Kale and spinach dip

The Eagle Food & Beer Hall (Review)

· CityBeat · GARIN PIRNIA · Dec 30 2013 ·

Although Cincinnati sits right on the northernmost border of the South, we’ve been bereft of many authentic Southern restaurants — excluding barbecue and Cajun joints. Realizing a niche needed to be filled, brothers Joe and John Lanni and business partner Alex Blust opened The Eagle Beer & Food Hall in December. And since The Eagle landed, Over-the-Rhine’s dining scene has been enriched even more (… if that was possible).

The Lanni brothers, the team behind the successful Mexican-inspired Bakersfield and Currito brands, have knocked it out of the park again with this leap into the nationwide Southern food trend. With The Eagle, they’re exchanging margaritas for beer and tacos for fried chicken. Akin to Bakersfield, The Eagle has a relatively small menu, comprised of fried chicken, sandwiches, some snacks and several side dishes. Booze-wise, they serve 100 kinds of beer and have about 15 different brews on tap, including local offerings from neighboring Rhinegeist and MadTree breweries, and a few cocktails like a Bloody Mary and a Long Island Iced Tea called an OTR Iced Tea, with Ketel One Citroen, Cazadores Blanco, Bacardi, Tanqueray, triple sec, house-made sour mix and Coke served in an iced-tea pitcher, replete with sliced lemons floating on top.

The Eagle is nested inside a retired post office, and remnants of the past still remain: a golden eagle statue greets patrons at the hostess stand; behind the stand are a block of bronzed post office boxes; a giant mural of a bald eagle painted on the exposed-brick wall watches over diners. With its globed-light sconces, leather booths, U-shaped bar (thankfully with hooks on which to hang your purse or scarf), filament chandeliers and reclaimed wood ceiling and wall panels, the entire restaurant emanates bonhomie. Continue reading…

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