Saturday, Donna and I drove into Cincinnati for the first time to see some art and try a restaurant. After much research, I chose the Italian place called Nicola's. The room did not impress as it seemed to be a "leftover" from some German or Swiss place since it had that "chalet" look. Donna's appetizer was a carpaccio of brescola with a little marscapone, apple, and a drizzle of balsamic. The portion was about 1/3 of an ounce and cost $15! I wouldn't mind, but Donna said it was just okay. Her pasta was a tagliatelle with a sauce Bolognese. Expecting that robust flavor so typical of Bologna, Donna put her fork down and could not eat the dish. She said that the chef had added sugar to sweeten the sauce. I must ask, why would any Italian chef do this? Does a Bolognese sauce need sugar? In addition, Donna said there was a strange flavor of fennel or rosemary. This pasta cost $22.
I had some trepidation ordering a wine and asked the waiter if a 2003 Brunello would be too young. I told Dan that I like my wines earthy with a barn yard aroma. He assured me that this particular Brunello had aged young and was quite drinkable. After my taste, I knew it wasn't there, but thought it would open up. Alas, I was wrong, and I had a disappointing $100 bottle of wine.
Although we enjoyed our day in Cincinnati, after dropping around 275 bucks at Nicola's, we appreciate Louisville's restaurants even more.