It's Not Valentine's - Let's Grab A Burger

This glass mosaic creation via a class at Franklinton's Glass Axis has
been one of the more fun St. Valentine's Day excursions in Columbus

Out of the major non-vacation holidays, St. Valentine’s Day initially came to rank lower on the likability scale. From the handing out of mini-cards to mostly strangers in elementary school (not a fun task for introverts like me) to the annual reminder it provided as a “yep, you’re still single - you suck” for many years afterward, endearment for the day proved difficult.

There was one small benefit in that I avoided the crass commercialism that this day has gained over the years, but even then that would occasionally rear its unpleasant head. Perhaps the nadir of my feelings for the day arose when, not too far after a tough breakup, I caught wind of a billboard in San Francisco's South of Market (SoMa) neighborhood. A jewelry store ad featuring a woman’s hand and a big shiny sparkly on the ring finger, the company's slogan taunted, "Have your friends live vicariously through you.”

(That might be the only time in my life I seriously considered arson as an option, but I digress...)

My feelings toward the day have mellowed some; with my spouse not being the biggest fan of the day through the years either, we've come to recognize the day in a somewhat sideways manner. We'll do things for and with each other (dine out, send flowers, participate in special couples events, etc.) but not generally on Valentine's Day itself. And in a nod to this tradition, I purposely kept this post separated from this year's festivities by a couple of weeks.

Case Study #3: Over The Counter (Worthington)

Though I didn't know it when I started, Worthington's Over The Counter is the third of a trifecta of places I had targeted in this mini-series. The first blog post, featuring Pat and Gracie's in the Graceland Shopping Center, is a great neighborhood-style hangout in an place I always expected to have a little more restaurant action than it does. Meanwhile, Old Beechwold/Clintonville-based Bareburger and its burgers that strive for something higher (grass-fed beef as well as more exotic proteins like elk, duck and boar) had been a bit on an culinary island in the metro but now find themselves surrounded by competition.

Over The Counter (OTC, as I'll call them from here on out) turns out is in a location that I never even considered for a restaurant, but succeeds not only because of that location but also because of its quality-for-the-price comfort classics focus.

Burgers and Beer Week, Traveler's Edition - Part 2: In-N-Out Burger, and Twinburger MSP

With (614) Magazine's Burger & Brew Week starting to wind down for folks in the Central Ohio area (you have until the Saturday the 24th to enjoy this event), we heartily finish off this national hamburger mini-series with a West Coast staple and a regional variation on the burger.

For almost all my visits, I stuck to the basics - burger and a fries and a beverage, with little in the way of enhancements for either of those two items.

In-N-Out Burger
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First Opened: 1948 (Headquarters: Irvine, CA)
Number of Franchises: in-N-Out features 300+ locations in six southwestern states (AZ, CA, NV, OR, TX, UT)
Branches Visited: 8202 N. IH-35, Windcrest, TX/1364 Holiday Ln, Fairfield, CA

Initial Reason for the Visit: Not my first visits by any means, but the visits are getting fewer and farther between.

General Feel: I doubt someone walking uninitiated into the tiled, red and white trimmed interiors of this eatery for the first time, watching the nattily uniformed workers scurry behind the counter to knock out orders, would necessarily suspect the almost cult-like adoration for this eatery, save perhaps for the long queues that are generally the norm.

In fact, I doubt the founders of the eatery in the Snyder family would've themselves suspected their first modest stand established in Baldwin Park, CA would garner praise from numerous culinary celebrities, including but not exclusive to Thomas Keller, Anthony Bourdain, Mario Batali, and Julia Child.

Burgers and Beer Week, Traveler's Edition - Part 1: Five Guys and Whataburger

With (614) Magazine's Burger & Brew Week whetting Central Ohioans' appetites, as well as the arrival of National Cheeseburger Day this weekend, hamburgers will be on the forefront of many people's minds this week, including ours.

My recent travels back to the West Coast reminded me that I had stumbled into an unintended nationwide mini-sampling of some of the country's burger purveyors during this year's travels, with all but one being a first-time experience. If any week was the perfect time to flame-broil these mental tidbits back to the forefront, this was the week for certain

For almost all my visits, I stuck to the basics - burger and a fries and a beverage, with little in the way of enhancements for either of those two items.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries
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First Opened: 1986 (Washington, DC)
Number of Franchises: According to their website, Five Guys has 1,000 locations in 47 states and 6 Canadian Provinces (including 50+ in OH and 110+ in CA)
Branch Visited: 4116 Summit Plaza Drive, Louisville, KY

Initial Reason for the Visit: There simply ain't much open on certain holiday weekends.

Kansas Quick Bites: Seoul USA (Salina) and Gella's Diner/Lb. Brewing (Hays)

The front of Salina's Seoul USA Korean Restaurant

Interstate 70 scrapes the northern edges of the town of Salina, KS; if you want to drive into the downtown or the more populated south side, you will have to dip southward on to old US Route 40 or venture down on Interstate 135 towards the regional airport and Central Mall. The latter is the detour we took down to find the modest strip mall eatery that is Seoul USA.

Seoul USA offers tasty Korean basic dishes and
friendly a friendly demeanor to Salina diners.

I'll start off immediately by saying the food here are mostly the basics (bulgogi, kalbi, etc.) and the somewhat toned-down flavor profiles probably would disappoint hardcore aficionados of Korean cuisine. With that said, our visit to Seoul USA was enjoyable - the staff behind the counter were welcoming and friendly, with numerous regulars in house or stopping by as during our time there.

