Put In Bay Brewing Company
While the many flashy resort bars along Put In Bay’s main stretch attract customers with pomp and circumstance, the Put In Bay Brewing Company, set a street back from the others, brings people in with a more subdued charm. The brewery has a low-key atmosphere to go along with the relaxed feel of the rest of the island. Put In Bay Brewing Company brings an interesting extra layer of culture to the island, with creative craft beers and a surprisingly complex menu, I quickly found this to be my favorite place on the island.
PIBeanery
While nightspots abound in Put In Bay, a good cup of coffee can be hard to find, indeed. Enter PIBeanery, a coffee shop opened just last year which serves not only your basic cup of joe, but an interesting and diverse set of caffeinated drinks to satiate the early riser’s sweet tooth. Run by a local family, the beanery brings a much-needed low-key coffee shop to the island, which seems to be otherwise devoid of shops specifically dedicated to such a thing. While this will soon change, PIBeanery currently has a monopoly on coffee treats.
The Candy Bar
Alongside the many bars and souvenir shops of Put In Bay on Lake Erie’s South Bass Island, The Candy Bar serves locals and tourists alike with just about anything dipped in chocolate. The old-time charm of the small shop is accentuated with the friendly exterior of an old house, and the interior of a candy store from yesteryear. Here, you can find old candies, jawbreakers as big as a baseball, and a variety of table games that will win you gumballs. Apart from the higher-strung businesses nearby, this one has kind of a subdued charm.
Opening Day Special: Cafe Mexico (CLOSED)
A brand new restaurant opened just today, actually, Cafe Mexico replaces what has previously been several bistros and Italtian-themed eateries. Departing from them, this new eatery serves up a combination of Mexican, Cuban and Latin American cuisine. The cuisine is a mixture of simple favorites and finer cuisine, a mixture of a casual theme and an intimate atmosphere. The opening day for any business is rough, and this one did have a few. But ultimately I would be willing to say it’s worth a visit for how new and unusual the food is for the area.
The Boardwalk
Situated at the edge of the tiny resort community of Put In Bay on Lake Erie’s South Bass Island, The Boardwalk is one of the prime seafood destinations on the island. Among the primary boat pens and docks of the island, the facility sits on a pier jutting out into the lake, the multi-storied complex sells an array of seafood and souvenirs, as well as taxis to neighboring islands and entertainment. As far as views of beautiful Lake Erie, this pier offers some of the best. I think the same can be said of its menu.
Cameo Pizza
Cameo Pizza has eight locations in the neighborhoods of Northwest Ohio, and since 1936 the family owned business has served up pizzas for local townsfolk with a real small-town charm. The different locations seem to have different dining and delivery hours, but in Put In Bay, people seem to know it as the only late night food option.
Mr. Ed’s Bar & Grille
The tiny resort town of Put In Bay on South Bass Island in Lake Erie is seemingly comprised entirely of bars and nightspots. Among them is Mr. Ed’s Bar & Grille, a two-location chain with a corresponding location at Port Clinton on the mainland. Mr. Ed’s is primarily a spot for music and night life; the tagline “Nobody’s Ugly after 2″ is a reflection of the sort of unrepentant lightheartedness of a bar for people out for a wild weekend. Well, in all of this party sense, and the food is good, the overall experience is only average.
Wharfside
On the waterfront of South Bass Island in Put in Bay, Ohio, Wharfside is actually primarily a carryout and convenience store with some food and souveniers, but it has added a simple menu of bagels and sandwiches and a small front porch eatery. There are a lot of restaurants in Put In Bay, most of them bars and nightspots. Wharfside, on the other hand, offers a little more relaxing of an experience, a place for breakfast by the sea.
Jed’s Barbecue & Brew
Right in the middle of downtown Bowling Green, Jed’s Barbecue & Brew is a pretty simple and straightforward sports bar with plenty of TVs and plenty of space for the local Bowling Green State University students and townsfolk alike to grab a drink or some food and watch a game. It’s not a fancy or upscale place, but I get the feel that this is just what this bar is looking for: Something low key, low maintenance and low stress. Jed’s is actually a chain in Northwest Ohio, with five locations.
Sunny Street Cafe
With 12 locations in three states, and another 40 on the way, Sunny Street Cafe is a new and ambitious growing chain in the casual cafe concept. With breakfast items, burgers and sandwiches, it’s got a good mixture of menu items that make it an ideal place to quick food early in the day. A good breakfast place is hard to find, especially downtown. For all the bars and nightspots around a downtown like Columbus, it’s not easy to find a diner that is worth the drive. Whether or not Sunny Street has that distinction, though, is a matter of debate.
