Skyline Chili

Ok… I love Skyline Chili. I was first introduced to it in Florida when I lived in Palm Harbor. I used to take my kids there all the time and we LOVED it. So, when we decided to drive through Cincinnati while on vacation, it was a no-​brainer to swing by Skyline! Unfortunately, at the time that we were driving through, we weren’t hungry at all, but that wasn’t going to deter us from enjoying delicious Skyline chili. We ordered a couple of larges to go… but I was a bit confused by the menu. Back in the day when I visited the store in Palm Harbor, I was always able to order the chili with or without spaghetti. But when I ordered the larges at this location, they said they all come with spaghetti and certainly implied that they must come with spaghetti. We told them that we were traveling and would prefer more secure containers if possible, and they put the chili in containers… without the spaghetti… and I thought to myself… why can’t we just order the chili… but ok. When we got home, we ate the chili and it was delicious… just like I remembered it. I wish it could have been bigger containers and no spaghetti, but it was still good.

I stayed at a hotel within walking distance and had long been aware of the unusual style of chili that Cincinnati has. in fact they offer you 5 different ways!!!
I am sure there are many people that would say you should never mix chili and spaghetti — but that is just what this regional version of ways to serve chili does. The staff is super helpful in explaining all the different ways you can experience your chili and very helpful is a free sample if you are unsure.
The chili is made with cinnamon as one of the spices and for some this will be a real turnoff. I think many of the bad reviews is due to not liking this regional chili experience. For me I love trying all kinds of cuisine and I can say I see the appeal even tho it is not my favorite type of chili. I asked for lighter cheese as I wanted to experience the food as a whole without a giant mound of cheese = you might consider doing the same.
Overall it was good and the staff was exceptional!

Chili, cheese, spaghetti. Can’t ask for more. Good drunk food, add the hot sauce it awesome!!!

Skyline rocks the house. I absolutely love it. My issue is with this location. It kind of sucks.
This location was on my way home from late night work years ago and I tended to pass because this location’s chili seems to have always tastes burned. I’d be bled if folks passed judgement on Skyline from this location. It isn’t representative IMHO. Go to the one on Ludlow up by the University of Cincinnati.

Good service. Told me exactly what to order as an out of towner. Good. Quick. Plenty of parking & in a strip mall. Looked crowded with natives

I was staying at a nearby hotel on a business trip and a coworker recommended that I eat here. I have never eaten at any Skyline chain before, so I decided to give it a shot. I told my server that this was my first visit and she instantly brought me a 3-​way sample to try before I ordered, and I thought that was super cool — I didn’t even have to ask; she just shouted into the kitchen for a sample and there it was. She explained the Way options, and the 3-​way worked just fine for me. I ordered the regular size and when it was placed in front of me (2 minutes after ordering), I thought it was huge and didn’t think I would be able to finish it. I quickly learned that it was mostly cheese on top with not very much pasta underneath so I had no problem polishing it off. I love cheese, and this definitely had too much cheese. My server was super friendly and efficient, giving me a good first impression of the place. First time guests also receive a complimentary York Peppermint Patty, lol kind of random, but I love them. I was here for a late lunch and was ready to eat anything, so the food tasted good as I wolfed it down. But this is definitely no gourmet place, and I wouldn’t be excited to come here again — I’m sure there are better dining options to check out next time I’m in this town.

Best skyline in Cincinnati area hands down. Between food and employees, I will always come to this location before any others. I recommend this place to any skyline lovers or new comers!

Great service! Came in on a Weds afternoon, one lady working, very nice and polite. Def coming back!

As someone from Texas, I was skeptical to try Cincinnati style chili, as it is completely different than any chili I’ve ever had. I must say that I was rather impressed. Now, I will say that I still like Texas chili better. However, the coneys I had with the chili, and cheddar cheese were pretty awesome. I also had a four-​way spaghetti (with chili, cheddar cheese and red kidney beans). And it was surprisingly good. It’s one of those things that you crave about once a year. They sell Skyline Chili at a lot of stores and you can make your own. But, it’s not as good as getting it in the restaurant.

I am giving this a 4 star due to the staff being very friendly and the food being what it is. I have never had Cincinnati chili and read online that Skyline was the place to go for local taste. If this is what it’s supposed to taste like I am not a huge fan. But being that its fast food I can’t really expect much. It was interesting and I am glad I tried it. I wouldn’t be in a rush to go back unless I was in town and wanted to chat with friendly people over some just okay food. I want to be clear that the food wasn’t bad at this particular location, just not my specific taste.

chili 5-​way!!! heaven in a bowl.

Love me some skyline, just like all I have been to the staff is very nice. The coil is great and the cheese is the best. I always get the chili cheese chilitos if you haven’t tried then you really must.

