of Greta Garbo or Gary Cooper.

The exhibit runs through January 27, 2013. The Taft Museum is open Wednesday – Friday, from 11:00 – 4:00, and weekends 11:00 – 5:00. Admission is only $10.00 and is free for all on Sundays. Or you can use your FotoFocus Passport for entry into the exhibit.

They also have a cute little area set up to Steichenize yourself and your friends. I love interactive exhibits So of course me and my friend Paige of CincyWhimsy had to take part

You can see her post about it here

FotoFocus – Betts House

So what exactly is this FotoFcus you’ve been hearing about? From their website:

The FotoFocus biennial presents an unprecedented opportunity to learn about and experience the diverse currents of photography. FOTOFOCUS brings together museums, galleries, and universities showcasing world-renowned artists and national and regional standouts. Pop-up venues, community art centers, and other grass roots organizations explore current trends in photography with exhibitions featuring the work of emerging talents and students.

I also found this video to be helpful in explaining just what it’s about

I got to stop by the Betts House before the Pops show last weekend and check it out Urban Landscapes

The Betts House is one of the oldest standing buildings in Cincinnati, Built in 1804, and survived the big earthquake of 1912. It is open Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. and the
second and fourth Saturdays of each month, 12:30 – 5 p.m. Other days and times are available by
appointment. Admission is $2 per person.

Ronny of Queen City Discovery was there to give some more information about his work. Check out more about the exhibit on his page

Boys Like Girls

Boys Like Girls did a benefit concert at Jefferson Hall last night “Boys for Breast Cancer” with only a $5 admission. They are performing tonight in Indianapolis.

I ended up winning meet and greet passes from Q102 here in town and a couple girlfriends decided to Accompany me. These guys were the coolest, nicest famous people I’ve ever met. They asked about the reds, we talked about crappy Cincinnati traffic, it was fun!

I guess they were

I guess they were supposed to play at Q102′s Bosom Ball for Breast Cancer on Thursday, but had to decline. But they still wanted to do something for the cause, and took the short drive to Cincy. The admission for the concert was $5 with all precedes going to Susan G Koman. They raised $700 last night.

From what I heard, BLG was only going to do 4-6 songs but ended up doing about 10 acoustic songs. For one song, they decided to do “Two is Better Than One”, but didn’t have Taylor Swift to sing with. One young girl stepped up to the plate (above). I’m hoping once YouTube cooperates ill have some videos uploaded and attached. So check back for it! And Thanks BLG! It was a great intimate fun concert

See all the pictures from Q102

 

Le Diner en Blanc Cincinnati

I’m having a really hard time trying to find the words to describe this event. It was absolutely gorgeous! Breathtaking, stunning, beautiful, fun, amazing… seriously, not just being cliche here.

It’s been described as a pop up fancy dinner. Part flash mob. Part picnic. Part fancy revelry. And when it all comes together, absolutely breathtaking!  It’s a semi exclusive event. Word of mouth and friends of friends basically. You and your friends meet up with a smaller group of about 50 people.

Then these groups meet up with 5 more groups and you’re transported to the secret location for that year. That’s when 1100 people this year spilled out of buses or from various downtown points and set up tables in long rows. Then proceeded to their picnic spread. There is an option to purchase baskets made by places like Orchids and Eat Well Celebrations. From what i saw they were huge! Had plenty to feed 2 and then pass some around. These will cost you though, anywhere from $60-$100.

You will be lucky to get into the event itself. It’s premise is friends coming together, Therefore it’s a friends of friends type gathering. Those that went this year, will be given a spot next year, and they can invite one other couple. Then if there is room, it will go to a wait list. The thing that seems to stop people is the fact that you do have to pay $24 a person, plus a one time $5 membership fee, to allow you to attend the events in the future. The fee goes towards venue rental, security, entertainment, and most importantly, the liquor license that allows us to consume wine and Champagne in a public area.

The most difficult yet kind of fun part, is finding everything you’ll need. You’re to bring a small square table (under 32×32 inches) 2 white chairs, a table cloth, nice place settings, glasses, a table setting/decorations, and a picnic basket with your dinner in it, as well as your drinks for the evening. You also are to dress all in white. They do have really nice contests though. They have a best table one, and a most elegant/creatively dresses group (of 2-4 couples); both offer a dinner for 6 cooked by chefs, such as Jean Robert of JR’s Table. And then there is the most elegantly/creatively dressed couple; this prize is a trip with airfare to Antigua!

Hubby ready for the first course

This year being in Lytle park was gorgeous! Queen City tower, and the Taft museum flanking us, lights in the trees, darn near everyone with candles. You arrive in a huge group and get set up quickly.  at about 7:15 napkins are waved and you start on your 3 courses. Or whatever else you’ve prepared. I used this as an excuse to have a little fun and indulge myself. I saw meat and cheese and fruit trays, dips and spreads and salads. Then you move on to your main course and lastly dessert. Everyone was friendly, and I saw most tables sharing with their neighbors, who most hadn’t met before this evening. It was a great time, and you could take your time and just enjoy it.

Napkin wave to signify the start of dinner!

Molly Wellman looking absolutely adorable.

Dinner

Dessert!

Then at around 9 Sparklers were lit by everyone  and balloons were released. For whatever reason, this was one of the highlights of the evening. I cant put into words how beautiful it was at that moment.

Hubby with his sparkler
Photo Credit: Jens G Rosenkrantz Jr

Balloons!!!

Then it was time to party. Champagne flowed freely, the dj was playing awesome music on the make shift dance floor and Framester was taking awesome photo booth shots! It was just so much fun, half the people didn’t want to leave at 11. But sadly it was time to go as magically and quickly as we arrived. I already can’t wait til next year!

I spy a Jenny K

If you missed it this year, I’m sorry you missed a truly magical event. There was no pretension, no fighting, just fun. Everyone from 25-80 was enjoying themselves at both dinner and the party. It was a spectacular time! hopefully, you know someone who’s willing to sign you up with them next year, so you can experience it for yourself. It’s really one of those kinds of events. But one that mere words still can not put into place.

<3

View my full gallery:

Edit: I’ve found a few more pics to share, and also I’ll post other places that are blogging about the evening!

The view of the park from the 11th floor of The Residence Inn.
Photo Credit: Shelley Groh

One of my favorite photobooth pics of the night!

Best Table Leaders ever!

Even the Hubby had a great time!

BFF’s!

See all Framester Photos Here

Check out more views and pictures here!:

Small Girl Adventures

Eggplant to Go

513Eats

Jenny K

Jens G Rosenkrantz