About Nicholson's

Went here for my friend's birthday. It was delightful, as always! Good food, good drinks, nice & quiet. We enjoyed it! - 4/15/2026 

Always absolute best experience before a show! Food & drinks were amazing. Our server was wonderful & chatted enjoyably about the arts venue. This has always been the attractive experience that I have at Nicholson’s.👍😊 - 4/11/2026 

Great service and amazing food! Fun dinner stop before a musical at the Aronoff - 4/11/2026 

Forget best UK/Irish inspired bar in Cincinnati, first trip in and this gets my vote for one of the best in the country. Proper pours of Guinness, a menu clearly inspired by Irish, English, and Scottish pubs (but with American flair) and phenomenal sticky toffee pudding. Its a good thing I'm from out of town, or I'd be here minimum once a week until I'd tried every whisk(e)y they have, and it'd take a good long while.If that's not a good enough recommendation for you, service and staff are fantastic, and vibe is 10/10. Plus they make a mean old fashioned. - 4/05/2026 

Been here with my wife a few times—drinks, food, and service are amazing. It’s a great place to dine without having to dress up (suit-and-tie style) if you don’t want to.Our usual dish is the Walnut Street Sirloin. The steak is obviously the star, but what keeps us coming back is the potatoes. They’re roasted in duck fat and taste incredibly delicious ❤️ - 4/04/2026 

Great time and amazing service Stopped into a pub in the US while out one evening and ended up staying longer than planned—in a good way. It had that easygoing, no-pressure vibe where you can just settle in and relax without thinking about time. The staff were genuinely friendly, not in a forced way, just normal, down-to-earth people who made you feel welcome as soon as you walked in. Service was quick but still felt personal. I ordered some food not expecting much, but it actually surprised me. Portions were generous, everything tasted fresh, and it hit that proper comfort-food spot. Paired it with a cold beer, and it just worked. What stood out most was the atmosphere—people chatting, a bit of background noise, maybe a game on somewhere—it felt real and unpolished in the best way. Prices were fair, nothing that made you think twice, especially for how much you get. Overall, just a genuinely good experience. The kind of place you’d happily go back to without overthinking it. - 4/03/2026 

Nicholson's is our pre-show go to for many reasons: location, great menu, great service and a value. We love Nicholson's - 4/03/2026 

Service a bit slow on a crowd at night but the food was excellent. - 3/31/2026 

Restaurant Great locations, comfortable seats, and good lighting. Absolutely great location if you're about to see a play next door. Service Our server was not so great. Maybe the waitress was new, but she took forever to come and help us, our glasses stayed empty, and it took an extra 15 minutes just to get the check. Appetizer None Main Course - Crab cake and toast was a huge hit with my wife. Though she wasn't sure how to eat it and the egg wasn't runny as she wanted, she enjoyed it. - 9/10 - Steak and fries with chimichurri was quite delicious. The bourbon bbq sauce for the fries I highly recommend. Steak was a bit over cooked but tasty. - 8/10 Dessert - Brulé cheese cake was light and fantastic. The berries consisted of 4 blueberries. Would have been nice with a few strawberries or raspberries- 8/10 - 3/30/2026 

We love Nicholson’s! Great food, and drink, exceptional service, and friendly staff! Their specialty menus that match whatever show is at the Arnoff are fun and tasty. Their regular menu is wonderful and always reliable. Love that they support nonprofit organizations in what they do! Highly recommended! - 3/30/2026 

We love eating at Nicholson’s when we attend shows at the Aronoff. Location is across from the Aronoff, the atmosphere is comfortable and the food is fantastic! Fefee is our favorite waitress, however, the entire staff is always on their A game and accommodating. Highly recommend eating here! - 3/30/2026 

Great place! Food was excellent. Try the pot roast! - 3/30/2026 

Food, service and ambiance are always amazing! My only complaint is, the past few times I have been to Nicholson’s, the hostess makes a point to say they have a reservation for my table in 1.5 or less than 2 hours. This makes me feel rushed, uncomfortable and undervalued as a customer. No other restaurant has said this to me. If they have an issue with tables being available for reservations, I suggest they adjust their schedule, staffing, whatever is causing a need to put a time limit on their customers. - 3/29/2026 

Food was delicious, service was friendly and timely. Would definitely recommend for a fun night out. - 3/29/2026 

Visited after ball games and had an amazing experience. - 3/29/2026 

In part chosen for its proximity to the Aronoff and part for the fish and chips offering for a Lenten Friday, Nicholson’s was the perfect pre-show dinner. We had the crab cakes and flash fried Brussels for appetizer, fish and chips, fish and shrimp, shrimp and grits, and salmon for entrees, and sampled the toffee sticky pudding, bourbon crème brûlée, and red velvet cheesecake for dessert. Also had the Belhaven Scottish ale and Roxie specialty cocktail. In a rare occurrence, we actually had zero leftovers. The haddock, in particular, was a fish fry delight. Crispy and meaty, spritz of fresh squeezed lemon and malt vinegar. Our server, Chani, was terrific. Mindful of our timing for the show, attentive, with spot-on recommendations including the cocktail and sticky toffee dessert. Would make it a regular destination for any Aronoff production. - 3/28/2026 

