September 12, 200816 yr Cupcakes are very in vogue right now... as well as frozen yogurt. Maybe CDM could franchise a Pinkberry next door to her cupcake shop!
September 13, 200816 yr CDM doesn't even live in Columbus anymore so HA! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 15, 200816 yr Jason's Deli taking former Leo Alfred space in Dublin for 1st area store Free ice cream. It isn’t a promotion for Jason’s Deli. It’s an all-day, every day offer – a free soft-serve vanilla or chocolate ice cream cone to every customer – and it’s headed for Central Ohio. For more information, click the link: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/09/15/newscolumn2.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 15, 200816 yr Noodles opening Westerville restaurant http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/09/15/daily5.html Noodles & Co. is scheduled to open its eighth Central Ohio restaurant this week, putting it into Westerville. For more information, click the link "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 18, 200816 yr CDM doesn't even live in Columbus anymore so HA! Waaaahhhh??? Where does CDM reside these days?
September 18, 200816 yr CDM will help solve your puzzle. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 18, 200816 yr Yes. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 24, 200816 yr Bagels across Columbus Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - 3:35 AM By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Bruegger's is steadily rolling back into central Ohio. The chain's second bagel bakery is expected to open in January at 2500 E. Main St. in Bexley, franchisee Joe Ritzler said. The Cleveland-area lawyer has joined with Mike Paglia, also a Cleveland lawyer, to bring eight new stores into the Columbus market. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/09/23/rest_0923.ART_ART_09-23-08_C10_0EBDB6U.html?sid=101
September 24, 200816 yr Awash in Lavash Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - 3:35 AM By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Nasir Latif, who created Firdous restaurant at N. High and 9th streets in 1988 and moved it into the North Market before selling three years ago, is back in the restaurant business with Lavash, a Mediterranean restaurant, 2985 N. High St. in Clintonville. He's especially excited, he said, because the new space is just that -- new, built to his specifications, including a spacious kitchen that will allow him to cook whatever he likes. He intends to cook everything from scratch, including pita, fatayer and the crackerlike bread for which the restaurant is named, lavash. More at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/09/23/rest_0923.ART_ART_09-23-08_C10_0EBDB6U.html?sid=101
September 26, 200816 yr Pair hope eatery will be their bread and butter Locals plan first grilled cheese spot Meltworks in Columbus http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/09/29/story18.html Give them a little bread, and Eric Powell and Trevor Snowden will bet their future on grilled cheese. The Cincinnati entrepreneurs are pulling together financing to open a grilled cheese restaurant, a concept called Meltworks, in Columbus in early 2009. If financing and strategy follow as planned, the young pair expects to operate 25 Midwestern eateries in five years’ time. The duo is still raising capital for its first location, in the Columbus neighborhood of Grandview, which they estimate will cost $470,000. They have raised $175,000 so far and are talking to some restaurant and real estate investors.
September 27, 200816 yr http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08270/915357-100.stm Pittsburgh firm buys Damon's restaurant chain Friday, September 26, 2008 By Teresa F. Lindeman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The Pittsburgh company that acquired the Max & Erma's restaurants for $11 million this summer said it has now picked up Damon's Grill, another restaurant operation that's also based in Columbus, Ohio, for an undisclosed amount. G&R Acquisitions, led by Gary Reinert Sr., plans to consolidate some administrative functions while continuing to operate restaurants under both brand names, according to a company announcement. The businesses will stay in Columbus. Damon's Grill, which had been owned by Alliance Development Holdings of Charlotte, N.C., owns or franchises 65 sports-themed restaurants in 15 states. Max & Erma's has 108 company-owned and franchised units in 13 states. G&R Acquisition said it plans to sell a number of restaurants to franchisees, including offering current franchisees and company managers first dibs on company-owned sites. Before the acquisition, Max & Erma's had blamed economic issues for sales concerns. Damon's Grill had been acquired a couple of years ago and gone through a restructuring. here's the thread about the Max & Erma's acquisition: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,15971.0.html
September 27, 200816 yr WOW! Quite a rash of Columbus-based restaurant chains being acquired. Wendy's, Max & Erma's and now Damon's.
September 28, 200816 yr Well, Damon's had already been acquired by Alliance Development of Charlotte several years ago, so they're more or less just changing hands. The headquarters for both companies have and will remain in Columbus, it's just that the holding corporation will be based in Pittsburgh.
September 28, 200816 yr A grilled cheese restaurant franchise? I love grilled cheese sandwiches, but is it enough for an entire menu? I hope they succeed - if only because the name "Meltworks" is really great.
