Bootsy’s

Ok, the duck tacos are mind-​blowing. I HAVE to have them every single time I travel to the Cincinnati area. Like more than one order. The fish tacos are pretty good too. I think they use Chilean sea bass. But oh those duck tacos are worth 5 stars if Bootsy’s only sold them. Unfortunately, they also serve a lot of other underwhelming items that are on par with, say, Friday’s or Chili’s. Well-​presented, but mostly too heavy or overly salty. The sangria is really good though.

A couple friends invited us to Bootsy’s on a whim and we took them up on the offer — they were celebrating, we were commiserating, it was a good combo. I had heard good things but never been, and Sarah went just after it opened and was happy. Unfortunately, this did not turn out to be a particularly good Bootsy’s experience.
The Food: We picked first from the sushi menu — a spicy tuna roll and a Ruby Roll. The spicy tuna roll was average at best — our favorite in the city currently is at Bangkok Bistro, but you could, sadly, probably do better at Trader Joe’s. The Ruby Roll was enticing at first because of its presentation, but that wow came from mayonnaise on top of mayonnaise — which overwhelmed the fresh taste of an otherwise good roll.
Then we chose appetizers — calamari, ropa vieja, and shrimp corn dogs. The server said the calamari was that «by which all other calamaris are judged.» As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m skeptical of calamari. But, this was very good, tender, not all rubbery, and had a squid ink mayo that was a nice touch. Not the best ever (my number 1 was from a place in Leamington, Ontario of all places), but very good. The ropa vieja was flavorful, but that’s pretty much a given once you braise short ribs. It was sitting on top of an arepa, and the overall dish was solid but nothing to write home about. When the server was telling us about the tapas option (a fixed price for several courses) he mentioned corn dogs. I stopped him and asked him to repeat — it sounded out of place. Well, we tried them, and they were sort of out of place — no attempt at interesting presentation, and as we attended to all the other options on our table they seemed to get mushier over time.
Finally, our table’s vegetarian ordered rice and beans and the Spanish beer and cheese soup. This is as good a time as any to say that this is not a good menu for vegetarians — very few options. The beans were heavy and lackluster, lacking flavor. The beans and rice were lacking rice. On top of that, people must not order them much because they need hot sauce, or some kind of kick, badly. I only had a quick bite of the soup, so can’t really speak to it. I didn’t want to take away the few meatless bites that were available.
The Ingredients: Two items on the menu had information that could help one trace provenance — the Kentucky ham and the Amish chicken breast. That’s a start, but with entrees this pricey, it’d be nice to know where our food was coming from.
The Story, Setting, & Service: Bootsy’s is impressive as you walk in. It’s got a lot of flare, just as you’d expect from this P-​Funk all star. I guess neither he or Jeff Ruby was messing around on this partnership. There are pieces of memorabilia throughout the joint, and many different kinds of seating options — including the secluded booth with curtains where we were put. Too bad the food didn’t sparkle as much as the millions of sequins in the décor.
The service was a bummer. It felt like the server wasn’t taking us seriously — maybe because we weren’t dressed up nice enough, or looked too young. It wasn’t overwhelming, but the air of condescension always rubs us the wrong way. We had to ask a couple times for a couple things. Also, we ordered sushi, tapas, and sides, and everything was surprisingly brought at once. It was overwhelming and there was hardly enough room for us to maneuver, trade plates, etc. A couple things got cold by the time I got to them, and we had to ask for the vegetarian dishes to be brought — at least if they were going to bring everything at one time, it would have been nice if the vegetarian at the table could have joined us. On the plus side, a busboy did escort one of our party to the bathroom in a very courteous way, putting out his arm for her to take.
Overall, nothing to rave about at Bootsy’s. Lots of potential, not enough of it realized. We’re unlikely to go back at this price point.
If you enjoyed this review, there’s more at Amateur Foodies.

