I would never go to this place if it was in California, but it's in Ohio which means my standards totally change.
I had a perfectly fine experience eating here. The portions are large and the food is tasty. I just prefer my restaurants a bit more hippie (local food from local farms and more vegetarian options).
They do make great drinks, albeit a bit on the small size.
I went to this place twice in one day! Brunch and Dinner! Both Were excellent! My dad and I went for brunch and both ordered the brunch special for $16.00 each which was unlimited food and it included a mimosa! For dinner with my friends we all had a something different and everything was delicious! The cocktails are surely the best on the river!
Review Source:I went to Crave on a Sunday afternoon for brunch. My friend and I had bought a Groupon for half off the brunch buffet. I'm normally not a huge fan of buffets, but had been wanting to try Crave for awhile, so I went along with it.
The inside of Crave is really nice, so the whole buffet thing didn't feel right. Non-the-less, our server was attentive (with drinks, since this was a buffet after all) and the food was decent. The only thing I truly remember was the cinnamon roll french toast, which was basically a flattened cinnamon roll that was then dipped in eggs and put on a griddle. It was pretty ridonkulous and tasty, but other than that, not much to write home about.
I think I need to try Crave during the evening for dinner, because I hear that the food is really good. This isn't to say I didn't enjoy my brunch here, I just have a feeling that their food off of the menu is going to be better than the buffet. I hope to make it back soon.
In town for work and our partners chose Crave since they hadn't been here yet. I am from Minneapolis where Crave started, so again I have a biased point of view. Â I tend to dislike chain restaurants, but dislike those owned by people less than those owned by big companies (TGI Fridays or Chilis). Â This whole thing crashes a little bit in the case of Crave. Â When the first one opened, I tended to like it as a decent, not great, place to go with a group with diverse tastes. Â Wood burning pizza? Â Got it. Â Sushi? Â Got it. Â Fun bar? Got it. Â Not so much. Â Corporateish Menu? Â Got it. Â Chef driven cusine? Â Crave was sort of like a much much better version of TGI Fridays.
Flash forward to last night, and I'm not really sure why the presence of something like 5 more Craves should change my opinion, and when I really thing about it it doesn't. Â Crave is a decent place with some good food, and lots of decent food. Â We had a bunch of decent appetizers for the bargin Happy Hour price of $5, I had a fairly tasty Flat Iron steak, with ordinary mashed potatos and beans. Â Creative? Â Not really. Â Tasty? Actually yes. Â The rest of the food fell in the same category. Â I can't imagine that you are going to either be disapointed or amazed at Crave, and I guess thats all that I can ask for a place like this.
Had the family-style Sunday brunch, thanks to Groupon's buy-1-get-1 deal. I made the mistake of not making reservations, assuming that the place was so huge it wouldn't be a problem getting seated quickly. Well, we got there about 10 minutes after it opened at 11 and were told it would be a 25-30 minute wait. Luckily there were open seats at the bar that we could be served at.
The bartenders were friendly and attentive, not rushing at all even though the lobby was crowded with waiting guests the whole time we were there (about 1.5 hours). Our refill order was delayed in coming out, so the bartender generously offered another round of mimosas on the house. Much appreciated.
About the food... I loved the french toast, liked the eggs, bacon, sausage, and hash browns, but the cinnamon roll and toast were just ok. All in all I thought it was a great value even without the groupon. Another good option for downtown dining that I would definitely come back to.
Tips:
- Make reservations! They have OpenTable right on their website.
- If you sit at the bar, don't sit at the corner right by the door. Unless you enjoy constant drafts.
- Keep an eye out for Groupon specials.
Went here for lunch a few times as I work downtown relatively close to this area. Â The sushi is incredible, service is terrific. Â I didn't care for the miso soup, as it was much too strong and overpowering, however the sushi was fresh and delicious. Â By far my favorite appetizer are the edamamme wontons.
Review Source:I went to Crave for a friend's birthday dinner last night and it was an utter, unmitigated debacle.
We had a reservation for 9 people at 8:00. We were finally seated at 8:45, after getting battered around in the crowded lobby for 45 minutes, with no apology or attempt to mitigate the situation.
