Northstar Café

Northstar is one of the staples of the Short North at this point, and rightfully so. It fits in perfectly with the Short North community, and from brunch to dinner, they have options for everyone, including vegan and gluten free options.
Personally, it is difficult for me to stray from ordering a veggie burger every time I go there because they are literally the greatest veggie burgers ever created, but I have branched out and tried some other things I really enjoyed. The Village Salad is awesome, and they will switch out the chicken for tofu if you ask! The pancakes on the brunch menu are also AMAZING, and the biscuits they serve with some of the brunch dishes are the best biscuits I’ve ever had. Seriously.
I’m removing one star because it is fairly expensive to eat at North Star and it can be hard to find a table during busier times or when it’s too cold to utilize the patio space. Overall though, North Star is one of my faves in the Short North and I hope they stick around for years to come!
P. S. Check out their sister restaurant Brassica :) It is another one of my go-​to restaurants, and it is very unique!

I bookmarked Northstar knowing my wife and I would need some vegetarian fare on a recent trip to Columbus. This place fit the bill and more! We actually ended up eating here twice on our trip cause there were too many menu items we wanted to try!
On our first trip, I had the Thai Burrito with seared tofu. It also had brown rice and a crunchy slaw with carrots and a spicy peanut sauce. It was a big portion for sure and was served with tortilla chips with more of the spicy peanut sauce for dipping. It was really outstanding! My wife ordered the Square Meal bowl which had black beans, brown rice, avocado and some crunchy tortilla strips on top. It was nicely spiced and was also a huge portion of deliciousness. Our second trip my wife got the Northstar burger. It was insanely good! The patty was made of black beans, brown rice and beets and was served with a crunchy salad. After thinking I’d branch out, I ended up ordering the Thai Burrito again and splitting it with my wife for half of her burger. Perfect!
It’s a cute restaurant with plenty of seating, including tons on the patio. You order at the counter and they bring your food to your table. And the food came out rather quickly despite them being busy. If there was a location near me I can see eating there frequently! Great spot.

It’s not a regular café, it’s a cool café. Truly Northstar is too hipster for me, but I can’t help but admit that I really like it here. If you’re looking for a basic sandwich or salad, this really isn’t the place for you. If you’re the type of person that is a little wary of healthy ingredients that are trending right now, Northstar really won’t suit your fancy. Their food isn’t just healthy though, it actually tastes good. Northstar makes it easy to order a healthy meal and not feel deprived from your usual favorites. My gripe is really only that the prices are so incredibly high; I don’t see how you could spend less than at least $ 16 for lunch here, which is steep in my opinion. However, given the quality of the ingredients, great menu and ridiculously friendly service, I’ll still keep coming back even though it hurts my wallet.

My family went on Earth Day to get free sandwiches, as has become our tradition. I was just blown away by the service on even such a crazy as this. Great job! Also, I’m not sure if everyone knows this, but they make their own ginger ale and it is delightful.

Northstar Café has always been a staple of my visits to Short North. You just feel better about yourself after eating there. Everything just seems so fresh, and well-​made. The long lines definitely tell you something about this place, and every time I’ve been here, the experience has been consistently good.
I don’t typically go for juices or smoothies in the morning, but I’m a fan of the shooting star, which is made with oranges, carrots, lemon, and ginger. The ginger flavor really gives the juice some depth, and keeps the flavor from being too sweet. I most recently ordered the standard egg sandwich, with pork sausage, and it was quite delicious. The biscuit that it came with sort of fell apart, since it was so buttery, so I do recommend using a fork and knife. My other go-​to is the burger, which is always a favorite of mine. I don’t even mind the sweet potato fries, because the burger is just that good.
Only knock is the value. My egg sandwich was about 12 bucks, and there wasn’t even a hint of potatoes in sight. The sandwich is decently sized, but not $ 12 sized. C’mon son. Yet, the service is always pretty attentive and friendly, and you know they’re using fresh ingredients, so I don’t mind too much about paying a little extra for a quality product.
I recommend coming early to beat the lines. Also, I’d also recommend having one person order for everyone at the counter, while sending someone else to find seating. Will be back for breakfast and brunch for sure, when I’m in the area.

It’s been awhile since I’d been here, but it felt so good to get back. I’d been craving the Northstar Burger… hands down, the best veggie burger on the planet. Just as tasty as ever, it’s hearty & healthy & tasty. This is another place where there are so many good choices. And all in a friendly and warm atmosphere.

I realized that I left a review for this location but had actually dined at another location and now I can’t figure out how to remove my review from this page, so just let me say their food is delicious and the service is always really good.

