Tickle Pickle

Tickle Pickle is fun! It’s pretty easy to miss with it being back behind a building in a little courtyard area off Hamilton in Northside, but when you DO find it, you’ll be glad you did. There’s not a lot of seating, and it’s the type of place where you go up to a window and order without actually going in anywhere. We went last month, so I’m not sure how that’s going to work when it’s snowing and freezing outside. I’m not entirely sure, but I believe they plan to expand inside the building since the restroom was located inside where they were clearly doing renovations. The staff seemed eager to be there and it was nice to be helped by someone who appears to enjoy what they’re doing. Everyone was really nice. I got the special of the day burger and it was gigantic; definitely worth the price I paid, and it was delicious. They don’t sell alcohol but you can bring your own beer, so we stopped at the corner shop before we went to solve that problem.
If they offered drinks there and weren’t localized to only the courtyard, I’d give it a higher score, but honestly this place is great and you should check it out if you’re in the mood for a good burger. I’ll definitely be going back for another one when I get the chance.

I used to work here. Once I noticed mold growing on the pretzel buns. I told the owner, and she told me to serve them anyway. That, «we’d get a new shipment in a couple days». My final straw was when I learned someone had replaced the dish sanitizing solution with floor cleaner. Nearly half of the bottle was used before an employee caught it. I quit working here because quiet honestly the conditions are repulsive. (Solidified milk on/​in the milkshake machine. Raw meat and cooked meat handled with the same spatula.) Also a very unsanitary homeless man that stays in the basement is in charge of assembling burgers.
All things I would consider prior to eating here.

Excited that I found a great new lunch spot in Northside. You have to walk through an alley, and behind a building, and up to a window to find this place. The menu is made of of pun-​based burgers and sandwiches (the «Bread Zeppelin» is my favorite) as well as sides like mashed sweet potatoes. All their meat is locally sourced and they have vegetarian options as well. Ordered at the walk up window, and 5 minutes later I had one of the best burgers if ever had. I can’t rave enough about this burger, the goat cheese on top with some grilled onions was amazing. It’s a tad pricey, but hey you’re getting local and delicious food so it’s fair. The seating is just a patio partially covered with a tarp, so to go is your best bet. Makes for a great fast lunch, I will be back!

My car was in the shop for a couple weeks so I started walking down Hamilton for lunch every day and ended up trying Tickle Pickle … I would say 5 times total in two weeks. Should be nice to get that restaurant opened properly (the back porch step-​system is awkward for the customers who have to take turns trying to figure out when and if they should walk up those steps. This has absolute no bearing on my grade). The band-​named sandwiches isn’t original; but adds a level of fun. My first sandwich was the Nom Petty (mushroom burger); it did not do much for me. Slaw was decent — but I figured the burger fell apart from the swiss/​shrooms — some real yellow cheese and ketchup and I think I would have been in heaven. I was right. Bread Zeppelin was my next day’s choice (and the three following visits); as well as trying that Mac & Cheese (sweet potato was decent). But then my car got fixed and I haven’t had the urge to return, yet. I had my fill? I will be back — but I hope with the opening of the full restaurant they surprise us with more food choices.
A note to help out: I found out about Pickle from their Facebook announcements. But those posts halted on Sept 29^th (it’s November 9^th now). Don’t abandon social media.

I never really write reviews, but I am making an exception for this place.
At around 9:30pm on a Thursday night, I find myself wandering around looking for something to eat in Northside that’s not Taco Bell/​KFC due to the fact that I am quite sober and require my food to taste like something other than salt. I find this sign point the way for burgers down an alley that is illuminated by a chain of small lights. Thinking I may have fallen for a joke, I slowly walk through the yard to a nice array of tables and an outdoor fire place only to be greeted by two awesome employees that want nothing more than to provide me with awesome food. I place my order (The Red Hot Chili Peppers Burger and a side of the dirty smashed potatoes) and waited a mere 6 minutes for my food to come to me piping hot. While the potatoes were fantastic, the burger is the true king here. So much flavor was coming out of this package that I have deemed it the best burger in Cincinnati. The meat is cooked so it’s juicy and not dry, their ingredients are fresh and unique, the staff is extremely friendly, and this place is about as original as burger joints get. If you’re ever in Northside, try this place out as you will leave knowing you just tasted awesome in physical food form.

