Ohio: First in Aviation, Not Last in Food

I visited EZ in Columbus for the weekend. He kindly accommodated my self-invite to be his date to the Governor's inaugural ball. I figured the least I could do was take him out for a good meal.

I told him to pick the nicest restaurant in Columbus. He had little to offer off the top of his head. His eating style is best explained by the four half-gallon containers of milk in his fridge, a shrine to fetid dairy. We drove around in the afternoon reading menus until we settled on Barcelona, embracing the promise of paella. Barcelona** is in German Village, one of Columbus' oldest "suburbs". The city has since sprawled out around it and now German Village is mere moments from downtown. It's a quaint area with historic brick buildings and cobblestone streets. Barcelona is on the corner across from Giant Eagle, the single most patriotically named grocery store I have ever heard of. This is convenient because it has a large parking lot which the restaurant notes in a sign on its front door that tells you not to park in it.

When we were seated our waitress, a stellar lady named Kaylee, informed us that it was "UnWine'd Sunday" and that all wine was being sold at retail price which equated to a couple dollars more than half off. (Note to self: always go to Barcelona on Sundays.) That tip kicked off what became a night of disturbing gluttony. Barcelona is aptly named. The menu, like the city, draws from many international persuasions. Just a few of the appetizers included an Asian noodle salad, warm spinach and crab dip, tomato basil soup, gumbo, and hummus. The menu changes weekly and is printed on the front of a single piece of paper. On the other side there is a recipe from the restaurant. That evening it was for their spinach dip.

The wine list is lengthy and given the range of ethnic territory that the menu covers, I found it difficult to settle on the bottle we wanted. (Nice thing about retail wine night is that it gives extra incentive to be bold. If failure occurs, it's still possible to get another bottle.) We ended up ordering a 2003 Cotes de Rhone; a blend of Syrah, Carnignon, and Grenache. It turned out to be their last bottle and an entirely unoffensive choice, a mellow sidekick to the wildly continuity-free meal.

EZ started with spiced peach soup. In no uncertain terms, it was the essence of peach crisp. Delicious, although maybe a stretch for a low-key, initial palette wake-up. The tomato basil soup that I got was great. Warm and robust but not the least bit creamy. Both soups were soul warming after days of rain and some heavy drinking. Next came grilled octopus. Mmmmmmm grilled octopus. If I could eat nothing but this for a while, I think I'd be fine with it. Three small octopi arranged around a springy mound of baby greens topped with charred pepper relish. This was the most interesting and best smelling dish I've encountered in quite a while. The octopus was perfectly cooked, lightly chewy but not rubbery. The greens were gently dressed and the charred peppers tied it all together nicely.

We ventured ahead to entrees: lobster paella and a half order of mac and cheese. The lobster paella came with black rice, as opposed to the more traditional saffron route. At the time, I liked the sound of it- "black rice"- but ultimately was underwhelmed. It was lacking saffron's dynamic nature and generally just took up space, looking more off-green than black. The lobster tail was split down the middle and splayed out in the center of the cast iron pan. Mussels and clams surrounded it and chorizo, peppers, and peas were sprinkled throughout. It was good paella-- not life changing-- though certainly upstaged by its octopus predecessor. But it has been a while since I've had paella and unless the dish is done terribly, it's fun to eat. I happily picked my way through it's maze, the lobster was cooked well and was rich but not overwhelming.

Rich? You want to talk rich? Three little words: Mac And Cheese. Good lord. At Barcelona this dish is INSANE. Even our half order began to feel like a burden as we worked through the meal. The dish arrived piping hot with a golden brown parmesan crust. Long strips of portabello mushroom were threaded throughout springy fusilli bathed in a blend of chedder, parmesan, gorgonzola, and cream. This dish could be a stand-in for mortar in house building scenarios, it was that....intense. At this point we transitioned from feeling happily fattened to in grave danger of cardiac arrest. It was wicked. Wicked good.

The one disappointment was the green beans which I was happy to find listed among the sides as just that, not the San Fran. standard haricot verts. The beans were crisp and cooked nicely but were coated in olive oil and far more salty than necessary. It was interesting to see that Barcelona's short coming happened with the least complicated dish. It makes me think that the chef probably isn't tasting everything that hits a plate. It was a forgivable $3 mistake and in all honesty, I was probably better off not stretching my stomach any further.

We debated skipping dessert; we were pretty legitimately pained at this point but cunning Kaylee put the hustle on EZ while I was taking a breather away from the table. She coerced him into ordering vanilla creme brulee. It came in a generous porcelain boat alongside two oddly shaped ebony and ivory biscotti. I will say this: Barcelona understands crusts. The caramelized sugar wall was incredibly satisfying to crack through and even required a wee bit of muscle to get the job done. The interior was souffle-like in texture, thankfully not too silky. Both of us failed to give the biscotti the time of day until Kaylee came over and specifically asked our impression of the lighter one which she said was flavored with saffron and pine nuts. She vaguely implied that she found it odd. And it was different. The saffron came through very strongly and the only thing I could think to say was "interesting, it tastes like paella."

Overall it was a very enjoyable meal. The atmosphere inside was relaxed and we ate to the melodic stylings of live classical guitar. My one black mark against the place was that there were two TVs over the bar that were tuned into the food network. I didn't really appreciate watching Emeril make bolognese while I was having my meal but like the green beans, it was forgivable.

I feel that I owe the city of Columbus an apology for doubting its culinary capability. In fact, I came across some memorable food, including a trip to North Market and two traditional diner breakfasts: Nancy's-- where you can name your own price. And Tommy's-- where Ken Blackwell goes for grits, which were decent, though not the best I've ever had. North Market was a definite highlight. A hybrid cousin of Philly's Reading Terminal Market and Emeryville's Public Market. I dug that place, hard.

Many thanks to EZ, Aaron Tippin, Congressman Tim Ryan, Governor Strickland, and Lt. Governor Fisher for showing me such a great time in their great state. Perhaps I'll be back soon.

**Later I found out that Barcelona is part of Dine Originals of Columbus, a collective of independently owned restaurants that advocate the importance of eating locally. Given my complete aversion to chains and their strong presence in the Midwest, it was heartening to find out that there is consciousness about high quality local restaurants.