To celebrate Jackie’s recent birthday, John and Jackie took Tom and me to a new place: North Market and Kitchen Social in Dublin. For the last several years, we have driven around construction along the Scioto River in Dublin as they developed the area.
A lot of urban developments these days are based on the New Urbanism model. This development idea tries to create walkable neighborhoods with a mix of ages, work environments, community development, and amenities. The Bridgepark neighborhood of Dublin, Ohio, is one example of New Urbanism in the Columbus area. Four and five story buildings have apartments or condos on the top floors with restaurants, stores, fitness clubs, and offices on the first and second floors. The entire development borders the Scioto River and the park along it. The most recently completed addition to the neighborhood is a pedestrian bridge that joins Bridgepark to Historic Dublin.
When we went out about 4 p.m. on Saturday night, we parked in the free parking garage at the Dublin library. Then we walked past several lively restaurants and across the pedestrian bridge. Lots of people were out and many were walking across the bridge despite a sign saying the bridge was closed due to icy weather. We walked along Longshore Street, which is the main street of Bridgepark. We passed two restaurants we have already tried, Cap City Fine Diner and Ram Restaurant. Ram Restaurant is now Urban Myer’s Pint House and we haven’t been there since it changed ownership.
John and Jackie wanted to show us the recently opened North Market Dublin. Jackie and I visited North Market Downtown in 2015 and I really enjoyed it. North Market Dublin isn’t as extensive. There was a butcher shop and a seafood shop, but the rest were restaurants with a big common area in the middle of the market. It looked like a good place to get a fast supper and there was a variety of food places. North Market wasn’t very busy, which gave Jackie the idea of trying to eat supper at Kitchen Social.
Kitchen Social is a local restaurant with two locations, Polaris and Dublin. They have a commitment to “the highest quality food, drink and hospitality.” Jackie and John had tried to eat there a couple of times but it was too busy. Because it was still early, about 5:15, we didn’t have any trouble getting a table. In fact, we had a wonderful table set in a recess that looked out over the park.
Unlike a lot of other restaurants, Kitchen Social doesn’t seem to have any trouble hiring help and there were plenty of waitstaff to serve us. We had an attentive waitress and other servers brought our food to us as soon as it was ready. When our plates were empty, they were whisked unobtrusively away. We never had to ask for refills.
We started our meal with the house specialty, Cheddar and Scallion Biscuits with honey butter. The manager came over, being friendly, and instructed us on how to eat them. I think we could figure it out without his help. He came back later to see how we liked them. I think he would have come again, but we gave him such a cold reception that he avoided us after that. We wanted to talk to each other, not to him. We also got the Maple Bourbon Glazed Pork to share.
For our entrees, we all ordered something different. John got the Szechuan Noodles. Jackie ordered the Crispy Chicken Platter. Tom got a Pimento Cheeseburger, and I ordered the Social House Side Salad. Everything was very good, although the Szechuan Noodles were not as spicy as John expects them to be. Tom let me have a few bites of his cheeseburger and some fries. I ordered the side salad because the desserts looked good and I wanted to enjoy one. The pear vinaigrette was really good.
We were celebrating Jackie’s birthday, so she had I both ordered a dessert. She got a complimentary dessert with a lighted candle. Jackie ordered the Panna Cotta which came in a little glass. I ordered the chocolate cake and John and Tom promised to each have some. When it came it was a cute little individual cake with a small scoop of ice cream next to it, drizzled with hot chocolate syrup and caramel. It was delicious and just the right size for dessert. We all agreed that the portion sizes of the food, especially the dessert, were just right.
After we ate, we walked back through the well-lighted park and over the bridge. The lights and the number of people out made it feel like a festive atmosphere. We enjoyed our visit to the Bridgepark neighborhood and a good dinner at a new restaurant.