PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF DERRONN MCCOLLUM
If you’ve found yourself around the Contemporary Arts Center recently, you may have noticed a new place on the scene. Filled with picnic tables, artificial grass, a pool table, and one seriously impressive front counter, Mint: Millie’s in Town serves up southern-style soul food from its Sixth Street location.
Owner Deronn McCollum originally opened Millie’s in 2021 as Millie’s Plughouse in Green Township, named in honor of his cousin Millie and his own sobriquet. “I go by the name of ‘Jamaican Car Plug,’” he explains. “That’s where Plughouse came from—Plug’s House.”
See, McCollum never set out to become a restaurateur; he’s always been a car man. With 10 years in car sales, he’s been the top seller for Nissan in Cincinnati and the state of Ohio for at least seven consecutive years. “It’s great money but anybody in sales knows that it comes with a lot of hours,” he says.
Feeling worn down from the long hours of selling, McCollum walked away for a while to figure out what could come next, when, during a visit to department store Gabe’s in Green Township, he noticed the empty space formerly occupied by Christine’s Casual Dining.
“I just couldn’t figure out why that space was empty for that long,” he says. “I had no interest in ever opening a restaurant or anything like that, but I kept riding past the space that looked like it had potential.”
When he signed the lease for the space on Harrison Avenue, he did have a secret weapon at his disposal for food-service success: his grandmother.
“My grandmother is my favorite person in the world,” he explains. “She is my heart, and I love her so, so dearly. She always cooked. For years and years, she talked about opening a restaurant, but we never were in a position or had the time, so a lot of our menu items come from her. It’s very much grandmother inspired.”
Millie’s Plughouse found a clientele quickly, but a combination of discouraging factors—poor street visibility, costly repairs, and some frightening harassment—convinced to pack things up and move shop. “It was cheaper to leave,” he says.
He originally signed a lease for a Main Street space that needed a lot of work, but delays in starting renovations led to a year of downtime, during which McCollum spotted a prime location.
“This spot down right here on Fountain Square popped up,” he says. “By the grace of God, I think it was heaven sent because I don’t think anybody gets that lucky, to get a spot right here on the business strip of Cincinnati.”
Last month, Millie’s in Town opened the doors of its downtown location for business, and customers new and old flocked to the new digs. His grandmother can’t help as much these days following a stroke, but many of her recipes remain on the menu alongside some new additions for the downtown crowd.
McCollum hired a new chef, too, a Cincinnati People’s Choice Award-winning chef formerly of DirTy BreakfasT in Seven Hills. He may not have set out to be a restaurateur, but after all the setbacks and challenges, McCollum is overjoyed to see Millie’s in Town open for business.
“I’m very happy, very humbled, and very appreciative,” he says. “We’re happy to be downtown.”
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