SHARONVILLE, Ohio -- Choo! Choo!
Or should we say, Food! Food!
Sharonville officials and restaurateurs are trying to lure foodies from across Greater Cincinnati by incorporating 18 independent restaurants on a “train ticket.”
Food lovers receive a punch on their ticket for each restaurant they visit. Participants receive a T-shirt once they’ve hit 12 of the 18 spots. If you hit all 18, you'll be entered into a grand prize drawing to have a private dinner for 8 with their Executive Chef at the Sharonville Convention Center. So far, about 1,000 tickets have been sold in two and a half weeks.
Katy Huffman, small business liaison, said the Sharonville Food Train allows the community to experience places they wouldn’t have otherwise.
“Sometimes people need that icebreaker for a reason to go into a place for the first time to really go and explore what we have to offer because in Sharonville we have really great, small independent restaurants that need to be recognized,” Huffman said.
The train features everything from a Greek restaurant to an Italian eatery, bakeries and a candy store.
Nick Place knows all about the offerings. The 27-year-old and his friends have been to 14 restaurants in the food train to this date.
“We were just committed to doing Mondays,” Place said. “We’d be like, ‘Listen, you can’t eat. We’re going into four places to eat. This is what’s happening.’”
Place said the food train not only gave him something to look forward to every week, but also an appreciation of local businesses and how their services enrich the community.
“You lose the local idea, so it’s cool that it’s a thing here,” Place said. “All the places have been excellent, every single one has been good.”
