Partners Andrew Watts and Chef Vinnie Cimino are launching Rosy, their second restaurant after Cordelia, in Ohio City's Hingetown on February 26, 2026. The venue focuses on classic European cooking centered on a live-fire grill. It draws inspiration from a pivotal cooking experience that reignited Cimino's passion.
In 2022, just before the friends-and-family preview of Cordelia on July 4, Chef Vinnie Cimino faced burnout after working about 100 consecutive days. His partner, Andrew Watts, urged him to take a day off. At a family friend's cookout, Cimino ended up cooking over a live fire, preparing bread on hot stones, vegetables in coals, and lamb, while creating makeshift condiments. "So my day off was spent cooking, just somewhere else," Cimino says. "It was just very instinctual cooking."
This experience reminded him of joyful moments in his career, such as hosting Outstanding in the Field at Thaxton's Organic Garlic, where he cooked a whole cow buried in coals. It alleviated his imposter syndrome and boosted his confidence. "It brought me back to why I love doing it so much and that I know what I'm doing," he says. "You always have, not just one, but many moments of imposter syndrome. But this was like, in this one moment, I really needed to get out of my own head. I finished those dishes the next day."
Cordelia, located on East Fourth, became Cleveland's best new restaurant and earned Cimino a James Beard Awards finalist spot. After two years of success, Watts and Cimino sought expansion. They selected a 1,400-square-foot space on Church Avenue in Hingetown, formerly Alea, which features a live-fire grill. "It was kind of like a no-brainer," Cimino says.
Rosy offers a modern take on European old-world cuisine in a 50-seat bistro with communal tables, high tops, and bar seats. Diners can watch the grill, where the menu—chalk-written and hyper-seasonal like Cordelia's farm-to-table approach—changes as specials run out. Cooking over fire presents daily challenges, with shifting hot spots requiring constant adjustments. "Fire is a living, breathing thing," Cimino says. "It's such a carnal, rudimentary way of cooking. You kind of go home smelling like a campfire every single night, in the best way."
The space underwent significant renovations: colorful tiles from Seneca, Ohio, enhance the cinderblock walls; the kitchen expanded; the grill revived; and Shred and Co., owned by Carl Ziek and Scott Larson, added Douglas fir counters, banquettes, glass blocks, and a wall-built soft serve machine for vanilla ice cream with olive oil and sea salt.
Signature dishes include the Salata Plate with house-made focaccia and seven dips like spiced eggplant, Bagna Cauda, house-made cheese, and ajvar; grilled Pljukanci Croatian hand-rolled pasta mixed with smoked cheese crema, lemon zest, and pecorino sardo; Cotechino house-made smoked Italian sausage absorbing grill smoke; and pickled walleye cheeks.
Rosy extends Cordelia's mission as a training ground for chefs, with most staff starting there. The partners plan future concepts to foster hospitality professionals. Mid-February previews evoked a "backyard European barbecue." "Rosy to us is just an opportunity to give back and an opportunity to be just so grateful for being able to cook and be surrounded by the fire and around our friends," Cimino says. "Our appreciation for the opportunities that we have, for this next chapter, for being able to do what we love every single day."