Columbus Restaurants That Closed (August 2026)

Updated: August 30, 2026

We spend a lot of time telling you where to eat in Columbus, but the other half of the story is the places that don’t make it. Every month brings a new round of goodbyes, some of them decades in the making, and we think local spots deserve a proper sendoff when the lights go out for good.

This is the companion to our monthly roundup of new Columbus restaurants: one page for the arrivals, one for the departures. We update it every month, keep the year’s earlier closures below, and re-check each one so you always know what actually happened to your old regular. Recent losses include Yats on Grandview Avenue, the Rally’s drive-thru in Grove City, and OX-B’s in the Short North.

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Closed in August 2026

Yats Cajun Creole

Yats served its last bowl of gumbo on Grandview Avenue on August 20, twelve years after opening in the summer of 2014. The counter-service Cajun spot was known for its rotating pots of étouffée and Drunken Chicken stew, and the goodbye post thanked every customer who “made us part of your lives.” The brand is not leaving Columbus entirely: the Yats food truck keeps rolling, and the Indianapolis-based chain still operates its Indiana locations.

Rally’s Grove City

The Rally’s drive-thru at 1939 Stringtown Road in Grove City has permanently closed. The chain never announced it; the location quietly vanished from the Rally’s website, and by late August the sign was being dismantled and the drive-thru menu boards were gone. This is one store closing, not a chain leaving town: the Rally’s on Parsons Avenue and Georgesville Road remain open and are now the closest locations for the southwest side.

Closed in July 2026

OX-B’s Short North

OX-B’s closed its Short North location on July 26. The fried chicken shop lived inside the old BrewDog space, which had already gone dark, so the building loses its second tenant in a row. This one is a location closing rather than a chain folding: seven OX-B’s remain around central Ohio, and an eighth is on the way to Dublin.

Maple Street Biscuit Company

The Worthington Maple Street Biscuits appears to have closed in late July, taking the chain’s last central Ohio location with it. The signage is down and a for-lease sign is up. Maple Street came to town with a Polaris store in early 2023, then added Worthington and Powell. There is a corporate wrinkle behind it: Biscuit Belly, which opened its own first Columbus location in Grandview in June, announced it is buying Maple Street.

Magic Mountain Fun Center East

Magic Mountain Fun Center East closed July 5 after 45 years on Scarborough Boulevard. Not a restaurant in the strict sense, but a generation of East Side birthday parties ran on its mini golf, go-karts, and snack counter, so it belongs on the goodbye list.

Park Service Coffee

Park Service Coffee poured its last cup on July 5. The small Short North shop shared its space with Woodhouse Vegan, which announced its own closure earlier this year, so the whole corner is going quiet.

Golden Donuts & Diner

Golden Donuts & Diner, the retro donut-and-diner counter on Lockbourne Road, closed quietly on the South Side. There was no farewell post, just a boarded-up building and a for-rent sign where the coffee-and-crullers regulars used to line up.

Trek Brewing

Trek Brewing in Newark called last pour on July 12 after eight years. Beyond the beer, it ran a giving program that raised tens of thousands of dollars for local nonprofits, so its regulars are losing a genuine community anchor when the taps go dry.

Closed in June 2026

Due Amici

After 22 years on Gay Street, Due Amici served its last plate of pasta on June 8. The contemporary Italian spot opened on New Year’s Eve in 2004 and became a downtown reliable for date nights and pre-show dinners. Owners Don Ziliak and Jeff Glavan had been in talks to sell to the team behind Tip Top, but when that deal fell through they decided to close, pointing to changing circumstances downtown and the road construction squeezing nearby restaurants.

Lemongrass Fusion Bistro

Lemongrass, the Short North’s original Asian fusion restaurant, closed on June 28 after 28 years at 641 N. High St. Pete Vitt opened it in 1998 with a menu that mixed sushi rolls, tacos, noodles, and stir-fries long before fusion was a marketing word. His son Jesse ran it at the end, and he was blunt about why: it is a rough time to be a small family restaurant competing with corporate money and the delivery apps that keep people eating at home.

BD’s Mongolian Grill

BD’s Mongolian Grill on Sawmill Road closed in mid-June after 27 years of build-your-own, all-you-can-eat stir-fry. It was the kind of place you hit with a big group and circled the ingredient bar three times, and the Dublin spot had been a Central Ohio fixture since the late 1990s.

