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BRIDGETOWN
Go West, Young Man
Bridgetown is the land of childhood favorites, small businesses,
Italian spaghetti, Styx-playing DJs and a chunk of Zen
by Gregory Flannery and Jason Gargano
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Western
Bowl (above) and Zip Dip (below) are long-standing Bridgetown
traditions.
Photo:
Jason Gargano
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Bridgetown has no official boundaries, it being an unofficial place.
And forget about finding it by looking for a historic bridge. The
span that gave this Green Township neighborhood its name is —
or was — 615 miles away.
When Ephraim Fithian settled in this part of southwest Ohio in the
early 1800s, he adapted the name of the town he left — Bridgeton,
N.J., on the banks of the Cohansey River.
The Fithian family soon stretched far across the continent; the eldest
son was one of the original 49ers in the California Gold Rush. Local
histories and genealogical texts talk about the Fithian family’s
sawmill on Muddy Creek.
Tracing the family’s progress through Rootsweb.com, one comes
across this startling revelation about Bridgetown’s founding
family: “They were Baptists in religious faith and were people
of the highest respectability.”
None of the pioneer literature gives any indication that the Catholics
who eventually made Bridgetown the suburb it is today chased away
the pioneering Protestants. But suffice it to say you can tell you’re
in Bridgetown when you see signs offering tasty ways to cope with
religious dietary rules. Wild Mike’s restaurant, for example,
pitches, “Shrimp, crab cakes and more for Lent.”
And, yes, we realize a couple of the following picks are actually
in Mack, located just outside Bridgetown’s tight borders. Hey,
at least they’re on Bridgetown Road.
Best Cool Down:
With its vintage 1950s-era neon sign and impeccable cleanliness, Zip
Dip ice cream is a classic summer pit stop in these parts.
Everything on the menu is solid, but the unquestioned highlight is
the “Orange Jubilee,” a unique meld of freshly squeezed
orange juice and soft-serve vanilla ice cream. Zip Dip, 4050 Drew
Ave., 513-574-6252.
Best Place to Get a Screw:
In this era of massive, impersonal mega-stores, Bridgetown
Hardware & Paint is a welcome slice of Mayberry pie.
Its endearingly narrow aisles and helpful staff never fail to yield
what you need, despite having a fraction of the manpower and square-footage.
Who says bigger is better? Bridgetown Hardware & Paint, 5553 Bridgetown
Road, 513-574-4510.
Best
Reason to Say, ‘Wow, Man!’:
Zen and Now Coffee House People like to joke about
the West side’s homogeneity. (Note to West-siders: that’s
not a naughty word.) It’s true that Green Township’s 56,000
residents are 97.3 percent white, according to the 2000 U.S. Census.
Yet Eastern philosophy has not only caught up but actually thrived,
even in Bridgetown. For five years the Zen and Now Coffee House has
been serving up a hearty cup o’ mud and, in its own way, defying
the neighborhood stereotype. Where else in these parts could you buy
a Hindu deity lunch box or visit a yard sale with belly dancers wiggling
on the sidewalk?
Jesse Allen, who handles the shop’s books and occasionally performs
music at Zen and Now, grew up in Bridgetown. The coffee shop is decidedly
different from the rest of the neighborhood.
“It’s a touch of something cool in Bridgetown,”
he says. “When they opened, ministers came in, thinking the
Buddhists were coming. Some parents visited and wanted to check it
out. Now they have people coming in and doing Bible study.”
One reason Zen and Now hasn’t encountered a xenophobic response
is the owners, Dave and Jackie Bechtol, are lifelong residents. The
shop’s art wall gives students at Oak Hills and Mother of Mercy
high schools a place to exhibit their work. Musicians play for tips,
and soon the shop will host student dramatists and spoken-word artists.
“It provides a forum and people need a forum for their art,”
Allen says.
David Bechtol is a former curator of graphics for the Cincinnati Zoo.
In the 1970s he organized Nicaea Coffeehouse, a weekend program that
met in Western Hills.
“That’s how I hooked up with Dave again,” Allen
says. “I saw the coffeehouse and I was looking for a place to
work my material. Seeing him was like a flashback.”
Jackie Bechtol’s full-time profession is registered nurse, and
the shop is smoke-free and alcohol-free. For all its goddess figurines
and offbeat board games — “Cosmic Journey: a game that
touches your soul” — Zen and Now is above all comfy.
“Mother of Mercy girls come in to get their cappuccino before
French class,” she says. “The coolest thing for me is
how the customers become friends over time. You’re part of a
community.”
The herb garden in front, like the free-coffee deal for frequent customers
and the annual neighborhood yard sale — no charge for setting
up your wares — reflect the spirit of the place.
“It’s the kind of thing a locally owned coffee shop can
do that Starbucks can’t,” Bechtol says. “Our customer
base is very faithful. But it took a while. People are so cautious
about anything new around here. We still have people come in and say,
‘Wow! How long have you been here?’ ” Zen and Now
Coffee House, 4453 Bridgetown Road, 513-598-8999.
