Chef Jose Salazar is officially back in the Fountain District, this time with more elbow room and a heavy tilt toward seafood. His namesake restaurant has reopened downtown in the former Saks Fifth Avenue building, rolling out an expanded dining room and a refreshed menu that blends greatest hits from the original Over-the-Rhine spot with new plates like fluke crudo, mini lobster rolls, and a seasonal rhubarb tart.
The full spread gets star treatment in a photo gallery from The Cincinnati Enquirer, which highlights fluke crudo, mini lobster rolls, sunchokes, the Livin' Abita Loca cocktail, crispy wild striped bass, and that rhubarb tart. The gallery, with images credited to Frank Bowen IV, offers close-ups of several of the restaurant's carefully plated dishes.
A Bigger Home On Fifth Street
The new Salazar now lives at 101 W. Fifth St., inside the restored Saks building that also houses Paycor's downtown headquarters, along with street-level retail. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation led the building's transformation into a mix of office and commercial space, which opened the door for restaurants like Salazar to take over the ground floor, according to 3CDC.
Bigger Kitchen, Bolder Menu
The new dining room spans several thousand square feet, roughly five times the size of the original Republic Street location. Private rooms and an expanded bar give the team room to host larger events and stretch the menu a bit. "Opening Salazar in a significantly larger space is a transformative step for us," Salazar said in a press release, as reported by Cincinnati CityBeat.
What To Order
On the plate, the fluke crudo and mini lobster rolls are framed as bright, shareable openers, while the crispy wild striped bass reads like the clearest statement of the kitchen's seafood focus. Sunchokes, tagged in the Enquirer gallery as a favorite of Keith Pandolfi, join the seasonal rhubarb tart to round out a menu that leans local and market-driven, according to The Cincinnati Enquirer.
How It Feels
Early write-ups say the reboot trades some of the original bistro's small-scale charm for a more theatrical, polished energy. "This Salazar feels like Cincinnati's new power dining hotspot," The Infatuation noted, pointing to seafood towers, whipped brie with caviar and other luxe touches that signal bigger ambitions.
Practical Details
Salazar is located at 101 W. Fifth St. in downtown Cincinnati. Cincinnati CityBeat lists the hours as Monday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m., with the restaurant closed on Sundays. Reservations and the phone number, (513) 345-1500, are available through OpenTable and the restaurant's online booking pages.
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