Steakhouses bore me. Maybe I just don’t care for meat enough, but even a perfectly seasoned, perfectly cooked hunk can’t keep me interested through the whole dinner. I have been intrigued for years by Bootsy’s, but had never actually eaten a meal here. I am a fan of the tapas, small-​plates, tasting menus or whatever you’d like to call them and I really hope they don’t go away. When I heard that Bootsy’s changed their concept awhile back, I was regretting the fact that I hadn’t made it there for dinner.
Lo and behold, the tapas-​style concept isn’t entirely gone.
Most of the sizes of the dishes are smaller than your typical restaurant, which I certainly don’t mind. And every member of my dining party was full when we left. I just don’t think the prices are reduced-​size. Sure, price points are less than the other Ruby restaurants, but not compared to some of my other favorite downtown restaurants.
Restaurant concepts aside, there were some sure-​fire hits and definite misses throughout Bootsy’s Spanish and Asian influenced menu.
At first look and first bite, the Chino Chop salad was quite the surprise. But after awhile, it showed its true colors — an avocado mash with lettuce shreds. Pretty blah.
The calamari was of good quality, but the flavors were way too sweet. I’ll give them credit for the squid ink aioli, but it didn’t pair well with the sweet batter on the calamari.
The Paellas were very good and the Ropa Vieja was outstanding. I also quite liked the Tres Leches cake.
There is still a Tapas Tasting Menu for $ 45 — consisting of 4 courses. Each course consists of about 2 reduced-​size menu items. The appetizer was a shrimp corndog and a scallop. The third course was the ropa vieja and a lamb chop. You get the idea. $ 45 seemed a little high at first, but for what you get with each course, it’s an OK option.
We did encounter some wine problems. The first bottle of Muga Rioja that we ordered was very warm — probably close to 80 degrees. They weren’t able to produce a cooler bottle, so we had to chill it on ice for awhile before drinking.
I must say, even with the hits and misses, my tastebuds never got bored at Bootsy’s.

Awwwww, get down with me! It’s Booty’s, baby! Time to get Funkadelic.
*shakes head* Woah. That was weird. I’m sorry, I’m not sure what got into me. It’s just you go to Bootsy’s downtown and suddenly you’ve got the funk inside you and it’s bubbling to burst out in some sort of psychedelic, electronic, rockomatic, electrified, boogified way. It’s unavoidable, really.
Even before you get into Bootsy’s, you’re pretty sure this is going to be an experience. It’s big outside purple walls clash vibrantly and violently against the grey’s and browns in the rest of downtown. It kind of draws you in and the freak out.
There’s Bootsy, the legendary bassist for the Parliament-​Funkadelic and now Cincinnati icon, waiting to greet you as you go through the doors — or at least, a giant cardboard cutout of him in is. It’s almost as good and equally as weird.
You’ll pass rock memorabilia as you make your way to the second floor restaurant. Record albums and rolling stone covers and plaques and disks and tons of other mismatched music icons. It’s a pretty wild sight.
I sat with my girlfriend at a table, bypassing the craziness of the bar. People don’t come in off the street to drink here — this seems to be a destination spot for a certain group. Men in suits and ties and women in dresses and accompanying make-​up. For all its weirdness, Bootsy’s is a spot with class — or at least, it is for a section of well-​to-​do baby boomers. I’m not sure I saw anyone under 35 besides myself and my gal.
And, of course, the prices reflect this. Bootsy’s is not a cheap restaurant. However, you get what you pay for. This was, by far, the best calamari I’ve ever had in my life. The. Best. If you’re looking to try one piece on the menu, this is it.
I’m not going back to this place anytime soon — I just can’t afford it. However, when my brother comes into town, the biggest P-​Funk fan I know, there’s nowhere else I’m bringing him. Sing it with me now: «Oh, we want the funk. Give up the funk. Oh, we need the funk. We gotta have that funk!»