Best Time Capsule:
Western Bowl. Where to begin? While a plethora of
fast-food joints and mini-strip malls have sprouted up in its shadow
over the years, the indelible sights, sounds and smells of this landmark
have changed little, which is oddly reassuring. In typical West-side
fashion, function trumps form here. To be fair, the 68-lane granddaddy
of the Midwestern bowling landscape — they’ve hosted the
world-renowned Hoinke Classic for the past 44 years — has tweaked
its M.O. slightly in recent years, offering up the popular “Thunder
Alley Glow Bowling” on Saturday nights. Nevertheless, if Paul
Thomas Anderson ever films Boogie Nights 2: Dirk Takes on Earl Anthony,
the place is ripe for use. Western Bowl transcends geographical placement.
It’s a neighborhood unto itself. Western Bowl, 6383 Glenway
Ave. 513-574-2222.
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The
spectacularly powerful blue hose at Schaffer’s Service/Mini
Mart
Photo: Jason Gargano
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Best Art Export:
Believe it or not, local art darling Mark Fox is
a born-and-bred Bridgetown boy, hailing from Elder High School and
St. Jude Grade School. Of course, anyone familiar with Elder’s
art program, headed by the nurturing Bob Beamon, knows it’s
no surprise Fox and his fellow classmates have left a mark on the
local art scene. And Fox these days? Look out, New York, Bridgetown
is on its way.
Best Place to Relive One’s Childhood:
Tie: Shoeless Joe’s and Ideal Baseball
card shops are like trips to one’s childhood, bringing back
the days when there were only two card brands — Topps and Donruss
— and the gum came with that chalky white stuff on it. Each
has an extensive collection of cards and memorabilia. Proof? Where
else are you gonna find a Dan Driessen rookie card? Shoeless Joe’s,
6123 Bridgetown Road, 513-574-4997; Ideal Baseball Card Plus, 6265
Glenway Ave., 513-661-1212.
Best Place to See a Non-Caucasian:
Located in Western Bowl’s former Cheyenne Social Club, Cancun
Mexican Restaurant and Cantina is an ethnic oasis amid the
white-bread desert that is Bridgetown. The salsa is hot, burritos
mammoth and margaritas powerful. In fact, the margaritas are so potent,
one forgets the decor has changed little since the days of its former
incarnation, a wood-based, ranch-style aesthetic only Dubya could
love. Cancun Mexican Restaurant and Cantina, 6383 Glenway Ave., 513-574-1639.
Best Book Collection:
The Green Township Branch Library has 91,000 books
and nearly 12,000 films, recordings and other audio-visual material.
Opened in 1990, this was the first of six regional branches in the
Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County. Its architecture
is among the most dramatic in the library system, with a large central
dome and two smaller domed structures designed by architect Frank
W. Enneking to evoke the once common scene of barns and silos on farms
nearby. With a dozen national daily newspapers, plus free access to
all the circulating books and films in the library system, Bridgetown
residents need never go to the main branch downtown. They like it
that way, too. Green Township Branch Library, 6225 Bridgetown Road,
513-369-6095.
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Greg
checks out some of Zen & Now’s eclectic wares.
Photo:
Jason Gargano
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Best
Bearcat Den: Open a few short months, Poppies
Sports Bar & Grill has more TVs per square inch than
P. Diddy’s bathroom. Hey, as long as the beer’s cold,
what more does a sports freak need? If you’re hungry, they have
you covered, too, serving up typical bar grub that’s as good
as it is unimaginative. Poppies Sports Bar & Grill, 6611 Glenway
Ave., 513-574-4939.
Best Attempt at Reviving an Old-School
Treasure:
The former Putt-Putt (yes, the regulation kind) course next to Western
Bowl is now General Custer’s Golf and Gulp.
Like many a modern course, Custer’s goes for entertainment over
substance (will someone please outlaw those ridiculous swinging pieces
of wood?). But the gulp part is a plus, offering up ice cream, drinks
and the like. One problem, though, General — Graeter’s
is little more than a putt away. General Custer’s Golf and Gulp,
3325 Westborne Drive, 513-922-9120.
Best Sweet Tooth Cure:
Paul “Pep” Guenther founded the the Fawn Confectionery
in 1946 with the intention of carrying on his wife Jean’s Greek
candy-making heritage. Nearly 60 years later, we’d say they’ve
succeeded. And with success comes confidence. Try this boast from
Fawn’s Web site: “We guarantee our confections to be 100%
fresh and tantalizing to your taste buds!” Remarkably, that’s
not just hype. Still run by the Guenther family — in 1984 Pep
turned over the day-to-day operations to his four daughters —
Fawn’s wares are made daily in its Harrison Avenue kitchen.
Start with the singular experience that is their Copper Kettle Fudge.
