A locally owned entrant into the cook-it-yourself niche of Chinese hot pot and Korean barbecue restaurants has closed.
PJ Hot Pot, which opened in February 2024 at 6100 Sawmill Road on the Northwest Side, currently has a sign on its front door announcing renovations inside. It also says a new owner will open a new restaurant in the building.
Signage already on the restaurant is for another hot pot-barbecue combo called ER-GE. Signs and building permits on file with the city of Columbus indicate the new restaurant also will include a buffet.
PJ Hot Pot was a joint venture of Peter Chen and Joe Lin, fishing buddies who own competing seafood-boil restaurants in and around Columbus. Chen owns five Pier 11 Boiling Seafood locations, and Lin owns two Cajun Boil Bar restaurants.
The Dispatch has reached out to Chen for more information.
Dining Reporter Bob Vitale can be reached at rvitale@dispatch.com or at @dispatchdining on the Instagram social platform.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: PJ Hot Pot, which helped boost the cook-it-yourself Asian restaurant trend, has closed
Reporting by Bob Vitale, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