September 28, 200816 yr Mitchell’s Martini to get makeover in Short North Friday, September 26, 2008 Business First of Columbus - by Dan Eaton One of Cameron Mitchell’s first restaurants is getting a makeover. Martini Italian Bistro in Columbus’ Short North, will be idled September 28 after 12 years of operations so it can reopen October 15 as Martini Modern Italian. Cameron Mitchell Restaurants LLC spokeswoman Carolyn Delp said although the name is familiar, the menu and look will be “100 percent different.” “Sales have been flat,” she said. “Given all the new restaurants to the area, we felt that eventually we’d begin to have sales declines if we didn’t stay ahead of the curve.” More at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/09/29/story7.html
September 29, 200816 yr lol. yes i am sure mitchells martini modern italian will be a 100% change from mitchells martini italian bistro. i cant believe people still give this guy money, i can think of 100's of places to go all over columbus before i would end up at one of his.
September 29, 200816 yr A grilled cheese restaurant franchise? I love grilled cheese sandwiches, but is it enough for an entire menu? That's a good point. There is a chicken pot pie lunch spot in Downtown Cincinnati that I've often wondered about. They do decent business and I guess you can find a specific niche...but a whole franchise.
October 14, 200816 yr Popular drive-in restaurant comes to Olentangy Matt Hancharick, The Lantern Issue date: 10/14/08 Soon, students can add another restaurant to their checklist of places to eat. A new Sonic Drive-In is under construction on Olentangy River Road, and will open its doors 6 a.m. Oct. 27. Sonic is a drive-in food chain where customers can pull up to a parking spot, choose their meal at an order station and have a bell-hop in roller skates bring each order on a tray. The new Sonic will be the ninth to open in the Columbus area in the past 18 months. At the new location, the drive-in has been customized to represent an OSU atmosphere. Hillwertz said the structure's support poles are usually painted green, but are scarlet to represent OSU colors. Instead of yellow, red and blue alternating outfits, employees wear a scarlet shirt and an official OSU hat. Read more at http://www.thelantern.com/media/storage/paper333/news/2008/10/14/Campus/Popular.DriveIn.Restaurant.Comes.To.Olentangy-3484895.shtml
October 15, 200816 yr Arena District Grinders opens W.g. Grinders Inc. is officially in competition for the Arena District’s lunchtime crowd. District developer Nationwide Realty Investors Ltd. on Tuesday said the 2,800-square-foot Grinders shop opened its doors at 401 N. Front St. The restaurant fills a space vacated when Mega Wraps closed earlier this year. For more information, click the link: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/10/13/daily12.html?surround=lfn&brthrs=1 "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 21, 200816 yr Mark Pi’s bringing new ideas to table The Mark Pi’s chain is looking forward and backward with plans to revitalize the once-pioneering restaurant company. Columbus-based Asian Concepts Inc. plans two new restaurants – a revived take on the Mark Pi’s Express chain named Mark Pi’s Asian Diner for the South Campus Gateway, and a yet-to-be-named full-service restaurant in Powell, reminiscent of the chain’s roots. “We’re not opening tons of restaurants, but we are trying to update the concept,” said President Mark Pi Jr., whose father started the chain in the 1970s and retired from the business in the early-2000s. The company’s plans also call for something the Mark Pi’s chain has not had in more than a decade – ownership. All units are franchised, but the Gateway operation and the full-service restaurant will be owned by Asian Concepts. Read more: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/10/20/story6.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 21, 200816 yr Tapas restaurant would expand, if economic conditions change A small plates restaurant has big plans once the credit crunch loosens. Maca Café, at 9 Olentangy St. in Powell, opened in May 2007 in a 900-square-foot space next to a consignment shop. When the shop went out of business this year, restaurant owners Norman and Susan Carmichael sought to expand their venture into the emptied space. Then the credit market tightened, putting the Carmichaels’ expansion on hold, though they are using the empty space for private parties. “We’re profitable, but we don’t want to dilute our capital to do this,” Norman Carmichael said. “We’re a small business. We just have to put our plans on hold right now.” Read more: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/10/20/newscolumn1.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 21, 200816 yr the 9th sonic to open in the area? wow i am jealous. i would kill for a sonic, i love that place. blue slushies!
