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Lakota West fans cheer during a game this season. All of the Lakota West and Lakota East varsity teams will host games this weekend. The boys will host games Friday night, while the girls will be in action on Saturday afternoon. Photo taken by Tony Tribble.

From a restaurant crawl to a winter farmers’ market, there is plenty to do in West Chester this weekend.

For things to do in Greater Cincinnati, visit Cincinnati.com’s new Things to Do page.

Below are some things to do close to home.

Friday

Armchair program – Residents of West Chester Township are invited to experience New Zealand and Australia without ever leaving their hometown. The countries will be discussed at this week’s Armchair session at Township Hall, 9113, Cincinnati-Dayton Road, at 7 p.m. Friday.

Lakota boys’ basketball – Both Lakota West and Lakota East will host conference opponents Friday at 7:30 p.m. Lakota West (6-4 overall, 4-3 in Greater Miami Conference) will host Colerain (4-7 overall, 0-6 in GMC), while Lakota East (11-2 overall, 5-1 in GMC) will host Princeton (6-5 overall, 3-3 in GMC).

Saturday

Union Centre Restaurant Crawl – The fifth annual Union Centre Restaurant Crawl (photo) benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will take place this Saturday. The crawl will begin at 4 p.m. at the UNO Chicago Grill and will move to other participating restaurants that include El Rancho Grande, The Wise Owl Wine Bar, the Dingle House and Jag’s Steak and Seafood.

Winter farmers’ market – The weekly farmers’ market season is over, but the winter farmers’ market will be open this Saturday at the Square at Union Centre. This Saturday’s market will take place from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Like in the summer, the winter farmers’ market also features all local vendors with produce and meats grown and raised locally and products made by hand.

Lakota girls’ basketball – Both Lakota West and Lakota East will host conference opponents Saturday at 2 p.m. Lakota West (10-2 overall, 6-2 in Greater Miami Conference) will host Mason (13-0 overall, 8-0 in GMC), while Lakota East (5-9 overall, 4-4 in GMC) will host Hamilton (3-11 overall, 2-6 in GMC).

Sunday

Community choir rehearsal for MLK program – Residents of Liberty and West Chester townships are invited to Sunday’s community choir rehearsal for the Martin Luther King Day program. The choir will practice beginning at 2 p.m. at St. Paul AME Church, 7161 Ohio 4 in Fairfield. All residents are invited to sing with the group, which will perform at the Jan. 21 Live the Dream: Our Declaration of Unity program.

Posted in: Events, News, Sports, Winter Sports |

Tags: Tags: business, business news, charity, Cystic Fibrosis, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, dingle house, Dingle House Irish Pub, El Rancho Grande, Jag's, Jag's Steak & Seafood, Lakota East, Lakota East basketball, Lakota East Sports, Lakota West, Lakota West basketball, Lakota West sports, Stone Creek, Stone Creek Dining Company, The Wise Owl, Union Centre Merchant Association, Union Centre Merchants Association, Union Centre Restaurant Crawl, UNO, Uno Chicago Grill, Uno's Chicago Grill, West Chester restaurants, Wise Owl, Wise Owl Wine Bar

The fifth annual Union Centre Restaurant Crawl benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will take place this Saturday.

The crawl will begin at 4 p.m. at the UNO Chicago Grill and will move to other participating restaurants that include El Rancho Grande, The Wise Owl Wine Bar, the Dingle House and Jag’s Steak and Seafood.

Those interested can pre-register for the crawl by giving a $30 donation in advance. Registration at the door can be done for a $35 donation.

Parking will be available at the old Max and Erma’s building next to UNO, which is located at 9246 Schulze Drive in West Chester. After checking in at UNO, crawl participants will be walking (dress appropriately) to all of the other nearby restaurants.

The first 50 crawl participants to sign up will receive a complimentary t-shirt. All participants will receive appetizers and discounted drink specials at each restaurant. There will also be raffles and games during the crawl.

Taxi service will be available after the event at Jag’s.

Tickets can be purchased at http://unioncentrecrawl5-eac2.eventbrite.com/#.

For more information please email Lindsay Wiseman at lmdwiseman@gmail.com.

Posted in: Business, Events, News |

Tags: Tags: business, business news, charity, Cystic Fibrosis, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, dingle house, Dingle House Irish Pub, El Rancho Grande, Jag's, Jag's Steak & Seafood, Stone Creek, Stone Creek Dining Company, The Wise Owl, Union Centre Merchant Association, Union Centre Merchants Association, Union Centre Restaurant Crawl, UNO, Uno Chicago Grill, Uno's Chicago Grill, West Chester restaurants, Wise Owl, Wise Owl Wine Bar

The West Chester ▪ Liberty Chamber Alliance will be celebrating the grand opening of their new location with a ribbon cutting and open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The new office is located at 8922 Beckett Road in West Chester. The Chamber offices were previously located at 7617 Voice of America Drive.

“Our new office location offers more contiguous space to enhance work flow and member access,” said Joe Hinson, Chamber president & CEO.