Bootsy’s is one of my all time favorite places in downtown Cincy to go. Phenomenal happy hour prices and awesome menus. The menu is a little different, hodge podge assortment of tapas and appetizers. As most Jeff Ruby restaurants, Bootsy’s has phenomenal sushi! If you’re looking for Jeff Ruby steak however, this is not the JR to go to. The atmosphere is exciting and stimulating, colorful and vibrant, almost a gypsie vibe because of all of the assortment of styles and colors. Very pleasing to the eye and wallet! HIGHLY Recommend!

How about 3.5?
It has a good atmosphere to it. Somewhat upscale, yet a bit swanky, with a lounge feel. The colors and decorations are loud and could be considered by some to be gaudy.
The food is a strange mix, I guess it could be considered eclectic, but I think it is more thrown together than truly complimentary. The prices are definitely on the high side, though the presentation and perhaps quality are in-​line with this conceptually.
They didn’t have a ton of vegetarian options, but I was able to piece together a meal and what I ate was tasty. I enjoyed the Spanish Beer & Cheese Soup with Roasted Corn Nuts, Hominy & Jalapeño Pesto. The pesto is what made it. The portion size was good for the price. I had the black beans and rice side dish which was good, and simple, not overly spiced. The size on this was very generous for a side portion. I also tried the vegetable sushi roll, and the margarita flatbread.
The tomato confit, and the buffalo ricotta & basil were very nice, along with the arugula on top. The vegetable roll was surprisingly good, and easily on par with most of the sushi restaurants in the area that have been recommended to me.
The service however was a disaster. At first we had too much service if that is possible. Lots of different people coming to the table and asking the same questions, trying to be helpful, but it was unclear if they were servers, managers, or what. Then, when we actually needed our server, we couldn’t find him. We waited numerous times for drink refills, to get the check, etc. It pushed us very late for our engagement at the ballet, even though we finished our meals in plenty of time.
There is a lot of potential at this restaurant. They have an interesting selection of liquors including port, and some well made cocktails from other countries. I think in the future, I would come for appetizers, drinks, and possibly dessert, but sit at the bar.
One final note is that the downstairs music was quite loud, or at least the bass was something you felt and heard constantly, like a techno hall, slightly muffled next door while you are trying to enjoy a book. Then again, if you like that, it may add to the atmosphere for you.

Food’s not bad here. Definitely a cool vibe, great lighting. However I did not find the menu to be too Spanish inspired.
The food was mostly decent. Some highlights and some lowlights. I really enjoyed the croquettas, they were not too fried, came with a great sauce (sort of like a cajun remoulade flavor?) and were delicious. The tomato soup was less than stellar though, and the fish tacos were good but not great. Also nibbled on various things my friends ate — most things were pretty good, just not spectacular. You should also be warned that my friends went for the tapas tasting menu and found it to be far from filling. My combo of three appetizers was a good size though, and less than $ 30 for the trifecta.
Service, as seems to be the trend with the Jeff Ruby chain, was spot on if not impressive. Waiters are attentive, polite, and meticulous, which is a huge strong point. You feel confident that your order will arrive as you expected and they know the menus inside and out. Dining here feels like an experience and you are treated like a valued customer.
And they give you jelly beans on the way out. Delicious!

The food is amazing. We had the ropa vieja, croquettas, shrimp ceviche, platanos 3 ways, and patatas. We really wanted the Roasted Pork tapas, but they didn’t have it anymore. But the waiter had the kitchen make us one anyways. Everything was amazing (except for the ceviche which didn’t have enough acid). My family is spanish, so it was really nice to get really good spanish food in Cincy.
But I will say, the décor is straight up tacky. If the food wasn’t so good, I wouldn’t go back just because of how terrible it is to look at. That being said, I would go with friends from Cincy but would never take my friends from Boston or New York here.