Service was often slow, we had to beg for drinks, beg for water. It took half an hour to get a watered down, mostly ice mixed drink, 80 minutes to get appetizers and nearly 2 hours to get our entrees. When one of the members of our group complained to the manager, he sent out SIX free mini deserts for NINE PEOPLE along with gift certificates for a future trip, which I probably won't use. There was an issue with a food allergy that was mishandled. The food was just ok, it was slightly above average chain restaurant food with horrible management and service. -Our server kept telling us that thing were getting delayed because the restaurant was busy- it wasn't full, but if you're too busy to service your customers, book fewer tables. Dishes/drinks came out at different times, there was clearly a breakdown between the expediter, kitchen and servers.
Finally, after walking out at 11:20 I kissed the sidewalk because I was so happy to leave, then I had to pay $9 for parking because I had been at dinner for over three hours.
I had brunch here today with friends, and we ordered the family style item which came with unlimited eggs, sausage, bacon, french toast, muffins, and toast with OJ/mimosa. The portion was huge and the waiters were friendly. Â You can't beat unlimited breakfast food.
My favorite - was the french toast. I've never liked french toast before and initially thought it was a pancake, but am glad I tried it. The bacon was cooked perfectly. I like any brunch place that makes bacon well.
Ate at Crave for the first time last night. Â Had been meaning to check it out since it opened and so glad we did. Â I went with my wife and another couple on a busy Friday night, but made reservations earlier in the day so we were happy to be seated right away. Â Loved the feel of the place - layout, modern decoration, plenty of seating, nice bar, etc. Â Our waitress was awesome - so helpful with very detailed answers on some of our questions about different items on the menu. Â She and the bussers and hostesses were definitely on top of their game the entire night. Â Hot hand towel service included before our sushi arrived. Â The sushi was outstanding. Â Between the four of us, we also had the Crave burger, the Baked Mac and Cheese w/ chicken, and the beef tacos. Everything was just great - Â we were all talking about how good everything was. Â Prices were fair for the quality of the food, presentation, location, and service received. Â We'll definitely be back. Â 5/5 Stars.
Review Source:i wanted to rate CRAVE higher than a 3. Â i really did.
+1 for accepting OpenTable reservations
-1 for calling my wife after she made her OpenTable reservation. Â the reason that we made the reservation on OpenTable is that we didn't need to bother talking with a human on the phone when the Internet is completely capable of accepting our reservation. Â friendly? Â yes. Â bothersome? Â yes. Â know your audience.
+1 for location right next to great american.
+0 for parking nearby. Â parking garage right next door (er, below). Â $3 for first hour, $2 more for next hour...
+1 for friendly greeting when we walked in. Â however...
-1 for being treated like cattle, being hereded toward our table.  the maître d' told the hostess to seat us at a particular table.  this particular table was a 2-seat high-top in a row of ~4 other high tops.  no problem.  however, the tables were 8-12 inches away from each other--no privacy.  hard to have an intimate date with my wife.  since 80% of the restaurant was unoccupied, we asked to be seated somewhere else with a bit more room.  they obliged, seating us at a 4-seat high-top, but the hostess and maître d' were not happy about it.
note: Â as a matter of respect, i kept an eye on other tables throughout our meal. Â there were plenty of open 4-seat high-top tables the entire meal. Â i understand the efficiencies of seating guests at tables equal to their party size; however, it seems that they've gone too far, sacrificing comfort and space just to seat more people at once.
+1 for a delightful waitress. Â i believe her name was alima (at least according to my receipt).
+0 for decently number of menu options for brunch.
+1 for sunday considered happy hour all day. Â drink specials, appetizers, etc.
+1 for good mimosa.
-1 for sub-par (weak) Madras Martini. Â i know it's brunch, but c'mon...
-1 for being handed a plate that wasn't completely clean.  it was small, but there was a crusted spec of food.  i decided to just pick it off and not complain.  after all, i'd already lost favor with the maître d' and hostess...
+1 for all you can eat brunch that's NOT a buffet! Â $15.95 per person. Â i'll simply quote from the menu: Â "Generous helpings of scrambled eggs with Tillamook smoked cheddar, hash browns, applewood smoked bacon, savory sausage patties, cinnamon roll french toast with fruit compote, whole wheat toast, fresh fruit and cinnamon rolls all served on large platters for your table to share and replenished as you desire! Â Also Includes: A glass of orange juice, champagne or mimosa"
+0 for moderately high prices (for everything but the brunch)
+1 for quantity of food, at least for the abovelisted brunch. Â goes without saying.
