Wolf’s Ridge Brewing (Facebook / @wolfsridgebrew / IG: @wolfsridgebrewing)
214 N. 4th St. (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 429-3936
Open Tues-Thurs, 10:30a-11p; Fri 10:30a-12a; Sat, 10a-12a; Sun, 10a-10p (brunch served Sat & Sun)
Accepts cash & debit/credit
Vegetarian/vegan/gluten free? Y/N/Y
Kid-friendly? N (but depends on the kids)
If you’ve read anything about dining in Columbus over the past year, surely you’ve come across Wolf’s Ridge Brewing. They’ve repeatedly topped best-of lists for their food, beer, and atmosphere, and after a couple visits for brunch, beers, and tours, I can confirm the rumors are true.
Wolf’s Ridge is one of the great restaurant success stories over the past year. The family team of Bob and Alan Szuter (collaborating with Chef Seth Lassak) scored double points by opening a successful restaurant AND a successful brewery (and they’re just getting started – see below).
Lunch and dinner are strong at WRB, but they really stand out on my radar for their brunch offerings. Theirs is one of those menus where it’s just hard to pick one thing. There are so many strong dishes. Complicating this is the fact that there are so many strong beers. Fortunately, on the beer side of things, you can start brunch with a sampler. We worked our way through five beers. Kind of like Staas Brewing in Delaware, Wolf’s Ridge excels at nailing a range of styles, from the cream ale (the ale counterpart to a clean lager), to ambers and IPAs and Belgians.
If beer isn’t your thing, you can still rely on a solid cocktail menu (although some of it also incorporates beer, like the Beermosa). The Bloody Maria is a pretty solid bet, though, especially if you like your Bloody Marys on the spicy side.
As an appetizer, you can get a bowl of house-made donuts, coated in a glaze made from one of their beers, like the Alpha Belgian tripel or the Pi pumpkin ale. The donuts are excellent, crispy on the outside and fluffy inside.
Wolf’s Ridge rotates their menu with the season, but you can count on strong regulars like eggs benedict, bacon French toast, and the duck confit melt. There’s also this: confit pig cheeks. Again, different seasons bring different ingredients; this version included leeks, eggs, and arugula.
Regardless, the pig cheeks are amazingly tender. They pull apart and blend so nicely with the egg yolk and the vinaigrette.
The toad in a hole is one of our family’s favorite breakfast dishes (although we call it eggs in a nest), so I can never resist trying different versions of it. Wolf’s Ridge’s is easily one of the most beautiful I’ve encountered.
The toast is cut into circles, the eggs are perfectly cooked, and they sit atop a bed of tender fingerling potatoes, bacon, and a rich porter cheese sauce.
As we wandered over to eye the brewery, we glanced into the kitchen and saw Chef Seth and his crew plating toads in a hole.
Upstairs in rear of the restaurant, you can see the brewery through the big glass walls.
If you’re lucky, you can get a peak downstairs at the brewery itself, which is stretched out through the basement of the building.
As this empty space indicates, Wolf’s Ridge is just getting started. Over their first 1+ years, they’ve demonstrated their strength in brewing, food, and in atmosphere, with their gorgeous restaurant space. It’ll be exciting to see what they continue to accomplish. This room is their future taproom, opening hopefully in the next couple months. The taproom is located at the back of their building, situated vertically between the restaurant and brewery spaces. It should provide a solid extension to their already successful operations. I for one am excited to see what comes next!
