🍺 Land-Grant Was Just Named One of the Best Bars in America
When USA TODAY names the country’s best bars, you’d expect the list to be all New York, Chicago, and LA. Columbus made the cut — and it’s easy to see why.
Land-Grant Brewing in Franklinton was named one of USA TODAY’s 38 Bars of the Year for 2026.
Here’s what makes it so special.
It’s not a corner bar — it’s a 1.5-acre campus, built inside a former 1923 elevator factory. There’s a taproom with 20 beers on tap, a huge tree-shaded beer garden, and an outdoor sports area called Gravity Park with pickleball, basketball, and cornhole. Five food trucks on-site, including Ray Ray’s Hog Pit.
But the real magic is the calendar.
Massive LED screens for Ohio State football, World Cup soccer, and F1. Trivia, emo karaoke, yoga, reality-TV watch parties, winter putt-putt with hockey sticks. Family Sundays with face-painting and kids’ movies. As the founders put it: if it sounds like something people want to do, they’ll figure out how to do it.
Why this matters for Columbus.
Places like Land-Grant are exactly what turn a neighborhood — in this case Franklinton, the oldest in Columbus — into a destination. Great local spots are what make a city somewhere people want to live, not just visit. And national recognition like this is one more sign Columbus keeps punching above its weight.
📍 Land-Grant Brewing — 424 W. Town St., Franklinton
Source: Columbus Dispatch
Gagan Columbus, Ohio REALTOR.
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