Whether you’re in jeans or a tie, Cotter’s is the perfect mix of laid back
and upscale
If you are familiar with the arena
district, you might remember this location housing the club
Black and Blue.
Cotter’s
Casual Fine Dining has occupied the space for the past year and a half to
offer an upscale atmosphere to anyone visiting the Arena
District. General Manager, Joseph Shuster, says it’s a great
location. “It is right across from all the action. And you can
see the arch. That’s what makes our patio so nice. When you’re
sitting out there, there is a beautiful view of the arch.”
The arch Joseph refers to is what is left of the 19th
century Union Station Train Depot, which was demolished in the
1970s.
Right across the street from the restaurant is the
staging area for large events. Cirque Du Soleil sets up their
tent city here when they pass through Columbus. Recently
Cotter’s hosted the cast party for the Big Apple Circus on the
first day it opened. “We had all of the performers and all of
the corporate sponsors here,” Joseph says. “I believe we had
around 100 people here that night.” He says the restaurant also
gets packed during Cirque du Soleil. “It’s a different crowd, an
older crowd usually, considering ticket price. People will come
here, have dinner and walk over to the show.”Hours – Mon.-Fri. 11:30 a.m. – 10 p.m., Sat. 4 – 10
p.m., Sun. open for most special events at the Arena
[click the image
to enlarge]
Atmosphere – The décor with fine art, white table
clothes, and menu featuring a wide variety of foods is
reminiscent of a fine dining establishment. “But we don’t want
to just gear it toward people dressed up or in suits,” Joseph
says. “If people come in, in their shorts, that’s where the
casual part comes in. We keep it casual but still have the fine
food and a classic atmosphere.”Clientele – During lunchtime, because of
the location, they get a lot of attorneys coming in from the
surrounding law firms. Joseph says with the new condos being
built and Buggyworks nearby, they are starting to see a lot of
regulars from residential communities as well. “So we have our
neighborhood regulars and the regular business crowd,” Joseph
says. “We have certain attorneys that I see at least four or
five times a week.”Food – Joseph says the buffalo chicken wrap is a
lunchtime favorite. “It is really good. We also sell a lot of
Ahi, we have an Ahi salad that people really seem to like.” They
also cater to the health conscious and the vegetarians out
there. “Everyone seems to be more health conscious. We have a
veggie wrap that’s grilled.” They just added several more
sandwiches to the lunch menu and some new salads. Joseph says
they get a lot of compliments on the salads. “You can add
chicken or salmon to your salad for $3.”
Prosciutto Stuffed
Supreme Chicken Breast
[click the image to
enlarge]
The dinner menu has also changed, the roasted
chicken is really good, it’s a popular dish.
Spirits - They have a full wine list.
“What we try to do is to not keep it too big, but you can go
from your basic whites to high end whites.” The prices run the
gamut from a $3 glass of white wine to a $225 bottle of wine or
a bottle of Dom Perignon.Special Events – In addition to the Big
Apple Circus and Cirque Du Soleil events, Cotter’s hosts local
special events all the time. “Any time we are able to set up an
event, we will,” Joseph says. Recently a group of architects
planned to use the patio for a building contest using sandboxes
but rainy weather forced them to cancel. On Tuesdays and
Thursdays there is adult league kickball. A lot of the arena
businesses are in the league so they have specials on those
nights like $6 pitchers of margaritas for kick ball players.
click the image above to visit the
cotters website.
we need your help!! think-urban.com is looking for some of the
issues that you come across when looking for an urban community
to live in. what can't you find? what would you like to know
more about? who would you like to meet or have us interview?
What restaurant reviews would you like to see? anything else?
CONTACT US HERE.
