Travelling Foodie Raymond Cua takes you on a special food, drink journey around your home region

By Judy Clabes
NKyTribune editor

On this prolonged vacation, its time to rely our blessings — and likewise to get a glimpse of what the remainder of the world is aware of about us now, due to the Travelling Foodie, Raymond Cua, who spent 4 days in Covington, consuming and ingesting his approach across the area.

Cua, who relies in Toronto, based the Travelling Foodie, a journey and life-style digital journal, in 2014 — and since then has explored the world. BLINK introduced him to the Better Cincinnati area. He stayed on the Coppin Resort, which he extremely recommends, and sampled some particular food and drinks. He wrote about his experiences and likewise shared critiques, videos, and images together with his legion of readers.

Travelling Foodie options detailed journey guides and itineraries, eating places, native delicacies and recipes, and issues to do and lodging. Its imaginative and prescient is for “individuals to comprehend the wonder on this world we stay in and get a style of what it has to supply in features of journey and nature, meals and drinks, and life-style and occasions.”

As he says “he travels to eat — and eats to journey.”

Its particularly good to see ourselves as others see us.

With Cua’s permission, I’m sharing particularly what he needed to say about Northern Kentucky:

Style meals distinctive to Cincinnati Area

Most individuals are shocked to be taught that the Cincy Area has its personal native meals.

German and Greek immigrants have introduced their delicacies and created dishes to adapt to the area.

Foodies is not going to wish to depart Cincy Area with out making an attempt these iconic dishes just like the Cincinnati chili, goetta, and buckeye candies.

At Anchor Grill, you possibly can strive totally different goetta dishes together with goetta omelette.

In truth, New York Instances meals critic Helen Rosner listed Anchor Grill’s double decker GLT (Goetta, Lettuce, Tomato) as among the best issues she’s eaten within the decade.

This 24-hour diner was named finest diner in Kentucky by Meals Wine Journal.

At Gold Star Chili, you possibly can strive totally different dishes of the long-lasting Cincinnati chili from chili salad and loaded chili cheese fries to cheese coneys (hotdog sandwich with chili) and the basic 3-Approach (spaghetti, chili and shredded cheddar cheese).

If it’s your first time, I like to recommend going massive and get the 5-Approach which is the 3-Approach plus beans and onions for the complete Cincinnati chili expertise.

Kentucky Bourbon

Did you even go to Kentucky should you didn’t have bourbon?

Kentucky is the Bourbon Nation in any case.

And Northern Kentucky is the North’s Gateway to Bourbon Nation.

Within the Cincy Area, Northern Kentucky makes it simple so that you can get pleasure from Kentucky Bourbon by having The B-Line.

This NKY self-guided Bourbon Path is comprised of 5 Craft Distilleries, 8 Bourbon Bars and 6 Bourbon-centric Eating places, together with Coppin’s at Resort Covington.

For those who’re a bourbon or spirit lover, you must go to New Riff Distilling in Newport, among the best craft distilleries in Northern Kentucky and an award-winning anchor of the Kentucky Bourbon Path Craft Tour.

At New Riff Distilling, they not solely serve bourbon but in addition rye whiskey and gin.

Additionally they have some distinctive and specialties whiskeys just like the New Riff Winter Whiskey made with malted oat and chocolate malt, and the Balboa Rye Whiskey made with a neighborhood heirloom grain (balboa rye) grown by their corn farmer in Indiana.

For the complete expertise, I extremely suggest doing their Bonded Tour, which features a tour of the distillery and a tasting of six New Riff whiskeys from straight and single barrel to bourbon and rye.

Keep and dine within the Greatest Resort in Kentucky

In search of the place to remain in Cincy Area?

Named the Greatest Resort in Kentucky by U.S. Information and World Report, Resort Covington is conveniently positioned in downtown Covington.

This boutique resort is positioned within the historic Coppin’s Division Retailer and pays homage on its namesake restaurant Coppin’s Restaurant and Bar.

I stayed at their Coppin King, a captivating 350 sq. toes room with Flat display screen LCD, a stocked mini fridge, in-room protected and a desk.

