Page 168 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL EATING IBERIA

CivilWar.InCincinnati’sNationalUndergroundRail-
road Freedom Center (freedomcenter.org), we im-
mersed ourselves in interactive displays, extensive
photographs and documents and even a real-life
1830 log slave pen, previously used to house slaves
prior to their being shipped to auction that was
moved from a farm in Kentucky.
ThiswasthebiggestsurprisetomeinCincinnati.
This deeply moving museum opened in 2004, dedi-
cated to “abolish human enslavement and secure
freedom for all people.”
Thousands of slaves had escaped to freedom
here by crossing the Ohio River from southern slave
states. The museum’s galleries feature the stories of
abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, Harriet Tubman,
an escaped slave and conductor on the Underground
Railroad; and Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave
who became a distinguished speaker for abolition.
There are films that recount the harrowing stories of
runaway slaves, exhibits about Abraham Lincoln’s
roleaswellastheCivilWar,andexhibitsthatportray
continuing struggles faced by African Americans
since the end of slavery. I left in tears.
We dined that night at an elegant white-table-
cloth restaurant named Restaurant L (www.lcincin-
nati.com) that literally gave credence to Maness’
statement about the Cincinnati food scene being a
fraction of what it would cost in coastal cities. In this
Parisian-style restaurant “with a little New York atti-
tude and an abundance of Cincinnati charm,” we
dinedonathree-coursegourmetmealforabout$85.
This prix-fixe menu offered several choices for each
course, including lobster salad, house cured salmon that opened in 1931 that sits next to the 49-story
or foie gras terrine for the first course; cheese, corn Carew Tower, long the tallest building in town, now the
and mushroom ravioli in spicy corn broth, scallops second tallest. The Netherland Plaza is called the “first
with mushroom polenta cake or rabbit with summer lady of downtown hotels.”
vegetablesandolivetapenadeforthesecondcourse; TheNetherlandPlaza’smainpublicroomsareliter-
and arctic char with fondue of spinach, carrots and ally works of art. There are 10 floor-to-ceiling murals in
mushrooms, or Hill Farm chicken with red rice goat the Palm Court Restaurant; there are Rookwood Pot-
cheese risotto and bell pepper fondue, or filet tery floral tiles adorning the east and west entrances to
mignon with potato puree, beets and broccolini for the building. And brunch was bountiful — biscuits in-
the main course. Wine pairings are $35 to $50 and cluded, complete with the Chef’s Old-Fashioned, a sig-
desserts of two courses or three are $65 or $85 ad- nature cocktail here made with your call of bourbon,
ditional. Delectable. Angostura bitters, simple syrup and an ice cube that
Following a local tradition, we had to have melts slowly into your bourbon as you sip. They call it a
brunch at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza “Kentucky hug.”
(www.hilton.com) a French Art Deco masterpiece

168 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE 2020