The Garage spans more than 35,000 square feet and features more than 20 food and beverage vendors. Options include Venezuelan arepas, Brazilian steak sandwiches, British fish and chips, ramen, sushi, barbecue, lobster rolls and artisan ice cream. Each business operates its own counter, while customers share communal seating throughout the hall. I tried as many as I can! 4 Birds Bakery: Small-batch cookies, muffins and English-muffins made by hand dough-scooped for each one. You can never go wrong with a little sweet treat.
Lick Ice Cream: Unique, imaginative ice cream flavors year-round—ideal for a sweet treat stop. This was Rocky Roads-esque, and that marshmallow was everything.
Azucar Morena: Specializes in arepas (air-fried corn pancakes) with meats, cheeses and vegetables; gluten-free friendly. The arepa was a bit larger than I anticipated, but nicely full of filling.
Twenty-Two Juice Bar: Emphasizes whole, locally sourced ingredients in açaí bowls, smoothies and fresh juices. Give me everything peach-mango.
Hachi Machi: Features a bold, pan-Asian menu of hibachi, wok-fired favorites, and inventive street food. These egg salad sandos are all the rage in larger cities, and when they're perfectly creamy, they are so good.
Lil’ Dumplings Noodle Bar: Handmade noodles, flavorful ingredients, ramen and noodle bowls for a comforting meal. These dumplings were not short on spice - or flavor - but I downed them.
Rolli (Sushi): A fun sushi concept that aims to excite with flavor combinations and a “different” sushi experience. How cute are these rolled up lil sushi?

Others I will need to try next time:

La Chinita Poblana: Asian-fusion taqueria offering tacos with a twist, merging Mexican and Asian influences.

J’s Lobster & Fish Market: Signature lobster rolls (plus crab/shrimp versions) and hearty seafood sides. The Harbour: Traditional British-style fish & chips (battered cod/salmon/catfish etc) in the food hall setting.

Poke Guru: Healthy fast-casual with an Asian-fusion twist on the Hawaiian poke bowl concept. Axle’s Garage Tap: A craft-beer & drink spot—great for a beer after work, or with lunch/dinner at the hall.

Hard Truth Distilling: Features artisan spirits and signature cocktails in their own bar space inside the hall.

Clancy’s Hamburgers: A longstanding burger chain known for thoughtful ingredients and a classic burger-diner feel. Gaucho’s Fire: Brazilian-inspired flavors, including a popular steak sandwich and chimichurri fries, and regional BBQ influence.

Abbiocco Pizzeria: A modern upscale pizzeria offering fresh-to-order pizzas and pastas in a slightly elevated pizza concept. Sal & Pimenta: A Latin America inspired concept centered on skewers and simple ingredients (salt & pepper) done well.

Chapati Beta: Pakistani-Indian inspired fare bringing lively, spicy South Asian flavors to the food hall.

Great Legs Wine + Spirits: A wine (and spirits) bar concept—unwind with a pour, good for a lighter drink stop.

Herculean Meal Prep: A vendor focused on healthier eating—prepared meals made convenient for fast grab-and-go.

Mama Fofo’s: Traditional Greek fare — gyros, falafel, spanakopita, baklava — bringing “old world” Greek traditions to the hall.

Palavana Cubano: Cuban-inspired cuisine in Indy’s go-to spot for the classic Cubano sandwich and related fare.

Pig Pen BBQ: Regional-style barbecue flavors brought together in an honest, heart-centered BBQ concept.

Budd Dairy Food Hall is a multi-level dining and entertainment destination in Columbus, Ohio, housed inside a former milk-processing facility dating to 1916. The historic Budd Dairy Company building once served as one of Columbus's major milk-processing operations.

