Best Dining in Clermont County- #5 Bite

As we entered the third week of this marketing campaign, I was eager to try Bite. I have heard a lot of great things about the restaurant but it was time to try it out myself.

As I pulled into the restaurant parking lot, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Bite currently sits on a large piece of land and was once a house, which is now converted into a rustic and simple restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into the doors, though. It was spacious and gave me a very “at home” feeling. I immediately fell in love with the rustic décor, chalkboard menu and the unique country vibe it gave off.

I first met the owner of this cute little restaurant, Rachel. She and her husband have always dreamed of opening up their own restaurant and after many years in the corporate world they finally decided it was time to spend more time with their children and pursue a career they could all enjoy.  They looked into numerous locations to open their restaurant but when they stumbled across their current property, it was an offer they couldn’t pass up.

Bite has been open for business for five years and continues to grow bigger and better as the years pass.  Rachel and her family are firm believes of clean food and you will experience that first hand during your meal at Bite. None of their food is chemically processed and the majority of what is on your plate was grown in the restaurant’s backyard garden. Rachel, her family and staff members spend a lot of time tending to their gardens which grow a wide variety of vegetables. Just in the short time that we were talking, Rachel mentioned growing over 60 types of tomatoes (I didn’t even know there were that many kinds of tomatoes) 27 different fruits, corn, carrots, pumpkins, lettuce, berries, 5 different nut trees, lime tree and the list just goes on and on. They even keep bees on property for fresh honey.

The restaurant has a front patio for outside dining when the weather is nice and a BYOB policy, which allows guests to bring their own alcohol as they enjoy their meal. This creates an excellent vibe at the restaurant, Rachel said. I asked her what their favorite part about Bite was. Sure, it was a tough question, but she explained that Bite has allowed her and her family to do what they love. “You have to love what you do,” Rachel said. You could feel her contagious passion when hearing her say that. Rachel loves to educate the community and their customers about the foods and products they are eating and putting in their bodies. Rachel also loves customer interaction. They host a wide variety of events like book signings, seed swaps and educational sessions about food. They also allow customers to pick produce from the gardens to purchase and take home for their own use.

After spending some time learning about the restaurant’s story and history, I was eager to try their food. I was first served the cutest glass of water. Here to find out, all their drinks are served in these awesome mason jars. I thought that was so unique, you don’t see that everywhere.

I am typically a picky eater, but when exploring their menu options it seemed like it was hard for me to choose. I was half tempted to branch out and try the crispy alligator or the pepper jelly. There was also a nice variety of salads. Knowing that everything from these salads were grown on the restaurant’s property was pretty cool. Salads were ranging from farmhouse to super food salad and my personal favorite, “Cacao Salad, which comes from a tree, which is a plant… chocolate is salad.” They even make their own homemade dressings including thousand island, ranch and a slew of vinaigrette’s.

Since this was my first meal at Bite I decided to pick a meal I was comfortable with. I went with the BBQ chicken thigh with a seasonal salad and red skin whipped potatoes. The meal also included a piece of fresh bread and house butter.

I feel like it would be cliche to say that the food was excellent, but man let me tell you, that food was excellent. I first had my salad, it was delicious. Not your come in a bag, throw in a bowl salad. When eating this salad (or any of Bite’s salads) you knew you were eating the good stuff. The chicken was so soft and tender and the red skin whipped potatoes complimented the meal perfectly. And the fresh bread that I mentioned, as a carb lover, it was the perfect addition to my meal.

I really enjoyed my time at Bite and without hesitation can confidently say I will be back for more. Next time though, I will bring my family and friends.