Let there be light. And food.
BLINK Cincinnati returns Thursday and runs until Sunday. It is the largest light, art, and projection-mapping event in the United States. BLINK has five geographic zones for the event. One of them, the Covington Zone will have more than a dozen installations. The artwork is food for the eyes but not the stomach.
Inside the Covington Zone will be a designated Entertainment Destination Center, which means that people can walk with an open container of alcohol, but there are restrictions.
The zone will run along Court Street between Third and Fourth streets and Park Place between Scott and Greenup.
Guests will be able to roam that zone with alcohol purchased inside the zone, but the drink must be in an event-branded cup and cannot be taken outside the zone. Guests cannot bring alcohol into the zone from outside.
The second area is the Seventh Street Alcove, which is the parking area on the south side of the street stretching from Madison Avenue to Washington Street. That includes the area directly in front of Braxton Brewing Co.
Outside those two areas, people cannot take open containers of alcohol.
Pets, bicycles, skateboards, roller blades, roller skates, and motorized scooters (such as Lime, Bird, etc.) will be prohibited in the EDC.
The EDC will include a music stage, an art installation, and portable restrooms. There will be food trucks, music, and alcoholic beverages. Most of the area’s restaurants and bars will operate as usual.
Some of Covington’s restaurants and bars will participate in BLINK. The hours of operation listed are the standard hours for Thursday through Sunday unless otherwise noted.
Braxton Brewing in the seventh street alcove will feature the Lumen Lounge, a large, inflatable light-up bar experience.
There will also be a “glow garden” on the Braxton rooftop with thousands of lights. It will offer great views of Mother of God Church and Hotel Covington. Braxton Brewing will offer a specialty beer for the event: a hibiscus-colored, fruited sour served in a special BLINK light-up cup.
Braxton opens at 11 a.m. Thursday through Sunday. They close at 10 p.m. on Thursday, midnight on Friday and Saturday, and 9 p.m. on Sunday.
Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar, located at Hotel Covington, will have a mobile bar on the lawn for BLINK. The mobile bar will offer canned beer and wine, LED sunglasses, and glow sticks. The restaurant will be open as usual from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The bar closes at midnight from Sunday through Thursday, and at 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Covington Yard will offer specialty BLINK cocktails and glow cups for their “Bobbing for Apples.” On Friday night they will offer live music, and on Saturday night, they will have a Silent Disco.
Covington Yard opens Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Del Gardo’s Cannoli will be making special cannoli for BLINK. They will also be offering glow sticks. The shop will be from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. every day on BLINK.
Frida 602 will offer the Frida Kah-Glo cocktail. It is made of Mezcal, toasted coconut rum, passion fruit liqueur, watermelon syrup, lime juice, and grapefruit soda. The cocktail is served with rainbow candy garnish and a glow bracelet.
Frida is open on Thursday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Keystone Bar & Grill normally presents live music only on Thursday nights. However, for BLINK, the establishment will have live music every day of the event. The bar is open on Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday from 11:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturday from 10 a.m. to midnight, and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Kung Food Amerasia will offer pre-made grab boxes with three different entrees and Taiwanese on Friday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. They will sell sake, beer, and wine to go on Friday and Saturday. On Friday evening, the restaurant will partner with Bircus Brewery to host a circus in an adjacent parking lot. They will be selling beer at the circus. Their business hours are Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., and they are closed on Sunday.
Mama’s On Main will offer the Negroni Blink-O cocktail, which is served in a cut crystal glass that illuminates red and is based on the Negroni Bianco. It is made of Malfy Italian Gin, Italicus Bergamotto, and Cinzano Dry Vermouth. The restaurant will also feature BLINK-themed pastries. They are open on Thursday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Gruff will feature a beer tent all four days. The restaurant’s business hours are Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., and they are closed on Sunday.
The Standard Covington will offer the Lit Lemonade cocktail. It is made of Deep Eddy Vodka, fresh lemonade, cotton candy, and light-up ice cubes. They will also offer a Glow-jito, which is made of coconut rum, mint simple syrup, lime juice, soda, and blue curacao. They are open on Thursday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
If you go:
Braxton Brewing
27 West 7th Street, Covington
859-261-5600
Coppin’s Restaurant & Bar
638 Madison Avenue, Covington
859-905-6800
http://hotelcovington.com/dining/coppins
Covington Yard
401 Greenup Street, Covington
859-993-9273
Del Gardo’s Cannoli
18 East 5th Street, Covington
859-300-3456
Frida 602
602 Main Street, Covington
859-815-8736
Keystone Bar & Grill
313 Greenup St, Covington
859-261-6777
Kung Food Amerasia
521 Madison Avenue, Covington
859-261-6121
Mama’s On Main
621 Main Street, Covington
859-360-6051
https://www.facebook.com/mamas621cov
The Gruff
129 E 2nd Street, Covington
859-581-0040
The Standard Covington
434 Main Street, Covington
859-360-0731
