Thursday, February 9, 2012

Columbus Eats! Columbus Restaurants: A Foodie Crowd-Sourced List

So the BF lives in Columbus. Although it I'm sad to not see his smiling face daily, it presents an opportunity to explore the food scene in our Capital city.


About a month ago, I tweeted for recommendations for good resties in Columbus, Ohio.


HOLY. SHEET.


People responded with so many reco's that I had to create a Tumblr list.




So now, I'm eating my way through Ohio's Capital City on a bi-monthly basis. 

My original list of restaurants was comprised of eleven Columbus restaurants; now, with recommendations of friends and fellow foodies like you, the list has grown to twenty-five restaurants! Tumblr isn't the greatest platform to update a list, so I'm transitioning to the list over to the blog and have named it ... the Columbus Restaurants: Foodie Crowd-Sourced List!  Yeah.... I'm in marketing.  

The first five I've visitsed are included below. Moving forward, I'll post Saturday C-Bus Crowd-Sourced Saturday review.

Columbus Restaurants: Foodie Crowd-Sourced List is comprised of five pieces of info. 

First: the restaurant name.
Second: the number of tweets I received recommending the restaurant. To have made the list, it had to be tweeted at least once. 
Third: the type of restaurant (Should you head there for lunch? Date night? Tuck in for a cocktail?) 
Fourth: when you see "DONE!" this means...um...I've tried the restaurant! A review follows. 
Fifth: a review focused on two elements - food (duh) and atmosphere



Columbus Restaurants: The Foodie Crowd-Sourced List 
  1. 1.      Northstar (4 tweets) BRUNCH – DONE!
    Food: Sweet potato and turkey hash with poached egg. SO SO good. A little salty which I loved. 

    Atmosphere: Sit upstairs at the Eton location - incredible people watching. Rocking indie music playlist pumps through the entire place. Sang along to more than one song while eating. I’ll be back to this spot.



    2.      North Market (2 tweets) MARKET SHOPPING / BREAKFAST / LUNCH - DONE! 
    Food: Over 30 vendors, with everything from prepared Polish food to pre-packaged spices. Breads, waffles and tea selections were my favorite stands. Mostly prepared / ready-to-eat foods. If you’re looking to make a meal from scratch, don’t go here. 
    Atmosphere: Saturday afternoon = packed with people, all friendly, twenty and thirty-somethings. Clean.



    3.      Starliner Diner BRUNCH - DONE!
    Food: Cajun-style cuisine kicked down a notch. I tried a breakfast taco special and it was tasty but nothing I’d write home about. There was a “Mexican” French toast that I saw come out to another table which made me instantly regret my taco choice.
    Atmosphere: We had a 20 minute wait at 11am on Sunday – prime-brunch-time. Service was quick and efficient and the place prides itself on collections star-shaped clocks all over the walls. Space is tight so I did get to stare at lots of others’ food. Its fun, eclectic and a hipster diner.  
    Photo courtesy of Columbus Crave Magazine



    4.      Haiku DINNER – DONE!
    Food: Salt and Pepper calamari - tempura style with grilled hot Japanese peppers. Unique, tasty. Pad Thai for a main – typically I’m much more adventuresome but I asked for a dish they’re know for and this is what was recommended. Strawberry-infused saki was my rescue to a burning mouth after I realized they weren’t kidding with the hot peppers on the side of the Pad Thai. 
    Atmosphere: On a Friday night, this was a place to be seen if you’re a hipster. We had a 20 minute wait, which gave us time to grab a drink at the bar. I’d visit this place again for sushi.





    5.      Betty (4 tweets) BRUNCH  - DONE!
    Food: I tried Smoky Gravy Sausage & Biscuits ($9) from the brunch menu and it was a damn good choice. Homemade thick, flaky biscuits with a gravy made with chipotle cream, cheese sauce, & salsa with eggs and sausage patties. We walked about 10 blocks in single digits temps after this meal so it kept my arteries from clogging. Basil Bloody Mary = win. Atmosphere: This place was JAMMED at 1pm on Saturday. Its a bar atmosphere, very attentive service and relaxed vibe. We hung out for a solid two hours with no rush.
    Photo courtesy of Tasting Table
      
    6.      Sage American DINNER
    7.      Lemongrass (3 tweets) DINNER
    8.      M (2 tweets) “DATE NIGHT” DINNER
    9.      Level TAPAS / COCKTAILS
    10.    Dirty Frank’s LUNCH / DINNER
    11.    Surly Girl (2 tweets) BRUNCH / LATE NITE
    12.    Hounddog LUNCH / LATE NITE
    13.    Skillet (3 tweets) BRUNCH
    14.    Z Cucina (2 tweets) DINNER
    15.    Trattoria DINNER
    16.    Aab LUNCH/DINNER
    17.    Latitude 41 (2 tweets) BREAKFAST/LUNCH/DINNER
    18.    Thurman Café (2 tweets) LUNCH
    19.    Basi Italia DINNER
    20.    Third and Hollywood BRUNCH
    21.    Bar Celona TAPAS / DINNER
    22.    Katzinger’s Deli LUNCH
    23.    Rigsby’s Kitchen DINNER 
    24.    Commonwealth Sandwich Shop LUNCH
    25.    fRESHSTREET Takoyaki LUNCH

1 comment:

Adam said...

I was going to recommend the burgundy room, but then found out they are closed! I've heard good things about the Cameron Mitchell places, I'll be going to Marcella's at the beginning of March for a friend's bday.