The Wheel Oakley

People are always surprised when they hear that we often drive the almost hour trip from Dayton to Cincinnati for dinner but it's worth it for the treasure trove of independent establishments like The Wheel Oakley! I had heard that their pop-up dinners sell out very quickly so I was ready the day they were posted and grabbed a few spots for one of their February dates.We arrived and were greeted with a glass of Prosecco and then we found a seat at the long community table set for 20; it was so much fun getting to know the people seated next to us!Dinner was delicious! Four courses-the gnocchi with sausage was our favorite dish of the night.

So this is not a review of a normal restaurant. The Wheel does carry-out only on the weekends, and pop-up dinners on the days of their choice. If you follow them on socials, you can score a seat at the pop-ups. The place is an old house with a lot of character. The food for carryout is fantastic and their bread is fantastic. We live in West Chester and have driven down to there a few times just to pick up delicious dinners.We just attended our first dinner there last Tuesday. Oh My Goodness! What a treat. Jordan greeted us with a glass of Prosecco and directed us where to sit a long table that seats 20. We introduced ourselves to our seatmates and then our first dish arrived. Chef does explain the food before we had each dish, however we wished there was more background and history as to how this place came into being. So expect fantastic food without a lot of details. The first dish was a salad made with all local ingredients. It was so fresh and the dressing made with fresh dill was fantastic. The second dish was a ravioli with northern Italian cheese on a bed of butternut squash puree and brown butter. The pasta was SO delicate and the flavors complimented each other so well. The third dish was a 6 hour braised pork shoulder with ricotta gnocchi in a sauce with Calabrian chilis and I don't know what else. We have been to Italy and all the Italian restaurants in Cincinnati and never had anything like this. It was truly phenomenal. Dessert was a apple upside down cake served warm with whipped cream...fantastic.You bring your own wine, and Jordan is on it by never letting your glass get empty, pouring water, and clearing dishes. Service was so great and she is so friendly and accommodating. The cost was a very reasonable $100/pp and SO worth it. There is no menu, so you go in just devouring what Chef has prepared.

We attended a pop up dinner tonight, amazing food in a fun space and we met some very interesting people. The service was efficient and super friendly. We have heard about these dinners and were finally able to grab a ticket. The theme was rustic Tuscan and every course was better than the last.

Rude front counter staff. Seemed uninterested to answer questions from a new customer. We left.

Since this place popped up and I'm seeing similar reviews.. might as well add my 2 cents... I would've loved to try their food but the woman at the front counter pretty much laughed me out the front door when I asked (during lent) if they had fish sandwiches left during lunch. I haven't stopped by since.

The Wheel is unbelievable. If you can get in to a pop-up dinner, do it. It's the most amazing dining experience. Chrissy and her team do an amazing job from start to finish. The focaccia is simply the best bread anywhere. I'd push my grandmother down a flight of stairs to get some, but fortunately I don't have to. Stop in for carry out lunch or dinner or hit one of their special events.

Went for the pop up dinner.I'm truly torn about this review. Everything was well made. Great combo of flavors. Clearly fresh ingredients used. And the pop up dinner concept is just plain fun.Yet, I'm not sure I'd go back unless they change their format some. I just can't eat a meal of mostly carbohydrates. The meal was 3 courses of bread, a small salad, 2 vegetarian pastas - and absolutely no meat in any of it. I just can't do an unbalanced meal like this. So, it's just not for me. But if you love carbs, it's probably perfect for you.

We reserved the wheel for a private dinner and had the most spectacular time! It was intimate, delicious and memorable. We had four courses and each time Chef Chrissy walked us through what we were eating it was even more special because she incorporates local food into the meals. We started with focaccia, spring salad and local cheese. I could have eaten just the bread and gone home happy it was delicious but it only got better from there. We then moved to a pasta and then gnocchi where we wrapped up with angel food cake. Would highly recommend booking for a private event!

Food is solid. Portions are small. Customer service and friendliness are lacking.We've purchased food from here at least ten times since it opened several years ago. The sandwiches in the early days were truly spectacular, and we had a lovely multi-course dinner one time when those communal dinners were held occasionally next door. Portions have become smaller, and prices have become higher over time. Unfortunately, my last two purchases have also left me feeling like an annoyance rather than a valued customer. When we wanted to support this place as a small business early during the pandemic, the phone interaction was not pleasant at all because I didn't have my credit card right in front of me to pay over the phone. I was expecting we would pay at pickup, and there was no information to the contrary on the website or in emails. I grabbed my card quickly and paid, but the annoyed tone from the owner was one I thought I had picked up on before in previous interactions and one that made me decide I wouldn't go back. Then, this week, probably a year and a half later, I decided we would try again because maybe it was just me and because we still support a ton of other small food-related businesses in the area like St Francis and Sebastian where we've never had one negative experience. We ordered $125 worth of food to feed lunch to four people and scheduled a pickup time. When I got a message saying the food was ready half an hour early and was still in a work meeting, I texted and emailed to say that I couldn't make it until the pickup time or maybe five minutes earlier. Early is great except when you have a $15 fried fish sandwich that you'd rather not eat super soggy! There was no response to those messages nor acknowledgement when I arrived to pick up. A brown paper bag was placed on a counter for me, and when I asked if it contained only the bread so that I could pick it up and turn it on its side to carry the other larger bag, the woman acted annoyed that I had a question. My other items were brought out promptly, said fish sandwich was not soggy (seems to have been assembled when I arrived), and the food was generally tasty. However, here's the thing. A $12 side of arancini should contain more than 2 arancini, especially when the arancini are only 2 or possibly 3 small bites each. Neither the customer email nor the online online ordering system indicated how many items were in each side, but in each side, I received two cold rice balls that had not been crumb coated nor fried. (We've familiar with the fact that the pasta meals and most mains are all served cold, etc, but "naked," uncooked arancini was confusing.) We ordered two of these sides, and one ball in each was broken which could have happened in transit, but the balls were packed tightly in the container and handled with care on a 7-minute ride. There was maybe a tablespoon of filling (fennel and taleggio) in each along with a beet dipping sauce. When I opened the box at home, I just put them to the side because I had to hop on a work meeting and didn't have time to deal with coating, frying, or even baking the arancini.See photo for two of the arancini. Each was $6, and the pan is the size of half of a toaster oven if that gives you some sense of scale.The kale salad that was my main meal had a tiny container of dressing (about 1/3 the amount of what was in the beet dipping sauce - maybe 1.5 tbsp?) and used curly kale rather than lacinato kale which is a bit more tender. The pieces of kale really needed to be massaged with the dressing and allowed to rest before serving. In lieu of that being done for the customer, there should have at least been enough dressing for the customer to do so at home. I stretched the dressing with olive oil, but then the salad had no flavor. When I'm paying $7 for a small salad, it should have a lovely dressing as described and I shouldn't have to improvise at home.While on my work meeting, I messaged to ask how the owner intended for the arancini to be prepared at home and offered a suggestion about the salad dressing. Two full days later, and there has been no reply at all. Solid food can be found in more and more places in this city, and I'll continue to purchase it from places where portion sizes make sense and owners/staff are friendly with customers. The Wheel could learn an incredible amount from the previously mentioned businesses as well as Brown Bear Bakery here in town.

Delicious, completely homemade. The Wheel is a Cincinnati treasure the is still somewhat under the radar. The meatballs are unbelievably delicious and the pop up dinners are lots of fun.