Great find! Organic foods, juice and coffee. I got the ricotta pancakes, mushroom frittata. The Rosemary potatoes were flavorful and crispy. The buttermilk biscuit and homemade jam was one of the best I’ve every had! You order first and then get a table which could be an issue if you are a large group but was fine for the two of us.

Very happy to find such a good restaurant while in town for work. I ordered a thai chicken burrito, which not only looked great but tasted quite good too. Make sure to try their iced coffee and cookies! They’re pretty awesome.

Many years ago I lived in an awesome apartment right across from Northstar… Before it opened. If it were there when I lived in that apartment I may still be living there. The food is great, the service is outstanding and I love the overall vibe.
We arrived around 10 am on a Sunday and the line was a bit daunting. I had faith and sure enough as we made our way quickly through the line, a table opened as it always does and grabbed it. Our food came out quickly given the busy nature of the time of day. It was prepared perfectly and tasted great. I had the Cowboy breakfast with bacon, and my son had a ricotta pancake. I opted for coffee and he has fresher squeezed OJ. The pancake was devoured, my breakfast too. Sure made for a great morning!

Northstar Café in the Short North district wasn’t what I expected but a lot of what I needed. In my mind I was prepared for seated service where servers would come to the table and take the food and beverage orders.
Northstar Café is an order-​at-​the-​counter based restaurant and coffee shop catering to more organic and clean-​food style eating. And my food and my friend’s food & coffee were delicious. I got the Northstar burger which is black bean and veggie based with kale salad fixins on the side. Very, very tasty and a healthy portion. My friend has been there many times and his fave is the sweet potato hash with two eggs sunnyside up. I have to say his looked as good as my meal delivered on taste.
Seating is by NUMBER so after you cue up, decided on food and order you’ll take your number and post it for the delivery. I will say that on a Saturday at midday the service was a bit slow but it was March and a beautiful 60 degree day and the place was jammin big!
Recommend — YES. I would recommend Northstar Café to the trendy of Short North and any visitors to the area. I think it’s worth a stop on your walk-​about in the district.

Food — Excellent
Price — More on the expensive side
Atmosphere — Vibrant (music a little loud)
Staff — Friendly and helpful

Yes, it’s a little pricey but the food is always good. It’s the kind of place you’d expect in California. I mean, one of the best burgers in town is the Northstar Burger and it’s a veggie burger made fresh with brow rice, black beans, and red beets. If you didn’t know it was a veggie burger, you might not guess right away.
This is a top notch stop for breakfast, as well.

OK don’t shoot me, but I forgot to write this last weekend.
Had Brunch at this Northstar Café: customer service on point, clean, full of atmosphere!
Had the Sweet Potato Hash with Smoked Turkey with scrambled eggs and a biscuit. OMG! Crossed my eyes it was soooooo good. Took home my leftovers, ate the next day for breakfast and was even tastier!
I really like Northstar Café’s. They haven’t disappointed yet. Hope they keep it up.

I love Northstar! I mainly visit during brunch hours but I’ve recently visited during lunch and most recently dinner. This location is great and I love the few extra parking spots to the side of the building which helps out patrons during busy times in the Short North (errr, ALWAYS in the Short North). The food is great and I love the overall vibe. I would however suggest a separate line for call-​in orders. I was picking up a to-​go carry-​out order and had to wait in one with everyone else ordering instead of being able to step up to a different line and just pay (I.e., Chipotle, Panera, etc.).

I think they have the best cookies ever. You can definitely split the cookie with another person because they are so big, but, why would you want to do that?!! They’re too good to share. Each flavor is better than the next.
The hubz thinks scones here are amazing as well, but I prefer the chewy goodness of the cookies.
Any time I’m in Columbus, I have to pass by here for brunch or a baked good to go. Their coffee is great, too.
Just be ready to wait in line! Get here early for sure.

It’s pretty regular for me to go to Northstar 2 – 3 times a week. With it being on both the North and South part of High Street, both locations are super close to Ohio State’s campus! Being a Plain Jane, I was never sure what to order off of the menu, and would consistently stick with the typical cheese pizza/​flatbread. Earth day, however, allowed me to try the Northstar burger for free, and it was life changing. I always get it whether I go for lunch or for dinner. If I am there for breakfast, I always get the sweet potato hash! The food is always fresh and hot, and I have absolutely no complaints.
In addition, the employees are always so friendly and attentive, and truly make you feel welcome. Northstar is a great and hip atmosphere and definitely worth visiting! One of my favorites!