+0 for quality of food. Â neither my wife nor i were impressed. Â the eggs were good. Â the bacon wasn't crispy. Â the sausage was a frozen patty warmed up. Â the hashbrowns were soggy. Â the cinnamon rolls were dry (very little glaze).
-1 for my wife receiving a cup of soup, when she ordered a bowl. Â but no sweat, we were only charged for a cup.
-1 for no condiments on the table. Â if the quality of the food were better, i could understand this. Â but for the love, how about some salt?
-1 for tiny portions of ketchup. Â served in a tiny cup, equivalent to one packet. Â i'm just sayin', those hashbrowns needed some help!
+1 for atmosphere. Â trendy, but not over the top. Â we sat next to the glass-walled wine room. Â pretty cool.
and, the kicker...
-1 for not boxing up all of our food. Â my wife ordered a flatbread, and only ate 2 of the 8 pieces. Â someone (presumably the waitress) only packaged up 3 of the remaining 6 pieces. Â really lame.
if we return, it'll be for the prices--not for the quality of food. Â i hesitate to recommend visiting CRAVE. Â but if you do, set your expectations on the environment, not the food.
Good food and drinks in a good location. Â We went here after a hockey game because we got a free appetizer. Â We just want a lite snack and a drink before we went home. Â This is a place to take a date on a nice night out. Â We had crab dip and it was great. Â It made a nice way to end a fun night.
Review Source:For the food, Crave probably really gets 3 stars. There really isn't anything terrible about the food- in fact, it's pretty tasty. Unsurprisingly, as many restaurants with a huge and varied menu, nothing was spectacular. I did love my short rib tacos, though. (I'm starting to think it's hard to have bad short ribs). I'm not a big fan of menus that are all over the place, but it has its advantages if you are dining with a big group that has a range of food preferences and level of adventurousness. Plus, the pricing has a range of options so you can eat fancy or eat reasonably.
The space is enormous and is a cross between modern and industrial. There are a few little private rooms and even some circular booths that can be curtained off.
The reason Crave gets a 4 from me at this point is because the server was so friendly and accommodating. He was very helpful, responsive, and did extra nice things like store the cake with brought in for a birthday in the back until we were ready, order extra birthday desserts for the birthday people in the group, offer to take a group picture, and bring out take home boxes for the cake we brought! All without a hint of annoyance. We had a huge group and he handled it really well.
The summary: not necessarily somewhere I'd go out of the way to eat at with all the options we have, but certainly on my list if I'm going to be at a game or have a big group to make plans for.
We have eaten here twice and had 2 different experiences. The first time we were there early (6) and ordered some sushi and the poke appetizer. It had great flavor and would order again. The sea bass was good not great. We had an attentive server and food was prompt. The mini mousse dessert was incredible. The second time we went it was later (9) and our server was ok. Â They were out of several menu items. The flatbread appetizers were really good but the sushi was just ok. I would go back but feel like the prices are a bit high. Overall a nice new restaurant.
Review Source:Landed here for the weekend brunch with a groupon. Â We both got the buffet. Â The eggs weren't really eggs, but the rest of it was pretty good really. Â I've got to shout about that cinnamon roll french toast they've got (it comes on the buffet). Â It is awesome. Â If I wasn't so hyperaware of how terrible it was for my health, I could have eaten so much of that stuff. Â They make the cinnamon rolls there, and turn it into a phenomenal french toast.
Bottom Line: Â I'd come back for the cinnamon roll french toast.
Sometimes when you crave for something you expect it to taste as good as your imagination. Just a random thought that I wanted to express!
I love this place, Crave provides me both the worlds of fresh Americano and Asian Fusion cuisine when I'm in the mood. The seaweed salad is probably the best in town and it's artistically presented in a beautiful bowl. A bite of their steak is a burst of juicy nirvana.
The decor of the restaurant as a whole is very in sync, and a big thing for me at every eatery that I step foot is how much they invest in their restrooms. I feel as if a business put so much in the decor of the space and forgets the restrooms it devalues the business. I give Crave A+ for their restroom, I love the pebble walls and the cleanliness.
Love this place...
