Destination Donuts | Columbus, OH

There’s a new donut game in town: Destination Donuts. Heather Morris has begun setting up regularly at North Market. Heather is serving homemade donuts in flavors and combinations that no one else is doing around town. When you really think of it, there isn’t a donut place at North Market, is there? This could be a good permanent addition!

I visited one of her first days setting up shop, and she had five different donut varieties: pumpkin pecan, PB&J (yes, you read right), thai peanut, chocolate insanity, and dueling vanilla. Her selection since then continues to rotate.

She gives you the opportunity to sample the goods before you buy them. Hint: sample them all, then buy one of each.

These are the chocolate insanity, made with chocolate ganache and crumbled Oreos.

And then there’s the Thai peanut, with a little bit of spice. Most of the donuts were served essentially like large donut holes.

The only full size donuts (and my favorite) she had that day were the dueling vanilla. They’re called dueling because she uses both Madagascar and Tahitian vanilla. It’s like a thick yeast donut. Very nice.

Heather – aka the “donut queen” – is typically there on weekends. Give her a follow on Facebook or on Twitter (@heatherdonut) to see when she’ll be at the market next!

Pistacia Vera | Columbus, OH

Pistacia Vera (Facebook / @PistaciaVera)
541 S. Third Ave. (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 220-9070
Open daily 7a-7p (brunch served till 2p)
Accepts cash & credit/debit
Vegetarian/vegan/gluten free? Y/N/Y
Kid-friendly? Y

Date of Visit: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Long have I been waiting to write about Pistacia Vera. The darling of the foodie world, both locally and beyond, PV has been featured on tours and in blogs and magazines repeatedly. I mean, one look at their bright German Village cafe and their near-pornographic displays of croissants, pastries, macaroons, and cookies and it’s easy to understand why.

I still remember when they started in Short North as Pistachio, in a brick-walled Pearl Street location that’s now home to Tasi Cafe. We wandered in during gallery hop and chatted with the owner. Soon after, though, the little patisserie had disappeared out of Short North and re-appeared as Pistacia Vera on one of the main streets in German Village. Clearly it was good move, for them, and to make way for the excellent Tasi.

With a rare morning free, the Mrs. and I visited Pistacia Vera for a weekday brunch. We found the cafe about half-full.

The big windows and open display cases provide ample opportunity for food photography. With so many eye-catching sights, you really can’t help yourself. The service aspect is simple: you place your order at the counter, are given a number, and then you pick from the dozen or so tables.

We started with the pain au chocolat: a croissant with ribbons of semi-sweet chocolate. Layers of flakes give way to a soft bite of chocolate. We both ordered coffee, too, which was one aspect we felt so-so about in the meal. Pistacia Vera rightfully serves Cafe Brioso coffee (who we generally love), but the roast tasted too dark, almost burnt, which put it in danger of overshadowing the more delicate flavors of the pastries and the brunch.

While we waited for our more substantial brunch, I hovered over the displays and photographed, well, everything.

Big, flaky croissants.

Ham and cheese croissants with prosciutto and gruyere.

Pain au raisin with a sheen so perfect they almost seemed fake.

Apple cake.

Then brunch arrived. And in fine form, too. As we were deep into Dine Originals Week, PV had a quiche special on the menu. The Mrs. had the mushroom quiche, a tall and wide slice loaded with crimini and shitake and cooked to just the right consistency: it held together well without being dried out. Mushrooms are an unsung hero of breakfast. Few other ingredients impart a strong earthy flavor like mushrooms do, so when they are used properly in a quiche or an omelet, especially when complemented by the right cheese and seasoning, they can really shine.

I knew well ahead of time that I was going to order the tomato provencal baked eggs. This style is often called shirred eggs, which means eggs cracked and baked in a dish. Pistacia Vera’s eggs are baked with tomatoes, cream, parmigiano-reggiano, and various herbs. It comes with a toasted croissant and their homemade (gluten free) preserves – that day they were serving spiced pear preserves. The preserves are sweet without being sugary, and they go very well with the croissant. Word to the wise, though: croissants in toasted form are messy. Just imagine all of those layers baked to a crisp, and then imagine how they flake apart when you bite into them. Have a napkin handy.

This gets the award for Most Photogenic Bite of Breakfast in 2012. And the dish itself is one of the stand-outs of the year. The eggs were runny, which lets them mix with the rich tomato reduction (a “fondue” the menu calls it), the generous herbs, and the sharp cheese. It’s one of the better seasoned dishes breakfast dishes I’ve had in recent memory.