Northstar has been an old reliable for me for so many years that I could regale it in my sleep.
I think the first thing that sucked me in there is simply the atmosphere. I have never encountered an employee at Northstar who was less than friendly, and the clean, modern look is appealing and comfortable. At how many other places can you set up your little order number on a coffeetable and hunker down with a magazine you don’t see at supermarket checkout racks to wait (seldom very long) for your food?
Speaking of the wait, there was one time when I was waiting about half an hour and then went back up to the counter to check on my order. They looked into it and admitted there was a mistake and not only got my order out in a jiffy but gave me a voucher for a free meal at another time. Very professional and courteous.
The food is delish. The veggies in the Buddha bowl are so fresh that they look like they were plucked from a garden, washed, and placed in the bowl. The veggie burger is everything everyone says… yummy and impossible to keep in one piece. The latter isn’t a compliment, but it’s also not a dealbreaker when it’s still so yummy.
And I never grow tired of the flatbread, which I order vegan, with tofu instead of cheese. It was Northstar, in fact, that taught me that «flatbread» refers to very thin-​crust pizza. Maybe that’s common knowledge, but it wasn’t to me at the time. It took me a number of visits before I made the connection between the pizza I saw on people’s plates and the flatbread listed on the menu.
Oh and the ginger ale. I used to get smoothies for my beverage while there, but eventually I converted to ginger ale. I’ve never looked back.
Finally, there is the patio. Right now it’s December, and there aren’t too many days when the patio is a good option (though weirdly there have been a few), but it’s awfully pleasant when the weather is cooperative.

The fish sandwich is sooo good! The fish is very flavorful (could be a bit salty for some people but it’s alright for me)! Another must-​have at the North Star!
Also tried the village salad. Like it too! The goat cheese is not too goat cheesy, which I really like. And the peanut cookie is delicious, too. If you like dark chocolate, you’ll like the chocolate cookie, too.

After hearing about how amazing breakfast/​brunch is at Northstar, it makes total sense that at 9am, opening time, the line is out the door. Luckily, it moves quickly and they even bring out coffee for you while you wait, a great gesture considering it was a cold November morning! I had the house made granola and it was the best granola I’ve ever had, no joke. Topped with some preserves, sliced apples, and of course, Greek yogurt, this was the perfect breakfast fix. Needing to get in the car for a long drive after my breakfast at Northstar, I knew I had to get a little nosh for the road and let me tell you… the ham and cheese scone was one of the best things I’ve ever had. The cheese is oozing, it’s filled with meat, it’s savory, salty, bready, doughy, light, fluffy… sheesh, I’m drooling as I reminisce about it!
Why is there no such thing in NY? I need me my granola n’ scones!

Had it not been for the fact that I’d already eaten two dinners + my credit card had decided to stop working for the day (this is what I get for deciding to pay for my med school tuition without taking more loans, haw haw haw), I would’ve loved to try the food here!
Since we’d already eaten many dinners, however, we figured there’d always be room for dessert! My friends got ginormous cookies, and I had their homemade ginger ale. :] It was almost closing time when we got there, but they didn’t rush us at all, and even gave my friend a free cup of milk to go with her cookie! The service here was phenomenal – super friendly and all-​around awesome – I’d give em’ 5 stars on that alone.
Someday, I’d love to come back here to try the Buddha Bowl and the Sweet Basil Burrito. *-* Til then, I’ll just have to try to experiment til I can make something similar.
I don’t follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, but this place is definitely very friendly to both!

Great food, decent beer, wine, and cocktail selection. Very friendly staff and a very nice environment with both indoor and outdoor tables.
Spent a little over $ 20 for a pizza big enough for two somewhat — hungry people and a nice beer.
8/​10, would dine again.

Love this place. Healthy vegetarian fare that tastes awesome.
I travel a ton and routinely get stuck in restaurants eating straight up junk, but it was so refreshing to be in Columbus and come across some doing food that is not just healthy but pretty dang tasty.
Buddha Bowl! Burger! Yay!

We make an annual trip to Columbus, and as we drive down High Street I see so many restaurants that catch my eye, but I can’t ever convince myself to not make North Star the restaurant we choose.
The atmosphere is bright and filled with energy-​I can’t stay away.
The menu is ways changing with the ingredients that are in season making for the most fresh and delightful entrees.
It can get a bit crowded– but the line moves quickly and while you wait, there is an entire wall of the publications to choose from to keep you occupied long past your wait.
My personal faces: the sweet basil burrito and the black bean and beet burger. I so can’t pass up their fresh ginger beer.
It’s a treat every time!
A cookie as big as your face to-​go is a must, too!

