Waves Bar & Kitchen brings the beach to King-Lincoln Bronzeville
A new bar and restaurant is bringing the beach to the Near East Side. Waves Bar & Kitchen opened Dec. 28 at 828 E. Long St. in King-Lincoln Bronzeville, inside a retail space in the Adelphi Quarter development.
The family-owned restaurant is fully committed to its beach theme, with shades of blue decor, seafood on the menu, and aptly-named cocktails.
The restaurant is owned by siblings Tanitia Brown, 42, her younger brother Timothy Brown, 36, and her older brother, chef David Burke, 47.
The restaurant serves bar eats like burgers, salads, wings, and pizza, southern-inspired dishes like fried green tomatoes and fried alligator, and seafood. One of the restaurant's most popular dishes is the seafood pizza, with cream sauce, shrimp, and salmon.
For brunch, the restaurant offers red velvet pancakes, shrimp and grits, chicken and waffles, and more.
The bar's "shareable" cocktails, which are required to be shared with a group, include the "sunny margarita," with 56 oz. of tequila and margarita house mix; the 51 oz. "swampthing," with vodka, melon liqueur, and pineapple juice; and the 32 oz. "tidal waves rum bucket" with three different rums, fruit juices, and peach liqueur.
The menu also includes wine, beer, and traditionally-sized cocktails, like the signature drink "the Bronzeville," an homage to the neighborhood that includes cinnamon whiskey and ginger ale; the "berry bluegill," which comes in a fish shaped glass and includes red berry vodka, raspberry vodka, and berry blue juice; and the "pineapple sunset," which comes in a pineapple shaped glass and includes white rum, orange juice, pineapple juice, and grenadine.
The bar's centerpiece, a custom bar by John Meegan of Gutknecht Construction that took three months to complete, resembles a shore with seashells and waves.
Tanitia Brown has a background in accounting and finance, but has always had an "entrepreneurial spirit," she said.
She and her brothers looked for a space for nearly two years before coming across the location on Long Street, with a patio adorned with string lights and garage doors to be used in the warmer months for live music or cornhole tournaments, said Tanitia Brown. The building is not far from the restaurant What the Waffle and in an area that is also set to include a Black-owned bank.
More:Black-owned bank proposed for King-Lincoln/Bronzeville
Tanitia Brown said the fun and vibrant aesthetic of Waves puts customers "in the mind of being at a beach or on vacation." So far the support from the King-Lincoln Bronzeville community has been overwhelmingly positive, she said, and they're excited for the restaurant to be a gathering space for the neighborhood.
Hours are Tuesday through Friday, 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
tmoorman@dispatch.com
@TaijuanNichole
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Beach-themed restaurant bar Waves opens on Columbus' Near East Side
