Barrel & Boar - Gahanna
Happy Friday, all!
After building up an appetite exploring, the smell of smoked barbecue pulled us into Barrel & Boar for a taste of something yummy. Boasting fresh yet simple recipes paired with craft cocktails and beers – the company has been expanding around Columbus for the past 10+ years!
The Experience :
The owners of Barrel & Boar seem to have a knack for picking prime real estate that draws people in. They started a booth at the infamous North Market downtown roughly 15 years ago! They then placed their Gahanna location right along Creekside, with the partly covered patio facing the fountains. Just five years ago in Westerville, they were invited to renovate and take residence in the old uptown movie theater! They now have expanded with locations in Canal Winchester and Reynoldsburg.
Visiting:
The vibe in all the restaurants is casual, with a bit of class thrown in. You can wear jeans or dress it up a bit, and you’ll never feel out of place – it is barbecue, after all! The leather seats are supremely comfortable, and we loved getting a cushy booth by the bar to watch the mixologists at work. Keep in mind, on the weekends, you will want a reservation as the seats fill up fast!
Parking for Gahanna – if you’ve been with us, you know how we feel about easy parking… SO right next to the Gahanna location is a free, underground parking lot!
The food:
Barrel & Boar started as a BBQ catering business in 1983 under a different name and owner. The dishwasher of Yoho BBQ eventually decided to become the owner and created the business we see now! The new owner kept the concept but tweaked a few things. The bbq stayed, but the fresh and simple recipes were key. With fries sliced by hand and slow-roasted meats, they put time and care into every bit. Then, the handcrafted drinks became a star, too, and Barrel & Boar was born.
We have gone to Barrel & Boar multiple times and have not been disappointed yet! The scallop appetizer is a fan favorite for us- so much so that we have ordered them every time we go. They have always been cooked well, I’m a scallop snob, so a perfect one is hard to come by. However, the first time we had them, during a slow lunch, they were perfection, melting in our mouths. They sit atop a slightly spicy sauce that compliments the sweet jam and makes the dish. The brussel sprouts are worth mentioning too, although brussels from The Goat still take the cake for the best ones we have found. The brisket and burnt ends are decent.. definitely only order the burnt ends if you like fatty pieces of meat. For me – they were perfect and delicious; for Josh – not so much. The brisket stroganoff was a plate that Josh scraped clean because he liked it so much. When it comes to bbq sauces, we have been spoiled. There was a place near our hometown that had THE BEST flavors.. so nothing quite compares. BUT, our favorite flavors of sauces from Barrel & Boar had to be the original and the Carolina gold.
Remember to check out their drinks too! They carry many local craft beers and quite a few cocktails. Hannah loves their frozen adult slushies. They always have unique flavors that change often. She’s had a creamsicle flavor and strawberry shortcake, both sweet and delicious.
