New spots for pub favorites, sandwiches, hot dogs and more boost Columbus comfort food
As temperatures plunged in January, we offered five comfort foods to warm your soul at central Ohio restaurants.
Consider this rundown of January restaurant openings in our area an addendum. Some pretty comforting dishes were added at new restaurants to start off 2024.
From Wario's Beef and Pork's second restaurant in Clintonville to the burgers, wings and other pub food at Old Bag of Nails' latest location in Upper Arlington, from a new Korean barbecue place at Bridge Park in Dublin to jerk chicken at Sahara Lux in Worthington, there's comfort food for any mood.
And it's all just in time for the rest of winter.
More: Winter is comfort food time. Here are 5 dishes to warm you up at central Ohio restaurants
Here they are:
Uncle Johnnie's
The company that owns Local Cantina restaurants, opened a new pub on Jan. 11 in Johnstown. Uncle Johnnie's, a new name from Orange Umbrella Restaurants, is at 65 S. Main St., in a space once home to the Old Horsehoe Tavern.
Don't ask General Manager Chris Burdulis for a recommendation from the menu of burgers, sandwiches, pizza, wings, salads and more (though we're always up for fish and chips and can rarely turn down anyone's fried pickles).
"We took a lot of care with our recipes and hiring our chefs," he said. "I think all of it is pretty good."
Wario's Beef and Pork
As announced in mid-December, Wario's Beef and Pork opened its second restaurant in Clintonville on Jan. 27. The newest Wario's, at 4219 N. High St., is nearly five times as large as its still-flourishing original at a walk-up window in the Arena District.
There are a couple new sandwiches on the Clintonville menu: The Chicken a la Vodka, with crispy chicken, a house vodka sauce, pesto, burrata and Parmesan cheese, and the Chicken Caesar sub, made with grilled chicken, Parmesan cheese, a house Caesar dressing, tomato butter and romaine lettuce. The new Wario's also has added salads and a dessert called the Dirt Cup. It's a dark chocolate pudding cup with crunchy toppings and a gummy worm.
Species X Beer Project
When we interviewed him back in October in the old industrial building he had yet to renovate, Beau Warren talked about appealing to tech-savvy craft-brew drinkers with the Species X Beer Project.
His futuristic venture is now on the launching pad. Species X, at 408 N. 6th St. on the edge of Downtown, started with a soft opening on Jan. 25 and plans a splashier grand opening in early February.
Warren's first six beers include three whose recipes were generated by artificial intelligence, and he embraces brewing advances such as gene-edited yeasts. The food menu is a bit closer to earth: pizzas, sandwiches and salads.
More: Experimental Species X Beer to open in former Platform Beer space
Habibi Cafe & Sweets
Habibi Cafe & Sweets, 6520 Hayden Run Road on the Northwest Side, serves crepes, waffles, milkshakes, smoothies and coffee with some unique takes.
Its menu includes a S'mores Latte and a Sushi Roll Crepe. The latter is a rolled strawberry and chocolate crepe that's cut into sushi-sized slices and drizzled with chocolate. With its red strawberry slices and green crushed pistachios, it resembles a Caterpillar Roll.
Old Bag of Nails
The 15th location for Old Bag of Nails, the Worthington-born chain of Irish pubs known for its fish and chips, opened on Jan. 11 in Upper Arlington, at 3220 Tremont Road.
The pub's old space at the Tremont Center in Upper Arlington, has been operating as the Upper Arlington Pizza Club from Thursdays through Sundays.
Hydeout Kitchen & Bar
Hydeout Kitchen & Bar is the new name above the door at 201 S. High St., where a vintage neon sign that says "Restaurant" has remained for five iterations over the last decade.
Owner Elvis Sarfo said he and co-owner Raeshon Antrum plan no big changes yet to the menu of the former Downtown Tavern. They want to make their place a neighborhood bar for Downtown residents and visitors, he said. Hydeout is open for brunch, lunch, happy hour, dinner and late-night dining.
Korean BBQ 궁
The former owner of a Korean restaurant inside a Saraga International Grocery is back with Korean BBQ 궁 at North Market Bridge Park in Dublin.
John Jin's new venture — the 궁 in the name means palace and is pronounced "goong" — serves dishes such as bulgogi, galbi, spicy pork, Korean ramen and dukboki. Jin said in a news release from Bridge Park developers that he wants to appeal to diners who are familiar with Korean food and those who want to give it a try.
Sahara Lux
Sahara Lux, 5601 N. High St. in Worthington, opened Jan. 18 in the space that used to house Natalie's Coal-Fired Pizza. It's an Afro-Carribean restaurant and lounge with a menu that includes oxtail, lamb, jerk chicken, snapper, grits and jollof rice.
Perry Molua, who owns Sahara Lux with business partner Divine Ndungana, described the new place as a "luxury lounge." The two own a similar restaurant in Silver Spring, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C.
More: New Afro-Caribbean restaurant and lounge opens in former Natalie's space in Worthington
Dhaba Kitchen
Three new vendors that opened in January at New Albany's Bubbly Hall add to the diversity of food served at the food hall located at 6065 Central College Road.
