Midwest: July 2026: Day 7: Columbus

Midwest

July 2026: Day 7: Columbus

Ty is lookng like the scruffy old man he is.

Still handsome for an old pup.

Torta from Guanaquitas 2 is massive.

Chorizo breakfast burrito is solid.

But the torta is better.

Visitor at the birdfeeder.

Pins Mechanical Co. in Dublin.

Beer and cocktails.

Gigantic lighted color board.

Old Bruins.

Both arcade and console games.

Elayne figuring out duck bowling.

Joel is a pro at duck bowling.

Ivy is pretty good at duck bowling.

More cocktails plus some kids' drinks.

Ivy being silly.

Father and daughter.

Showing off.

Joel is a pro at duck bowling.

Father and daughter having fun.

Beer towers. We passed.

North Market in Dublin.

I see french fries.

Hoyo's Kitchen for goat and injera.

Jessica, Dawn, and Joel. Gyros.

Gyros.

Cheese quesadilla hit the spot.

North Market in Dublin.

Fancy pedestrian bridge.

Passing out insect repellent.

Combined family crossing the street.

Johnson's Real Ice Cream has crazy ice cream sandwiches.

And way way crazier ice cream cakes. Menu.

Menu.

Being silly.

Columbus crunch and campfire s'mores, I think it was.

Fueled by sugar.

Father and son.

Joel with all the kids.

Saying goodbye.

Thanks to some last-minute schedule finessing, managed to have both the Melin and Moore families get together in Dublin for the afternoon. Pins Mechanical Co. along with 16-Bit Bar+Arcade is a big shared space with arcade games, console games, pinball, and duck bowling all together, along with pizza and drinks. Not much else for food, which is a bit of a limitation, but still a great place for all the kids to play without too much adult supervision (still constantly needed, just less). We skipped the 100oz beer towers in favor of more reasonable drinks, both alcholic and non-alcoholic, and in general just had a good time.

Was a bit loud inside, but some areas near the open doors/patio rails was a bit more conductive to just hanging out, and it turns out duck bowling is quite fun.

Short walk to North Market, a solid food court with a wide variety of cuisine, for an early dinner. Some of the same vendors as in the North Market in Columbus proper, but with a slightly different vibe. Hoyo's Kitchen for Somali food seems off a tiny bit vs. the one in downtown Columbus, but it's close enough that no one was complaining. There's quite a bit of overlap with the kids in terms of age, and it is always good for the adults to catch up.

Add in a scenic walk across a beautiful curving suspension bridge over the Scicoto River to Johnson's Real Ice Cream, and then a bunch of far, far too generous scoops of ice cream for everyone. The flavors at Johnson's are more mainstream American in terms of actual composition than Mason's Creamery, but like Mason's Creamery, there actually is a decent bit of creativity, even if they don't lean quite as far out within the American comfort zone. Kids and adults alike were quite happy with their ice cream, a bit more annoyed by the mess (thank you Starbucks for letting us use your restrooms), and then it was time to say farewell to the Moore family and head back to Cleveland.