Entertainment Options Heat Up Downtown in the Summertime

What I love about summertime downtown are all of the entertainment options that are available so close to home.  Many of them are free or of little cost and offer you a chance to stay cool.

Since the opening of the Scioto Mile, the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department has done a great job of planning activities at Bicentennial Park. There are concerts, movies, festivals and other types of family shows.  In addition, the water fountains offer cool and refreshing respite when the temperatures start to spike. To keep informed of events at the Scioto Mile, go to SciotoMile.com, you can sign up for free updates.

Columbus Commons has also done a tremendous job of scheduling the green space. Thursdays are Food Truck Court during lunch time, in the evening is Pints & Pies. Picnic with the Pops offers a series of concerts through the summer and movies are also shown at the park periodically. To keep up with current activities, visit the Columbus Commons website at ColumbusCommons.org and signup for their e-newsletter.

CAPA offers their Summer Movie Series.  For as little as $4 you can see wonderful classic movies in the historical Ohio Theatre. Live organ music by Clark Wilson begins30 minutes prior to show time and during intermission.  What a great way to spend a hot evening!

Finally, the Columbus Museum of Art is only two blocks away from Neighborhood Launch.  The museum has outstanding collection of late nineteenth and early twentieth-century American and European modern art. The museum is recognized its public collection of woodcarvings by Columbus folk artist Elijah Pierce and the world’s largest repository of paintings and lithographs by Columbus native George Bellows. And admission to the Columbus Museum of Art of Sundays is free!

Enjoy!

Dining Alfresco Downtown Style

Dining Alfresco Downtown Style

Summer time is one of my favorite times to dine out – outside that is! Downtown has many venues with patios that make eating and drinking outside fun and enjoyable when the weather is nice.  Here are a few of my favorite patio picks:

• Due Amici: Located on Gay Street, this modern Italian restaurant is located in the middle of hustle and bustle of downtown. The menu includes small plates, salads and lots of seasonal specials make the experience worth the trip.  Tip: Mondays feature half price bottles of wine & champagne with live jazz music starting at 6 p.m. Due Amici is located at 67 E. Gay Street.
• Latitude 41:  Located within the Renaissance Hotel at the corner of Third and Gay streets, the outdoor patio here offers comfy couches in a great urban setting. Happy hour specials for the summer last until 7 p.m. and include $5 pizzas and wine specials.  The patio is a great hangout for after work and evening relaxation.
• J. Gumbos:  Voted Best Cajun by the readers of 614 Magazine, J. Gumbos offers great Cajun fare like Bourbon Street Chicken and Voo Doo Chicken. While sitting on the patio after hours, enjoy a Mike’s Hard Lemonade, margaritas, and several varieties of beer for only $3. Or get the mix-and-match bucket of 5 for $14. Happy Hour is Monday through Saturday 3 to 7:30 p.m.  J. Gumbos is located at 31 E. Gay Street.
• Manifesto Tuscan Grato & Scotch Bar: A relatively newcomer to downtown, Manifesto, located at 21 E. State Street in the Fifth Third Building, offers Italian fare that includes lots of wonderful small plates as well as Italian wines and premium cocktails. What’s not to like about having a cocktail on the patio before a show at the Ohio Theatre or afterwork?
• Hills Market Downtown: Most recently, I have enjoyed having Sunday brunch at the Hills Market patio where they prepare sweet and savory crepes from Crepes a La Carte. On Saturdays, Hills offers a $5 Pancake Breakfast that includes a stack of pancakes, sausage and Silver Bridge coffee. Of course they offer Ohio made maple syrup to put on top. Brunch is served from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.! Hills Market Downtown is located at 95 N. Grant Avenue.

Patios coming to downtown soon include:

• El Camino Inn located at 238 S. Fourth Street is a So Cal lounge offering cheap eats such as $2 tacos as well as margaritas and canned Mexican beers.
• Little Palace Bar + Kitchen located next to El Camino Inn at 240 S. Fourth Street is a historic downtown neighborhood diner. The menu includes pizzas, Stromboli, sub sandwiches, burgers and other favs such as gyros and hand cut fried.

But my favorite spot to dine outside is in the courtyard of Neighborhood Launch with our neighbors. Occasionally we gather around the fountain in the courtyard on nice evenings to enjoy food, beverage and good conversation.

What’s your favorite place to dine outside downtown?