Ohio is a Midwestern state at the heart of American culture, birthplace of eight U.S. presidents, and home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Pro Football Hall of Fame, and Cedar Point — the 'Roller Coaster Capital of the World.' From Cleveland's revitalized lakefront to Columbus's thriving Short North arts district, Cincinnati's unique chili culture, and the breathtaking caves and waterfalls of Hocking Hills, Ohio offers remarkable variety for every traveler.
Ohio's food scene is anchored by three distinct city cuisines. Cleveland has a thriving fine-dining scene led by James Beard Award-winning chefs like Michael Symon. Columbus is Ohio's most dynamic food city with a booming Short North restaurant strip. Cincinnati is famous for its unique 'Cincinnati chili' — a thin, spiced meat sauce served over spaghetti with cheese — a true regional culinary institution. Across the state, craft brewing, farm-to-table dining, and Amish-style comfort food define the regional character.
Top restaurants
Handpicked picks for the best dining experiences.
Lola Bistro
Michael Symon's flagship on East 4th Street helped anchor Cleveland's downtown dining scene in the 2000s. The kitchen works a modern American menu with an emphasis on offal and butchery, plated with a chef-driven, ingredient-forward sensibility rather than white-tablecloth formality. The dining room is dark, urban, and bar-forward, with an open kitchen sightline.
Known for: Michael Symon's flagship restaurant; house-cured meats and locally sourced ingredients
2058 E 4th St, Cleveland, OH 44115
Schmidt's Sausage Haus und Restaurant
A German Village institution operating out of a 19th-century meat-packing building in Columbus, with a beer-hall layout of long communal tables and staff in dirndls and lederhosen. The kitchen turns out sausages made on site, sauerkraut, and other German comfort food in large portions.
Known for: Columbus institution since 1886; giant cream puffs are a must
240 E Kossuth St, Columbus, OH 43206
Skyline Chili
A Cincinnati chili chain built around a Greek-spiced meat sauce, thinner and sweeter than Tex-Mex chili, ladled over spaghetti or hot dogs. Locations are diner-style counters and booths built for fast turnover rather than lingering.
Known for: The defining Cincinnati chili experience; the spiced meat sauce uses cinnamon, cloves, and chocolate
290 Ludlow Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45220
The Refectory Restaurant and Bistro
Housed in a former 19th-century church building on the north side of Columbus, this is one of the city's longest-running fine dining rooms, serving French-American food with a classical, sauce-driven technique. The bistro side offers a lighter, more casual menu than the main dining room.
Known for: Columbus's most acclaimed fine dining restaurant for 40+ years; housed in a converted church
1092 Bethel Rd, Columbus, OH 43220
Tony Packo's
A Toledo institution in the city's Hungarian Birmingham neighborhood, famous well beyond Ohio thanks to a shout-out on the sitcom M*A*S*H. The food is Hungarian-American diner cooking — stuffed cabbage, chicken paprikash, and grilled hot dogs — served in a casual room decorated with hot dog buns signed by celebrities.
Known for: Toledo legend since 1932; famous from M*A*S*H TV show; walls lined with signed hot dog buns from celebrities
1902 Front St, Toledo, OH 43605
Greenhouse Tavern
Jonathon Sawyer's East 4th Street restaurant was Ohio's first LEED-certified restaurant and helped define Cleveland's farm-to-table movement in the late 2000s. The menu leans into whole-animal cooking and shareable plates, served in a bistro-style room with a French-brasserie feel rather than a stiff tasting-menu format.
Known for: Pioneer of Cleveland's farm-to-table movement; rooftop terrace with skyline views
2038 E 4th St, Cleveland, OH 44115
Orchids at Palm Court
The formal dining room of the Hilton Netherland Plaza in downtown Cincinnati, set inside one of the country's best-preserved Art Deco hotel interiors from 1931. The kitchen serves contemporary American food with white-tablecloth service that matches the grandeur of the room.
Known for: Opulent Art Deco setting in Cincinnati's most historic hotel; AAA Four Diamond rated
35 W Fifth St, Cincinnati, OH 45202
Market Garden Brewery
A brewpub on Cleveland's West 25th Street strip near the West Side Market, from the family behind Great Lakes Brewing Company. The food is gastropub cooking built to pair with the house beer list, served in a casual, high-turnover room with a patio.
Known for: Adjacent to West Side Market; 30+ house beers on tap; large beer garden
1947 W 25th St, Cleveland, OH 44113
Restaurants by cuisine
Browse picks grouped by cuisine type.
American
The Thurman Cafe
This German Village bar and grill has been serving the neighborhood since the 1940s, and the menu is built almost entirely around oversized, over-the-top burgers rather than a broad American pub lineup. The dining room is small and packed with old beer signs, sports memorabilia, and mismatched booths, giving it the feel of a longtime corner tavern rather than a designed restaurant.
