Cincinnati, you never disappoint.

When it comes to growing up as a local, I’m pretty much as Cincinnati as you can get.

I went to St. X, I’m a diehard Reds, Bengals, and Bearcats fan, and odds are my last name is on a trash can in your driveway if you live in town. My ideal day of meals would include Holtman’s donuts for breakfast, Skyline Chili for lunch, Montgomery Inn BBQ for dinner, and Greaters Ice Cream to finish it off (let’s not pretend I haven’t done this before). Needless to say, I’m damn proud of where I grew up and not afraid to show it.

After graduating high school, I shipped off to Boston for college and would make the occasional trips back to the Queen City for holiday breaks, family affairs, and Opening Day whenever I could make it. Year after year, I saw a transition happening around town that I couldn’t fully get a grasp on.

Over the past three months I’ve collectively spent more time in Cincinnati than I have in the previous ten years. This place is rocking and here is what I have learned:

OTR is the tech hub of town. Head down to Vine St. if you want to surround yourself with top tech talent. If you aren’t in the tech scene and want to get more involved with #startupcincy but not sure where to start, go hang out at 1215 Wine & Coffee Bar, Union Hall, or Coffee Emporium. You’ll be surrounded by energy & enthusiasm and start to see familiar faces. Go introduce yourself to someone and ask them what they do. People are friendly here.

Northern Kentucky is the Brooklyn of Cincinnati. There’s some real cool sh*t happening in Covington and Newport. We partnered with BLDG to host our Kinglet launch party in February and they’ve opened our eyes to a whole new world across the river. If you are local and haven’t been to Newport or Covington in a couple of years, get in your car and drive over there. It’s worth it, trust me. Grab some lunch at Kung Food Chu’s AmerAsia, an afternoon cold brew at Carabello, and top it off with a pint at Braxton. Your taste buds will thank you.

It’s refreshing to do business here. The local business community has been great to interact with and easily accessible. This is refreshing and not always the case on the east coast. Everyone knows everyone and is willing to make introductions because they want to see the city grow. They’re proud of what’s happening here and it’s infectious.

Don’t let this change, Cincinnati. Keep on being open and inclusive. Think bigger and keep on growing. The rest of the county is starting to take notice.

Work small, dream big,

Team Kinglet