After you eat your breakfast, you can spend even more time eyeballing the rows of Pistacia Vera’s signature sweets: macaroons. They’re stacked in colorful piles that line an entire shelf, with both regular and seasonal flavors to temp you.

I can easily understand why Pistacia Vera is a favorite stop for brunch eaters in Columbus (or lunch eaters or dessert eaters or coffee drinkers or general foodies). The rotating selection of baked goods, with very strong regular features, plus a short but creative and flavor-packed brunch menu, makes it a great representative of Columbus’ strong food scene.

Beyond Breakfast: Bierberg Bakery | Columbus, OH

One of the best things about the Christmas season is the cookies, right? If you’re like me, you’ve got specific memories of Christmas cookies and cookie decorating from your childhood and your adult years. On one of our last free mornings before Christmas, my boys and I were out running errands and decided to stop by tiny Bierberg Bakery in German Village. It didn’t take much convincing to get them in there. Our 16-month-old just learned the word “cookie,” after all, so it was time to put that to use.

Bierberg is only open two months of the year, in November and December, and they sell a large variety of German cookies that are sold by the pound. When you take their sign down out front, the bakery appears to be just another small house on a side street in German Village.

The retail part of the bakery is a single, very small room, with tins of cookies lining the shelves. Seriously, visiting Bierberg is like hanging out in a large closet with two older German ladies.

We ordered an assorted pound of cookies, trusting to them to pic out good ones.

They weigh it, box it, and wrap up it for you.

It’s a simple delight to eye tin after tin of Christmas cookies: everything from vanilla to chocolate dipped to gingerbread…

…some soft and chewy, some crispy and crunchy.

I honestly couldn’t tell you the name of all the cookies we tried.

But these gingerbread wafers were some of my favorite.

We even said hello to the folks in the back, still making cookies. Bierberg isn’t open too much longer for the season, so I suggest calling them to find out when they’re open and making a visit!

If you want to visit:
Bierberg Bakery
729 S. Fifth St. (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43206
(614) 443-9959

Sammy’s New York Bagels | Columbus, OH

Sammy’s New York Bagels
Free home delivery 7 days a week
Available in the greater Columbus area
Order at (614) 252-1551 or online at SammysBagels.net

Ever since our trip to New York, we’ve been craving good bagels, and we’re lucky that you can certainly find them in town. Columbus’ two biggest suppliers are Block’s Bagels and Sammy’s, both baking New York-style bagels. Block’s and Sammy’s are such big wholesalers that chances are you’ve had their wares: Cup O Joe, Backstage Bistro, many of Ohio State campus eateries, plus plenty more, all serve locally made bagels. One big bonus about Sammy’s is that in addition to their wholesaling, they also offer home (or office) delivery.

The ordering process is quick and easy. The minimum order is $9.99 (or a dozen bagels). Bagels are $.83 a piece, and you can also order cream cheese spreads, muffins, danishes, challah, turnovers, even lox, egg salad, and tuna salad. You can mix and match your bagel order, and every dozen earns you a free bagel.

We ordered a baker’s dozen plus some scallion cream cheese. At the order screen, you’re just entering your address, phone number, and delivery date. Since this was my first order, they didn’t have a credit card on file. A Sammy’s employee called within a couple hours to confirm the order and collect payment. I initially left instructions for them to knock on the door, so I could get the bagels right away, but she advised against it because they deliver between 4-7 a.m.! You can schedule a date for delivery far out into the future; orders have to be in by 3 p.m. for next day delivery (by 3 p.m. on Friday if you want weekend delivery).

I don’t know when our bagels arrived; we certainly didn’t hear them drop it off. But it was a delight to wake up to a bag of bagels on the front porch in the morning! The bagels were triple bagged: smaller plastic bags containing the goods, all packaged together in a paper bag with our order stapled to the side, and then altogether wrapped in a bigger plastic bag to keep it dry.

Here’s the first peek inside our bag.

Different bagels are bundled separately: the everything bagels all went together (standard practice). Egg bagels were together. Cinnamon were together. Then the sesame, sundried tomato, and honey sesame came together.

Bags of bagels! I can’t stop saying it!

