Renowned Baker Sarah Black Dies; Weiland’s Market Changing Hands

Master baker Sarah Black died on Thursday, Feb. 15. A Marion, Ohio native, Black spent nearly three decades in New York honing her craft, working in a variety of restaurants before establishing herself as an accomplished baker. Black helped create Tom Cat Bakery and Companio Breads, and published her cookbook, “One Dough, Ten Breads: Making Great Bread By Hand.” In 2015, she relocated back to Marion, and a couple years later, she helped open Flowers & Bread, a bakery and floral studio in Clintonville. After she moved on from that project, she created Sarah’s Breads, selling bread-making kits, working with local farmers to source ingredients and teaching classes. Read Columbus Monthly’s interview with Black from April 2020.

Jennifer Williams and Scott Bowman, owners of Weiland’s Market, announced this week their plans to sell the Clintonville grocery store to employees Daniel Phillips and Andy Russell. Williams’ father John co-founded the market with George Weiland in 1961; Williams and Bowman took over operations in 2011. The duo shared on Facebook that they wanted to retire after working in the market for many years and trusted Phillips and Russell to carry on the store’s legacy. Phillips is currently the market’s meat and seafood manager, while Russell manages grocery, produce and beverages; they’ll assume ownership on April 1. In 2020, Columbus CEO, Columbus Monthly’s sister publication, profiled Jennifer Williams.

Heath-based Homestead Beer Co. announced that it has acquired Heart State Brewing and intends to move production to Heart State’s facility at 750 Cross Pointe Road in Gahanna. The brewery plans to build out the Gahanna space into a full restaurant and taproom and eventually put its original Heath facility on the market. Homestead also operates taprooms in Marysville and Canal Winchester.

Coast Wine House in Dublin announced the addition of a full-service dining concept called Gene’s, opening steps from the wine bar at 91 S. High St. Heading up the kitchen is Coast’s chef and kitchen manager Bobby Moore, a Montreal native who has been with the company since 2020.

Charleston-based Hank’s Seafood announced plans to open Hank’s Lowcountry Seafood & Raw Bar this spring in the Edwards Cos.’ development on the northwest corner of Gay and High Streets in Downtown. Hank’s was first founded in Charleston in 1999 and in 2018 was folded into Makeready, the hotel and restaurant company behind The Junto, which opened last summer on the Scioto Peninsula.

Maple Street Biscuit Co. announced that its third Central Ohio store will open at 9711 Sawmill Parkway in Powell on Monday, Feb. 26. Maple Street was founded in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2012 and was purchased by Cracker Barrel in 2019. It entered the Columbus market with a Polaris store in January 2023, followed by a Worthington location later last year.

The Columbus Winter Wine Festival returns this Saturday, Feb. 24 to Brewmaster’s Gate in the Brewery District.