OTR = Food & Drinks

This past week has been a truly remarkable time for our favorite previously neglected neighborhood.

On Tuesday, Lavomatic opened on Vine Street. Jean Robert’s new restaurant opened in an old Laundromat and serves a very rough blend of French and local cuisine. I had the opportunity to try it out and I can say that you will not be disappointed. The space is wonderful. Light colored walls and a completely glass street frontage, makes it a very bright and welcoming space. Upstairs (not quite open yet) the dinning room continues inside and out. The terrace is larger than what I had been expecting. The space is going to be a wonderful place to relax, eat some great food and sip a glass of French wine.

The food was amazing, as expected. I started off with their daily special appetizer, a smoked trout salad. Simply Stunning. My entree and dessert of salmon on a bed of couscous, and crème Brule, were just as spectacular. Also the wine selection was very small, but I was told that they will be expanding it before the weekend. With entrees between 12-24 dollars it is probably the most affordable of Jean Robert’s places. I honestly can’t wait to go back and sit on the terrace.

Today, Grammer’s reopens. A true Cincinnati Gem that I honestly can’t wait to go to. It’s basically going to have my two favorite things. Beer and Bratwursts. It promises to become a staple of Over-the-Rhine once again, especially with some of the redevelopment opportunities that have been recently hitting the presses.

What an exciting time for OTR and the city in general. It is hard not to get wrapped up in the momentum that we are experiencing right now in our neighborhood.