Went in after show at the Aronoff. Server was Farrah and she was very attentive and nice. Gost cheese dip is delicious. Bourbon sours were good. I had the pasta à la whiskey which was very good. My husband had a New York strip that was off the special menu from the Aronoff show. It was not a New York strip. It was a couple pieces (very fatty) on top of French fries. For $36 would expect a full steak or better description of what the meal was. - 3/28/2026 

Wonderful dinner before our show. Our waitress (Asia? Maybe) was amazing and she was sure to mention the specials and note we were on a timed evening. Overall great experience. - 3/28/2026 

We will always reserve a table at Nicholson’s before seeing a show at the Aronoff. The food is excellent, the service is always great, and we love that there’s always a special menu of features inspired by the show that’s on! - 3/27/2026 

We have never been disappointed at Nicholson's. The food and service are always excellent. They know how to get you finished and onto your show on time. And it's a fun atmosphere! - 3/27/2026 

My rehearsal dinner was hosted at Nicholson's upstairs venue and it was 10/10 great experience. We enjoyed and food, dreamy atmosphere and friendly staff. - 3/27/2026 

Great food, always love the show specials. Fifi was our server and was fantastic, looking forward to next play. - 3/26/2026 

Great location for everything and wonderful staff with great food - 3/26/2026 

Ditto to everything I have said in the past. The food was excellent and was our seat location. We always love coming her before the play. One last item, out server was excellent and very attentive - 3/25/2026 

Haven't been here in a while - so glad I came before seeing Chicago last night. Food & drink specials were SO GOOD! Service was GREAT! - 3/25/2026 

Food was good, service was a bit slow due to a large crowd. - 3/25/2026 

Wow. Just wow. Nicholson's has been on my radar for a while, but I'm not in Cincy all too often. It wasn't until recently that I found myself staying at the 21C Hotel right next door again and decided to give them a try for dinner. They aren't on any apps and ordering on their website is not an option, so you have to call ahead. That said, they happily took my order and said it would be ready in roughly 20 minutes. When I got there it was indeed ready for me and they truly delivered. For starters, it seems obvious to include utensils in the bag along with ketchup and vinegar for my fries, but I've lost count of how many times I've picked up food while traveling and it's not in the bag (even when I ask for it). When I got back to my room I went to town and holy moly was it good. I ordered the fish and chips (of course!) and I ate just about every bite. The fish was perfectly crispy, piping hot, and had good flavor. I would have liked for the fries to be a bit crispier, but I get that their style of fries is simply not like that. A couple days later my coworkers and I needed a place to grab lunch close by and I was so happy with what I ordered for dinner that I suggested it to them and they were quick to oblige. We got some appetizers to share and everyone at the table was pleased. I could eat an entire plate of their brussel sprouts, seriously they were so good. I pretty much ordered the same thing that I did for dinner, but it included shrimp and those were just as tasty as the fish. They clearly know what they're doing and I would order from here again in a heartbeat. I'll end by saying our waitress, Mack, was an absolute pleasure. - 3/24/2026 

My team and I had the most amazing dinner at Nicholson's after a long day of work. We sat in the back room and were the only people back there, so it was nice and quiet and just what we needed. Our server, McKenna, took great care of us the whole evening. She was friendly, engaging, accommodating, and just did an overall great job. Pro tip, go during happy hour for great prices on appetizers and drinks. The appetizer pricing was so good we were able to order more than planned. We got the duck fat fries, brussels sprouts, and buffalo chicken. The duck fat fries came with a delicious garlic aïoli. The brussels sprouts were just perfect. And the buffalo chicken with some of the best I've had in a long time. I had never had cock-a-leekie before, so I tried that too. It was a nice, warm, comfort food. For our entrées, several of us got fish and shrimp. It was delicious and the tartar sauce and cocktail sauce sauces were perfect. The highlighter of the evening for me was my mocktail. I noticed the drink menu had a cucumber elderberry drink, but I do not drink alcohol, so I ask if they would be willing to make something like it as a mocktail. It was genuinely one of the best mock tails I've ever had. It was so good. I asked if the bartender would mind sharing what she did so I could make some version of it at home. She happily obliged and wrote it down for me. Overall, a wonderful experience that will definitely have me recommending Nicholsons to friends and family! - 3/24/2026 

Overall - great experience. Waitress could have been a bit more attentive and was really hard to hear her at the large table - 3/24/2026 

fantastic food and great scotch. right across from the aranoff stayed here to get food before a show. great fish and chips but the creme brulee was decadent! - 3/23/2026