Crave....Just the name of the restaurant evokes a sense of intrigue. Â So naturally, I was...intrigued. Â I actually tried this restaurant twice in two days. Â I went to a late night get together there on a Saturday and then went there for brunch on Sunday. Â
I was excited to be there  once I walked in.  I liked the atmosphere at night, it was a hip chic decor and the "cool" young adult crowd milling around.  The food unfortunately was not as exciting.  I ordered the Kogi Beef Tacos, which according o the Crave Website entails: Beef short rib, kimchee, spicy mayo, green onions, cilantro.
The presentation was very appealing and minimal. Â There were three mini tacos in a soft tortilla on a metal wavy plate. Â But the taste left much to be desired. Â While it was not the typical taco, it was also missing much of the flavor. Â The beef was OK but the kimchee was bland. Â I only ate two of them then shared the third.
The dessert on the other hand was phenomenal!  I had  the Crave miniature raspberry and yuzu mousse.  It was very decorative and very flavorful. The mousse was creamy and fruity with a crunchy topping.
The next day at Crave's Sunday Brunch was standing room only. Â It was very busy. A helpful tip is to get reservations before you go. Â I had a groupon but it is an all you can eat brunch for $15.95. The summary of it on the website is a little misleading as they say that they bring the food to your table, but when we got there it was buffet style in the back and you had to serve yourself. Â Their menu was the usual and not much of a variety. It consisted of bacon, sausage, supposedly tillamook cheddar eggs, however I did not see or taste any cheese in them, Cinnamon rolls, fruit salad, and french toast.
Everything tasted fine but the french toast was exceptional. It was very moist and flavorful and I would have enjoyed it as an entree. Overall, it was a decent experience for the money.
CRAVE is in the newly refurbished area of the Banks among a ton of trendy bars meant to accommodate hundreds of people before and after sporting events. Â The bars tend to not have as much personality as they do space, but CRAVE has a very cool atmosphere to it. Â The lighting, decor, and seating are all arranged in a way that make for a very enjoyable atmosphere.
I went in with a huge group of about 25 people after a Cyclones game, and we didn't call ahead with any reservation. Â The staff worked pretty quickly to get tables put together and orders in for us. Â In my never-ending quest for the Best Burger in Cincinnati, I gave the jambalaya burger a try. Â The burger was definitely good enough to recommend, but if you want a treat you won't find in many places I would say to try the bottled ginger ale with chunks of real ginger floating in it. Â Delicious!
I have been to crave a few times since they opened. Â
Their Happy Hour offerings are decent but not outstanding & they only have Happy Hour until 6 on Friday. Â As other bar/restaurants usually offer it until 7 or 8, they should take this into consideration. Â I'm not sure if this is a strategy to get more diners or what. Â Most restaurants make their money from bar sales, not food. Â
The food from their normal menu is good. Â Their Kogi Beef Tacos are excellent. Â Their Dirty Flirt martini is nasty & not worth $10,95.
This review is for their bar/ happy hour only. Â I look forward to getting a chance to go back for a meal. Â
On Fridays, their happy hour only runs until 6pm. Â So, unless you work downtown or get off work early, this isn't a good happy hour option. Â They have a number of $3, $4, and $5 drink and app options. Â But for my $5, I feel like I deserve more than a well drink. Â I'd rather go to Cincy's on 6th and get the same thing for $2.50. Â
Our waiter was Antony and he was amazing. Â Totally on top of drinks for our large group of 15. He wasn't shy about giving suggestions and telling us what was the best (and worst) things on the menu. Â
I think that Crave may want to rethink their happy hour times. Â Our group of 15 would have stayed for another two hours, but instead we left and walked to the Scene that offers half price happy hour until 8.
Lots of reviewers have mentioned a huge menu with an identity crisis. Â I definitely sensed the identity crisis at Crave, but actually wish there had been more choices on the menu because I had a really hard time finding something that I wanted to order. Â The problem with a place like Crave is that I rule out sushi, burgers and steaks immediately because those are things I only want to eat in a restaurant specializing in one of those meals. Â So at Crave, I was looking at salads and sandwiches because I was not in the mood to spend over $20 on an entree that wasn't guaranteed to be great. Â But there really are only a few salads and sandwiches on the entire menu, so my choices were very limited. Â I ended up order the korean beef taco appetizer as an entree, and while the kimchi and sauce were nice, the beef was a bit tough and the pita-bread-as-taco-shell didn't do it for me.