This (I think) is the best chili ever. I am from Nashville and visit Cincinnati and HAVE. To see skyline every time when I come up on another note, the customer service was lacking but it made up with the good.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, I can say from vast experience that Skyline is the best version of Cincinnati Chili … hands down. They are all over town, but what makes this particular store unique is their staff. Quick and kind — good ‘olé Cincinnati-​style service. Treat yourself to one of the finest Chili on the planet! And have a cheese coney for me ;)

mmm Skyline. It’s definitely a Cincinnati thing. If you’re not from around here, then it might not be for you. As for me. I love this shtuff. (Make sure you put hot sauce on it.) The service at this particular location is always fast. When I get it to go, it takes less than 5 minutes from the minute I enter the store to the second I have demolished my first cheese coney.

So the only thing I’ve ever heard coming out of Cincinnati in the culinary world, is Cincinnati chili. A supposed legendary version of this classic. Far different from your normal chili con carne. I like legends and I like chili, so I set out to taste this mythological creation. Between the two biggest contenders (Skyline and Gold Star), my research showed that Skyline chili was by far the generally preferred.
The location I went to must have been one of the older locations as it wasn’t a free standing building but tucked neatly into a strip mall. The signage was old and didn’t bare the modern skyline chili logo. The inside seemed like a throwback to the earlier 80’s so that was all good by me. Very simply laid out, essentially a place for eating and leaving. You sit yourself and then a server comes over. All in all basic stuff, which is fine because it’s a simple operation.
The menu also follows this logic. Chili by the bowl, chili burritos, chili over french fries, chili dogs, and chili over french fries. I had a 4 way: chili, spaghetti, beans, and habanero cheese. You can get regular cheese, but habanero sounded interesting. And it comes with a lot of cheese. Seriously I feel bad for the cows that have to produce the cheese for Skyline, they seriously load up your plate. By the end it felt like I was eating mostly cheese which is pretty gross. Don’t get me wrong the habanero cheese was actually really solid, there was just too much of it. The chili itself was pretty sweet. And the pasta was a little over cooked. Strangely though the combination worked well enough. I guess I would say, it one of those things to check off your bucket list as its cheap and fairly convenient to find. Yet I honestly don’t see what the big fuss is all about. Now that I’ve checked Skyline off my mine, I doubt I’ll be doing it again.

The fiancé has been raving about Skyline Chili for the better part of 10 years. We finally went to Cincinnati this weekend for the Flying Pig Marathon and I got my crack at it. Thankfully this location was open on Sundays, unlike the ones downtown. I got the chili cheese fries and the Chili Cheese Coney.
The chili is good. Very cinnamon-​y which is the first thing I noticed. The fries were really good and the hotdog was good, but the hotdog itself was small and lacking. If it was a meatier hotdog I think it would have tasted better.
Anyway, the chili was really good. Cinnamon was such a different taste. I would return for sure if I was in Cincinnati, but it isn’t something worth dreaming about and I don’t think I liked it enough to try to add cinnamon or replicate in my own chili.

Now, granted I’m not a big fan of the Cincinnati style chili, but Skyline (in particular) tends to be my least favorite. I had a couple chili cheese conies this weekend after a long night of drinking… and still didn’t enjoy them. If you don’t like food at 3am, you’re probably never going to like it.
IMO, chili should be a hearty and filling meal, not a sloppy, cheap-​looking, meat sauce. Skyline tries to differentiate themselves by mixing cinnamon into their chili. It’s disgusting. There’s no other way around it.
I tried Dixie Chili, which is also Cincinnati style and it was at least edible, although I still wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.

I am not the biggest fan of Skyline but I will get a craving for a 4-​way every once in a while so I give in to my better judgement and usually end up here. This particular Skyline Chili is a wonderful place to go, and the best part, my fellow late-​nighters, they are open until 4 am during the weekends And if your also happen to love people watching, this is the place for you! There are all kinds to be found here. Service can be really slow and give yourself a good amount of time to stand in the checkout line. The servers also have to ring you out and when it’s busy at 1:30 am, it could take a while.
And if you are concerned with your safety, don’t worry. Covington Police have an officer on duty during the late night.
I do however wish they had a drive thru for the days when I pick up Skyline on my way home from work!

First skyline chili ever…
I tried a small 3 way and had half of a cone. I had heard about how people seem to LOVE or HATE skyline chili and to be honest, I don’t get it. Obviously I’m not from Cincinnati, or even the States, so I have hardly ever eaten chili before, and even less chili with cheese and spaghetti…
But as I tried my first bite of skyline chili I could only think of one thing: Greece. The chili tasted exactly like the meat we got served every day during a 2 week student trip in Greece. I don’t really like cinnamon, epecially not in my meat but I had to eat during that trip so I did. And somehow I will forever associate cinnamon meat with Greece.
So… I don’t love or hate skyline chili — it’s just like Greek meat and although I’m still not crazy about cinnamon meat, it’s ok! (tastes evolve :)).
I had just gone through this Proust-​ian moment when I read that skyline chili was brought to Cincinnati by a Greek immigrant! Seldomly have I felt wiser — I knew it tasted greek! :)
What I like about skyline chili is that it’s cheap, quick, easy, it has a lot of cheese. Oh and also, our waitress called us sweetheart, sweety, darling… which was just very funny :) So American (in my eyes…) :)
So, yes, we will be back, on evenings when we don’t feel like cooking or spending a lot of money. A quick, easy, Greek tasting bite, that skyline chili of yours!