[UPDATE January 2020: Short & Stout Kitchen has closed.]
Short & Stout Kitchen | Facebook | IG: @shortandstoutkitchen
702 S. High St. (inside The Daily Growler) (map it!)
Columbus, OH 43206
Open daily for brunch 9:30a-2p; night bites Wed-Sat, 5-10p
Visited: Tuesday, July 23, 2019 at 12 p.m.
I first caught wind of Short & Stout Kitchen through their mobile business, Short & Stout Mobile Bar. Owners Lehne and Dallas Runyon started this adorable mobile bar – rentable for events – that even garnered them a little national attention. Fast forward a bit and they’ve changed gears; they ran a successful Kickstarter to build out the new business, and took over the kitchen inside The Daily Growler in German Village/Brewery District. Almost immediately I began spotting their very-photogenic brunch dishes on Instagram, and well, here we are.
I think the two businesses are a terrific pairing: The Daily Growler (which has four locations total + a truck) offers dozens of beers on tap, and has plenty of space, from the main floor to a complete upstairs and multiple patios.
You’ll find Short & Stout on the main floor right across from the bar. From this small kitchen, Lehne, Dallas, and their team pump out some pretty tasty brunch dishes every day. They close up shop at 2 p.m., but then Wednesdays through Saturdays they re-open at 5 p.m. for a menu of night bites: burgers, chicken sandwiches, loaded fries.
Beth and I have only had a taste of the menu, but so far we’re on board with this.
We’d had many recommendations for the carne asada hash (and Lehne has said it’s her favorite dish), so that was our first order. It involves tender marinated steak, potatoes, peppers, onions, a flavorful chimichurri, sprouts, and a fried egg. The dish is really well composed and seasoned. Nice, runny egg, too. Would definitely order again.
Same with the Poutine in the Morning. If you’re not familiar with poutine (and why aren’t you?!), it’s a Canadian dish involving fries, cheese curds, and gravy, aka all the good things in life.
Short & Stout’s version uses fresh-cut fries, brown gravy, their beer cheese, and tops it all with a fried egg and scallions. Major props to this one, too. Great seasoning, fun to eat, and it’s not all soggy or greasy. It’s hard to argue with poutine in general (fries? cheese? gravy?), but this version is certainly worthy of a taste.
We also tried one of their burgers, done in a smashburger style: thin, crusty patties with lettuce, pickles, onions, cheese, and a special sauce. The best smahsburgers have a good deal of crisp, both from the meat and the veg. This one had it all going on. (They’ve now started selling the burgers with their beer cheese sauce for dipping, so…)
And honestly, we’re just getting started with the brunch menu. There’s avocado toast, breakfast tacos, huevos rancheros, chicken and waffles. Oh, and they offer a small selection of cocktails + drip coffee and espresso drinks using Roosevelt Coffee Roasters. Clearly we have more work to do.
The Daily Growler’s space offers a lot of room to move, with multiple levels, back and front patios, etc.
They have a second bar upstairs, so if you return for brunch or late night eats, you can pair a pint of beer with Short & Stout’s creations.
Fun bonus: we apparently loved Short & Stout Kitchen enough that I’ve added them to my Columbus Food Adventures breakfast tour itinerary (as of August 2019)! Come join me on a tour and you may get a taste!
