Weenie Wonder restaurants close at Easton in Columbus and Bridge Park in Dublin
Rise Brands, the Columbus company behind 16-Bit Bar + Arcade and Pins Mechanical Co., is closing down its Weenie Wonder restaurants started less than two years ago.
The restaurants at Easton Town Center and Dublin's Bridge Park served hot dogs with 25 toppings from celery salt to Cool Ranch Doritos, as well as shakes and sides. Rise Brands claimed they attracted a loyal following, but CEO Troy Allen said in a news release that "the economic model was not sustainable and the brand failed to meet our standards."
The company will focus instead, he said, on its other brands, which have five new locations planned in 2024 and 2025. Both 16-Bit and Pins are slated to open in Austin; Kansas City; Greenville, South Carolina; the Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Ohio; and in Columbus during the next phase of development at The Peninsula in Franklinton.
Rise Brands also owns No Soliciting, a members-only bar in Downtown Columbus.
More: New spots for pub favorites, sandwiches, hot dogs and more boost Columbus comfort food
Allen said the company is working on "something new" in the food category and plans an announcement soon. He indicated that the new ventures would take over the Easton and Bridge Park spaces and also provide a food offering for Pins.
In the meantime, Rise Brands said customers with unused Weenie Wonder gift cards can get twice their value at any Pins location.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Weenie Wonder restaurants at Easton in Columbus, Bridge Park in Dublin closed by Rise Brands
