JUST LIKE JAZZ
Plant-forward cuisine, improvisation and respect for thinking green come together on the table at Comune
A night at Comune will likely turn even the most ardent of meat eaters into veggie believers. The story of its creation is one of community, sustainability and near-perfect timing. Five years ago, if you had brought up the idea of meatless fine dining in Central Ohio, you might have been met with scoffs and veiled laughter, but that was a different time in Columbus food history. Watershed only made alcohol back then, Service Bar was still a concept and much of the Columbus food scene was dominated by Cameron Mitchell properties. Yet as Bob Dylan said in his 1964 song, “the times, they are a-changing,” and this is never more evident than on a Friday night at Comune.
Inspired by travels abroad, owners Brook Maikut and Joe Galati wanted to bring veggie-based fine dining to the tables of Central Ohio. With an all-star kitchen headed by Ben Kanavel, formerly of the Worthington Inn and Salt and Pine, as well as beverage director Ben Griest, the group began to develop the concept that would become Comune. Utilizing a design-forward approach and pulling its name from an intentional misspelling of the word “commune,” the team built a restaurant that would feel right at home on the streets of San Fransisco.
“It really was a community effort from the beginning,” recalls Galati. “Greg Lehman from Watershed as well as Jen and Sang from The Table came a long way in helping us from the beginning. From there it was finding Ben [Kanavel], and Ben really allowed this vision to become a reality. What people see today and walk into today is built off their support.”
Beyond the seasonal menu and vegetable foundation of all the dishes, Griest and Kanavel are constantly striving to get as close to zero waste as possible. The two work in tandem, often creating dishes with the leftovers from each other’s preparations. As Kanavel puts it, “Ben often asks me well in advance what I’m thinking of using for the upcoming menu. From that he begins to pull from the preparations what can be used in the upcoming drink menu.”
“The exciting thing for me is all that matters is that it tastes good. There is a lot of room for experimentation,” says Griest.
What results is a seasonal menu that feels more akin to a jazz improvisation that a traditional dining experience.
“The menu is designed to absorb the waste,” says Kanavel of various sides and platings that can be changed on the fly to continue reusing their leftovers.
In the case of their table bread, all the spreads change on a weekly to hourly basis depending on what Kanavel finds.
“Total utilization of the ingredients is ideal, but it’s not always possible. When it isn’t, we work to compost anything leftover where it can be recycled into the food being grown,” says Kanavel.
As leftover food is repurposed to grow the ingredients for the new food, you start to see the circle of it all. The menu reflects rebirth.
Table bread featuring sweet potato pineapple purée, beet hummus and a white bean guajillo pepper dip.
Sustainability often starts with reducing waste and conserving natural resources. Yet there is a third level of equal importance: Sustainability is about the creation of an ecosystem, and rooted in an ecosystem is community, something at the forefront of Galati and Maikut’s minds as they began hiring staff.
To create this space, the owners build trust with everyone who works with them. As Galati puts it, “Building trust is one of the key things that we do with every member of the staff. Their life experiences are so important to how we function, and it’s important to give them the freedom to express their creativity, style and be who they are.”
These touches of personality can be seen from the disappearance of a dress code to the handmade quality in each aspect of the dining experience. When it comes down to building this openness, looking in the mirror is often the place to start.
“You have to build it in yourself. It has to come from the top down,” says Maikut. “You have to be willing to say when you’re wrong above all else.
People look to leadership sometimes as having all the answers, but you can’t have all the answers and you have to be willing to admit when you don’t.”
The atmosphere this creates permeates one’s experience at Comune. There is an authenticity far deeper than the interior design, a warmth in everything from the food to the genuine smiles on the faces of those at work. For being such a junior spot, Comune has already figured out who it is. In many ways, this is an ultimate expression of what Maikut and Galati set out to do when the plans for the building first started coming together.
With a new, seasonal menu hitting the tables, it will be exciting to see where this next level of expression is taken.
Comune
677 Parsons Ave.
Columbus, Ohio 43206
614.947.1012
comune-restaurant.com
Instagram: @Comune_Restaurant