Known for: Home of the Thurmanator — featured on Man v. Food; 1-pound burger challenge
183 Thurman Ave, Columbus, OH 43206
Barley's Brewing Company
One of the older brewpubs on High Street in the Short North, Barley's pairs house-brewed ales with straightforward American pub cooking rather than an ambitious kitchen. The space has the exposed brick and taproom feel typical of a working brewery attached to a restaurant.
Known for: Columbus's oldest craft brewery (est. 1992); 12 house-brewed beers always on tap
467 N High St, Columbus, OH 43215
Happy Dog
Happy Dog is a Cleveland institution built around a long menu of build-your-own hot dogs, with toppings running from classic chili and cheese to more unusual combinations like peanut butter or fruit loops. It doubles as a live music venue, so the bar has a scruffy, all-ages punk-rock energy rather than a typical quick-service hot dog stand.
Known for: 50 toppings on an $8 hot dog; live music nightly from local and touring acts
5801 Detroit Ave, Cleveland, OH 44102
Montgomery Inn Boathouse
The Boathouse is the larger, riverfront sibling of the original Montgomery Inn, sitting right on the Ohio River with Cincinnati's skyline and the Purple People Bridge in view. It's a big, banquet-hall-style dining room built around the family's Saratoga barbecue sauce, a sweet, tomato-and-mustard-tinged glaze that's been the restaurant's signature since the original location opened in the 1950s. The menu is built for large groups and pre-game crowds heading to nearby Great American Ball Park or Paycor Stadium.
Known for: Cincinnati institution famous for ribs since 1951; Bob Hope's favorite; Ohio River views
925 Eastern Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45202
G. Michael's Bistro and Bar
G. Michael's has been a fixture of German Village, Columbus's historic brick-street neighborhood south of downtown, for decades, serving French- and Italian-inflected American bistro food. The kitchen favors classic technique, braises, pan sauces, composed plates, over trendy small plates, and the wine list is deep enough to have earned regular recognition in Columbus dining write-ups.
Known for: German Village's most celebrated restaurant; romantic atmosphere in a converted 1800s brick building
595 S 3rd St, Columbus, OH 43206
Inn at Cedar Falls Restaurant
This restaurant is part of a small inn and cabin property tucked into the Hocking Hills region near Logan, and the dining room serves guests staying on-site as well as outside visitors making the drive out for dinner. The kitchen sources heavily from its own garden and nearby farms, with a menu that shifts seasonally around Ohio produce, pork, and foraged mushrooms rather than sticking to a fixed year-round card.
Known for: Farm-to-table meals sourced from organic gardens on property; best dining experience in Hocking Hills
21190 State Rte 374, Logan, OH 43138
Great Lakes Brewing Company
Great Lakes is one of the earliest craft breweries in Ohio, operating out of a restored 19th-century building in Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood, complete with a bullet hole in the bar reportedly left by Eliot Ness-era gunfire. The food menu is built to pair with the house beers, pub classics and Lake Erie walleye rather than an ambitious chef-driven menu, and the taproom draws both brewery-tour visitors and regulars.
Known for: Ohio's first craft brewery (est. 1988); Edmund Fitzgerald Porter is nationally renowned
2516 Market Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113
Ice Cream
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams (Flagship)
This is the original Jeni's storefront, in the Short North arts district on High Street, where the brand's French-pot ice cream making started before it expanded into a national chain. The base recipes lean on grass-grazed dairy and unusual pairings rather than mix-ins, giving the ice cream a denser, more custard-like texture than typical scoop shops. The space is small and narrow with a walk-up counter, so it moves quickly even when a line forms out the door on weekend evenings.
Known for: James Beard Award–winning ice cream brand founded in Columbus; national favorite with 50+ locations
714 N High St, Columbus, OH 43215
Graeter's Ice Cream
Graeter's has been making ice cream in Cincinnati since the 1870s using the French pot process, small batches churned slowly so the ice cream comes out dense with very little air whipped in. That method is also why its chocolate chip flavors have large, shattered chocolate chunks instead of small chips: the chocolate is poured into the batch in liquid form and broken up by the paddles.
Known for: Cincinnati's beloved ice cream brand since 1870; French pot process creates ultra-dense 1.5-pound pint chunks
332 Ludlow Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45220
Italian
Primavista
Primavista sits on Price Hill overlooking the Ohio River, and its main draw alongside the food is the view, floor-to-ceiling windows facing downtown Cincinnati and the river valley, making it a favorite for sunset dinners. The kitchen is old-school Northern Italian, built on hand-made pasta and slow-braised classics rather than a modern reinterpretation of the cuisine.
