Cincinnati and Cleveland are Ohio's two great food cities, and they cook from related but distinct immigrant traditions. Cincinnati eats on three foundations: chili, goetta and beer. Cincinnati chili is a Mediterranean-spiced meat sauce served over spaghetti or coneys, invented by Macedonian immigrants Tom and John Kiradjieff at the Empress chili parlor on Vine Street in 1922 and now anchored by Skyline Chili (1949), Gold Star (1965) and the James Beard America's Classic winner Camp Washington Chili (1940). Goetta, the German-Cincinnati breakfast porridge of pork and pinhead oats, has the Glier's brand and the Newport Goettafest. Findlay Market in Over-the-Rhine has run since 1855, the oldest continuously operating public market in Ohio.

Cleveland eats off three currents: Eastern European immigrant cooking laid down between 1880 and 1920, Lake Erie's perch and walleye seasons, and a Little Italy that has not moved off Mayfield Road since the 1890s. The Polish Boy sandwich (kielbasa with French fries, coleslaw and BBQ sauce stacked into one bun) is the city's defining street food, plated at Seti's food truck and Mt Pleasant Bar-B-Q. Pierogi cross every menu from Prosperity Social Club in Tremont to West Side Market stalls. The market has run on West 25th since 1912; Slyman's has stacked corned beef on rye since 1964.

For travelers, the pairing is the canonical Ohio food trip. 3 nights Cincinnati for chili, goetta and the Findlay Market food district in OTR; 3 nights Cleveland for the Polish Boy, pierogi, and the West Side Market. The drive is 4 hours along I-71.

Cincinnati vs Cleveland at a glance

Cincinnati

United States

Chili over spaghetti, goetta for breakfast, OTR for everything else.

Fine dining
10 editor-picked rooms
Restaurants
19 editor-picked
Signature dishes
12 canonical dishes
Neighborhoods
12 food districts

Cincinnati food guide →

Cleveland

United States

Polish Boys, pierogi, the West Side Market and Lake Erie perch.

Fine dining
13 editor-picked rooms
Restaurants
22 editor-picked
Signature dishes
11 canonical dishes
Neighborhoods
10 food districts

Cleveland food guide →

Signature dishes side by side

Cincinnati

  • Cincinnati chili
    Cincinnati chili is a thin Mediterranean-spiced meat sauce poured over spaghetti as a 3-way, or with beans (4-way) and onions (5-way).
  • Cheese coney
    The Cincinnati cheese coney is a steamed hot dog in a soft bun, topped with Cincinnati chili, diced raw onion, yellow mustard and a thick blanket of shredded mild cheddar.
  • Goetta
    Goetta is a Cincinnati-Northern-Kentucky pork-and-pinhead-oats breakfast porridge, sliced into golden pan-fried slabs and served alongside eggs and toast.
  • Graeter's French-pot ice cream
    Graeter's French-pot ice cream is small-batch ice cream made in 2.
  • LaRosa's square pizza
    LaRosa's pizza is the Cincinnati regional style: square-cut pie with a thin crust and a sweet tomato sauce, finished with a blanket of provolone over Italian sausage or pepperoni.
  • Montgomery Inn ribs
    Montgomery Inn ribs are loin back pork ribs first par-boiled then grilled, finished with the Montgomery Inn secret-recipe barbecue sauce, sweet and tangy with vinegar bite.

Cleveland

  • Polish Boy
    Cleveland's defining sandwich: a grilled kielbasa link in a bun, piled with hand-cut french fries, sweet coleslaw and a slap of barbecue sauce.
  • Cleveland-style cassata cake
    A four-layer yellow sponge cake soaked in light syrup and stacked with whipped cream, custard and fresh strawberries, finished with strawberry glaze.
  • Pierogi
    Boiled-then-pan-fried Polish dumplings, classic Cleveland fillings of potato-and-cheese, sauerkraut-mushroom or sweet prune; served with caramelized onions and sour cream.
  • Kielbasa
    Smoked Polish-style pork sausage, grilled or pan-fried; eaten in a roll with mustard or sliced into a pierogi-and-cabbage plate.
  • Slyman's-style corned beef sandwich
    An overstuffed half-pound of brisket-cured corned beef piled on rye with deli mustard; the Cleveland deli sandwich the Slyman family has built since 1964.
  • Stadium Mustard
    Cleveland's signature spicy-brown ballpark condiment, served on every Polish Boy, kielbasa link and corned beef sandwich in town.

Editor-picked top venues

Cincinnati

Cleveland

How they differ

Cincinnati is Macedonian and German. The defining dish is Cincinnati chili (the Mediterranean-spiced meat sauce served over spaghetti or as a coney), invented in 1922 by the Kiradjieff brothers at the Empress chili parlor on Vine Street and now anchored by Skyline Chili, Gold Star, and the James Beard America's Classic winner Camp Washington Chili (2000 award). Goetta, the pork-and-pinhead-oats breakfast porridge, came with German immigrants from the 1840s and runs as the Glier's brand from Covington, Kentucky. Findlay Market in Over-the-Rhine (1855) is the oldest continuously operating public market in Ohio; the OTR food district around it now includes Jose Salazar's restaurants, Rhinegeist Brewery and Mellotone Beer Project. Graeter's has French-pot churned ice cream since 1870; LaRosa's runs the regional sweet-sauce square pizza. Cleveland is Polish, Hungarian and Italian, with a Lake Erie seafood season layered on top. The Polish Boy (kielbasa with French fries, coleslaw and BBQ sauce on a bun) is the defining street food. Pierogi run across every menu from Prosperity Social Club in Tremont to West Side Market stalls. West Side Market on West 25th has stood since 1912 in a brick clock-tower hall with outdoor produce stands. Slyman's at 3106 St Clair Avenue has stacked corned beef on rye since 1964; Lake Erie yellow perch and walleye anchor the spring through fall seafood season; Great Lakes Brewing on Market Avenue has poured Edmund Fitzgerald porter since 1988.

