Right Now Downtown

SHOW YOUR LOVE!

It’s time for the third annual Show Your Love contest!  With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, it’s a great time for you downtown-ites to show some love to your favorite downtown eatery. 

That’s right, the downtown hot spot that gets the most votes wins the coveted Show Your Love plaque!  Who will join 2009 winner Jack’s Diner  and 2010 winner Dirty Franks Hot Dog Palace?  Old favorites like Cafe Napolitana?  New hits like Jimmy John’s?  Or maybe a new twist on an old fav like Little Palace?

We don’t want you to feel left out, though.  So to show you some love, when you vote here for your favorite you will be entered to win free lunches from each of our five featured restaurants, each of which marked its downtown debut in 2010:  Lynnally’s, Michael O’Toole’s, The Pickle, Si Senor Sandwiches and More and Spinelli’s Deli . 

They are begging for your vote.  Don’t believe us?  Check out these videos!

On January 25, T. Bears Florist and Chocolatier had some unexpected visitors.  Given that it’s their busiest time of the year, we wanted to help them tell their unusual story and let people know, indeed, they have not closed or had any interruption in service.  Listen here to John explain what happened!

Inside 43215: Driving Traffic for Valentine’s Day from Downtown Columbus on Vimeo.

JACK ATTACK
Based on the sheer volume of votes, we now know that y’all love downtown restaurants… a lot. After weeks of eating and voting and eating some more, we have the public’s pick for Show Your Love: Jack’s Diner.

The owner, Chris Kowalski, took a little time out to tell us about the winning strategy. For the full effect, hum the Rocky Theme Song while reading on…

1. Surround Yourself With Affirming Messages
The diner put up signs and made carryout flyers. There were table tents, and its Web site’s front page continued the campaign. Jack’s went all out.

But what would you expect from a place that celebrates every holiday with more seasonal bling than a Kindergarten classroom?

2. Take One for the Team
Chris insists, “We weren’t really trying to win, just to get people to vote.”

3. The Secret Weapon
That’d be the double cheeseburger, on a grilled bun. Then he adds, “with a milkshake… and fries.”

If you voted for a different downtown eatery, they’re all winners in our book. You can give the other joints a prize too: your patronage!

As has been the tradition for the last five years, Capital Crossroads Ambassadors will be passing out thousands of chocolate candies at the major Downtown intersections this Friday, February 13, in celebration of Valentine’s Day. Should you need your chocolate fix, you will find them between 730-9am and 11am-1pm sweetening the streets.

And…Happy Valentine’s Day from Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District.

We don’t normally do these sorts of things, but this woman is looking for love in all the right places downtown…

We asked The Other Paper’s dining reviewer, Miriam Abbott, to opine on our great restaurants.  While the writer admits that she changes her mind on a daily basis, we got one vote from her this week…