Cincinnati Traditions with Chris & Amy (Ayersian)

mar52


Wandering Jew,  

if you haven't tried it yet, Chili My Soul on Ventura Bl in Encino serves many different varieties of chili every day.  They have maybe 10 or 12 varieties on the menu at any given time.  (Maybe less)

Ventura Bl will keep you happy.

Marlene,
 
If there was a 5 way chili place in LA I knew you'd find it
I was being somewhat sarcastic (hey what else is new!) in my prior comment.
I'm going to try to fit in as much as I can with my next visit to La-La land!

Just a couple of things about the previous posts to start off...

CajunKing - we can’t thank you enough for taking the time to eat with us!  Your encyclopedic knowledge of the city’s history added a tremendous amount to our appreciation of Cincinnati, and now we know the best way to eat 5-way chili: oyster crackers on the bottom to soak up the chili juice!  We’ll be thinking of you during your chili weekend in May and wishing we could be there.

Green Papaya - I stated that the Thai stuffed chicken wings were some of the best appetizers I’ve ever had.  Didn’t want you all to think that I just aimlessly throw around superlatives...   I was particularly amazed at the seamless crust—how did they get the stuffing in there?  Our server, who was herself amazed that an American would notice, said that they bore a hole in each wing and inject it with the stuffing mixture.  I’d’ve never guessed that in a million years! CajunKing told us that there are some mighty fine Thai places in the area, and Green Papaya is definitely one of them.

Saturday’s breakfast

I’ve come to the realization that we could eat anywhere in this grand country of ours and meet a fellow RFer.  Upon hearing that we’d be checking out Miami University in Oxford, OH, Poverty Pete contacted us and said that he had a friend who lived in Oxford who’d be happy to show us around town.  This friend was none other than Lynn Metcalf, who had dined with Pete, the Bowens, et al. on a previous RF outing.  She insisted that we start with breakfast at her favorite spot, and who were we to argue?  We met her at the Millville Restaurant in Millville, halfway between Cincy and Oxford. The place was fairly crowded with locals, and Lynn waved us to her booth by the window. As we sat down, I noticed the conflagration of condiments that took up almost a quarter of the table:

 
I took this as a good RF omen and immediately found goetta on the menu. This is a regional specialty made of ground pork, oats, and spices and is known as “Cincinnati caviar” because of its near-exclusivity to the Cincinnati/N. Kentucky area. This huge plank was fried until crispy brown, and its crunchy crust complemented its creamy insides—texturally, a cross between scrapple and livermush:

 
On Sunday, we drove by Glier’s over the river in Covington, KY, the world’s #1 producer of goetta. They carry goetta dogs, goetta burgers, and goetta pizza—all sound delicious! We’ll be investigating this further on our next visit. Lynn assured us the biscuits & gravy were scrumptious:

 
The gravy was thick and chock full of sausage chunks that overshadowed the biscuits. However, the biscuits reached their true potential when we added a spoonful of homemade preserves from our table. Amy liked the peach one best, but I preferred the strawberry jam (l. to r.: apricot, peach, strawberry):

 
This was a wonderful breakfast, and I must also add that no one paid us any attention when we were snapping photos. The food’s so good that maybe these folks are used to shutterbugs!  Afterwards, Lynn rode with us and gave us a thorough tour of Miami U. and the town of Oxford. She was an absolute delight to hang out with, and we hope to see her again on our next visit. Special thanks to Poverty Pete for sharing Lynn with us!    Chris
 
Millville Restaurant
1198 Millville Ross Rd.
Hamilton, OH  45013
513-863-4644
 

Excellent reports ( both of them).  Hey, two for one.
Someone might want to check out the revolving restaurant in NoKy ( I don't know which hotel owns it anymore) but the food is good and the view(s) is/are fantastic for great photos.
Some great litttle neighborhood joints all over NoKy as well.

