Our Rich History: Revisiting evolution of Scalea’s Restaurant to Blinkers Tavern, Governor’s House


By Raymond Hebert
Special to NKyTribune

Part of an ongoing series about eating establishments in Northern Kentucky.

Scalea’s Restaurant at 318 Greenup Street in Covington was a trendsetter. In an article about Scalea’s opening, restaurant critic Polly Campbell praised “this new Italian ristorante that melds settings, style, and enticing tastes” to produce remarkable results. Campbell credited Dean and Beth DiGiacinto with the vision. After buying an Italian grocery on Cincinnati’s West Side in 1996, they decided to move it to Covington where they opened a deli and a bakery.

Blinkers Tavern (Photo by Paul Tenkotte)

In Polly’s words, “they then bought the building next door and hired Anita Hirsch as a chef.” The result was a successful combination of neighborhood deli, bar, restaurant, and later bakery, which “with very little showing off, serves Italian food by one of the best cooks in town.” (Polly Campbell, “Scalea’s Smooth Start,” Cincinnati Enquirer, June 5, 1998).

Throughout 1998 and part of 1999, the accolades continued. In a Cincinnati Post restaurant review, Amy Culbertson stated that the DiGiacintos had success first “with 70-year-old Scalea’s Italian Market, bought from Salvatore and Maria Petrillo in 1996.” She commented liberally and positively about many of the dishes and added a sidebar entitled “Scalea’s meals end well” in which she concluded that “we didn’t find a dessert we didn’t like” (Amy Culbertson, “Scalea’s Instant Success,” Cincinnati Post, June 18, 1998).

Sadly for the local community, as the reputation spread about the combined talents of the DiGiacintos and Chef Hirsch, a new opportunity arose that “could not be passed up,” especially for the chef.

In a series of articles that appeared in late 1998 and 1999, the story emerged. Cliff Peale, a leading staff reporter for the Cincinnati Post, announced that Dean DiGiacinto and Anita Hirsch would become president and vice president respectively of Ciao Cucina Corp, with five locations nationally. “Management would come from the Scalea offices in Covington… bringing to Ciao a terrific blend of experience, both in running a business and in bringing creativity and a real edge to the menu and the food, said Stephen Kent, the turnaround artist who had been running Ciao since earlier in 1998” (Cliff Peale, “Scalea’s Managers Taking Over at Ciao,” Cincinnati Post, October 31, 1998).

Governor’s House (Photo by Paul Tenkotte)

While chef Hirsch anticipated remaining with the DiGiacintos in this dual venture (Ciao and Scalea’s), in mid-May of 1999, a new opportunity emerged. As reported by Amy Culbertson, “after 20 years in Cincinnati, Anita Hirsch says leaving will be hard [but]… when super-restauranteur Drew Nieporent’s Myriad Restaurant Group called, she felt it was time to take ‘a step up.’”

Culbertson added that Chef Hirsch would become the Executive Chef at Myriad’s highly acclaimed “Harbor View Hotel in the posh East Coast summering grounds of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.” Hirsch and Nieporent had become acquainted at the “Taste of the NFL,” a Super Bowl Charity Gala.

Subsequently, she was invited “to cook for a tasting for the group.” Myriad, at the time, was famous for a number of exclusive restaurants in New York City (5, all successful), San Francisco, London, and Sonoma, California, among other places. When interviewed, DiGiacinto said that Hirsch would be missed at Scalea’s, but added that “the front house and kitchen staff are almost intact from when they had opened a year before.” The new Executive Chef at Scalea’s would be Stefan Krause, “former sous chef at the Maisonette” (Amy Culbertson, “Chef Anita Hirsch Says She Couldn’t Pass Up Challenge,” Cincinnati Post, June 3, 1999).

In 2002, Scalea’s closed temporarily so its new owners, the Queen City Restaurant Group, could “make changes to the dining room, staff, and menu.” It should be noted that the same group also owned Bella at Fountain Square, Watson Brothers in Blue Ash, Teller’s of Hyde Park, and Jump in Over-the-Rhine (Polly Campbell, “The Dish-Dining News to Use – Changes – New Ownership,” Cincinnati Enquirer, July 19 and September 6, 2002).

Not long afterward, the Queen City Restaurant group decided to change the name of Scalea’s to Bistro 318, and also altered the menu. “It was broadened to include dishes from Asian and other cuisines in addition to the Italian that was featured over the years at Scalea’s.” The other big change came with turning Scalea’s deli into a dining room (Polly Campbell, “New and Noted: Scalea’s Changes Name to Bistro 318,” Cincinnati Enquirer, April 15, 2005).

Chef Anita Hirsch (photo provided)

The next major restaurant at 318 Greenup Street would be Blinkers. There were, however, a few iterations in-between from Pho Paris with the Jean-Robert Restaurant Group to Chalk Food and Wine with Jared Whalen as the Head Chef. In 2014, Blinkers Tavern opened (Polly Campbell, “Classic Food, Classy Staff,” Cincinnati Enquirer, October 10, 2014).

Since then, under the helm of Gary Ginn and Sandy Meyer, Blinkers has done very well, with many awards over the years for “the best steak in Northern Kentucky” and many loyal, regular customers who enjoy the “steak special” two nights a week and other comfort foods, all in the same well-designed, comfortable space occupied by patrons back to the days of Scalea’s.

That they have been equally as farsighted can be seen with their Fall 2021 decision to expand into a historic building formerly owned by former Kentucky Governor John W. Stevenson (25th governor from 1867–1871 who also represented Kentucky in both houses of the US Congress). They opened Governor’s House Wine Bar and Kitchen with a menu that “includes shareables, flatbreads, small plates, and full-size entrees with an Italian flare, as well as a full bar and a large selection of wines and bourbons” (Emily DeLetter, “Blinkers Tavern Owners Opening a New Restaurant in Covington,” Cincinnati Enquirer, October 28, 2021).

Today, Blinkers and the Governor’s House remain leaders in bringing quality food, a friendly atmosphere, and a sense of the past to the Northern Kentucky community.

Dr. Raymond G. Hebert is professor of History and executive director of the William T. Robinson III Institute for Religious Liberty at Thomas More University. He is the leading author of Thomas More University at 100: Purpose, People, and Pathways to Student Success (2023). The book can be purchased by contacting the Thomas More University Bookstore at 859-344-3335. Contact Ray Hebert at hebertr@thomasmore.edu.

Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is Editor of the “Our Rich History” weekly series and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). He can be contacted at tenkottep@nku.edu. Tenkotte also serves as Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Enrichment). For more information see https://orvillelearning.org/


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *