Going All In at Fork Heart Knife

As you might suspect, I’m the kind of person to agonize over what I pick from a restaurant’s menu. I’ll find a menu online ahead of time so I can start agonizing before I ever get inside of the restaurant. If you’re afflicted by the same problem, then I’ve found a solution: go to Fork Heart Knife and order everything. Everything. Done.

Fork Heart Knife inhabits a cozy space on Main street in Over-the-Rhine. Lots of natural light floods in through the windows at the front and long wooden benches line each side of the dining room. They’re not open regularly through the week right now, but the past few weeks they’ve been doing dinner on Thursday and brunch on Sunday. They put their set menu for the night up on butcher paper by the counter.

On the Thursday night Alex and I visited, we sat down with a couple glasses of water to confer about what to order. We decided to split one of each course right down to the strawberry shortcake for a light dinner. First course: a bright, light salad with oranges and goat cheese. Citrusy, springy, and a wonderful starter.

Next came the little empanadas. The crusts were perfect – flakey, tender, all that.

After that our “Portabello Pizza” arrived. It’s a big mushroom cap loaded with pizza toppings. Ours had pesto, some kind of tomato spread, cheese and some roasted vegetables. The cap was juicy and even though the whole thing is pretty small, it is packed with flavor.

We finished everything off with the strawberry shortcake, a buttermilk biscuit topped with cream and strawberries.

There’s something really charming about Fork Heart Knife. They love what they’re doing and that comes across in the food and the décor. We sort of forgot we were at a restaurant because it feels so friendly and intimate. I’m looking forward to seeing what’s in store for this place. And I’m not worried at all about what to pick from their menu next time I go.

Check their blog or twitter to find out when they'll be open. And FHK is BYOB!