Sorry, I posted before realizing there were 2 pages to this report.  Guess I should check this site more often.  There were 3 outstanding reports and the Millville Restaurant is one of my faves.  I remember in early 70's Lonnie Mack used to frequent this area quite a bit.
If you're a Stevie Ray Vaughn blues guitar fan ( and I'm not) but SRV was heavily influenced by Lonnie Mack and tried to emulate his style.

Wanderingjew, this has probably already been posted somewhere on the site but here it is:

http://www.chilimysoul.com/menu.html

If you can't eat there, you can at least read about it.

This is a chili sort of day.  Been raining.  Think I'll drive down the block and have a bowl split into two flavors.

Thanks for the idea!

< Of course I have my camera >

Chris you just about have me convinced that I would at least try goetta.  That doesn't sound terrifying like scrapple does (but I eat hash so why am I being so picky?)

Nancy-
I eat all three, but think hash would be the scariest of the three.  It depends on what you grow up eating, while not knowing any better!

Of the three choices, I find 'Hash', be it Corned or Roast Beef in origin, the easiest for me to enjoy. Perhaps that is because so many diners offer it as 'Home-Made' dish as opposed to something purchased commercially and then sliced and fried.

 I have had some very good Scrapple, and my two times eating Goetta were ok. If given the option between either of these two 'side meats' or home-made Hash, I would probably elect to order the Hash.
 
PS- Janet and I shared a day at Jungle Jim's with The young lady you met in Ohio, PP's friend Lynn. She is a delight, indeed and very knowledgeable of that area. I am glad she was able to share some time with you.

Al-
I hate to tell you this, but we are talking about the hash at South Carolina bbq joints that is made out of all the left over parts of the pig.  It is usually served over top of rice.  The less you think about it, the better it is.

Mr. Mayor, I mean barbecue hash.  Barbecue hash . . you just have to know something about who made it, you know?  It typically has organ meats in it, but that is not always true.

Wow, same thought at the same time.  :)

 
OK, I will modify my comment to make it clear that the BBQ Hash you mentioned is NOT included in my evaluation, and apologize for my misunderstanding.

Listen, no worries.  That would definitely not be the first definition that floated to mind when you thought of the word 'hash.'

Those stuffed chicken wings look awesome!. I tried goetta once before I found out more about it.  The server told me it was like a sausage.  I was so disappointed with it.  It was like eating fried sawdust.  Reading a true history of goetta it was the invention of a frugal butcher.  They threw pinoats on the floor of the butcher shop instesd of saw dust.  They sweepings were gathered up at the end of the day and boiled down and cooled.  Goetta!
As afr as teh mountain of cheese you find on cinci chilli products.  Its all fluff.  That mountain of grated cheese is so fine it only weighs  about  1/2 oz.  Its so fine it almost melts in your mouth.

After breakfast and a lovely tour of the Miami campus, we parted ways with Lynn and headed to the town of Fairfield, home of Jungle Jim’s International Market. I really don’t know how else to describe JJ’s other than amusement park meets grocery store. If you think mega-stores like Costco and IKEA are big, you will be blown away by Jungle Jim’s.  This 300,000 square foot “foodie paradise” has just about any item that you would possibly want…as well as many that you would never in a million years be interested in. To describe it in words seems silly. Instead, a few pictures…
An external shot as you approach the store:


This is just a small portion of the HUGE meat counter:


In the packaged meat section, you can find all kinds of delicacies:




Speaking of exotic foods…




A wide range of exotic fruits and veggies in the international produce section:




More hot sauces than you can imagine, all alphabetically ordered under the huge fire truck!


Sometimes JJ’s feels a bit like Chuck-E-Cheese’s. These characters draw big crowds of kids:


But the largest crowd was around the themed restrooms. The door opens up into a regular restroom hallway!


What an adventure! We ended up roaming the aisles of Jungle Jim’s for at least 3 hours that afternoon, having lost all track of time and space. Once we finally emerged, we headed over to the Cincinnati Art Museum to spend some time before dinner. Our fabulous Camp Washington dinner with Cajunking was already documented above, so that does it for Day 2. Stay tuned for shots from our Kentucky Sunday at Claudia Sander’s!
 