I’m usually not one to leave a review for anything, but tonight I had one of the best burgers of my life.
My roommate and I, both new to Northside, stumbled onto this place as we were exploring. It didn’t look like much of anything at first, just a well lit backyard in one of the many Northside alleys. Curiosity got the better of us so we walked through the gate.
The venue consists of a few tables on the patio and a counter which leads directly into the kitchen. The staff was really friendly and kept everything clean. All of the sandwiches and desserts are named after bands and other artists. One of the customer favorites is the Pickleback (just kidding, nobody would actually order that one). There is also a modest selection of local and craft beer.
For our visit, I chose the Hammstein, while my roommate ordered the Bread Zeppelin. The sides were good, but the burgers were godlike. Mine came on a pretzel bun with bacon, 1000 island, sauerkraut, and swiss (which I normally can’t stand, light I add). It had the perfect amount of juiciness without completely falling apart in my hands. Without a doubt, the best burger in Cincinnati. And, at a location just down the street, I will return many times to come.

The milkshake. Ohhh… The pumpkin milkshake. It was so good I wanted to drink five. The bean burger was also delicious. We got a bean patty in the red hot chili pepper and we will do it all again soon!

Some friends and I ate here last night and I can’t stop thinking about it! Wow, was that a fantastic Burger! One of the best Burgers I have had in a really really long time! Tickle Pickle serves Organic, 100% grass-​fed Burgers and the quality is fantastic. I love the alleyway that it is in as well. The patio space has an Eli’s outdoor vibe to it with the typical chic Northside charm. The patio has two really long picnic benches and three tables for two, so we just pushed two tables together and had a fire pit behind us, so we were cozy. One tip would be that it is BYOB, we did not know that until we got there. Thankfully the Listing Loon was a short walk down the street. Another thing I loved about this place is it’s dog-​friendly, so I can bring Theodore here and they have an actual dog menu.
So the menu is awesome, as a music obsessed human, you have to love the music theme for the food. All of their Sandos are named after bands or musicians. I got the Burger of the day, which was the Rob Zomwich. It consisted of their beef Burger, Pretzel Bun, Cheddar Cheese, Hot Sauce, Banana Peppers, Jalapeño Popper Peppers, and Onions. I try to savor my food and not inhale it, but I couldn’t stop eating it! I don’t think I have eaten something so fast in my life! I didn’t eat my side, I just ate the Burger and drank beers but it does come with cole slaw which I heard was delicious. The ladies working here were extremely friendly and you could tell they really like what they’re doing which is always a plus and makes the experience that much better. The other thing that surprised me was how quickly the food came out.
All-​in-​all, I definitely think this place is five-​star worthy and I highly recommend it if you’re craving a Burger and or are in Northside looking for a good food option!

I want to love this place but I have some issues. First: this was the best burger I’ve had in a long long time. I had The Meatles. Bacon burger and fried egg=wonderful. I ate it so fast I couldn’t post any pictures! The place serves local beef and chicken as well as veggies. It’s pricey but really good. There is only a take out window so you either need to take it to go or eat at a picnic table they have in the back. There were tons of flies buzzing around probably because the keep 4 garbage cans and two recycle bins about 20ft from the tables. All in all of come again for a take out order. The food comes out fast the ladies who work here are great and overall good vibes flow through the space. If you like burgers this is a place you want to stop in and check. They also name all of their burgers after famous bands! Classic!

A great addition to Northside! I stopped over here last Friday and enjoyed some burgers from the walk-​up window. The burger options are really good and the pretzel bun was the best I’ve had. You can tell you’re eating quality ingredients. Highly recommend this place! My only criticism would be that I wasn’t able to request how I’d like my burger cooked, the charge for water and the overall cost. I wouldn’t consider the place pricey but it was definitely more than an average burger place: