Critic's Review
Review 9/11/12
The first time I went to Skyline Chili I was hoping to get some chili for lunch; I ordered a coney with chili and a small container of chili. I didn't know what Skyline was all about; In those days I didn't research the place before I went. It's all part of the learning process. The coney was pretty good, but I was mad about the chili. The chili here is liquid; it's a spaghetti sauce really, and it's not suitable for eating on its own. I killed them pretty good, probably unfairly, but now before you order they ask if you've ever had it before. I'm guessing that I'm not the first one to be surprised.
The place itself is more like a schoolroom than a restaurant, with small colorful tables and low stools at a low counter.
A little background, Skyline is a Cincinnati thing, so the decorations in the place are Cincinnati Reds oriented. Most of the people who come in here seem to know what they want; they asked if I needed a menu. I know I was ordering a 3 way, but I wanted to check out the prices and other offerings. They have greek salads, but pretty much everyone was having some variation of the 3 way, which is spaghetti, the chili-slop and cheese. I was going to have a small, but apparently they call that the "kids" portion. So I got a medium. The good news is that it's all pre-prepared, so it comes out instantaneously.
The main ingredient in the "chili" is beef, but its cooked to a consistency of..., well you know. It has a hint of cinnamon, and it really doesn't taste anything like the kind of chili that most people are used to. To be fair, it's not terrible. But it's hard to eat it without wondering why you're eating it. It's like you can feel the fat being stored as you take each fork full.
The Cincinnati gang swears by this stuff, but it's not for me. Some other tidbits; they don't have an indoors bathroom, you get a key and go outside like in a gas station. And they now take VISA/MC; it used to be cash only. A "small" 3-way is $5.19 and a medium is $6.49. It's not expensive, but it's not as cheap as it used to be either.
Review 12/4/2009
Skyline chili is a franchise chain that apparently has a following. I've never been to Cincinnati so I don't know what the restaurant quality is there, but I can tell you why there are none of these in NY; this is the worst chili I've ever tasted. Its not just the taste; you could be prosecuted for feeding this vile slop to your pet (not that they would eat it).
The place is much like a kindergarden playroom with bright colors and stools that seem too short for adults to sit on. The menu includes "coneys", which are hot dogs with chili and cheese, "ways", which are served over spaghetti, Chili bowls and for some reason Greek Salad.
The Coneys are miniture hot dogs (not cocktail sized, but smaller than your typical ballpark frank) on a roll with chili, onions and optionally cheese. I had the Coney first, before opening the chili. I was wondering about the "chili", because it didn't seem to have any meat or beans. The hot dog wasn't half bad, but it was very small; you'd need 2 to pass for a minimal lunch.
Then I opened the chili with beans. As you can see from the picture, I was a bit stunned. It doesn't even have the consistency of chili soup; the "meat" is practically liquified, and there were a couple of beans, maybe 5, in the entire 1/2 pint. Mixing it up didn't help; straining it didn't help as there was simply no meat. I though I was buying chili; but it seems that its more of a sauce. So if you're looking for a bowl of chili; look somewhere else.
Oh, and they only accept cash, but no worries; they have an ATM in the back.
