Tour of the Markets-Findlay Market, Cincinnati, Ohio

When I started this blog journey, I never thought I would be doing market tours in December! Some recent travel has brought me to new cities, new climates, and new possibilities! I couldn’t help but let my imagination run wild of what this place looks like in the peak of summer, so follow with me as I paint a little picture to start. I was very thankful for the chance to experience it as is, and may just be a reason to make another trip here!

I like to walk through the market together, showing you the experience as I had it, but I have to jump a bit. This market building was almost a city block, and each entrance was very unique! I parked in their lot and walked through outdoor shops of pet treats, butcher shops and bakeries to be greeted here at the entrance.

Had I parked on the street, this is the technical ‘front’ entrance which many will be more familiar with. Often filled with tables, this was a congregating place for their guided tours, and I saw several groups while I was here, even in the off season.

This is a teaser to later in this blog, but if you exit from the side entrance, you are led down an alley into an amazing artistic experience. Stay tuned for the bonus tour at the end…

The main building had garage style doors lining the entire exterior, which were opened when I got here, but closed as it started to rain.

As you can see on the ground, this would be lined with outdoor stands boasting all kinds of produce and seasonal gatherings.

A gentleman named Tim Parsley painted this mural all along the building opposite the main entrance, depicting various scenes from inside. It was huge and these pictures do not do this justice. A really amazing work of art!

Between the numerous fish stands inside as well as fish markets in the stores surrounding the market building, this felt anything but a Midwest city!

Despite the rain, there was still most of the outdoor furniture out, and many people stopped to enjoy their lunch outside (myself included!)

Enough with the imagination of summer, and welcome inside! This felt like I walked inside a mix of Santa’s workshop and Pike’s Place market in Seattle! It was bustling, noisy, and smelled fantastic!

I was first greeted with cooler after cooler of homemade pastas, bread doughs, mixed butter concoctions and secret recipe sauces. All were incredibly creative, and offered vegan, vegetarian and gluten free options.

In a perfect complement, next was the infused oils and vinegars, each with a great flavor and interesting combinations to try (citrus infused olive oil was my souvenir from this market, although I’m still working on recipes-open to suggestions!).

No meal is complete without your herbs and spices! All homemade mixes and creative combinations, this was an interesting ‘pay per weight’ booth with tons of recipe suggestions from a very nice woman offering family favorites.

My WI roots jumped for joy at the sheer amount of cheeses that were present! I thought I knew my cheese, but not only did they have every kind I could ever imagine, they even had their own mixes of new varieties I have not!

It was about this time I realized two fundamental mistakes in my distant quest: 1) I only had a small cooler in my car and a significant drive home, and 2) everyone was so friendly and generous with their samples and suggestions that I was going to run out of time and room in my stomach if I kept up this pace!

The amount of seafood available made this feel like a town right off of the ocean!

I was extremely impressed with the vast variety of fish options, way beyond the typical offerings that many markets may offer.

As I got to the middle of the long aisle, this mosaic was the center of the four way intersection. I wish I had history here, as I’m sure there is a great story behind this gorgeous piece (please share if you know!) but this is a wonderful topographical view of what the market and surrounding buildings look like.

Continuing my walk, the produce unveiled itself in the aisles to follow. While I’m sure this is not all seasonal offerings, being in this market made me forget that I was parked right off the railroad tracks at a meter, and instead in a country shed in the middle of summer.

There were some stands that had a lot more ‘seasonal’ offerings, and intriguing produce that I am not use to seeing at markets.

Gearing up for the holiday feasts, there were many people with carts and baskets loading up on these holiday staples. It was fun to be in this festive environment, and there were numerous conversations around favorite vegetable side dishes (I learned a few new ideas on brussel sprouts here!)

This was about the time that the rain started and the doors were starting to close, but gave a great impression of how the market operates on a typical basis.

Given the location in Over-The-Rhine neighborhood between many large businesses, it was starting to become lunchtime and I saw lots of people coming in for a lunchbreak to enjoy some of the premade offerings.

Pictures do not do this justice, and I was blown away at how much there was! And not only quantity but amazing ingredients and quality-all dietary restrictions accounted for, many nationalities showcased, and the most mouth-watering recipes you could imagine (at this point I’ve given up any hope of reigning in my sampling….I tried the curried cashew and chicken, and marinated beet and feta salad).

What would lunch be without a pile of sweets to wash it down? Every kind of dessert I could picture was here-cakes, pies, cookies, chocolates, cupcakes, tarts….all of it, and all beautifully decorated!

The rows of sweet treats seemed so fitting given the season, and maybe the music playing or the decorations around, but it almost felt like I was dancing like a sugar plum fairy throughout these aisles!

As I got closer to the back of the building, more of the bakery items, roasted coffees and handmade art was available. There was a lot of glass, pottery and textiles, all beautifully displayed.

I love leaving the flowers for last. Whether it’s an outdoor market in the middle of summer, or an indoor market like this one, it feels like the smells and gorgeous colors are the perfect goodbye to a wonderful experience!

This was no exception, and not only did they have a great variety of flowers, but also holiday focused arrangements, giving an even more fragrant send off.

And after all of the grocery and gift shopping, if you happen to have left a tree to the last minute, there were still many to choose from!

Let’s proceed a bit on foot. As I exited (remember the artistic alley entrance at the beginning?), I was struck by the amount of artwork located around this neighborhood.

Almost every large surface of a building had a complete mural covering it, and not always in typical public places (this was an alley by the parking lot).

I left the cars in this for scale of size. The colors were breathtaking, and especially on a drizzling day, such a brilliant site!

Most of these were not on public buildings or in prominent places, but instead on the side of an apartment building, or looking over a small parking lot.

While some had the artist’s name, most were unsigned.

The entire Over-The-Rhine neighborhood was an outdoor museum, and I would highly suggest spending time on a walking art tour if you make it over for this market experience! A fabulous surprise addition to my morning adventure!

Despite the mass quantity of tastings, there was no way I was leaving without the full experience of lunch on the patio! I opted for the roasted chickpea and olive salad in paprika and cumin, kale winter salad with marinated onions and roasted squash, and apple walnut chicken curry salad. My mouth is watering just writing this blog and remembering those flavors!

All said and done, this was much more than a market tour for me. I would come back in the summer just to see it in its prime! The overall attitude of everyone here, the people I met and stories exchanged, the festive feel, and especially followed by an art tour through the neighborhood was second to none and left a great impression of Cincinnati as I looked back through my rearview mirror.

If you like these blogs or recipes (take these as inspiration-my kitchen is a trial and error style), please follow along on the website, Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest, and the best compliment is to share with others!

Thanks for tagging along on this journey!

Hannah (your fearless culinary visionairre)