Get to Know the Chef Behind the Cincinnati Open Sporting Club Restaurant

Chef Andrew Alcid is an award-winning culinary leader with over two decades of experience in the hospitality industry, and now works as the Executive Chef at the Cincinnati Open and Cincinnati Open Sporting Club. Known for his elevated dining experiences, his career has taken him to some of the most diverse food scenes, including Chicago, Detroit, Las Vegas and Cincinnati, giving him hands-on experience in everything from global flavors to farm-to-table cooking and high-end steakhouses.  

Chef Alcid’s stand-out talent has earned him March of Dimes Best Chef Award in 2016 and 2017, as well as the Forbes 4-Star Award.  

In 2025, Chef Andrew was named Executive Chef for Levy, the concessionaire of the Cincinnati Open. During the tournament, Alcid curates and executes the menu for all of the world’s top players. Now, Chef Andrew is responsible for translating the same level of care and expertise to the menu at the Cincinnati Open Sporting Club Restaurant.  

Open to the public daily, the Cincinnati Open Sporting Club restaurant continues to grow as a year-round destination, offering the rare chance to dine where the world’s top players do every August. The restaurant features an upscale, casual dining experience focused on good food and great hospitality. 

Read our Q&A with Chef Andrew below:

Can you tell me a little about yourself and your journey here? 

I have always been interested in cooking. I knew by age 11 I wanted to be a chef. I have always had a deep passion for food and being a chef is the only job I have ever wanted to have and the only job I’ve ever worked. I was born in Philadelphia and grew up in Detroit as the youngest of four. I attended the Cooking and Hospitality institute of Chicago and then stayed for a decade working in fancy restaurants. Eventually, I moved to Ohio to be closer to family and started at Levy Restaurants for the Cincinnati Open and Cincinnati Open Sporting Club.  

Who or what inspired you to become a chef? 

My biggest inspiration was my parents. As the youngest of four, they pushed me to chase my passions and pursue something I was really interested in. My parents gave me cookbooks and introduced me to a variety of cooking shows. They spent a lot of time working and providing for our family, so cooking allowed me to connect with my heritage and culture.   

Who or what influenced your cooking style? 

I have a global cooking style, not one specific influence. The people and places I have worked have shaped my cooking style. My cooking is ever- changing with technique and style. Food has also changed a lot over the years. It is important to be adaptable. In my travels and journeys throughout the years, each restaurant I have worked at has taught me different things which all play a part in the cooking style I have now.   

What is one lesson you learned early in the kitchen you still use today?  

Humility is one lesson that is still important today. There are so many different variations of cooking. You must humble yourself because you learn something in every kitchen and from every chef you interact with. I am happy that I now get to pick and choose what I have learned and incorporate it into my own style.  

If you weren’t a chef, what would you be doing? 

Ideally, I would be somewhere on a beach but realistically, I would be hiking in the woods with my kids.  

What is your signature dish? 

I don’t have a signature dish, but I love recreating fast food dishes. Fast food was forbidden in the house; it was only a treat when I went somewhere like a friend’s house. Now any chance I get to recreate something like the Chalupa, I take it. I am on the eternal hunt for my signature dish.  

What was your thought process when building the Sporting Club menu?  

When creating the menu, we wanted to honor the original menu from the Grizzly Golf Course, but pump it full of good technique, use local products, and make everything from scratch.  

What was important to you when creating the menu? 

When creating the menu, the most important thing to me was that it had to be for everyone. From kids to adults, people who have been coming here for 30 years to the people who will come here for the next 30 years. I wanted the menu to be approachable—not overly fancy or uncomfortable—and simple, while still being elegant. 

What’s your favorite thing on the menu and why? 

It is hard to pick one favorite on the menu, but if I had to choose, I would pick anything that is smoked. Believe it or not, this is my first restaurant with such a large smoker, so it has been fun learning different techniques and expanding my knowledge. Our smoker uses local Ohio wood that gives it a distinct flavor. It can smoke up to 750 pounds of meat at once!

What is something you want guests to know about the menu?  

It looks exactly like any other menu you would see in Cincinnati, but everything is made from scratch.  

What do you want guests to feel when dining here? 

I want guests to feel like the experience is comfortable, I want the service and the overall experience to feel effortless.  

What are you hoping guests remember most about dining here? 

I want guests to think of this place as the third space in their lives. You have home and work, and I want the Sporting Club to be the third space where you can relax, eat good food and be a part of a community.  

What is the best part about your job guests may not get to see? 

The best part of my job that guests may or may not get to see is mentoring the next generations of chefs. I love coaching cooks, building cooks and being a part of their journey.