Fire, but not char. Find out why this Columbus restaurant is one of the best in the USA
Chef Sebastian La Rocca brought his international reputation to Columbus in 2022 to open Fyr at the Hilton Columbus Downtown. This week, his restaurant has made national news: Along with 46 others, Fyr was included in the 2024 USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year list.
"We never thought so soon we would be achieving this," said La Rocca, who most recently lived and worked in Costa Rica. "It's a milestone that we're really excited to have."
How many have you been to?Check out USA TODAY's 2024 Restaurants of the Year
What makes Fyr stand out
La Rocca uses techniques and touches from his native Argentina to cook Ohio-sourced beef, chicken and vegetables at Fyr. But what makes Fyr stand out isn't just what it is — the restaurant that brought the live-fire cooking trend to Columbus — but what it is not.
It's not a steakhouse, and it's not a barbecue restaurant in the traditional, American sense. Although 90% of the food served at FYR touches fire (and, yes, the wood is also Ohio-sourced, from the Appalachian foothills), you won't find deep, dark grill marks or thick, sweet sauces.
The food is Latin-influenced, more carefully cooked, and served with sauces such as Argentinian chimichurri, Spanish romesco or Mexican mole.
Our criteria forUSA TODAY's Restaurants of the Year for 2024
Fyr's wood-burning ovens and grills are the culinary and visual stars of the show, although they get competition in the latter category from the views outward toward Downtown Columbus from its two-story, floor-to-ceiling windows.
What to order at Fyr
Meat. The grilled lamb shank is cooked for four hours in indirect heat, basted with an herb brush and then finished on the grill. But if you can't decide — and if you're dining with a group — try the parrillada, or mixed grill. It includes chorizo, sweet breads, bone marrow, chicken and skirt steak.
Veggies. For a starter, order the popular Chilled Wood-Oven Roasted Tomato. The smoky whole tomato is complemented by honey, goat cheese, charred onion and sumac. Our reviewer recommended asking for some complimentary toast to soak up the juices.
Dessert. The caramel flan is a recipe from La Rocca's culinary inspiration, his grandmother. Another dessert is more representative of the chef's new home. The PB&C, with the flavors of Ohio's iconic buckeye bonbons, is a chocolate brownie with chocolate custard, peanut cremeux, caramel and a peanut nougat.
Did you know?
Fyr also hosts a monthly visiting chef series, in which La Rocca and chefs from other restaurants around the world curate a six-course meal. Those who came to Columbus in 2023 included chefs José Luis Chavez from Mission Ceviche in New York; Pablo Bonilla from Sikwa in San José, Costa Rica; Curtis Duffy from Ever in Chicago; Mario Castrellón from Maito in Panama City, Panama; and Jesús Villarreal from Cara de Vaca in Monterrey, Mexico.
Details: Fyr, 404 N. High St., Columbus, Ohio; 614-484-5286, fyrshortnorth.com