COLUMBUS — Mezcla, the Italian Village restaurant that fought its way back from a van crash earlier this year, has been ranked No. 8 on Yelp’s Best New Restaurants list for 2026.
Mezcla is the only Ohio restaurant on the 25-restaurant national list, which Yelp compiled from a combination of ratings data and user feedback. The list recognizes new restaurants its writers say are shaping the country’s dining scene, with entries from cities including New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Kansas City.
The restaurant, at 1022 Summit St., opened in April 2025 under chef and owner Garrett Talmage. It serves tapas-style Latin American dishes in an upscale setting, and Yelp praised its elegant decor and memorable food, pointing diners who cannot get a table to the bar for craft cocktails and shared plates.
The honor caps a difficult year. In January, a van crashed into Mezcla’s front door at Summit Street and Third Avenue about three hours before opening. Employees were inside at the time, but no one was injured.
The damage was significant, and the restaurant stayed closed for months before reopening on June 5. In an Instagram post, Mezcla called the Yelp honor completely unexpected and extra special after that start to the year.
The Yelp ranking is the restaurant’s second major honor of 2026 — Columbus Monthly also named Mezcla one of its Best New Restaurants for 2026. Despite its hard-to-book reputation, a check of its reservation page on Oct. 13 showed tables available at numerous times through Oct. 18.
