{"id":47637,"date":"2019-05-31T09:56:29","date_gmt":"2019-05-31T14:56:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/urbanmatter.com\/chicago\/?p=47637"},"modified":"2019-05-31T13:39:45","modified_gmt":"2019-05-31T18:39:45","slug":"local-experts-where-go-eat-drink-columbus-ohio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/urbanmatter.com\/chicago\/local-experts-where-go-eat-drink-columbus-ohio\/","title":{"rendered":"Local Experts On Where To Go, Eat & Drink In Columbus, Ohio"},"content":{"rendered":"

Columbus, Ohio<\/a> may not be one of the top 10 most populous cities within the United States, yet it manages to have everything that one of the biggest U.S. cities would have. For example, between John Glenn International and Rickenbacker International Airport, Columbus has direct flights to and from Chicago (less than 1 hour in the air), Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Miami, Atlanta, and dozens of other key cities. Yet Columbus \u2014 home to the NHL\u2019s Columbus Blue Jackets, the MLS\u2019 Columbus Crew, college sports institution Ohio State University and four Fortune 500 companies \u2014 manages to carry a \u201csmall town\u201d vibe in that its residents are friendly, its upscale food is economically-priced and traffic only seems to happen during rush hour.<\/p>\n

I had the pleasure of visiting Columbus, which the New York Times<\/em> named \u201cone of 52 places to visit in 2019,\u201d during this year\u2019s Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival. The sold-out, multi-day event on the grounds of MAPFRE Stadium brought in well over 40,000 attendees per day.<\/p>\n

Below are highlights from my Q&A with some local experts about what they enjoy most about Columbus<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Kathleen “Katalina” Day, owner of Katalina’s Cafe<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2022 Adam Holtzapfel, contributor at OtherWorldlyCulture.com<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2022 Kristine Ashton-Magnuson, owner Ashton-Magnuson Media<\/a>, publicist for Sonic Temple and many other U.S. music festivals<\/p>\n

For how long have you been a resident of Columbus?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Katalina Day: <\/strong>15 years.<\/p>\n

Adam Holtzapfel: <\/strong>Almost 4 years. I grew up in a\u00a0town<\/span>\u00a0about half an hour away, so\u00a0Columbus<\/span> was always a destination for movies, dinners, etc. as a child and teen.<\/p>\n

What is it that you enjoy most about Columbus?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Katalina Day: <\/strong>The livability of a smaller town with the perks of a big city.<\/p>\n

Adam Holtzapfel: <\/strong>The local music scene (Lo-Pan, Akula, and Bridesmaid, to name a few artists) and the horror community (including the Gateway Film Center and Studio 35).<\/p>\n

Kristine Ashton-Magnuson: <\/strong>Everyone is so friendly, there\u2019s a strong locavore movement, and local businesses really seem to support each other. They take pride in their products and services, and share that passion with customers. That passion and pride is most evident at Jeni\u2019s<\/a>, where you\u2019ll be invited to sample every flavor of ice cream before making your selection and you\u2019ll also get a passionate description of each flavor and sometimes the history of its creation.<\/p>\n

The sense of community and synergy between local businesses really impresses me. For instance, at North Market Spices, you\u2019ll find a spice blend made specifically for Katalina\u2019s<\/a>. Stauf\u2019s Coffee and Cincinnati\u2019s MadTree Brewery teamed up for a \u201cLocal Blend\u201d craft beer that we picked up at The Barrel and Bottle in North Market.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve also had great experiences working with the local tourism office, Experience Columbus, and their Columbus ambassador program. Their program provided me with amazing volunteers to work directly with well-known talent at a music and comedy event a few years ago. I had never heard of a city offering this type of service, and it was a huge help for our event.<\/p>\n

Lastly, everything is very affordable in Columbus compared to many other major cities, so that\u2019s a nice bonus.<\/p>\n