The facility operated until 1967, and its brick exterior, industrial architecture and original details have been preserved as part of its transformation into a modern food hall. Unlike a traditional food court, Budd Dairy operates as a chef incubator, providing independent restaurateurs with space to develop their concepts, establish customers and potentially expand into standalone restaurants. BEEP!BEEP! NOODS, RICE AND STREET FOOD "Dubbed as Ohio’s best Filipino restaurant by Food & Wine Magazine, the team behind the success of Bonifacio: Modern Filipino is exploring the diverse and complex Asian influences of Filipino cuisine through our new street food concept – beep! beep!

Inspired by the bustling streets of Manila, where the honking of jeepneys and the sizzle of street food stalls fill the air, it captures the energy of a bustling urban food scene. From Chinese-inspired dumplings to Japanese-influenced noodles, beep! beep! celebrates the merging of flavors that make Filipino food uniquely delicious. With bold, comforting dishes served in a vibrant setting, it recreates the lively experience of an Asian night market, where every bite tells a story of tradition and innovation."

CREAMY SESAME UDON W/ PORK - Medium spiced, made with sesame brown butter, with creamy tahini, served with kale, egg, ground pork, and BACON. THE CHEESECAKE GIRL "Our goal is to keep dessert nostalgic, make everything from scratch, and keep it as local as possible. We operated as a pop-up bakery, pairing up with local breweries and selling tickets to cheesecake and beer pairings. Then we moved onto farmer’s markets and weddings from there. Eventually getting to our Hilliard location in 2020 and our Dublin location in 2021!" The Cheesecake Girl’s Skyline Chili mini cheesecake is a playful dessert inspired by Cincinnati’s iconic chili dish. Rather than incorporating actual chili, the miniature cheesecake is decorated to resemble a serving of Skyline Chili, turning a familiar savory dish into a sweet treat. HATCH – THE JERK SPOT "The Jerk Spot is characterized by the aromatic bold flavors and unique blends of spices and fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Signature items such as Jerk Chicken and Oxtail are seasoned and infused with flavor using their signature Jerk Rub and Jerky Paste.

Owner, Troy, has a deep-rooted love for Jamaican and Caribbean food which has inspired him to share this passion with their customers and give them that island experience that is rare in the city. The Jerk Spot team pride themselves on consistency and presentation, and their meals are a statement of the heart."

RASTA PASTA - Made With Pepper Cream Sauce, Sweet Peppers, And Broccoli Florets. MODERN SOUTHERN TABLE "The journey for Modern Southern Table began in the food court of the Colony Square Mall in Zanesville, Ohio, after Daisy Lewis competed in and won the Food Network’s “Food Court Wars” in March 2014. When her lease in the mall ended, Lewis refocused her efforts on relocating, hoping to open a restaurant in the Columbus area." "No stranger to the highs and lows that come with working in the restaurant industry, Lewis cites the wealth of knowledge she’s learned from Cameron Mitchell Restaurants (CMR) as a turning point in her entrepreneurial career. Other highlights include winning local accolades such as the Big Pitch and Best Fried Chicken awards and national recognitions such as winning the “Food Court Wars.”" GEECHEE RED RICE - A classic Gullah Geechee Dish!! Red Rice is the long-lost Granddaughter of Jollof. But she’s also the grandmother of Jambalaya! The rice is cooked in tomato sauce with onions, peppers, bacon & and andouille smoked sausage.

SOUTHERN MAC AND CHEESE - Wouldn’t be a true southern restaurant without Mac and cheese, Right! BAKED mac and cheese, that is! We gotcha covered, it might not be your momma’s mac, but it sure is good.

BLACKEYE PEA SALAD A cold salad of blackeye peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, and fresh herbs in a homemade vinegarette. TACOS RUDOS "The term Rudos comes from Mexican wrestling or lucha libre, where the Rudos, the antiheroes, fight the tecnicos. Relatives of the Rudos Team trained and became wrestlers in Mexico City around the 1970’s, they were Rudos. Ever since then, lucha libre has been one of our traditions, great food being the other."

