Happy Friday! Here’s the latest Columbus restaurant news:
- Chef Laura Lee of the Ajumama food truck announced this week that she’ll be closing up on May 30. She has been serving Korean street food from the truck for nearly 14 years, and she’s one of the OG food trucks in Columbus. In her farewell message, she cited the many ongoing and increasing financial and physical demands of running a truck.
- The owners of Legacy Smokehouse in Hilliard also announced that they’ll be closing at the end of this month, citing one of the owner’s health as a concern. Legacy has been active for many years, operating a trailer and then a couple smaller locations – including one on Greenlawn Ave. – before settling into an historic home in Old Hilliard. Legacy was closed a couple years back after a fire gutted the upper floors.
- Powell’s Huli Huli Tiki Lounge opened their second location this week – in the old Jury Room space in downtown Columbus! Located at 22 E. Mound St., the historic bar and tavern has been a variety of establishments over its nearly 200-year history.
- Orale Güey Cafe Bar & Grill will officially open their new Worthington-area space on Saturday, May 23. The family-own restaurant first opened in March of 2025 at 3415 E. Broad St. (one of the old Block’s Bagels locations) and quickly went viral after a family member posted a TikTok video showing an empty restaurant. For their second location, they’re taking over the former Zacatecas space in the Worthington Woods center.
- Gold Coast Kitchen is now open at 1475 Sunbury Rd. on the east side near the airport. They describe themselves as serving “Afro-American fast food,” and feature items like fried chicken and fried fish, wings, subs, burgers, and Ghanaian dishes like jollof rice or yam and tsofi.
- The fast casual Mediterranean chain Cava, which just opened its first central Ohio location in Hilliard, has already opened its second, this one at 1370 Polaris Pkwy.
- Meet Pot BBQ & Hot Pot announced that they will be closing as of Sunday, May 24. No reason for the closure was given; Meet Pot opened at 110 Hutchinson Ave., in the Crosswoods plaza, in early 2025.
- Matcha Me hosts the grand opening of its second location on Friday, May 22 at 8 a.m. Its new shop will be located at 14 E. Lincoln St. in the Short North. It joins a shop in the University District.
- The Cleveland-based bar and entertainment venue Welcome to the Farm announced they’re opening a new location in the Short North on Aug. 1 of this year.
- The owners of Taste of Greece food truck are opening a Lebanese restaurant called Beirut Bitez soon at 5720 Frantz Rd. in Dublin.
- This week Saturday and Sunday, May 23-24, is the Jeni’s Strawberry Jam at Land-Grant Brewing. It’ll be a full weekend of strawberries, ice cream, beer, barbecue, live music, family fun, and much more.
- There are also a number of festivals this weekend that will also include local food vendors and food trucks: Alley Islands in the Discovery District (May 23), Asian Festival at Franklin Park (May 23-24), and FountainFest at Bicentennial Park (May 23).
This week I’m also writing:
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