Buckeye Donuts to Join North Market; Rice Bowl to Close After 64 Years

Openings & Announcements 

Doughnuts are returning to the historic North Market on Spruce Street—and not just any doughnuts. The market announced today that the beloved Columbus doughnut shop Buckeye Donuts will join the North Market this spring. The partnership brings together two of the city’s most iconic brands. According to the announcement, Buckeye Donuts will offer a variety of classic doughnuts, like glazed and chocolate, as well as creative options such as maple bacon and apple fritter. The location is an expansion of the Buckeye Donuts location at 1363 S. High St., owned by Lou Sauter. Though under different ownership for decades, the South High and Campus locations share the same name and have coexisted amicably. "Buckeye Donuts has been proudly serving Central Ohio with classic, handmade doughnuts the same way since 1969. We are excited for the opportunity to partner with the North Market, expanding our services to Downtown Columbus,” Sauter said in a press release. A year ago, the market announced that a much younger business, Dodo Donuts, would replace outgoing Destination Donuts (which relocated to Clintonville), but those plans have been scrapped. “The owner of Dodo Donuts was not able to continue the project for personal reasons,” said North Market’s executive director, Rick Harrison Wolfe, in an emailed statement. 

The folks behind the Latin American food truck Cilantro Latin Fusion have opened their first brick-and-mortar restaurant at 4852 Sawmill Road. The new eatery fills what used to be Chile Verde Café, before the longtime Southwestern restaurant moved to Polaris. Cilantro's menu offerings include arepas, pabellón criollo bowls, patacón and more. You can still find Cilantro’s food truck at 993 King Avenue.  

Closings

Rice Bowl, a landmark Chinese restaurant on Columbus’ Far South Side, announced this week that it would close at the end of May after a 64-year run. The restaurant at 2300 S. High St. is set to be demolished to make way for a pair of affordable housing complexes from the NRP Group. Rice Bowl first opened in 1959 in the Great Southern Shopping Center and relocated to its current site in 1991. During the remaining weeks of Rice Bowl’s tenure, the dining room will be open Thursday through Saturday, with carryout available Monday through Saturday.