 

We’re still working our way through them, but so far we’ve liked all of them. The sundried tomato taste fairly similar to the everything, but they’re so loaded with seasonings that I’m not suprised. I liked the cinnamon sugar topping on the cinnamon bagels, and I’m always a fan of a good sesame bagel. The ease of ordering and delivery may make Sammy’s Bagels a household staple; this will be particularly handy when we’ve got family visiting. Just place an order the day before, and have fresh bagels for everyone in the morning!

Breakfast Barn | Columbus, OH

Breakfast Barn
1275 Brown Rd. (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43223
(614) 308-0173
Open Mon, 5a-3:30p; Tues-Sat, 5a-7p; Sun, 5a-5p
Accepts cash & credit/debit
Vegetarian/vegan/gluten free? Y/N/N
Kid-friendly? Y

Date of Visit: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 at 4:00 p.m.

I need to come up with a new category for restaurants like the Breakfast Barn. It’s not quite a diner, with decades of tradition and a long counter for conversation, but they do serve monster portions of inexpensive comfort food. It’s not a casual cafe, although there’s plenty that’s casual about it, but it doesn’t have the polish of the small chains or the neighborhood corner cafe. It’s certainly not a fancy brunch spot, although you can order breakfast at odd hours of the day. Places like the breakfast Barn are hard to pin down but instantly recognizable. They tend to exist in the middle of residential areas, on semi-busy streets, but away from the more high profile neighborhoods. In Columbus, many of them are grouped on the southwest or southern part of town. I’m thinking of spots like Ohio Deli or the now-closed Mel’s Kitchen. So what do we call restaurants like this? The casual diner? The diner cafe? Maybe “breakfast barn” is the most fitting title.

Regardless of how we call it, this type of restaurant flourishes around Columbus and around the country. This southwest-side  eatery sports a simple interior with a funny mix of decorations: part country kitsch, part old kitchen, part… well, everything. Tiny political signs mix with electronic gambling games and country shelves and different table decorations.

I decided to go all the way on my visit and try the Breakfast Barn Platter. The server, who was also the owner, suggested it. She whipped it up in no time at all: eggs, home fries, sausage links, plenty of sausage gravy, and believe it or not, there are biscuits under there. As a breakfast dish it was easy to like. All well made, and seasoned fairly well. But nothing fancy.

Again, there’s nothing at all really complex about spots like the Breakfast Barn. But their charm and continued popularity is in the simple food and the regular community that gravitates toward it.

Danny’s Deli | Columbus, OH

Danny’s Deli (Facebook / @dannysdeli1)
37 W. Broad St. (entrance is on Front St.) (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 469-7040
Open Mon-Fri, 7a-3p
Accepts cash & credit/debit
Vegetarian/vegan/gluten free? Y/N/N
Kid-friendly? Y

Date of Visit: Wednesday, October 4, 2012 at 7:00 a.m.

Danny’s Deli is one of the many delis and other little grab-and-go breakfast/lunch spots around downtown Columbus. Many of them have been on my list for a long time, especially the delis, and especially any of them boasting of their corned beef. The reuben is one of my favorite sandwiches, and I think I need to better integrate the corned beef love into my breakfast life.

Thus it was that I sat with my son Will at 7 a.m., chowing down on pancakes, corned beef, and eggs in Danny’s little basement space off Front Street.

The restaurant is decked out in bright reds, blacks, and whites, from the signage to the tiled floor to tables and chairs. There’s something very enjoyable about the “hidden-ness” of the space. You have to head down a short flight of stairs, through some double-doors, and then you’ve found this humming little breakfast spot. Even the address can throw you off a bit: Danny’s address is technically W. Broad Street, but the entrance can be found on Front. Fortunately, they’ve emphasized the red in their awning: if you’re looking for it, you’ll find it.

Despite the small size, there’s a lot of seating. Two rows of tables and chairs extend far back into the space, which curves to the right and features a few more seats.

Given that you’re downtown, you can expect to meet with some of the working crowd. I’m guessing that Danny’s, like most of the restaurants downtown, does most of their business over weekday lunches. But on our visit we saw a pretty good mix of clientele.

Will started out with an orange juice, which was a standard bottled type, while I opted for coffee. I loved the tall circular plastic mugs. Super lightweight. The coffee was good diner coffee: hot, a little weak, and caffeinated.

Will’s a pancake man, so he chose the little stack of fluffy buttermilks. Side note: I rarely talk prices on the blog, in order to keep away from the whole $$$ or star rating thing, but I have to note Danny’s cheap prices. Will’s pancakes were only $3.75, while my plate was $5.75. It’s a stellar deal.

