Westerville diners will have two new options by the end of the week: Fat Arnie’s Provecho opens Thursday afternoon in Uptown, followed by Bombay House Restaurant & Bar near Polaris on Friday.
Both restaurants are opening in former restaurant spaces, with Fat Arnie’s transforming the former DiCarlo’s Pizza location on South State Street and Bombay House moving into part of the former Winking Lizard space on Polaris Parkway.
Fat Arnie’s Provecho
Fat Arnie’s Provecho will open Thursday afternoon at 20 S. State St. in Uptown Westerville.
The Beardman family owns the new restaurant and also operates Fat Arnie’s Sandwich Shop inside Rafters Beer Pub on Indianola Avenue in Clintonville. The Westerville location is the family’s first standalone brick-and-mortar restaurant.
Provecho will not copy the original sandwich shop. Instead, it will feature a Latin-inspired menu designed in part around equipment already in the former DiCarlo’s kitchen, including its pizza oven. The restaurant will focus largely on takeout and delivery, with limited seating.
Handmade empanadas, a popular item at the Clintonville shop, will be among the Westerville offerings. They are made in-house and hand-rolled daily, with varieties including mojo pork and beef and cheese. A few Fat Arnie’s sandwiches are also expected, while much of the menu will be specific to Provecho.
Chris Beardman and his sons, Christopher and Andrew, are developing the business. Christopher, whose restaurant background includes Lindey’s and Chapman’s Eat Market, leads the kitchen. Andrew handles marketing, social media, food preparation, and other parts of the family business.
The name “Provecho” comes from an expression commonly used in Latin America to wish someone an enjoyable meal.
The restaurant shares the building with the soon-to-open The Blind Pour, an adjoining neighborhood bar being developed by Beardman and Columbus radio personality Dino Tripodis. Eventually, customers seated at The Blind Pour can order from the Provecho menu.
Bombay House
Bombay House Restaurant & Bar will open Friday at 496 Polaris Pkwy. in part of the former Winking Lizard space.
Owned by the Kondhare family, the 4,800-square-foot restaurant emphasizes dine-in service, with a polished, low-lit dining room, full bar, and handcrafted cocktails.
The Kondhare family is originally from Mumbai, and the menu features a mix of regional specialties and familiar Indian dishes, including butter chicken, chicken tikka masala, dosas, and biryanis.
Among the house specialties is vada pav, a Mumbai-style sandwich made with a spiced potato fritter on a buttered bun with house-made chutneys. Other offerings include misal pav, made with sprouted lentils and spices; pav bhaji, a buttery spiced vegetable mash served with toasted rolls; and Indo-Chinese dishes.
The menu also includes vegetarian and non-vegetarian appetizers and entrees, along with desserts such as gulab jamun and a brownie served sizzling and prepared tableside.
Bombay House will offer carryout, delivery, and catering. Before opening to the public, the restaurant handled a large catering order for Indian singer Shreya Ghoshal and her team during her Sept. 9 concert at Nationwide Arena.
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