Restaurants in Worthington

The epicurean alchemists at Swades mingle cumin, tomatoes, and coconut milk to create vegetarian Indo-fusion curries and dals that combine into healthy meals easily picked up at the restaurant’s drive-thru. The menu, which changes daily, beckons tongues with dry curries studded with green beans and okra, gravy curries simmering with tofu and kidney beans, and dal dishes that send lentils on speed dates with mango, spinach, or cucumbers. An overwhelming majority of Swades’ dishes are vegan, and one chef draws on a background in raw-food preparation, entertaining taste buds with nuts and spices that have never known the malicious tickle of a nefarious stovetop flame.

As San Su BBQ's showy chefs fricassee vegetables, seafood, and meat on inlaid tabletop grills, awed diners fleck each newly barbecued morsel with a mélange of distinctly Korean condiments plucked from small constellations of finger bowls. Sesame and mustard sauces join tart kimchi as they flavor sizzling stone bowls of bibim bap, several styles of noodles, and traditional breaded katsu dishes. Smooth black marble encircles each grill, bolstering dishes served amid wood-paneled screens and lush potted plants whose leaves change color according to the nearest Scoville rating.

Fingers scroll across tabletop iPads, zooming in on photos of rolls, noodles, and the rest of Aoi Blue Bar's menu. Rolls brimming with scallops, tuna, and cucumbers slip past in the images, and udon noodles swirl around vegetables, tofu, and beef. Behind a nearby stone-topped sushi bar, decorative wooden fans sprawl over a parsley-hedged display case full of fillets, shrimp tails, and avocado halves awaiting sushi knives on a bed of ice. International influences infiltrate the primarily Japanese menu in the form of kimchi and handmade lamb meatballs. Aoi periodically invites DJs to fill the dining room with thrumming beats and lively lights, which turn diners to dancing after their meals and let visiting disco balls fit in.

Aromas of searing meats and vegetables waft from fiery hibachi grills inside Tanuki Japanese Steakhouse Sushi & Bar. Chefs dexterously slice pieces of calamari, chicken, and new york strip steak atop the grills' scorching surfaces, creating bite-sized servings for diners. Behind the sushi bar, other chefs devote themselves to rapidly assembling layered nigiri and carefully rolled maki. Besides traditional rolls, they also experiment by incorporating such flavorful ingredients as chicken tempura, sweet chili sauce, and jalapeños into their special rolls.

The chefs at Famosa Latino Cuisine assemble a voluminous menu of Mexican, Guatemalan, Caribbean, and South American entrees. Like a land bridge made of day-old baguettes, their bill of fare brings various countries together through food, showcasing Mexican burritos alongside Caribbean mofongo or Guatemalan pork chops. The dishes' artful presentations pop with vibrantly hued sauces and fresh garnishes of lemon, cilantro, and avocado, all of which pair palatably with fruity margaritas and daiquiris or frosty beers.

Chefs at Taj Palace spice up curry sauces, bake marinated chicken in fiery ovens, and coat pastries with cardamom and honey syrup to fill their menu with recipes from Northern and Southern India. Red chili peppers add a blazing touch to the spicy vindaloo curry, and the kitchen's clay tandoor oven blows smoky kisses across the dining room in the form of marinated barbecued-chicken kebabs. The daily lunch, Monday-night dinner, and Tuesday-night vegetarian buffets brim with a cornucopia of more than 25 different items, including soups, curried meats, and soft naan.