Another disappointment was that we were a group of 8 who made a reservation a few weeks in advance for a birthday celebration, and yet we were given a couple of high-top tables pushed together in an awkward location instead of several other open tables that would have been nicer for our group. Â On a Wednesday night when your restaurant is 1/2 to 2/3 full, management might consider offering a large group of well-dressed, good looking women one of the better tables rather than letting it go unused.
I went with a fairly decent sized group right before the Trans-Siberian Orchestra played in Cincinnati. Â I'm very glad that I made reservations, because the place was packed!
It took a bit to get seated even with reservations, but the service was pretty good. Â
I would definitely recommend the mixed drinks, and any of the specials that they have available. Â One of the individuals in our party ordered the Giant meatball - and OMG - it was huge! Â Our server was top notch and never let any of us go even 5 minutes without drinks or checking on us. Â
I would definitely return here, and bring friends - I think this is a great atmosphere, even if it still has that "NEW RESTAURANT - MUST GO" feeling that seems pretty common in The Banks area. Â It's a place to explore, check out, and spend a nice and romantic evening out. Â It's not cheap, but its certainly worth the price if you know that going in.
So this place might suffer from a slight multiple genre problem - the menu alone reads like a Hemingway story (meandering and a little disconcerting). We sat at a high top near the bar with a large group and they let us order happy hour specials in the remaining minutes of happy hour. Â If we would have stopped there, we would have had more than enough food for an amazing price! Â The sushi is fine but the real star is the beef tacos. Â They were so tasty!
The majority of our table ordered burgers, which were good but not exceptional. Â The entrees seemed a little pricey and we didn't venture into that part of the extensive menu. Â Good drink selection with nice beers and cool cocktails. Â
The service was attentive but not intrusive. Â One concern is that this is a very large space and on this week night, it was almost empty, making it feel a little eerie. Â This would be a great place for happy hour after work and I hope it fills up as more people make the Banks their destination.
A Minneapolis chain built on the corner of Nuxhall Way and 2nd St, Crave has offered visitors to the Banks another casual American-Fusion fare dining establishment.
The menu includes a series of upscale comfort food items. Appetizers include staples like sliders, wings and calamari with some more eclectic offerings like tuna tataki, edamame wontons and chilled shrimp & butternut carpaccio. Prices for these run from $10-$14.
Entrees focus on a number of brick-oven items like mac & cheese, lobster pot pie, and various pizzas & flatbreads. Other offerings include pumpkin ravioli, buttermilk fried chicken, ribeye steak, chicken stir-fry and herb-crusted walleye. Entree prices run from $19-$36.
As you enter the restaurant, you approach the long large bar, clearly designed to appeal the the crowd attending ballgames during the baseballs season. The back of Crave is a dimly lit area with dark colors and cozy seating. The kitchen is mostly visible from the dining room.
Crave offers a great selection of wine. Everything is very approachable with familiar domestic brands. They also specialize in craft cocktails. Try the pomegranate martini for a kick.
For a chain restaurant, the food is relatively good. The flatbreads are delicious and the jambalaya burger is a change of pace. This is a great place to take your work team for lunch or to meet a friend before the game.
Thank you Crave! I recently won a free lunch for two via Twitter.
I will most definitely return.
We dropped in for their power lunch and it was fantastic.
We were seated immediately, and our server was simply amazing.
I had the sushi bento box, and Priscilla had the spicy shrimp fettucine.
The servings were huge and the food was delicious.
It wasn't crowded, but remember, it was a weekday lunch. I'm sure if you don't have a reservation, you're probably going to wait for awhile to find a seat on the weekends.
So yummy!
This place seems to have only middling reviews, but when I ate here, I was pleasantly surprised. Mind you, I ambled over right after a loud afternoon of football at Paul Brown Stadium, so perhaps my expectations weren't exactly high. Still, I recall really enjoying my food. I ordered the lemon-pepper wings, calamari, and a black miso cod. All these dishes hit the proverbial spot -- especially the wings(!) I'd go back again under similar circumstances.
