If you have lived in Old Worthington for more than a few years, you know the summer rhythm: coffee, market, a slow walk down High Street, maybe a concert on Sunday. That rhythm has a new anchor this year. For the first time since 2018, the building at 649 N. High is a working restaurant again, and it is quietly rearranging where the weekend starts and ends.
The eight-year gap just closed
The Worthington Inn sat mostly dark from 2018 until this spring. On April 29, Wolf's Ridge Brewing opened its new concept inside the building, taking on the address as Wolf's Ridge at Worthington Inn at 671 N. High St. The Columbus brewery kept the tavern bones and layered on a full culinary program under Executive Chef Kris Ludwig and Sous Chef Brian Breslin, with General Manager Sean Schultz running the room.
"This project has always been about more than reopening a historic building. We wanted to create a place the community feels proud of again." — Bob Szuter, co-owner, Wolf's Ridge Brewing
For a building that first went up in 1831 and became an inn in the 1850s, the phrase "next chapter" gets used a lot. What matters for a Saturday in July is more practical: the block between the Village Green and the old commercial strip now has an all-day kitchen again, with hours running to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on weekends. A lower level with a dedicated cocktail room and second kitchen is planned, though there is no firm timeline.
The menu leans tavern in the best sense. The Blonde French Onion Soup, a WRB Burger, a Tuscan-seasoned chicken sandwich, and a Vegan Mushroom BLT anchor lunch. Dinner leans seasonal and chef-driven without pushing into occasion-only pricing.
Saturday morning still starts at the same corner
None of this replaces the Worthington Farmers Market. It just gives you somewhere to go after.
The market was founded in 1987 by Old Worthington businesses to bring foot traffic into the historic district, and it is now run by The Worthington Partnership with close to 100 vendors on a busy Saturday. From May through October it spreads across downtown Worthington outdoors. November through April it moves indoors to The Shops at Worthington Place at 7227 N. High St.
A few things worth knowing if you have not been in a while:
- The market runs 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the summer season. Vendors sell out. Nine is a compromise. Ten is optimistic.
- Market tokens and gift cards are not accepted by the separate Worthington Makers Market vendors, which sometimes share sidewalks with the Saturday crowd.
- The DORA lets you carry a drink through the district while you shop, which changes the tempo of a normal errand run.
The natural pattern this summer is market first, then a short walk down High for lunch. That walk now ends somewhere new.
The hours between market and dinner
Old Worthington has never been short of places to eat. What changed in 2026 is that the density finally supports a proper afternoon of it. A quick, non-exhaustive tour of the anchors, plus the newer arrivals worth putting on your list:
- The Whitney House. Scratch-kitchen American comfort food in the heart of downtown Old Worthington. Happy hour in the tavern runs Tuesday through Friday, 4 to 6.
- Cameron's American Bistro. Now in its fourth decade at the same address, with the wine list to prove it. Still the default for anyone who wants a proper dinner without leaving the neighborhood.
- Subourbon. Southern hospitality, bourbon-heavy back bar, locally sourced menu. The kind of place that fills up before you have decided you wanted to go.
- Rusty Bucket and J. Gilbert's. The two dependable rooms at the Worthington Place end of the district when you want a booth and a menu everyone at the table already knows.
- Wolf's Ridge at Worthington Inn. New for 2026. Sit at the bar if the dining room is full. The brewery side of the operation shows up on the tap list.
One arrival worth flagging just outside the historic core: Òrale Güey Mexican Cafe Grill & Bar opened a second location at 1175 Worthington Woods Blvd on May 23, 2026. Their original spot on East Broad is brunch-only until 3 p.m. The Worthington Woods location runs all day with an evening menu, so it fills a genuine gap for a weeknight dinner on the north side of the neighborhood.
Sunday belongs to the Green
Saturday is the market. Sunday is the Northwest Village Green.
Concerts on the Green returns every Sunday evening at 7:00 p.m. from May 17 through August 9. Free, outdoors, bring a chair. If you moved in during the winter and have not been yet, this is the single easiest way to understand why longtime residents describe the neighborhood the way they do. Neighbors show up, kids run around, and by the third song you have learned two families' names.
Between the concert and dinner, the walk down High Street now lands you at a restaurant that was closed the last three summers you tried this. That is a small change that adds up.
Two dates to put on the calendar now
A quick look ahead so nothing sneaks up on you:
July 4 — Rotary Family Picnic and Fireworks. On the lawn of Thomas Worthington High School beginning at 6 p.m. Bring a blanket, buy from the food trucks or the grill, and stay for fireworks at 10 p.m. off the flats. The picnic is presented by FC Bank and organized by the Dublin-Worthington Rotary. Musical entertainment and Supergames run through the evening.
October 3 — Old Worthington Market Day. The district's biggest festival, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with more than 200 artisans lining the downtown streets. Because of ongoing construction at the high school, vendor and visitor parking has been moved to 6700 N. High St., the former Anthem building, with a free shuttle running 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. to stops behind the Worthington Inn and the Griswold Center. Worth telling out-of-town guests before they punch the old address into their phone.
Why the small change matters
Neighborhoods do not usually reinvent themselves. They accumulate. A market that has run for 38 straight years, a concert series that fills the Green every Sunday from May through August, a festival that has anchored the first Saturday in October for decades. These are the pieces of Old Worthington that have not moved.
What moves is the shape of the block itself. When the building at 671 N. High reopened this spring, it did not add a new tradition. It closed a gap in an existing one. The Saturday walk from the market down to the Village Green now has a working restaurant at the end of it again. The Sunday concert now has an easy place to land after the last song. That is the small change worth noticing, and it is the kind of thing you only see if you already live here.
If you are thinking about how these shifts affect what your home is worth this summer, or you are eyeing a move within the neighborhood, the team at Dedra Lucas Group has been working these streets for decades and would be glad to talk through what the current market means for your address specifically. Let's Connect.
