lifestyle
The People and Faces Behind Columbus Food Traditions
Vendors, makers and cooks at longstanding spots connect residents to the city's distinctive dishes and markets.
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How we reported this
Columbus is home to Ezzo pepperoni, a cult-favorite cup-and-char pepperoni used by top pizzerias nationwide that defines the city's influence on American pizza culture. The pepperoni comes from local production tied to the people who developed the style that now reaches kitchens across the country.
North Market and Its Vendors
The city's North Market, a 145-year-old historic public market in downtown Columbus, hosts over 30 vendors including unique Somali food at Hoyo's Kitchen and Nepali food at Momo Ghar, which are hard to find elsewhere. These stalls operate daily with staff who prepare dishes that reflect the backgrounds of the people running them. Shoppers encounter the faces of these vendors while buying ingredients and prepared meals in the same building that has operated for generations.
Immigrant Culinary Contributions
Columbus has gained national recognition for its farm-to-table movement and diverse immigrant culinary landscape, featuring the city's first full-service Filipino restaurant Bonifacio and acclaimed Somali counter Hoyo's Kitchen. The cooks and owners at these spots bring family recipes and techniques that have become part of the local scene. Their work connects diners directly to the individuals who maintain these traditions amid the broader food offerings in the city.
Traditional Local Dishes
Traditional local dishes invented in Columbus include Columbus-style pizza (thin crispy cornmeal-crusted, square-cut), Johnny Marzetti casserole, Wor Sue Gai chicken, and Buckeyes (chocolate-peanut butter balls). Each item traces back to cooks and home kitchens where people developed the recipes that later spread through restaurants and markets. These foods continue to appear on menus because the people preparing them keep the original methods alive.
Visitors can explore these connections by stopping at the North Market to meet vendors and sample items from the listed counters. The market remains open with its mix of long-running and newer stalls, offering a direct way to see the faces tied to the foods that represent Columbus.