If you recover, there’s plenty more to discover. Fawn Confectionery,
4271 Harrison Ave., 514-574-9612.
Best Place to Get Pumped Up:
Forget Bridgetown — Schaffer’s Service/Mini Mart
might be the best place to air up your tires in the whole of Cincinnati.
Fast, free, spectacularly powerful and always in working order, Schaeffer’s
blue hose is more consistent than the chip on many a West-sider’s
shoulder. Ditto their tow service. Schaffer’s Service/Mini Mart,
4258 Harrison Ave., 513-574-9518.
Best Watering Hole:
To say fine dining is lacking in Bridgetown is an understatement —
it doesn’t exist. But Nick & Tom’s,
located in the old Alpine Inn, ain’t bad. Sporting a casual
roadhouse feel that meshes perfectly with the neighborhood’s
down-to-earth ambiance, Nick & Tom’s expansive menu has
something for everyone (chicken and steak dishes are specialties).
But it’s the courteous, always attentive service that’s
most impressive — a recent visit yielded no less than five water
refills, which might say more about us than them. Hey, a guy’s
gotta stay hydrated. Nick & Tom’s, 5774 Bridgetown Road,
513-574-4242.
Best Use of a Former Landfill:
Before becoming home field for dozens of youth baseball and soccer
teams, the land now known as Kuliga Park served as
a fill area for debris from a devastating 1974 tornado, according
to Joe Lambing, foreman of the township’s Public Service Department.
Even when the six baseball diamonds and the soccer fields aren’t
in use, this place stays busy, with summer evening concerts, tennis
courts, a concession stand, playground equipment, horseshoe pits and
a steady stream of family picnics. If you want to prove you’re
not from around here, ask what “Kuliga” means. The locals
won’t necessarily know either, but the giveaway is in the pronunciation.
Some call it “Kaluga” Park. “Kuliga” is a
Shawnee word for “the land of the pretty hand,” Lambing
says. “Apparently if you look down at all the creeks that run
around here, it looks like a hand.” Kuliga Park, 6717 Bridgetown
Road.
Best
Way to Avoid the Queer Eye Guys: The guys at Al
Smith Paint know redecorating, or at least can recommend
the supplies necessary to do so. For those in the know, few paint
stores — Bridgetown or otherwise — carry the specialized
stuff they have here. Primo item: hard-to-find ox-hair brushes. Al
Smith Paint, 5517 Bridgetown Road, 513-574-4722.
Best Hope for the Future:
Long a Bridgetown staple, the Wagon Wheel Cafe has
struggled in recent years. A Friday night stop this past winter revealed
a total of three breathing humans, one of whom was the bartender.
C’mon, people, how can one not love a bar that features indoor
cornhole? Thankfully, things are looking up. The Wheel changed ownership
recently and is in the midst of remodeling. Will the place finally
live up to its vintage neon sign out front? Stay tuned. Wagon Wheel
Café, 4560 Bridgetown Road, 513-598-4000.
Best Place to Eat Das Chicken:
Besides Western Bowl, Ron’s Roost is perhaps
the closest thing to a Bridgetown landmark familiar to people outside
the neighborhood. Open since 1960, when much of the township was still
undeveloped, the restaurant is a favorite for the proverbially parochial
West-siders. Its acclaimed fried chicken is the chief draw, but the
menu illustrates the German heritage of many residents, featuring
Bavarian pork schnitzel, sauerbraten, turtle soup and Dutch apple
dumplings. “Italian spaghetti” is also available to those
who dare to experiment with foreign fare. The large hearth in the
middle of the dining room is the very expression of welcome, and who
wouldn’t love the paintings and figurines of roosters from around
the world? Ron’s Roost, 3853 Race Road, 513-574-0222.
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Well,
cockle-doodle-do! Chicken is the big hit at Ron’s
Roost.
Photo:
Jason Gargano
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Best
Hangover Cure: Western Hills Family Restaurant
is a surefire cure for those post-Heineken blues, offering up cheap,
straightforward breakfast grub, hot coffee and friendly, familiar
service (“Hey, didn’t I talk to you last night?”).
And all presented amid a down-home atmosphere, perfect for the bed-headed,
sweats-and-T-shirt crowd. Western Hills Family Restaurant, 3245 Westborne
Drive, 513-451-7321.
Best David Lynch Experience:
Dance club/night spot Donna V’s, located in
a former Pizza Hut, is as surreal as Bridgetown gets. A recent weeknight
stop featured a woman attempting to apply lipstick, only to miss by
several inches. Despite that unfortunate visage, weekends can be quite
entertaining. Where else can one witness a twentysomething frat boy
commiserating with a fiftysomething woman in leather pants? And where
else can you find a high-haired blonde DJ spin Styx records with as
much dexterity? Then there’s the decor. Think your uncle’s
redone basement meets tiki lounge. Hot weekend tip: Get there early.
More than once, we’ve been turned away due to a full house.
It must be the DJ. Donna V’s, 6441 Glenway Ave., 513-574-0999.
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