This week’s cheap & creative date is…

Beer + Pizza!

What: Fun, upbeat bar + pizza truck & patio
Where: Short North – 1044 N. High Street (B) & 1030 N. High Street (LNS)
When: Happy Hour = M-F 4p-8p (B) ; M-F 3p-3a (LNS)
website - Bodega & Mikey’s Late Night Slice

Top reasons why this $20Date is awesome:

• Bodega has one of the best happy hours in all of Columbus!
• 1/2 off all drafts (over 50 drafts) from 4-8p, M-F – many, many craft, delicious beers
• Fun, artistic atmosphere
• Mikey’s is just a hop, skip & a jump from Bodega
• Mikey’s shows movies on the side of the building everyday when the sun goes down! This date was an episode of Ren & Stimpy:)
• Delicious yummy awesome pizza (with hilariously-named sauces)
• You can even do this date during the chillier months–the front of 83 Gallery has a seating area that is heated, so you can watch the movie while semi-outdoors.
• We would love to include 83 Gallery in on this date but they were closed when we went. (future addition to this date!)

Total = $11 for 4 drafts + tip + $3/piece of pizza ($6) = $20

Happy Dating,

PocketBook Jess

Freedom to Yelp!

What: Perfect opportunity for a $20Date – food, drinks & activites all from local businesses/organizations
Where: Gateway Film Center – 1550 N. High Street
When: Thursday, 11/15, 6:30p-9:30p
Cost: Free, but a $5 donation to the Waste Not Center is suggested
RSVP HERE!

“It’s that time again! Time to honor the fine Yelp community made of lovely folks like yourself and get down with the city’s finest foods, drinks, activities and entertainers! IT’S OUR BIGGEST PARTY YET! We the people of Yelp, in order to pay due homage to our city’s enjoyable edibles, do establish a process of nominating and electing Columbus’s most cherished comestibles. Be it a creative use of bacon or a new twist on ethnic fare, cast your ballots then join us for the Freedom to Yelp bash!” -www.yelp.com **VOTE at the above link!**

Happy Dating,

PocketBook Jess

This week’s Happy Hour Highlight is…

Marcella’s!

What: a Cameron Mitchell Restaurant with yummy Italian dishes
Where: Polaris – 1319 Polaris Parkway; Short North – 615 N. High Street
Happy Hour Polaris: M-F 4p-7p; bar, cocktail lounge & patio only
Happy Hour Short North: M-F 4p-6p; cocktail lounge & bar only {SN location’s HH Menu states 1/2 off selected drinks & food with no specifics- the post below is connected to the Polaris location}
Featured Special: 1/2 off FOOD on Bar Menu! <–pdf of Polaris Bar Menu to see all food choices
website – Marcella’s

• $3 Beers
• $5 Spirits & Specialty Cocktails
• 1/2 off Selected Wine
• $4 Sangria {yummm!}
• 1/2 off ALL Small Plates, Pizzas, Panini & Italian Beef Sandwiches

Francine & I recommend that you try all of the Small Plates– they are 1/2 off, why not!

Happy (Hour) Dating,

PocketBook Jess

So many great $20Date opportunities in the next couple of weeks! Thanks to my lovely fellow bloggers Tania (taniaexplorescolumbus.com) & Val (columbusonthecheap.com) I feel like I’m always in the loop with what’s happening in Columbus. {Have you subscribed to get their emails yet? You should!} So here’s what I found out from them that’s happening soon:

*Pecha Kucha – THIS Thursday @ Junctionview Studios. Remember our $20Date there back in February? Food Trucks + local music + $2 donation + local art = fun $20Date!

*Fête en Blanc – THIS Friday @ tbd location. $10/person. Wear white, bring a picnic & enjoy this French tradition right here in Columbus!

*Local Matters – Local Foods Week & Eat Local Challenge is next week! I’ll be participating in both & will be blogging about my fun local eating adventures—stay tuned for those posts, but in the mean time, check out their website for further details & events!

*Festival Latino – THIS Saturday & Sunday @ Genoa Park. Yummy food, live music & more!

*Food Fort Fest – NEXT Friday, 8/17. Part of Local Foods Week and hosted by the ECDI. Food trucks + a DJ + other events!

*Sangria Festival – NEXT Saturday, 8/18 @ Signature Wines, 6p-9p. Who doesn’t love a delicious glass of sangria!? $10 gets you sangria, live music & the opportunity to wine some raffle prizes! Also on site, a taco truck and yummy desserts.

*BaconCamp – 8/25 1p-3p @ The North Market. Hosted by Wild Goose Creative, this is a delicious $20Date and one my husband is very looking forward to! {not technically in the next week or so, but you have to buy tickets in advance because they sell out! $10/person}

*Independents’ Day – So. Much. Fun. Downtown & not until September 15, but you should definitely mark your calendars for this event!

*Don’t forget about my blog post featured on Columbus on the Cheap listing all the free concerts & outdoor movies! (Screen on the Green & Goodale Park Music Series is next weekend)

Happy Summer Dating!

PocketBook Jess

This week’s cheap & creative $20Date is…

Local distillery + samples!

What: Middle West Spirits is the awesome, local producer of OYO Vodka(s) & OYO Whiskey
Where: Short North – 1262 Courtland Avenue
Hours: Tours are every Friday & Gallery Hop Saturdays by reservation only – 6p (and they last about 1.5 hours) Call 614-299-2460 to reserve your spot.
website – MiddleWestSpirits.com

I have loved OYO Vodka for awhile now—it’s the only vodka I don’t have to mix with anything, which is a pretty big deal for me. I love sweet drinks, so when Rob ordered me a Honey Vanilla OYO Vodka on the rocks at The Refectory a year ago on our anniversary, I was hesitant. But Rob had read about this new distillery in Columbus that focused on quality and character of their vodka & whiskey and he had a feeling I would like it. And I LOVED it! It’s one of the only liquors I order when I’m out in Columbus and I get a little (re: a lot) sad when restaurants don’t carry it.

So when thinking of something cool to do for my sweet, great friend Katrina’s bachelorette party, I immediately thought of scheduling a tour of Middle West Spirits, the distillery behind my favorite vodka. We learned so much from Ryan, one of the owners of Middle West Spirits, and I truly feel educated about what goes into making such a fine liquor. We also got samples of their OYO Vodka, OYO Stone Fruit Vodka, OYO Honey Vanilla Vodka, & OYO Whiskey. He had us compare OYO Vodka to Grey Goose and wow. Just wow.

Call ahead to reserve your spot for a future Friday. I will be taking Rob there very soon!

Total: $10/tour = $20Date for 2!

Kisses:
*Ryan (owner) was very cool. He followed his passion for distilling and with the help of his business partner and his family, they got this cool, local distillery off the ground! He knows A TON about the process and what makes their vodka & whiskey delicious.
*If you haven’t tried OYO yet, try it! Order it the next time you’re out, and then buy a bottle—support local:)
*Lots of parking next to their building in a lot.
*Friendly, unique, local space.

Misses:
*n/a

Happy Dating,

PocketBook Jess