FISH (RED SNAPPER) - “BEST FISH TACO IN OH” Beer-battered Red Snapper, cabbage, pico de gallo, serrano cream on a flour tortilla. ZAKI MEDITERRANEAN GRILL "From grape leaves marinated in lemon, to falafel balls seasoned with cumin and spices, there are so many tempting choices at Zaki Mediterranean Grill. Don’t miss the chicken shawarma with turmeric, paprika, and garlic sauce, the gyro packed with slow-roasted lamb and beef, or the chicken sandwich with grilled chicken and garlic sauce."

HUMMUS BOWL WITH FALAFEL - Ground chickpeas, parsley, green onion, cumin, served with basmati rice, salad, tzatziki sauce, fresh hummus and pita. Other restaurant concepts include CLUCK NORRIS, ELEVATED PIZZA KITCHEN, MARLOW’S CHEESESTEAKS and MCGINNIS’ GRILL.

Grade: A

Liberty Public Market is a large food hall and artisan marketplace inside Liberty Station in San Diego’s Point Loma neighborhood. The roughly 25,000-square-foot building originally opened in 1923 as the mess hall and commissary for Naval Training Center San Diego. After the Navy base closed, the larger property was redeveloped as Liberty Station, and the market opened in 2016 as San Diego’s first food hall. The current vendor roster covers a broad range: Argentinian empanadas, Thai street food, Hawaiian food, sushi, ramen and noodles, Mediterranean kebabs, lobster rolls, Texas-style barbecue, Nashville hot chicken, pizza, Mexican food, French pastries, Hungarian chimney cakes, coffee, smoothies and more. There are also nonrestaurant businesses including a record shop, barber shop, specialty retail and Bottlecraft’s beer shop and tasting room. Slurp Taiyaki & Ramen combines Japanese-inspired ramen with an eye-catching dessert: taiyaki soft serve. Taiyaki is a Japanese fish-shaped waffle/cake traditionally filled with something sweet such as red bean paste, custard or chocolate. Slurp turns it into an ice-cream cone, filling the open-mouthed fish pastry with soft serve. Flavors including vanilla, taro and swirls such as taro/vanilla or ube/vanilla. The cone is made fresh, giving it a combination of crisp and chewy textures beneath the soft serve. And despite looking like a fish, the dessert isn’t fish-flavored. If I had more time, I would have stopped at each and every shop, sampling everything along the way. Have you been? Grade: A

The Hillcrest Farmers Market is one of San Diego’s biggest and most established farmers markets. Held every Sunday in the Hillcrest neighborhood, the market dates back to April 13, 1997, when it opened with just 27 vendors. It was created as a project of the Hillcrest Business Association and originally operated from the DMV parking lot near Normal Street and Lincoln Avenue. Nearly three decades later, Hillcrest Farmers Market has grown to more than 175 vendors and draws more than 10,000 visitors during a typical week. Farm stands are loaded with the kinds of fruits and vegetables that benefit from Southern California’s growing climate, along with flowers and other agricultural products. San Diego County has nearly 5,100 farms, many of them quite small, and the region is particularly known for avocados, citrus, tomatoes, strawberries, flowers, mushrooms and nursery crops. Beyond the farmers, the aisles are packed with specialty food producers, bakers, beverage vendors, artists and craftspeople. Jewelry, clothing, gifts and handmade goods fill out the market, giving it almost a street-festival feel. Live musicians regularly perform as shoppers make their way through the booths. Hillcrest puts a particular emphasis on international cuisine, so it's entirely possible to make a meal out of walking through the market. Hot-food stands and specialty vendors sit alongside the produce booths, making the experience as much about deciding what to eat right now and then what to eat later. That mix is what separates Hillcrest from a more traditional farmers market. There are meat, seafood and dairy products, dry goods and specialty treats, but also plenty of food meant to be eaten immediately. The location is currently a little different from its longtime setup. The market spent years along Normal Street, but construction of the Normal Street Promenade prompted a temporary relocation beginning in January 2025. It now operates along University Avenue between Herbert Street and Park Boulevard while its new permanent home is being built. Have you been?