The banchan was a serve-yourself affair, allowing customers to try a little of everything and/or focus on their favorites. And our food overall (we ordered ordered japchae and bulgogi) was pleasantly tasty and priced reasonably.

We try our best to vary our cuisines on our longer road trips, and finding something that wasn't traditional "American" style eats isn't too easy smack dab in the Heartland of America. Seoul USA proved to be a nice little culinary diversion on our journey to Colorado, and it seemed to us that this eatery has established itself as a neighborhood destination for the residents of this Kansas town.

Seoul USA
2100 South 9th St. Suite A
Salina, KS 67401
(785) 404-2114
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Hays, Kansas, has emerged from a wild west frontier existence (the Army established Fort Fletcher, later Fort Hays, nearby to help protect stage wagons on a nearby trail) and several notable natural and man-made disasters to become the largest town in the region with a population of around 20,000. Hays also qualifies as a college town - Fort Hays University, founded in 1902, boasts an enrollment of 11,000 students.

We have learned in our craft beer pursuits that a brewery need not be located in an area with a large populace, nor does it have to be a fancy setup (an impromptu tap system in an light industrial space serves as the tap room area for quite a few microbreweries.) We knew Gella's Diner and Lb Brewing was a slight step above that level, but we didn't realize how many steps they were above that level until we actually stopped in for lunch on our return to Ohio.

Gella's Diner/Lb. Brewing offers beer and pub-style food favorites
inside a space featuring a modern rustic feel with hints of nostalgia.

Gella's/Lb. Brewing sports a fairly substantial interior, falling fairly close in size to Dublin, Ohio's 101 Beer Kitchen or Columbus' expanded Wolfs Ridge Brewing. Their current brewery space, opened in 2005, is actually the conglomeration of four storefronts in the town's old Chestnut Street district, itself the focus of continued revitalization efforts. Painted murals, based on old historical photos and businesses in the area, and unique uses of implements like egg baskets as decor, add a nostalgic touch to the rustic-modern feel of the interior.

Of note also is their beer - a few Lb. (the Lb. is short for "liquid bread") Brewing's takes on traditional styles have won their share of medals at both the Great American Beer Fest and the World Beer Cup. My spouse decided to go that route with a pint of their 2013-GABF Gold Medal Winner American Hefeweisen; she detected some lager-like characteristics but found it to be quite enjoyable. No medal winners on my side of the ledger, but the Brownell Brown Ale was something I could drink on a daily basis, with a nice balance of hops and malts and a hint of chocolate.

Gella's/Lb. presents a fairly traditional pub/American-style menu for the diner, with perhaps a little more non-meat oriented offerings than typical and a nice half-and-half lunch special pairing up a half-a-sandwich with various sides for a good price. We decided to go with the standard issue Club Sandwich with Gella's potato chips and a Falafel Pita for our orders - they were nothing earth-shattering taste-wise but more than adequate in this little bastion of satisfying beer offerings on the northwest Kansas plains.

Gella's Diner & Lb. Brewing Company
117 East 11th St.
Hays, KS 67601
(785) 621-2739
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B&B Accommodations: Brazenhead Irish Pub

The outdoor seating area at Brazenhead Irish Pub in Grandview

Most people have that restaurant or two where you order something by default. In a sense, this was set up very early when it comes to Brazenhead Irish Pub. During our long-distance dating phase, my spouse had decided a perfect meal after one of my earliest visits to Ohio would be the half-price burger at Brazenhead's location in Dublin. Indeed, the burger was a perfectly satisfying meal after the long flight over, and since then Brazenhead has become basically a B&B (burger and brew) spot for us.

Based on the original Brazen Head Pub, built in 1198 in Dublin, Ireland, the locally-based Brazenhead Irish Pubs (part of the Historic Dublin Restaurants Group) got their start in 1998 appropriately enough in Dublin, Ohio. A second location soon followed in the Grandview neighborhood a year later, and despite squabbles by the original three owners about various business matters over the years (the partnership broke up officially in 2011) these pubs have continued to attract diners and bar-goers in large numbers (the cozier Dublin location tends to get more cramped and hectic compared to their more spacious Grandview cousin) since their opening.

Brazenhead's interior tries to evoke its namesake's vibe
across the pond in Ireland, while its menu is burger- and
sandwich-oriented with a nice selection of beer and liquor.

Both locations do their best to evoke what it might be like at the original Brazen Head across the Atlantic within their interiors, but unlike its Irish counterpart, these locally-based pubs mostly stay away from Irish standards, basing their offerings mostly around hamburgers and sandwiches. Being a pub, the back of their main menu is dedicated appropriately to "Liquors and Libations", which includes a good inventory of Irish Whiskey and Scotch selections. A separate menu details a select beer menu, which includes several Ohio-based and Irish beer brands on draft.

While burgers & brews have been our standard order, we were
nicely surprised by other menu items like those featured during
2014's Restaurant Week to benefit the Mid-Ohio Foodbank

While burgers and brews have been our main go to here, we found that you can go beyond those choices at Brazenhead and find some good eats. While this pub isn't normally the place you'd necessarily go for a three-course dinner, we found they did a pretty credible job with their side salad, pretzel sticks and creme brulee dessert during their special Restaurant Week menu.

However, even on this special menu day, we both ordered a burger off their menu - no sense breaking from tradition, right?

Brazenhead Irish Pub

1027 W 5th Ave (Grandview)

Columbus, OH 43212

(614) 737-3738

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- and -

56 N High St
Dublin, OH 43017
(614) 792-3738
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