When to choose Cincinnati

Pick Cincinnati if you want the chili-parlor tradition, German-Cincinnati breakfast culture, and the Findlay Market food district in Over-the-Rhine. Cincinnati is the right base for travelers who want a 3-way at Camp Washington Chili, a coney at Skyline at 2am, goetta and eggs at Sugar n' Spice, a Graeter's black raspberry chip cone, Montgomery Inn ribs, and a Findlay Market crawl on a Saturday morning. The OTR brewery district (Rhinegeist, Mellotone, MadTree Bridges) anchors evenings. Best for travelers anchored on regional comfort food and immigrant-history dining, travelers visiting for Oktoberfest Zinzinnati (the third weekend of September, America's largest Oktoberfest), and travelers planning a Bourbon-Trail extension across the Ohio River to Kentucky. Three nights minimum; four if Goettafest (late July) or Oktoberfest is the anchor.

When to choose Cleveland

Pick Cleveland if you want Eastern European immigrant cooking, Lake Erie seafood season, and the West Side Market's century-old hall. Cleveland is the right base for travelers who want a Polish Boy at Seti's food truck or Mt Pleasant Bar-B-Q, pierogi at Prosperity Social Club, a Slyman's corned beef sandwich, Lake Erie yellow perch in season, and a West Side Market morning (the market runs Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday plus Sunday, closed Tuesday and Thursday). The Little Italy stretch along Mayfield Road runs the August 13 to 16 Feast of the Assumption every year; Cassata cake at Presti's and Corbo's anchors the bakery tradition. Tremont and Ohio City anchor the modern restaurant tier with Cordelia, Mabel's BBQ and Fahrenheit. Best for travelers anchored on immigrant cooking, travelers visiting for Indians-Browns-Cavs games, and travelers planning a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame weekend. Three nights minimum; four if you want a Lake Erie islands extension to Put-in-Bay.

What they share

Both Ohio cities run deep Eastern European immigrant food heritage (Macedonian and German in Cincinnati; Polish, Hungarian and Italian in Cleveland) and both anchor on a century-plus public market (Findlay 1855, West Side 1912). Both run strong regional brewery scenes (Rhinegeist and Mellotone in OTR; Great Lakes Brewing and Platform Beer Co in Ohio City and Tremont). The I-71 drive runs 4 hours between them; the textbook Ohio food pairing is 3 nights Cincinnati plus 3 nights Cleveland, often with a Columbus stopover. Both share a Friday fish-fry tradition (Lenten Catholic carry-over), a strong German-pastry bakery culture, and the regional ice cream wars (Graeter's in Cincinnati; Mitchell's in Cleveland). The differences come down to register (Cincinnati's chili-parlor culture has no parallel in Cleveland; Cleveland's Polish-Boy-and-pierogi street food has no parallel in Cincinnati) and seafood (Cleveland has Lake Erie perch and walleye; Cincinnati has the Ohio River but no commercial fishery).

Frequently asked: Cincinnati vs Cleveland

Which is better for first-time visitors to Ohio?

Cincinnati if you want a focused chili-parlor and OTR brewery weekend. Cleveland if you want the West Side Market, Polish Boys, and Lake Erie seafood. Both work as standalone trips; combining them is the textbook Ohio food itinerary.

Can I do both in one trip?

Yes. The 4-hour I-71 drive (or the 1-hour flight) connects them; the standard Ohio food trip is 3 nights each, often with a Columbus stopover en route.

Which is cheaper to eat in?

Roughly equivalent at the everyday tier. Cincinnati 3-way at $7 to $10, coney at $3 to $4, goetta breakfast at $9 to $14. Cleveland Polish Boy at $9 to $12, pierogi plate at $12 to $16, Slyman's corned beef at $14 to $18. Mid-tier dinners run $50 to $90 in both cities.

Which has the better fine-dining scene?

Roughly comparable, with different anchors. Cincinnati has Jose Salazar's restaurants, Boca by David Falk, and Daniel Wright's projects across OTR and downtown. Cleveland has Cordelia, Mabel's BBQ, Fahrenheit and Marble Room. Neither city has Michelin coverage yet (the Guide has not expanded to Ohio).

What is goetta exactly?

A Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky breakfast porridge of pork and pinhead steel-cut oats, mixed with onion and spices, slow-cooked, then chilled into loaves, sliced and pan-fried until crisp. Served alongside eggs and toast at diners across Greater Cincinnati. Glier's, founded in Covington, Kentucky in 1946, dominates the commercial market.

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