I was in corned beef mode, so I knew my order well before we arrived. I picked the Downtown Special: a generous pile of sliced corn beef, scrambled eggs, potatoes, and toast. It hit. the. spot. I just loved piling a single bite of eggs, corned beef, and potatoes on my fork. It’s all done well: eggs aren’t over-cooked, potatoes are crispy enough, toast was good.

If Danny’s is any indication, then exploring downtown’s breakfast scene is going to be fun. Our server was super sweet – she lightly poked fun of Will and how he was goofing off (it’s good she has such a sense of humor at 7 a.m.). But she was very accommodating and helpful, and she even introduced us to the owner, Joe. He, too, was very nice and welcoming. The deli’s breakfast options are pretty straightforward and are only served until 10:30am, but they’re inexpensive, they include corned beef, and the prices are very easy to like.

Photos: a Jack & Benny’s revisit

One of the challenges of food blogging, especially when talking about restaurants, is to keep discovering and writing about something new, while simultaneously wanting to revisit old favorites. I know, I know… poor me. But the real joy of a good breakfast place is becoming a regular there, getting to know the owners and even some returning customers.

Case in point: Jack & Benny’s. I reviewed J&B’s way back in 2007, when the blog was just starting. So the description is inexperienced and the photos are less-than-great. I still stand by my assessment, but I think I could represent the restaurant better. So, of course, when my boys and I had a free Saturday morning on a OSU football gameday, we swung by for some grub and to snap a couple more photos.

Two important things to know about Jack & Benny’s. 1.) They’re a classic diner. Big wooden floor. Old counter and stools (you can tell they’re old because they’re a little smaller – my legs are crammed when I sit there). The owner Geno works the grill. Cheap coffee and generous breakfasts. 2.) J&B’s is an Ohio State institution. Even if they’re not technically on campus, they’re close enough that the decor is like a museum of OSU football history. The main wall is lined with photos of past coaches and players, famous diners, and the owners posed with other notables. Then there’s the case of bobblehead dolls: everyone’s represented, from Woody Hayes to Archie Griffin to Jim Tressel to the brand new Urban Meyer.

Jack & Benny’s is also home of the busters. I will admit, without shame, that I rarely order anything other than the Gutbuster. It’s everything I love about breakfast: eggs, hash browns, sausage, cheese, ham, gravy, and toast. All in one indistinguishable pile.

Look at that: layers of breakfast goodness. And while the portions are big, I’ve never experienced the actual gut-busting that the name promises. (But does that say something about the dish or about me? Hmmm…) Nevertheless, Jack & Benny’s is one of my neighborhood diners, and it’s worth a visit or two or three. Goodness knows I’m always looking for the excuse to go back.

Pirate Coffee | Columbus, OH

Columbus loves its coffee, and it loves its coffee to go. That’s why over the past few months, we’ve had three separate mobile coffee operations start bringing fresh roasted caffeine goodness to the masses. There’s the Solar Cafe and their trikes. There’s Hemisphere Coffee set up in Clintonville. And there’s Pirate Coffee.

Pirate Coffee is the brainchild of Heather Wirth, who’s known to many as the creator of the Columbus Artmobile. The idea for the cart was born out of the decided lack of available coffee at the Columbus Arts Festival this past June. I know some of the backstory because Mrs. Bfast With Nick was there when the idea came about. In fact, she supplied the name for it!

The goal of Pirate Coffee is simple: providing good brews of local coffee at the various events and festivals around Columbus. I finally got a chance to try it at the annual Igloo Letterpress Bazaar.

They make a solid cup of coffee. It’s all ground and French-pressed on the spot.

Heather ended up choosing Backroom Coffee Roasters as her supplier. Score one for good local roasts!

Their setup will vary depending on the event, but if you run into Heather and the Pirate crew, get some coffee from her! If you want to find out where Pirate Coffee will be set up next, follow along on their Facebook page!

Hemisphere Coffee Roasters | Columbus, OH

Hemisphere Coffee Roasters (Facebook / @HCRtrailer)
3825 Indianola, at Northridge  (map it!)
(614) 427-3457 – you call or text orders ahead of time

Just this week we’ve been hearing from Clintonville friends that Hemisphere Coffee Roasters set up their truck along Indianola. Regular pictures of espresso and pour-overs started showing up in my Facebook feed, so Mrs. Breakfast With Nick and I stopped by while on the way to work.