 

When Mayor Al told me about Jungle Jim's a few years ago while visiting my area, I checked it out on the web.  The grocery store had a map just to help people find their way around.  I haven't been yet, but it is definitely a destination for a future trip.

I certainly hope that you bought some crickets!

Hey, I've had the bacon chocolate bars; they're pretty good.  My son roadtrips about once a year to Jungle Jim's and now I know it's his early theme park memories plus food that keeps taking him there.  Awesome tour y'all!

Chris,
   I know you were being "PC" in limiting your photo record at JJ's to the more moderate "exotics"!!
  I would the record to show that they have a counter full of fresh, "not Frozen", animal parts that are not in the normal inventory at most Markets in the USA.  Here are the Pig's Heads and Sheep Skulls. They are right beside the duck feet, chicken feet, cow hoofs and a whole row of other"unusual" meat items.
 

 
  The only TurDucHen I have seen outside of the 'special order' businesses in Louisiana is at JJ's. I've never done one, but should I decide to, JJ's will have them in stock!!
   The same goes for "Real" Dry-aged Beef. Not found in most of the markets here, JJ's ages it's own and has specials quite frequently to make it "almost affordable"!
 
For a long time JJ's was my "local" source for Shiner's Boch Beer...My favorite. Now Shiner's is being carried at other places in the area, but JJ's was the place to get it for years.
 
Anyone wanting to see the weekly ad and learn more about this place can go to their website and check it out.
  www.junglejims.com/
 
We're looking forward to your next installment of this weekends adventure!

There used to be up in the "tri-county" area of Cincinnati a place called "Markets International" and as a kid it was a great place to go and see the things from various places around the world.

Jungle Jim's, like Chris said, is part amusement park and part grocery store, but they have areas for places all around the world.

Some places have a "lobster tank" but not at Jungle Jim's

One part of the store I like is the LIVE FISH market.  you want BASS for dinner, pick out which one you want it is still swimming around the tank.

Trout, Tilapia all still swimming around you pick them out, they will clean them and you can take them home, you can't get fresher thant that.



Chris

I was eating lunch when I saw the CAN of Haggis,
and this is coming from someone who likes Haggis

Chris, Amy & Al~

Did you get special permission to photogragh inside Jungle Jim's, or did you do it discreetly, or did no one stop you? 

I took my camera one time {I live close enough that I go several times a year}, with the intention to do a Roadfood report & there are signs posted that no photography was allowed without special permission.  I thought about asking for permission, as I was "reporting" for Roadfood.com, but decided against it.  After seeing the signs, and not asking, I didn't feel comfortable pulling my camera out.

The pics are great, and there are soooo... many noteworthy things about JJ's.  The first time I took my grandkids, when they got old enough to appreciate it, I bought my grandson {the adventurous eater~definitely my spawn!} assorted jerkys - ostrich, elk, alligator, etc.. My granddaughter was scared to death of the frozen rattlesnake meat, curled up & still looking like a snake.  Both the kids got some crickets & ants, and actually kind of enjoyed eating them.  I just LOVED experiencing this adventure with them.  We are lucky to have it so close by.

Thanks for all of the pictures, and the whole trip report.  I love experiencing my hometown from your eyes.  I haven't been to Green Papaya, but will have to soon.

SC520-
  I saw the signs, but decided if I was asked I would use the same reasoning you expressed...I was doing a report for RF.com!! Since my camera is a rather 'full-sized' DSLR I couldn't just stick it in my pocket!! All was OK though. No One asked me about my photo efforts, However I did not include people in my photos (with the exception of one shot of POVPETE looking through the Pickle bins !!)
  The fruit and veggie section deserves a report of it's own.

Is the Green Papaya a chain?  I googled it and found Green Papayas in many cities.  Or did several places simultaneously come up with the same name?