Dining

Socially Just Dining: The Angry Baker

While I have never encountered any staff there in an angry state, I have definitely discovered delicious, healthy and satiating vegan breakfast, lunch and even, sweet, baked options. I’m positively impressed with their rich and decadent chocolate brownie with a blueberry base (replacing eggs) a great cholesterol lowering maneuver without any compromise in taste. The Angry Baker does a delectable job of making vegan options available for those who want to refrain from consuming more than their fair share of earth’s precious resources and desire to make a serious attempt at loving all of our fellow earthlings, even in their food choices (they occasionally offer some gluten-free options if you call ahead, they will work with you). They cover several concerns of the socially just diner, such as; vegan options and attaining locally produced foods, but not all. Although they make everything from scratch, presently they use conventional ingredients, which means they could be GMO, are not necessarily organic, and operations are that of conventional business models. The Angry Baker is located in Old Town East at 891 Oak St. Columbus, OH 43205.

Socially Just Dining: Portia’s Café

In April this year, it was no fool’s joke that Portia’s Café opened, and met desperately needed options setting the bar for a 7 points standard in restaurant salient service consciousness: 1) Vegan, 2) local, 3) organic & fair trade, 4) non-genetically modified organisms (non-GMOs), 5) gluten-free, 6) raw (nutritionally dense), and even 7) fluoride-free filtered water! Not everyone who wants to eat vegan is vegan, yet informed consumers are teeming towards robustly healthier, sustainable options, and Portia’s offers just that, with delicious living foods selections. The atmosphere is warmly charming with its bright, colorful earth tones and lively Latin music with friendly, very clean restaurant and restroom service. Don’t let the small size of the restaurant dining room fool you; over 50 vegans were served during a recent Columbus Vegan Meetup group event with overflow seating outside in the back parking lot (weather permitting). If you get a lettuce wrap, pay the nominal charge to add the gluten-free wrap on the side for a more filling meal. They are located in Clintonville, at 4428 Indianola Ave. Columbus, 43214. Open Tue- Sat 11 to 9 and Sun 11 to 3.

9 Tables (In Athens)

Nine Tables is exactly that. Nine Tables. Most often it is three 4 tops and six 2 tops. The concept is simple: for three nights per week, Nine Tables aims to serve twenty to thirty people per evening in a personal, slower paced manner similar to dining in Europe. Guests are invited to have a long, slow dinner at their own pace. Your table is yours for the entire evening from 5 pm to midnight if you choose. Tables are not “flipped” so when your dinner is complete your table gets the rest of the evening off. At first thought, one might think this would be a formal, stuffy experience…far from it, an evening at 9 Tables can be anything you want it to be. Most often it will be informal, fun and relaxing. The atmosphere is intimate, the small space is dark and cozy but there is enough space between tables for each group to have their own experience but also close enough to encourage camaraderie. The restaurant is BYOB and it is not uncommon for people to trade bottles or share during the evening. The best table to reserve is set up next to the chefs prep table which allows full access to all the action and to Chef Bill throughout the evening.

A lot like Cheers, The Pub Out Back

The Pub Out Back is an unlikely bar in a likely place. If that makes sense. It is tucked into a small space in a small strip of shoppes hidden behind the main drag of Olde Worthington. It is an easy place to miss. That is part of the charm of the place and why it is the pub out back. While Olde Worthington might not seem to be a pub crawl destination of choice, the area offers one of the best areas to do so, in a compressed block. In addition to easy to spot pubs like Old Bag of Nails and PK O’Ryans, the choices out front also call home to the bar at Rivage, House Wine, La Chatelaine and a really good happy hour at the bar of the Worthington Inn. Insiders, like Robert Kramer, of the independent village of Riverlea, know the upsides of the drinking choices of this mini-downtown and for folks like them, the Pub Out back was created.

