Friday Food Bites: Just Chicken, Dave’s Hot Chicken, Poke Bunny open; Lizardville closes

Image courtesy facebook.com/justchickencolumbus

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

• The East Market’s newest vendor, Just Chicken, celebrates its grand opening on Saturday, Oct. 1. The stall features fried chicken tenders, sandwiches, and fries.
• The East Hollywood-based chain Dave’s Hot Chicken also opens its first central Ohio location today at 3590 W. Dublin Granville Rd.
• Lots of chicken to be had, apparently! CM Chicken‘s second central Ohio location is now open at 1510 Cross Creeks Blvd. in Pickerington. This joins an existing store on Henderson, a forthcoming shop in Westerville, and a sister store 92Chicken in Delaware.
• A new fast casual eatery called Poke Bunny has replaced Poke Bros at 100 E. Gay St. downtown. The shop serves poke bowls, noodle soups, bubble tea, and more.
• The Lizardville Beer Store & Whiskey Bar at 496 Polaris Pkwy. in Westerville announced its closure yesterday.
• Multiple sources have reported that the single central Ohio location of Barra Tacos (3051 Northwest Blvd. in Upper Arlington) has closed.
• Little Rock Bar announced its new in-house food Groovy Kitchen, serving Tuesday-Saturday, 8 p.m. to midnight, with a menu like pizzas, subs, egg rolls, pretzel bites.
• Multiple sources have reported that the Zest Juice Co. in Short North (912 N. High St.) has temporarily closed. The shop has been removed from the list of locations on their site.
• The Martiny’s BBQ food truck announced that they’re opening their first brick and mortar location at 5808 Columbus Pike in Lewis Center, the former site of The Porch.
• TeeJaye’s Country Place also closed their Reynoldsburg location at 2435 Brice Rd. last week.
• Land-Grant Brewing celebrates its 8th anniversary on Saturday, Oct. 1 from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. with live music, special anniversary beer releases, brewery tours, food trucks, and more.
• After a pandemic hiatus, Taste of Clintonville will return on Thursday, Oct. 6. The evening is hosted at Mozart’s Cafe, and features a variety of tastes from local businesses.

This week I’m also writing:

• The Best Mexican Gem You’ve Never Heard Of: Zacatecas Mexican Grill
• See Inside: Dave’s Hot Chicken Opens First Central Ohio Location
• Relive Your Childhood at These Cereal Bars (Ohio.org)

Want to keep up with more? Follow me on Instagram at @breakfastwithnick, check out the news archives, search for travel inspiration, explore the breakfast map, or…