“Work, Travel, Save, Repeat”
Another day, another dollar is what they say, right? Whether you travel for work or not and you are fortunate to have some free time to explore, I urge you to make the most of it! Even if time is limited, I find myself sacrificing a little bit of sleep to explore the city you are visiting, because you can usually sleep a little more when you are back home. While most of us “live for the weekend” (I know I am often guilty of this), lets aim to make the weekdays just as great as the weekend, if not better!
Another work week means I’m back on the road (or on a plane) where I went to Cincinnati, Ohio in April (2019). It’s always nice to mix up the typical work location, try new restaurants, explore running paths, find activities, visit museums, anything that adds some spice to the typical work day. The adventures of Cincinnati, Ohio included plenty of delicious meals, scoot scoots across state lines, a handful of bridges, and the great spring weather:
Sleepy Bee
Easily one of my favorite brunch/lunch spots in Cincinnati! Their food is healthy, tasty, and they have both breakfast and lunch options depending on your mood. The team always stops here at least once if not more every time we come to Cincinnati.
16 Bit Bar + Arcade
If you want to travel back in time to your favorite childhood games on an old school Nintendo, Game Cube, and big ancient Arcade games, then you want to come to 16 Bit Bar and Arcade! In addition to the games galore, they offer spunky cocktails with old fashioned candies, I got the Lisa Frank and an adult slushy, that you can enjoy while thriving at the old school Pac-man arcade game or while playing Mario Kart.
Zula Restaurant and Wine Bar
If you find yourself in Cincinnati, you’ll want to visit the hip neighborhood, Over the Rhine. There are various cute funky store filled with home decor, clothing, donut shops, and great restaurants like Zula. This restaurant offers American craft dishes, wine and cocktails, and a variety of mouth-watering dishes. Going to dinner with a group of people is my personal favorite because you can order several dishes and get to sample more than just one dish at a restaurant. Trying a variety of dishes gives you a better feel of the restaurant as whole, so for all of us aspiring foodies we can give the most accurate verdict :P. We ordered the salmon toro (a raw dish similar to beef tar tar), a flatbread with tomatoes, an arugula salad calamari with the all-stars being the muscles in a rich French sauce with white wine, the fried pork balls, and the tiger shrimp.
Skyline
A Cincinnati classic right here! I will give a quick warning – this restaurant is not for those who are watching their figure or eating holistically. Rather, this is a Cincy staple and one of those iconic restaurants well known by the locals. As a lover of tomatoes and prioritizing my health, I asked for a large size salad with lots of tomatoes to attempt to balance out this meal.
Mita’s
If you enjoy tapas style of eating or crave Spanish dishes, Mita’s should be on your list! They have great happy hour deals on wine, delicious guacamole accompanied by warm plantain chips, shrimp tacos, and beef skewers. Every dish had so much flavor with a unique twists and flares. Highly recommend this spot and it is easy to access if you are downtown by walking, scooting, or by car.
Crater’s Ice Cream
Another Cincy staple is their iconic ice cream. This stuff is rich and delicious! So make sure you stop here when you visit.Other recommendations I’ve received and flagged as “want to go” in my google maps include:
- Sotto
- Nada
- Br Burger Bar
- Taft’s Ale House
Here’s a few additional pics from scooting across state lines to Kentucky and along the river, the many bridges, and skyline views:
The weather was great, minus the little bit of rain here and there. Overall a pretty solid work week! It was tricky getting out of town with various flight delays, but if you can look at this with a positive perspective you will thank yourself. If you won’t be mad about it in a month or a year, it’s not worth getting upset over. I took this time to attempt to be productive, enjoy a nice glass of wine and dinner, and enjoy a show on Netflix that I thankfully downloaded earlier in the week. Pro tip – email the airline and tell them about the inconvenience and you just might get a travel voucher for future trips!
I encourage you all to get out there and make the most of your work week. Before you know you won’t just be living for the weekend, you’ll be truly living every single day of the week!
With wanderlust, Haley
Halesyah 