Last night we tried a new Cincinnati restaurant-actually a new restaurant for us, a new location for them. We also went out with new friends, who suggested we all try something new. "How about Local 127?" I read some reviews and then went to my favorite source, Trip Advisor, and this restaurant was rated as a Cincinnati favorite.

The restaurant is known for its eclectic menu of small and large plates. They are also known for creating the menu based on local foods. That sounded interesting. I was a little leery when I checked out some sample menus and they seemed to serve a lot of pork in their menu options.

My husband, Steve and I don’t eat pork, nor do we red meat. We do eat poultry occasionally and fish at least once a week. We call ourselves flexitarians, having been strict vegetarians for years and now being occasionally inclusive of meat.

This widening of our diet has also widened our choice of restaurants and our ability to socialize with non-vegetarian foodies.

So we had an open mind. We had reservations for 7:30 and were seated within 10 minutes of our arrival. I wondered if we were in the right place when I saw the large red pig sitting above the rafters. There were also posters from the Dr. Seuss book, Green Eggs and Ham. Hmmmm-they do like pork.

We had a perfect table, not too close to the front door or the kitchen. Our friends said the restaurant reminded them of a Paris Bistro, and the location used to be the home of a bistro. It was an open restaurant with decorating as eclectic as the menu.

We started with a round of water and each ordered a glass of wine. I ordered the house red. A glass of the house red was $5.00 and it was actually quite good- a red zinfandel. Steve ordered a pinot noir, which was also nice. I always like bread with the wine while ordering. Their specialty is corn bread and it was sweet and delicious.

The menu had several choices of appetizers. Our friends ordered the smoked trout aperitif. The next course was soup and salad. They ordered the beet salad. Steve and I ordered French Onion Soup and a simple mixed greens salad.

We all tasted the trout, which tasted like lox that was cut up in very small pieces. I am not a fan of lox so was glad I did not order it. Our friends also said they would probably not order that again because even though it said pickled, they did not anticipate what pickled really would taste like. Their beet salad looked delicious, but it was made with prosciutto so we passed on tasting it. They loved it. The French Onion Soup was decadent and I would guess, not light weight. The salad was nothing extraordinary. The greens were fresh and the presentation was nice with the large croutons and blue cheese sprinkles. There was also goat cheese spread on the side of the salad bowl.

Our friends ordered scallops and duck. We ordered scallops and the char. The scallops were very good. The plate came as three scallops on top of a small serving of mashed potatoes and garnish. The duck was a breast, cooked medium rare and sliced with vegetables and garnish. I took a bite of the duck and it was good but we all agreed it could have been cooked a little more. Having eaten chicken several times this week with the High Holidays, we decided to order fish. The char was excellent. It was served over the mashed potatoes with a garnish of green beans and topped with a gourmet version of potato chips and onion rings.

To finish off our meal, although we were all quite full, we chose two desserts to share. We ordered the chocolate cream, which tasted like a rich chocolate mouse. Our other choice was the cheesecake made in a mason jar. The cheesecake mixed with fruit and graham cracker crust was very good. The coffee was served with whipped cream, natural sugar and chocolate chips.

Needless to say, this was not a light dinner, but it was what Saturday night dinner with friends should be. Great food, in a great atmosphere, and great conversation.

We all share the love of exercise and a healthy lifestyle, which affords us the pleasure of enjoying a great meal knowing we would go back to eating in moderation during the week.

I would recommend this restaurant. The food was delicious, and I should also mention the service. Our waiter, Taylor was delightful and was able to explain every aspect of the menu and answer all of our questions.

I would be interested in your own review or recommendations of new places to dine in our area.