Dine Originals Week Starts Monday, March 8th And Offers Special Prices

Consider trying a new place. Make reservations now for some of the restaurants at www.opentable.com

clipped from www.dispatch.com If you're looking for an excuse to eat out, this might be it. Dine Originals Columbus, a group of 40 locally owned independent restaurants, is hosting its third Dine Originals Week starting Monday and running through March14. During this event, the restaurants will roll out two- to four-course meals - $10.10, $20.10 or $30.10 - to showcase the city's diverse culinary scene. Such "restaurant weeks" have been a staple in major cities nationwide for several years, said Kamal Boulos, owner of The Refectory and a charter member of Dine Originals Columbus. "It really gives people an incentive to go out and try a new place. It's a good value." "It's an opportunity for businesses to really showcase themselves, and it really raises awareness of how important it is to support independent businesses, especially in this economy," he said. The Refectory, owned by Kamal Boulos, is one of 40 locally owned independent restaurants discounting two- to four-course meals.

Restaurants that participated in the first Dine Originals Week, held last March, reported an average 30 percent increase in sales. Some had packed houses every night and others said patrons came from as far away as Akron and Zanesville to eat in Columbus.

Another Dine Originals Week will be held in November. Detailed menus and reservation information is posted on the Dine Originals Web site.

A sampling of the participants and the stars of their menus:
$10.10 menus

• Black Creek Bistro , 51 Parsons Ave.: a lunch menu of huevos rancheros or meatloaf remoulade.

• Tip Top Kitchen & Cocktails , 73 E. Gay St.: a two-course dinner of vegetarian or lamb shepherd's pie with a fudge brownie for dessert.

• Katzinger's Delicatessen , 475 S. 3rd St.: a two-course menu featuring a choice of sandwiches - Cajun meatloaf, open-faced turkey sandwich or the mushroom mayhem - with a fudge brownie as dessert.

• La Scala Italian Bistro , 4199 W. Dublin-Granville Rd. in Dublin: a two-course menu of house salad and a choice of pasta vesuvio, lasagna napoletana, tortellini alfredo, cajun chicken pasta, margherita pizza or white pizza.

• Press Grill , 741 N. High St.: a three-course menu featuring a double-press burger, pesto chicken sandwich or open-face vegetable sandwich, a salad and a side dish.
$20.10 menus

• Basi Italia , 811 Highland Ave.: hearts of palm and artichoke salad, wild boar ragout with potato gnocchi and berry cobbler

• The Burgundy Room , 641 N. High St.: hubbard squash lasagna, seafood stew or bacon-wrapped sirloin with a soup or salad starter and chocolate-hazelnut torte.

• Mezzo Italian Kitchen and Wine , 130 Creekside Plaza in Gahanna: sauteed salmon, chicken marsala or lasagna and cheesecake or chocolate cake for dessert.

• Tutto Vino , 7178 Muirfield Dr. in Dublin: pork tenderloin, eggplant rollatini or blackened scallops with mango salsa, with a cheese plate and a choice of salads.

• Vino Vino Restaurant and Wine Bar , 1371 Grandview Ave.: sea scallops on linguine, grilled beef tenderloin or wild mushroom risotto, served with a salad and key lime brulee tart or jamocha almond fudge cheesecake for dessert.
$30.10 Menus

• Alana's Food & Wine , 2333 N. High St.: the three-course meal offers a choice of braised lamb shank, Amish chicken coq au vin and a vegan risotto with a choice of starter and dessert.

• Barcelona , 263 E. Whittier St.: seafood paella, a vegetarian mushroom and goat-cheese paella, or pan-roasted halibut with spinach risotto plus a starter and dessert.

• The Refectory , 1092 Bethel Rd., has three separate three-course menus: Monday and Tuesday's menus offer a pairing of scallops and a petite filet mignon with foie gras. On Wednesday and Thursday, entree choices are veal tenderloin or roasted salmon. On Friday and Saturday, lamb and beef are paired. Meals include a starter and dessert.

• The Top Steakhouse , 2891 E. Main, has a four-course menu: main-dish choices are lobster tails, pecan-crusted salmon or a 10 oz. cut of prime rib. They're served with a soup, salad and dessert.

• The Worthington Inn , 649 High St. in Worthington: the three-course menu features entree choices of grilled petit filet of beef with cognac-peppercorn reduction or tamari-glazed Canadian salmon with tomatillo-avocado salsa. Starter and dessert are included.
Off the Menu

• Kent Rigsby, chef and owner of Rigsby's Kitchen at 698 N. High St., is a semifinalist for best chef, Great Lakes Region, in the 2010 James Beard Foundation Awards. The James Beard Foundation is a nonprofit group based in New York City that offers food-related conferences and classes, and it provides scholarships to culinary students.

• Alfonso Contrisciana is the new executive chef at the New Albany Country Club. He is a certified master chef and was named Restaurateur of the Year in 2003 by the International Food and Beverage Forum. He has been a chef for seven presidential dinners for four U.S. presidents.

• Sunny Street Cafe has opened at 7042 Hospital Dr. in Dublin, the latest entry in the former Rise & Dine chain. All 14 existing Rise & Dine restaurants, including the Arena District location at 277 W. Nationwide Blvd., will convert to the new Sunny Street Cafe name and get a new menu before May.

• Spiro's Plaza Cafe, 2958 McKinley Ave., will have longer hours and a full liquor license beginning Friday. The restaurant will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

• Carsonie's Stromboli & Pizza Kitchen, which has stores in Upper Arlington and Westerville, won third place in the traditional-pizza competition at the National Pizza and Ice Cream show on Feb. 23. It was the only Columbus-area pizzeria to take a prize.