This is not a review for the food, because I did not have a chance to eat while I was there. Just wanted to write a review on the atmosphere and the décor of Bootsy’s. I thought the place was just great, the atmosphere was lively and after a while I forgot I was in Ohio. It felt like I was in a bar in Miami. Just incredible, I am just disappointed I was not in Cinci long as I would have liked to check out Jeff Ruby’s other restaurants.

Lively, eclectic (more like hyperactive) atmosphere. Great food. Excellent service. Spanish-​centric menu, with Tapas and Paella, then a whole sushi menu to boot.
had the Ropa Vieja, Margarita Flatbread, Chorizo and a milk-​soaked white cake topped with pistachio gelato for dessert, all tasted great.
turns into a club on weekend nights, which i would avoid like the plague.

The service was lousy and the atmosphere was pretty douchy

We went to Bootsy’s on a Tuesday night because of Jeff Ruby’s promotion (go to
). Our group of four had some absolutely amazing food. We all shared our tapas and had bites of our friend’s food.
Among us we had: Tapas: Filet Mignon of Pork, Ropa Viejá, Plantains, Fish Tacos and Guacamole. We split the Manchego Ravioli (not that large a serving, but tasted wonderful). Our friends had the Kobe Skirt Steak a la Plancha, and Duck Breast. For dessert we shared the key lime pie, the Gypsy’s arm, and (something?) leche. I also had a small serving of ice wine (only ok, skip that).
Our server was Tori and she was very nice and accommodating. Our bill came to about $ 62 before tip. Since each couple spent over $ 50, we left with $ 200(!) in gift cards per couple to the Waterfront. That is a crazy good deal and the experience we had at Bootsy’s was one of the best dining experiences I have had all year. There were some families in there when we first arrived (8PM), which was nice to see people exposing their kids to non-​fast food and even being downtown.
Call ahead and ask: 1. which restaurant is the gift card for, and 2. if it’s a $ 50 or $ 100 card (everything rotates and the amount fluctuates between the two)

My sister and I come here for specifically two things, the calamari and another tapas dish whose official name escapes me but its goat cheese and tomato dipping sauce with bread. We’ve had a variety of items from the menu but these two are truly crave-​able.
The prices are pretty standard for tapas and we always leave stuffed so I think it’s worth the money. The service is always good as well, they bring us extra bread for the tomato goat cheese dish without having to ask if we need it.
My only complaint is that my sister is a vegetarian and this menu has very limited options for her.

Went to Bootsies for a happy hour a few weeks back. It seemed like a fun place to hang out… I got there at 4:30…the place was relatively empty. Got a beer… didn’t get another one for a while. The service was bad. Bartenders seemed more interested in texting than serving. There was no one at the bar and I had a hard time getting a drink… you can imagine what it was like when more people showed up. I was fired up to see they served San Miguel. I’ve never been to another bar that’s served it. I don’t think the San Miguel will be enough to get me back though.
I asked one of the bartenders to start a tab for me. I paid for a couple of people’s drinks… more people showed up… when I went to close out my tab the bartender had told me that she thought I wanted to pay for everyone’s drinks. Didn’t really do anything to fix the situation.
I was not very impressed with Bootsies. Haven’t been there since. Doubt I’ll be back.

