Columbus, Ohio

From Cleveland, Columbus is a short two-hour commute! Perfect for a day trip or a weekend getaway, Explorer Alyssa suggests Columbus's best activities and dining options. If you aren’t in Ohio, Columbus still makes a great weekend getaway with its vibrant mixture of cocktails, beer, and food.

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Hotels:

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Activities:

• Short North - with delicious restaurants, boutiques, bars, and dessert shops, the Short North is the perfect place to grab a bite to eat and walk around on a warm summer evening.

• Botanical Gardens

• Cosi - looking for a place to the kids? Cosi is the perfect fun and educational place for the whole family! 

• Scioto Mile

• Olentangy River Trail

• Easton Town Center - Easton is a beautiful outdoor mall with various restaurants, stores, and attractions! 

• Polaris

• German Village

• Book Loft - with 30+ rooms full of books, this unique store is an adventure to walk through and has a book for everyone! 

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Breakfast:

• Katalina's - the best brunch in town! Make sure to try the pancake balls. 

• Drunch

• The Lox Bagel Shop

Coffee:

• Fox in the Snow - a latte with oat milk and their breakfast sandwich is a recipe for the perfect morning

• Stauf’s - this Coffee chain in Columbus roasts the best beans in town. If you visit in the winter, make sure to try the Holiday Grogg blend. 

• Pistacia Vera

• The Roosevelt

• Brioso

• Cielo Cafe

• Grandview Grind

• One Line

Lunch:

• Northstar - Even with a variety of styles of food, Northstar knocks it all of the charts. Our favorites are the Margherita Pizza and the Buddha Bowl.

• Brassica - Mediterranean Chipotle? I think yes. Their sandwich with falafel is delicious. 

• Happy Greek

• Hot Chicken Takeover

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Dinner:

• Forno - If you’re looking for a place to go to celebrate, Forno has a great happy hour and delicious appetizers to share with friends. 

• Lemongrass

• Pierogi Mountain

• Budd Dairy Foodhall - this is like if your middle school cafeteria had the world’s largest glowup. With drinks, various foods, and desserts, Budd Dairy offers something for everyone to try. 

• North Market

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Breweries:

• Brewdog

• Seventh Son - this is one of our must-stops every time! Their variety of beers is excellent and they have their own seltzers for anyone in your group that might not want beer.

• Wolf’s Ridge - you can choose to dine in the restaurant or visit the taproom. You can’t go wrong with either choice! 

• Land-Grant Brewing Company - ​​ a bit off the beaten path but great for groups! Their outside space is awesome.

Drinks:

• High Bank Distillery

• Lincoln Rooftop Social

• Mouton

• Watershed Distillery

• Antiques on High

• Huli Huli Tiki Lounge

Dessert:

• Jeni’s Ice Cream - Jeni’s is the perfect place to grab a scoop of delicious ice cream in unique flavors as it started in Columbus!

• Whit’s Frozen Custard

• Crumbl Cookies - with rotating flavors of cookies every week, there is nothing like savoring a box of Crumbl cookies after a long day. 

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