Winan’s Chocolates + Coffees

The Short North outpost of Winan’s Chocolates + Coffees shut down abruptly on June 6. The 611 N. High St. shop was a dependable stop for buckeyes, truffles, and a coffee while walking the galleries. Winan’s still runs other locations around Ohio.

Coffee Connections

Old Hilliard’s Coffee Connections poured its last cup on June 27, and not by choice. After nearly 10 years, floor damage in the century-old building forced the shop out. The owners say pop-ups and a new location are in the works, so this one may not be a permanent goodbye.

Firehouse Pizza

Firehouse Pizza served its last pie at 4 South Main Street in Thornville on June 6. The building sold and the new owners have other plans for it, so this was a lease ending rather than a business failing.

Closed in May 2026

Mitchell’s Steakhouse

The original Mitchell’s Steakhouse poured its last martini downtown on May 25 after nearly three decades at 45 N. Third St. This was the Mitchell’s, the steakhouse Cameron Mitchell opened in the late 1990s before the brand was sold off, first to Ruth’s Chris and later to Landry’s, which runs it today. The Polaris location is still open, and the company is moving downtown staff to sister spots like Columbus Fish Market and Mastro’s. Still, losing the flagship on the same downtown stretch that just lost Due Amici stings.

Fives Up High

An Ohio State campus staple has closed. Fives Up High on North High Street served its last crowd after Senior Crawl on May 5. It is not the end of the line for the ownership, though: Scott Ellsworth plans to reopen the long-gone Twos Under High in a basement space beneath Dirty Frank’s at 2036 N. High St., expected in August.

Closed in April 2026

Dairy Twist

A longtime West Side staple, Dairy Twist has permanently closed following the passing of owner Larry Cordial, a retired Norwich Township firefighter who bought the shop more than a decade ago. The Sullivant Avenue ice cream stand had served the Hilltop for decades and built a loyal following for its wide range of flavors and classic soft serve.

Update, August 1, 2026: Good news for the Hilltop: Dairy Twist has reopened under new ownership, and the soft serve is back on Sullivant Avenue.

Closed in March 2026

Draft Day

After less than a year in business, Draft Day near Grandview Heights has closed. The sports bar on Dublin Road opened in 2025 but struggled to gain momentum amid delays and ongoing challenges. Owner TJ Valentino says he’s already looking ahead to future concepts, so this likely won’t be the last we see from him.

Iron Grill Barbecue & Brew

Iron Grill Barbecue & Brew in Clintonville abruptly closed around March 30, announcing its final day with a handwritten sign on the door that caught regulars by surprise. The 5295 N. High St. spot had been a barbecue address for decades (it was Pig Iron BBQ before Iron Grill took over in 2012), known for pulled pork, brisket, and big breakfasts. A new concept, TK’s Hangout, has since moved into the space.

The Crispy Coop

After 12 years in business, The Crispy Coop in Grandview has closed its doors. The fried chicken favorite thanked customers for years of support in a farewell message, wrapping up more than a decade of serving comfort food and community favorites.

China Bell

After nearly 40 years in Grove City, China Bell has closed. Founder Gary Shyu opened the Stringtown Road restaurant in 1988, and it stayed a family staple for generations even after he passed away in 2021. Its last day was March 31, and the property is being cleared for redevelopment.

Closed in February 2026

Torchy’s Tacos

Torchy’s Tacos served its last queso in central Ohio on February 3, closing both remaining locations, 3726 W. Dublin-Granville Rd. in Dublin and 6042 N. Hamilton Rd. in New Albany, on the same day. The Texas-based chain had already shut its Polaris shop in August 2025, and this exit leaves exactly one Torchy’s in Ohio, down near Cincinnati.

Skillet

Skillet closed its German Village dining room at 410 E. Whittier St. in February after 17 years. The scratch-cooking brunch spot started as a food truck in 2009, went brick-and-mortar the same year, and helped kick off the Columbus brunch boom long before farm-to-table was menu language. The owners called the decision bittersweet, saying an opportunity they could not refuse had presented itself.

Closed in January 2026

Rishi Sushi

Rishi Sushi closed abruptly downtown on January 10 with little notice. Opened in 2014, it built a loyal following for sushi, sake, and katsudon before signing off with a promise of a second act. That promise came true in July, when the owners opened an ambitious new concept downtown.

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