New bar menus welcome students back

Lauren Every
Fri, 05 Sep 2014 04:26:48 +0000
Campus, alcohol, bars, Columbus, menus, new menus, ohio state, osu

Ethyl & Tank, located on 13th Avenue, is one of several OSU campus bars changing menu items this fall.
Credit: Courtesy of Ashley Puckett

Like parts of Ohio State’s campus, the menus at some off-campus bars have been under construction this summer.

Midway on High, Ethyl & Tank and Varsity Club are bringing in new offerings as replacements.

“New year, new fresh take on everything,” said Matt Zimmer, a bartender at Midway.

Midway, located at 1728 N. High St., opened in January 2012 and originally offered Asian cuisine, such as fried sushi and spring rolls. Most recently, Midway on High’s menu consisted mainly of appetizers, such as wings and quesadillas.

“It’s been kind of a slow transition of the menu from when we opened until now,” Zimmer said.

The newest item on Midway’s menu is pizza. Featuring fresh dough cooked in its new pizza oven, the prices range from $1.50-$2.50 for one slice, to $8-$9 for a whole pie.

Zimmer said the bar made sure to keep popular items, like its quesadilla appetizer, and get rid of menu items that did not receive enough attention.

Some campus area bars, however, aren’t making menu changes. Chumley’s, located at 1918 N. High St., offers a variety of food but does not plan to change its menu anytime soon, said general manager Cassie Coldren.

But food is what sets some bars apart from others: Although Midway and Ethyl & Tank are owned by the same people, Ethyl & Tank manager Kailey Pease said that the variety of food offered at Ethyl & Tank is a main difference between the two.

Ethyl and Tank, located at 19 E. 13th Ave., opened in February and offers customers a brunch, lunch and dinner menu, while Midway only offers dinner items.

Ethyl & Tank’s brunch items are accompanied by a Bloody Mary bar and a coffee bar. The dinner menu includes items like appetizers, $2.00 tacos, salads and sandwiches with weekly happy hour food specials.

Pease said stuffed French toast and new burger options are set to be added to the menu.

“My mouth is watering just thinking about it,” she said.

OSU graduate Jordyn Hornyak said she prefers Ethyl & Tank over Midway because of its food options and its overall “more laid-back atmosphere.”

Marina Kouvaris, a fourth-year in marketing, said she was excited to enjoy the atmosphere and food at Ethyl and Tank.

“Ethyl has a cooler atmosphere,” she said. “It’s more like a Short North bar, but it’s on campus.”

She said she’s noticed Ethyl & Tank advertising its food menu more than Midway, but said she thinks students will be eager to try Midway’s new offerings.

“As long as Midway advertises (the pizza) and they have it by the slice, I definitely think it’s a good idea,” she said.

Chumley’s menu offers items like wings, salads, burgers and wraps. And although Coldren said there won’t be any changes to its menu at the moment, she said the bar has “added and taken away things” during the two years it’s been open.

Varsity Club, located at 278 W. Lane Ave. and founded in 1959, is also in the process of updating its menu, said.

Varsity Club added a one-third pound burger with cheese to its menu for $6.50 and fresh wings which are 6 wings for $5.25, said manager Karri Pollarine. She said the restaurant and bar plans on adding even more options.

“We’re changing our menu as we speak,” Pollarine said Wednesday. The changes started about a month ago and the new menu is expected to be complete within the next month.

Pollarine said Varsity Club plans to keep popular food items like its hot sub and pizza but plans to provide new lunch specials as the changes they’ve made so far have been received “pretty well” by their customers.