FARM & TABLE

On a stretch of Columbus’ south side lined with strip malls and chain restaurants, Way Down Yonder stands out with its deep purple exterior with green-and-yellow trim. Housed in a former Long John Silver’s, the restaurant led by Yonder Gordon and her team serves up some of the city’s best New Orleans-inspired meals, from rich gumbo to giant po’ boys, flavorful crawfish etouffee to perfectly fried catfish.

The interior of the restaurant, which opened in 2019, is just as colorful. Tables wrapped in purple, green and yellow tablecloths fill the dining room. Sparkling beads and ornaments dangle from the ceiling. Table signs feature names of New Orleans landmarks, from Bourbon Street to Rue de Chartres to Canal Street. Gordon hails from New Orleans, having grown up in the Ninth Ward and learning to cook from family members at a young age.

“Everybody cooks in New Orleans,” she says with a laugh. “Even babies cook.”

Gordon made Columbus her permanent home in 2002 and worked 12 years with Columbus City Schools, but her passion was always showing others love through her food. She catered and cooked for family before feeling drawn to open a restaurant. In 2017, she was invited to start up in the Columbus Food Hub.

Gordon soon moved to a cafe space in the Linden neighborhood. Despite a series of setbacks in late 2018, including losing the cafe space and a major fire in her family’s home, she remained undeterred. With her children’s encouragement, Gordon found the restaurant’s current space on the city’s south side and renovated it for a May 2019 opening.

“Everything on the menu sells,” she says. “The people can taste the love and the patience and the time I put into it. I cook with love, I cook with fresh vegetables, nothing comes pre-packed. Everything is cooked in that kitchen from scratch. I’m like the preacher behind the pulpit; I have to send the message the right way. I want people to get the right message every time they visit.”

She’s quick to suggest her rich and smoky seafood gumbo, flavorful jambalaya, zesty and tomatoey crawfish etouffee or shrimp po’ boy piled high with shrimp and crisp vegetables. The portions are filling, and the food is boldly seasoned and comforting.

Gordon’s daughter brought more New Orleans goodness to downtown Columbus when she opened Way Down Yonder Beignets & Coffee in early 2022. It’s a small outpost featuring fluffy beignets drowned in powdered sugar, rich coffee and breakfast classics.

“People say, ‘I want to go to New Orleans for the food,’ ” Gordon says. “You don’t have to go there no more. You can go right here.”

Nicholas Dekker

Restaurant: 3847 S. High St., Columbus 43207, 614/662-8623, waydwnyonder.com; Beignets & Coffee: 386 E. Main St., Columbus 43215, 614/696-5522, wdybeignets.com

Fresh Festivals

Check out these three summer events dedicated to homegrown Ohio favorites.

Tomato Festival • Reynoldsburg

Aug. 10–12

Reynoldsburg lives up to its title as the “birthplace of the tomato” with this annual festival that began in1965. From Aug. 10 through 12, Huber Park hosts the celebration of the juicy, bright red fruit with delicious local foods, stands with tomato-based fare and a beer garden. The weekend lineup also includes rides, live music, a Tomato Festival pageant and a 12-yearold-and-under Kids Corner. 1640 Davidson Dr., Reynoldsburg 43068, 614/322-6839, reytomatofest.com

Sweet Corn Festival • Millersport

Aug. 30–Sept. 1

Devoted to the sweet and juicy summer favorite that’s best enjoyed straight from the cob, the Sweet Corn Festival brings downhome fun to the village of Millersport along Buckeye Lake. The Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 event includes a parade, carnival rides and more. Be sure to pick up fried, cinnamon-dusted doughnuts to take home. 2718 BlacklickEastern Rd. NE, Millersport 43046, 740/467-3639, sweetcornfest.com

Zucchini Fest • Obetz

Sept. 1–3

Zucchini is king in Obetz during the first weekend of September, as this village south of Columbus celebrates the seemingly ubiquitous summer vegetable. Try fare such as fried zucchini with dipping sauce or BrewDog’s Summer Squash beer. Festivities kick off Sept. 1 with a car show and live music, while the weekend brings concerts featuring Brantley Gilbert, Vanilla Ice and more. 2015 Recreation Trail, Obetz 43207, 614/491-1080, obetzzucchinifest.com

Lockport Brewery

Located just off Interstate 77 in Tuscarawas County, this spot serves award-winning beers and great food in a fun environment.

Before Andrew Marburger ever considered going into brewing full time, he made one very bad batch of beer. That home-brewing failure only made him more interested in crafting a great batch though, which set him and his wife, Lauren, on the path to open the first brewery in Tuscarawas County since Prohibition in 2016.

Lockport Brewery is a nod to the Old Lockport Lager Beer that the New Philadelphia Brewing Co. used to make just down the highway, but that doesn’t mean the place is stuck in the past. Quite the opposite, with the brewery crafting a lineup of beers that caters to fans of pilsners and lagers as much as it does those who seek out IPAs and sours.

“We’re very cognizant of the fact that we operate in a more rural setting,” says Andrew. “We want to cast a broad net and try to satisfy as many folks as possible Overall, our philosophy on beer is whatever we’re making, we want to make it really well.”

Favorites here include Gateway, a cream ale that took a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 2018, as well as the Ruckus IPA. (Both scored wins in the 2021 Ohio Craft Brewers Cup). Summer favorites include a strawberry ale in honor of the local strawberry festival.

The brewery was originally located just down the street until the Marburgers found a larger kitchen and more parking at their current location adjacent to Wilkshire Golf Course and relocated there in 2019.

The food menu goes beyond basic brewery grub with a lineup of grilled paninis, burgers and a Nashville hot chicken sandwich that’s become a favorite.

Inside the main taproom, large communal tables line the windows, while a smattering of four-tops and barrel two-tops allow smaller groups to grab a seat together. A covered back porch faces the golf course. There’s also a recently revamped outdoor beer garden on the grounds.

“We want to continue to make it more of a backyard oasis, where you can bring your dog or your kid and kick back,” says Lauren.

Jim Vickers

10748 Wilkshire Blvd. NE, Bolivar 44612, 330/874-6037, lockportbeer.com

Whether you love a peaceful hike, roughing it in the outdoors, or have a need to be on the water, Grove City makes it easy to get back in nature and find your center