“It’s more than just a fresh coat of paint, its three organizations – Butler Tech, SCORE and the West Chester ▪ Liberty Chamber Alliance collaborating to provide value added resources and strategic support to our growing business community. “

Food and beverages for the event will be provided by At Your Service Catering & Event Planning, G & J Pepsi Cola, IKEA, Jag’s Steak & Seafood, Noodles & Company, Qdoba Mexican Grill, RiverCity Grille at the Cincinnati Marriott North, Stone Creek Dining Company, UNO Chicago Grill, Taco Bell and Warsteiner Importers Agency, Inc.

No RSVP is necessary to attend.

For more information, visit TheChamberAlliance.com or call 513-777-3600.

Posted in: Business, News |

Tags: Tags: At Your Service Catering & Event Planning, Chamber, G & J Pepsi Cola, grand opening, IKEA, Jag’s Steak & Seafood, Joe Hinson, Noodles & Company, Qdoba, RiverCity Grille at the Cincinnati Marriott North, Stone Creek Dining Company, Taco Bell, UNO, Uno Chicago Grill, Uno's Chicago Grill, Warsteiner Importers Agency, West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance

The third annual Union Centre Restaurant Crawl benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will take place this Saturday, Oct. 29. The crawl will begin at 2 p.m. at the UNO Chicago Grill and will move to other participating restaurants that include El Rancho Grande, Asiatique, The Wise Owl Wine Bar, Stone Creek Dining Company, Jag’s Steak and Seafood and the Dingle House.

Those interested can pre-register for the crawl by giving a $30 donation in advance. Registration at the door can be done for a $35 donation.

Parking will be available at the old Max and Erma’s building next to UNO, which is located at 9246 Schulze Drive in West Chester. After checking in at UNO, crawl participants will be walking (dress appropriately) to all of the other nearby restaurants.

Crawl participants will receive a complimentary t-shirt and happy hour specials at each restaurant. There will also be raffles and games during the crawl.

With it being Halloween weekend, there will also be a costume contest. The winner will be announced at the last location (Dingle House) and will be awarded a gift certificate from each restaurant.

Tickets can be purchased at unioncentrecrawl.eventbrite.com.

For more information please email Lindsay Wiseman at lmdwiseman@gmail.com.

(photo taken during the first annual Union Centre Restaurant Crawl – click to enlarge)

Posted in: Business, Events, News, Recreational events |

Tags: Tags: Asiatique, Asiatique Bistro and Lounge, business, business news, charity, Cystic Fibrosis, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, dingle house, Dingle House Irish Pub, El Rancho Grande, Jag's, Jag's Steak & Seafood, Stone Creek, Stone Creek Dining Company, The Wise Owl, Union Centre Merchant Association, Union Centre Merchants Association, Union Centre Restaurant Crawl, UNO, Uno Chicago Grill, Uno's Chicago Grill, West Chester restaurants, Wise Owl, Wise Owl Wine Bar

The Best of the Blast Awards were named last night, Aug. 2, at a food tasting event, which featured local restaurants, at the Cincinnati Marriott North Hotel in West Chester.

The event featured food from Luigi’s Olde World Market, Stone Creek Dining Company, Graeter’s, Smokey Bones, Jag’s Steak & Seafood, White House Inn, Dingle House Irish Pub, City Barbeque, Raymond’s Pizza,  Savannah Center, Jet’s Pizza, Bruster’s, Willie’s Sports Café and Bravo.

People, who attended the event, were given a ballot to vote for their favorite dishes.

“There were a lot of people, who left the event very full,” said Hague Atkinson, producer of the Best of the Blast. “The running joke was that people kept telling me that they couldn’t judge it all because they couldn’t possibly taste everything.”

Enough votes were tallied and the winners of the awards were recently announced.

Best of the Blast Awards – 2010

Judges’ Choice Award: City BBQ
People’s Choice Award: Jag’s Steak & Seafood
Best Starter: Jag’s Crabcake & Portebello
Best Entrée: Luigi’s Ribeye Sandwich
Best Dessert: Stone Creek Carrot Cake (photo)
Best so Bad its Good: Bruster’s Strawberry Cheese Cake Ice Cream
Best Fried Dish: Dingle House Irish Egg Roll
Best Healthy Dish: Savannah Center Chicken Salad
Best Green Dish: Bruster’s Chicago Dog (Nathan’s)
Best Kids Food: Jet’s Pepperoni Pizza

The event served as a preview of the food options that will be available at West Chester’s biggest summer festival, the Union Centre Boulevard Blast.

Previously known as the Bash, the Blast will feature 30 different local restaurant choices at the festival. Last year, the Bash had fewer than 10 options.

The Union Centre Boulevard Blast will take place Aug. 13-15.

Posted in: Business, Events, News, Recreational events |

Tags: Tags: Best of the Blast, Best of the Blast Taste Awards, Bravo, Bruster's, City Barbeque, Dingle House Irish Pub, Graeter's, Jag's Steak & Seafood, Jet's Pizza, Luigi's Olde World Market, Raymond's Pizz, Savannah Center, Smokey Bones, Stone Creek Dining Company, Union Centre Boulevard Bash, Union Centre Boulevard Blast, White House Inn, Willie's Sports Cafe