Hidey Holes and Local Folks Part Two

Three Sisters Pie Company and The Elbow Lounge...

This is one of Three Sisters Pie Company's pies,
but not the pie I had today.

In the Books and Boards bookstore, which just opened in December 2016 (I've already written about), a new business inside the bookstore has come online, as well. It's called The Three Sisters Pie Company, and as the name implies it sells pies. It also sells pie-ettes, which is a good way to salve a sweet tooth without the sin of eating a slice of pie. Three Sisters also sells specialty drinks, coffees, and they always keep a pot of regular, no frills coffee for people like me. I like to go in, have a dessert and drink more than a single mug of coffee, and read the Commercial Dispatch, or browse books. The owner's name is Rachel. On Facebook, there is the story of the pie company and how it came about, which you can access here. I would suggest visiting Facebook to find out more.

The whole store is well lit and both the bookstore and the pie company stay open until 10 p.m. every night except Sunday, when they close at 7 p.m. Both businesses are closed on Monday. The new pie company draws customers. I was in there today and almost every table was filled with customers; the store was full of browsers, and one of the local authors, whose reading I attended a couple of weeks ago will be having an event in the store when his new book comes out...

Rachel is the owner. She's the
one with the apron.

But I digress. Today I had a slice of the salt and honey pie, topped with cashews. How to describe its taste and texture? It sort of reminded me of one of my elderly aunt's pies, where you just get this delicious filling. It's light of texture, bursting with flavor, and goes away all too quickly.

I was there another evening in the bookstore/pie store, because it was the first night the pie shop was open. As things usually happen, I met another interesting person, who struck up a conversation with me. His name is Rob Swindol. He and his mother own The Elbow Room Lounge, just off 5th Street North and 2nd Ave North (a side-street entrance), and neither Rob nor his mother took offense when I said I would include it as another of Columbus's "hidey holes."

Anyway, small town, it turns out that Rachel, the owner of the pie company also makes the crust for the pizzas they serve at the Elbow Room, so guess what? After I left the pie store that night, I went over to the Elbow room and ordered a pizza and a Coke (don't drink alcohol, me-self), and of course, Rob and I continued our discussion of Columbus, where Rob had come from.

One of two rooms in the Elbow Room Lounge. The
other room is where the musicians play and is also a
game room.

He and his mother bought the Elbow Room three years ago, when they returned to West Point, just slightly north and west of Columbus (about 18 miles). Barbara, Rob's mother, returned from California; Rob returned from Boston. He said that he wanted to recreate the pub atmosphere like those in Boston. Rob grew up in West Point. The bar was established, circa 1952, though Rob says no one is sure of the exact date. Nonetheless, Rob and his mother have brought new life to the bar.

I returned there on a Wednesday night for open-mic night. That's where musicians sign up for the evening and each group or individual does a few songs. Rob had said that some of the people who perform are quite good, and I have to say that he's right. As I've learned and now experienced in several ways, music and literature and art are part of the state's DNA. If for no other reason than to get away for a couple of hours, I will no doubt return to the Elbow Room Lounge for a break from my solitary evenings with my twin calicoes.

On my first time at the Elbow room, as Rob and I were talking, a young man by the name of Michael Williams came in and asked permission to put up a poster announcing the screening of his latest movie. My ears perked up, because I wondered if Michael might be the film maker I had read about who lived in West Point and had already produced an award winning film called Ozland, and as it turned out, he was. The new film is called The Atoning. I watched the trailer on YouTube, and I have included it below in the usual video section of this blog.

The screening for the new film will take place at the Malco Cinema here in Columbus. Tickets to the screenings are $10, available in advance at "shendopenfilms." The screening at Malco Cinema is Thursday, Feb 2 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.