This place already has a million great reviews — and it’s because the food here is SO GOOD. And it is consistently SO GOOD.
So I will keep it short and sweet: Northstar is an amazing spot to hit for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The menu is small-​ish, but everything I’ve tried has been delicious. The salads are big and plentiful! The burgers are crave-​able! The breakfast burrito — some might call it a triumph of mankind. The cookies are literally as big as your face.
If you haven’t been — what are you waiting for?!

Holy pancake heaven. Even if you don’t like pancakes, you have to order them. Thanks to Bryant for suggesting it. Light and fluffy with a dip of warm syrup, mmm. That’s a breakfast. I also had the cowboy breakfast, which comes with a warm biscuit, eggs, and I got bacon. The bacon was thick cut and super fatty and salty in the best way. The biscuit was enough for a meal and I loved the jam! They have a boldly flavored coffee that perked me up that morning.
The space is bright and open. You get a numbered tag and the staff will bring out your food once it’s ready. They have a wall of magazines and reading material with some cozier seating. I’d spend my day lounging or working if I could. In general, the organic/​local approach is wonderful and I can’t wait to go back.

High quality, tasty and affordable dishes with great service served in a comfortable, modern, bright almost coffee shop-​like environment.
My wife and I came here off the recommendation of my aunt who frequents the establishment with her girlfriends almost monthly. It was a great recommendation. We came here the day after the pride parade, so there were a few vestiges from the day before, including some «post-​party» people walking up and down High street. It was great people watching with a lot of bright clothing and tattoos. The restaurant is located in the Short North area of Columbus where there are a number of colorful shops, clubs, bars and restaurants that reflect the more «progressive» gay-​centric culture of the area. We saw very few inappropriate thinks that would make concerned about bringing children, but you might think twice about brining your more socially-​conservative friends and family around here.
We had the kale-​avocado-​date salad and the fish sandwich — both were awesome. I’m not the biggest salad fan, but this salad was awesome. The dates in particular were a surprisingly great addition. I definitely recommend. The fish sandwich looked pretty basic when it was served, but it tasted very good. It had a big piece of fresh and tasty grilled fish with slaw and tomato on a toasted bun. Yes please.
Despite the system where you order at the counter and they bring out your food, the service was great. When I asked the gentleman who brought our food out for another plate he asked if I wanted to split the dishes and that he could do that for me. Errr… yes please, again. Awesome.
The environment inside the restaurant is more akin to a modern, brighter version of a coffee shop. It has couches, a well-​stocked magazine rack I also notices a number of people on their laptops and headphones. I still didn’t feel badly for having a conversation. Pretty cool.
The prices weren’t too bad either. Maybe $ 10-​$ 18 /​dish.
Looking forward to returning.

Ever since I moved to Columbus, I’ve heard really good things about Northstar. However, in reviewing the menu online previously, I’d have to say that they have a pretty limited amount of things that I’m personally interested in eating. That being said, I went recently at the request of a friend, and I’d have to say that I had a pretty great experience overall.
I started with a ginger ale because I’d heard that theirs are quite good, and that’s no lie. That ginger ale was probably the best ginger ale I’ve ever had. Then I had their cheeseburger. I know everybody raves about the Northstar burger, but that’s not my bag. However, the regular cheeseburger was pretty tasty, and though I’m not really a fan of sweet potato fries, I thought they were pretty good as well. I also had a margarita, which was appropriately delightful. And I left with one of their GIANT cookies, which took me like three days to finish haha.
As for the service, all of the employees were super nice and extremely accommodating. And the overall ambience in the restaurant is quite nice. I can’t say that I’ll be making Northstar a regular stop in my dining out rotation, but I definitely see myself returning in the future.

