Gold Star Chili

Not a tomato based chili- instead it's similar to Skyline chili. Fast food restaurant feel.

We are probably the wrong people to review Gold Star because we just aren't fans of Cincinnati style chili and its sweet, grayish sauce. But we are fans of chili dogs so we had to give it a go. And other than our bias against sweet chili, the rest of the dog was excellent. Buns were actually good. Firm. Deli quality. Quite the opposite of the thin, fall apart in your hands, messy Michigan Coney buns we are used to. The cheese was piled on, and hell yes, we are fans of cheese. All cheese. Any cheese. This was a delicious shredded cheddar. It almost masked the flavor of the chili entirely (again, quite the opposite of its chili bombed Michigan counterpart), which for us was okay, but if you are a fan of the sweetness, you may have been disappointed, but we were not. Also, not sure what's up with the size. The dogs were about half the normal length of a hot dog. Not sure what's up with that. Really really aren't fans of places that raise prices, yet reduce the portion size. So a big time boo for that, but otherwise, it's worth the experience if you're in town. Otherwise, stick to your hometown chili dog. Nothing lost. Nothing gained.

"You absolutely have to eat Gold Star Chili. It's a Cincinnati thing." That's what EVERYBODY told me.

I have learned that regional foods are popular because people in a certain area grew up with them. But my Epiphany has been that people outside that region are not quite so taken. Still, I knew I had to try this food now that I was here in the land of the Bengals.

Without wanting to offend any Cincinnatians (many who are my friends) I offer this review:

It tasted weird. I'm sorry. Chili on spaghetti is just an odd thing for a Californian. First, the chili itself is bean-less. That was odd for those of us from areas where Chili has a south-of-the-border influence. Second, the chili is seasoned with some very specific spice I can't identify. I think cinnamon, anise or excessive oregano. It was strange because if God meant chili to go with cinnamon, he would have placed it (cinnamon) in the meat section and not with the baked goods.

A bed of plain spaghetti is doused with the sweet chili meat stuff and then covered in grated cheese and hot sauce and oyster crackers and anything else you want. The effect is quite strange.

The flavor isn't bad really, just odd. OK maybe a little yucky. I didn't like it but that doesn't mean it was bad. Clearly this is a Cincinnati thing and that's OK. Maybe yucky is too harsh. How about lets leave it that my sun-doused taste-buds are just not refined enough for this mid-western delicacy?

So if you come to this part of the Midwest definitely try this stuff. It is different. And next time somebody says, "if you go to ---(name of state or country ), make sure you eat the ---(regional food)" beware that they love it because they grew up with it. That's how you get people in Asia who think a jar of fermented octopus testicles is something you (the silly American tourist) would love. You probably won't, and that's OK.

Now, Graeters ice cream- that's something TOTALLY amazing. You gotta try it, its a Cincinnati thing.