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    Bites & Sips: Restaurants Rebrand, HCT Expands & More Food News

    Ohio-based brands are expanding and a pair of Short North restaurants are rebranding. One vendor has left the East Market, while vendors are moving, and also rebranding, at North Market. Plus find spirits, cookies and more in this latest edition of Bites & Sips.

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    American Nut Company Leaves East Market

    After one year, American Nut Company has vacated its stall at East Market, 212 Kelton Ave. American Nut Company was one of the original vendors in the space when it opened in April 2022.

    “Even though we’ve had the best year ever getting to know more of you in Columbus at East Market, we’ve made the impossibly tough decision to shift our energy to other exciting ideas (stay tuned!),” a social media post announcing the closure shared.

    Until it announces its new plans, there are still plenty of spots to find American Nut Company’s snacks, including its locations at North Market and the Greater Columbus Convention Center, as well as on the shelves of several other local shops.

    For more information, visit americannutcompany.com.

    Boston Stoker Opens in Shawnee Hills

    Boston Stoker opened its doors at 6058 Glick Rd. in Shawnee Hills in mid-April. It’s the second Columbus-area location for the Dayton-based coffee roaster.

    Boston Stoker’s menu features a variety of coffee and espresso drinks as well as a selection of breakfast foods, baked goods, freshly roasted 12oz coffee bags and cigars. The new location also includes a drive-thru.

    Shawnee Hills joins an existing shop at 1101 W. First Ave. in Grandview.

    Hours are 6 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday to Friday and 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

    For more information, visit bostonstoker.com.

    Boston Stoker is now open in Shawnee Hills – Photos provided by Boston Stoker

    Hot Chicken Takeover Opens #8

    Columbus-based Hot Chicken Takeover is on a wave of expansion as they opened their third new location in the last six months. First came Powell / Lewis Center in November 2022, followed by Grandview / Fifth by Northwest in December 2022, while Gahanna made its debut in early April. It’s HCT’s eighth restaurant overall and seventh in Central Ohio, joining spots in Westerville, Clintonville, Easton and North Market.

    The new restaurant at 109 N. Hamilton Rd. features an exclusive menu item – the Jumbo Tender Sandwich with two tenders, chipotle slaw, chipotle sauce and pickled onions on a potato bun.

    Hours are 10:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. daily.

    For more information, visit hotchickentakeover.com.

    Chophouse 614 Becomes Santos

    In the two years since it opened, the restaurant at 1079 N. High St. has been through some changes. Initially opened in May 2021 as Urban Chophouse by Chris Corso and One Hospitality, the building and its accompanying restaurants were sold in February 2022 to a private investment group including Shawn Shahnazi. Shahnazi rebranded the steakhouse to Chophouse 614, but as of April, has given the space one more refresh.

    Chophouse 614 is now Santos. The menu has seen the biggest update in the transition. According to a press release, popular Chophouse favorites will stick around (there’s still a selection of steaks), but some more affordable fare has been added to the menu – gourmet burgers, street tacos, flatbreads, etc.

    Santos is open from 5 – 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 5 – 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

    For more information, visit santos614.com.

    Chophouse 614 is now Santos – Photo by Susan Post

    Galla Park Makes its Comeback

    Galla Park is making its comeback May 5 – with a slightly different name. The Short North restaurant at 900 N. High St. will trade Galla Park Steak for Galla Park Social.

    A car crashed into the restaurant in November of 2022, forcing its temporary closure. During that time owners Peerless Management Group took the opportunity to renovate and rebrand the space.

    Galla Park Social will have a “modern and chic atmosphere with a dark and sexy ambiance.” The menu will shift towards modern American fare that spans small plates to gourmet entrees. The new menu includes everything from steaks to sushi bowls to smash burgers and flatbreads.

    The full bar serves up cocktails, beer and wine, with an emphasis on champagne. Guests can also find bottle service accompanied by DJs on the weekends.

    Galla Park opens at 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

    For more information, visit gallapark.com/social.

    A peek at Galla Park’s new menu – Photo provided by Galla Park

    North Market Updates

    Tajine House has shuffled stalls at North Market Downtown. The Moroccan eatery has taken over the former home of Preston’s (which now has its very own brick-and-mortar). As for what will take over Tajine House’s former spot, North Market teases a new vendor is in the works.

    Another vendor is sporting a new name. Coastal Local Seafood (Dublin) / Coast to Local Market (Downtown) are hereby known as Colo Market & Oyster Bar at both locations.

    A social media post shared, “We’ve changed the name again. Long story short, due to a frivolous legal dispute over the word “Coastal,” we condensed Coastal Local to simply COLO. Despite this, our commitment to high quality food and services remains unchanged. Hope to sea you soon!”

    For more information, visit northmarket.org.

    Noble Cut Distillery Remodels Bottle Shop

    Noble Cut Distillery’s on-site Gahanna bottle shop has undergone a remodel. The new layout includes plenty of seating, a retail area and a bar fashioned from spent barrels.

    Selling spirits since 2018, Noble Cut’s lineup includes its signature vodka, flavored whiskeys and citrus-based cellos.

    The bottle shop, located at 750 Cross Point Rd. Suite K in Gahanna, is open from noon – 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, with distillery tours available Saturdays at 1 and 3 p.m. 

    For more information, visit noblecutdistillery.com.

    Noble Cut’s remodeled Bottle Shop – Photo provided by Noble Cut

    Agapé Mediterranean Expanding

    Fast-casual build-your-own eatery Agapé Mediterranean has found a spot for restaurant number three. The brand will expand to Sunbury, opening next to Chipotle near State Route 36/37 and I-71 (also the exit for Tanger Outlets Columbus).

    Agapé opened its first location in Westerville in January 2021 and followed it up with Gahanna in November of that year.

    The create-your-own menu includes pitas, bowls and salads, with a variety of fresh Mediterranean-inspired toppings.

    There’s no word yet on the opening timeline for the new location.

    For more information, visit agapeeats.com.

    Agape – Photo by Susan Post

    Central Ohio Gets a New Cookie Chain

    Central Ohio has welcomed its first Dirty Dough location. The Arizona-based brand has set up cookie shop at 2495 Hilliard Rome Rd.

    Dirty Dough’s colossal cookies all feature some combination of layers, mix-ins or filling. Coming in flavors like Brookie, Raspberry Toaster Tart and Cookie Butter Biscoff, they’re available to order by the individual cookie, dirty four, dirty half dozen or dirty dozen.

    Dirty Dough has butted legal heads with another fast-growing cookie maker. That cookie giant, Crumbl, has already opened seven locations in Central Ohio (Dublin, Easton, Grove City, Hilliard, New Albany, Polaris and Reynoldsburg).

    Dirty Dough is open from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Sunday.

    For more information, visit dirtydoughcookies.com.

    Dirty Dough’s Brookie – Photo provided by Dirty Dough

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    Susan Post
    Susan Post
    Susan is the editor of The Metropreneur and associate editor of Columbus Underground, and also covers small business and entrepreneurial news and the food scene in Central Ohio.Susan holds a degree in Communication with a minor in Professional Writing from The Ohio State University. She sits on the board of the Central Ohio Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and loves coffee, whiskey, cooking and spending time with friends and family.
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