An additional contact within the room was having two tokens for complimentary espresso on the Artisan Espresso Bar within the Resort Covington foyer.

You’ll additionally wish to dine at Coppin’s, among the best eating places in Covington, for some hyper-local dishes just like the Farmer’s Omelette.

Get pleasure from farm-to-table eating

Farm-to-table eating has grown as individuals grow to be extra considering understanding the place their meals comes from, and the Cincy Area has a lot to supply.

If you dine at farm-to-table eating places, it’s not solely about consuming what’s contemporary and seasonal, you’re additionally supporting the native farmers and growers that produce them.

Chef David Willocks and designer Wendy Braun put Newport, Kentucky into the culinary map with their farm-to-table restaurant The Baker’s Desk which was in each USA At this time and Eater Journal’s record of Greatest New Eating places within the US.

The Baker’s Desk began as a easy idea of being a brunch restaurant that makes use of native produce and makes 100% of their bread, and has transitioned right into a dinner restaurant serving Prix Fixe eating solely.

However don’t fret as a result of, in October 2021, they opened an informal neighbourhood spot, a bakery, cafe and pizzeria, simply throughout The Baker’s Desk so you possibly can nonetheless get pleasure from their farm-to-table choices for breakfast and lunch.

At The Baker’s Desk Bakery & Pizzeria, all of the breads are made with natural, stone-ground, entire grain flour, they usually function native flour completely.

With all of the bread and kitchen setup, it was a pure extension to make pizza which supplies them a method to incorporate native produce from their farmers.

Whereas in Cincy Area, you positively must-try their farm-to-table pizza (the dough could be very flavourful by itself!) and deal with your self to some ethereal fluffy doughnuts.

Imbibe in uncommon spirits older than 50+ years

Cincy Area is dwelling to one of the crucial distinctive liquor outlets I’ve been to.

If you step inside Revival Classic Spirits, it’s actually like a museum for impossible-to-find vintage spirits and spirits from a bygone period.

You’re feeling such as you’re in a Willy Wonka store however for uncommon spirits.

On this case, Willy Wonka is co-owner Brad “Dusty” Bonds, America’s foremost classic spirits collector and one of the crucial passionate individuals I’ve met for spirits.

Revival Classic Spirits can also be female-owned with co-owner and Covington Metropolis Commissioner Shannon Smith, which is sort of refreshing to see in a male-dominated trade.

“We store in individuals’s trash and make it your treasure,” says Brad whereas exhibiting me dusty previous bottles of whiskeys from the 30s and 40s.

The oldest I noticed of their assortment is a 1870 rye with a deteriorating cork leaving a low crammed rye as most have evaporated.

What’s superb about Revival Classic Spirits is, whereas eating places and bars cost extremely for classic spirits, Revival makes these uncommon spirits very accessible and inexpensive to the frequent particular person.

At Revival, you possibly can strive a classic 1986 Jim Beam pour for $5, or a uncommon Cuban cordial from the 30s for $25 per half ounce (the place it may cost within the a whole bunch elsewhere).

You’ll be able to spend hours simply sitting on the bar, having fun with a classic spirit tasting surrounded by uncommon spirits whereas chatting with Brad.

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Different locations of word in Cincinnati

Cua positively received round. He additionally made particular word of Better’s Ice Cream, the legendary however closed Maisonette residing on by way of Boca and its elegant high quality eating French Restaurant, Knox Joseph Distillery, the one female-owner distillery in Ohio, and Salazar Restaurant and Ghost Child underground bar in Over-the-Rhine.

He stated, “What I actually cherished is how the Cincy Area has distinctive attributes and choices in a culinary perspective. There are greater than sufficient locations to maintain any travelling foodie completely happy for a very long time, particularly with all of the spirits concerned.”

Cua “had such a enjoyable and scrumptious time” on the journey to the area, understands he simply “scratched the floor” and hopes to return.

He despatched his readers to the meetnky website so they may be taught much more about what Northern Kentucky has to supply.

It is best to in all probability test it out, too — there are all the time new issues to be taught concerning the place you reside and love.