Here are 5 Columbus restaurants we think deserve a place on national best lists
USA TODAY released its 2024 Restaurants of Year list on Feb. 15. It features 47 of the best restaurants in the country, and it includes one from Columbus: Fyr, the live-fire, South American-influenced spot that debuted in 2022 at the Hilton Columbus Downtown.
With accomplished and well-traveled Chef Sebastian La Rocca at the helm, Fyr is a solid, deserving choice. But it’s not the only Columbus restaurant that has garnered national accolades.
Here are five other local places worthy of consideration.
Agni
Chef Avishar Barua’s latest restaurant, Agni, has so far garnered only local accolades, most recently named as 2023’s best new restaurant by Columbus Monthly. But more are bound to come. Barua is a semifinalist for Best Chef: Great Lakes in this year’s James Beard Award, and he already has taken a national stage by competing on “Top Chef” and “Beat Bobby Flay.” (He beat Flay, too.)
Agni, named after the Hindu god of fire, follows the trend of cooking with live fire but reflects, in the restaurant’s own words, “the experiences, memories and culture of Avishar and the team.” It includes Bengali, Brazilian, Mexican, Chinese and other influences on menus that include vegetarian, pescatarian and gluten-free options.
Agni is at 716 S. High St. in the Brewery District. Visit dineatagni.com.
More: BJ Lieberman and Avishar Barua are James Beard semifinalists for Best Chef: Great Lakes
Chapman’s Eat Market
Chapman’s Eat Market, one of three Columbus dining and drinking spots owned by BJ Lieberman and Bronwyn Haines, was named by The New York Times in 2021 as “one of the 50 places in America that we’re most excited about right now.” Lieberman is currently a semi-finalist for a James Beard Award as Best Chef: Great Lakes; winners will be announced in June.
Writer Brett Anderson described the menu at Chapman’s as “deft, globally inspired comfort food.” This month’s six-course, prix fixe options certainly follow suit, including items such as blue crab musubi and Appalachian chicken and dumplings.
Chapman’s Eat Market is at 739 S. 3rd St. in German Village. Visit eatchapmans.com.
Cut 132
Cut 132, the year-old modern American steakhouse from Virginia-based Thompson Restaurants, the largest minority-owned food service company in the country, was voted last month as a USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Award winner.
The restaurant prides itself on quality ingredients and whimsical presentation. That philosophy is evident in a roasted bone marrow starter. It’s served with a bourbon demi-glace, bacon and fig chutney; once finished, it can be paired with an optional shot of Makers Mark poured down the bone into one’s mouth.
Cut 132 is at 4188 Brighton Rose Way at the Easton Town Center. Visit cut132.com.
More: New steakhouse Cut 132 set to open in Easton's 'luxury section'
Lindey’s
There aren’t many best-of lists Lindey’s hasn’t been on over its 43 years in business. Last year, Dispatch readers voted it as their favorite in a 32-restaurant March Madness bracket. Fans also vote with their dollars. Lindey’s launched a Bread Club last fall in which members could get a weekly loaf of its artisan sourdough for a $36 monthly subscription. It sold out quickly.
Lindey’s is classic, white-tablecloth fine dining with classic dishes, including French onion soup, grilled filet mignon and roasted chicken.
The restaurant is at 169 E. Beck St. in German Village. Visit lindeys.com.
The Refectory
Another Columbus classic, The Refectory is a mainstay on lists such as Wine Spectator’s Award of Excellence (20 years) and AAA’s Four Diamond Restaurants (28 years).
Chef Richard Blondin’s dinner menu changes regularly, but his French technique and artful presentation are constant. The restaurant also has two five-course tasting menus, including one with vegetarian dishes.
The Refectory is at 1092 Bethel Road on the Northwest Side. Visit refectory.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus restaurants worthy of being listed among nations best
