Pickle flight? Mac 'n' cheese flight? Beer's got nothing on these 10 Cincy food flights

Fancy flights aren't just for beer. We tracked down several Cincinnati restaurants and breweries offering flights – think samplers, not airplanes – of mac and cheese, pickles, French toast, ice cream and more. And just like beer flights, it's just as much about the presentation as it is about the flavors.

Everyone likes a good beer flight: taste a little bit of this, sip a little bit of that ... and you don't get too tipsy in the process as you might have if you ordered full pours of each. As one of the country's top cities for beer drinkers, Cincinnati is overflowing with beer flights. But this summer, the Greater Cincinnati area is also filling up with these fantastic food flights.

Did we miss any of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.

Pickle flight – Swine City Brewing Co.

The Rock 'n' Rolls food window at Swine City Brewing Co. offers a wide-ranging pickle flight ($6). The four flavors included are garlic pickles, horseradish pickles, habanero pickles and cherry koolickles (Kool-Aid pickles). After ordering this flight, you'll soon realize the world needs more Kool-Aid pickles.

• Stop by Swine City Brewing Co. at 4614 Industry Drive, Fairfield.

• Rock 'n' Rolls is open 5-9 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, noon-9 p.m. Saturday, noon-3 p.m. Sunday. Follow Swine City on Facebook for special hours.

Mac and cheese flight – MamaBear's Mac at Grainworks

MamaBear's mac flight ($14.50) includes samplers of Buffalo chicken mac, loaded baked potato mac, smokey bear mac and Vermont cheddar mac. A trip to Grainworks would be incomplete without it. Don't forget to pair your flight with a glass of Helles Real from the bar, the 2023 Cincinnati's Favorite Beer bracket winner.

• Located at Grainworks Brewing Co., 7790 Service Center Drive, West Chester Township.

• 4-10 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, 3-11 p.m. Thursday, 3 p.m.-midnight Friday, 11 a.m.-midnight Saturday, noon-8 p.m. Sunday. (Mamabear's Mac Kitchen closes one hour before taproom.)

French toast flight – French Toast Heaven

Choose from 16 different kinds of French toast, including apple caramel, birthday cake and s'mores to craft your own French toast flight made in heaven ($17).

• Location: 4877 Smith Road, West Chester Township.

• Open every day, 7 a.m.-3 p.m.

Boozy ice cream flight – Buzzed Bull Creamery

For a sweet, light buzz, be sure to check out Buzzed Bull Creamery for a Buzzed flight, a flight of alcohol-infused ice cream like their bonfire flavor with marshmallow syrup, graham cracker, chocolate chips, cinnamon and cinnamon whiskey.

• Located at 1408 Main St., Over-the-Rhine.

• 4-10 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday, 1 p.m.-1 a.m. Saturday, 1-9 p.m. Sunday.

Cheesecake cupcake flight – The Cheesecakery

Head out to the Cheesecakery for a cheesecake cupcake flight. They have no set menu for the flight. You just show up and choose your four cheesecake cupcakes from whatever they have been cooking up that day. They also offer sundae slights from their Whetsel Whip window, perfect for a palate adventure on a hot day.

• Both the bakery and the Whetsel Whip window are located at 4825 Whetsel Ave., Madisonville.

• Open every day, 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Cheese flight – The Rhined

This cute shop/restaurant at Findlay Market offers six kinds of cheese flights ($18). Pick between the soft, stinky, Midwest, blue, cheesemonger's favorite and special flights, and The Rhined will do the rest, putting together a delectable mix to fit your preferred palate.

• Located at 1737 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine.

• 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday.

• Cheese flights are only available in-store, but are available to-go.

Wing sauce flight – Wings and Rings

Here's how Wings and Rings describes its sauce flight: "Can’t decide? TRY A SAUCE FLIGHT. Get your favorite wing style unsauced with 3 dipping sauces on the side and discover the fringes of flavor your taste buds have been missing. Perfect for orders of 5 or 10 wings." ($1.99 extra for sauce flight.)

• Various locations around Greater Cincinnati.

• Hours vary by location, check wingsandrings.com.

Dessert flight – The Peach Cobbler Factory

Pick any four cobblers or puddings, including cinnamon praline peach cobbler and PB&J banana pudding, for your desert flight at West Chester's branch of The Peach Cobbler Factory ($17).

• Located at 7736 Dudley Drive, West Chester Township.

• Open every day, noon-10 p.m.

Wurstplatte 'flight' – Hofbrauhaus Newport

Newport's Hofbrauhaus brewery offers something close to a flight in the form of their wurstplatte: grilled bierwurst, bratwurst and mettwurst served with mashed potatoes and imported sauerkraut.

• Located at 200 E. Third St., Newport.

• Kitchen hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday.

Cheesecake 'flight' – Third Eye Brewing Co.

After a brew or two, settle the palate with Third Eye's cheesecake sampler ($8). This is also not technically called a flight, but it seems pretty darn close, and it is darn tasty.

• Located at 11276 Chester Road, Sharonville.

• 4-9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, noon-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati food flights: Mac, cheese, pickles, French toast, ice cream