November 4, 200816 yr Lounge wizard: New York restaurateur to create quieter, more intimate locale that combines bar scene with dining, dancing Tuesday, October 28, 2008 - 3:08 AM By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Martini Park, billed as a "playground for grown-ups," is preparing to open Nov. 6 at 4040 Easton Town Center. In many ways, the massive restaurant and lounge harks back to the days when disco was king. Conceived by young New York restaurateur Chris Barish and designed by Jeffrey Beers International, Columbus' version of Martini Park will be able to hold as many as 700 customers at its three bars, dining area and patio. The Easton space, across from the Hilton Columbus, is the third Barish has opened since 2006. The first was in the Dallas suburb of Plano and the second in downtown Chicago. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/10/28/rest_1028.ART_ART_10-28-08_C10_08BNHHQ.html?sid=101
November 4, 200816 yr On Restaurants: Spice and BoMA Tuesday, October 28, 2008 - 3:08 AM By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Two other Columbus lounges are undergoing serious change. BoMA, the Bar of Modern Art, 583 E. Broad St., sent away its original management team of Tom Starker and Pam Theodotou in July, replacing them with Rebecca Gentile as creative director and Ric Jinkens as president. Now, Starker and Theodotou have been hired by the owners of Spice, at 491 N. Park St. north of Nationwide Arena, to revamp that venue. http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/10/28/rest_1028.ART_ART_10-28-08_C10_08BNHHQ.html?sid=101
November 18, 200816 yr Ohio’s first Zaxby’s restaurant closes http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/11/17/daily15.html?surround=lfn&brthrs=1 A fast-growing chain specializing in chicken fingers failed its test in Columbus. Zaxby’s Franchising Inc. shuttered its first and only Ohio store, at 2108 N. High St. near Ohio State University, after six months. Click link for more information :( "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
November 19, 200816 yr Probably didn't work because BDubs is nearby. Go where BDubs isnt at. That and Raising Cane's. Both Zaxby's and Cane's seem to have the exact same product, though the latter has been in the market for 4 years or so now and has expanded from its original campus store on High St to at least 5 stores in the area. Cane's simply just beat Zaxby's to it.
November 26, 200816 yr Kickstart Scooters coffeeshop is open across the street from Donatos. They even let me bring my bike inside since they don't have a bike rack yet. Cool place and possibly has the highest ratio of cyclist employees.
November 26, 200816 yr Nida's opened recently offering Thai food in the SN. Going there in a few actually.
December 17, 200816 yr I've been to the new Nida's a few times. Good stuff. Great to have it as an option later at night since the North Market location isn't open late. :)
December 31, 200816 yr Old English-style pub hopes to be toast of Polaris Tuesday, December 30, 2008 - 3:11 AM By Bill Chronister, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH An Old English-style pub has sprouted at 1554 Polaris Parkway in the Polaris Fashion Place lifestyle center. Pub Polaris is Cincinnati-based Tavern Restaurant Group's ninth British-style restaurant featuring gastropub cuisine -- that is, a step up from the usual pub fare -- and plenty of imported draft beer. The area has become Pub Central, with Claddagh Irish Pub around the corner, a Rusty Bucket Corner Tavern down the street and a BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse on the other side of the parking lot. http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/12/30/rest_1230.ART_ART_12-30-08_C10_KPCCC0M.html?sid=101
December 31, 200816 yr Breaking ground Tuesday, December 30, 2008 By Bill Chronister, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Rise & Dine Restaurants has opened its sixth outlet in central Ohio, this one at 2788 London-Groveport Rd. in Grove City. Not only is it the first new franchise for the Columbus-based chain in 2008, but it's also one of the few restaurants at that I-71 exit, which is the first one south of Stringtown Road. The store is open for breakfast and lunch from 6:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. daily. More at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/12/30/rest_1230.ART_ART_12-30-08_C10_KPCCC0M.html?sid=101
December 31, 200816 yr Ice cream and cookies Tuesday, December 30, 2008 By Bill Chronister, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Four Cold Stone Creameries in central Ohio are testing a partnership effort with Cheryl & Co. The stores in Dublin, Westerville, Gahanna and Lancaster display the products of the Westerville-based cookie and gift purveyor and are selling them alongside their ice cream. "This is a result of discussions I've had with Cheryl & Co. about the opportunity we could provide them to expand their current, limited 'brick-and-mortar' channel," said Jeff Curran, owner of the three Columbus-area Cold Stones. "We'll be testing the concept at least through Valentine's Day," he said. "If the trial goes well, we'll explore rolling it out on a wider basis." Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/12/30/rest_1230.ART_ART_12-30-08_C10_KPCCC0M.html?sid=101
