Restaurant Review: The Rossi bar + kitchen

Happy Hump Day, all!
I haven't posted in several days....this past weekend was a busy one, Monday I had appointments and errands to attend to, and yesterday was filled with quite a bit of lazy river action at Zoombezie Bay...not complaining :)

Today's post is going to be a restaurant review of sorts.
The hubby and I recently decided to make a "restuarant bucket list." We have always been into trying new foods and new places, but after awhile it seems that it is happening less and less. Of course we have our favorite places that we like to revisit, but we both thought that this list would be a cool way to broaden our horizons a bit, and that it would be a great excuse for a fun date night...and maybe all those shows on The Food Network are starting to work on us. Hehe.
So once a month we are going to pick a place we have never been (in Columbus and the surrounding areas for now,) and we will venture out for a lovely new dining experience.

This past Saturday we decided to start this adventure.
Brady had mentioned wanting to try a Korean BBQ place...I on the other hand was reallly wanting a nice juicy cheeseburger...with fries :) Thurman's immediately came to mind, but we have already been there several times, and that place is almost always a packed house. So, I decided to do a little research on some other good burger joints in the area. I ended up finding several sources that highly recommended The Rossi Burger from The Rossi, some of the people even went as far as to say that it was better than Thurman's! So neededless to say, I was curious. I looked at their website and menu, and it looked like a pretty cool place. I was able to convince Brady to go there....which means he will get to choose the next place we go!
Keep in mind that I am not claiming to be a professional food critic, and may use words such as yummy, delish, etc to describe my meals...don't judge :)

The Rossi bar + kitchen

895 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio
Short North Arts District

This place wasnt huge, but many restaurants in this area are a little on the small side. The atmosphere was more bar than restaurant, but in a classy way. We waited at the bar until they had a table ready. Brady ordered our drinks, and from his report got kind of a strange look from the bartender when he ordered my virgin mojito. LOL. But boy was it yummy!

My prego friendy cocktail, and Brady's manly brew.

Once we were seated it didn't take long to figure out what we wanted to order. We started with the Grilled Lamb Lollipops, that came with a bacon jam and parsley puree. They were kind of pricey, considering they were small and you only got 3, but they were pretty darn good just the same.

My burger was pretty good, but I didn't think it was anything to rave about. I will say that it might have to do with the fact that I ordered it medium-well...I'm super crazy about undercooked foods and food borne illnesses...especially now with baby on board. So that may have contributed to why, but I just wasn't impressed. My fries were good. They were the "puney" kind that I like (that's what I have always refered to them as, you know like soft and flimsy?) They also came with with a lemon-basil aioli dipping sauce, which at first I wasn't sure if I liked, but the more I ate them with it, it grew on me. However, I did not know what "aioli" was, so I googled it. Apparently it is a traditional sauce made of garlic, olive oil, and typically egg. Who knew? (Not this girl)

The Rossi Burger

Brady ordered the Grilled Short Rib that was accompanied by a sweet corn pancake, maple-serrano jam, and roasted shallot.
He enjoyed it, and the one bite I had was very good. The meat was sweet and tender, and was paired very well with the pancake.
We also got a small pizza, with the intention of trying some there, and taking some home for lunch the next day. Their pizzas are New York Style and come with a Italian plum tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and pecorino Romano cheeses. We choose prosciutto di Parma, red onions, and mushrooms as our toppings. It was pretty good, the sauce had a really unique flavor, unlike many traditional pizza sauces I've encountered.

Overall it was a pleasant dining experience. The staff was very friendly and accommodating. The bartender even came to check on us at one point and noticed that our table was wobbling, and fixed it in an instant. Not to mention he really took his time making my drink, and didn't just throw it together...it's the little things that impress me sometimes!
Our food was good, although I still stand by my feeling that it was overpriced. I would say if you are in the area, and are looking for a neat little joint to try, then The Rossi would be a nice choice. Otherwise, I wouldn't necesarily make a special trip there.
I would give 3 stars.