Ten years ago, my friend Kristin brought a young, naïve Louisiana boy to a funky little restaurant in the eclectic Short North. And it was love at first sight.
That boy was me, and the restaurant was Northstar.
Fast forward a decade, and everybody’s grown up. The Short North has become the mecca of dining, drinking, and culture in Columbus; Northstar has built two much bigger locations in Clintonville and Easton; and then there’s me – I’m, well, a lot older.
But one thing hasn’t changed: Northstar is still my favorite restaurant in Columbus. They were doing farm to table when it wasn’t cool. They focused on local ingredients when nobody else really did. They never bought into that trend in customer service when everybody starting being snarky.
For me, Northstar is perfect.
If all you’re concerned with is price, then please don’t come here. It’s expensive, but it’s totally worth it. You’re paying for the whole experience, and these folks nail it every time. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting one of the owners (Kevin) a few times, and it’s evident that everything amazing about Northstar starts at the top and flows down into every nook and cranny. They treat their employees well, who, in turn, treat their customers well.
The Short North shop is beautiful and very casual at the same time. They have a brand new patio that is absolutely gorgeous! The staff is wonderful too. My favorite thing is how proactive they all are; if they see that anything is out of the ordinary, they will go out of their way to make it right. You can tell they are all empowered to make decisions that will delight customers. Special shout-​out to Andrew, the shining star of Northstar.
And then there’s the food. Oh, it’s so good. Here are my personal favorites:
–Breakfast–
*Whatever you get, add a single ricotta pancake. You will not regret it.
*The big burrito – chock full of sweet potatoes, black beans, onions, peppers, cheese, and an egg
*Sweet potato and turkey hash with two eggs on top
–Lunch/​Dinner–
*The grilled fish sandwich is my favorite meal in the entire city. Except I don’t get it on a bun, and I add a side of steamed broccoli and peanut sauce. It’s a major upgrade.
*The buddha bowl is pure comfort food (that’s kinda healthy too). It’s brown rice, topped with chicken or tofu, loaded with steamed veggies, and doused in life-​changing peanut sauce.
*The Northstar veggie burger or the moo burger – both are amazing in their own way.
I could gush for hours about my favorite spot in the city, but you really should just check it out for yourself instead. It’s a perfect place to hang out with friends, take out-​of-​towners, or even have a solo date. Their magazine selection is better than Barnes & Noble, so a dinner here by myself is my idea of heaven.

The hype, the long line, the prices — Northstar Café lives up to every expectation set.
The staff are incredible. The vibe in the place forces a smile and a buzz in your attitude. What was most apparent from my first visit is that this place knows what the customers expect and it is their foremost duty to fulfill that expectation.
I was fortunate to have generous eating buddies, and we each split our order into thirds and passed the plates around. I tried the Standard Egg Sandwich, Cloud Nine Pancakes, Northstar Burger, Praline Scone, and Shooting Star juice.
The pancakes are JUST as good as everyone claims. Holy crap. I don’t even know if the ricotta is the magic ingredient. Ricotta is probably their code name for «crack cocaine».
The egg sandwich looked a little small for the price tag, but it was cooked to perfection and was quite filling despite looking petite. I’d order it again in a heartbeat. The biscuit bun would have stood alone.
The burger was huge and delicious, but I am not a connoisseur of veggie burgers. I’d happily eat every bite if you put another one in front of me, but I think I prefer the meaty stuff.
Praline scone — just try and stop me from eating one within range of my praline scone radar. I double dare you to stop me. Actually don’t try. Please, I just need the scone.

AMAZING EXPERIENCE!
I’m not one to throw around caps lock but how can you not use caps when you order a creative and refreshing brunch at the counter and the guy tells you its on the house «because, why not?» –literally his words. If only the entire world committed acts of random kindness with a «because, why not?» mentality.
Before I lose you, I would give this place 5 stars even if the meal wasn’t free. My coworker, Cindy G’s review loving on the ricotta pancakes sold me in an instant. It’s true — those are some of the tastiest pancakes I have ever experienced. Light and fluffy, topped with sliced bananas and real maple syrup. If only Columbus were closer…
We ordered family style at our table so everyone could sample a little of this and that. The veggie burger was my least favorite of the three (please don’t shoot me, I know this is one of Unilocalers’ favorite dishes at Northstar). Second to the pancakes was the standard egg biscuit sandwich served with sausage patties and a side of Michigan cherry jam. Mmm… those biscuits.
To top it all off, I had the highly recommended Northstar juice made of fresh carrots, oranges, lemon and ginger. Very refreshing!
*Final note: the weekend brunch line moves fairly quickly. Hang in there!

It’s taken me too long to write this review. Northstar was one of the first places I tried out when I turned 16 and was finally able to drive outside my suburb town and into the city — not even kidding! I’ve been a huge fan of this local chain ever since, and actually credit this restaurant for introducing me to Columbus’ food scene (and therefore every other city’s food scene). With that unbiased statement out of the way, their food and consistently friendly staff have never disappointed me after all these years!
The atmosphere is trendy and casual, playing up the earth tones and open spaces to remind you that they use fresh and generally organic ingredients. Great for a date, business lunch, group get-​together, dining alone, whatever you please. But the food is what really stands out here. You won’t feel bad about eating here because your meal is 60% veggies, but you’re happy because the food is so delicious. If you haven’t yet, try the Northstar burger (best black bean burger I’ve had yet!), the Buddha Bowl, or the Thai burrito. Breakfast is served all day on the weekends (but I can’t be sure they still do that).
Northstar is more of a treat yo’self meal for me because I know I’ll be paying close to $ 20 whenever I eat here. But it will always be one of my top picks whenever I’m in town!