Columbus Monthly’s Best New Restaurants: Cleaver
A meat-centric newcomer features a greatest hits of Ohio fare.
Nicholas Dekker
The First Avenue space that Cleaver inhabits has turned over a few times in recent years, going from a long-running Old Bag of Nails location to a short-lived Harvest Pizzeria and then The Old Spot. But the new concept is here to carve out its own place on the Columbus dining scene.
Cleaver is the creation of Tony Tanner and Matt Evans, owners of neighboring The Butcher & Grocer. And with its promising, meat-centric offerings, Cleaver seems almost like a direct pipeline from the butcher shop to customers’ plates. The businesses feature Ohio-grown products almost exclusively, so dining at Cleaver is an opportunity to welcome a wide range of Buckeye State meats, cheeses and spreads, from RL Valley Ranch beef to Six Buckets Farm pork and Swainway mushrooms to Black Radish Creamery cheeses.