Review Source:A friend and I stopped in for happy hour and had a good time. Â They have great menus for both dinner and happy hour. Â I really enjoyed the Edamame Cream Cheese Wontons and Tempura Bites. Â
The ambiance was neat and the wait staff was fast and friendly. Â I'll definitely be returning soon!
It was date night for me and the hubby and we wanted to go some place we have never been. And people had been telling us that Crave was good. And they were right.
We had a reservation so we walked right in. Â You can go without but expect to wait if you do. They are on Open Table so there is no reason to wait. My husband said the weakest part of the night was his mixed drink. I guess it was weak. My Reisling was quite good.
We started with the edamame cream cheese wontons. Get those. For real. So good. I got the ribeye and the hubby got sushi. And dessert. It was all tasty and perfectly prepared. The waiter was attentive but not overbearing and did t rush us even thought the line was out the door. It is loud, but we were able to carry on a conversation. Highly recommended. Get back downtown. It's a changed place.
Have been here for casual drinks and apps, brunch, and dinner a few times. Overall, the food is good but I still don't think the prices are justified considering it is mostly glorified bar food. Brunch/Lunch prices are more reasonable.
Crab and Artichoke dip, calamari, and beef tacos are all great as are the pizzas, with the exception of the New Italian (WAY too much bleu cheese). As for the burger, I expected better. Salad portions are a bit on the small side as well.
Sushi is fantastic, definitely in my top 3 for the area, but again, The Mexican Roll(amazing) is going to cost you $16.95.
I would definitely go back to Crave, but it just isn't a noteworthy restaurant to me.
I was highly anticipating my visit to CRAVE. Â A friend of mine had been wanting to go since they opened and since we are both sushi fanatics, we decided to go for a very late dinner one Friday night. Â
The restaurant itself is pretty, although a little over-the-top for me; it's like they are trying just a LITTLE too hard. Â The drink list was great; however, I will be happy with any establishment that has Hendrick's gin. Â I'm easy to please. Â
I give this place one whole extra star for their edamame appetizer. Â I love me some edamame, I'd eat it every day. Â This edamame was very unique with a spicy seasoning, it was the best part of the experience (that and the Hendrick's). Â The sushi was definitely different, there was some old-school standards and then some crazy unique twists (like Mexican sushi, who would have thought?) Â Overall, the food was pretty good, just not as fresh as I would have expected for a place with so much hype. Â And such high prices.
I enjoyed my meal, but I don't know if I'll be a regular here.
Beet Salad!
Seriously, the beet salad here is my favorite thing at any restaurant in Cincinnati. Granted, I'm the type of person who loves beets so much I've been known to slice one up and eat it like candy, but seriously, between the goat cheese, pistachios and drizzle of dressing (this is my primary beef with most restaurants, they feel the need to douse their salads in dressing, not the case here) this just spoke to my taste buds in the best way.
Okay, I'll stop rapturing about the salad, and talk about the rest of the experience. First of all, the bread basket on their appetizer menu is totally worth it. I balked too at first about paying for a bread basket, but at $2 it's something I get every time now. They have a GIANT menu, separate sushi menu and monthly specials menu. (which we found out a portion of the proceeds from this menu go to a local non-profit which is pretty cool). The salmon burger here is pretty good too, and the butternut squash soup they have right now is fantastic, if you like curry, you'll probably love this soup.
The prices can be pretty high depending on what you get, but if you're getting a salad and cup of soup, it's pretty reasonable. Their cocktails are awesome, but on the pricey side, so just something to be cognizant of. Probably one of their biggest strengths is service. I've never had bad service here. Every server is knowledgeable, happy to offer suggestions and super patient.
Oh yeah, did I mention the beet salad?
I was very impressed with this place!
The staff handled our group of 15+ very well, even though it was extremely busy at the time. Â Our waitress was quick and friendly when taking our order. Â The only thing I didn't appreciate is how she leaned on my friend's wheelchair while taking orders, that's just rude! Â
The food was outstanding, after my order was fixed. Yes, there was a mistake on my order but the manager himself brought my replacement dish to me an apologized. That was very classy! Â Our entire group walked away with happy! Â When in the area again, I will be sure to return.
Pros
Friendly staff
Hip environment
Quick service
Outstanding food
Another trip (my fourth somehow - turns out this place is extremely easy to get into before games, when the Lagerhouse and Holy Grail have waits of an hour plus), and I'm bumping this down a star.
