CINCINNATI -- There are plenty of dining options if you're looking to ring the dinner bell before ringing in the new year.
Here are nine restaurants to help you end the year on a delicious note. Make reservations as soon as possible.
Chef-owner Michelle Brown will pull out all the stops on New Year's Eve with a Champagne welcome and four-course dinner of appetizer, soup or salad, entree and dessert.
The first course will leave you gushing over choices such as caviar, Kobe carpaccio and colossal shrimp cocktail. The entree lineup features options such as petite filet mignon with Tristan lobster tail, braised veal osso bucco and black truffle filet mignon. Enjoy live entertainment at the piano bar after dinner, as well as a Champagne toast and party favors.
5980 West Chester Road, West Chester Township. $75 per person; $100 with wine pairings. Children's menu available. 513-860-5353; more details: Jag's New Year's Eve 2017
Feeling the pull of the open road? Executive chef John Tomain wants to take you on a road trip, with dinner and beer pairings to boot. His four-course beer dinner parallels "driving" along Route 50, with each course reflecting the food along this East-West journey.
The salad course -- corresponding to a "stop" in Ohio -- includes roasted beets finished with goetta croutons and paired with a beer-cider hybrid made with apples from Ohio farms. The chef will present flavor descriptions and beer pairings throughout the meal. The evening begins at 6 p.m. Dec. 31 with a cocktail or reception beer, and dinner begins at 7 p.m.
7668 Wooster Pike, Columbia Township. $55 per person. 513-834-8789; more details: https://fiftywestbrew.com/event/2018-fifty-west-nye-dinner/
For something a little different, savor a panorama of Asian flavors with chef and owner Michael Ly. Pacific Kitchen cooks cuisines of countries along the Pacific Rim and then some, including those of China and Myanmar. In addition to the regular menu, Pacific Kitchen will serve dim sum, a Hong Kong-style brunch of small bites, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 31.
Dim sum choices include steamed barbecue pork buns, shrimp dumplings and sticky rice. If you dare -- why not, it's New Year's Eve -- try the beef tripe, chicken feet or baby octopus in curry sauce. The restaurant normally closes at 9:30 p.m. but Ly will keep the bar open past midnight. There will be a round of sparkling sake (or Champagne, if you prefer) at the stroke of midnight -- on the house.
8300 Market Place Lane, Montgomery. Dim sum menu: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Dec. 31; regular menu throughout the day. 513-898-1833.
As a farm-to-table chef, Mike Florea maximizes the use of locally sourced ingredients. The chef also raises pigs at his farm, Queen City Livestock Co. His three-course dinner will incorporate summer sausage from his farm and also offer vegetarian options.
The meal opens with a choice of appetizers, such as cauliflower with yuzu and olive oil, followed by entree choices that include lamb, halibut and mushroom and hominy pie. Finish with dessert options such as eggnog cheesecake.
3235 Madison Road, Oakley. $65 per person; regular and children's menus also available. First seating 5 p.m. Dec. 31; last seating 10 p.m. 513-321-9111; www.facebook.com/eatdrinkloakley
This cozy spot in Over-the-Rhine is perfect for smaller parties of two to four, as well as solo diners. For New Year's Eve, Salazar offers a refined, farm-inspired five-course dinner. The meal begins with an amuse bouche of beet-cured salmon, followed by cauliflower soup with hazelnut granola. Next comes a composition of gnocchi, lobster and caviar, then courses of sea scallops, and wagyu beef.
Chocolate cheesecake and mint ice cream conclude the meal.
1401 Republic St., Over-the-Rhine. $90 per person; optional wine pairings $45 per person. Reservations: josh@salazarcincinnati.com. 513-621-7000; more details: www.facebook.com/events/128389387837628/
This East End "roadhouse" serves highball cocktails, beer, wine and finger foods. This joint soars off the collaboration of restaurateurs from Eli's BBQ and Pho Lang Thang. The food reflects that melding: chicken wings with a choice of sauces (Eli's barbecue sauce among others), and pulled pork banh mi with Eli's smoked pork, Vietnamese pickles and barbecue sauce.
General admission is free, but you can score a VIP seat on the mezzanine level for $100. VIP admission includes open bar, bottomless finger foods, party favors and -- best of all -- your own bartender.
3229 Riverside Drive, East End. General admission: free; VIP: $100 per person. 513-492-7119; more details: www.facebook.com/events/461743577560677/
Chef James Gadd, formerly of the Rookwood in Mount Adams, continues the practice of locally sourcing ingredients at this suburban outpost. The chef will offer two prix fixe menus -- one for omnivores and the other for vegetarians. Both offer four courses: salad, appetizer, main entree and a dessert sampler.
Choose from either the 5:30 or 8 p.m. seatings. Live music starts at 9 p.m. Dec. 31 in the Pub Room and runs through 1 a.m.
6440 Cin-Day Road, Liberty Township. $75 per person; $65 per person vegetarian; includes Champagne toast. 513-644-9365.
Eat good food and savor scenic Summit Park with chef Shawn McCoy's five-course dinner. Ease in with an amuse bouche of eggplant dip and crostini, then enjoy a cheese plate with accoutrements.
There are seven choices for the main entree, including venison, sea bass, lamb and crab-stuffed prawns. Finish with your choice of dessert, such as cherries jubilee cheesecake and bourbon-soaked sponge cake.
The ice skating rink is literally just outside the restaurant, but it closes at 5 p.m. Why not skate first and earn your dinner calories?
1000 Summit Park, Blue Ash. 4-5:30 p.m. Dec. 31, $55.95 per person; 5:30-9:30 p.m.: $67.95 per person. Drink package available. 513-794-1610; more details: New Year's Eve Dinner at The Brown Dog Cafe
Pavilion Caprice Party at Hilton Netherland Plaza
It's hard to beat the majesty of the Hilton Netherland Plaza for ringing in the new year. Celebrate in "Great Gatsby" style in the Pavilion ballroom and partake in a re-creation of the hotel's 1931 grand opening.
Doors open at 7 p.m. Dec. 31, followed by a buffet dinner at 8 p.m. and a dessert presentation at 10 p.m. Table seating will have an unlimited sparkling wine centerpiece. Toast with Champagne and revel in the balloon drop.
35 W. Fifth St., Downtown. $150 per person. Cash bar. Live music until 10 p.m., followed by DJ. Jackets required for men. 513-421-9100; www.facebook.com/events/2004425636465106/
Grace Yek writes about food for WCPO Digital. She is a certified chef-de-cuisine with the American Culinary Federation and a former chemical engineer. Questions or comments? Connect with her on Twitter: @Grace_Yek
