Cleveland-based taqueria Barrio Tacos serves drinks, chips, and tacos to customers at one of their Midwest locations. Photo courtesy of Barrio Tacos provided by Columbus Partner, Jason Beudert.
After two years in the making, Ohio State students can enjoy building their own tacos with a Barrio Tacos just across from campus.
Barrio Tacos, located at 1870 N. High St., is having its opening celebration at 3 p.m. Tuesday. Jason Beudert, Barrio Columbus partner, said the restaurant will be giving one free taco to each dine-in guest, and the first 50 people in line will get free queso for a year, which is something none of the other 15 Barrio locations have done for an opening.
“This location is special to us. To be able to be on the campus of the Ohio State University, I mean, we’re super honored to be here,” Beudert said. “We just can’t wait to open and see how we’re received and to be here for a very, very, very long time.”
Beudert said the northeast Ohio-based Barrio Tacos is a build-your-own taco restaurant that allows guests a customizable experience. The new location will join Barrio’s stand at Ohio Stadium and its food trucks that have been present at Ohio State since 2021, Beudert said.
“Barrio has a sushi-style menu, so guests are able to build their own tacos or their own bowls. Anything they could dream of in a taco, we can make happen,” Beudert said. “We also have an amazing full-service bar. We’re anchored by incredible margaritas, flights of margaritas with different flavors and a full tequila and whiskey list as well.”
Aside from the versatile menu, Jorja Fralick, Columbus Barrio operating market partner, said the recognizable Barrio artwork will draw guests’ attention.
“The artwork is probably the first thing you’re going to notice when you’re walking by,” Fralick said. “It catches your eye from the street. The Day of the Dead has been a big theme for every Barrio that we have across the board.”
The new Barrio location has 20-foot ceilings and walls covered with Day of the Dead artwork by Cleveland artist Eileen Dorsey and her team, Beudert said. He said Dorsey pays homage to iconic Ohio State graduates and the marching band as well as Ohio celebrities throughout the mural.
“Anyone famous from Ohio, she will tag on the walls — such as wrestlers, boxers, football players, whoever is specific to that state,” Fralick said. “She incorporates it to make it a little bit unique.”
The artwork at each Barrio location typically has a storyline that viewers can follow from beginning to end, Fralick said.
“If you start at one point in the restaurant and kind of, go around the restaurant, it usually starts with a girl and a guy and the progression of their meeting, and then them getting married and having a wedding reception,” Fralick said. “That’s why it looks like a lot of them are partying.”
The location is also adorned with three custom steel chandeliers and a 25-foot light fixture by local Columbus steel artist Steven Bush and bathroom artwork by Columbus artists Carlos Roa and Cat Ramos, Beudert said.
The new Barrio Tacos will be open Monday through Thursday 3 p.m. to 1 a.m., Fridays 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., Saturdays 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. and Sundays 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. The campus location will accept BuckID, making it ideal for students looking for quick lunch or a night out, Fralick said.
Fralick said each Barrio typically has a young, high-energy staff and the new location is hiring for all positions.
“We love a very high-volume location and being able to meet all the campus kids,” Fralick said. “It’s pretty cool when you can have your staff get hired during their freshman year in college as they’re going through this degree, and then you get to have them until they graduate and begin their career. It creates a really positive environment and a fun atmosphere to be a part of.”