This is mostly due to the fruit fly infestation. Our table was surrounded by them. We narrowed it down to the bottle of soy sauce brought for our sushi (not the sauce itself, but the bottle), but we spent most of our meal swarmed by fruit flies.
And, in our group, not a single person enjoyed their meal. Or ate more than half of it.
On the plus side, while we saw less of the staff than maybe we'd expect our interactions went well.
Alright, a little story.
While chatting with Avtar, aka "Hat Man" before a Red's game, a lady walked by and before she went in to the stadium, she offered her leftover Margherita Pizza (Focaccia pizza dough, oven dried tomato, mozzarella, fresh basil $11.95) pizza to him and not me. He declined and I said I could take it off her hands, to which she replied, "I think he can use it more than you can". Ha ha, he's not homeless like you may have thought, but anyways, a few minutes later she came back and mumbled something about not wanting to waste it and then gave it to me. Score! So we continued to chat until a scalper walked by and sold me a ticket for $5. Where am I going with this?
1. Give a friendly hello to Hat Man, he's eccentric yes, but very nice and is a Cincinnati Icon. He loves to have his picture taken since it gets his message out to the world.
2. Contrary to what the lady thought, you can bring in outside food to a Red's game. It's one way families can afford to feed their entire family and not pay $$$$ for hotdogs and nachos. (Anyone ever see the full size nacho hat they sell, geezel pete's.)
3. If you are willing to miss a few innings, scalpers (usually) have no choice but to unload an unused ticket for rock bottom prices. *Just make sure the ticket is for that days game and not a fake.
4. Normally I would shy away from a stranger's leftovers, but with pizza, I figured that it was barely touched and would be safe, especially if microwaved.
I then said goodbye to Hat Man and went into Great American and watched a decent game with a walk off 9th inning homer by Bruce. During the game I did eat one of the 4 pieces the lady gave me and found it to be a halfway decent slice. While the pizza was only ok, I will most likely return and try some of their other menu options. *and write a formal review of the actual restaurant.
In the end, I am just happy that there are so many new businesses along the riverfront and that downtown has really become a great place to live and/or visit.
Came here last night before the Reds game, we were seated immediately in the patio and it was great to people watch. Our server came over right away and suggested some drinks, but we just ordered waters for the moment. A note- Make sure to ask the price of the drinks, they are not listed for cocktails.
I ordered a thyme drink that was served with ginger beer, Jameson and a fresh sprig of thyme. It was very good but it was $11.95. Which I consider a bit high.
For food I ordered the edamame and the short rib melt while my friend ordered the grilled Caesar, a spicy tuna roll and then buffalo rub chicken wings.
The food was very good, I really liked the short rib melt, but beware it's huge and can be served with cous cous or fries. The edamame were served with a grilled half lemon and bulls blood micro greens.
Everything was very efficient and the server was very good.
Total cost for me- 1 drink 1 melt and edamame =$40.00, which I think is a bit high and thus the 3 stars.
I came in this restaurant expecting I wouldn't like it. I'm not sure why, perhaps the name didn't really appeal to me? However, the people working at Crave went out of their way for me to really like it so I really feel like giving them anything less than 5 stars would be not reflecting reality...
I came here around 5 on a weekday, for one quick drink with a colleague. As I biked and the colleague drove, I arrived 15 minutes earlier (yeah, parking is horrible on Red's games evenings...) - so the staff gave me the choice between the bar or a table (even when it was just for a drink), so I went for the table. I actually liked the vibe of the restaurant, with the dark wooden tables and decor. It looked very new and polished. My waiter recommended a blueberry lemonade cocktail and it was DELICIOUS. Seriously, you should try it!
Colleague was also happy with a local beer that was on tap. By the time my colleague had to leave I decided I kind of liked Crave so I asked a friend to come over before we headed to a party in OTR. But that meant that I had about another 15 minutes on my own to kill... I don't like sitting by myself in a restaurant and on top of that, the entire place was now swamped with Red fans looking for a table. I was sure the waiter was going to ask me to leave or at least take a chair at the bar. He didn't, was just really patient and took care of my water refill. I decided to try out the edamame. And although it was just an appetizer, it was different from any edamame I've ever had. It was spicy, but addictive. I'm not good with spicy food but I finished every single one!
