Hyde Park Square has two community events to open the holiday season this year, 16 days apart. The Hyde Park Square Business Association's Retail Committee runs a Thursday shopping evening on November 5. The Hyde Park Neighborhood Council runs the Saturday Fountain Lighting on November 21.
The two evenings use the Square differently. Different shops are open, different groups are planning, and even the two bakeries that opened this year each fit only one of the dates. If you plan both nights as one generic holiday outing, you'll end up at locked doors.
Two Calendars, One New Website
The neighborhood council launched a redesigned site at hydeparksquare.org this fall, and both November events are listed there. According to the Hyde Park-Oakley Record, the council used the new site to announce its fall events. The first was the October 24 Trick-or-Treat, which began with Storytime in the Square at 10:30 a.m.
The same Record piece points out a name change. The council's December 2024 minutes called the holiday event a "tree lighting." In 2026 it is billed as the Fountain Lighting, built around the historic Kilgour Fountain.
Here is what has been published for each night as of late October:
| Shopping Soirée | Fountain Lighting | |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026 | Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026 |
| Time | 4 to 8 p.m. | 5 to 6:30 p.m. |
| Organizer | Hyde Park Square Business Association Retail Committee | Hyde Park Neighborhood Council |
| Cost | Free | Not listed |
| Where | Shops around the Square | Kilgour Fountain |
| Confirmed program | Drinks, snacks, discounts and promotions vary by store | Lights, live music, family activities |
Thursday Belongs to the Shops
The Shopping Soirée is a retail event. The association's listing describes "an evening of shopping, strolling and discovering the shops you love in a whole new light," and each store sets its own drinks, snacks and discounts. When the Hyde Park-Oakley Record covered the event on October 23, no participating shops or individual offers had been named yet. Check the association's page in the days before you go.
The timing is what makes the evening useful. Many of the Square's smaller shops keep daytime hours. Poeme, the stationery shop at 3433 Michigan Avenue, is listed as open Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m., which ends just as most people get home from work. An event that runs until 8 p.m. puts holiday shopping on the Square within reach on a weeknight, though each store decides for itself whether to take part.
The new bakery that fits a Thursday
Thursday is also the better night for one of this year's new arrivals. Koriela Bakery & Kitchen opened in late July at 3670 Erie Avenue. It took over the storefront left empty when Grandin Desserts closed in 2025. Owner Ifat Lahyani is a Le Cordon Bleu graduate. Her menu draws on Moroccan, Israeli and French baking: pistachio Paris-Brest, Moroccan date cookies, alfajores, cruffins, muhallebi pudding and more. The bakery is certified kosher under Kosher Cincinnati.
As the Hyde Park-Oakley Record reported, Lahyani described the opening to Ynet Global journalist Sharon Kidon this way:
"We worked so hard for this. It was a dream that finally came true."
The Record cites hours from YeahThatsKosher: Sunday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and closed Saturday for Shabbat. A separate directory lists shorter weekday hours, so the Record suggests calling 513-332-3173 to confirm. If the longer hours hold, the first hours of the Soirée overlap with Koriela's Thursday schedule. The Saturday lighting does not, because the bakery is closed that day.
Saturday Belongs to the Fountain
The Fountain Lighting is a neighborhood gathering with shopping on the side. The council's listing invites families and friends to "gather around the historic Kilgour Fountain as the Square comes alive with festive lights, seasonal music and holiday cheer."
The 2026 program hasn't been published. Past lightings have included children's storytime, photos at the firehouse, live entertainment, community caroling and holiday drinks from participating businesses. The storytime has a recent history. Hyde Park Branch Library Manager Ben Lathrop told the council at its December 2024 meeting that a storytime held during the November 2024 lighting was successful, according to the Record.
Last year's event ran on November 22 from 4 to 6 p.m. A 2025 holiday roundup from Tour de Cincinnati listed Hyde Park Library storytime from 4 to 4:30, photos with Sparky at the firehouse, live music and holiday drinks at participating businesses. This year's lighting starts an hour later and runs until 6:30. If last year's schedule is any guide, storytime and photos would come early in the evening, but treat that as a pattern from 2025, not this year's plan.
The later start changes which shops will still be open. Poeme's listed Saturday hours end at 5 p.m., right when the lighting begins. If you have a gift stop in mind, go in the afternoon before the crowd gathers.
The new bakery that fits a Saturday
Dovetale Bakery is the other 2026 opening, and it works the opposite way from Koriela. Co-owners Laura Houston and Ellie Wells, both area locals, opened it on April 3 at 3441 Edwards Road. It serves coffee, croissants, laminated pastries, sourdough breads and espresso. The Square's directory lists Dovetale as open Tuesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., closed Monday.
So Dovetale is closed before the Thursday Soirée starts at 4. On lighting day it's a morning stop, open hours before anyone gathers at the fountain.
Your Drink Can Leave the Restaurant
Hyde Park Square has a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area, or DORA. City Council created it with Ordinance 0184-2022, passed as an emergency measure on June 23, 2022.
The hours have grown since then. The city's original application proposed 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, covering about 7.9 acres around the Square. A June 2024 ordinance amended the hours. The Square's DORA page now lists 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day. Both November events fall well within those hours. Under the original proposal, the Soirée's 4 p.m. start would have come two hours before the DORA opened.
According to the association's page, drinks must be in official DORA cups from licensed vendors. Cups are allowed on the Erie Avenue sidewalks, in the green space around Kilgour Fountain, and on the connecting blocks of Michigan Avenue and Edwards Road where participating storefronts operate. The page lists six current vendors:
- Al-Posto
- Alfio's Buon Cibo
- Arthur's
- Awakenings
- Parkside
- Unwind Wine Bar & Light Fare
This is a summary of the published DORA rules, not legal advice. Check the posted boundary map and the vendor's instructions before you walk out with a cup.
What Changed on the Square Since Last November
Beyond the two bakeries, a few other changes on the Square this year affect where you'll eat on either night.
- MexCantina closed. The Erie Avenue restaurant had permanently closed by the time the Cincinnati Enquirer reported it on January 9.
- Parkside is taking over that corner. Local 12, citing the Cincinnati Business Courier, reported that Parkside will move from 2637 Erie Avenue to the former MexCantina space at 2635 Erie, at Erie Avenue and Edwards Road. The new restaurant is expected in spring 2027. Owner Trevor Snowden, who also runs Delwood and Guardia in Mount Lookout, told the Courier the original 48-seat Parkside will stay open during construction. That means it's open, and selling DORA cups, for both November nights.
- Asiana Thai & Sushi closed. The Hyde Park-Oakley Record reported in late August that the restaurant had permanently closed its Hyde Park location.
- Neko Sushi keeps daily hours. The directory lists the restaurant at 3443 Edwards Road with daily hours, so it fits either night.
As of late October, the Square's events page lists the November 5 Soirée and the November 21 Fountain Lighting, with nothing yet for December. These two November evenings are the only holiday events on the Square's calendar so far, and they run on different schedules. The Thursday is for the shops and Koriela. The Saturday starts with a Dovetale morning and ends at the fountain at 5.
The Square's November calendar is also a good guide to how the neighborhood works day to day, and we're glad to talk it through. If you're thinking about your next move in Hyde Park or nearby, The Megan Stacey Group would love to hear from you. Let's talk about your next move. Schedule a free consultation.
