Ohio's only 5-diamond winning restaurant is in Cincinnati

Orchids, the fine dining restaurant at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza, has been designated a five-diamond restaurant by AAA. It's the only establishment in Ohio to earn  AAA's highest award, and the third time Orchids has earned the designation.

The travel club inspects and recommends nearly 59,000 hotels and restaurants in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Only 0.3 percent earn five diamonds. Four diamonds awards go to about 2.1 percent, including several local restaurants: The Palace at the Cincinnatian and  Boca Restaurant, both Downtown, and Nicola's, in Over-the-Rhine. The Celestial Steakhouse, a long-time designee, did not receive four diamonds this year.

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Five local hotels were award four diamonds: 21C Museum Hotel, Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza, Renaissance Cincinnati, The Cincinnatian, and The Westin. All are Downtown.

"Chef Todd Kelly and the Orchids staff continue to raise the bar with great cuisine and commitment to the fine dining experience," said Cheryl Parker, AAA director of public and government affairs.

Along with the announcement comes a change in how Orchids is presenting its menu, going to a mostly tasting menu format.

The Hilton's Food and Beverage manager and executive chef, Todd Kelly, said he wanted to make sure that every guest was having a  meal that really highlighted the kind of fine dining experience that the chefs in his kitchen do so well. "We have this big, grand dining room. We want to make sure everyone gets a full experience," he said.

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They had been offering a la carte items as well as a Grand Tasting, and a vegetarian tasting menu.

Now they offer 3, 4, or 5-course tasting menus, each including dessert. There are options within each course, including vegetarian options Some of the very popular dishes that Kelly has developed are still available, such as the lobster salad topped with a fried poached egg. The chateaubriand for two, which has been on the menu since long before Kelly arrived, is still there.

But the emphasis is on dishes like foie gras with pomegranate, citrus and matcha. Or black grouper en papillote with vadouvan curry and tart apple tzatziki. "We have a very talented pastry chef in Megan Ketover," said Kelly. We want more guests to have her desserts. That includes a dessert course now of Valencay cheese with gastrique, golden raisins, lime and quinoa.

Guests can still order a la carte, but the pricing is such that the full menu is a better value. The menus will change with the season, and the Grand Tasting will change every day.