Who Makes the Best Chili in Cincinnati?

Whether you're shopping for a car or visiting for other reasons, no trip to the Cincinnati area is complete without a sampling of the city's famous chili. Cincinnati takes enormous civic pride in its chili -- so much so that some consider Cincinnati to be the Chili Capital of the World. Per capita, that may well be true: according to What's Cooking, America, Cincinnati boasts more than 180 chili restaurants, known as "parlors."

Of course, this raises a logical question among locals: Who makes the best chili in Cincinnati? The debates are endless, but naturally, the answer depends largely on your own tastes. Do you like it hot and spicy? Mild and flavorful? Somewhere in between? To help you locate your chili paradise, we quizzed the team at Kings Toyota and came up with this list of the best chili spots in Cincinnati. Check them out when you can.

The Big Debate: Skyline Chili vs. Goldstar Chili

It's a debate heard frequently in the households of Cincinnati: Who has the better chili -- Skyline Chili or Goldstar Chili? The great thing is, this isn't a debate you can lose. By virtue of living in Cincinnati, you can have your chili and eat it too. Both Skyline and Goldstar have multiple restaurants across the region and are considered icons in the local food scene.

Skyline Chili was founded in 1949 by Nicholas Lambrinides, with its first location on Price Hill on Cincinnati's west end, overlooking the downtown. His mother's cooking while growing up in Greece provided all the inspiration he needed to feed more than a generation of Cincinnati residents with chili and other delicious food.

Image via Flickr by  Paul Sableman

The company currently has 136 franchised restaurants operating in four states -- Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and Florida. The chili recipe remains a closely guarded secret but can be enjoyed in numerous ways. Skyline's signature dish serves chili on top of a bed of spaghetti, smothered in cheddar cheese. More adventurous diners can add onions, beans, or both. You can also get a taste of chili atop a Coney Island-style hot dog. For the non-chili eater, Skyline offers salads, burritos, and wraps. 

Goldstar Chili, meanwhile, is also expanding from its Ohio roots. The chain currently boasts about 70 restaurant locations and is aggressively recruiting new franchisees. Like Skyline, Goldstar's origin story also has an immigrant influence. The chain was started in 1965 when brothers David, Charlie, Frank, and Basheer Daoud bought the Hamburger Heaven restaurant in Cincinnati's Mt. Washington neighborhood.

The new operators began experimenting with the menu, paying particular attention to the existing chili recipe. Before long, they had found a formula that caught the attention of customers. Hamburger Heaven soon became Goldstar Chili. Today, chili remains the prime draw, but guests can also choose from a full-service menu that includes Coney chili dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches, salads, and other tasty items.

Blue Ash Chili

Your options are a little more limited with Blue Ash Chili. This chili parlor has just three locations and a food truck in service around the Cincinnati area. But quality counts over quality, as they say: Blue Ash recently was named one of the top 25 chili spots in the United States.

Blue Ash has been in operation since 1969, relying on a family recipe that's considered to be not too spicy. The chili is served in classic Cincinnati-style -- on top of Coney Island hot dogs and with varying degrees of added ingredients. You can have your chili as part of a 3-, 4-, 5-, and even 6-way meals. Diners can also order from a full-service menu that includes various sandwiches, burgers, chicken, BBQ, as well as various breakfast options. You can also enjoy a glass of beer or wine or a cocktail with your chili.

If you find yourself in Blue Ash Chili with more than your average appetite, you might want to take a look at the Blue Ash "No Freakin' Way Challenge." The challenge consists of 2 1/2 pounds of spaghetti and 2 1/2 pounds of premium chili, all covered with 2 pounds of shredded cheddar cheese, and a pound of jalapeno peppers. Here's the challenge: Finish it all in under an hour and your dinner is free. You will receive a free T-shirt and earn a spot on the Blue Ash Facebook Hall of Fame. (Conversely, if you don't quite make it, you end up in the Hall of Shame.) 

Camp Washington Chili

Before you even get to its chili, the name of Camp Washington Chili alone sparks discussion. The restaurant is located in a part of Cincinnati that served as a staging ground for soldiers after the United States declared war on Mexico in the 1840s. The area was also known for herding cattle. Eventually, they began calling it Camp Washington, and the area was ultimately annexed into Cincinnati.

Camp Washington Chili opened its doors in 1940 as the country stood on the cusp of World War II.  In the following years, the restaurant has earned its designation as a Cincinnati classic and gone on to generate national attention. Smithsonian Magazine named Camp Washington Chili as one of "The 20 Most Iconic Food Destinations Across America."

You can enjoy Camp Washington Chili alone, on a bed of spaghetti, or by adding onions, beans, and cheese. If you're feeling adventurous, try Camp Washington's "513-way" -- a dish that includes goetta, a German breakfast sausage, along with chili, onions, beans, and cheese. The menu also includes Coney-style chili dogs and a range of other dishes including burgers, gyros, salads, and more.

With so many chili parlors in the Cincinnati region, we're bound to have missed a few. Honorable mentions go to Zip's Cafe, Empress Chili, Dixie Chili, and OTRChili. Try them all, compare them, and decide for yourself which is best. Maybe there are others we neglected to mention. The team at Kings Toyota would love to hear about those as well. Let us know and we will add them to the list!