2024 Food Synopsis
- Jan 15, 2025
- 7 min read
Updated: Jan 29, 2025
Dear 2024,
THANK YOU!
I traveled more this year than I have my entire life thus far, I tried more food places than I ever have, and I finally started Food Pics by Anna. Full of many up's and down's (as many say) but you can't come up if you never go down, right? (I just made that up)
Anyways, this year took me to Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, back to Chicago, Norris Lake, and last but most certainly not least, Nashville! Honorable mention to the local travel done to Dayton, OH and just across the bridge to Covington, KY for some good eats. I recently ranked my favorite spots of the month in 2024, and wanted to dive a bit deeper on those choices, so here goes nothing!
January
Nada - Downtown Cincinnati
Nada was the first restaurant I went to in the start of 2024, and the occasion was our annual "Cousins Night Out" excursion with my cousins Brenna, and Carley. It never disappoints, from the deliciousss sangria to the queso to the different taco varieties, and even the churros if you're looking to get a little crazy! I picked Nada due to the timing, the meaningful occasion, and how consistent their food, drinks, service, and vibes always are!
February
Basil 1791 - Hamilton, OH
I picked Basil 1791 for February's spot of the month because it was my first non-Cincinnati restaurant of the year and I thought it was great! The Pad Thai was so yum, such a good portion, and they had good cocktails that came with a little light in the bottom for ambiance (lol). They also had a special of the week or month that was a braised short rib and some roasted carrots, it was phenom, you wouldn't have thought it came from this place (like, it tasted like it would have come from a steakhouse). The area of the restaurant was also cute, in Downtown(?) Hamilton, a lot of different bars and fun places to go before or after dinner.
March
Hampton Social - Chicago (Streeterville location specifically)
First Chicago trip (& trip in general) of the year for me to visit a college bestie and celebrate her birthday, and to also see my brother's band perform! Hampton Social (I know it is a chain but it's new to me since I do not reside where one is accessible) was a last minute lunch decision, but everyone absolutely loved the cocktails, apps, and main food! From the oysters to the crab & shrimp bruschetta to the caesar salad & fries, this place rocks. You must! get the frosé! or at least a glass of Hampton Water (my favorite rosé).
April
Ripple Wine Bar - O'Bryonville
Ripple was on my list of places to go to for the longest time, and my friend and I finally picked a day for a reservation and it lived up to the anticipated hype! The burrata appetizer is a definite 10/10, and they gave us more bread when we ran out of it. Loved the wine and wine selection, and I also got the pierogies, they had an interesting twist of hot sauce on them, I was intrigued and pleasantly surprised, though I'm not sure I'd put hot sauce on them at home. As I'm writing this (January 2025) I realize I still need to go back and try more wines and different foods!
May
San Francisco (wholely)
I took a trip to San Francisco in May to visit Ann (childhood bestie) who moved there, and to also see my brother's band play again! Rachel (other childhood bestie) and I traversed to the West Coast (my first time ever leaving the East Coast) and had the best time! Our first stop was Blue Barn where I had the biggest caesar salad of my existence- and it was so good. The first official meal was dinner at Little Shucker, where I had some awesomee oysters, raw AND baked, and then Ann and Rachel shared a crab roll. The next morning, we went to Mama's Luncheonette, and. I am being serious, I still dream about the breakfast burrito I had. I wish I could recreate it. UGH. I also had a yum coffee from Equator Coffee- it was an espresso drink called a Shakerato (2 shots espresso, dark brown sugar, and 2 oz heavy cream shaken until frothy). We passed this mysterious deli on our way to or from somewhere, and upon investigation we decided to get it for lunch - and uncovered a hidden gem - Corsagna Deli - gigantic, amazing, perfect sandwiches. To close out a great trip, our last meal with my brother AJ & Michael (band member) we went to a place Ann found on Resi, Ragazza! My highlights here were the fried arancini, the hot honey pepp pizza, and the garlic knots. While that is the end of actual SF food spots- I wanted to shoutout Peet's coffee in the phoenix airport, and Amy's drive thru in the SF airport- their vegeterian burger actually tasted like a Big Mac (I'm not vegeterian but I like to try things sometimes just for fun).
June
The SkyRosa at Great American Ball Park
No explanation needed. You get the piece of pizza from LaRosa's, the cheese coney from Skyline Chili, put the coney on top of the slice, fold it, and then go to the Cincinnati taste bud heaven of deliciousness. If you really wanted to go insane and maybe a little gross, you could add crushed up Grippo's bbq chips on top, or, dare I say.... a scoop of Graeter's ice cream....