Socially Just Dining: Loving Hut

I love it when I find businesses that stand for something beyond taste and quality in their service consideration. The world certainly needs more love, and you may just find it at “Loving Hut.” Love for all earthlings is what they strive for in their delicious, often organic, including several gluten-free and always vegan offerings- the entire menu is full-service, safe for vegans. Everything is delicious, often nutritiously dense (though there are some fried and processed foods) and affordable. You can get an appetizer, a main course, a foo- foo drink (non-alcoholic smoothie) and a dessert for under $20. Their delectable selections often delight the most skeptical of non-vegans. They empower customers with great resources, interesting reading all delivered in a friendly, crisp, clean, peaceful atmosphere. This is not fast food, everything is made to order, so if you are in a hurry, call ahead and make that need clear. They are a short 8 minutes from downtown (not in rush hour traffic) in the Blacklick shopping center: 6569 East Livingston Avenue, Reynoldsburg, OH 43068, open 4 to 9 Mon- Fri, Sat 11-8, closed Sunday.

Slate Run Vineyard

It took two trips for me to find Slate Run Vineyard. Based on my chat with owner Keith Pritchard, that is a common occurrence. It seems his land is located where three counties and several different mail system merge together. GPS systems are frequently stymied when trying to find Slate Run. So to help you, here is the key to not driving up and down Winchester Southern Road for hours on end. Find Slate Run Metro Park and drive 1/2 mile north looking for the sign for Slate Run Vineyard.

The Crest Gastropub

The night before I dined at the Crest Gastropub for the first time, I had a quick meeting with a well-known Clintonville Curmudgeon. As we sat at O’Reilly’s, I shared that I had tried to get into the Crest, but it was too crowded. “Yeah, the place is OK, but it does not deserve to bear the name of the Crest,” he replied (at least the gist, I was not taking notes), “That place is just the shell of the building, everything else is different.”

I could feel the pangs of nostalgia in his words. Unfortunately, I could not share his feelings. I never connected with the Crest in my visits there. It always seemed like a place that could be much more than it was, with little effort. I know from oral history there were many high points and a great community within those walls in the decades it was open, but I never viewed the place as an asset to the community or I place I would want to go. (Pauses….waiting for the outraged comments to come).

Pioneer Pizza Palace

Leonardo’s Pizza has a history dating back to the early 1950s. It was one of the pioneers in a new wave of food in Columbus.

Patrick and Anna Rose Orecchio started their first shop on Northwest Blvd. back in 1953 and grew a large family business with all of the kids working in front and back of the house. The empire grew to several locations by the early 1980s in various parts of town. Pizza gets in the blood and can often not be removed. This past month, Drew Orecchio (son of the founder) and his wife Laurie reopened Leonardo’s in a recently vacated Sparanos Pizza location on Hague Ave. Having read about the excitement of the grand opening in my blog comments, I had to check the place out. The spot on Hague Ave. has a lot of history as well…but that is for some other time.

Hubert's The Last Great Columbus Pirogi

For a hot minute, it looked like Eastern European food was going to be The Next Big Thing in Columbus. There was Babushka’s on the north end, Yogi Perogi in Grandview and another ethnic eatery at the North Market.

 

Today, only the North Market remains in the game with Hubert’s Polish Kitchen.

 

There are good reasons why Hubert’s survives. It’s got a lush array of colorful treats, all proudly displayed at its counter in big buffet burners. And the service is personable and lightening fast.

 

Since Eastern European food is the topic, it seems best to get the inevitable pirogi discussion out of the way first. Pirogi is/are on the menu (there’s always some difficulty in working with pirogi in plural form and there are at least three spelling variations: pirogi, perogi and pierogi). Frankly, the local obsession with the pasta has always been puzzling. It seems an awful lot like ravioli, and you don’t see people fussing over ravioli.

 

But, as far as the pirogi culinary art form goes, it’s good at Hubert’s. A sturdy pasta crescent holds a rich, oniony cheese and potato filling ($1.50). It is what it is.

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