Mecha Noodle Bar is opening its first Ohio restaurant on April 12 in the Short North
Mecha Noodle Bar, whose menu runs the gamut from Japanese ramen to Vietnamese pho and Chinese bao filled with Korean fried chicken, has set an April 12 opening for its first restaurant in Ohio.
Its grand-opening offer at the only location between Denver and Washington, D.C.: The first 100 bowls ordered by customers will be on the house. Mecha's newest restaurant is at 965 N. High St. in the Short North.
More: Vote now! We're down the final two in The Dispatch Best Pizza in Columbus contest
Founded by childhood friends Tony Pham and Richard Reyes in 2013, Mecha Noodle Bar has expanded from Fairfield, Connecticut, to seven restaurants in Connecticut and Massachusetts. Its Columbus, Denver and DC locations are the first outside New England.
Mecha serves Asian-influenced cocktails as well as food (its menu includes a sangria made with red wine, plum wine, shochu, citrus and five spice), and its website boasts a vibe that's "fun, high energy, great music and a place where you can be yourself."
Pham and Reyes are part of a movement among restaurant owners to contribute back to their communities. Mecha builds 50 cents into the price of each bowl of ramen and donates the money each month to a local cause chosen by employees.
Instagram: @dispatchdining
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Restaurants in Columbus: Mecha Noodle Bar coming to Short North