December 31, 200816 yr Wandering Northstar Tuesday, December 30, 2008 By Bill Chronister, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The owners and management team behind the Northstar Cafes on High Street in the Short North and near Henderson Road are working on a new concept that will be based in Grandview Heights, said Kevin Malhame, one of the owners. "This won't be another Northstar. We're looking at a more formal space, although it will have the sensibilities of a Northstar," Malhame said. He acknowledged that the concept has been called a bar and grill. But he's not telling much more, except that he expects to be serving meals by late April. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/12/30/rest_1230.ART_ART_12-30-08_C10_KPCCC0M.html?sid=101
January 8, 200916 yr BOMA Switching To All-Event Mode By Laurie Omness, nbc4i.com Published: January 3, 2009 COLUMBUS, Ohio — A restaurant that gets raves from the food critics is modifying its operation, closing for daily meal service, NBC 4 has learned. The Bar Of Modern Art-or BOMA-located on the near east side in Columbus, will shift its focus to private events and catering. The Loft, its restaurant operation, has closed, according to employees. One person familiar with the business said the decision was not based on the economy. http://www.nbc4i.com/cmh/news/local/article/boma_switching_to_all-event_mode/11398/#When:05:17:43Z
January 8, 200916 yr Getting Rolling Tuesday, January 6, 2009 - 3:07 AM By Bill Chronister, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The new Rolls Cafe, which opened Monday at 6 E. Long St. in the Armstrong Building Downtown, has stuffed a coffee station, fresh-fruit smoothies bar, pastry counter and sandwich kitchen all into 500 square feet. Rolls, spelled with an umlaut over the "s" because McNabb has always admired the Hagen-Dazs logo, is a breakfast and lunch counter of the sort found along Rush Street in Chicago -- minus the barkers enticing diners into the shop. McNabb also is a partner in Cook Shack Bar BQ, which will open its second location at 20 E. Long St. Downtown by the end of January. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/01/06/rest_0106.ART_ART_01-06-09_C12_88CEBHR.html?sid=101
January 16, 200916 yr 'Five Guys Burgers' enter local market at Polaris By GARTH BISHOP, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Saturday, January 10, 2009, 7:07 AM EST The first of what will eventually be 20 Five Guys Burgers and Fries restaurants in the area is expected to open Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 2134 Polaris Parkway. The first Five Guys opened in Arlington, Va., in 1986, but the company just began franchising outside of Virginia and Maryland in 2003. The menu for the fast-casual restaurants is small, and that's just the way the company's founders planned it, employing the philosophy they would pick a few things to do and do them well, said Bob Dorfman, franchise owner for the Central Ohio locations. "We only do eight items, and it's been that way since the beginning of time," he said. The Polaris store will be open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. The second Central Ohio Five Guys is expected to be located at the South Campus Gateway in Columbus; the third is to be built on Stringtown Road in Grove City; and the fourth is slated to be located in Easton Town Center. More information on Five Guys can be found on the company's Web site, www.fiveguys.com. Read more at http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2009/01/13/multiple_papers/news/allovfiveg_20090110_1225am_2.txt
January 16, 200916 yr A grilled cheese restaurant franchise? I love grilled cheese sandwiches, but is it enough for an entire menu? That's a good point. There is a chicken pot pie lunch spot in Downtown Cincinnati that I've often wondered about. They do decent business and I guess you can find a specific niche...but a whole franchise. There's a place called Melt Bar and Grilled in Lakewood (west of Cleveland) - they're almost always packed to the gills. They're all grilled cheese sandwich variations, but they also have a fabulous beer list. http://www.meltbarandgrilled.com/ clevelandskyscrapers.com Cleveland Skyscrapers on Instagram
January 18, 200916 yr Went to Lavash Cafe with my brother and it gets a thumbs up from us. It's in a building that was built in line with the urban commercial overlay that mandates development to be, well what else: urban. Cup O Joe and Pattycake Vegan Bakery. I only wish the city would do something to make it easier and safer to cross High St. between these establishments since the speed limit is higher and the road is wider. On the Fly is a welcome addition to the Peach District's downtown on King Ave. (Despite the review stating it's in Victorian Village, it's a couple blocks north of their boundary on 5th Ave). This is the only vegan fast food joint in the city of and they also sell Belgian beers and have a selection of wines, quite a few from Spain.
