In Spain, bodegas are groceries and wine merchants. But according to Sangeeta Stewart & Collin Castore, co-owners of Bodega, at 1044 N. High St., the Short North’s bodega is an “corner store with a little bit of everything …a casual, neighborhood restaurant  that is reflective of the Short North and its atmosphere.”

And it does have a little bit of that casually upscale, middle America-meets-Greenwich Village feel that the Short North has cultivated since at least the mid-1980s. Wood-topped rectangular tables fitted with geometric black chairs deck out the dining room. Unpainted particle board booths with slate-blue padding adorn the restaurant’s exposed brick north wall. 

The menu combines basic fare with an urban attitude. After a recent kitchen renovation Bodega’s new menu features an array of fresh and tantalizing salads, unique “small plate” appetizers, and a rotating slate of special/seasonal entrees at any given time. 

The drink list can be described as expansive. Bodega has won best beer selection & best happy hour (5 years running), and best overall bar (2 years running) in the local publications such as Columbus Alive, 614 magazine, and The Other Paper.  Bodega features 51 beers on draft, several hundred Belgian and specialty craft beer bottles, an innovative cocktail menu, and a dozens of wines that compliment any meal.