5 Ways to Be Productive (and Play) on Your Business Trip in Cincinnati

Mixing business with pleasure is easy at the Great American Ball Park, where you can slip batting practice in between meetings. (Photo: Getty Images)

Headed to Cincinnati on business? From a unique meeting venue to great after-work drink spots; here are five ways to inject fun into your trip.

1. Best place to host a meeting: Great American Ball Park. Home to the Cincinnati Reds, the Great American Ball Park has several high-tech meeting rooms with space for up to 350 attendees.

You can break up the day with a Wii tournament or batting practice, and cater in anything from classic ballpark snacks like hot dogs and peanuts to an elegant multicourse meal.

On game days, you can entertain clients or network with colleagues in a VIP suite or one of the club-level lounges.

2. Business lunch: Via Vite. This sleek Italian bistro overlooks Fountain Square, with floor-to-ceiling windows and a large outdoor seating area to take advantage of the views.

The moderately priced menu has choices to please everyone, from pizzas and salads to pastas and panini. Florence-born chef Cristian Pietoso uses family recipes for certain dishes.

If you can’t get here for lunch, be sure to stop by after work for happy hour. You can belly up to the main bar or sip your half-price beer, wine or cocktail at the alfresco Piazza Bar.

3. Business dinner: Jimmy G’s. Less than a block from the Duke Energy Convention Center, you can wine and dine clients at this upscale steakhouse. The splashy, stylish interior combines mid-century modern design with contemporary works from local artists.

Hearty steak and fish dishes star on a menu featuring locally sourced ingredients. If you’re not up for a full meal, you can catch up with colleagues in the bar and lounge area and sample small plates such as Vietnamese street stall–style spare ribs or a classic shrimp cocktail.

4. A round of golf: Legendary Run Golf Course. This 200-acre course about half an hour’s drive from downtown Cincinnati is the perfect place to close a deal or go on a team-building outing. The course mixes Scottish links-style holes on the front nine with American championship-style holes on the back nine.

You can hold a meeting for up to 200 in the clubhouse, or just relax at the bar and use the Wi-Fi to catch up with email.

5. Extra play day: If you have time to spare, check out the city’s top spots for art and culture. With no permanent collection, the Contemporary Arts Center puts on constantly rotating exhibits of contemporary art as well as performances, films and gallery talks.

Set in an 1820s Palladian mansion, the Taft Museum of Art displays what was once a private collection. The collection includes paintings by European old masters and 19th-century American artists as well as decorative arts and furniture.

Just south of the Taft Museum, you can cross the river on the pedestrian-only Purple People Bridge for great views of the skyline. On the other side, Newport on the Levee is a shopping and entertainment complex with restaurants, a movie theater and an aquarium.