Dhaba Kitchen says its culinary team comes from different regions of India, adding to a menu that's much more robust than most food-hall restaurants. It includes vegetarian and nonvegetarian curries and masalas, as well as more original items such as Indian chow mein and fried rice, shrimp chili and a Bollywood Chicken Sandwich.
El Burrito Bowl
El Burrito Bowl, also in Bubby Hall, serves burritos (wrapped or in a bowl), tacos, quesadillas and other Mexican fare. Among its offerings: Arroz Loco, which includes the meat of your choice with grilled zucchini, peppers, onions, broccoli, and mushrooms served on a bed of rice. It's topped with shredded cheese and cheese sauce.
Hibachi Run
Hibachi Run started as a food truck in 2017. Its new location at Bubbly Hall serves grilled steak, chicken or shrimp — or combinations of the three — with fried rice, onions, zucchini and mushrooms. All-vegetable dishes are available as well.
Extras at Hibachi Run include Yum Yum Sauce and Egg Yolk Sauce.
Dirty Frank's Hot Dog Palace
As it starts its 15th year in business, Dirty Frank's opened a delivery- and carryout-only location Jan. 10 at 6665 Huntley Road in Worthington. Orders for the new space can be placed in person or through DoorDash for delivery to areas such as Worthington, Polaris, Linworth and Beechwold.
The Worthington menu includes 26 specialty dogs and 10 sides vs. 34 and 14, respectively, Downtown. The $12.95 Weiner Basket is a Weiner Box (for the same price) at the carryout-and-delivery location.
Don't worry: Tots and Tatchos have made the move.
Kura Revolving Sushi Bar
If you like sushi, you'll love it continually offering itself up to you on a conveyor belt. Take your pick at Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, the Japanese chain that opened its first Ohio restaurant at 8833 Lyra Drive in Polaris on Jan. 13.
When you see something you like, pull it off the line and enjoy; you pay by the plate. You can also order off a menu screen. That food comes to you on an even faster conveyor.
More: Kura, Columbus' new conveyor-belt sushi restaurant, has good food to match the gimmick
Jasmine Fusion Grill
After shutting down its Brewery District location in October, Jasmine Fusion Grill reopened on Jan. 12 with a carryout and delivery restaurant at 5833 Sawmill Road on the Northwest Side.
The Pakistani fusion menu includes biryani, curries and kabobs, as well as loaded fries (they're loaded with grilled chicken, veggies, melted cheese and gyro sauce), a Chicken Tikka Hoagie and Naan Wraps.
Buck City Sammies
What started as a popup last year at East Market has turned into a permanent stall for Buck City Sammies. The business started as a food truck in 2022 and opened for good on Jan. 20 at East Market, 212 Kelton Ave. on the Near East Side.
Owners Chad Berton and Nile Woodson have created more than a dozen sandwiches for their menu, including Tabby's Big Sis (prosciutto, Swiss, mozzarella, roasted artichoke, arugula, truffle honey and mayo on sourdough bread) and a chicken salad that gets its meat from Smoked on High.
Pizza Cottage
Pizza Cottage, which has 11 restaurants from Marysville to Zanesville, opened at 510 S. Main St. in Mount Vernon on Jan. 22. It's the fifth new location in the last two years, owners told the Mount Vernon News.
The Mount Vernon Pizza Cottage includes a full bar.
Lick My Chicken
Tacos are the main attraction at Agave & Rye, the Midwest chain with restaurants in Grandview Heights, New Albany and the Short North. But a new delivery option called Lick My Chicken, which began operating in January through all three of the restaurant's local kitchens, expands the menu to wings, tenders, chicken sandwiches and more.
The ghost kitchen offers delivery from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. through DoorDash and Grubhub.
Closings: Oscar's of Dublin, Strongwater and more ...
Although a message posted to its social media on Dec. 31 said, "We hope you'll join us in the new year," Sono Wood Fired closed down in January. Columbus Monthly reported that a note on its door at 4055 The Strand W at Easton Town Center said: "This journey was an amazing experience for us at Good Eats Group. Unfortunately, the journey has come to an end. We hope to return to Columbus and serve you again."
Harrison's on Third had announced last fall that it planned to close. Last call came on Jan. 5. The closing of the Victorian Village sports bar at 335 W. 3rd Ave. follows the end of Harrison's on Kenny in 2022.
Random Precision Brewing Co., which specialized in barrel-aged sours at its brewery and taproom at 2365 Dublin Granville Road on the Northwest Side, closed on Jan. 28. "We'd like to think that we've brought our barrel aged sours to some of you who would have never thought to drink one," owners said on Facebook.
Oscar's of Dublin closed on Jan. 27 after more than 30 years in business. Its OpenTable page lists the restaurant as "closed forever." An employee told 614 Now that workers knew the business was closing "in the near future" but weren't given advance notice.
Strongwater Food & Spirits ended its run at the start of the month after Milos Catering assumed management of the events space at 401 W. Town St. in Franklinton. The restaurant will become part of the building's event space.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: January restaurant openings and closings in Columbus
