Friday Food Bites: August 20, 2021

There’s a lot happening in the Columbus restaurant world! Here’s the latest:

• This past week AJ Perry, owner of Sassafras Bakery in Worthington, announced that the shop would close after this Saturday, Aug. 21. The Old Worthington storefront has been home to Sassafras for eight years; before that, the bakery sold its stunning goods as a pop-up at the farmers market. Perry hinted that Sassafras may return in other future iterations, and said that another delicious (and as-yet unannounced) food business will take over the space soon.
• The owners of Tulip Cafe announced the soft opening of their brick-and-mortar shop at 2926 Hayden Run Plaza. Tulip Cafe serves a variety of Turkish treats. The cafe is currently open Tuesdays-Thursdays, with the business popping up at local farmers markets on weekends.
• Wolf’s Ridge Brewing hosts its next virtual beer release starting at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 22. The release will feature rarities like an extended-aged bourbon-barrel Dire Wolf imperial stout, a rum barrel-infused Dire Wolf, and the Lord Maris English barleywine aged in Echo Spirits rye whiskey barrels.

• Accent Wine, a wine shop operated by the folks from Veritas and The Citizens Trust, opens today – Friday, Aug. 20.
• The plant-based Village Taco announced this week that it would be closing in the next month, saying they’ll remain open regular hours for the next couple weeks before moving to Fridays and Saturdays only in September. Already someone has started a GoFundMe to help them pay off their debt and stay open.
• There are some changes coming to the Budd Dairy Food Hall. Stauf’s Coffee Roasters announced that they closed their stall at the dairy-turned-food-hall, while Red Rabbit Ramen – which has been operating as a ghost kitchen – teased their arrival there.
• North Market Bridge Park shared at The Pit BBQ Grille‘s location in the market soft opened this week, with a grand opening scheduled for Labor Day weekend.
• According to front signage, the Covington,Kentucky-based taco shop Agave & Rye, which is moving into the old Spagio space in Grandview, also has a location coming soon to the former Wine Bistro space at 8321 N. High St. in Worthington.
• Austin-based Torchy’s Tacos, which has been operating as a ghost kitchen, announced the closure of their Columbus operation last week.
• Fay’s Crepes opens its new Easton stall at noon on Saturday, Aug. 21. The kiosk is located at 3951 Easton Square Pl.
• Mr. Hibachi recently opened its downtown Columbus location at 250 N. Third Ave. It joins locations on Cleveland Ave. and in Powell.
• Columbus Alive reported last week that Moran’s Bar & Grille, a new eatery from the owners of Pat & Gracie’s and Matt & Tony’s Wood-Fired Grill, will replace the Arena District location of The Half Pint, which had been closed since the pandemic. The Half Pint’s Old Worthington location also remains closed.
• BrewDog opens its New Albany brewpub, located at 97 E. Dublin Granville Rd., on Wednesday, Aug. 25.
• And finally, the Columbus Food Truck Festival returns this weekend, Aug. 21-22, to the Franklin County Fairgrounds.

This week I’m also writing:

• Great pancakes and Venezuelan breakfasts at The Pancake House in Lewis Center
• Read about Our Overnight at Gervasi Vineyard
• Join High Road Art Gallery in Worthington for an Art Brunch this Saturday (Experience Worthington)

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