📜HISTORY & HIDDEN GEMS TOUR💎 featuring Molly Wellmann
Brought to you by Richter & Phillips Jewelers and The BMW Store Cincinnati
For Part 2 of our Hidden Gems & History Tour in Covington, KY, we visit the River Front and Main Strasse Village. Our day begins at the Gruff which is this amazing cafe and bottle shop. They feature an awesome bar, brick oven pizzas, deli sandwiches and wonderful salads. Their bottle shop carries local beer, wine and liquor. The name “the Gruff” comes from the fairytale “the Three Billy Goats Gruff” and lines of the tale are painted on the walls inside. This is such a perfect spot to grab lunch or sit outside with a glass of wine!
We next make our way just a block south of the Gruff along the river to the Covington River Walk. We walked under the stunning Robling Bridge to Covington’s flood wall murals. Artist Robert Dafford painted 18 Murals on the Flood Wall depicting Covington and Northern Kentucky History. From prehistoric times when the buffalo crossed the Ohio river to get to the salt licks in Kentucky, to the early pioneers, the ferry, Civil War, & the building of the Roebling Bridge. You can also find famous artists, Covington’s German Heritage, horse racing, Covington’s baseball team, and many others along the River Walk. My favorite mural is the crossing of the Garner family.
After the murals we drove over to Main Strasse Village. The Village is centered on the corner of 6th and Main streets in Covington and encompasses 5 city Blocks. The Village is made up of restaurants, bars, and specialty shops. Most of the buildings in Main Strasse date back to the 1840 and 1860’s, you might be surprised to learn Main Strasse Village was developed into a 19th Century Village the 1970’s.
Work started on the Village in 1977. In 1979, they built the Carillon (the big German clock Tower) in Goebel Park. This 100-foot tower is a recreation of a European Style Glockenspiel Clock Tower. Funded by the state of Kentucky, it was built as the anchor attraction for our German storybook inspired neighborhood redevelopment project named…Main Strasse Village.
The Goose Girl Fountain at the intersection of Main and 6th was built in 1980. The fountain was designed by Greek Sculptor Eleftherios Karkadoulias. The fountain is based on the Grimms Brothers Fairytale “Goose Girl”.
Main Strasse is definitely a place you should check out in the near future. There is always something fun going on with the great dining, bars, shops & more. They also host lots of festivals and events during the year. It really is a wonderful place.
Click Here to take the tour with us as we cruise around town in a fabulous BMW from The BMW Store Cincinnati!
Cheers,
Molly Wellmann