Cincinnati Style chili is very good.

Duders,

I heard what was said on the bombcast a while back and was indifferent at the time. But now that I have experience, I have to say that this shit is good . Put it over spaghetti with some chopped onions and cheddar cheese; it's freaking delicious. If this is only an example of "Cincinnati Style" chili, then consider myself on board, big time. I honestly don't know why it got so much hate.

I'm with Mary Kish on this one.

Cincinnati Chili doesn't even deserve the name. Its basically a can of Chef Boyardee mixed with a pinch of paprika and poured on spaghetti because, why not.

No. That crap has cinnamon in it. Chili shouldn't be sweet. I tried skyline chili once and it was terrible.

Ive never had it but i have a friend who lived there and he said its terrible, but it looks like something i would try if i ever happen to be in Cincinnati

I once had to fly out to Columbus, Ohio for work for a year and a half. On my way to the local Starbucks I would pass by a Skyline Chili. That place made Waffle House look pristine and clean.

Moved to Cincinnati a few years ago. Love the stuff. I think it has a perception problem because it's not really "chili". Closer to a sauce. Also best when you add Tabasco sauce.

I respect that it exists.

But never.

Fucking NO. That shit is not chili. It's some horrific amalgam of garbage that people who can't handle spicy foods came up with.

I went to a Skyline Chili about ten years ago with my family and every single one of us left with stomach problems. That shit is toxic.

This might be my favorite thread title of all time.

I'm with you man that shit is good. People just can't open their minds, chilli is art

I grew up on Skyline Chili and love it. I eat there way too often.

But I also understand it's not for everyone.

Cincinnati chili is awesome and delicious. Like others said, it's technically not really "chili" more of a sauce, but damn it's good.

Best when homemade.

I don't understand how the OP isn't banned by now for this horrible opinion. Mods?

Wendy's Chili is pretty good.

I like Chile con carne or Texas Red bowl. A well prepaired batch of either is fine with me. But, honestly, give me some Trinidadian Curried Goat.

Reporting this to the cops

Burn this forum to the ground.

Wrong.

It's not even real chilli, it's garbage.

You dudes are way too hung up on the word chili. “It’s not chili” is absolutely the correct take. It’s not fucking chili in the slightest. It is great for what it is, though, and it’s one of my favorite foods.

As someone who’s never had this “sweet chili” you speak of...nooooope! I want my chili as spicy as humanly possible without making it a chore to eat.

Counterpoint:

Disclaimer: I have never had Cincinnati chili but this bit is too damn good.

No wonder this thread has such mix between hate and love. Gold Star Chili is absolute trash (Skyline is where it's at yo)

But yeah, most Cincinnatians like myself will admit that it's not for everyone. It's a lot easier when you grow up on the stuff. I'm 4500 miles away from Cincinnati right now and would kill to be able to go into a Skyline, order a 3-way and a cheese coney (noonionsheavymustard), chill out and relax with some oyster crackers, and enjoy my shitty but comforting meal.

And I will not stand for Ms. Kish besmirching the fine name of LaRosa's Pizza. Next up she'll be dunking on Graeter's.

Never had Skyline chili. My first experience with Gold star was during a Cub scout camping trip with my son when the quartermaster made it for everyone. I've loved it since and we've been making it in a crock pot every Sunday for past month.

If skyline is better I may just have to try that out.

To all the people on here saying real chili should be spicy... You can make Cincinnati style chili spicy. The two are not mutually exclusive. I make mine pretty spicy and it's way better than Skyline.

That being said, it's definitely not for everyone.

People are weirdly dogmatic about chili.

I've never had chilli of any kind, not really interested in trying it.

Giantbomb duders mad about chili. Check out my tumblr.

I am guessing your from Cincinnati ?

I have Skyline a few weeks ago for the first time since I was a child. Mary was right, it is total garbage and other Cincinnatians are stupid for supporting those fowl businesses.

My hang up is definitely the consistency.

Chili is not a soup or a sauce.

Just to clarify, I bought some Gold Star seasoning packets from Amazon on a recommendation of my son's Cub Scout quartermaster and we make it at home. We don't put in as much water as the packet says to and the consistency we get is definitely not soupy/saucey. It's more of a thick chili consistency to me and we love it.

I'm from NJ, never been to Ohio or tried Cincinnati chili before. The only thing I've heard about it was from the bombcast.

@chummy8: Cincinnati chili, much like pork roll (or Taylor ham if you're nasty) are shit foods, but they have so much nostalgia associated with them for me that it bumps up their deliciousness every time I have them. Its like that food critic at the end of Ratatouille.

No.

I'm from Ohio and I won't eat that pig slop!

If it doesn't have beans it can take a hike.

Y'all are crazy and ain't nobody can FRONT my Skyline-making skills. The gods come down from heaven to taste my chili, sons and daughters.

Also that recipe in the Youtube thumbnail is a trash recipe. No wonder people think Skyline is bad.

I have peer-reviewed evidence that Skyline Chili is in fact, a sandwich.

Now hear me out...

The beans are the bread and the meat is the filling and also the sauce is the filling.

As an Ohio native I can say that Cincinnati chili is garbage.

Serving chili on spaghetti noodles is a good idea, but keep that "Cincinnati" chili away from me.

There seem to be two sides of this debate: people that are right, and people that like Cincinnati chili.

I actually would have way less of a problem if it was called Cincinnati coney sauce or something like that. It's meant to be put on something, rather than being an option.

And while I lived in Cincinnati, my roommate (a native) would make his own style of it. Which required the purchase of a chocolate bar. Nope nope nope nope!

@hnke: Fortunately everyone gets it with beans.

"I don't agree with the name" seems like a real dumb reason to hate something.

It is if it's fundamentally different than all other versions of chili out there. A sweeter thing that's meant to be put on other things, but still called chili? That sounds more like a sauce, but it's not called that.

Good Lord, there is so much confusion and misinformation here.

It isn't is a sauce. When used as a sauce it ceases to be the dish referred to as "Cincinnati style chili". It's a layered dished with chili as a layer. You can make this type of dish using your own favorite kind of chili as an ingredient.

The whole point of the thing is the layers. The starch layer on the bottom (noodles). Next, a protein layer (bean/ground meat) and then on top, arguably the most important, is a layer of long thinly shredded cheese that takes up a lot of space but has low density (Fluffy). If you get this wrong, you will be missing the best part of the dish.

It's rarely sweet as some are accusing it of. Often the protein layer is spicy and this is nicely countered by the cheese layer. It doesn't need cinnamon, but this by itself won't make it sweet.

This is the Chicago style pizza argument. people can't get over the fact that it's not really pizza instead of just enjoying a different kind of food.

It's about the cheese. It's less cheese than it looks like. It's shredded in way to make it as fluffy as possible. Its very hollow on the inside.

That looks...somewhat hideous.

I would still try it, but it appears highly suspect.

Skyline is great. Goldstar? Fuck that shit.