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    Michael O’Toole’s Restaurant & Bar Opening Soon

    This February, Michael O’Toole’s will become the newest entry into the Downtown bar and restaurant scene. The new venue will be housed in the former Damon’s Grill location at 89 E. Nationwide Blvd. Michael O’Toole’s is a mix between a traditional turn-of-the-century Irish Pub and a more modernized restaurant with an expanded menu.

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    We sat down recently with owner Craig Dye to discuss the restaurant concept that he and business partner Jeffrey Tincher will be bringing to the area next month.

    Walker Evans: I have to admit that I was a bit confused to see both “Coming Soon” and “Established 1898” on the Michael O’Toole’s website. Could you explain to us a bit about the concept and what this means?

    Craig Dye: Several years ago, my Aunt produced a photo of my great-grandfather who was standing in front of his restaurant located in Shawnee, Ohio. It was taken around 1910, and he had a restaurant, barber shop and general store, and his family lived on the second floor above it. Ever since I saw this photo, it’s been driving me crazy to get something open like this. Back then he called it “Mike Tool’s Place”. Since the Irish were often looked down upon, he decided to drop his Irish heritage from his name for business purposes. So I’m kind of giving him his heritage back and putting his full name on the new business.

    WE: With the new restaurant and bar business, what sort of atmosphere are you going for?

    CD: I describe it as a “turn of the century” look. Lot of dark woods, large booths, wood-top tables, wood floors. Very warm and inviting and comfortable.

    WE: After walking through it, it appears to be a fairly large space, but somewhat divided up.

    CD: Yeah, I think that changing the different floor elevations gives different views, and definitely gives it a different look. When you’re working with one big room, it helps to break up the restaurant. The natural brick in this building is phenomenal, so it was a no-brainer to put something with this look into a 100-plus year old building.

    WE: So have you gotten the beer and drink menu finalized?

    CD: Yes, we’re going to have 30 beers by the bottle… everything from your everyday Bud Light to lots of microbrews. I think it’s a nice rounded beer list, but we’re also going to be listening to our clientele and determine where we need to make changes as we go. We’ll also have eight beers on tap including our own Michael O’Toole’s Ale, which we’re making as we speak. We’ve been doing a lot of taste testing on that, so hopefully that will work well for us. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.

    WE: How about the food menu?

    CD: We’re not going to stick to a traditional Irish Pub menu. My heritage is obviously Irish, and I want to give homage to my family with the name, but I think our staple will be our prime rib. We’ll have burgers, fish and chips, meatloaf, steaks and sandwiches. Nice comfort food… a little something for everybody. My business partner Jeffrey Tincher is a Certified Chef, so the food will be great.

    WE: What drew you to this Downtown location on Nationwide Boulevard?

    CD: I knew that the building was available, and I had actually looked at it a few years ago, but the timing wasn’t right for me. When the timing became more appropriate, this spot had been taken… but the folks who took it weren’t able to complete their project here. So we decided to move on it knowing that the growth of Downtown Columbus is unbelievable. They just finished the new Battelle Grand across the street, and the new Hilton Hotel is coming soon. People are drawing towards Downtown again. Ten-to-twelve years ago, there were tumbleweeds going through here at 5:15… but Downtown is hustling and bustling again.

    WE: We heard that there was a fire last week at the building. Is this going to affect your target opening date?

    CD: No, it was pretty minimal. There was some built up grease in the air ducts from the previous tenants, but the fire was contained. We’ll have to replace some of the ductwork, but it shouldn’t set us back my more than a day or two. We’re still looking toward opening shortly after Valentine’s Day.

    WE: Sounds great, thanks for taking the time today!

    CD: No problem!

    More information can be found online at MichaelOTooles.com.

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    Walker Evans
    Walker Evanshttps://columbusunderground.com
    Walker Evans is the co-founder of Columbus Underground, along with his wife and business partner Anne Evans. Walker has turned local media into a full time career over the past decade and serves on multiple boards and committees throughout the community.
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