Today is a bright and cool morning, perfect for coffee outside.

We spent some time chatting with Hans Hochstedler, the barista running the trailer. Hans’ in-laws started Hemisphere in Mechanicsburg, Ohio about ten years ago. They source their beans directly from the farmers. “We shake the hand of the coffee farmer,” their sign says.

As you can see from their menu, they offer a wide range of coffee drinks from the truck. Everything hot or iced, from mochas, cappuccinos, lattes, pour-overs, shots of espresso, and more.

Mrs. Bfast w/Nick ordered an iced chai with a double-shot of espresso. This is a favorite summer drink of ours, and Hemisphere’s was one of the best we’ve had in a long time. Beautifully pulled double-shot, very rich chai that isn’t cloying. Hans used Hartzler Dairy milk (from Wooster, OH).

I tried a pour-over of the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe. It’s a light roast with soft earthy notes punctuated by tart fruit.

For the uninitiated, the pour-over method involves making single cups by pouring hot water from a kettle into a filtered cone. The cone shape and the thin spout optimize the contact time between the water and the fresh grounds, which then drips into the receptacle below.

This allows you to make single cups of any beans, and to fully feature the coffee’s flavor profile.

More coffee is always welcome in Clintonville! I’m already planning when we can re-visit to get more iced chai. Has anyone else been this week?

Eleni Christina Bakery | Columbus, OH

Eleni Christina Bakery (Facebook)
641 N. High St., Suite 107 (map it!) (entrance is on Russell St.)
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 461-0021
Open Thurs-Sat, 9a-3p
Cash only

Date of Visit: Friday, August 9, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

IMPRESSIONS: If you’ve eaten at Rigsby’s Kitchen or Tasi Cafe in past decade or so, you’ve probably eaten baked goods from Eleni Christina Bakery. The bakery is part of the same family of restaurants owned by the Rigsby’s (it’s named after their daughter), and has been supplying them (and other restaurants) with bread, croissants, rolls, and more.

ATMOSPHERE: Once upon a time, the bakery had a small retail counter. I remember years ago, when we lived in Short North and Victorian Village, walking over to get biscotti. As the bakery’s production amped up, the retail operation got in the way, so they closed it up. But within the past month-and-a-half, with a little rearranging and setup, the retail corner lives again.

There’s nothing fancy about the bakery, especially compared to places like Pistacia Vera or Mozart’s or Angry Baker. But the goods are, well, just as good. The intention overall is to create more of a grab-and-go experience.

FOOD: Much of the available items are smaller size and good for a delicious snack, like cinnamon rolls, biscotti, croissants…

…or beautiful loaves of bread to take home.

One of their signatures, and a stand-out on our most recent stop there, was their bacon cheddar challah bread. Their challah is top-notch; it’s used to make some of my favorite French toast in Columbus over at Tasi Cafe.

One of the folks at the counter called this a blasphemous piece of bread, given that challah is a traditional Jewish bread, and they’ve gone and filled it with bacon. It’s a delicious salty and savory snack. Surprisingly light overall.

In addition to some lunch sandwiches and all the baked goods (cookies, croissants, tarts, and beyond), Eleni Christina offers coffee of two sorts: get a prepared mug to go of Crimson Cup, or buy brewed and whole bean coffee from Thunderkiss.

SERVICE: The bakery has a great history to it, being tied with the Rigsby’s and their pioneering efforts to establish Short North as a world-class neighborhood for shopping and dining. The kitchen exemplifies the fun and hard work they’ve put into it, so it’s especially rewarding to see the bakery open up to more customers. The crew is more than willing to talk about what they do and share their love of baking (even though they’ve been working since the early hours of the morning). We spent some time chatting with Joe about what they were currently making, and he pointed out a few other details about the space. It’s been freshly painted, re-arranged, and there’s new local artwork on the walls. They even found a home for these giant Hulk hands, which have been sitting around the bakery for years and years.

OVERALL: Eleni Christina’s re-opening as a retail establishment is a welcome addition to Short North. The bakery is rooted in the history of the neighborhood, and they produce high quality and amazingly delicious baked goods. Getting to stop in (Thursday through Saturday only, mind you) lets you take in the craft of baking and meet some of the people who are passionate about it.

OTHER LINKS:

-> see more pictures of the bakery and other stops on the Columbus Food Adventures Short North tour