Known for: Rooftop Italian restaurant with panoramic Cincinnati skyline views
810 Matson Pl, Cincinnati, OH 45204
Dante
Dante Boccuzzi's flagship in Tremont pairs Italian technique with contemporary plating in a sleek, dimly lit dining room of dark wood and white tablecloths. The kitchen leans on house-made pasta and whole-fish preparations rather than red-sauce standards, with a menu that changes seasonally around a few fixed signatures.
Known for: Tremont's award-winning Italian-American restaurant; acclaimed wine list and seasonal tasting menu
2247 Professor Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113
Cincinnati Chili
Gold Star Chili
Gold Star is one of the two big regional chains behind Cincinnati chili, a Greek-spiced meat sauce served over spaghetti rather than as a standalone bowl. It's a quick-service format built for fast turnover, not a sit-down dining experience.
Known for: Skyline Chili's chief rival since 1965; both brands are must-tries for the full Cincinnati chili experience
2505 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
Comfort Food
Melt Bar and Grilled
Melt turned the grilled cheese sandwich into a full menu concept, stacking combinations like pierogies, pulled pork, and mac and cheese between thick slices of grilled bread. The Lakewood location has a punk-and-metal-inflected bar atmosphere, with band posters and a jukebox rather than a quiet dining room feel.
Known for: Northeast Ohio cult favorite; 30+ craft grilled cheese creations and 24 craft beers on tap
14718 Detroit Ave, Lakewood, OH 44107
French
L'Albatros Brasserie
Part of chef Zack Bruell's Cleveland restaurant group, L'Albatros sits in University Circle near Case Western and serves French brasserie classics like moules frites and croque monsieur in a room with a Parisian bistro layout of tile floors and close-set tables. The cooking is more classic French than the modern American food found at Bruell's other Cleveland spots.
Known for: French brasserie steps from the Cleveland Museum of Art; popular for pre-/post-museum dining
11401 Bellflower Rd, Cleveland, OH 44106
Multi
North Market
North Market is Columbus's oldest continuously operating public market, housed in a converted warehouse just north of downtown near the Arena District. Inside are dozens of independent food stalls, from an ice cream counter to Eastern European dumplings to a well-regarded espresso bar, so a visit works more like grazing across several small kitchens than sitting down at one restaurant.
Known for: Columbus's community market since 1876; 30+ independent vendors for breakfast, lunch, and artisan products
59 Spruce St, Columbus, OH 43215
Spanish
Boca
Boca brings tapas-style Spanish and Mediterranean plates to the Short North, built around shareable small plates like garlic shrimp and patatas bravas rather than single large entrees. The room has a warmer, more Mediterranean look than the exposed-brick brewpub style common elsewhere on the same stretch of High Street.
Known for: Lively Spanish tapas and pintxos bar; one of Columbus's most celebrated independent restaurants
471 N High St, Columbus, OH 43215
Steakhouse
The Precinct
The Precinct occupies a converted Cincinnati police station in the Columbia-Tusculum area, and the steakhouse cooking here leans classic and unfussy: dry-aged beef, simple preparations, and a wine list built to match. Owner Jeff Ruby's steakhouse group runs several Cincinnati properties, but this is the original, smaller and more clubby than its newer siblings.
Known for: Cincinnati's premier steakhouse since 1981; celebrity photos line the walls; USDA Prime beef
311 Delta Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45226
Food tours & tastings in Ohio
Eat your way through Ohio with a guide.
Browse food experiences in OhioWe may earn a commission from bookings made through these links.
Street food
Local flavours at affordable prices.
Food markets
Where locals shop and graze.
West Side Market
Hours: Mon/Wed 7am–4pm; Fri/Sat 7am–6pm
Findlay Market
Hours: Wed/Fri 9am–1pm; Sat–Sun 8am–1pm
North Market
Hours: Tue–Fri 9am–7pm; Sat 8am–5pm; Sun 10am–4pm
Dining etiquette & tips
Navigate the local food scene confidently.
Cincinnati chili parlors (Skyline, Gold Star) are open for breakfast — locals eat chili on coneys at 8am
Schmidt's Sausage Haus in Columbus German Village does not take reservations; arrive early or expect a wait
The Short North area of Columbus (High St between Fifth and Hickory) concentrates the best independent restaurants within a walkable mile
Cleveland's Tremont and Ohio City neighborhoods are the best for independent restaurants away from tourist areas
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams is an Ohio original — the Short North Columbus flagship at 714 N High St is the oldest location
Food budget guide
What to expect at different price points.
| Level | Price | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Budget | $5-15/meal | Street food, local eateries, and simple restaurants. |
| Mid-range | $15-40/meal | Sit-down restaurants with good service and varied menus. |
| Upscale | $40+/meal | Fine dining, international cuisine, and premium experiences. |