July
Alcove by Madtree
We made a reservation at Alcove for my cousin Carley's bachelorette weekend! Until this, I had only been here for brunch! Let me tell you...their bread board appetizer... omg..amazing. The charcuterie was also amazing, so were the cocktails & mocktails, and our server was awesome, she even brought us over a round of shots for the occasion- taking note of the 2 gals who ordered mocktails & making them a mocktail shot! Their roasted carrots were something I still think about- they have taken them off the menu as of right now, and I really hope they come back! The Crispy Tofu Sandwich was seriously amazing, again, I am not vegetarian, however I would 1000% get this again over a chicken sandwich or a burger!
August
Barcocina - Chicago
Back to Chicago again just for fun- and Barcocina had a really cool patio and delicious bang bang shrimp tacos. I tried a piece of octopus from my friends entree, first time ever, and it was confusing just from looking at the tentacle sucker's but it still tasted great. The margarita was awesome and there was also a group that had a private party going on in their patio that looked super fun....also the bathrooms here are worth mentioning! Fun fact: the photos on my landing page here were taken at Barcocina from this night. Good mems!
September
RoRo's Cookie Co. - Kentucky
September is my birthday month, and I was on a mission to get a fun treat from somewhere I've never tried! I first found RoRo's Cookie Co. on Instagram and was a big fan just from their social media, and decided this was the perfect birthday treat! I ordered "The Ro" ( chocolate chip), "The Rosie" (strawberry white chocolate w/ golden oreos), "The Mom" (peanut butter chocolate chip), "The Big Brother" (salted caramel chocolate chip), "The Granny" (s'mores), and "The Nephew" (M&M). MY favorite was definitely The Nephew M&M cookie!!
October
New Orleans (wholely)
New Orleans was probably my favorite trip of 2024, my cousin got engaged which took months of secrecy and planning and it turned out to be so perfect. Where to begin..... 1) the beignets from Cafe Du Monde are indeed life changing! As far as Bourbon Street goes, we went to some chain restaurants such as Mambo's & Oceana Grill, classic foods like bbq shrimp, cajun alfredo, crab cakes, gumbo, grits, oysters, but the chain aspect does nottt take away from how delicious the food was!!! My favorite brunch was at Red Fish Grill, they had the most AMAZING croissant beignets, seriously I can't emphasize how good they were. My bloody mary came with olives, garlic bulbs, and okra (I love a packed bloody mary) and I got the bourbon street breakfast that entailed 2 overeasy eggs, andouille sausage, grits, a biscuit, and jam (it was amazing). My favorite lunch was from Napoleon House after a day of walking around/shopping, and they had spinach and artichoke dip that was served in a bread bowl, best I've ever had seriously, and I also had a delish chicken salad croissant and jambalaya! Our fanciest dinner, the post-engagement meal was my favorite dinner at Broussard's, the vibe inside was very fancy and they even had standing ice buckets for your wine bottles (fancy). I believe I had shrimp crusted gulf fish with a sauce I don't remember, but it was great! Honorable mention of this trip goes to Fat Boy pizza, the most biggest largest gigantic pizza i've ever seen with a slice that was bigger than my entire head.
November
Mom 'n 'em - Madisonville
Mom 'n 'em Coffee + Wine is one of my favorite places to get work done while drinking a delish coffee and either eating the cinnamon sugar toastie or my new fav- the almond butter banana toastie. From an iced vanilla latte to the coconut cold brew- all of the options are great! I have yet to have wine from them or a dish besides the toasties- so that is a goal for 2025. I chose Mom 'n 'em for November because it was my favorite spot out of where I went this month due to the coffee, food, & vibes!
December
Pata Roja Taqueria - Downtown Cincinnati
My friend Brooke and I decided to go on an adventure for lunch to try a new place in Cincinnati, and we'd both heard amaazzzzing things about Pata Roja and it had been on my list to try for a while! She got the birria tacos, I got the carnitas taco and al pastor taco, and we shared the al pastor burrito, chips and guac, street corn and churros. The flavor of all of their food, is actually insane. Perfectly cooked, seasoned, combined, it was all seriously so good! I love the style of their brand and marketing too- cool vibe all around. Need to plan a trip back as soon as possible, if I worked downtown I think I'd come here too often.
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