CINCINNATI — It is nearly ten months into the coronavirus pandemic and many people are looking forward to new places and experiences to help them escape the current situation.

John Cioffi III said this is why he and his business partners decided to open a new Italian restaurant and wine bar at 1000 Delta Ave. in Mount Lookout Square.

"Cibo Vino means food and wine, literally in Italian," said Cioffi. "So, we wanted to bring a concept to Mount Lookout that was a little bit on the higher demographic end."

He said Cibo Vino delivers a taste of Italy as soon as customers approach the restaurant with its colorful stucco face.

"You can't help but be inspired by it," Cioffi said.

There are a few surprises inside too.

"Nobody knows that there's actually a wine grotto in the back," Cioffi said, adding he and his partners plan to install outdoor heaters and offer live music in the space within a few weeks.

Co-owner and head chef Chris Baulo said the decor and building perfectly match the Italian-inspired food and wine menu he has created.

Baulo said, "we want everybody to come in and feel comfortable," while at the same time introducing them to something new.

"We went with about 70 percent of the wine list being Italian, a little bit different than American wines or let's say French wines," he said. "You're talking about styles. There are so many . . . there are multiple styles that are made with similar varietals of grapes."

Baulo said those styles represent multiple regions of Italy and pair well with his mostly small plate menu that features multiple antipasti, salads, seafood and a rotation of other seasonal dishes.

Cibo Vino also makes six varieties of pasta in-house each day.

"I like to think I'm more of using ingredients you would find a lot in Italian cooking from across Italy, not just in one particular region," Baulo said. "We want to have a good amount of smaller options right. You can actually have multiple things and try a lot of things."

For those looking to simply find a new wine, Cibo VIno also offers tastings by the glass on 30 percent of the restaurant's selection, or wine flights, which the restaurant's staff will walk guests through.

Opening a new restaurant during the pandemic can be challenging, but Cioffi said he feels that sometimes people need to be as bold as some of the wines Cibo Vino serves.

"If you wait for everything to be perfect it’s almost like everything in life, sometimes you'll never do a deal," he said.

For more information visit cibovinobar.com.

COVINGTON, Ky. — Dee Felice Market opened two weeks ago, but its owners are no strangers to Mainstrasse.

Shelly DeFelice-Nelson and Patrick Nelson, whose Covington business has been around 36 years, transformed part of the Dee Felice Cafe into a market over the last three months.

"Other things were moved around,” Patrick explained. “Refrigerators were purchased and brought in. Before we knew it, we had a grocery store."

Emily Gibney

Shelly said the newly-arranged space fills another need.

“We love this neighborhood. We've been here a long time as business owners, to be a part of the customer service kind of thing,” she said.

Ashley Theissen, who lives just a few blocks away, said she likes being able to come get a few groceries without traveling far. She said she moved back to Mainstrasse because of its walkability.

“‘Oh, we don't have this for dinner,’ and not having to get in the car and leave -- that's exactly what we want,” she said.

Resident Ben Hergert agreed, saying it's just nice to be able to pick up a few items from a local spot.

“It’s really important. This area has developed a bit of a food desert beyond the restaurants and bars," he said.

The market is stocked with fresh produce, wine and other essentials -- “what the neighborhood has been missing the most," Theissen said.

Emily Gibney

Not far on West Seventh Street, McK’s BBQ, formerly McK's Chicks, is serving up meat by the quarter-pound, and you can smell the barbecue from outside.

"Once you open your nose out there, we want to open your eyes when you walk through the door here,” said manager Howard Blakey.

The smells and daily “smoke signals” are their signature advertising. After all, where there’s smoke...

"People are like, ‘oh my God, I smelled it. You guys are open? Oh my God, why didn't y'all say something?’” Blakey said.

The eight-month renovation at McK’s brought fresh paint outside, new decor, four tables and some rebranding.

Emily Gibney

"You see how beautiful the place is,” he said. “It's that rustic, ‘oh, come get that barbecue’ feeling. You know?"

Blakey said McK's is ready for its grand opening next week.

“I want to thank all our regulars for being patient," he said. "I can’t wait to be able to see most of them again, again and again."

Business owners in Covington explain they're embracing the city's momentum to fill a need.

"We've seen a big change here," Shelly said. "It's really exciting to see it take the good turn that it is, the residents moving in here."

A Black-owned yoga studio is a rare find in Cincinnati — so rare that it pushed a local woman to create her own in Madisonville.

InoarG Yoga was opened in February by certified yoga instructor Blu Cauthen.

“InoarG, it directly means movement towards purification within, and that’s my goal here — for us, especially, because we need it,” she said Friday.

Cauthen said she opened the studio out of a need for peace during a stressful time in her own life.

"I didn’t have any time to do anything except work, work, work," she said. "I found myself on Instagram doing the yoga challenges, and I was like, ‘Whoa, I feel amazing.'”

Cauthen believes yoga helped her learn how to center herself in times of chaos. It’s a skill she’s hoping to teach anyone who enters, especially those in the Black community.

“We don’t see enough of us doing great things, bettering ourselves," she said. "We don’t see enough of us balancing everything, so, when I think of myself, I think I can reach someone that looks like me and they can come in here and feel comfortable."

The studio is open to anyone curious about yoga. Cauthen teaches classes daily and often creates special programs based around mental and physical wellness.

“We need to learn to get better within ourselves. We need to learn to start reflecting what’s within outwardly to other people,” she said. “That is really important for us especially with everything going on in the world and in the media. This right here, we are allowed to center ourselves.”

Sundays at InoarG are "community days," when classes are offered free for people hoping to try different forms of yoga and fitness.

COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — With Father’s Day around the corner, you may still be trying to figure out how to spoil the special father in your life.

How about spoiling him with a grooming session at a new Colerain barbershop? Harper’s Barbershop and Suites is up and running in Colerain under the proprietorship of Whitney B, who also runs Whitney B Hair Studio.

“I wanted to have a nice sanctuary for the guys to kind of kick back, enjoy their services, relax and watch TV and hang out,” said Whitney B.

Harper’s Barbershop is an extension of the Whitney B Hair Studio, which sits next door on Colerain Avenue. Whitney said she was ready to expand into a space that includes everyone after 10 years of focusing on the hair care of women.

“It’s laid back,” said customer Tiontai Scott. “When you get a haircut, you just want to chill. At least I do.”

Scott was in the chair of William Mitchell, who said the barbering industry has changed over the years.

“I started off cutting hair at $10-15 and here we are today, haircuts at $40-50,” said Mitchell.

Mitchell believes the new prices reflect the intricate techniques barbers use today.

“With HD and 4K cameras, everyone wants to be flawless,” he said. “It’s not just a one-two step anymore. You gotta get in between the halves and the decimals.”

Haircuts aren’t the only thing being served up at Harper’s. Whitney B is also introducing two suites that house beauty services. Right now, one is open offering manicures and pedicures.

“Independent contractors can lease out for their leisure as long as it pertains to the industry,” said Whitney B.

To book an appointment, check out @harpersbarbershopandsuites on Instagram or whitneybhairstudio.com.