Taste of Cincinnati is returning for its 45th year this weekend.
The festival momentarily paused operations Sunday due to inclement. The festival is set to resume operations at 3 p.m.
The beloved food festival takes place Memorial Day weekend on 5th Street between Main Street and just east of Sentinel Street.
Here's when the 2024 festival takes place:
- Saturday, May 25 — 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Sunday, May 26 — 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Monday, May 27 — 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The three-day food festival, which is free to attend, is set to feature dozens of Greater Cincinnati restaurants, food trucks and more. Outside of food vendors, Taste of Cincinnati has a full entertainment lineup on six different stages, which you can click here to view.
Some of the weekend's participating restaurants include Alfio's Buon Cibo, French Toast Heaven, Thai Express, The Cheesecakery and more. There's also various food trucks located in the festival's "Food Truck Zone," including Pierre Entities, MamaBear's Mac, Indigenous Chef, Sweet Jazz Treats Bakery and many more.
For the full list of participating restaurants, food trucks and Findlay Market businesses, click here.
The Greater Cincinnati food festival brings thousands of people to downtown, and with the thousands of attendees comes road closures, parking frustrations and more.
Here are the logisitics you should know about Taste of Cincinnati before the weekend:
Road Closures
Road closures began Wednesday at 6 a.m. All affected roads are expected to be shut down through Tuesday, May 28 at 5 p.m.
- 5th Street — closed between Walnut Street and Columbia Parkway (**Will reopen by 6 a.m. on Tuesday, May 28**)
- Columbia Parkway — closed between Downtown and the 6th Street ramp
- Sycamore Street — closed between 6th Street and 4th Street (access maintained to garages)
- Broadway — closed between 4th Street and 6th Street
- Broadway — converted to a temporary two-way traffic pattern between 7th Street and 6th Street
- Sentinel Street — closed
- Lawrence Street — closed
Drivers on northbound I-71 and I-471 should expect a marked detour in place. Any drivers near the festival site are also reminded to use caution and alternate routes if possible.
Getting to the festival
Taste shuts down multiple roads, including interstate exit ramps, but there's still various routes to get to the festival depending on which direction from.
- From the north (I-75 and I-74) — I-75 South to the Fifth Street exit, straight ahead to festival site
- From the northeast (I-71) — I-71 South to the Reading Road exit. Keep left for Gilbert Avenue, which becomes 8th Street. The festival is threen three blocks to your left/south.
- From the south (I-75 and I-71) — North across the Ohio River to Cincinnati; Use 5th Street exit, straight ahead to event site.
- From the southeast (I-471) — North across Ohio River to Cincinnati to US-50 West, exit at 3rd Street. Festival is two blocks north.
- From Columbia Parkway (US-50) westbound — Use 3rd or 6th Street exits to access the festival. If exiting from 3rd Street, the event is two blocks to the right/north. If exiting from 6th Street, the festival is one block to the left/south.
Parking
Festival-goers have multiple different garage and parking lot options near Taste of Cincinnati. There are several garages and lots on 3rd, 4th and 6th streets. There are also options further away from the festival location, down at The Banks or further north into Over-the-Rhine.
For those who have to park further away from the festival, Cincinnati's streetcar will be operating throughout the weekend. The streetcar will be operating on extended hours due to Taste of Cincinnati. To view the streetcar's route and stops, click here.
Here's when you can ride the streetcar this weekend:
- Saturday — 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
- Sunday — 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
- Monday — 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
You can alsoclick here to download the Transit app, which gives real-time locations for the streetcar.
For more information about Taste of Cincinnati 2024, you can click here.