I will admit to having an aversion to theme restaurants or indeed any place where the head chef has his name on the door (the second one I have to thank/​blame for Anthony Bourdain’s astute assumption about what this means about said chefs in question.)
Having said that, Bootsy’s restaurant (Produced by excellent chef Jeff Ruby) is hardly a theme restaurant. It is first rate all the way.
The downstairs greets you with a wonderland showcase of Bootsy’s gold and platinum records, iconic space bass, assorted musical instruments and memorabilia.
The upstairs décor where the bar and restaurant actually is, was meant to be described as «funky.» Think Modern Day Science Fiction meets an LSD flashback in Southern Spain. Sound weird? You betcha.
But it works. It works so well you can’t stop staring at everything, and the space is so large you are just about compelled to see what you’ve missed. Two terraces as well.
The food is latin-​inspired tapas with sushi thrown in for good measure. They have a wine list a mile long, and cocktails to boot (to Bootsy? har har) and while we didn’t get dessert, it looked fantastic. Everything is fresh and presented well. The camarones with avocado smear was a highlight, same with the sushi.
The food came out so quickly that I felt I was being a tad rushed. I suspect this is due to the clientele who are businessmen. But still, this was more than made up for by the wait staff.
It also didn’t hurt that Bootsy was there that night posing for photos with his wife, gracious and charming as ever.
But honestly had he not been there, I would still would be singing its praises. And I’ll definitely go back the next time I’m in Cincinnati.

I think a review of this place almost has to be 2 separate reviews. One for the restaurant and one for the bar.
As a restaurant, Bootsy’s is great. The tapas selction is varied, and everything that I ordered, from potatoes, to ceviche, to plaintains, was absolutely delicious bursting with flavor. Yes, the portions that come out are small, it is tapas style. Yes, it is a bit pricey, it is a Jeff Ruby restaurant though, you’re getting off cheap! The décor in the restaurant area is varied, fun, and vibrant. Overall, quite the enjoyable dining experience.
Now the bar area is almost like its own venue in itself, separate from the restaurant, except that you can order all of the restaurant food there as well. It is absolutely full on a Friday or Saturday night with a more upscale, very diverse crowd. A crowd which spills on the the fantastic balcony area on gorgeous nights, where you can get a great view of the Aranoff center across the street and all the people coming and going. (I still think they need to expand this to a larger rooftop bar!) The staff is all great, and I’ve never had issues ordering drinks or having them prepared quickly and well. My favorite there is the champagne sangria. I say ordering this by the pitcher has to be the best drink value in town. First off, it is a bubbly, light purple beautiful mix of champagne, some other alcohols which I’m unsure of, but am pretty sure they are fruity, with a bunch of blueberries floating in it. The pitcher contains 4 drinks *easily*, probably closer to 5. It is served with champagne flutes which are super elegant and the drink looks gorgeous poured into it with the floating blueberries. Best of all, it is just $ 24! That comes out to less than $ 5 a drink for a champagne based mixed drink at a fancy bar. Yes, I know it isn’t top shelf booze used, but in this concoction you don’t need it and it tastes great. A fantastic «chick drink» when you’re in the mood for something out of the ordinary. Great to share on a girls’ night out!

Went for lunch — it was ok –no tapas… soup was not hot… service while good was fairly slow…

My friends and I went here for cocktails only. The space seemed really small, but with good décor. We were greeted promptly. Other than that we paid $ 25 for three drinks. We were over it. Then we went to get our car out of valet and it took almost an hour. The valet did not know how to get into the car. The manger sent over champagne while we waited which was nice, but not nice enough for us to come back.

Loud is not the word for it. There on a saturday night around 10PM. Super busy. Food is good, a little small for the price. Drinks are not cheap. Had the calamari, weird sause but otherwise good. Had the chicken and rice, tasty. Had the flat bread with meat. Really good. Had the plantins. Smallish, good sause. Overall I woud go back.

One night I went to Booty’s with my parents, my sister and my friend. It must have been their first night opened because it was not that crowded. The interior is very funky, get it? Its a restaurant named after Bootsy Collins the most famous funk guitar player. Anyway we had the Chef Tapas Menu. Which was 9 courses selected by the Chef. It was delicious, like really really delicious. Also my friend and I drank a couple of their P-​Funk drinks, which were very strong and very good. Anyway if you go it will be great but it will be very expensive. The main concern is that I have no reason to go back. I have been there once but nothing wants to bring me back, not even the P-​Funks. Overall go have fun but I would still recommend Nada’s which is down the street if you are heading downtown for just dinner and not a celebration.