Ambrose and Eve

I’ve always liked the idea of taking care of people and making them feel at home and comfortable,” says Chef Catie Randazzo of Ambrose and Eve, “and the first thing that comes to mind when I think of that is family.”

Named after her grandparents, Ambrose and Eve is a small restaurant on South High Street that, upon crossing the threshold, instantly feels like coming home. Warmth and conviviality radiate from this cozy space, from the framed family photos to the little touches one might find in their own grandparent’s home, such as the vintage plates or the hand-painted roses on the walls.

While Ambrose and Eve is still relatively new to the Columbus food scene—it’s just approaching its one-year anniversary—the idea of creating a restaurant where family dinner is held “every night and everyone is invited” started long before their doors opened. 

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

Food and conviviality have always been in Catie’s blood. From a young age, she recalls making pies from scratch with her grandmother and tending to her mother’s vegetable garden, the two of them canning the season’s bounty for the winter months. Every Friday was pizza night with her father, and on Saturday mornings he made the most gigantic pancakes.

These experiences eventually led Catie to culinary school, followed by an internship at Nostrana in Portland, Oregon, where she rediscovered from-scratch cooking. She later moved to Allswell in New York, the place she credits for helping her discover her unique chef’s voice. Upon returning to Columbus in 2013, Catie launched the food truck Challah! While preparing her food at a local commissary, she met fellow food trucker and chef Matt Heaggans. He couldn’t have possibly known what he was about to get himself into at the time.

THE DYNAMIC DUO

Catie first talked Matt into being her friend. After five years of friendship, pop-ups and culinary showdowns, she then talked him into opening a restaurant with her. They eventually teamed up as co-owners and chefs of Ambrose and Eve. Her charm really knows no bounds.

While the idea of Ambrose and Eve had already been forming for quite some time, Catie and Matt thoughtfully researched (and ate) their way around various restaurants in different cities before setting intentions for their own.

“We talked about the way that we wanted service to run and how we wanted people to feel in the restaurant for seven months before we even talked about what the food was going to be,” she says. They wanted to create an inclusive space where people felt welcome. Where everyone felt like they belonged. “The concept was about making it feel like you were at a dinner party at your grandmother’s house every night of the week,” Catie says.

From there, the menu followed. The duo wanted to take old classics and reinvent them with modern techniques and new ingredients. Think jerk chicken and plantain spaetzle for chicken and dumplings, or braised celery, burrata, Castelvetrano olives and truffle butter for “ants on a log.” Seasonality was extremely important, and cooking from scratch was the only way to go. They’re thoughtful about picking the right vegetables and meats, educating diners about where their food comes from and how it’s made as well as helping everyone better understand the value of food.

The intentionality behind the restaurant becomes even more apparent the longer one listens to Catie. The framed photographs? They are real photographs of Catie’s and Matt’s families, as well as those of friends who have supported them from the beginning. The private dining room is named in honor of Matt’s mother, and the dishes are reminiscent of family memories.

This deep intentionality between both thoughtful food and exquisite service at Ambrose and Eve is enough to encourage guests to raise a glass—either to the family they were born into or perhaps to new ones gathered together at the table.

A PLACE TO CALL HOME

While Columbus has been long known as a fast-food test market, places like Ambrose and Eve are reminders of the importance of slowing down, appreciating the hard work that goes into every dish and always treating guests like family. Restaurants like this need to continue to exist, because everyone deserves somewhere special they can call home.

There are plenty of words that could be used to describe Ambrose and Eve. Thoughtful, inclusive, intentional, warm, grounding, convivial. But perhaps the way that Catie herself describes it is best: magical.

Ambrose and Eve is located at 716 S. High St. in Columbus. Dinner begins at 5pm Tuesday through Saturday, with brunch 11am–3pm Saturday and Sunday. Learn more at ambroseandevecolumbus.com.