Italian Kitchen to Bring Modern Neighborhood Italian Dining to Downtown Hilliard
HILLIARD, OH — A new neighborhood Italian restaurant is coming to Downtown Hilliard. Lira Italian Kitchen, a new concept created in partnership with Westwood Collective and Around The Clock Hospitality, the team behind The Clocktower Kitchen & Bar, is set to open at 4056 Main Street in Hilliard, Ohio.
Located inside an historic former bank, Lira will give new life to the building while embracing pieces of its history - including the existing bank vault as the wine cellar. The restaurant experience will blend old-world character with a modern Italian, chef-driven menu. Named after the longstanding Italian currency (before moving to the Euro), Lira pays homage to the site’s banking history.
“We have dreamed of a project like this since planting our roots in Hilliard,” said Andy Warnock, Founder and CEO of Westwood Collective in Hilliard. “To be selected as the developer of choice by the City of Hilliard was the culmination of 20 years of efforts to prepare ourselves to tackle a complex, infill, marquee development site like this one. To be able to partner (again) with Around the Clock Hospitality is the cherry on top.”
Lira culinary program is a scratch kitchen that will center around handmade pasta and wood-fired dishes made with seasonal ingredients. Design elements will focus on an open kitchen looking onto a wood-fired grill, dedicated pasta room and twenty seat bar.
A two story addition will abut the existing structure with a planned 140 indoor seats and an additional 34 outdoor. Plans call for first-floor dining, bar seating and second-floor mezzanine that can also be used as private event space. The bar program will complement the kitchen with European wines, craft cocktails, spritzes, aperitivo, amaro and espresso.
“Our goal is Lira to feel like the kind of restaurant that becomes part of the neighborhood,” says Benjamyn Greig, owner of The Clocktower. ‘A place you can come for a great bowl of pasta on a Tuesday night, meet friends for cocktails at the bar, celebrate something special or settle in for a dinner with family. We want it to feel elevated and memorable without ever losing that sense of warmth and familiarity.”
LIRA Italian Kitchen is expected to open early 2028 on the former Chase Bank site in Downtown Hilliard.
For updates and an inside look at the restaurant as it comes to life, visit liraitaliankitchen.com and follow @liraitaliankitchen on social media.
About Around The Clock Hospitality
Around The Clock Hospitality is a Central Ohio-based hospitality group dedicated to creating thoughtful, community-driven dining and gathering experiences. Rooted in a shared passion for exceptional food, genuine hospitality and memorable spaces, the group develops and operates distinctive restaurant and hospitality concepts that celebrate the character of the communities they call home.
Its portfolio includes The Clocktower Kitchen + Bar in Plain City, Ohio, where seasonal, thoughtfully sourced cuisine meets warm hospitality within one of the community’s most historic landmarks. Around The Clock Hospitality brings together experienced leaders in culinary operations, events, marketing and hospitality with a shared goal: creating places where people want to gather, connect and return to time and time again.
Learn more at theclocktowerkitchenandbar.com.
About Westwood Collective
The Westwood Collective is a community-focused real estate development firm dedicated to enhancing and distinguishing the communities where people work and live. Founded in 2018 by Andy Warnock, the Central Ohio-based company specializes in thoughtful real estate investment, development and management across commercial, residential, hospitality and entertainment properties. Through meaningful partnerships and a community-first approach, The Westwood Collective transforms spaces into vibrant destinations where people can gather, live and thrive.
From restaurants and wineries to mixed-use developments, co-working spaces and residential communities, The Westwood Collective is committed to creating distinctive projects that fill community needs while contributing to the long-term growth and character of the neighborhoods they serve.
Learn more at westwoodcollective.com.
