The Daily Bar opening next month in Italian Village

COLUMBUS, Ohio (COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST)--One of the owners of The Daily Growler is opening a new bar.

John W. Blakely, who owns the three-unit beer bar with his parents, is striking out on his own with The Daily Bar, which will open on Nov. 5 at 883 N. 4^th St. in Italian Village.

“It’s a place that invites lingering,” Blakely said. “Funkier. More zaniness, more my personal aesthetic.”

The bar is taking a 2,000-square-foot, standalone building nestled amid all the new construction on 4^th Street. The building was built in 1900 and is the oldest such building in Italian Village.

Blakely said he’d been eyeing that space as far back as 2017 when they were prepping the Brewery District/German Village bar. The time wasn’t right then given that project, but it is now.

One benefit to waiting has been the surge of other eating and drinking establishments that have made the way to Italian Village.

Blakely said he’s excited to join that vibrant stretch of the neighborhood. His only regret is that he wasn’t able to open in time to take advantage of the space’s patio over the summer.

The Daily Bar isn’t ditching beer — there will be 40 beer, cider and seltzer choices on tap — but the new space will be more of a traditional bar than The Daily Growler locations, which do a robust carryout beer business.

“We actually do more on-site sales than off (at The Daily Growler), but it’s thought of as more of a to-go business,” he said. “I mean, growler is right there in the name.”

While The Daily Growler started with beer and gradually added wine and cocktails, The Daily Bar will have a full cocktail menu and wine offering from the jump.

Blakely’s personal tastes will be on the menu as well. The bar will offer a wide selection of port, a favorite of his that he feels is under-represented around town. It’ll also have a seltzer tap — plain old seltzer water, not a flavor — that’ll be used for the bar’s spritz menu.

“Simple drinks,” he said. “One or two ingredients.”

The décor is a vintage feel with wallpaper, colored tiles, and church pews. Unlike The Daily Growler’s electronic menu boards, The Daily Bar will have old-fashioned paper menus (though there will be a QR code for those who want the menu on their phone).

The Daily Bar will be managed by Ryan Williams, previously of House Beer and Platform Beer Co.

The Nov. 5 opening event will include the Biscuit Boss and Sweet T’s Southern Style food trucks.

The building has a dedicated parking lot behind the building and a shared parking lot at its 4^th Street entrance.

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