A few weeks ago we headed out to the Hilton downtown for dinner at the Gallerie Bar & Bistro. The Gallerie is home to Chef Bill Glover, who represented Columbus well at the James Beard House last fall. (Check out a fantastic video of their journey here.)
The restaurant itself is at the bottom of the hotel; you’ve got a full view of space from the various dining rooms.
Dinner at the Bistro should start with good drinks. They’ve got a solid selection of wine and beer, plus a cocktail list that involves both classic and specialty cocktails.
The dinner menu is small but focused, and it rotates seasonally. You can make your way through a variety of starters and small plates before trying entrees and desserts. Take, for instance, the fish ribs. The tender ribs are from the pacu fish, and are flavored with a spicy tomato jam.
The pork belly (which I remember from Chef Glover’s menu at his previous restaurant Sage American Bistro) is a super soft cut of pork belly on a bed of sweet creamed corn.
The bistro salad is a savory mix of frisee, crispy lardon (strips of pork fat), and a poached egg. You can crack that poached egg and swirl it all together, and it’s delightful.
The Ohio chicken is spot-on, with a bed of Brussels sprouts, cashews, pumpkin gnocchi, and red onion petals.
The Bistro Risotto is rich and buttery, with a smoked tomato puree.
The Ohio burger is one of their signatures. It’s topped with house-made bacon, gruyere, and a wonderful mix of a blackberry ketchup, and a smoked onion dijonnaise.
We delved into dessert, too, starting with the sweet corn, which was featured at the James Beard House dinner last fall. It’s like a dense and lightly sweet corn bread.
Creme brulee with that wonderful crust.
And finally a deconstructed sweet potato and ginger dessert with a sweet potato mouse, ginger snap cookie, and toasted marshmallows.
If you haven’t visited the Gallerie yet, make a point to visit soon. There’s lots of great stuff happening there, and it’s a wonderful opportunity to experience the work of Chef Glover and his team!
If you want to visit:
Gallerie Bar & Bistro
401 N. High St. (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 484-5827
Instagram: @galleriebarbistro