January 23, 200916 yr From here: http://www.columbusunderground.com/the-columbus-sandwich-company-is-now-open <b>The Columbus Sandwich Company is Now Open</b> By Walker | January 16, 2009 9:34am It might sound like a bit of a geographical oddity, but the Columbus Sandwich Company opened a month and a half ago in the city of Pickerington. It probably sounds even stranger to hear that you may have already tried some of their sandwiches without even knowing it. Before you start worrying that you’re trapped in some sort of Sandwich Twilight Zone, allow me to explain…
January 23, 200916 yr From here: http://www.columbusunderground.com/jasons-restaurant-forced-to-rename-to-j-lius <b>Jason’s Restaurant Forced to Rename to J. Liu’s</b> By Walker | January 14, 2009 8:39pm According to this article in This Week News, Jason’s Restaurant will be changing names soon. Both the Dublin and Worthington locations will soon be rebranded as J. Liu’s, as an Arizona-based chain called Jason’s Deli opens their first Ohio location. Oddly enough, the new Jason’s Deli will be opening just down the street from the Dublin location of Jason’s Restaurant.
January 29, 200916 yr Jason’s Restaurant Forced to Rename to J. Liu’s By Walker | January 14, 2009 8:39pm The Dispatch had some more on Jason's Restaurant being forced to change its name because a restaurant chain named Jason's Deli is moving into the area. There's something wrong with the law when someone named Jason can't name his restaurant "Jason's Restaurant"! Deli chain to Dublin Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - 3:09 AM By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Jason's Deli, known as much for its salad bar and muffalettas as for its free low-fat ice cream, is coming to the Dublin Plaza at Frantz Road and Rt. 161 in about a month. Although the chain has 206 stores, this is its first step into Ohio. The franchisee, Jay Tortorice of Jen-Tex Delis Inc., also is the son of the founder, Joe Tortorice Jr., and namesake of the original deli, which opened in 1976 in Beaumont, Texas. Read more at http://www.columbusdispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/01/27/rest_0127.ART_ART_01-27-09_C10_VSCMT7G.html?sid=101 Jason's becomes J. Liu While many see the arrival of Jason's Deli as a good thing, Jason Liu has lost the name game for his Jason's Restaurants at 50 W. Bridge St. in Dublin and 6880 N. High St. in Worthington. "Lawyers for Jason's Deli sent me a letter and told me that I was going to have to change my name," Liu said. "I consulted a patent attorney and a trademark attorney. They told me it would be an uphill battle, costly in money and energy, and we still might not win." Read more at http://www.columbusdispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/01/27/rest_0127.ART_ART_01-27-09_C10_VSCMT7G.html?sid=101
January 29, 200916 yr Barbecue chain to sauce up Westerville Tuesday, January 20, 2009 By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH City Barbeque has broken ground on what will be its 14th store, at 600 S. State St. in Westerville, said Rick Malir, founder and president of the Columbus-based chain. Meanwhile, City has started a number of promotions to keep customers coming in, including $4 off "samplers" on Mondays and "Buck-a-Bone" all day on Tuesdays. Also offered is a family pack, with portions of pork, two sides and dessert, for $19.95. http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/01/20/rest_0120.ART_ART_01-20-09_C10_QHCJETG.html
January 29, 200916 yr The old-fashioned way Tuesday, January 20, 2009 By Bill Chronister THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Dick Stevens, owner of the Elevator Brewery & Draught Haus at 161 N. High St., has his new brewery in place and operating at 165 N. 4th St. Downtown. The former Goodyear garage has been fitted with new tanks, as well as nine 30-barrel fermenting vats, some of which were brought from Marysville. As much as possible was brought from Marysville, in part because of the superstitions of the brewmaster, Vic Schiltz. Even an old vinyl copy of Barry Manilow Live, discovered by a back wall while the old brewery was being swept out, has been brought to 4th Street to ensure that the vibe is maintained. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/01/20/rest_0120.ART_ART_01-20-09_C10_QHCJETG.html
February 1, 200916 yr From here: http://www.columbusunderground.com/jasons-restaurant-forced-to-rename-to-j-lius <b>Jasons Restaurant Forced to Rename to J. Lius</b> By Walker | January 14, 2009 8:39pm According to this article in This Week News, Jasons Restaurant will be changing names soon. Both the Dublin and Worthington locations will soon be rebranded as J. Lius, as an Arizona-based chain called Jasons Deli opens their first Ohio location. Oddly enough, the new Jasons Deli will be opening just down the street from the Dublin location of Jasons Restaurant. I actually ate at a Jason's Deli restaurant, in Memphis back in August 1999. According to their website at http://www.jasonsdeli.com they are based in the 512 area code, meaning they are out of the Austin, Texas, area, not Arizona.
Create an account or sign in to comment