My friend and I decided to get some food. I wanted some sushi, but somehow ended up ordering sashimi, which I thought was going to be the raw salmon + rice. When I got my dish (just raw salmon, which is exactly what sushimi means), the waiter noticed my disappointment. I told him it was ok, it was exactly what I ordered, but a minute later, a manager-type person appeared next to my table and asked in a friendly way what the matter was. I explained and he sent me an extra plate of the salmon + rice type sushi! Without charging me. In a restaurant FULL of other people.
I can honestly say I was completely blown away by this type of service. The sushi was nice, my friend loved the tacos, but what really impressed me here was the service.
Great job guys! I kind of feel like I need to come back now!
I would say that most times (not all, but most), any development to Cincinnati is a good thing. You bring in something like a new restaurant in order to drive people to a formerly underwhelming area and stimulate the local economy and I say, "Yes!"
That being said, I've been rather unimpressed with the development on The Banks so far ... ok, unimpressed is too harsh. However, it's such a great space and a beautiful part of Cincinnati that has been turned into, well, Sports Bar Row. Everything they add there seems to be of one mind: Get you drunk and fed before a Reds or Bengals game. Even the Moerlein House, which I love, has a little bit of this mentality.
Which is why I was nervous going into Crave, a chain that popped up quite suddenly in the heart of the Banks. But what I found: delightfully surprising.
CRAVE is one of those chain restaurants that tries to not feel like a chain. It's got sleek dark colors, great use of space, an open kitchen and beautiful decorations like stained glass art pieces above the chef's table. It still sort of feels like this is the same thing they do in all CRAVEs but it's certainly not tacky like an Applebees or TGIFs.
It's the menu where this place shines though. If you have a hard time choosing, you are going to have a hard time at CRAVE. The menu is two sides but giant, a few feet long with all different kinds of items - soups, sandwiches, salads, entrees and more. Woah. Then, there's an additional sushi menu for those craving sushi. Woah again.
I got the lamb burger and it was excellent. It had aioli, caramelized onions, and lots of goat cheese (I love goat cheese). It came with either fries or couscous and they recommended the couscous, especially because it was more of a cucumber couscous salad. I got it and they were right, fresh and delicious. For lunch, it was 11.95, which feels a little high for a lamb burger at lunch, but still delicious.
Our server was top notch too. He joked, made recommendations and was all around friendly. He did try to push us to get dessert a little hard (even when we said we weren't interested, he still went through all the options, "Just in case") but for a place that big, we did get individual attention, which was solid.
Overall, this is certainly not a spot to just get drunk before the game and a good addition to a growing neighborhood. I hope they continue to make this whole area as diverse as ... well, CRAVE's crazy menu.
We came here with a group for an early dinner. It was 5:30 on a Monday and we were seated right away. The waitress was very friendly and helpful explaining the menu and giving recommendations. The service was fast which was great because we were in quite a rush.
My friends ordered off their fairly large sushi menu. The sushi was good but it seemed like a pretty small portion for dinner. Apparently they have rolls that are larger than the ones we happened to order (philly and dynamite). I got the margarita pizza which was very good but too large a portion for me at least (it was probably 12-14 inches). It actually worked out well because I got to share my pizza with all the hungry sushi eaters. My husband got the rib melt which he said he would recommend.
I hear that their lunch menu is quite good so I'll have to go back to try it out.
My wife and I went to Crave for our sixth wedding Anniversary. Â This was our first visit to this new Cincinnati eatery. Â We started our meal off with the Scallop & Salmon Poppers. Â The appetizer wasn't what we expected at all. Â If there was Scallops or dynamite sauce in the popper, it must have jumped onto someone else's plate, because it wasn't on ours.
We tried the Blueberry mint soda's...it is kind of like an alcohol free Mojito. Â A good drink that would be very refreshing sitting outside at one of Crave's outside tables.
My wife had the Glazed Grilled Salmon which she said was cooked to perfection. Â I had the Parmesan Crusted Chicken which was rather dry and bland. Â (I have had better italian at Fazoli's, if that tells you anything.)
The decor of the restaurant was nice, and the service was good for the most part.
The prices for what we had were a little high in my opinion.
Overall, I wasn't very impressed with my first visit to Crave. Â I may give it another chance in the future, but I am not in a hurry to return.
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